Our Potential

Wayne Matthews

September 30, 2023

Feast of Tabernacles Sermon

Welcome, everybody, to this split sermon for the Feast of Tabernacles.

A human spiritual potential is not known or understood by mankind because it has not been called to see it, to know it. So, our potential as humans, those people all going to have that same opportunity one day, but today they don’t know it.

So, we’ve been called to see it. Now, this is an incredible thing when you really consider that mankind knows nothing about what God’s plan is, nothing at all, really, and they all think they have an immortal soul and there’s a heaven and a hell.

Yet all of that is a lie; it’s a deception. The whole world has been allowed by God to be deceived regarding the purpose of human life. Now, we understand what human life is about, but mankind has no idea, none whatsoever.

Revelation 12:9—So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the devil… Now the “devil,” the word “the devil” there is “false accuser or slanderer,” and Satan, who deceives. Now, we generally don’t believe that we’re deceived, but there are aspects of our life where deception still exists, only we don’t know we’re deceived. Just like the world out there, they don’t know they’re deceived.

That word, “deceived,” is “go astray, seduce, wander, be out of the way.” So, it says, who deceives the whole world. So, if we were to go out to mankind now and say, “You’re deceived.” They would think, “Yeah, sure.” They’d think we’re the ones that are deceived. But no, the whole world is deceived, and that deception is incredible.

When you look at what we used to believe, where we came from, it’s an amazing thing. When you look at just simple things like Christmas, Easter. But when you look at a whole religion which we understand comes out of the Roman Empire, when you look at that, it’s all deception, total. Well, you couldn’t go up to them, the billion or so that are there, and say to them there’s an aspect of any deception. They’ll just look at you as you’re part of a cult and you’re deceived.

But the reality is the whole world has been deceived. The whole world of mankind has been deceived, which is “led astray; wandered in thinking.” Now, when you look at the natural carnal mind and you look at what’s happening in today’s world, we see clearly that people are calling good evil. It’s really obvious what we would consider good, they say it’s evil.

But they call evil… Now, there are certain groups with colored flags, and that, that is pure evil, but they call it good, and if we were to stand up and say anything open in public about that, you know, see what happens to us. It’s happened to a couple of people that have turned around and quoted certain things and their life is a misery because you don’t just get one or two, you get a whole community that are on you, that you’re biased and you’re all these other different things that they use different words to explain what you are.

And then to say, “Well, you’re deceived by Satan. What you’re believing and what evil you’re living and you’re calling it good…” Well, they can’t see it. Well, that’s a deception and they’re willingly now accepting that. But there’s going to come a time when they’re going to have to admit certain things, that what is actually evil is actually not good at all, it’s actually pure evil and it’s satanic.

So, they believe in many false religious beliefs, and there are many other things that are not true, they’re actually a lie.

Revelation 20:1. So, we’re going to go now to the start of the Millennium where we see Satan, the deceiver of the whole world, that’s everyone, because we were once deceived, and we’ve been called out of that deception to see the truth and then to live it. So, this is the start of the Millennium where the deception can now stop and now truth can now be taught, and it can be heard. But it’s still a choice within mankind whether they’re going to live it.

Revelation 20:1—And then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the abyss, which is “a place of restraint,” and a great chain in his hand. Symbolic language being used, of course. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. We understand it’s a little longer than a thousand, but that period of time, the Millennium, the one-thousand-year period, Satan is bound, and he is restrained from deceiving mankind.

Now, everyone has to come out of deception, and we still have deception in us. And if we knew what it was we would flee from it. But often we often live our life thinking that, you know, where we are, that the present truth, that’s it. Well, there’s more but we just haven’t been exposed to it yet to make a choice. But that’s what our life has been.

When you look at our first calling it was more about physical things and Sabbath keeping and tithing, and as we go longer in the Church and God reveals more to us, and we’re taught more by God, we then have to make a choice. And therefore, what we’re doing is reducing the deception that was naturally in us because “The natural carnal mind is hostile against God, not subject to the law of God and neither indeed can be.” It just can’t fight off that deception.

Now, there’s an aspect of human nature where it can see a bit of deception and fight it, but it’s not on a spiritual level. It’s a physical thing that they can do.

So, God’s purpose in releasing Satan from the abyss for a short time at the end is for that very purpose, back to a particular point in time where mankind has to now make a choice. For they’ve had one thousand, one hundred years, and of course, everyone’s been resurrected. They have now a choice to make. So, they now can see what is good, and now Satan can come back out and those that have not chosen to live good, not chosen to live God’s way, now are going to face a deception that is going to lead to their end.

So, God will release them, and those that are, Satan and the demons that are released, they are going to be able to influence those who have not chosen God or God’s ways.

God will then destroy all evil. So, all rebellious spirit beings and those from mankind that have chosen selfishness, they’re going to be destroyed. This is called “the second death” for mankind or “a lake of fire” in God’s word.

The purpose of this sermon, this split sermon, is to look at the real purpose of human life and our future spiritual potential.

The title of the sermon is Our Potential.

But if we just stop and look at it from what God has revealed to us at this moment we currently have what’s called consciousness, the ability to think. Spirit in man. So, we have that, we have a consciousness. So when we sleep (which is like a darkness), there’s still a consciousness because it can dream.

But the reality is that at the end there will be no consciousness. So, it’s not like a person that enters into a second death is going to be able to think that they ever had life. There’s going to be nothing. It’s called blackness and darkness forever. There is nothing. There is no thinking, “Ah, if only I hadn’t of sinned.” “If only…” If only. There’ll be none of that. There is nothing, absolutely nothing.

I remember when I was younger going down into some caves in western Australia, and we went down a half a kilometer or so, and they turned out the lights. Now, the darkness it’s just staggering. There is no light. There is just nothing. You can’t see any aspect of anything, it’s just blackness.

Well, that’s mankind without consciousness. The mankind can’t see the darkness. There’ll be no memory. There is no consciousness. So, the second death is no consciousness forever.

Satan and the demons, when they enter into death, there is no consciousness. There is no memory left. It’s gone forever.

So, what is the real purpose for which mankind was created and put on this earth? Now, we understand it, which in itself is an amazing thing. Because if we really understand it we’ll realize we’re here for a temporary period of time of which we are then called by God – and that in itself is a marvelous thing – and then we have to make a choice.

One thing that often leaves our mind is the purpose of life. We let physical things take over. We let physical things dominate our thinking or take over our real purpose of life that God desires. That’s the natural carnal mind that takes over, and we forget what life is really all about. And we live life, and we see money is more important or something else is more important, yet in the scheme of it, this speck of time, it’s not important at all, it’s totally irrelevant compared to the purpose of why God called us, to have life forever with Him, to live forever never to be able to sin. Staggering.

Yet life takes over our lives and, you know, our minds wander and that’s the way we are. That’s the way we are. And it’s sad, really, because our spiritual potential is the only thing that matters. It’s the only thing that matters. Nothing else in life really matters compared to this. And what an incredible, merciful God that is willing to give something that He has to us who don’t deserve anything.

God has a plan for mankind that covers seven thousand, one hundred years. This is the amount of earth time which God has created for His creation and the creation of His spirit Family from mankind. It’s a marvelous thing. But it’s only a short period of time. When you look at seven thousand, one hundred years, in the speck of time it’s nothing to the billions or possibly trillions of years when angels have existed.

God created spirit beings for the purpose of supporting His plan. So, the only reason that God created the angelic realm was for the purpose of creating His Family. It’s part of a plan. And when you look at it, the ever how long they have existed, it was all for a point in time which we are now living, this point in time. We’re at the end of six thousand years, almost there, and there’s not much longer to go. There is only one thousand, one hundred years to go, therefore the purpose of God is now narrowed down into “this” much compared to “that” much. It’s staggering!

Here we are, we exist only for one reason – because God wants a Family, a spirit Family. There will be one and there will be 144,000 plus 1, Joshua the Messiah, and there will be more. But after that, we don’t know anything about what the future holds for us. But we, hopefully, will have chosen God and be spirit beings.

The only way a human can enter Elohim is if God works in and with that human in the mind. So, the most precious thing that we have… I know bad back at the moment, might be a bit crooked, bad knee, bad ankles, all of that’s actually quite irrelevant in the scheme of what the purpose of life is. It’s a minute thing. It seems like it’s going on for a long time when you’ve got a bit of pain, but the reality is it’s a speck when you look back (← always), and look forward (always →) and here we are in this little weeny bit of time.

So, the most important thing that we have is the mind. That’s the most important thing. Whatever carries the mind, it breaks down. But this mind, that’s what it’s about, “Let this mind be in you that was in Joshua the Messiah.” That’s the most important thing, the mind. The transformation of the mind is the most important thing any human can ever do – allow God to work in that mind.

We see an angelic realm and we see a third that have rebelled. Hebrews 1:14—Are they, talking about the angelic realm, not all ministering… Now, that word “ministering” is “to benefit.” They’re ministering spirits sent forth to minister, which is to benefit those who will inherit salvation. Who is it that’s going to inherit salvation? It’s those that choose God from mankind.

Now, we’re the beginning of it. The Church started in 31 AD, there were a few before then. Then in 31 AD the Church was established, and there’s been for a period of time, almost two thousand years or more, where (well, we’re not at quite two thousand years yet), where the Church, where God poured out His spirit in 31 AD, and now here we are. Staggering! We’re at the end of it. We’re at the end of a period of time and we’re going to see massive change that the human mind just can’t comprehend.

I was saying to Chris, it’s quite staggering when you look out and you realize what’s going on and here we are …here we are, we just think so differently. They don’t know anything about the return of Christ.

When you look back at mankind everyone is driving around and going through red lights and everyone’s doing all this crazy stuff, but nobody knows what we know about the return of Joshua the Messiah—it’s going to be a massive shock—yet alone a nuclear war. But the return of the Messiah to this earth, who’s expecting it? Few in PKG. I shouldn’t say a few “in,” a few of PKG. It’s just staggering, staggering, really, when you look at it. A minute amount of people believe that Joshua the Messiah is going to return to this earth and there’s going to upturn all the government of mankind.

You won’t see politicians, and you won’t see politicians giving themselves a pay increase when every one else is getting a cut. It’s staggering what’s going on in the world. That will all stop. There’s going to be a lot of people that will want to resurrect that during the hundred years. If they think they were important do you think they’re all of a sudden think they’re not going to be important and automatically have humility? Don’t think so. I think there is going to be a lot of people that are going to want what they had before – power, political power.

Are they, these angels, not for the purpose of mankind? Yes, they are.

God is using the demonic realm, Satan and the demons, for the purpose of creating His Family. It’s incredible. Because with Satan, you can see that the 144,000 have all had to endure having Satan around where they’ve been under a lot of pressure. Mankind is against us whereas the future with God, 144,000 on the earth, it’s going to be a different world without Satan and the demons.

Only a human called by God knows God’s plan and understands the real purpose of a human life. All too often the problem we have as humans is we forget it. We forget that we are only here for such a short time and it’s a time of testing to see the way we really think, to test us.

It is God that has given us physical life and created the possibility of a future spirit life in Elohim. So, it’s all part of God’s plan and we’ve been called now for this purpose, to enter Elohim, to live on into the Millennium, but at some point in time to enter Elohim.

Because outside of that, what is there? Blackness and darkness forever. It’s a staggering thing when you look at it. And yet there is no consciousness. We won’t know that we even existed because it’ll be cut off. That’s if you get put into the second death. You won’t know it, it’s just like it never existed ever. No consciousness.

Everlasting life in Elohim is a gift from God, and it’s something else that we often just flitter away. But it’s actually a gift from God because He has existed forever. He is the only one that has eternal life existing in Him, or immortality in Him, now, and He’s always had it. It’s something that we will be given by God.

For almost six thousand years now most of mankind has been told that they have an immortal soul, which at physical death that immortal soul goes to heaven or hell. Now, that is a deception. But that’s what most people believe. In other religions, they think cows are sacred or frogs or something else. They live a life worshiping something that’s false. But it’s total deception…total deception.

Mankind has been told that after life there is something for them. They actually think that they’re going to be given an immortality. But that’s not true. Immortality is a gift from God. It’s something that can’t be earned and it’s something that’s not inherent in us; it’s not something we automatically have. That system of belief, of an immortal soul, is from Satan. It’s a deception and a lie. We understand that no lie is of the truth. Only those called by God to see spiritually can see the truth.

I want to look at Truth #8. Now, Truth 8 is something that often we sort of just take for granted because we know it, but mankind does not know this truth. There are very few that actually understand it let alone know it, that actually understand it, “What is man?”

Now, we saw a TV ad the other day, and I won’t mention who it was for, but it started off where there’s a heap of stars and they explode and a speck of dust comes to the earth sort of thing, and from the speck of dust, man comes out. It’s evolution, of course, but comes out and goes from crawling to walking to all sorts, to, you know, all sorts, to the “modern human.” When you look at it, it’s absolute insanity! When you really look at it it’s absolute insanity that from something, a piece of dust which is lifeless, life could come from that, unless there’s a Creator.

Which, we come from the dust of the ground, but it requires a creator, something that has life to give life. Can’t just have life.

8 (5) What is man? Man does not have an immortal soul. Man is a temporary living, mortal being that returns to the elements of the earth at death and does not go to heaven or hell.

Now, there is a big majority of people who believe this. Often, they’ll be running around playing football and they’ll say, “My grandfather was looking over me, you know, watching me,” and “I’m doing this for ‘this’ person or ‘that’ person.” It’s the biggest load of rubbish you’ve ever heard. There is nothing. They’re dead in the ground. They’re gone. Their spirit essence part has returned to God ready to be awakened – like a recording, ready to be switched on again. But at the moment it’s no consciousness, nothing. It’s just blackness forever. There’s just nothing there.

Only if God gives it life… To the vast majority that life will be given. Some won’t because they’ve gone too far. But if that life is given, well, then they had life.

Only God (Yahweh Elohim) can give mankind immortality in His Family.

So, that’s when we are then given this gift. Immortality is a gift from God. It cannot be earned through human effort or by human works or actions.

Now, once we are called we realize that we have to start making choices. But we have to be called first. So, no matter what we decide we still have to be called to be able to see the truth. Other than that, we’re just going to have life and that’s it, there’s nothing else. So God has to call us to see spiritual matters.

Truth #6. That truth we just went through, “What is man?” That’s not known. We live our lives often just thinking, well, we know it. But it’s an incredible gift and a miracle that we even understand it, that we even know that, that we have that knowledge. Truth #6, same.

6 (3) God’s purpose for mankind.

This, again, is an incredible truth that we should always hang on to, the purpose of why God called us. Because He wants to give us something, but it is dependent, a lot of it, on us, on our choices.

God is reproducing Himself and no other church knows or preaches this truth.

Now, if we went around saying, “Oh yes, I’ve been called,” it’s going to go down well, “And yes, I’m going to be in Elohim, a god. I’m going to be God.” Well, that’s going to go down well. Because it only can be discussed or even mentioned one of the reasons why we should love one another, really, we’re all going to be in Elohim, we’re all going to be begotten sons of God. We’re going to be born sons of God. We’re begotten now, we’re going to be born.

We are to be born of God and become God—in the God Family: Elohim.

Staggering!

Now, only those called to see this and to know it can actually understand it. That’s our purpose. That’s the purpose of life. But all too often we, unfortunately, because of our human nature, forget this very fact. We don’t live a life this way, the fact that we have been called to enter Elohim. Amazing, it is, God’s purpose for us. Yet we forget it with all the other things in life that we have.

We are now begotten sons of God with an incredible potential. Humans out there that haven’t been called still have not got that potential, really. You only have that potential if we are called. Because once you’re called then the potential becomes real. So, when they’re called it becomes real, “Ah.”

Hebrews 2:10—For it was fitting for Him, talking about God, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory. Children of God. It doesn’t matter whether male or female, but it’s from mankind. So, we all came from mankind, we’re all part of mankind, so, we have the potential to be brought to glory, to be Elohim, in Elohim. Not to be like God, because He’s existed forever, but from a point in time to inherit salvation. Amazing.

…in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation (Christ) perfect (complete) through sufferings. So we, brethren, the way that we can enter Elohim is through self-sacrifice, to sacrifice self, which is a suffering. To deny self is a suffering.

So, we are now in the Church for the very purpose of being brought to glory. Salvation. That’s why we’re in the Church.

Romans 8:28—Now we know. We understand. We see spiritually. We see it. …that all things work together for good—not to everybody but—to those who love God. That is about “live after this manner,” which is sacrificing. So, if we say we love God we will be sacrificing self to the benefit of others. Now, if we’re not, we can’t say we love God.

…to those who are the called, which is us, according to His purpose. What is His purpose, God’s purpose? To create a Family. So it’s about from mankind creating a Family, which is an incredible thing when you understand the spiritual aspect of that. We deserve nothing, we’re owed nothing, yet God in His mercy decided to call you and me. Staggering.

It could have been thousands of others that had that opportunity, but for some reason it’s us. Here we are at this very Feast with that potential. So, we all have that potential to enter Elohim.

Now, a lot of it is not up now to God. It’s really up to us about what choices we make. God’s done His aspect of calling, giving us food, spiritual food every Sabbath and Holy Day. What we do with it, how we live it, whether we’re going to discipline self, whether we’re going to sacrifice self, that’s our part. We have to choose to do it.

Verse 29—For whom He foreknew… In other words, God knew that He would call a group of people at the end time, and here we are. It’s not that He knew us individually. He knew there was a group of people; we just happen to be part of that. So, we’re actually in this scripture. When we’re reading this it refers to us.

For whom He foreknew. He knew there was a group of people, but He’s chosen us. He has stopped at some point and said, “I’ll call that person, give them the opportunity to have eternal life with me.” Life everlasting is a better word, probably, “life everlasting with Me.” Now is your choice. Now is this choice. Now it’s Wayne’s opportunity. It’s now.

He also predetermined to be conformed, which is to be fashioned like the image of His Son, which is to have the same mind, the same thinking. So, that’s how we are being transformed. We’re moving away from a carnal mind into a new way of thinking, a different way of thinking, a way of sacrificing.

…that he (Christ) might be the firstborn (he’s the first) among many brethren. The most important thing out of all of this is that we have to choose to be transformed. We have to choose. So, we’re fed and given the information, spiritual knowledge, but in all of this we still have to be at a point where we have to choose it, “Yes, I’m going to strive to live this.” We won’t always get it right; we’ll often fail.

Verse 30—Moreover, whom He predetermined, these He also called. It’s talking about us. So, He predetermined there was a group of people. We’re here today. We’re evidence of this very scripture.

…He called, whom He called, which is us, these He also justified. How? Through Passover. So, we have faith in God’s word. We believe that He sent Joshua the Messiah for our benefit so that He could live and dwell in us. Sin could be covered and then He could live in us. So, what an incredible plan. Well, we’re the evidence of that today.

…and whom He justified, these He also glorified. So, we carry now an aspect of glory because we’ve got God dwelling in us. But at some point in time that’ll be permanent, and we won’t have the natural carnal mind of selfishness in us.

So, we’re to be clothed with splendor at a point in time. We’re clothed in an aspect of splendor now if we have God’s spirit dwelling in us and we’re choosing to live it, what we know spiritually, sacrificing self. Well, that splendor is there, but one day it’ll be permanent. Roll on that day, you know, when we just can’t offend people and we can’t upset people and do the wrong thing. Everything will be done rightly, the way it should be.

Truth #12:

12 (9) Only those whom God the Father calls and draws to Him can be converted.

Now, that “converted,” which is “to think differently,” really. Conversion involves repentance from what we are to think differently. Well, the way we think differently is we start to think the way God thinks about matters. We believe God for a start, but we then start to implement it into our life. Therefore, we are different.

Only those God chooses and calls now can come into the Church of God. Satan has deceived the whole world, and the Church is called out of that world.

We are called out to think differently. Now, what is “think differently”? To repent. To choose to repent. So, God will give us the information, we see spiritually, and now we have to say, “Ah, made that mistake. I repent. I don’t want to be that way; I don’t want to do that anymore.” Now we choose to think differently. So, we want to think the way God thinks about a matter.

We are the called-out ones. Now, that in itself is an incredible, incredible thing. Only we underestimate it. Not putting badges on ourselves or lifting ourselves up. In actual fact, it’s the opposite. It’s very humbling to know that out of all the eight billion people or so God decided to call us, very small group at the end time and we have an opportunity and potential to be in Elohim. Incredible—ahead of everybody else, as far as that point is concerned.

God, the Creator of the Universe, who has existed forever thought on us. Isn’t it a bit amazing? He didn’t have to, but He did. He decided it was us, that opportunity.

Now, often you think, “Well, why me?” But with the understanding that you look at a Temple and you look at a house and how a house is built, and there’s a brick doing a certain part. We understand that Joshua the Messiah is the chief cornerstone, so that’s the foundational part that’s put in there so that things can be built on it. That’s how the measurements are made.

Well, we’ve all got a place. We’re all different; we all have different personalities connected to the Godly character. Well, we have a role to fulfill that we don’t understand. We don’t have an understanding of half of the things.

One thing that I believe is there are certain aspects in life that we’re trained in that knowing God’s character it’s all about to the benefit of others. So, we’re trained in certain things now in this world where Satan is existing, where the world is hostile to us, where the minds of people are going absolutely crazy calling evil good. And yet we’re the opposite. We know what is good. Only God is good. We understand that.

Well, we’ve been trained because one day we will benefit others. This is not a selfish thing that one time we’ll enter Elohim, and therefore, everything is easy. No, 144,000 will benefit others. That’s what life is about. We’re being trained. We’re going through these trials and tribulations of this life and difficulties, and we all have them, all different. But it’s not about us. We’re being molded and fashioned so that we can benefit others in the future.

Now, when you look at it we have Satan existing. During the Millennium, the 144,000 will exist, (Satan and the demons will be isolated), they will be able to benefit mankind by revealing things to help them, to encourage them, so that one day they can enter Elohim just like they have. Isn’t that a marvelous thing?

So, when we’re in a trial and tribulation we should remember it’s not about us. That’s a lot of saying, “It’s not just about you.” This is about molding and fashioning for the benefit of something in the future that we don’t understand. We don’t even see it.

Now, when as spirit beings those principles will still apply. There will be benefits for having this particular stone in the Temple versus that particular stone in the Temple. There’s a benefit. Because we all haven’t gone through the same experiences.

John 6:44. Known very well by God’s people, forgotten by much of the scattered Church. No one, that’s no one, John 6:44, no one, nobody can come to me, come to Christ, can come to Passover and understand it. Nobody. …unless. So, that means nobody in the world out there can come to the true Joshua the Messiah unless the Father who sent me, sent Christ, draws him. So, we are one of few. There’s been many that have been called, but we’re part of that, that are being drawn by God. What an incredible thing.

Now it doesn’t seem much, but in another hundred years it’s going to be staggering to those people when they read this, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” There was this group of people that were drawn at the end time. Out of eight billion people, they were just a small little group that had the truth, had an apostle that taught them. It’s just mind-blowing stuff if it’s seen in its real perspective. But as humans, we don’t see how important it is.

But one day it will be just an incredible thing that people will talk about. They’ll say, “Did you know this? Did you see what happened there? There was this small, little group of weird people, that they had the truth! They had the truth and God has taught them when the rest of the world was going insane. But they were taught, and they endured to the end. It’s amazing!” Incredible stories.

When we humans receive the holy spirit from God we become His begotten sons or begotten children of God not yet born, and heirs to receive by inheritance the name Elohim. Isn’t it amazing? One day we will inherit the name Elohim. Because we’re going to be Elohim. That’s what we’re going to be.

Now, what an incredible spirit being God is to offer that to us when you look at what we really are. When we are born of God we shall be spirit never to sin again. And I, personally, really look forward to that. Not being able to make mistakes where you just do things wrong, “Ah, not again!” by habit or whatever it is. Just an incredible thing. Never to do that; just to live life.

To create Elohim God formed man of material substance of the dust of the earth. Angels were created as spirit, but they did not have immortality like God has. So, yes, they’re going to have an end, but so will mankind, which is that darkness and blackness forever, no consciousness. Not thinking, “Oh, I was alive once.” No, nothing. Absolutely nothing.

The spirit realm that exists, the angels, the two-thirds that followed God and obey God, and those that are in Elohim will live on and on and on. Incredible future. So, what’s this little speck of time we have? Nothing when you look at it. A little speck of time, a few trials over seventy years, what is it really? It seems like a long time when we’re in them but they’re not that long, really.

Those angels who sinned will suffer the punishment of sin. “The wages of sin is death.” Same as mankind. They will never have life again, which is blackness and darkness forever, no consciousness of thinking. So, they have consciousness now. They can think just like we think. They have plans like we have plans. But if we aren’t in Elohim we’re not going to have that. There’s going to be nothing forever.

For all the angels that have chosen to sin their punishment will be to never share in the glorious opportunity God has created for His Family. So, what God is offering us is something that we can’t grasp hold of, but it’s going to go forever and ever and ever. But it’s going to be so exciting and motivating, never to sleep, not having to eat, all those different things, not male or female, just being, a spirit being forever.

And yet that one-third of the angels have chosen not to be part of that, not to be part of it. Well, unfortunately, there are many humans that have chosen the same thing already. Many humans. “Many are called, and few are chosen.” Some will have that second opportunity.

But it’s interesting because deep down I’m on my second chance. I’m actually in the hundred years, really. Because the first time I failed. It’s called pre the Apostasy: part of the Worldwide Church of God, part of the Apostasy, puffed up, went to sleep, and my opportunity to enter Elohim, it was my fault, and therefore, I gave that up.

Well, a lot of people haven’t had the second chance.

Then in 2005, Chris and myself were awakened. Second opportunity. So, it’s almost like the hundred years, that I’ve been given an opportunity now to live and to make a choice and not to turn away again, not to go to sleep again. Done it once. I know what it’s like. I know exactly now. At the time I didn’t see it, but I see it now, what I did.

Well, in lots of ways anyone that’s been awakened, we’re really on a second chance now, really. Those that have come into the Body of Christ since then – on their first opportunity. Might be with me on that? So really, it’s a dangerous time for people that have been awakened in God’s Church. It’s a dangerous, dangerous time. To be on guard, it’s time to be on guard now.

We understand more than ever what darkness and blackness forever means, where we never really grasped it to the same degree as what God has revealed to us now. So, “The wages of sin is death.”

Mankind, composed of matter, and who refuses to change, refuses to repent, refuses to think differently, rejects that way of life, will face a second death never to have life again. That’s the opportunity. Well, it’s happened to many…happened to many. Hard to comprehend sometimes, but in other ways it’s not hard to fall away if you’re not doing the right thing, what God is offering.

The reason is we don’t see what God’s offering. That’s half the problem. We don’t actually really see what God is offering. Not the potential, really. We get bogged down in human things.

Mankind, once called, and then if they then choose to repent of sin – because they’re called to see sin – and fight selfishness, think differently, powered by God’s holy spirit, then they have the potential to live forever in Elohim, to have everlasting life because God will provide it as a gift. That’s an amazing statement that only a few out of mankind have really ever understood. But we’ve been given that opportunity.

To enter Elohim God must call a person, and then the person must choose to yield. Now, that’s an interesting statement, “choose to yield.” Because I’m human, I have my problems, and when things happen you see it and you know what just happened was wrong. You think, “Oh, I shouldn’t have responded that way. I shouldn’t have said that.” You see it. Well, that’s the most important part, the choosing now to yield, the choosing to admit the error before God. That’s the first step, choosing to do that.

So, we must choose to listen to what God is giving us and then implement it into our life.

Hebrews 2:1—Therefore... Now, that word “therefore,” can say, Because of our spiritual potential, because of what’s been offered to us we must give more earnest heed. Which means we should really value the truth. We should hold tight to the truth. We should review the truth often, what we’ve been given, and hold on to it.

…give more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away. Now, that is “to pull back from.”

So, here we have a way of life that’s been given to us. We have the opportunity. Well, it’s time not to pull back. It’s a time to move forward, to review the 57 Truths that God has given us, 57 Truths that the world knows nothing about. There are eight billion people out there that don’t even understand anything to do with 57 Truths. It’s staggering.

In reality, in those 57 Truths, there is much more. There’s a lot more connected to it. Some of them are just like the surface overview of it, but underneath it, it’s much deeper.

So, it’s time for us to not be self-reliant. That’s the biggest danger we all face. Because I look back at the Apostasy and what was it really all about? What’s pride? Self-reliance. What’s falling asleep spiritually? Self-reliance. It’s doing it ourselves.

The reality is we can’t do it ourselves. It’s not possible to be done. We have to turn to God. We’ve got to look to God because our potential is staggering, absolutely staggering.

It is God that has given us physical life, and by God calling us and providing us His holy spirit He has created the possibility for us to have a future spirit life with Him in Elohim. But in the end, it’s going to be our choice to yield. It’s our choice. We can’t turn around and blame God and say, “Oh, God didn’t do ‘this.’ God didn’t do ‘that.’” No, God has given us everything and more.

There are no excuses that we could put on the table other than self-reliance.

1. Chapter 1