(ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE)
Bob Copeland © 2004
The universe began with the “Big Bang”, according to current scientific dogma. An infinite mass, compressed into an infinitely small space, exploded nearly 14 billion years ago and has been expanding outward ever since, with concomitant development of the universe and life. Science cannot conjecture how that mass came to be or what caused it suddenly to explode. Our earth coalesced into orbit around the sun nearly 4.5 billion years ago. Among the proponents of this theory is Stephen Hawking, who has written a book, A Brief History of Time, to help laypersons understand it. It represents a history of time according to science, based upon observation, measurement, and reasoning related to the universe.
This essay is intended as a very brief history of time according to the Bible. It is a testimony of the divinity and mission of Jesus Christ, as the central figure in that history. The Bible is not subject to scientific proof; it must be accepted by faith. But faith, unlike the quip by Mark Twain, does not mean “believing what you know ain’t so”. Faith is subject to proof, but it requires proof on God’s terms, through seeking, prayer, and the inspiration of the Spirit. As Paul says, the things of God can be understood only through the Spirit of God. This is different from scientific knowledge, but that is as it should be, for science is a mortal, not a spiritual, system of knowledge.
It would seem, upon consideration, that neither science nor religion has the right to judge the other on its own terms. Many scientists have great faith, and apparently have no difficulty receiving knowledge through both these systems. Science is forever making absolute, dogmatic assertions of truth—and the next generation of scientists comes along with a new version. [The “Big Bang” theory, for example, has a little problem: the expansion of the universe should be slowing, because of gravity. It is accelerating!] The one thing science consistently claims, however, is that there is no God, and the Bible is false. Darwinists are particularly adamant, but Darwin can be proven false by his own admission. He wrote, and it stands to reason, that if it could be shown that two features had to evolve simultaneously in order to give an organism a survival advantage that natural selection would be disproved. Science has discovered a one-celled animal that has an internal “motor” that can rotate at 100,000 rpm, and reverse itself in one-quarter revolution. Obviously that feature, on its own, is useless, but there is also an attached “shaft” that extends through the cell wall, and a tiny flagellum that serves as a “propeller”. All three of those features would have to evolve simultaneously to provide the organism any survival advantage.
There are even Christian scholars today who deny the truth of the Bible. PBS had a program on Christ that was a montage of interviews of intellectuals, many of whom claimed to be Christian, and were members of Christian churches. They said the history of Christ as God is a myth. They said that writers after him wrote that myth to take advantage of the “prophecies” in the Old Testament—to make them appear to have come true. They denied the prophecies and the miracles and, particularly, the resurrection. They provided rationalizations to explain away all these. Two thousand years ago, Paul prophesied about these people, as well as about others who would live in these last days [italics added]:
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: From such turn away… Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth… [F]or that day shall not come [the Second Coming], except there come a falling away first… And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming… And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved… And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
For those who have a desire and an open mind, how can it be known whether God exists and the teachings of the Bible are true? Does it matter? Does God care and have a plan for us? What does that plan require of us? Are we willing to follow his plan? An English philosopher once said every church should have inscribed over the portal “Important if True”. That does not go far enough. The words should be “Imperative if True”. The Bible teaches that this life, with all its trials and uncertainty, is a preparation for a life that never ends, and our faithfulness in this life determines our eternal destiny.
One of the major purposes of life, according to the Bible, is to develop faith, and faith is a gift of God that comes to those who seek it from him; but they must do so on his terms. It is his world, and we are his, and he makes the rules—whether we like it or not. He commands us to believe him, to follow him, and to trust him. God has said, “Prove me and see….Ask and ye shall receive”. He has made the offer of proof; but many are unwilling to test him on his terms. He will give everyone just as much as they fervently seek and their heart is open to accept. It is not easy, however; nothing of value ever is. It requires reading the Scriptures, it requires studying and pondering its teachings, principles, and examples of faith, it requires seeking God intensely through prayer, it requires humility toward God and an open heart, it requires living the principles God has taught to determine first-hand whether they are right and true. Faith comes not by signs, the scripture says, but signs follow those who do these things. The Spirit of God, when finally received, is recognized by the peace and joy and warmth and enlightenment of truth it gives. God has promised that these may be received as a witness of him. It is a knowledge that is sure. As Paul said, faith is the evidence. When received, the soul is filled to bursting with love and peace and gratitude and truth, and you know, nothing doubting, that it is from God and that he therefore is. It can be received only for oneself.
To believe in God we must have an assurance that God exists and is ruler of the universe. To have faith in God is far more difficult. It requires not only belief in him, but belief that he knows us personally, loves us, is perfect in his truth, justice, and mercy toward us, has a plan for us that is infinitely more valuable than all the things of the world, and has all knowledge and power necessary to carry out that plan. That belief must be strong enough to motivate us to make a choice to follow him, despite all adversity. That is faith in God.
The Beginning
The Bible begins with the words “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth…” It describes his power in creating all things in the universe, including the earth and all life, and Hebrews 11 says that power was faith. This work was performed during six periods, referred to as “days”. On the sixth day, man was created “in God’s image”, and made ruler over the earth and all animal life. The Gospel of John reinforces that theme: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Without him was nothing created”. The Godhead consists of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost: As Jesus was baptized, the Father was heard, saying, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased”, and the Holy Ghost descended upon Jesus in the sign of a dove.
The Book of Acts explains that we were not merely created by God, we are his offspring, and Paul refers to the mortal fathers of our bodies, and to the Father of our spirits, who is God. Throughout the scriptures God has taught us to call him Father and, as Father of our spirits, he literally is. Psalms says, “Ye are gods, and children of the most high”. Paul said, “Know ye not that ye are children of God? And as children, heirs, and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ”. Jesus said, “Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?” We are God’s greatest work and, as his children, our eternal destiny is without limit. Jesus commanded us to be perfect, even as our Father in heaven is perfect. To help us achieve that, God’s entire being and purpose are devoted to our progression and happiness: “For this is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man”. To carry out his plan for us God has all power, all truth, and all knowledge, and is filled with perfect mercy and love.
In our previous life, before mortality, we lived with God in heaven. We cannot remember that time—indeed, we cannot remember anything before about age three—as we are required to live this life by faith. God told Jeremiah that he knew him before he was born, and chose him to be a prophet, indicating that Jeremiah had progressed in a pre-life to an advanced degree. The same was true of Jesus’s apostles, as explained by Paul who said, “He hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world”. All were not faithful there, as Jude speaks of “the angels who kept not their first estate . . . [and are] reserved in everlasting chains”. One of these evil ones was Satan, a preeminent angel of God, who desired the power of God, and rebelled against him. Isaiah asks, “How art thou fallen from heaven O Lucifer, son of the morning?” He then explains that Satan desired to exalt his throne above the stars of God.
In our pre-earth life, God initiated a Plan for us to come to this earth, gain a body, grow physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, and overcome evil. As was said of Jesus, he “grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man”, the signs of a balanced and complete person, and so we are expected to do. Through intelligence, conscience, free agency, choices, consequences, and repentance, we have the opportunity to learn good from evil, and to learn that joy, which far exceeds pleasure, comes through good. The only way we can learn these lessons is through faith, and faith requires that we face challenges, pain, opportunities to grow and succeed. God recognized that faced with temptations and trials we were weak and would sin and, since “no unclean thing can dwell in his presence”, we would be precluded from returning to him. He provided, in his Plan, a Savior for us, Jesus Christ, who would live a sin-free life and pay for the sins of all through his infinite atonement. Through Jesus, “though your sins be as scarlet, they shall become white as snow”. By the growth of our faith in Christ, we would be able to receive the power from him to be saved.
The planned atonement of Jesus was three-fold:
1.Through his resurrection, all mankind will also be resurrected: “As in Adam all die, so in Christ shall all be made alive”.
2.By taking upon himself all pain and all suffering ever experienced, all our injuries, no matter how deep, may be healed, and all scars removed, by turning to him: “Himself took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses”.
3.By taking the punishment for all sin upon his innocent, sin-free soul, all those who accept him may be saved: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish but have everlasting life”.
God, in Job, says that when the Plan was explained, “all the sons of God shouted for joy!”
Revelations explains how Satan, with the angels who followed him, rebelled against the Plan and were cast out into the earth, where they are devoted to thwarting God’s Plan and deceiving and destroying all God’s children, by seducing them into sin and trying to overcome their God-given free agency. Satan is the antithesis of God, and his whole being is devoted to hate, lies, and evil. Ironically, Satan actually contributes to God’s plan by testing and trying us, and providing the adversity we must overcome in order to become strong and learn the necessary lessons of life. Satan has great power, even to perform miracles that counterfeit the power of God, and his whole being is devoted to the destruction of mankind. Paul said Satan can even take on the appearance of an angel of light, and his ministers appear to be ministers of righteousness. As such they have power that “even the very elect shall be deceived”. God has infinitely greater power than Satan and, in the end, when all have been tested, Satan will permanently be cast out by the power of God.
As told in Genesis, pursuant to God’s plan Adam and Eve were the zenith of the creation. Along with all other life, they were placed on the earth and commanded to multiply. Originally in the beautiful Garden of Eden, they disobeyed and were driven out when they took the forbidden fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. Taking the fruit allowed them to understand good from evil, so they could exercise the free agency God had given them, make choices, act, and overcome temptation and adversity by faith. It also brought on mortality, and they became subject to death. (God promised them that “in that day thou shalt surely die, and Peter said that a day to the Lord is 1000 years.) They were driven out of the Garden, and Adam was told by God that the earth, filled with difficulty, pain, weeds, and other noxious things, was “cursed for thy sake”. The difficulties, pains, and trials of life are given us for our growth and to allow us to learn to follow God in faith and become like him.
Following the commandment to multiply, after the Fall Adam and Eve began to procreate, and all the human race is descended from them. The book of Genesis, written by Moses, compresses a very long period of time, from Adam to Moses, and therefore provides a highly abbreviated history of that period. The first of Adam and Eve’s children we are told of are Cain and Abel, when murder was introduced into the world by the slaying of Abel. Many of the offspring of Adam and Eve rebelled against God, and chose evil, which eventually culminated in God’s decision to completely destroy the living world by the flood. This event destroyed the entire human race and all terrestrial life, except for eight people and the animals who embarked on the ark.
After the flood, Noah’s family, and the animals, began again to fill the earth with life. A great-great- great-great grandson of Noah was Peleg, which means division, for “in those days was the earth divided”. It is interesting to note how closely the shorelines of all the major continents fit together, with a large break for the Gulf of Mexico. Science says that division occurred over millions of years; the Bible says it occurred in one lifetime. From the time of Noah until the birth of Jesus, the Bible tells us the history of many faithful prophets chosen by God and empowered by him to lead those who elected to follow God.
The Age of Israel
The history as told by the Bible cycled through periods of righteousness, when God would protect his people and bless them to flourish, and unrighteousness, when he would withdraw his blessing and protection. The prophets included Abraham and his progeny, Isaac, Jacob (whom God renamed “Israel”), Joseph (who was sold by his brothers as a slave in Egypt, where he rose to be second in the Kingdom, under Pharoah) and his brothers, the sons of Jacob, the twelve tribes of Israel, known as the “Children of Israel”. After 400 years in Egypt, Moses was called to lead the Children of Israel from slavery into the land of Canaan, after wandering with them in the wilderness for forty years. During that period he received the stone tablets containing the Ten Commandments, as well as many other laws recorded in the Old Testament.
Moses was followed by many other prophets and leaders, including David and Solomon, down to a time about 600 years before the birth of Christ. At that time, according to the Bible, God allowed the Babylonians to destroy Jerusalem totally, and lead the people into captivity because of their wickedness. God ceased to call prophets for his people because of their commitment to unrighteousness, at which point the Old Testament ends, as there were no prophets to keep the record. The people were left to struggle with their own interpretations and understanding of God until Jesus came. It was prophesied that in the last days Jerusalem, and the Nation of Israel, would be restored and triumph over their enemies.
The Bible is replete with stories of the tests of mankind, many of which were passed and many of which were not. Hebrews 11 lists a number of these, as examples, including Abraham, who was commanded by God to offer his only son as a sacrifice (a precursor of God’s own offering of his Son), Moses, who gave up his high position in the court of Pharoah to lead the Children of Israel into the wilderness for forty years, and others who were “stoned, sawn asunder, slain . . . destitute, afflicted, and tormented” that they “might obtain a better resurrection”. Everyone must face trials, and overcoming them both proves our commitment to God and builds our commitment and strength to follow him. There is no other way: one is forced to choose to seek the things of the world, which most receive little of, despite their efforts, or to follow God, which requires that we defer gratification, in faith—for a very long time!
One fact that is clear from reading the Bible is that, over the course of history, relatively few have chosen to follow God. The history of the world, according to the Bible, has been a chaos of continual warfare, as a result of hatred, avarice, and wickedness. In the earliest times, this resulted in God’s decision to send the flood, and after that time he selected his “chosen”, who were antecedents and descendants of Abraham, and who maintained at least some degree of willingness to follow him. Abraham was chosen by God, who covenanted with him that he would be the God of Abraham and his descendants, that his descendants would be as numberless as the stars of heaven, that they would be given a “promised land”, and that through them all the nations of the earth would be blessed. Among these chosen he sent his prophets, who were called by God and given authority to speak for him and to act in his name with power.
It is apparent from the Bible, however, that there were followers of God who are not numbered among those named in the Bible. For example, Abraham paid tithes to a High Priest known as Melchizedek, but there is no history of his people, and wise men came from the East at the birth of Jesus, who obviously, as followers of God, were aware of the prophesies of Jesus’s coming and recognized the star. Doubtless there were others, whose histories are entirely unknown to Bible history.
It is clear, however, that over the course of time, extending from Adam to the present, relatively few of the billions of God’s children who have lived on earth have been followers of God. The majority, in fact, have never even heard of the Bible or of Jesus Christ. What of those people? Would a just and infinitely loving God simply abandon and damn them, as many believe? Such a doctrine makes a mockery of a God who is infinitely loving.
The Mission of Jesus
The existence of Jesus is a historical fact. His history, however, is the subject of controversy. The prophets of the Old Testament continually prophesied of a Savior, presaging the birth, life, and mission of Jesus Christ. For example Isaiah says, “A virgin shall conceive and bear a son” who would be “wounded for our transgressions”, and Job prophesied, “I know that my Redeemer lives!” They recognized that, as all would sin, only through the mortal atoning sacrifice of a Savior, who lived a life free of sin, could mankind be redeemed and return finally to their Heavenly Father. Only Jesus, the Son of God, ever lived such a life, and could have performed such an atonement.
Bible writers also testified he would come again, in the last days, as King of the earth, and that he would rule for all eternity. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John tell us the story of his life. There are those today who claim Jesus was a great teacher and moralist, but not the Christ. Jesus himself, throughout the Gospels, continually testified that he was God, the great “I Am”, the Savior of the world. Many of those who heard him, and recognized his claim, tried to kill him for blasphemy; for claiming the name and power of God. There is no middle ground: either he was God, the Savior, or he was a liar. The choice between the two alternatives has to be made.
Jesus was born in a manger because his family was traveling and there was no room in the inn. His mother was Mary, a virgin, and his father was God himself. Conception occurred through the power of the Holy Spirit. After his birth witnesses came, in the form of humble shepherds to whom angels appeared and told where Jesus might be found, and wise men, who expected his coming, and who traveled from the East, following the star that foretold his birth, bringing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
We know little of his youth, except that his adoptive father, Joseph, was a carpenter, and we can assume Jesus grew up in that trade, with the strength of one who works with his hands. The scriptures say he grew in “wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man”. When he was twelve, he was found in the temple conversing with the scholars. No doubt the intellect and spiritual understanding of one so young greatly impressed them. In his statement to his mother, “Know ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?” it is clear that he already understood his mission to the world.
Jesus began that mission at age thirty, when he fasted for 40 days and then faced the greatest temptations with which Satan could challenge him. He had to be tested, just as we are tested. Jesus passed that test, as he passed every other through all his life. He went to be baptized by John, who was called and ordained by God to testify of and prepare the way for Jesus. John demurred at the request, saying he was not worthy to baptize one so righteous, but Jesus insisted, saying it was necessary to “fulfill all righteousness”. Jesus’s three-year ministry extended geographically from approximately fifty miles north of the Sea of Galilee south to the northern end of the Dead Sea, an area of 130 by 30 miles. Wherever he went, vast throngs gathered to hear his words. Despite so short a ministry, which ended in death, the effect of the life and teachings of Jesus has had a greater impact on human kind than any other who ever lived.
During his ministry Jesus continually testified that he was God and that he was the Savior of the world. On occasion, even the devils he cast out of people—those who, in the beginning, had been cast out of heaven for rebellion—proclaimed he was the Christ. The mission of Jesus Christ was to proclaim his Gospel, perform many great miracles, show his profound and infinite love through his caring and, particularly, through the virtually infinite agony of the atonement, and lay down his life and take it up again—all as a testament that he, indeed, was the prophesied Savior. He sealed that testament with his death on the cross. He proved that testament, according to the Bible, by his resurrection from the dead three days later. Through his atonement he has power to save all mankind who follow him.
The Gospel Jesus proclaimed, which he taught us to follow, was that he is the Son of God, and only though him and through his sacrifice for the sins of all people can we be saved, by accepting him through faith, repentance, and baptism by water and the Holy Spirit. Paul proclaims, “[W]e also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.” He taught that the Law given by Moses, in the Ten Commandments and dozens of other rules for daily life, had contemplated his coming and was fulfilled in him. He reaffirmed the Ten Commandments, but taught there was much more to the doctrine of his Gospel, including loving and serving God and our fellowman. He was always ready to forgive the truly repentant—all but the self-righteous and the hypocrites.
His miracles included turning water into wine, healing the sick, making the blind to see, walking on water, feeding thousands from a few fish and loaves of bread, and raising the dead to life. He knew people’s unspoken thoughts. Those who tried repeatedly to kill him could not, until finally he gave his life. Clearly he came with power!
Jesus knew his mission, and he knew when his hour had come. After the last supper he led the eleven remaining disciples to the Garden of Gethemane, and asked three to wait near him while he went on into the grove of olive trees to pray. As he prayed, prostrate on the ground, the pain of all the world and the punishment for all sin began to infuse itself on his soul, and he writhed in spiritual, emotional, and physical suffering. Even knowing his mission, he could not comprehend beforehand how extreme would be his agony. As it began, he became “sore amazed” and cried out, as his body was racked with such anguish that he sweat blood at every pore, “Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but as thou wilt”. For three hours it continued, and he did not yield.
On the ground in Gethsemane, and again in utter agony while on the cross—crying, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me!”—Christ took upon himself all the suffering and all the punishment for sin of all creation. As he whispered, “It is finished”, the atonement was complete, and he voluntarily breathed his last breath. Through his suffering and death, he proved his love for all mankind, and has indeed “suffered the pain of all men”, including yours and mine. All eternity will praise his name.
I am in unspeakable awe at the atonement of Jesus Christ. I personally testify of him—that he lives! that he is the Son of God, the Savior of the world. His love and his suffering for us are beyond all human comprehension. His agony on our behalf has been described as equal to the sum of all the suffering that has ever occurred. It could be borne only by a God, who had power to preserve his own life indefinitely in circumstances of virtually infinite pain. He literally gave his life. His infinite love for us, and for his Father, could have been the only inducements sufficient to motivate such a great sacrifice. If we can understand and empathize with even a small measure of his suffering it can give us courage to endure our own, since ours is comparatively so small.
Christian writings accepted as scripture ended with the deaths of Jesus’s apostles. Subsequent generations assembled these writings into what we now have as the New Testaments. Old Testament writings ended about 600 B.C., and a group of Jewish scholars, in the first century A.D., assembled what they agreed was the canon of scripture. Both Testaments testify of Jesus, his divine mission, his atonement, and his death. But the testimony does not end with his death. His resurrection was prophesied in the Old Testament and testified of in the New Testament, and his second coming was also prophesied continually throughout both Testaments. Unlike his first coming, in humility and relative obscurity to be sacrificed for the sins of the world, the second coming will be in power and great glory, as King of the earth, to reign a thousand years (the “Millennium”). Revelations tells us the wicked will be destroyed and the earth will be cleansed. This will occur in the “last days”, in conditions of continuous war, evil, natural disasters, and pestilence of every kind. There is to be a “restoration of all things” in preparation for that great event. Daniel prophesied that in the last days a stone would be cut out of the mountain without hands, and it would roll forth, breaking up all the kingdoms of the world, until it filled the whole earth. It is generally agreed by all Christians that the “last days” are now, and the second coming may occur at any time after all the prophecies concerning it are fulfilled. It is a time for warning and preparation.
Death and Immortality
Death is inevitable, and most fear it. It seems, from our perspective, to be a permanent condition, and the end of existence. It is interesting to note that near-death experiences, thousands of which have been recorded over the millennia, give evidence in confirmation of a beautiful and wonderful life after death, provided one has lived a “good” life. Mortal life, according to James and other Bible writers, consists not only of a physical body but also a spirit, which gives life to the body. We die, just as Mark says Jesus died, by separation of spirit and body. But death is not the end; the Bible teaches hope. As he hung on the cross, shortly before his death, Jesus said to the penitent thief, who hung on the cross next to him, “Today thou shalt be with me in Paradise”. The Bible tells us that at death the spirit leaves the body and goes to a world of spirits, where a judgment is made. After death, Jesus went there to “teach the spirits in spirit prison”. Revelations explains that the spirit world is a place of rest for those who did well, or a prison for those who did not—sins must be paid, either by the atonement of Christ, if accepted through complete repentance, or by personal suffering. All remain in their respective conditions until the resurrection, when body and spirit are eternally reunited.
Job said, “Though the skin-worms destroy my body, yet in my flesh shall I see God”. Ezekial saw a vision of the valley of bones, all of which came together and were clothed again with living bodies. To some who denied the resurrection, Paul asked rhetorically, “Wherefore are ye baptized for the dead if the dead rise not”, confirming the reality of resurrection by what must have been an accepted principle. Jesus, the first to be resurrected, showed himself on several occasions to his disciples, as testified in Acts, and told them to touch him to assure that it was indeed he, in his resurrected state, with a body of flesh and bone. He ascended into heaven with that body. He is both the model and the power. “For as in Adam all die [as a result of the Fall that brought mortality into the world], so in Christ shall all be made alive.” Among his many miracles, Jesus raised the dead, but this was not a resurrection, merely a return to the living mortal state. These individuals were still subject to mortal death, and subsequent resurrection.
So what of all those who die without learning of the teachings of the Bible or the ministry of Jesus in this life? Clearly there must be an opportunity to learn and progress there, just as there is in this life—justice demands it. Otherwise billions of people, guilty only of ignorance of never hearing of Jesus, would be doomed to damnation. How could a loving God do such a thing! Jesus, in the Gospel of John, said “the hour is coming when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear him shall live”. Peter says that, upon his death, Jesus went to the spirits in spirit prison to teach them his Gospel, so that they might be judged as those who received it in life. There would be no point teaching them unless there were a purpose for it, by allowing them to embrace Jesus’s Gospel. As mentioned above, Paul taught the principle of vicarious baptism for the dead, to provide them that necessary ordinance.
Revelations explains there are two resurrections. The righteous who have died will be resurrected “to reign with Christ a thousand years”, which is the first resurrection, “but the rest of the dead lived not until the thousand years were finished”. The writers of the Bible spoke frequently about the condition of the righteous upon resurrection. Paul said, “So are ye the children of God, and as children, heirs, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ”, to share his eternal glory. “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor yet entered into the hearts of man the things God hath for those that love him.” What great promises! Through the atonement of Jesus he raises us up to be joint heirs, with him, in our Father’s kingdom! It is worth every price; the agony and adversity of life are a minuscule price to pay.
But all will not receive the same reward. There is not a “minimum threshold” established by God, at some arbitrary level, and all who exceed it receive the prize and those who do not receive damnation. God loves every one of his children, and his desire is that they receive all he can give them, depending upon their desire and ability to receive it. True desire is shown by the degree of faith and obedience they have exercised, and everyone is different. Revelations says the dead, small and great, will stand before God to be judged out of the books, “according to their works”. Jesus said that in his Father’s house are many mansions, and Paul, comparing the relative glories of the sun, the moon, and the stars, says, “so also is the resurrection of the dead”. As there are all levels of faith and obedience, there are all levels of glory in the resurrection. Any other condition would be unjust, and God is a God of justice.
As we seek to follow the will of God, to love him with all our “heart, might, mind, and strength”, to love “our neighbor as ourselves”, to repent and follow him in faith, to overcome our weaknesses through his divine power, and to obey him to the best of our understanding, God, in his great mercy, will not forget us. Jesus said that God is cognizant of every sparrow, and even the hairs of our head are numbered to him. He knows each of us individually and personally, and loves each of us infinitely. His whole purpose is our growth and happiness, for eternity, and he will assure that each has exactly those experiences and opportunities that will enable the greatest growth. From our mortal perspective it may not seem so, and many refuse to believe it, but from his eternal perspective he will allow no trial or pain that does not further his eternal goal for each of us. We cannot see it now, to do so would negate the principle of faith, but one day we will see how all things fit the Plan, and worked for our eternal good. Jesus Christ suffered all the pain that has ever been suffered, and the punishment for all sin. “Though he were Son, yet learned he obedience by the things he suffered. And being made perfect he became the author of salvation to all them that obey him”. Are we greater than he? Do we need to learn any less? We have to follow him and obey him in faith—and we’ve got to learn to trust him!