We have, recorded in the Bible, a mostly overlooked mission that Christ assigned to the apostles which placed a divine responsibility upon them to “sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

This delegation of power and authority given to the twelve also appears to be applicable to the master or Jesus Christ himself.

Consider the following statement of Christ found in the 15th chapter of Matthew wherein the Father is shown to have delegated a further expanded mission to the Son.

Matthew 15:24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

This is a simple but very powerful message which Christ taught to the disciples on that occasion. This message embodies powerful and far reaching implications to all Israel and subsequently to all of us as well and should register as a most intriguing message message to all living today.
The additional records of Christ’s visit and teaching to the other lost sheep of the House of Israel, when joined with the other sacred writings which we now have should be thrilling to all who truly love the Lord.

The apostles were later charged with the expanded mission of preaching the gospel to those not of the House of Israel. This expanded mission did not apply to Christ as he so clearly stated above.

On another occasion Christ further taught his disciples of his additional specific mission to the full house of Israel.

John 10:16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

We must keep in mind that he “was not sent, but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel” and then the understanding of John 10:16 become clear that his mission unto the other lost sheep of the house of Israel was still a work in progress. There is no account of his visit to the other sheep of which he spoke. The Bible account does contain the account of his message to the tribe of Judah. It does not included any account of his mission to the other lost sheep of the house of Israel which includes his personal visit to the other eleven tribes of the House of Israel.

When I say “personal visit” it means just that, for he, Christ so testified that “they shall hear my voice” and he further stated that “there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.” If they are to be joined together into one fold, it must needs be that their accounts or records of his visits and teaching to them should be joined to the record of his teaching unto the Jews, that they may become one fold under one shepherd.

Quote: › According to the dictionary, 1. Kingdom may apply to a government or country headed by a king or queen; a monarchy; 2. a realm or domain. The word Dom: 1. The rank, position or dominion of (kingdom) 3. a total of all who are (officialdom) In the broadest sense this appears to leave no exceptions for any government.

Are you saying all countries are domains, and as such classed as kingdoms for the purposes of Lukes prophecy?

Mole,

According to the dictionary it appears that all such may be included. It does not leave much room for any to be excluded,

I stand forever amazed in awe and admiration as I begin to understand and witness the multitude of events that have occurred, do now occur and will yet occur as we search and seek to sincerely understand and learn of the divine plan which the Lord God of Israel has instituted for the redemption of his covenant people and all gentiles who will come unto Christ and also be prepared to be received by the spirit of adoption. The gentiles must prepare themselves to receive all the blessing of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob by covenant the same as all true descendants of Israel for God is no respecter of persons.

It is my firm testimony and witness that God’s plan for all Israel and all whom are willing to join themselves thereto are to be living participants in the Lord’s long range plan for those who will love and serve him. I also testify that He is the God of the Dead and living.



For on another occasion Christ taught that:

John 5:25 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.

Here we are taught that more of the word of God will be spoken unto those who are dead. We do not yet have that portion of the word of God spoken or taught unto those who are dead. However we verily have the sure promise that some day we will have this additional word of God added to that which we now have for Peter so powerfully declared:

Acts 3:19  Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

20 And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:

21 Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

We should also remember that the Lord promised to make a new covenant with the House of Israel and Judah as Jeremiah so testified in:

Jeremiah 31:31  Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:

Our dear Lord foreknows the end from the beginning. He is not the author of confusion. His plans fail not. Oh, that all could understand that he it is who has engineered an eternal plan of happiness for his children! Oh how wondrous that plan is. Oh, how far reaching and complete his plan is. Oh, how tender and merciful and far reaching is his plan!

At the first gathering of Israel and their deliverance from Egyptian bondage we observe that out of the millions so miraculously delivered, that there was but few of all those who were willing to exercise the high level of faith and obedience to achieve the next step to ascend to the higher level of communion as their leader Moses had enjoyed.

It was only after much preparation that Moses was finally able to find only 70 of the Elders of Israel and a few others out of all those millions who were willing to partake of the higher blessings of Avraham, Isaac and Jacob, who by their worthiness were then prepared to go up on the mount and visit and witness personally, the Great I AM.

I find this astounding to see that among those millions who had been delivered that there were less than 100, after such miraculous delivery, who would humble themselves in such great faith to become partakers of the divine nature as did Moses.

Consider the following account given in:

Exodus 24:1 AND he said unto Moses, Come up unto the Lord, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off.

2 And Moses alone shall come near the Lord: but they shall not come nigh; neither shall the people go up with him.

3  And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do.

4 And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel.

We observe later in this same chapter the fulfillment of their preparation to see and know for themselves the true and living God. They, at that point did not rely on the witness of Moses or any other prophet, for they knew of a certainty for themselves of the living God of Israel.

Exodus24:9 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:

10 And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.

11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.

In as much as God is no respecter of persons, has He ever at anytime denied anyone this same mighty witness that they received , if we but will obey and likewise prepare our selves?

Mole to Rev2--Are you saying all countries are domains, and as such classed as kingdoms for the purposes of Lukes prophecy?

Rev2--According to the dictionary it appears that all such may be included. It does not leave much room for any to be excluded,

and the dictionary says--The word Dom: 1. The rank, position or dominion of (kingdom) 3. a total of all who are (officialdom)

Aah we pity you Americans after your unfortunate moves in the 1770's. You now have trouble understanding two important things, one of which is the above reasoning.
A country that is a domain is called a dominion, 99% of people here in New Zealand and Oxy will tell you N.Z. is a dominion. There is even an Australian-NZ trotting race called the inter-dominion. However 99% of New Zealanders and Oxy are wrong! Although we became a Dominion in 1907 most people don't know we became a realm in 1986.
But I digress, a domain isn't a generic name for a country, and I still wait for the kingdoms (which includes domains) which are fighting each other to suggest the end time are near.

Oh I almost forgot, the other thing Americans now unfortunately have trouble understanding. It's of course cricket. We do however sympathise with your plight.

I think is is of utmost importance that we should gain a clear understanding of the full magnitude and scope of the Lord’s plan as he sets his hand the second time to gather all Israel in the latter days. When the scriptures are fully examined it should be clear that this gathering will encompass work on both sides of the veil.

In our last few posts we pointed out a few interesting doctrines which Christ and the apostles have taught which few seem to fully appreciate and understand their deep import and significance. I say deep import because those doctrines taught have far reaching effect upon not only millions, but upon billions of our Heavenly Fathers children. Many of those of whom we speak may be your very own ancestors. Many of those of whom we speak may have never had the opportunity to ever learn of Christ during their mortal lifetime. Thus we observe that the gospel was therefore preached also unto those who are dead. This includes both the House of Israel and the Gentiles.

We should observe that this preaching of the gospel unto those who have died is also a part and parcel of the great latter day gathering of Israel. This doctrine may come as a surprise to some and as doctrine not clearly understood by others. It is, nevertheless a doctrine clearly taught by Christ and the prophets and apostles. Such being the case, should we all strive to learn all that we can to understand how it applies and affects us and our ancestors?

I felt it might be very important to examine and explore those doctrines more closely. As mentioned Christ taught:

“John 10:16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”

Christ also taught that: “John 5:25 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.“

To better understand what Christ taught, we should observe that which the apostle Peter taught the people as he gave further insights to that which Christ taught as found in:

“[size=24]1 Peter 3:18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:[/size]

19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;

20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”

Here Peter has clearly taught that Christ after his death and resurrection went forth to preach into those who were in a spirit prison and namely specifies and identifies them as those “Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing.”

Peter also taught us that:

“1 Peter 4:6 For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.”

Did not David also receive this promise as found in:

“Psalms 9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.

10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.”

Did not the prophet Isaiah also so prophesy regarding the preaching of the gospel unto those who are dead as found in:

“Isaiah 24:21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.
22 And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.”

Also what do we hear from Obadiah as found in:

“[size=18]Obadiah 1:21 And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the Lord’s.[/size]”

Consider what Malachi prophesied in:

Malachi4:5  Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord:

6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

Let us examine carefully what Christ taught in:

John 5: 25 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.

26 For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;

27 And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.

28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,

29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.

What meaneth this scripture?

2 Samuel 14:14 For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him

We have earlier noted the promise David had received as spoken in Psalms.

Psalms 16:9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.

10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

What has Isaiah taught us as found in:

“Isaiah 24:19 The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly.

20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.

21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.

22 And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.”

Is there salvation for those who have died who did not have the chance to receive the gospel of Jesus Christ while in this life?

What did Paul remind and teach us on this question?

1 Corinthians 15:16 For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised:

17 And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.

18 Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.

19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.

20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.

21 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.

22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.



23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

24 Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.

25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.

26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

27 For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith, all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him.

28 And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

29 Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?

What were the instructions given to the disciples by the risen Lord?

Mark 16:12  After that he appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country.

13 And they went and told it unto the residue: neither believed they them.

14  Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.



15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

As further evidence that the gospel will be preached unto the dead we should observe that which is taught in Philippians.

Philippians 2:9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:


10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

How can every tongue confess that Jesus is Christ except they be taught?

We are also told in Revelation 5 that all things in heave and on earth and under the earth and in the sea would praise the Lord. Could this all be done without all things having been taught concerning their creator?

“Revelation 5:13 And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.”

And what did Paul teach us in Hebrews?

“Hebrews 11:20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come.
21 By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff.
22 By faith Joseph, when he died, made mention of the departing of the children of Israel; and gave commandment concerning his bones.
23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king’s commandment.
24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter;
25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.
28 Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.
29 By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned.
30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days.
31 By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.
32 And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:
33 Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,
34 Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.
35 Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection:
[b]36 And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:

37 They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;

38 (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.

39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:

40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.”[/b]

Do we clearly understand the import of what Paul has taught in verses 39 and 40? How can “they without us should not be made perfect.”?

Might the above be the very reason that Peter so powerfully taught us that:

“1 Peter 3:18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:

19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;

20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.

21 The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:


22 Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him. ”

In the very next chapter Peter states the very reason why the gospel was preached unto those who had died.

“1 Peter 4:6 For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.”

What does all of the above have to do with the gathering of Israel? Everything!

The Lord has made it clear that he will set his hand again to gather Israel.

The Lord has made it very clear that he was not sent, but unto the lost sheep of the House of Israel.

The Lord and Peter have made it very clear that following his death that Christ went to a place known as the spirit prison and while there preached unto them for a specific stated purpose.

Was Christ speaking of His deliverance of the captive spirits, in the following passages of scripture? Matt 16:18, 1 Peter 3:18-20, 1 Peter 4:6 ?

Was Isaiah speaking of the same thing when he prophesied:

“Isaiah 26:16 Lord, in trouble have they visited thee, they poured out a prayer when thy chastening was upon them.

17 Like as a woman with child, that draweth near the time of her delivery, is in pain, and crieth out in her pangs; so have we been in thy sight, O Lord.

18 We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth wind; we have not wrought any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.

19 Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.”

Consider also what Isaiah spoke and prophesied on this mater as found in:

“Isaiah 24:20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.

21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.

22 And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.”

Add to all this Isaiah’s prophecy found in chapter 42:

“Isaiah 42:6 I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;

7 To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.”

Isaiah spoke further on this point as found in chapter 61:

“Isaiah 61:1THE Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

9 And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the Lord hath blessed.”

Also we are reminded of the Lord’s promise unto David:

“Psalms 16:10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.”

What do we learn from the words of the Master as found in:

“Matthew 5:25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.

26 Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.”

Consider the following very clear message as taught by Jesus Christ:

“John 5:25 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.

26 For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;

27 And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.

28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,

29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.”

One should so carefully note that Christ did not say the dead will hear about him, but he clearly stated that all the dead “shall hear his voice.” Thus not only those of the House of Israel will hear his voice, but all others as well. It should also be so noted that it appears that though all may hear his voice, it still remains that not all will repent and serve him.

On another occasion Christ spoke further on this point:

John 11:25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?

Consider also that which Paul spoke in the following:

Romans 14:8 For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.

9 For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.

Paul further stated in Corinthians:

1 Corinthians 15:19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.

As we understand and increase in our knowledge regarding the Lord’s plans to gather latter day Israel we observe that this plan of his is not limited by a limitation of 5000 years or so. It extends beyond the veil in both directions and encompasses our first estate. The scriptures so testify that the Lord knows the end from the beginning. With that in mind, we should also clue in and understand that he knows each and everyone of us personally far better than we know ourselves.

We learn from the Bible that we lived as spirit children of God in heaven before we ever came to this earth to gain a physical body and learn by our own experience to gain additional progress as we learn to overcome opposition by following Christ. We have that certain understanding that we existed before our mortal existence for God is indeed the father of all our spirits. As a part of that pre-earth life we also faced opposition and had while there the power of agency. We could keep our first estate and earn the privilege of coming to this earth to gain a body as part of God’s eternal plan or we could choose to not keep our first estate and join the forces of Lucifer and be cast out into this earth, and never be permitted to gain a physical body which would allow for further progress by overcoming opposition and becoming “partakers of the divine nature”

The point of our spirit existence is made very clear when we understand that we are the spirit sons and daughters of God:

Numbers 16:22 And they fell upon their faces, and said, [size=24]O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation?[/size]

How would we answer the Lord if we were asked this same question which the Lord asked Job?

Job 38:4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.

5 Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?

6 Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;

7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

I understand that this doctrine may be new to some, or at least not clearly understood by others, but there is no better time than right now to gain a clear understanding and to crystalize or clarify these things to a degree that we may see the true expanded scope of our existence.

We find this pre-mortal existence of man powerfully taught in Proverbs as follows:

“Proverbs 8:22 The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his way, before his works of old.

23 I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was.

24 When there were no depths, I was brought forth; when there were no fountains abounding with water.

25 Before the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth:

26 While as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust of the world.

27 When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth:


28 When he established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep:

29 When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth:

30 Then I was by him, as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him;

31 Rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth; and my delights were with the sons of men.

32 Now therefore hearken unto me, O ye children: for blessed are they that keep my ways.

33 Hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not.

34 Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors.

35 For whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the Lord.

36 But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate me love death.”

[color=black][size=18][b]In the above the psalmist leaves no doubt and speaks with great clarity regarding our pre-mortal existence. This is powerful and dynamic and carries with it eternal implications. Are we humble and teachable that we might "Hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not.”?

What has been shown in our last post is further amplified by:

Ecclesiastes:7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

If our spirits were not with God prioor to this mortal existence, then obviously they could not “return unto God who gave it.”

To further illustrate this doctrine we should observe that which was taught to the prophet Jeremiah:

“Jeremiah 1:1 THE words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin:

2 To whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.

3 It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

4 Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.”

Consider also these powerful words taught by the Savior and found in:

“John 3:11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.

12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?

13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.”

Consider that which our Lord also taught in:

“John 9:AND as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.

2 And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?

3 Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.”

Peter also made it very clear that angels also could and did commit sin and were thus cast out and sent to hell:

“2 Peter 2:4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;”

Paul clearly taught that God the Father is indeed the father of our spirits:

“Hebrews 12:6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.

7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?

8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.

9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?”

We should also examine that which we are taught in:

“Acts 17:26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;

27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:

28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

29 Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device.”

We should also consider that which Paul has atught us as found in:

“Ephesians 1:24 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.”

We should also remember that which was taught by Paul as found in:

“Titus 1: 1 PAUL, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;

2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;”

We should also consider the account spoken of by the apostle John as recorded in:

“Revelation 12:7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”

We should observe and so note that according to all of the foregoing that not only did we exist as spirit children of God, but also that not only all Israel, but all those spirit children of God were placed in a multitude of circumstances in this mortal period of our probation which are not by accident, but predetermined to test and try us to our very limits. This was all done to prove us herewith to see if we would submit ourselves unto the Father’s will just as Christ has shown us by his example.

I, for one, find it more amazing to know that each and everyone of us are placed in varied circumstances calculated by a very wise, all knowing and loving Heavenly Father, which are custom designed to permit us to pass through tests suited to our eternal needs which allow us opportunity for maximum progress while in this life. In all this we need to learn to "act and not be acted upon."