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Eschatology Prophecy Studies
"Prophecy Biblically Questioned and Answered"
J.R. Church
Eschatology 101
What makes the human brain such an elusive and mysterious machine? Over the past century, it has been the subject of a barrage of scientific investigation. Yet, no one has been able to discover its secrets. The pathologist who did the autopsy on Albert Einstein, kept his brain. Presently, it is being preserved in Wichita, Kansas. However, Einstein’s brain contains the same cellular structure as that of any other brain. No one has discovered anything different. Albert Einstein was recognized as the most incredible genius of the twentieth century. What ability did he possess that ordinary men are lacking? Where did his knowledge come from? How did he come up with the theory of relativity, the formula for the atomic bomb, or the mechanics of television? There are more questions than answers. Why did men fail to comprehend various fields of scientific design before the nineteenth and twentieth centuries? Earlier generations were mentally chained to the proverbial horse and buggy. Only in this era has mankind begun to advance in the disciplines of science and technology. Revelation or Discovery? The answer, if there is a simple answer, lies within the pages of the Bible. For example, Moses wrote: “The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children” (Deut. 29:29). Whether or not the scientific community can accept it, many brilliant scientific discoveries have come from Jews. It appears that they really are a “chosen” people. It seems that technology is not simply discovered. It is revealed. There are also verses that indicate God is able to close off certain areas of human knowledge — to make it impossible for man to understand what Deity does not want to be known. Isaiah was informed of God’s ability to do this. God instructed him: “Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. “Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed” (Isaiah 6:9,10). This became a major theme throughout the Bible. Man is spiritually blind to certain eternal truths. His mental capacity to comprehend can be inhibited. Concerning the subject of prophecy, God told Daniel: “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased” (Daniel 12:4). For many centuries, mankind stumbled in the darkness of human frustration. Only in recent centuries has there been such an explosion of knowledge. So, why is this true? Were our ancestors so ignorant they could not figure out how to make an automobile, an airplane, a radio or television? Since the dawn of the Industrial Age, men have soared beyond the limits of normal human comprehension. The ancient Romans knew about steam, gears, and pistons, but could not put them together to make an engine. As a child, I sat in front of an old Crosley radio on Sunday afternoons, listening to the “Green Hornet” and the “Shadow.” I would watch that little green eye at the top of the dial and wish for the day when I could see the Green Hornet nab those crooks. Television was only a dream in some laboratory. Today, I am sitting in front of a sophisticated computer screen, writing and composing layouts for books and magazines. Our entire weekly television program is produced on another computer! Is this incredible or what!? Who are we, anyway? Why was the Bible able to predict that a day would come when knowledge would increase? What made Albert Einstein so smart? Is Genius a Function of the Brain? Today, there are about 25 individuals who possess the ability to calculate math faster than an electronic calculator. These people can multiply five digit numbers by five digit numbers, yet cannot tell you how they do it. Some of them have been brain damaged on the left side of the brain, somehow allowing the right side of their brain a special ability to perform great feats. In the case of Derek Paravicini, he can play any song on a piano after hearing it only one time. Is he a genius? He has an IQ of 40. Several of the math geniuses have Intelligent Quotients that range below 50. How can this be? Where does their ability come from? Just what is the brain? And how does it function? My conclusion is that man is an eternal soul living with a spirit inside the human brain. Before sitting down to write this article, I explored my consciousness to discover just where I exist within my body. I could find no consciousness in the lower parts of my body — such as my hands or feet. All of my thoughts seem to be coming from within my brain. It appears that I am a soul confined to an area just behind and above my eyes. My eyes are windows and my ears are the doors to my soul and spirit. What Does the Bible Say? Knowledge is said to be a function of the spirit, while emotion is identified with the soul. According to the Bible, there is a difference between the two. The writer of Hebrews declared: “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). Isaiah wrote: “With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness” (Isaiah 26:9). In this verse, we are told that desire (an emotion) comes from the soul and that the spirit seeks to connect us with an eternal dimension. Later, Isaiah wrote: “Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles”(Isaiah 42:1). In this verse, Isaiah tells us that delight (an emotion) is a function of the soul. God’s soul is pleased and His Spirit is “put upon” or connected to the Messiah. Soulwinning is at the heart of the Gospel: “What if a man gain the whole world and lose his own soul?” (Mark 8:36). The Great Spirit Guide Jesus taught His disciples about the work of the Holy Spirit: “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come” (John 16:13). The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to connect us to a storehouse of knowledge. He is a guide to convey to us what is true. What He hears, He delivers to us. However, the unsaved cannot understand. There is something about the unregenerate person that simply cannot fathom eternal things. The Apostle Paul wrote: “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (I Cor. 2:14). Heavenly concepts can only be spiritually discerned. The soul and spirit need a special infusion from the Holy Spirit. It is something unexplainable in human terms. It can only be understood by experience. The apostle Paul explained the difference between a soul and a spirit: “And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit” (I Cor. 15:45). We know that God made Adam from “… the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul” (Gen. 2:7). On the other hand, we are told that Jesus was a “quickening spirit” — the very source of eternal life. There must be a difference between soul and spirit. Your individuality is wrapped up in your soul. It is the seat of your will and emotions. You are both soul and spirit. However, other spirits can enter your mind and dwell with you. We are told to “try the spirits whether they are of God” (I John 4:1). And the Holy Spirit can dwell in the believer, as well. Now comes the difficult part. What I am about to say cannot be proven. It is, of necessity, a conjecture. But, without at least some knowledge of the spirit, mankind is left groping for answers. There are so many questions: How is memory retrieved? Why do some people remember things from long ago, but not short term? Allow me to suggest the following: The spirit appears to be connected to a conduit that allows the brain access to a storehouse of knowledge located beyond this dimension. It possesses both the conduit and the energy source that funnels knowledge to and from the files of your memory. It is my feeling that the brain is not the only repository of memory. Otherwise, when the brain dies, both memory and consciousness would cease to exist. When the believer prays, that prayer is instantly recorded in heaven. It does not have to be transmitted to some distant galaxy. Prayer does not ride upon some electronic signal emitted by a 10,000-watt transmitter. Our brains are not transmitters. Yet, something links us to an eternal source, located we know not where, to provide God the opportunity to communicate with us continually. The brain must contain some kind of translator (similar to a computer modem) connected by the “spirit” to a gigantic storage facility in heaven. Every thought you think and every image you see is being recorded. At the judgment, you will face the consequences of those thoughts. In the Bible, we are told about the physical appearance of the Holy Spirit. He is described as a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. In other words, He offers a connection between heaven and Earth, between God and man — an energy source that communicates between the two. Rabbis say that in Bible days, the Shekinah looked like a shaft of fire ascending from the Holy of holies as far up as the eye could see. Wind could not move it around like normal smoke. It was locked into a vertical shaft. On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit had the appearance of “… cloven tongues like as of fire.” Note that this “tongue” or language is a communicator. God’s Spirit comes to live with the soul/spirit in the brain of the believer — to provide a communication link between the body and our trans-dimensional source of eternal life. Are We a Bio Computer? According to Decision Development Corporation, in their course on computer programming, “Computer scientists and bio-engineers are trying to grow computer chips, using protein and enzyme compounds. The chips resulting from this process are called biochips.” They further suggest, “The biochip will be able to process information at speeds many times faster than current silicon chips. As a storage or memory unit, a biochip measuring 1”x1”x1” (one cubic inch) could hold all of the computer storage in existence today.” They say, “The potential for biochips is mind-boggling, even a bit scary. The idea is that scientists may some day be able to implant a chip in the human brain to achieve instant knowledge. If biochips can be taught to learn, it may even be possible to implant one in an expert’s brain. There it would absorb everything that person knows. It could then be removed, reproduced, and re-implanted in another person’s brain. That person would then have all the same knowledge the source expert had. A simple operation could turn an uneducated person into a doctor or a nuclear scientist!” They further suggest, “If all this seems a bit too much like the tale of Dr. Frankenstein’s monster, look at some of the other truly positive uses of biochips. The blind might be given sight; the deaf might hear; those with handicaps caused by brain damage might be restored to full use of their minds and bodies. Some researchers believe that basic biochip storage will [soon] be possible … more exotic uses shortly thereafter.” The above statements were published in 1990. So where is this so-called biochip? This technical breakthrough has not yet come. If the brain is only a sophisticated computer, such a breakthrough might someday be possible. But, the chance of our brains operating on the same principle, as a bio-computer is mighty slim. Today, mechanical ears can be connected to human brains, allowing the deaf to hear; and video cameras can be connected to brains, allowing the blind to experience a semblance of vision; but so far, the brain cannot talk back to a machine. With all of the research on the brain over the past several decades, no one has yet to tap into the auditory or visual areas and connect them to speakers or television monitors — much less the memory areas. How Is Memory Erased? People are put through Magnetic Imaging Machines (MRI) every day and no one has had their memories erased yet. On the door to the MRI room, a sign warns that all credit cards, computer disks, cassette tapes, knives, watches and anything else made of metal must not be taken into the room where that giant magnet pulses. Though the cells of our bodies can be polarized by magnetism and the iron in our blood be affected, it appears that our brains do not operate in a magnetic sphere. But the brain does react to chemicals. There are many “forbidden fruits” that can affect the brain. No wonder God told Adam and Eve not to eat forbidden fruit. It was certain to affect the functions of the brain. I do not believe men will ever be able to build a computer using so-called biochips. The brain is a far more mysterious machine. What lives there (namely, our soul/spirit) is not the product of a computer program. Where Did We Come From? So where did we come from? Did my soul develop along with my body following conception? Or did I previously exist? Was I assigned to live in my body for a seventy-year sojourn (give or take a few years) in this world? Before getting too involved with this discussion, let me assure you that I am only probing the possibilities. My thoughts are not set in stone. So, come with me, if you dare, and enter a no-man’s-land of exploration! Careful now, we are walking on holy ground! Solomon once wrote about what happens when we die: “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it” (Eccl. 12:7). Solomon wrote that the body returns to dust and the spirit returns to God, but he did not mention the soul. We know only that God breathed a living soul into the body formed from dust: “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul” (Genesis 2:7). We are told that Adam’s soul was imparted with the breath of God. In Hebrew, the term for“soul” is nephesh; the term for “breath” is nashamah; and the term for “spirit” is ruah(pronounced “ruach”). We shall review these three entities later. According to the Talmud, Yevamoth (E), there are a limited number of souls in the Guf (lit. “body”), a region of unborn souls. Rabbi Assi said, “The Son of David will not come before all the souls in the Guf are disposed of, since it is said, ‘For the spirit that enwrappeth itself is from Me, and the souls which I have made.’” When God has used all of the souls in store, the resurrection will occur. We do not know that this is the case, only that this is a concept in Judaism. On the other hand, the spirit seems to fill a different role from the soul. The spirit connects our souls to a storehouse of information in heaven and communicates between the two. Solomon wrote that, upon death, “the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” If the spirit“returns” to God, then it must have come from God. Therefore, it is possible that the spirit also pre-existed — that it is given to a newly conceived person for a guide during his or her lifetime. At death, the spirit returns to God. For that reason, it seems possible that the spirit could be given another assignment. I am not referring to reincarnation as the general subject is understood. The rabbis have a term called “the recycling of the spirit.” So, what if the spirit of a person who has died could be reassigned to guide another soul? Would not that soul then have some of the advantages of the previous person’s storehouse of knowledge and experience? That may not be common, but seemed to be the case with John the Baptist. When he was yet in his mother’s womb (at six months after conception), he leaped for joy when he heard Mary’s voice. Gabriel had told Zechariah that his son would “… be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb…. And he shall go before him in the spiritand power of Elias …” (Luke 1:15,17). Was the spirit of Elijah, through the power of the Holy Spirit, assigned to John’s brain? We are not told that it was the soul of Elijah, but rather the spirit of the great prophet that brought about the fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD” (Malachi 4:5). Furthermore, in passing, we should note that the spirit of Elijah seemed to be a source of“power.” Elijah was not reincarnated as John. That is why the Baptist denied being Elijah: “And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not” (John 1:21). Yet, our Savior made it clear that the spirit of Elijah provided John with the fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy:“And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come” (Matthew 11:14). It was not the soul of Elijah, but his spirit/power that guided John, allowing both statements to be correct. Jesus was right to say that John was the fulfillment of the promise that Elijah“was for to come.” Also, John was right in saying that he was not Elijah. Furthermore, God’s Holy Spirit resided in John. Strange as it may seem, more than one spirit can have access to a person’s brain. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is a common doctrine in this dispensation, but the technology of such a thing is still difficult to comprehend. Perhaps the spirit can tap into the memory storage of another — like Elijah guiding John — and allow that person access (albeit controlled) to the knowledge and experience of someone living beyond our space/time continuum. Could this explain how Elisha had access to the mind of the king of Syria? In II Kings 6, the king of Syria thought that he had a spy among his closest advisors. It seemed that his every plot for capturing the king of Israel was foiled. Syria’s king complained that someone was telling Israel’s king about his every move: “And one of his servants said, None, my lord, O king: but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber” (II Kings 6:12). How was Elisha able to know what Syria’s king was thinking, if he didn’t have access to his thoughts? Did he know by clairvoyance? Could he probe the Syrian king’s brain? I don’t think so. But the king’s every thought was also being recorded in heaven’s great storage facility. Perhaps Elisha had the help of either an angel or a spirit who could tap the king’s database. This is only a conjecture, but such a concept could give us a logical explanation for this phenomenon. Was the Silicon Chip Simply Discovered? The biochip will probably never work. It would have to be maintained in a perfect environment — not too hot, not too cold — it would have to be fed — and someday would die of old age. But the silicon chip is made from sand, the same basic building block used in making man. The silicon chip has no liquid parameters to confine its use. Furthermore, the silicon chip is considered to be the very heart and mind of the computer. Its discovery changed the course of history. Was it simply discovered? Did some scientist wake up one day with an idea that sand could replace the vacuum tube? Was the idea planted in the mind of the scientist by a spirit-connection from beyond? Or, as some have suggested, was it reverse engineered from “alien” technology? Reverse Engineering Our government’s military establishment has revealed some rather exotic technology in recent years. There are rumors that some technologies may have been reverse engineered from a captured UFO — alien technology. One of the more famous breakthroughs was the transistor, produced by the Bell Laboratories in the late 1950s. The vacuum tube quickly became obsolete. It used to take six or twelve volts to heat the early radio tube’s cathode and hundreds of volts to operate its grids and plate. The high voltages used by tubes were soon replaced with micro-voltages used by the silicon chip. Today, the average computerized wristwatch runs for five years on a small battery the size of a button. Did Bell Laboratories actually discover the diode, transistor and silicon chip? Or were they given a piece of UFO technology from which to decipher these electronic marvels of our age? I am told that when Bell Laboratories first applied for a patent on the transistor, they did not produce the research data to prove they had invented it. It was only after the Patent Office refused to grant a patent unless they came up with the necessary documentation, that Bell Lab put together the requested forms. Did they have to concoct those forms? What about printed circuit boards? Who really came up with the idea of miniaturized wiring? The first ENIAC computer, built for the army in the early 1940s, contained 18,000 vacuum tubes and half a million hand-soldered connections. It took up 800 square feet of floor space and weighed 30 tons. It could do 5,000 additions or 300 multiplications-per-second. That same technology can now be held in the palm of your hand. So where did the development of printed circuits actually come from? I have read reports from engineers who claimed to have inspected captured UFOs. One report, dated in the early 1950s, described small wafers with hair-sized webs running from one miniature box to another — not made of metal wires, but transparent — like glass or plastic wires. Who ever heard of electronic information flowing through transparent strands of plastic instead of metal wires? But today, it is commonplace. What about laser technology? Was it discovered? — or back-engineered from alien technology? Recently, I read a lecture by the late Bill Schnieder, geologist and structural engineer. I cannot confirm the authenticity of this strange report, but he said our government has built hundreds of underground cities — from one to two miles underground. He said that a tunneling device, developed by our government, can cut a tunnel through solid rock at the rate of seven miles a day, using laser technology. If modern technology is solely the result of scientific research, then why were not at least some of our more elementary discoveries made a thousand years ago? I suggest that men did not think of it a thousand years ago because God did not want us to think of it until He was ready for us to have it. Is there a whole other world, set in a nearby (but different) dimension, from which man derives advanced technology? Are we actually the products of that other dimension? Are angels and demons actually human-like entities who live in that other dimension with the capability of slipping in and out of this dimension at will? Do they have the capability of communicating directly with our brains? Can demons insert evil thoughts and temptations? Can angels insert reasons for avoiding those temptations? Why not? If our brains contain translators, connected somehow to a computer-like trans-dimensional entity, then it would be feasible to receive an idea or thought from beyond this space-time continuum — similar to your computer receiving an e-mail from someone half-a-world away via the worldwide web. One famous inventor was asked how he came up with his ideas, to which he replied that he dreamed them while asleep. Was the technology (accredited to him) simply fed to him by beings from another dimension? Reverse Engineering the Bible Modern studies of the Bible can only conclude that its authorship comes from a vastly superior intellect — from beyond this world. The many discoveries that have been made in the Scriptures over the past century may be a type of reverse engineering. Theologians may not be discovering anything after all. Instead, we may be receiving supernatural revelations on this divine document, written over a period of 1,500 years, the last of which was written 2,000 years ago. Are we really finding incredible designs that could not have been produced by mere humans? Or, is this like an Easter egg hunt, where someone is saying, “Look here! You’re getting warm! Warmer! Hot!” And we find it. Sure. Just like our children used to find Easter eggs! No, they didn’t discover those Easter eggs, we led them to each find. How could the Psalms have been collected in such a way as to allude to the events surrounding the Jews in this century? As one reads the Psalms, it is obvious that they are prophetic in nature and that they tell of the end of Israel’s long exile. Rabbinical commentaries, written hundreds of years ago, say that the Psalms tell of a time when the Jews will return to their land, welcome the Messiah and set up the world kingdom that was promised to them by God. So, who placed the Psalms in the Bible as the 19th book counting from Genesis and the 48th book counting back from Revelation? Was it just a coincidence that Israel was reborn in 1948? Who placed the prophetic suggestion of Israel’s rebirth in Psalm 48? Whoever inspired the Psalms, must have done so from another dimension! Modern biblical studies provide us with examples of spiritual guidance from beyond this dimension. Something more than just mental processes seem to be going on. There must be more to the brain than is contained within the skull. υThe Human Brain: Home of the Soul, Part 1
Chapter Eleven (Part One)
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Yes! Jesus is Coming!
