The Doors

Has it ever occurred to you that anyone’s any given possibilities are always ineludibly linked to one’s life expectancy? That, yes, you do have the rest of your life, but the rest of your life isn’t really that much? We avoid staring at the void of death. We play with it, we toy with the notion of nonexistence, we even romanticise it, but we never actually look into Sheol. That’s how the Hebrews called it. A place where everything goes to rest, scattered. It kind of sounds like a black hole’s event horizon, or the end of our supposedly ever-expanding universe: thermodynamic “equilibrium”. A rather dull name. Equilibrium is the middle ground between two extremes. But extremes imply duality: opposite ends of a spectrum. 1 & 0. The opposite of existence is non-existence. This implies that in order for something to exist, something else must not. This also implies that if there’s anything in between, then the antipodes must also be. But if something exists, how can nothing “be”? This apparent contradiction is settled by the fact that because something exists, then, there must be something that exists supremely, something that, by definition, can never cease to exist. This is interesting, because the greater is inferred by the existence of the lesser. The oceans on earth may boil, but one drop of water will still be enough to infer an otherworldly Niagara. But hold on a second. Yes, we have reasoned the existence end of the spectrum, but what about the nonexistence end? Which was first? The second question is, in fact, answering itself by the use of the verb to be. And because first implies a succession of items, plural. The opposite of plural is singular; if there are no items, there is no first, only One. So, what about the nonexistence “end”? We can see now that there is no such thing as a nonexistence “end”. Because if supreme existence is unceasing, it both becomes the beginning and the end. The beginning and the end of what? Of everything in between. And here is where it gets really interesting, because such Supreme Existence can never be equalled whatsoever, otherwise it wouldn’t be Supreme. But, since everything in between exists, it can, therefore, only exist as a reflection of it. A reflection is never the same as the thing reflected. What a reflection is, however, is an image of the original. But now another question arises: What caused the One to become the First? Certainly nothing could have been greater than the Supreme Existence so as to force it to forgo being the One. But how, then, did the One become the First? Only by choice. Did the One forgo its Oneness in order to become the First? Certainly not. If it did, it wouldn’t be Supreme. We must remember that the One’s existence is unceasing. But what does that mean? It means that the One could not have come into existence, it must have always existed, this is, it must exist sempiternally. A difficult concept to wrap one’s mind around, since we have all come into existence. But it suffices to say that the principle still applies: “anyone’s any given possibilities are always ineludibly linked to one’s life expectancy.” If I have come into existence, I know of those who have existed before me by their account. But my possibilities are restricted only to my future light cone, which was lit the moment of my conception. I had no past light cone before that. I cannot account for anything before my existence except by means of the people that brought about my existence. What I can account for, though, is for the fact that I did come into existence. One who has not come into existence, but who has always existed, can, thus, account for everything. The notion of a light cone does not apply to such One, for such One would be the Original source of light itself, and the Ultimate recipient of it. Time would begin and end with such One. Our light cones would come into existence in the in-between, as a thoughtful reflection of such One’s volition, and not a mere thoughtless reflex.

We have now arrived to a better definition of time and to the beginning of an explanation as to why it flows and knots as it does. Time is a dynamic force, this is, it moves. And everything that moves can do so only upon a substrate; because movement is defined in contrast with the things not moving. Time is not cyclic, this is, it does not perpetuate itself; time is perpetuated by the One from whom it goes out and to whom it returns: time can be bumpy, yes, but it is ultimately linear. Therefore, the things in-between are inherently dependant on this linear nature of time, and so is their movement, their growth and decay, and their own in-between transformation along the way; the relativistic nature of time arises here on account of such phenomenon. For where there is growth and transformation, there is bumpiness, because there are parts being brought into existence as something different from the One who brought them into existence. And here is where the concept of nonexistence fits perfectly, for these things that were brought into existence did not exist as such before they were brought into existence. And yet they came into existence by the powerful hand of the One who brought them into existence. They, despite being reflections of such One, are hierarchically subject to such One, and, in this sense, they are different from such One. They stand, by such One’s sempiternal power, as individuals with a beginning. This adds yet another characteristic to the beginning of time, and this is: division. Even time itself functions as a dividing force between to events that will otherwise be one. But hold on. Does this mean that the One divided himself in order to bring others into existence? Certainly not. Otherwise, how could such One have brought anything into existence? Remember, the One is unceasing, this is, indestructible. And so is His volition.

Obviously, come to this point, I am no longer talking of time as it is currently understood. What is time as we know it? A succession of events? Particles seem to move by coming into existence at one point, and out of existence, and then back into existence at another point, while existing, concordantly, as a probabilistic fuzz more inclined towards one state or another, which fuzz itself seems to be held together in the form of a particle/wave only by the careful and powerful confinement of the laws of the universe; and so are each of their particular interactions. And yet, they move. They are constantly “resurrected” from a sea of quantum probability in ways that are measurable, reliable, and pattern-forming. They possess degrees of freedom; upon which they move. The question that remains is, “What makes them move?”, and yet another question also arises, “How do they move?”

By definition, the difference between the One and the creation is that the One alone is Supreme. Nothing, no-one else can exist in quite the same way as the One exists, so ubiquitously, so thoroughly, not throughout the creation, but at both the beginning and the end of it. This is not to say that the presence of the One within the creation is lacking, no. The One is present within the creation, yes, but cannot possibly be contained by it. Thus, the One must exist outside the creation. Thus, the One remains the One, and the creation comes into existence and remains hierarchically subject to the will of the One who brought it into existence.

Now, must we imagine that everything remains subject to the One, the way an extension remains mindlessly subject to its wielder? Certainly not. Seeing that such One’s sempiternal volition brought everything into existence, not out of necessity, but out of conscious choice and desire, and knowing about quantum mechanical degrees of freedom, the bringing into existence of our consciousness now ineludibly backtracks to the origin of consciousness itself, to the One.

But consciousness does not exist disembodied in the universe. Consciousness requires a particular shape. Furthermore, consciousness requires a particular shape that goes beyond mere automatisation, or mere quantum mechanical degrees of freedom. Created consciousness requires a vessel along which to be brought into existence and to grow into maturity. Consciousness requires careful design. Therefore, a body that can support consciousness cannot possibly come into existence by mere automatisation, it had to be planned thoroughly. Since consciousness backtracks to the One, and since a body implies function, both the conscious person and its body must have been brought into existence with a purpose. And, seeing that the One lives consciously forever, should we imagine that such purpose with which we were brought into existence was a mere vanity? Should we imagine that just as we had a beginning we must have an end? Should we imagine that we were brought into existence simply to die? Certainly not. Before, I mentioned the Hebrew word Sheol. Sheol is not a translation for death, there is another word for death in Hebrew. Sheol is a figurative place were all activity goes to rest. Why figurative? Because nothing really goes to rest. But what can go to rest is that which was brought into specific action, that which did not exist as such but was rather brought into existence. If creation is a moving forward in time, so too is life. Therefore, if life ceases, that supposes a reversion of the general arrow of time; back into nonspecificity. There is no after life, but there is the ground, the dust out of which we were shaped. And dust remains, does it not? And what is the dust but a scattering of what once was? Sheol. But Sheol comes from a root that means “to ask; to borrow”. And just as we were once dust and were shaped into existence, so too can we be brought back into existence out of the dust to which we return.

Why? Because humans are not merely particles. We were not made to be brought in and out of existence time and again. We were shaped out of particles into a specificity that takes advantage of such particle’s dynamics to the end of curdling a conscious being into existence in resemblance to the sempiternal One to whom all consciousness backtracks. We are conscious, therefore, we are not just another step in the passing of time, we are the very end-result of time itself; the very purpose of creation by the Almighty. We were not made to return to dust. So why do we return to dust? And, Can we avoid ever returning to dust? The second question is answered by the sempiternal volition of the One. The answer to the first dwells in our own volition. Because, volition, freewill, can be misused. Certainly not by the One. Never. Otherwise creation would have ceased to exist altogether long ago; it is His sempiternal volition what keeps everything going. But creation, this is, conscious creation, which was brought into existence and needed time to mature, can misuse its freewill. And so we did, and so we do. Because, you see, freewill, just as consciousness and the body supporting it, was brought into existence with a purpose, a sempiternal purpose indeed, and one with infinitely rich degrees of freedom. For, even if we did not exist before we were brought into existence, does not a life without end propounds infinite freedom in the future light cone? And what can fuel infinite degrees of freedom in the future light cone if not infinite degrees of freedom in the past light cone? But freedom by definition is discreet, for it consists of degrees; freedom is measurable, but it is also infinite. And what is measurable and yet unending but time, but life out of life? For all living things have a general discreet structure, one without which they would be non-; but there is a difference between life meant do die and life meant to live unceasingly. For since the Originator of all things must exist sempiternally, is it not fitting for the ultimate purpose of things originating from that One to be eternal? If the body of crown has always existed, is it not fitting fot the gems to adorn it forever? And the principle still holds: “anyone’s any given possibilities are always ineludibly linked to one’s life expectancy.” But we had a choice. We could have chosen life, and yet we chose death. And so we died. The doors of life and truth were right before our noses, but we chose to believe the lie and we kept falling through the gates of death. We kept stumbling in the darkness, following our own contrived ideas, brought about by our own rejecting of a generous and glorious purpose; greed fooled us into thinking we were gods, and so we came to worship what is not God, the image of celestial bodies, the image of animals and plants and things of the earth, the image of our own filth as we rolled in the mud, playing and toying with death, but never actually facing it. Always learning, but never becoming wise. Always dying, never really living, always slaves to corruption and death, harming ourselves and one another, killing one another for the sake of land and shiny metals, for the sake of lust and selfishness. Even now the doors of life are still open, but we keep turning our backs on the One who is trying to keep us all from returning to dust. We accept death, we love it. We are fools and we like it that way. Why?

Since conscious beings were created in the image of the One, but needed time to mature, the only way we could ever become a full-grown resemblance of the One’s sempiternal and glorious personality is by heeding to the One’s wise instructions. Certainly there is greater discretion in eternal life than there is in temporary life, on account of its compelling, harmonious, non-self-nullifying, complexity. Since freewill and consciousness backtrack to the One, so does wisdom. Must we imagine that, having been created to resemble the wise Creator, such Creator would leave us without clear, recognisable, instruction? Or must we imagine that, being the Creator’s sempiternal will to bring us into existence, he would abandon his purpose upon an act of rebellion? Would he not, rather, act to fulfil his purpose and prove himself greater and wiser and more powerful and more righteous than—and truly loving, unlike—his enemies? Because, since creation was made in different shapes with different purposes according to their echelon—this is, when they were created—in the timeline, so both the first shapes and the last were made to exist properly in their respective places in order for the One to further the next generation of shapes: thus, the existence of purpose becomes evident, as does the need to heed to the will of God. Because the One who shaped each conscious being in his own image, he himself provided the specificity of their shapes from the beginning of creation to its fulfilment. And since the One’s will is sempiternal as He is, He will not stop until His purpose has been fulfilled, until everyone choosing life, and not death, has reached full maturity, in His own image, yet, in their own proper places and with their own proper functions and delights. But if we reject the will of God, trying to stablish our own against God, are we not acting against ourselves? God cannot be defeated, nor can His wonderful, glorious, personality, ever be corrupted; God is sempiternal, God is incorruptible. Accordingly, His righteousness is an eternal righteousness. His justice is evident by His flawless shaping of creation. But we, who need time to grow to maturity, are corruptible, yet, we, who choose to grow to maturity, to heed to the One, have incorruptibility in store for us from God: life everlasting: infinitely rich degrees of freedom. But if we act ruinously and rebel, our own actions will bring about our own dissolution. Where were we when God created the universe? Can we cause ourselves to live forever? Can our plans withstand a major re-creation of the universe? For God is loyal in his sempiternal love, and his justice will not reject anyone who seeks to accurately know him. But, what will God do to those who are stubborn and refuse to know him but insist in walking in their own contrived ideas? Many choose death instead of life, and so they die. Why? Because they foolishly think of themselves as gods in their own darkened hearts; greed has blinded their minds and rotten their hearts.

But we are not gods. God does not die. The only way to live, like God lives, forever, is by heeding to the love of God. Love does not scheme bad to its neighbour. If “anyone’s any given possibilities are always ineludibly linked to one’s life expectancy”, then so is their love. The only way to live and love forever is by heeding to the everlasting words of the sempiternal Creator. God is love; and whoever does not love, has not come to know God. Also, God is One. And this is what love means, that we obey His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome, but rather, they mean our life and the joy of our heart. Because if someone’s life and love are everlasting, so is that one’s joy. And just as the creation stands by the sempiternal will of God, following the exquisite order and degrees of freedom that he disposed for them in harmony with his love and his righteous and wise commandments, so will we. “For by Him we have life and move and exist.” (Acts 17:28)

But another question arises: How could we come to know God? Furthermore, how could we come to know him accurately if not by God reaching to us to teach us about himself? God does not leave himself without witness, does he? For the creation itself gives witness to his sempiternal power and Godship. But our study of creation can only take us so far, just as a painting can only reveal so much about the artist. More accurate means of communication are required: God must, therefore, communicate with mankind in their own language. And just as the underlying stability of the rules of the universe acts as a reliable record that day to day speaks to the commitment and loyalty of God towards his creation, so there must be a God-breathed, reliable, record of God’s own words for mankind: God must have inspired the writing of a book. And since it is God’s will to communicate with mankind, his book, must, therefore, remain reliable despite any efforts of God’s enemies to destroy it or alter its message. For God remains forever, and so do his words. God cannot lie. God is incorruptible.

But since mankind rejected God and his commandments, since they loved death and not life, how could mankind ever approach God to regain life if not by a mediator between God and man? A man who, unlike all of us, had never rejected God, but had rather always heeded to the words of God.

The matter of how mankind came to be into a slavery-like condition to corruption and death, is not a complicated one. But since corruption started in the heavens, the solution had to also come from the heavens, specifically, through an echelon higher to that in which corruption started. Corruption begins with a misleading idea that grows into a misuse of freewill, a wrong desire coveted into action. Once the desire has been acted upon, corruption soon spreads like gangrene. But those who were not slaves to corruption but coveted riches beyond their own and abandoned their proper echelon, corrupting themselves and submitting others to corruption are without forgiveness. Mankind was sold into slavery, the children of Adam and Eve did not sin in the same way they did, we were born sinners, unlike them, we were slaves to corruption and death from the womb. We had no choice.

But now we do.

The matter of how to free mankind from its slavery was not an easy one. No human could ever measure up, due to the corruption of the germline, only God could provide an unpolluted human, free from corruption and death, as Adam was before he sinned. Because God did not make the man and the woman flawed in any aspect; “God made mankind upright, but they have sought up many contrivances” (Ecclesiastes 7:29) But why would God do so? He had given them clear instructions and a rich planet for themselves and their offspring, a planet teeming with life and wonder, a home with abundant food and infinite delights, and only one single prohibition, a reasonable one. But the serpent spoke, and they heeded to the word of an animal, which dies, rather than to the words of God, who does not die. Not that the animal itself had spoken, obviously, but rather the instigator of disgusting greed, the Opposer in the heavenly realm who was coveting the place of God, did. The man and the woman listened to the words of a stranger, rather than to the words of their Father. And the stranger sold them a lie, that they will not die if they disobeyed God, the Opposer called God a liar. But life can only come from the One who has always existed, who lives sempiternally. And so they died. They chose death, instead of life. They coveted the “being like God” when they were already made “in the image of God”, they heeded to an animal rather than to God, and so they came to die, just like animals die.

But there was something of far greater importance: God’s reputation. His reputation had been blemished by the lie of the serpent; His sovereignty had been challenged. The lie seeded doubt about God’s love. Was God actually keeping something good from their earthly creation when he commanded them not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and bad? And that challenge had to be answered, that doubt had to be put out. But how would God demonstrate his own sempiternal love? God is love. And so, although we had betrayed him, in order for His holy and glorious name to be vindicated, he acted, out of love.

Right off, right after the man and the woman sinned, when God punished them according to His own words “on the day that you eat from it, you will die”—because God cannot lie—, God also provided us with a glorious hope of restoration by means of the first prophecy ever issued: the prophecy about the “seed” of the woman that would crush the head of the serpent (Genesis 3:15).

The identity of the seed and how exactly it would bring about the vindication of God’s name and the ‘crushing of the serpent’s head’, is the main topic of the Holy Scriptures, the book which writing God must have inspired.

Proving that the Holy Scriptures are, indeed, God’s own word, is as straight-forward as referring to its fulfilled prophecies, such as that of the overthrow of Babylon by the hand of Cyrus the Great, king of Media and of Persia, which was foretold over one and a half centuries in advance (Read Isaiah 44:26-45:7). In that prophecy the name of the king, his conquest of Babylon, and the way the city would fall, were clearly stated before the king was even born or the Medes and the Persians had even become unified as a world power. The writings of Herodotus and Josephus so make it clear when they describe that the river surrounding the city of Babylon was dried off, diverted by the king in order to invade the city, which otherwise insurmountable doors had been recklessly left open because of a party (Daniel 5:1-4, 30; Jeremiah 50:24). The city of Babylon fell in one night, without fighting back, just as it was written in God’s own word. The deliverance of the people of Israel from their slavery to Babylon was also foretold, even before the city of Jerusalem fell to the Babylonian army in the first place.

But if we are to understand the Holy Scriptures properly, we must keep in mind that the One who brought them into existence did so to the end of relaying His own message to us. If God provided the Holy Scriptures as a letter to mankind, and such letter requires interpretation, then God must have also provided, along with the letter, a reliable means of interpretation. Otherwise, how would the letter fulfil its intended purpose? If interpretation is required to relay a message, then there is a proper interpretation (the one that relays the message truthfully) and an improper interpretation (the many that do not). Thus, we know that there is a proper interpretation for God’s word and a reliable interpreter for it. And who is the best interpreter of a code but the One who came up with the code? So, it is just as it is written: “Do not interpretations belong to God?” (Genesis 40:8) And also: “no prophecy of Scripture springs from any private interpretation. For prophecy was at no time brought by man’s will, but men spoke from God as they were moved by holy spirit.” (2 Peter 1:20, 21) Because, “all Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for settings things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, so that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16, 17) If “no prophecy of the Scripture springs from any private [human] interpretation,” but rather “interpretations belong to God,” and “all Scripture is inspired of God,” then we know the following: only Scripture can properly interpret Scripture. For it is also written: “sanctify them by means of the truth; your word is truth.” (John 17:17) If “men spoke from God as they were moved by holy spirit”, then we know that holy spirit, just as it moved those men to put down the coded words, can also guide our present decoding of such words. One of such men was Daniel, and he, when faced with the challenge of interpretation, did not trust in his own wisdom, but rather prayed to God, and God revealed the interpretation to him. Thus, we know that God does answer this kind of prayers, and he reveals the interpretation “through his spirit, for the spirit searches into all things, even the deep things of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:10) For God himself urges us: “Seek to find my face.” (Psalm 27:8)

The action of this spirit from God is fundamental to all things. Why? Because, as aforementioned, “the One is present within the creation, yes, but cannot possibly be contained by it. Thus, the One must exist outside the creation.” This is just as it is written: “Look! The heavens, yes, the heaven of the heavens, cannot contain you” (1 Kings 8:27; 2 Chronicles 6:18) And the way the One is present within the creation is through His holy spirit. Furthermore, it is with His power, with His spirit, that God made all things. Just as it written: “God’s own spirit made me, and the Almighty’s own breath brought me to life.” (Job 33:4) And, “If you send your spirit, they are created, and you renew the surface of the ground.” (Psalm 104:30) Also, “By the word of Jehovah the heavens were made, and by the spirit of his mouth all their army.” (Psalm 33:6) The Hebrew word for spirit is רוּחַ (ruach), and it generally means “wind”; thus, it becomes evident that God’s spirit is, in fact, something that springs from His very being, not someone; a force, not a person. And we know this because God’s spirit can, in fact, rest upon a living person. Just as it is written regarding the Messiah, the promised seed: “And the spirit of Jehovah will settle upon him, the spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the spirit of counsel and of mightiness, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Jehovah.” (Isaiah 11:2) Therefore, because God created heaven and earth and all that fills them using His spirit, giving life to the creatures created, and because God’s spirit can thus rest upon someone, we know that God can also choose to create all things through someone upon whom He causes His spirit to rest; someone God must have created directly, a main intermediary, the Agent of creation. This is pivotal to understanding the role of the Messiah, the seed, in fulfilling God’s will of restoration.

In the Holy Scriptures, a parallel is made between the Messiah and Wisdom. In the book of Proverbs, Wisdom is described as having been created. Now, we know that the Creator of wisdom, its Source, must be infinitely wise. Therefore, because God’s existence is sempiternal, all His qualities must also exist sempiternally. Because God ‘is always the same One’ (Isaiah 43:13) “who does not vary or change like the shifting shadows.” (James 1:17) Is that not what would be expected of the “Father of the celestial lights”, the Source of light itself? Accordingly, if the book of Proverbs speaks of Wisdom as having been created, ‘produced as the beginning of Jehovah’s way’ (Proverbs 8:12, 22), then, it becomes obvious that it refers to someone created by God, someone endowed with the full spectrum of Jehovah God’s wisdom, someone created to reflect the very own wisdom of God. Concordantly, Wisdom says: “Jehovah produced me as the beginning of his way, the earliest of his achievements of long ago. From ancient times I was installed, from the start, from times earlier than the earth.” (Proverbs 8:22, 23) And of the Messiah, Micah 5:2 states: “And you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, the one too little to be among the thousands of Judah, from you will come out for me the one to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from ancient times, from the days of long ago.” Thus, Wisdom keeps on saying: “When [Jehovah] prepared the heavens, I was there...”, “I was beside Him as a master worker, I was the one he was especially fond of day by day; I rejoiced before him all the time.” (Proverbs 8:27, 30)

As stated before, since corruption started in the heavens, the solution had to also come from the heavens, specifically, through an echelon higher to that in which corruption started. God is One, but when God created the Agent of creation, God became both the First and the Last—the beginning and the end. Just as it is written: “Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I have called. I am the same One. I am the first; I am also the last.” (Isaiah 48:12) Thus, the Agent of creation, His Son, was the first one created directly by God. And is this Son, who was always obedient, free from sin and corruption, who would become the promised Messiah, the promised seed. He was also God’s Word; for through him God commanded the creation of heaven and earth, and through him, God spoke to mankind.

But in order for the Son of God to vindicate Jehovah’s holy name and His Sovereignty, and save mankind from sin’s corruption and from death, the Son of God had to become a man. Why? Because the first man Adam had sinned, and therefore, all humans died; so, another human had to rise, who was a descendant of Adam, but who was free of the corruption of the germline caused by Adam. Thus, God had to intervene directly to create such a sinless man: the seed that would deliver Adam’s offspring from their slavery to sin. If God intervenes directly, then everything He creates is holy, just as He is holy. Since God created all things through His Son, shaping everything and everyone else down their proper echelon in hierarchical order in time, then we know that everything Jehovah God creates directly is, indeed, His Son. In harmony with this, the Scripture says: “[the Son], although he existed in God’s form, gave no consideration to a seizure, namely, that he should be equal to God. No, but he emptied himself and took a slave’s form and became human.” (Philippians 2:5-7) So the Son was willing to leave his life as a spirit in the heavenly realm and be born as a human by the same powerful action of God’s holy spirit that brought him about as a spirit in the first place before everything else came to be. If God intervenes directly to bring His Firstborn, the Agent of creation, into the inhabited earth, then, what follows if not a recreation of heaven and earth? (Hebrews 1:6) Just as it is written: “For look! I am creating new heavens and new earth; and the former things will not be called to mind, nor will they come up into the heart.” (Isaiah 65:17) “and in these, righteousness is to dwell.” (2 Peter 3:13) Thus, by means of His Firstborn, God can bring about a new Sabbath-like day of rest—for in six days Jehovah made the heavens and the earth [...] and he began to rest on the seventh day (Exodus 20:11)—into which repentant mankind can enter. Just as it is written: “For we who exercise faith do enter into his rest, just as he has said [...] although his works were finished from the founding of the world.” “So there remains a sabbath-rest for the people of God. For the man who has entered into God’s rest has also rested from his own works, just as God did from his own.” (Hebrews 4:3, 9, 10)

But, just as there are new heavens and new earth that we are awaiting according to God’s promise (2 Peter 3:13), so there is a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17).

However, there cannot be a new creation only by having the Son of God come to earth and be born as a human. No, the Son of God needed also to die faithful in order for the recreation to take place. Why? Because it was the purpose of God to rescue mankind from its slavery to sin’s corruption and from death. For, who is the one who dies? Is it not the one who sins? “For the wages sin pays is death.” (Romans 6:23a) Because Adam loved his own selfish desires more than God, more than his own life, and, therefore, in his own greed, Adam died. But if the righteous, sinless, Son of God entered into Sheol, then, because he was not there rightfully, God, in His own righteousness, could bring His Son out of Sheol, because the Son loved God and mankind more than he loved his own life, and thus God rightfully gave him life everlasting, yes, even immortal life (1 Timothy 6:16), because “he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, yes, death on a torture stake.” (Philippians 2:8) “For this very reason, God exalted him to a superior position and kindly gave him the name that is above every other name, so that in the name of Jesus every knee should bend—of those in heaven and those on earth and those under the ground—and every tongue should acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11) For “the gift God gives is everlasting life by Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23b; read John 3:16)

Therefore, by means of the Son of God, the Scripture that says “my anger has kindled a fire that will burn to the depths of Sheol” will take place (Deuteronomy 32:22). “Anger” because the people to whom the promises were first given—the Israelites—rejected the Chief Agent of salvation, and “by their false step, there is salvation to people of the nations, to incite [the Israelites] to jealousy.” (Romans 11:11) So that all those having faith, whether of the Jews or of the nations, may attain to the undeserved kindness of God. Just as it was written: “And by means of your seed all nations of the earth will obtain a blessing for themselves because you have listened to my voice.” (Genesis 22:18)

Now, regarding the new creation, the Lord Jesus Christ himself said to his apostles: “you are the ones who have stuck with me in my trials; and I make a covenant with you, just as my Father has made a covenant with me, for a kingdom.” (Luke 22:28, 29) And these sing a new song, saying: “[...] with your blood you bought people for God out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and you made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they are to rule as kings over the earth.” (Revelations 5:9, 10) “And no one was able to master that song except the 144,000, who have been bought from the earth.” (Revelation 14:3) “and they will rule as kings with him for the 1,000 years.” (Revelations 20:6)

Does this mean that only 144,000 will be saved? Certainly not. For it is written: “and they will rule as kings over the earth.” And “after this I saw, and look! a great crowd which no man was able to number, out of all the nations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes; and there were palm branches in their hands.” (Revelations 7:9) If there are kings ruling, there is a people over which they rule. But those who rule, rule in the name of Jehovah, and under the authority of the righteous one, Jesus Christ. Those who will rule with Christ in heaven are 144,000, but those who will live forever in paradise earth are without number. For God did not create mankind to live in heaven, but on earth, forever. Yet, by God’s undeserved kindness and mercy, in His unfathomable wisdom and in His loyal love and eternal righteousness, and to His own glory and praise, God disposed that His own Son came to earth, was born as a man, died faithful, and was resurrected to immortal heavenly life, “so that he may give fullness to all things.” (Ephesians 4:10) “Because God was pleased to have all fullness of the divine quality dwell in him bodily” (Colossians 1:19; Colossians 2:9) and “[God] also subjected all things under [the Son’s] feet and made him head over all things with regard to the congregation, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills up all things in all.” So that, by means of Christ and of “the congregation of the firstborn who have been enrolled in heaven”, those who will rule with Christ, who are his body, God may restore His righteousness to mortal man. (Hebrew 12:23; Job 33:26) Because it was the will of God to bring forth these 144,000 by the word of truth, so that they would become a kind of firstfruits of His creatures. (James 1:18) “The one who did not know sin (this is, Jesus), [God] made to be [as a] sin [offering] for us, so that by means of him we might become God’s righteousness.” (1 Corinthians 5:21) “For it was fitting that the One for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the Chief Agent of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both the one who is sanctifying and those who are being sanctified all stem from One, and for this reason he is not ashamed to call them brothers” “Therefore since the “young children” are sharers of blood and flesh, he also similarly shared in the same things so that through his death he might bring to nothing the one having the means to cause death, that is, the Devil, and that he might set free all those who were held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death. For it is not really angels he is assisting, but he is assisting Abraham’s offspring (this is, those who, like Abraham, exercise faith in God’s promises through the seed). Consequently, he had to become like his “brothers” in all respects, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in things relating to God, in order to offer a propitiatory sacrifice for the sins of the people. Since he himself has suffered when being put to the test, he is able to come to the aid of those who are being put to the test.” (Hebrews 2:10-18)

“Happy is the man who keeps on enduring the trial, because on becoming approved he will receive the crown of life, which Jehovah promised to those who continue loving him.” However, “when under trial let no one say: “I am being tried by God.” For with evil things God cannot be tried nor does he himself try anyone. But each one is tried by being drawn out by his own desire. Then the desire, when it has become fertile gives birth to sin; in turn sin, when it has been carried out, brings forth death.” (James 1:12-15)

Having considered all this, should we imagine that the Almighty God does all these wonderful things without an observable organisation? Does not creation speak to the careful design and order of the “God [who] is not God of disorder, but of peace,” “as in all the congregations of the holy ones”? (1 Corinthians 14:33) Does not the Scripture say “each tree is known by its fruit”? “For no fine tree produces rotten fruit, and no rotten tree produces fine fruit.” “A good man brings good out of the good treasure of his heart, but a wicked man brings what is wicked out of his wicked treasure; for out of the heart’s abundance his mouth speaks.” And Jesus Christ goes on to says, “Why, then, do you call me ‘Lord! Lord!’ but do not do the things I say? Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you whom he is like: He is like a man who in building a house dug and went down deep and laid a foundation on the rock. Consequently, when a flood came, the river dashed against that house but was not strong enough to shake it, for it was well-built. On the other hand, whoever hears and does nothing is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The river dashed against it, and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.” (Luke 6:43-49)

When God gave his promises to Abraham, he made Abraham into a people that were called by God’s name: Jehovah. This was fitting because Abraham and his wife did not have children, but God, in his infinite power caused them to have a child, even in their old age, by his spirit. Just as it is written: “By faith Sarah received power to conceive offspring, even when she was past age, since she considered Him faithful, trustworthy, who have made the promise. For this reason, from one man [Abraham] who was as good as dead, there were born children, as many as the stars of heaven in number and as innumerable as the sands by the seaside.” (Hebrews 11:12) Jehovah God, whose holy name means: “I Will Prove to Be What I Will Prove to Be” (Exodus 3:14, NWTHS), proved to be whatever was necessary in order to fulfil His purpose of restoration; and He has made Abraham prove to be a father of a great nation. And to such great nation, Jehovah God gave His holy laws and promises. Furthermore, when this nation rejected the Son of God, the Messiah, the promised seed, God extended His own promises to the nations, according to His own words to Abraham: “And by means of your seed all nations of the earth will obtain a blessing for themselves” (Genesis 22:18). Just as it is written: “he came to his own home but his own people did not accept him. However, to all who did receive him, he gave authority to become God’s children, because they were exercising faith in his name. And they were born, not from blood or from a fleshly will or from man’s will, but from God.” (John 1:11-13) Yes, “God turned his attention to the nations to take out of them a people for His name” (Acts 15:14). ““And they will be mine,” says Jehovah of armies, “in the day when I produce a special property. I will show them compassion just as a man shows compassion to his son who serves him. And you will again see the distinction between a righteous person and a wicked person, between one serving God and one not serving him.”” (Malachi 3:17, 18) In both instances, God produced a people for His name, by His spirit, but in the second instance it was said to the apostles: “Truly I say to you that this generation will by no means pass away until these things happen.” (Matthew 24:34) What generation? It becomes evident that it was the generation of the firstborn enrolled in the heavens, the 144,000 that will rule with Christ, the first of which were the apostles, and the rest of which “will by no means pass away until these things happen.” What things? ‘the things that will be the sign of Christ’s presence and of the conclusion of the system of things’ (Matthew 24:3). Because it is written: “I am with you all the days until the conclusion of the system of things” (Matthew 28:20), and, “this is the will of Him who sent me, that I should lose none out of all those whom He has given me, but that I should resurrect them on the last day” (John 6:39) So, we know that even if those who first believed in him died, they will be resurrected in the last day, and we also know that the full number of 144,000 was not reached in the first century C.E., because Christ promised to be with his followers until the conclusion of the system of things. But there was a sign that would indicate the conclusion of the system of things, was there not? What was that sign?

The gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke provide the answer Jesus gave: “Look out that nobody misleads you, for many will come on the basis of my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many. You are going to hear of wars and reports of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for these things must take place, but the end is not yet. “For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be food shortages and [great] earthquakes [and pestilences] in one place after another. All these things are a beginning of pangs of distress. [And there will be fearful sights and from heaven great signs.] “Then people will hand you over to tribulation and will kill you, and you will be hated by all the nations on account of my name. Then, too, many will be stumbled and will betray one another and will hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and mislead many; and because of the increasing of lawlessness, the love of the greater number will grow cold. But the one who has endured to the end will be saved. [By your endurance you will preserve your lives.] And this good news of the Kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” (Matthew 24:3-51; Mark 13:3-37; Luke 21:7-36) “With that he told them an illustration: “Notice the fig tree and all the other trees. When they are budding, you see it for yourselves and know that now the summer is near. Likewise also you when you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near [at the doors]. Truly I say to you that this generation will by no means pass away until all these things happen.”” (Luke 21:29-32; Matthew 24:32-34; Mark 13:28-30)

Great wars, food shortages, great earthquakes, and pandemics, in one place after the other, as well as a global campaign of preaching the Kingdom of God. These are the signs, and this is what we see today, do we not? Furthermore, if there is a campaign of preaching God’s Kingdom, then there is also a people organised to properly preach such Kingdom. Just as it is written: “For “everyone who calls on the name of Jehovah will be saved.” However, how will they call on him if they have not put faith in him? How, in turn, will they put faith in him about whom they have not heard? How, in turn, will they hear without someone to preach? How in turn, will they preach unless they have been sent out? Just as it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who declare good news of good things!”” (Romans 10:13-15) Thus we know that God has “a people who are [His Son’s] own special possession, zealous of fine works”, even today. (Titus 2:14) ‘A people bought with Jesus’ blood for God, out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation.’ (Revelations 5:9) Because “God is not God of disorder but of peace. As in all the congregations of the holy ones.” (1 Corinthians 14:33) In the first century C.E., these people were, ‘by divine providence, called Christians’ (Acts 11:26), those to whom God ‘ordered to preach to the people and to give a thorough witness that Jesus Christ is the one decreed by God to be judge of the living and the dead.’ (Acts 10:42) Just as it was prophesied by God: ““You are my witnesses,” declares Jehovah, “Yes, my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and have faith in me and understand that I am the same One. Before me no God was formed, and after me there has been none.”” ““I am the One who declared and saved and made known when there was no foreign god among you. So you are my witnesses,” declares Jehovah, “and I am God.”” “Do not be in dread and do not become paralysed with fear. Have I not told each of you beforehand and declared it? You are my witnesses. Is there any God but me? No, there is no other Rock; I know of none.” (Isaiah 43:10; 12; 44:8) “I—I am Jehovah, and besides me there is no saviour.” “Also, I am always the same One; and no one can snatch anything out of my hand. When I act, who can prevent it?” (Isaiah 43:11, 13) Thus, we know that there are witnesses for God even today, yes, and these are Jehovah’s Witnesses. And those remaining of the generation of the 144,000 are now gathering those of the great crowd out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation. Because Jesus said to his apostles: “Have no fear little flock, for your Father has approved of giving you the Kingdom.” (Luke 12:32) “And I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; those too I must bring in, and they will listen to my voice, and they will become one flock, one shepherd.” (John 10:16) “Most truly I say to you, I am the door for the sheep”. “I am the fine shepherd. I know my sheep and my sheep know me, just as the father knows me and I know the father; and I surrender my life in behalf of the sheep.” “This is why the Father loves me, because I surrender my life, so that I may gain it again. No man takes it away from me, but I surrender it of my own initiative. I have authority to surrender it, and I have authority to receive it again. This commandment I received from my Father.” “My sheep listen to my voice, and I know them and they follow me. I give them everlasting life, and they will by no means be destroyed, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. What the father has given me is something greater than all other things, and no one can snatch them out of the hand of the Father. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:7, 14, 15, 17, 18, 27-30)

What, then, are we to say? Are Jehovah God and Jesus the same entity?

Certainly not.

Jehovah God is God “from everlasting to everlasting” (Psalm 90:2) ‘His throne was firmly established long ago; from eternity He has existed.’ (Psalm 93:2) and “Jehovah, the Creator of the ends of the earth is a God for all eternity. He never tires out or grows weary. His understanding is unsearchable.” (Isaiah 40:28) Whereas the Son, wisdom personified, was created. ‘Jehovah produced him as the beginning of his way, the earliest of his achievements of long ago.’ (Proverbs 8:22) And he is wisdom personified because “carefully concealed in him are all the treasures of wisdom and of knowledge.” (Colossians 2:3) ‘Jehovah God, the Holy One, does not die.’ We can “trust in Jehovah forever, for Jah Jehovah is the eternal Rock” (Habakkuk 1:12; Isaiah 26:4) And “through [the Son] [we] are believers in God, the one who raised him up from the dead and gave him glory, so that [our] faith and hope might be in God” (1 Peter 1:21) Jehovah is the Almighty God, whereas the Son was made to become a Mighty God by Jehovah’s own mightiness. Yes, Jehovah ‘exalted his Son to a superior position, kindly giving him the name that is above any other name.’ Yes, “God “subjected all things under his feet.” But when he says that ‘all things have been subjected,’ it is evident that this does not include the One who subjected all things to him. But when all things have been subjected to him, then the Son himself will also subject himself to the One who subjected all things to him, that God may be all things to everyone.” (Genesis 17:1; Isaiah 9:6; Philippians 2:5-11; 1 Peter 5:6; Read 1 Corinthians 15:27, 28) This is so that “every tongue should openly acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:11) And to the new creation, the 144,000, the Lord Jesus says: “to the one who conquers I will grant to sit down with me on my throne, just as I conquered and sat down with my father on his throne.” (Revelations 3:21) Because it is also written: “God is your throne forever and ever, and the sceptre of your kingdom is the sceptre of uprightness.” (Hebrews 1:8) For just as the kings of Israel ‘sat on the throne of the kingship of Jehovah God’ (1 Chronicles 28:5), so does the Son of God sits enthroned on his Father’s throne, and alongside him are those of the 144,000 that have so far died and been resurrected to their heavenly inheritance. Each one sits on his own throne (Revelation 20:4a); judging in the name of Jehovah. Jehovah God, Jesus Christ, and the resurrected brothers of Christ stand as different individuals united by one purpose, one spirit: Jehovah God’s; just as the Lord Jesus said: “I have given them the glory that you have given me, in order that they may be one just as we are one.” (John 17:22) Just as it is written: “One body there is, and one spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. Now undeserved kindness was given to each one of us according to how the Christ measured out the free gift. For it says: “When he ascended on high he carried away captives; he gave gifts in men.”” (Ephesians 4:4-8)

The Son, “the very one who descended, is also the one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might give fullness to all things, so that he might bring all things to fulfilment.” “And through him the delight of Jehovah will have success” (Ephesians 4:10; Isaiah 53:10)

“And he gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelizers, some as shepherds and teachers, with a view to the readjustment of the holy ones, for ministerial work, to build up the body of the Christ, until we all attain to the oneness of the faith and of the accurate knowledge of the Son of God, to being a full-grown man, attaining the measure of stature that belongs to the fullness of the Christ. So we should no longer be children, tossed about as by waves and carried here and there by every wind of teaching by means of the trickery of men, by means of cunning in deceptive schemes. But speaking the truth, let us by love grow up in all things into him who is the head, Christ. From him all the body is harmoniously joined together and made to cooperate through every joint that gives what is needed. When each respective member functions properly this contributes to the growth of the body as it builds itself up in love.

So this is what I say and bear witness to in the Lord that you should no longer go on walking just as the nations walk, in the futility of their minds They are in darkness mentally and alienated from the life that belongs to God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the insensitivity of their hearts. Having gone past all moral sense, they gave themselves over to brazen conduct to practice every sort of uncleanness with greediness.

But you did not learn the Christ to be like this, if, indeed, you heard him and were taught by means of him, just as truth is in Jesus. You were taught to put away the old personality that conforms to your former course of conduct and that is being corrupted according to its deceptive desires. And you should continue to be made new in your dominant mental attitude, and should put on the new personality that was created according to God’s will in true righteousness and loyalty.

Therefore, now that you have put away deceit, each one of you speak truth with his neighbour, because we are members belonging to one another. Be wrathful, but do not sin; do not let the sun set while you are still angry; do not give the Devil an opportunity. Let the one who steals steal no more; rather, let him do hard work, doing work with his hands so that he may have something to share with someone in need. Let a rotten word not come out of your mouth, but only what is good for building up as the need may be, to impart what is beneficial to the hearers. Also, do not be grieving God’s holy spirit, with which you have been sealed for a day of releasing by ransom.

Put away from yourselves every kind of malicious bitterness, anger, wrath, screaming, and abusive speech, as well as everything injurious. But become kind to one another, tenderly compassionate, freely forgiving one another just as God also by Christ freely forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:11-32)

“You too exercise patience; make your hearts firm, because the presence of the Lord has drawn close. Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you do not get judged. Look! The Judge is standing before the doors.” (James 5:8, 9) And Wisdom says: “And now, my sons, listen to me; yes, happy are those who keep my ways. Listen to discipline and become wise, and never neglect it. Happy is the man who listens to me by coming early to my doors day by day, by waiting next to my doorposts; for the one finding me will find life, and he receives approval from Jehovah. But the one who ignores me harms himself, and those who hate me love death.” (Proverbs 8:32-36)

Finally, a petition: “Your hands made me and formed me. Give me understanding, so that I may learn your commandments.” (Psalm 119:73) “For you have made me rejoice O Jehovah because of your deeds; because of the works of your hands I shout joyfully.” (Psalm 92:4) “The sound of rejoicing and salvation is in the tents of the righteous. The right hand of Jehovah is demonstrating its power. The right hand of Jehovah is exalting itself; the right hand of Jehovah is demonstrating its power. I will not die, no, I will live, in order to declare the works of Jah. Jehovah disciplined me severely, but he did not hand me over to death. Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will enter them and praise Jah. This is the gate of Jehovah. The righteous will enter through it. I will praise you, for you answered me and you became my salvation. The stone that the builders rejected has become the chief corner stone. This has come from Jehovah; it is wonderful in our eyes. This is the day that Jehovah has made; we will be joyful and rejoice in it. Jehovah, save us, please, we beg! Jehovah, grant us victory, please! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of Jehovah; we bless you from the house of Jehovah. Jehovah is God; he gives us light. Join in the festival procession with branches in hand, up to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I will praise you; my God, I will exalt you. Give thanks to Jehovah, for he is good; his loyal love endures forever.” (Psalm 118:15-29)

God is love: “Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous. It does not brag does not get puffed up, does not behave indecently, does not look for its own interests, does not become provoked. It does not keep account of the injury. It does not rejoice over unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things believes all things, hopes all things endures all things. Love never fails.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8) “Which is the commandment is the first of all? Jesus answered: “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel Jehovah our God is one Jehovah, and you must love Jehovah your God with your whole heart and with your whole soul and with your whole mind and with your whole strength.’ The second is this, ‘You must love your neighbour as yourself.’ There are no other commandments greater than these.”” (Mark 12:28-31) And yet, “I am giving you a new commandment that you love one another; just as I have loved you, you also love one another. By this all will know that you are my disciples—if you have love among yourselves.” (John 13:34) “No one [of the creatures created] has love greater than this that someone should surrender his life in behalf of his friends. You are my friends if you do what I am commanding you.” (John 15:12-14) “If you obey my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have observed the commandments of the Father and remain in his love. These things I have spoken to you, so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be made full.” (John 15:10, 11)

“And by this we realise that we have come to know [Jesus Christ], namely, if we continue observing his commandments. The one who says, “I have come to know him,” and yet does not observe his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in this person. But whoever does observe his word, in this person the love of God has truly been made perfect. By this we know that we are in union with him. The one who says he remains in union with him is himself under obligation to go on walking just as that one walked.” “For this is what the love of God means, that we observe [God’s] commandments; and yet his commandments are not burdensome.” (1 John 2:3-6) “If [...] I do not love [...] I am nothing. [...] I do not benefit at all.” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3) “If someone says “I love God,” and yet is hating his brother, he is a liar. For the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And we have this commandment from him, that whoever loves God must also love his brother.” (1 John 4:20-21) “But if anyone loves God, this one is known by him.” (1 Corinthians 8:3)

Hereinafter, only a loving reminder and a warning: Great wars, food shortages, great earthquakes, and pandemics, in one place after the other, as well as a global campaign of preaching the Kingdom of God. These are the signs, and this is what we see today. And “YOU, when you SEE all these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near AT THE DOORS.” (Luke 21:31; Matthew 24:33; Mark 13:29)