The Grand Plan

Long has the age-old question been considered, how did we come to be here, why are we here, and where are we going from here. Philosophers, scientists, and theologians all have specific paradigms to offer as answers to these unknowns. This may satisfy your curiosity, but it more than likely will only confuse and frustrate you opening up more questions than you had before.

Faith or belief offers a reality based in fantasy which can be most satisfactory to many. Fantasy may be all that many people expect, but it will never be the truth. I would venture to say most people have stopped searching for answers to these unknowns, realizing they will only be subjected to more platitudes which serve only to frustrate their intellect. Personally, I know the truth can be discovered, and when discovered will be consistent and cohesive. A perception based on dishonest/false information produces a cognitive dissonance in the mind which then requires that it be supported by a logical fallacy and leading to an assumed conclusion.

The subject of this article involves reality, specifically the perceived reality involving this world. Two main points will be presented and addressed; the reality of truthfulness, and the virtual reality created by deception. I have never crossed paths with anyone who would willingly believe a lie. Yet I know that the whole world has been mastered by a very cleverly contrived deception; clever in that it offers the peoples of the world whatever they want, but the experience is all a charade. The core of this deception is faith.

By faith you can experience a vision, spiritual euphoria, or any other desired effect. By faith your god can love you unconditionally, or alternately has no love or emotion at all. By faith your god may not be a god at all, but only a super human, or even an extraterrestrial; or you may go to the extreme and believe that God does not exist. There are those who believe that it matters not whether you know the truth about God, only that you believe in ‘a’ god. Many assume that god does not care to reveal much, if anything about them self or themselves, that they choose to remain unknown, requiring only that they be worshiped in the tradition of the elders.
The reality of that which is seen and that which is unseen is also a subject of debate. If you worship a god, it is highly likely your god is unseen/invisible. Whether you believe in the existence of spiritual/invisible beings does not determine whether they actually exist or not. The truth will always cause conflict with standard belief or practice. The whole world has been successfully subdued by lies (Revelation 12:9). These doctrines of lies have created a spiritual darkness over all the earth. The truth has the spiritual quality of a very bright light which dispels this darkness and opens the spiritually blind eyes of those who truly want to see. Anyone who has ears to hear let them hear what the Spirit is saying.

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In the beginning there was darkness which covered the whole earth, then Elohim came and physically separated the light from the darkness, and they are doing the same now in a spiritual way. The substance of humankind is flesh and blood, and when we die our substance decays and becomes dust, specifically the dust of this earth. A spiritual being is immortal, and never dies; although a created spiritual being may be put to death (executed) by the Creator. A spiritual being has form but not substance, their form is that of their own choosing. Elohim is not a created being. The other spiritual beings are recognized by various names: angels, demons, extraterrestrials, messengers, watchers, spirits, were created by the Elohim (see my article titled “Elohim” www.spiritoftruthministry.net). These spiritual beings were created to perform specific tasks in the maintenance and administration of the whole creation. The subject of this paper describes an issue which came about during the activity of this operation.

The Bible is a compilation of writings, and some of these scripts are describing life from the distant past. The “Old Testament” contains the compilation of the Law and the prophets, and the Psalms. The Law was given to Moses on the top of Mt. Horeb, shortly after the “exodus” from Egypt. The Bible was never intended to be a history book, as one would expect a history book to be. The Bible contains a historical record, but only as it pertains to the kingdom of Elohim. The purpose of the Law was to inform those who had (themselves) chosen to be in the kingdom of Elohim about Elohim, the God of that kingdom. Elohim (three separate personalities-One God) wanted their kingdom to know them, love them, and worship them. They required their kingdom to learn and practice integrity and justness.

God created everything on and in the earth, and the last creative act was to bring forth the people of the earth, males and females, made in the image and likeness of the Elohim. On the sixth day of creation the Elohim made humankind with the same multiplicity incorporated into all their creation, ethnic groups/nations we see today.

Elohim did not “pre-program” the brain cells of these beings with information in order that they be able to dwell on the earth. Instead Elohim gave them the ability to learn. These beings were given a basic operating system (the autonomic and parasympathetic nervous system). They lacked the knowledge of how to read or write, do mathematical calculations, build structures, farm, keep livestock, and all that is involved in life. Elohim sent some of their created spiritual beings here to teach humankind the necessary information allowing them to thrive and prosper and “subdue the earth” (Genesis 1:28). What ultimately transpired among these “teachers” was the idea that these created beings rebelled against Elohim, and actually took over the role of Creator vis a vis the human beings that lived on the earth. Lucifer, the leader of this rebellion, deceived the nations and received their worship (see Isaiah 14:3-21 and Ezekiel 28:1-19). There are also extra-biblical accounts of the interactions of the gods and men (see the Epic of Gilgamesh, Babylonian, Assyrian, Sumerian, Olmec, African, Mayan, Aztec, Native American, Chinese, Japanese, and Indian records to name a few).

These spiritual beings co-opted the divine authority of Elohim and presented themselves as the gods of creation. You may wonder how any being, or beings, could subvert the authority of Elohim; here is how. Elohim rules with truth and justice. The subjects of their kingdom know the truth and obey Elohim. The leaders of the rebellion lied to the nations, betraying them, and instituted a system that only operates in darkness. The nations had no knowledge of Elohim, and because they trusted these teachers, those who came down from the heavens, they submitted to their authority. This situation lasted for a very long time; how long no one knows, but at the very least, many thousands of years.

Elohim had a plan which detailed the necessary requirements to accomplish restoration, the restoration of their authority over the whole world. The Elohim are not the rulers of darkness, sin, nor lies. The Elohim rule the kingdom of the holy people, a kingdom of righteousness and truthfulness. Understandably their first step in the process to restoration would be to establish a kingdom of Elohim on the earth. This would be a kingdom whose people have integrity and justness. A people who have the knowledge of truth, and live in accordance with the truth. A people who know, love, and obey the Elohim. A kingdom in the world, but not of the world. The kingdom of the Elohim is a kingdom of their sons and daughters, those who have been purchased by the blood of the Passover Lamb, born from above, as are all spiritual beings. The Mother of these born from above is the Holy Spirit. These are consecrated/sanctified by the word of Elohim, the testimony of Jesus. whose testimony is true.

Please read John 15:1-17. Here the Son of Man is teaching a very important element in His testimony. “I am the vine” and My Father is the “vine-dresser”. When this information is connected with that in Matthew 21:33-46, we see a picture of the kingdom of Elohim taking form, taking form because the kingdom of Elohim is spiritual. This spiritual kingdom is a real kingdom. Those that enter this kingdom do so through their spiritual understanding. Those who have eyes to see and ears to hear what the Spirit of God/Elohim is saying. The words of the Spirit are understood by those who have the ability to understand (see Matthew 13:10-17). One requirement that all who desire to enter the kingdom of Elohim must have is oil, spiritual oil. Spiritual oil has two indicators as to its presence in a person; these are integrity and justness. It is interesting that these are the two qualities curiously absent in the children of Israel, a quality that the Elohim was continually looking for but never found. I am confident of this fact, if one were to ask any Israelite in any generation whether they had lived with integrity and justness they would answer in the affirmative.

The presence (or absence) of oil is the key to understanding. Integrity is the oil that allows the truth to find a home in the consciousness. The evidence which proves the presence of integrity is easily discerned. Here are the qualities proving the presence of integrity: Unimpaired condition/reasoning (soundness); Firm adherence to a code of moral values (incorruptibility); The quality or state of being complete or undivided (completeness), i.e., Honesty. I have found that on one hand people will be honest with others, all the while deceiving themselves on the other. This is a fact that most will deny. This world is in spiritual darkness. The people of earth are so accustomed to darkness that they actually believe that darkness is light. Elohim has been working to get a light to shine in this world, but those who were chosen to accomplish this refused.

Matthew 5:14-16 (JB) ‘You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill-top cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp to put it under a tub; they put it on the lamp-stand where it shines for everyone in the house. In the same way your light must shine in the sight of men so that, seeing your good works, they may give the praise to your Father in the heavens.

Elohim chose the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob/Israel, to be their people. Elohim would teach Israel, giving them the necessary information to know what they needed to know about their Elohim; but Israel refused to learn. Instead the children of Israel chose to learn about the gods of the nations around them, and to worship them. Israel chose darkness instead of light.

The builders in Israel, those who were entrusted with the responsibility of constructing the “spiritual house”, were the priests. The great deceiver gained control of the priests and the spiritual house was a house of cards. The temple of light, they had turned into darkness.

Matthew 21:33-46 (JB) ‘Listen to another parable. There was a man, a landowner, who planted a vineyard; he fenced it round, dug a wine press in it and built a tower; then he leased it to tenants and went abroad. When vintage time drew near he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his produce. But the tenants seized his servants thrashed one, killed another and stoned a third. Next he sent some more servants, this time a larger number, and they dealt with them in the same way. Finally he sent his son to them. “they will respect my son” he said. But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, “This is the heir. Come on, let us kill him and take over his inheritance.” So they seized him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?’ They answered, ‘He will bring those wretches to a wretched end and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will deliver the produce to him when the season arrives’. Jesus said to them, ‘Have you never read in the scriptures: It was the stone rejected by the builders that became the cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing and it is wonderful to see? I tell you then, that the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.’ When they heard his parables, the chief priests and the scribes realized he was speaking about them, but though they would have liked to arrest him they were afraid of the crowds, who looked on him as a prophet.

Matthew 23:37-39 (JB) ‘Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you that kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! How often have I longed to gather your children, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you refused! So be it! Your house will be left to you, for, I promise, you shall not see me any more until you say: Blessings on him who comes in the name of the Lord!’

The children of Israel had squandered their birthright for the filth and stench of this world. They had rejected Elohim for the final time. By overcoming the world the Son of Man had received the right to build and rule a kingdom in the world, but not of the world. Elohim had taken personal responsibility for the building of His kingdom. No more human priests, no more earthly temple. There would no longer be a holy land, or holy city.

Daniel 7:13-14 (JB) ‘I gazed into the visions of the night. And I saw coming on the clouds of heaven, one like a son of man. He came to the one of great age and was led into His presence. On Him was conferred sovereignty, glory and kingship, and men of all peoples, nations and languages became His servants. His sovereignty is an eternal sovereignty which shall never pass away, nor will His empire ever be destroyed.

Revelation 5:9-10 (NASB) And they sang a new song saying, “Worthy art Thou to take the book, and to break its seals’ For Thou wast slain and didst purchase for God with Thy Blood Men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. And Thou hast made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; And they will reign upon the earth.”

The Stone that the builders had rejected is the cornerstone of a completely new “spiritual house”. This cornerstone was put into place by the Father, it was the beginning of a new house not its completion.

John 15:1-10 (NASB) “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vine-dresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away’ and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spokne to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch, and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you. By this is My Father glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments, and abide in His love.

Elohim gave the Law to Moses on Mt. Horeb. This Law was to be read to the children of Israel so they could learn it. Elohim revealed themselves through the Law, allowing the children of Israel to come to know their Elohim and follow their instructions in the Law. ultimately to be holy, this was the intention of Elohim.

At present we have the Law and the Prophets, as well as the testimony of the Son of God. We have been instructed to learn His testimony, and to perform it. The great deceiver had planned a new deception, and he called this a “new covenant”. He would co-opt the testimony of Jesus, giving the believer a distorted gospel, an all inclusive message founded on the premise of unconditional love. Through this illegitimate “gospel” he would successfully forestall the development of the kingdom of Elohim on earth. The great deceiver would then assure credibility with its inclusion in the cannon of scripture, giving it the attribute of legitimacy. And so it is that the “gospel of grace”, just as the great deceiver expected, became the accepted salvation theology for protestant christian churches at the end of time.

Two Foundations

John 7:24-29 (NASB) “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house upon the rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house, and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock. And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act upon them, will be like a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and it fell, and great was its fall.” The result was that when Jesus had finished these words, the multitudes were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.

This was the summation statement delivered by the Son of Man at the end of His initial testimonial, it was His statement of purpose. It may have seemed unusual to those who had heard the full length of this instruction. This man had appeared out of nowhere, teaching as though He had received authority from some unknown teacher. The writer (widely believed to be Matthew) explains that the crowd was “amazed”(astonished) at His teaching.

John 8:12-14 (NASB) Again therefore Jesus spoke to them saying, “I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life. The Pharisees therefore said to Him. “You are bearing witness of yourself; Your witness is not true (valid).” Jesus answered and said to them, “Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true; for I know where I come from, and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from, or where I am going.

John 8:31-33, 59 (NASB) Jesus therefore was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free…
Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.

Imagine yourself present at the time these discussions were taking place, but with the same theological understanding you have now, more than likely you would have been among those who picked up stones. It was for this reason that the Son of God was sent by His Father to this earth. The world was full of darkness, the teaching of the theologians (priests) were doctrines of men, designed to maintain the darkness. God sent many prophets throughout the centuries, all were ignored by priest and people alike. Now the greatest of all prophets, the Son of God, was speaking to them face to face, and it made no difference; to them He was just one more fraud.

Today the testimony of the Son of God is completely ignored. It is ignored for a variety of reasons, such as; “it was only intended for the Jews”, it is “old covenant”, the “new covenant” would not take effect until after His resurrection etc. It is interesting to note that not one of these “new covenant” understandings were even suggested in His testimony, in fact, quite the opposite is true.

Matthew 28:18-20 (NASB) And Jesus came up and spoke to them saying, “all authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe (to guard) all that I commanded (to order, commanded to be done, enjoin) you; and lo, I am with you always even to the end of the age.”

The Son of God commissioned His disciples to teach exactly the instructions He had given to them. Clearly the eleven disciples understood what they were to do and what they were to teach, and to whom they were to teach it. The teaching of the Son of God was to be taken to the nations (gentiles), there was not a separate way to salvation for gentiles, and no “new covenant” designed especially for them. The Son of God has promised to be in the company of all who choose to learn His testimony, and teach it to others, even to the very end of the age. Any other teaching (gospel) that is not completely in agreement with the testimony of Jesus is a lie.

There are two kingdoms for humankind, the kingdom of darkness, and the kingdom of Light. All of humankind have been in darkness since the great deception, when the nations were deceived by the evil ones. These spiritual beings, sent here to give humankind the knowledge they required to live and thrive on the earth, ordered the nations to worship and obey them. The only true Elohim have no authority over the kingdom of darkness, they rule the kingdom of Light. Their plan is to show the way to their kingdom of Light, for the purpose of defeating the kingdom of darkness and the judgment of all who adhere to it. It is necessary for all humankind to be given notice that they are in the kingdom of darkness and must learn the way to the kingdom of Light. The way to the kingdom of Elohim was given and demonstrated by the Son of Man.

John 14:4-6 (NASB) “And you know the way where I am going.” Thomas said to Him, “Lord we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through (the ground or reason something is or is not done) Me.

John 10:1-2, 7 (NASB) “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep.
Jesus therefore said to them again, “truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.

By saying this the Son of God emphasizes the fact that it is His testimony (His voice) that describes the way to the kingdom of the Father (the sheepfold). Those who are in the kingdom of the Father but did not follow the instructions He gave are thieves and robbers. Another example of this was demonstrated in the parable of the wedding feast.

Matthew 22:11-13 (NASB) “But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw there a man not dressed in wedding clothes, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?’ And he was speechless. “Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and cast him into the outer darkness; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

A wedding gown was required in order to enter the marriage feast. It is obvious that this person had not come through the door, but had entered some other way. The wedding garment is received when the person has learned the testimony of Jesus and performs it. Every attendee at this wedding feast is wearing an identical gown as everyone else, including the Bridegroom.

Here is the conclusion: Elohim created, and thereby owns, everything. Elohim has authority over the kingdom of Elohim, a kingdom of truth, light, integrity, and justness. Elohim does not have authority over the kingdom of lies, darkness, wickedness, and injustice. The kingdom of the world is ruled by the ruler of the world, the ancient serpent (dragon) Satan, and he has the say as to the operation of his domain. This is why good things happen to bad people, and bad things to the “good”. Elohim has clearly and publicly shown the way to enter their kingdom, but most pay no attention. Drunk with the liquor of grace, they assume that their god will excuse any error in their practice because of his unconditional love (agape). Remember that the king called the naked guest “friend”, but that did not prevent his binding him and casting him out into the outer darkness. The instructions are simply this; learn the testimony of the Son of God, and perform it. Make a promise to obey the ten commandments, and keep your promise. You will then enter the kingdom of Elohim and will receive eternal life. You must also help others to find the way, so they too may have eternal life, and live in the earth made new.

Rick Sterling