easterpiration

 

Meditate........{. aliviateloveyour matedonthesitateoperateoperateoperate .<<<#notsureifthatstheorderactually heheeh.}

 What are some specific ways to meditate for beginners?

There are a few different ways to meditate, but some simple techniques for beginners include:

• Mindfulness meditation. This type of meditation focuses on paying attention to the present moment without judgment. You can start by sitting in a comfortable position and closing your eyes. Focus on your breath as it flows in and out. Notice the sensations in your body and the sounds around you. Try to let go of any thoughts that come into your mind, and simply focus on being present.

• Body scan meditation. This type of meditation focuses on scanning your body from head to toe, paying attention to any sensations you notice. You can start by sitting in a comfortable position and closing your eyes. Bring your attention to your breath as it flows in and out. Then, slowly scan your body, starting at your head and working your way down to your toes. Notice any tension or discomfort you feel, and try to relax those areas.

• Guided meditation. This type of meditation involves listening to a guided meditation recording. There are many different guided meditations available online or on apps. Follow along with the instructions in the recording, and let the voice guide you through the meditation.

It is important to find a meditation technique that works for you and to practice it regularly. With time and practice, you will be able to quiet your mind and focus on the present moment, which can help you to reduce stress, anxiety, and fear.

What are some of the benefits of meditation?

Meditation has many benefits for both physical and mental health. Some of the benefits of meditation include:

• Reduced stress and anxiety. Meditation can help to reduce stress levels by quieting the mind and focusing on the present moment. This can help to reduce the body's production of stress hormones, such as cortisol.

• Improved focus and concentration. Meditation can help to improve focus and concentration by training the mind to stay focused on one thing. This can be helpful in both personal and professional settings.

• Reduced pain. Meditation can help to reduce pain by activating the body's natural pain-relieving mechanisms. This can be helpful for people with chronic pain or pain conditions.

• Better sleep. Meditation can help to improve sleep quality by reducing stress and anxiety and promoting relaxation.

• Increased mindfulness. Meditation can help to increase mindfulness, which is the awareness of the present moment. This can lead to a greater appreciation for life and a more positive outlook.

• Personal growth. Meditation can help with personal growth by providing a space for self-reflection and introspection. This can help to identify areas in which one wants to improve and make positive changes in one's life.

It is important to note that meditation is not a cure-all for all problems. However, it can be a helpful tool for managing stress, anxiety, pain, and other conditions. If you are interested in trying meditation, there are many resources available to help you get started.

What are some tips for beginning a meditation practice?

There are many different ways to meditate, and the best approach for you will depend on your individual needs and preferences. However, some general tips for beginning a meditation practice include:

• Find a quiet place where you won't be disturbed.

• Sit in a comfortable position, either on a chair or on the floor.

• Close your eyes and focus on your breath.

• Notice the natural rise and fall of your chest as you breathe in and out.

• If your mind wanders, gently bring it back to your breath.

• Continue to meditate for as long as you feel comfortable.

It is important to be patient with yourself when you are first starting to meditate. Meditation is a practice, and it takes time to develop the skills and concentration necessary to experience its benefits. If you find it difficult to focus at first, don't worry. Just keep practicing, and you will gradually improve.

Here are some additional tips that may be helpful:

• Start with short meditation sessions of 5 to 10 minutes. Gradually increase the length of your sessions as you become more comfortable.

• Find a meditation teacher or mentor who can guide you and provide support.

• There are many different types of meditation, so experiment with different techniques until you find one that works best for you.

• Make meditation a part of your daily routine. The more you meditate, the more benefits you will experience.

Meditation can be a wonderful way to relax, destress, and connect with your inner self. If you are interested in learning more about meditation, there are many resources available online and in libraries.

What are some common challenges that people face when first starting a meditation practice?

There are many common challenges that people face when first starting a meditation practice. Some of these challenges include:

• Mind wandering: One of the biggest challenges of meditation is simply keeping your mind from wandering. It is normal for your mind to wander when you first start meditating. Just gently bring your attention back to your breath whenever you notice that your mind has wandered.

• Discomfort: Sitting still for long periods of time can be uncomfortable for some people. If you find yourself feeling uncomfortable, try changing your position or sitting on a cushion or bolster. You may also want to try meditating for shorter periods of time until you build up your stamina.

• Negative thoughts: It is also common to experience negative thoughts during meditation. When you notice negative thoughts arising, simply acknowledge them and let them go. Don't try to fight or suppress them.

• Expectations: It is important to let go of any expectations you have about meditation. Meditation is not about achieving a certain state or feeling. It is simply about being present and aware of your thoughts and feelings.

If you experience any of these challenges, don't be discouraged. Just keep practicing and you will gradually improve. With time and practice, meditation can become a wonderful way to relax, destress, and connect with your inner self.

How can I overcome mind wandering during meditation?

Mind wandering is a common experience for meditators of all levels of experience. It is important to be patient with yourself and not get discouraged if your mind wanders. Simply notice that your mind has wandered and gently bring your attention back to your breath or to the object of your meditation. With practice, you will be able to train your mind to stay focused for longer periods of time. There are a few things you can do to help overcome mind wandering during meditation:

• Focus on your breath. When you notice that your mind has wandered, bring your attention back to your breath. Focus on the sensation of the air flowing in and out of your nostrils. You can also count your breaths or simply observe the natural rhythm of your breathing.

• Use a mantra or visualization. Repeating a mantra or a simple phrase can help to focus your mind and keep you from being distracted. You can also visualize a peaceful scene or an object that brings you joy.

• Be patient. It takes time and practice to develop the concentration necessary for meditation. Don't be discouraged if your mind wanders at first. Simply keep practicing and you will gradually improve.

With consistent practice, you will be able to overcome mind wandering and experience the many benefits of meditation.

With regular practice, meditation can become an integral part of your daily routine, providing you with a sense of peace and tranquility, as well as many other benefits.

Fear of the Unknown in Time Shifts

 

The idea of a timeline split between a third-dimensional and fifth-dimensional version of Earth is not new. It has been tracked in mysticism and known as streams of consciousness, one stream of consciousness which is ascending and following the evolutionary pathway for the human consciousness, and one pathway or one stream of consciousness that is fragmenting itself into chaos, otherwise known as entropy.

These two streams of consciousness, one that is ascending and one that is descending, are known as the regenerative stream and the degenerative stream of consciousness. In the degenerative stream of consciousness, the one that is left behind and known as the third dimensional Earth, that timeline is going to be coexisting side by side with the higher timeline, the one that is ascending and the one that is following the regenerative stream of consciousness.

These two timelines are splitting no different than how a cell divides itself through the process of mitosis. And yet, they will remain parallel to one another and even look like they are interacting with one another for quite some time until they fully polarize into their own curriculum.

At the end of an age, there is always a splitting of worlds into two separate time-space realities that still coexist with each other until they fully solidify into their new dimension. One timeline represents the people who are purifying their vibration through becoming conscious, and the other timeline represents the cognitive dissonance that creates the victim-perpetrator cycle.

The lower timeline will eventually fully lock itself into a victim-perpetrator identity, where they solidify into a victim mentality. The shadow side of this, of course, is that we do not want others to exist, so we play both parts of this vicious cycle out in real time. We play the victim out and we play the perpetrator out at the very same time, repeating this karma into a downward spiral trajectory.

When a being elevates their consciousness, they are raising their frequency. And when they are raising their frequency, they start to occupy a different level of time-space reality. They begin to start creating a timeline that can now suit their consciousness and their frequency at a better level of their curriculum.

As we are always learning lessons, our reality and our realm will always reflect the best domain and the most suitable external conditions to match our level of awareness and to match our level of curriculum that we have vibrationally lined up with.

The idea of a lower third-dimensional Earth and a higher fifth-dimensional Earth can quickly become fundamentalist. So let's bring this to basics so that we understand the actual physics and the actual spiritual dynamics at play behind these two Earths.

One has more syntropy involved in it. When we talk about higher levels of consciousness and those being actual dimensions that now carry out a new curriculum for us to learn and for us to live, we are looking at it through the lens of syntropy.

The esoteric meaning of syntropy is to reorganize. So syntropy is a force that creates order. It creates order because it is reorganizing itself to always be in alignment with higher levels of consciousness and higher levels, therefore, of love.

Syntintropy is not against chaos or division or entropy. Syntropy is the force that can receive more awareness. It can receive more consciousness so that then it can take that in and reorganize itself. And when we reorganize our consciousness, we are evolving.

So it's one that is going with the regenerative stream of consciousness, and it is one that is ascending or elevating its frequency because it can continuously become more conscious and therefore embody more love.

How we will be able to tell that we are in this evolutionary stream of consciousness that is ascending is by our ability to create internal coherence. Coherence is that force that we are calling syntropy and we are calling love because coherence means that we are healing our body, mind, and our spirit. Our emotional body, our mental body, we are uniting all of them in this reorganization that is taking place called syntropy.

So when we are reorganizing our body, our emotions, our mind, our spirit, that is all what's called healing. That's also called integration, but those are just what's called the force of coherency.

So coherency is one that has a united consciousness, whereas the lower timeline is the force of unconsciousness, which is expressed as dis-coherency.

If the energetic momentum that is driving us into an ascending timeline is one that is ultimately of love, and that love is expressed as us becoming more conscious, and that consciousness is one where we are reorganizing our body, our mind, our emotions, and our spirit so that we can embody more of that regeneration of this higher loving timeline, then the descending timeline would be one that is pulling the energetic momentum into division, into further chaos, and it's driven by fear.

So the descending timeline has a main feature to it, and that is one that is driven by the force of entropy.

What are the two streams of consciousness, and how do they relate to the ascending and descending timelines?

There are two streams of consciousness: the ascending stream and the descending stream. The ascending stream of consciousness is following the evolutionary pathway for human consciousness, and the descending stream of consciousness is fragmenting itself into chaos, also known as entropy.

These two streams of consciousness correspond to the ascending and descending timelines. The ascending timeline is where those who are purifying their vibration through becoming conscious reside, while the descending timeline is where those who are stuck in the victim-perpetrator cycle reside.

As we move through time, these two timelines will continue to split apart, much like how a cell divides during mitosis. Eventually, they will fully polarize into their own unique realities.

What are some of the characteristics of the ascending stream of consciousness?

The ascending stream of consciousness is characterized by love, order, consciousness, and syntropy. Love is the driving force behind the ascending stream of consciousness. It is the force that motivates us to become more conscious and to evolve. Order is the result of love. As we become more conscious, we begin to organize our lives and our thoughts in a more orderly way. Consciousness is the awareness of our own existence and of the world around us. As we evolve, our consciousness expands, and we become more aware of the interconnectedness of all things. Syntropy is the force that allows us to reorganize our lives and our thoughts in a more orderly way. It is the force that drives us towards evolution and higher consciousness.

What are some of the characteristics of the descending stream of consciousness?

The descending stream of consciousness is characterized by fear, chaos, unconsciousness, and entropy. Fear is the driving force behind the descending stream of consciousness. It is the force that motivates us to stay stuck in our old ways and to resist change. Chaos is the result of fear. When we are afraid, we make decisions based on fear, which leads to chaos in our lives. Unconsciousness is the lack of awareness of our own existence and of the world around us. As we descend into the lower timeline, our consciousness becomes clouded, and we become less aware of the interconnectedness of all things. Entropy is the force that drives us towards disorder and decay. It is the force that opposes evolution and higher consciousness.

What is the opposite of syntropy?

Entropy is the opposite of syntropy. Syntropy is a force that creates order, while entropy is a force that disperses and expands energy. When entropy is the dominant driving force behind a timeline, we start seeing more chaos, division, and dispersal without any reorganization or order being created. This lower timeline is fueled by entropy, and it is characterized by fear, chaos, unconsciousness, and separation.

What is the relationship between syntropy and love?

Syntropy is the force that creates order, while love is the energy that drives syntropy. Love is the force that motivates us to reorganize our consciousness and evolve to higher levels of consciousness. As we reorganize our consciousness, we are becoming more loving. Syntropy and love are two sides of the same coin. They are both forces that drive us towards higher levels of consciousness and order.

How is love expressed as consciousness?

Love is expressed as consciousness when we are able to heal, integrate, and unify our body, mind, and spirit. This is because love is the force that motivates us to reorganize our consciousness and evolve to higher levels of consciousness. As we reorganize our consciousness, we are becoming more loving. Syntropy and love are two sides of the same coin. They are both forces that drive us towards higher levels of consciousness and order.

What is the opposite of love in the context of consciousness?

In the context of consciousness, the opposite of love is fear. Fear is the force that drives us away from love and prevents us from evolving to higher levels of consciousness. Fear is characterized by disharmony, division, and chaos. It is the force that keeps us stuck in the lower timeline and prevents us from embodying the higher love that is available to us. When we are able to let go of fear and embrace love, we open ourselves up to the possibility of evolving to higher levels of consciousness and creating a more loving and harmonious world.

According to mystical teachings, there are two streams of consciousness that are currently splitting apart, much like how a cell divides during mitosis. One stream of consciousness is ascending and following the evolutionary pathway for human consciousness, while the other stream of consciousness is fragmenting itself into chaos, also known as entropy. The ascending stream of consciousness is characterized by love, order, consciousness, and syntropy. Love is the driving force behind the ascending stream of consciousness. It is the force that motivates us to become more conscious and to evolve. Order is the result of love. As we become more conscious, we begin to organize our lives and our thoughts in a more orderly way. Consciousness is the awareness of our own existence and of the world around us. As we evolve, our consciousness expands, and we become more aware of the interconnectedness of all things. Syntropy is the force that allows us to reorganize our lives and our thoughts in a more orderly way. It is the force that drives us towards evolution and higher consciousness. The descending stream of consciousness is characterized by fear, chaos, unconsciousness, and entropy. Fear is the driving force behind the descending stream of consciousness. It is the force that motivates us to stay stuck in our old ways and to resist change. Chaos is the result of fear. When we are afraid, we make decisions based on fear, which leads to chaos in our lives. Unconsciousness is the lack of awareness of our own existence and of the world around us. As we descend into the lower timeline, our consciousness becomes clouded, and we become less aware of the interconnectedness of all things. Entropy is the force that drives us towards disorder and decay. It is the force that opposes evolution and higher consciousness. As we move through time, these two timelines will continue to split apart, until they fully polarize into their own unique realities. The ascending timeline will be a world where love, order, consciousness, and syntropy are dominant. The descending timeline will be a world where fear, chaos, unconsciousness, and entropy are dominant. It is up to each individual to decide which timeline they want to reside in. We can choose to follow the ascending stream of consciousness and evolve to higher levels of consciousness, or we can choose to follow the descending stream of consciousness and descend into chaos and disorder. The choice is ours. Ultimately, the difference between the two streams of consciousness is one of love versus fear. Love is the force that drives us towards evolution and higher consciousness. Fear is the force that holds us back from evolving and keeps us stuck in the lower timeline. The choice is ours. Which path will we choose? How does the concept of two streams of consciousness relate to the idea of free will? The concept of two streams of consciousness relates to the idea of free will in that each stream represents a different set of choices and possibilities. The ascending stream of consciousness is characterized by love, order, consciousness, and syntropy. This stream represents the choices that lead us towards evolution and higher consciousness. The descending stream of consciousness is characterized by fear, chaos, unconsciousness, and entropy. This stream represents the choices that lead us away from evolution and higher consciousness. Ultimately, the choice of which stream we follow is up to us. We have the free will to choose to live our lives in accordance with love and higher consciousness, or we can choose to live our lives in accordance with fear and lower consciousness. The choice is ours, and it is a choice that has profound consequences for our individual lives and for the world as a whole. It is important to note that these two streams of consciousness are not necessarily mutually exclusive. We all have the potential to experience both streams at different times in our lives. However, the dominant stream of consciousness in our lives is largely determined by our beliefs, attitudes, and values. If we want to live a life that is aligned with love and higher consciousness, then we need to make choices that are based on love, order, consciousness, and syntropy. We need to choose to live in a way that is in alignment with our highest values. The choice of which stream of consciousness we follow is not always easy. There will be times when we are faced with difficult choices, and we may not know which path to take. However, if we stay true to our highest values, and if we choose to live our lives in accordance with love, then we will always be moving in the right direction. The two streams of consciousness are a powerful metaphor for the choices that we make in life. They represent the different paths that we can take, and the different outcomes that we can expect. The choice is ours. Which path will we choose? Choices that would be aligned with the ascending stream of consciousness include choosing to love and accept yourself, choosing to forgive others, choosing to live in the present moment, and choosing to focus on your own personal growth. These choices are all based on love, order, consciousness, and syntropy. They are choices that lead us towards evolution and higher consciousness. When we make choices that are aligned with the ascending stream of consciousness, we are not only making choices that are good for ourselves, but we are also making choices that are good for the world. We are helping to create a more loving, peaceful, and harmonious world. Choices that would be aligned with the descending stream of consciousness include choosing to hate and judge yourself, choosing to hold onto anger and resentment towards others, choosing to dwell in the past, and choosing to focus on your own material possessions. These choices are all based on fear, chaos, unconsciousness, and entropy. They are choices that lead us away from evolution and higher consciousness. When we make choices that are aligned with the descending stream of consciousness, we are not only making choices that are bad for ourselves, but we are also making choices that are bad for the world. We are helping to create a more fearful, chaotic, and divided world. The ascending stream of consciousness is characterized by love, order, consciousness, and syntropy. Love is the driving force behind the ascending stream of consciousness. It is the force that motivates us to become more conscious and to evolve. Order is the result of love. As we become more conscious, we begin to organize our lives and our thoughts in a more orderly way. Consciousness is the awareness of our own existence and of the world around us. As we evolve, our consciousness expands, and we become more aware of the interconnectedness of all things. Syntropy is the force that allows us to reorganize our lives and our thoughts in a more orderly way. It is the force that drives us towards evolution and higher consciousness. When we live in alignment with the ascending stream of consciousness, we are choosing to live a life of love, order, consciousness, and syntropy. We are choosing to evolve and to become more of who we truly are. The descending stream of consciousness is characterized by fear, chaos, unconsciousness, and entropy. Fear is the driving force behind the descending stream of consciousness. It is the force that motivates us to stay stuck in our old ways and to resist change. Chaos is the result of fear. When we are afraid, we make decisions based on fear, which leads to chaos in our lives. Unconsciousness is the lack of awareness of our own existence and of the world around us. As we descend into the lower timeline, our consciousness becomes clouded, and we become less aware of the interconnectedness of all things. Entropy is the force that drives us towards disorder and decay. It is the force that opposes evolution and higher consciousness. When we live in alignment with the descending stream of consciousness, we are choosing to live a life of fear, chaos, unconsciousness, and entropy. We are choosing to stay stuck in our old ways and to resist change. Shifting from the descending stream of consciousness to the ascending stream of consciousness is a process of evolving one's consciousness. It involves increasing one's awareness, love, and order. There are a number of things that can help with this process, including: Meditation: Meditation can help to quiet the mind and allow one to focus on the present moment. This can lead to an increase in awareness and a greater sense of peace. Yoga: Yoga can help to align the body, mind, and spirit. It can also help to increase one's flexibility and strength, which can contribute to a greater sense of well-being. Service to others: Helping others can be a powerful way to connect with one's higher purpose and to experience the joy of giving. It can also help to foster a sense of community and belonging. Nature connection: Spending time in nature can help to reduce stress, improve mood, and promote healing. It can also help one to connect with the natural world and to experience a sense of awe and wonder. Art and music: Art and music can be powerful ways to express oneself and to connect with others. They can also help to open the heart and mind to new possibilities. Reading: Reading can expose one to new ideas and perspectives. It can also help to develop one's critical thinking skills and to foster a love of learning. It is important to note that there is no one right way to shift from the descending stream of consciousness to the ascending stream. The most important thing is to find what works for you and to be patient with the process. Shifting consciousness is a journey, and it takes time and effort to make real progress. However, it is a journey that is well worth taking, as it can lead to a more fulfilling and meaningful life. What are some of the challenges that people face when trying to shift from the descending stream of consciousness to the ascending stream of consciousness? Shifting from the descending stream of consciousness to the ascending stream of consciousness can be a challenging process, as it involves a fundamental shift in one's worldview and way of being. Some of the challenges that people may face include: Fear of the unknown. Shifting to the ascending stream of consciousness often requires letting go of old beliefs and habits, which can be scary and uncomfortable. There may be a fear of the unknown, as well as a fear of failure or judgment from others. Comfort zone. The descending stream of consciousness can be comfortable and familiar, even if it is not fulfilling. Shifting to the ascending stream of consciousness often requires stepping outside of one's comfort zone and facing new challenges. This can be daunting and even painful at times. Lack of support. Shifting to the ascending stream of consciousness can be isolating, as there may be few people who understand or support the journey. This can lead to feelings of loneliness and isolation. Need for time and effort. Shifting consciousness is a process that takes time and effort. There is no quick fix or easy way to do it. It requires dedication and perseverance. It is important to be patient with oneself and to honor the process. Shifting consciousness is a journey, and not everyone will make the same progress at the same pace. The most important thing is to keep moving forward and to never give up on the possibility of a better future. What are some tips for overcoming the fear of the unknown when shifting consciousness? Fear of the unknown is a common challenge that people face when shifting consciousness. It can be scary to let go of old beliefs and habits and step into the unknown. However, there are a few things that you can do to overcome this fear and move towards a higher consciousness. Embrace uncertainty. One of the best ways to overcome fear is to embrace uncertainty. This means accepting that there are things that you don't know and that you may not be able to control. When you embrace uncertainty, you open yourself up to new possibilities and experiences. Take small steps. Don't try to change everything all at once. Instead, take small steps towards your goal. This will help you to feel more in control and less overwhelmed. Find a support system. Find people who are on the same journey as you or who can support you in your transition. This can help you to feel less alone and more encouraged. Trust your intuition. Your intuition is a powerful tool that can guide you on your journey. Pay attention to your gut feelings and follow them. Shifting consciousness is a journey, and it takes time and effort. There will be ups and downs along the way. But if you stay committed and don't give up, you will eventually reach your destination. What are some specific techniques that can be used to embrace uncertainty and reduce the fear of the unknown? There are a few things that you can do to embrace uncertainty and reduce the fear of the unknown. Meditate. Meditation can help you to quiet your mind and focus on the present moment. This can help you to let go of your fears and worries about the future. Journaling. Journaling can help you to process your thoughts and feelings about uncertainty. It can also help you to identify your fears and develop strategies for overcoming them. Talk to a therapist. A therapist can help you to understand your fears and develop strategies for coping with them. Engage in activities that you enjoy. Doing things that you enjoy can help you to focus on the present moment and reduce your stress levels. Surround yourself with positive people. Surrounding yourself with positive people can help you to feel supported and encouraged. They can also help you to see the positive side of uncertainty. It is important to remember that uncertainty is a natural part of life. Everyone experiences it at some point. The key is to learn how to manage uncertainty and not let it control you. By following these tips, you can embrace uncertainty and reduce the fear of the unknown.

timeline split anew

This idea of a timeline split between a  third-dimensional and fifth-dimensional  
version of Earth is not new and it did not  come from this age it has been tracked in  
mysticism and known as streams of Consciousness  one stream of Consciousness which is ascending  
and is following the evolutionary pathway for the  human consciousness and one pathway or one stream  of Consciousness that is fragmenting itself  self into chaos otherwise known as entropy so  
these two streams of Consciousness one that is  ascending and one that is descending are known  
as the regenerative stream and the degenerative  stream of Consciousness and in the degenerative  
stream of Consciousness the one that is left  behind and known as the third dimensional Earth  
that timeline is going to be coexisting side  side by side with the higher timeline the one  
that is ascending and the one that is following  the regenerative stream of Consciousness so these  
two timelines are splitting no different than  how a cell divides itself through the process of  
mitosis and yet they will remain parallel to one  another and even look like they are interacting  
with one another for quite some time until they  fully polarize into their own curriculum so this  
is really about curriculum and when we're talking  about a regenerative stream of Consciousness  
one that is following the evolutionary impulse  within the spirit of this age and is following  
the evolutionary pathway of Ascension for our  human consciousness coexisting side by side with  
the D evolutionary pathway what we're really  looking at is our level of embodiment between  
these two forces love and fear love in this case  is representing Consciousness the energy that is  
driving the split in timelines is the same energy  that creates the mitosis of cell division there  
are always spiritual forces behind the momentum  to split timelines and what those forces can  
be reduced to is love and fear Order and Chaos  Consciousness and unconsciousness syntropy and  
entropy Free Will and predeterminism I could go on  but you get my point at the end of an age there is  
always a splitting of Worlds into two separate  time space realities that still coexist with  
each other until they fully solidify into their  new dimension one timeline represents the people  
who are purifying their vibration through  becoming conscious and the other timeline  
represents the cognitive dissonance that creates  the victim perpetrator cycle the lower timeline  
will eventually fully lock itself into a victim  perpetrator identity where they solidify into a  
victim mentality the shadow side of this of course  is that we do not want others to exist so we play  
both parts of this vicious cycle out in real  time we play the victim out out and we play the  
perpetrator out at the very same time repeating  this Karma into a downward spiral trajectory  
when a being elevates their Consciousness they  are raising their frequency and when they are  
raising their frequency they start to occupy a  different level of time space reality so they  
begin to start creating a timeline that can now  suit their Consciousness and their frequency at  
a better level of their curriculum because we are  always learning lessons therefore our reality and  
our realm will always reflect the best domain and  the most suitable external conditions to match  
our level of awareness and to match our level  of curriculum that we have vibrationally lined  
up with the idea of a lower third dimensional  Earth and a higher fifth dimensional Earth can  
quickly become fundamentalist so let's bring this  to Basics so that we understand the actual physics  
and the actual spiritual Dynamics at Play Behind  These Two Earths one has more syntropy involved in it so when we're talking about higher levels of  consciousness and those being actual dimensions  
that now carry out a new curriculum for us  to learn and for us to live we're looking at  
it through the lens of syntropy and the esoteric  meaning of syntropy is to reorganize so syntropy  
is a force that creates order it creates order  because it is reorganizing itself to always be  
in alignment with higher levels of consciousness  and higher levels therefore of love so Cent Y is  
not against chaos copy is not against division  or entropy copy is the force that can receive  
more awareness it can receive more Consciousness  so that then it can take that in and reorganize  
itself and when we reorganize our Consciousness  we are evolving so it's one that is going with  
the regenerative stream of conscious ious and  it is one that is ascending or elevating its  
frequency because it can continuously become  more conscious and therefore embody more love  
how we will be able to tell that we are in this  evolutionary stream of Consciousness that is  
ascending is by our ability to create internal  coherence coherence is that force that we are  
calling syntropy and we are calling love because  coherence means that we are healing our body mind  
and our spirit our emotional body our mental body  we are uniting all of them in this reorganization  
that is taking place called syntropy so when  we are reorganizing our body our emotions our  
mind our spirit that is all what's called healing  that's also called integration but those are just  
What's called the force of coherency so coherency  is one that has a United Consciousness whereas the  
lower timeline is the force of unconsciousness  which is expressed as disc coherency so if the  
energetic momentum that is driving us into an  ascending timeline is one that is ultimately of  
love and that love is expressed as us becoming  more conscious and that Consciousness is one  
where we are reorganizing our body our mind our  emotions and our spirit so that we can embody  
more of that regeneration of this higher loving  timeline then the desent ing timeline would be  
one that is pulling the energetic momentum into  division into further chaos and it's driven by  
fear so the descending timeline has a main feature  to it and that is one that is driven by the force  
of entropy entropy is the spiritual force that  disperses and expands out energy so entropy isn't  
bad but when entropy is the dominant driving force  behind a timeline then we start seeing there being  
more chaos more division more dispersal without  reorganizing it and without there being order  
created so this lower timeline is one that is  fueled by entropy and what that looks like is  
more division less Consciousness more Fe fear  and when there is more fear within a timeline  
that creates more external control so the more  internal fear that we carry the more external  
control that will be manifested as this fear that  is the driving force behind the lower timeline  
won't always look like classical fear it will show  up mainly through the lens of fundamentalism in  
all the many ways that fundamentalism can form  an appearance it will look like the opposite of  
having discernment and the opposite of having  nuance and therefore the opposite of having  
compassion instead fundamentalism will create  more and more division between everyone until  
everyone is in a hyperactive state of separation  and fear because once again the driving force of  
the lower timeline is an Impulse to disperse and  to fragment Consciousness so it is one that is  
keeping its self separate from its environment  from other people and from everything that will  
harm its own individual ego and its own belief  systems why this is important is because time in  
the third dimension repeats itself it res Cycles  it goes into denser expressions and it goes into  
lighter expressions like the Peaks and the lows of  a wave if a being has raised their Consciousness  
higher than the field of third dimensional  time they begin to start entraining their  
frequency into a completely different version of  space and time with experiences and lessons that  
best accommodate their frequency eventually  their frequency will begin to higher than the  
options and experiences that are currently  available within a collective SpaceTime that  
is still asleep until eventually there will be  no more resonance at all and we won't be able  
to physically perceive the other timeline so  a major timeline split would be between all of  
the collective Consciousness that is ready for a  new curriculum and has already mastered the third  
dimensional curriculum and all of the collective  conscious business that would best be served by  
continuing to grow in the third dimension when  this split happens it's called phase lock and a  
phase lock is the real name to what we are calling  the timeline split between the third dimensional  
Consciousness and the 5D Consciousness now the  second law of Thermodynamics says that entropy  
always increases with time but entropy does  not always mean chaos entropy is needed it  
is more like a marker it is a measure of the  number of different ways that a set of objects  
can be arranged so entropy is what fuels cell  division and timeline division because entropy  
is what disperses or is the factor that expands  all of this comes down to what the next step for  
growth is for a collective entropy will manifest  as either chaos or as expansion depending on the  
being that it is interacting with another way of  saying all of this is that the lower timeline is  
fueled by the karma of the unlearned lessons  and the unlearned curriculum within this age  
that will naturally create judgment and fear and  division whereas the higher timeline is going to  
naturally be one that carries the openendedness  of Dharma the force that's going to allow us to  
continuously stay open to whatever challenges  and whatever lessons we need to learn because  
we are always going to be incorporating them  into our awareness and incorporating them into  
our life when we do that we continuously evolve  and that's what the esoteric meaning behind the  
regenerative stream of Consciousness which  is ascending and the degenerative stream of  
Consciousness which is descending is really about  in The evolutionary stream of Consciousness we  
can naturally regenerate ourselves which is why  it ends up leading to a golden age one that is  
of complete regeneration whereas the descending  timeline our Consciousness prematurely calcifies  
if I it calcifies our Consciousness because we  have stopped growing and when we stop evolving  
we calcify so it's a degenerative stream because  it cannot become more conscious it cannot continue  
its growth it calcifies so the ascending timeline  is one that is going to reflect back to us the  
lessons and the curriculum that will most be  suitable for our level of awareness and they're  
going to be one that embodies naturally  more sovereignty because the more that  
a being raises their frequency and becomes more  conscious they are raising their vibration into  
love and love reflects to us through the act of  Freedom so Freedom Consciousness and love are all  
different forms of the same expression whereas  when it comes to the degenerative timeline or  
the descending timeline that one represents the  embodiment of fear and with fear what you have  
is the lower frequency curriculum so the key  features in the lower timeline are ones that  
are ruled by the main expression of fear which is  control and division control division and fear are  
all representative of unconsciousness so what  this really boils down to is two timelines and  
the timeline split is between Consciousness and  love and fear and unconsciousness with these two  
timelines we have the option to always transition  and always choose to embody more consciousness and to embody more awareness and therefore unity  and therefore love and that is what this time  
period is teaching us we are in the middle of this  timeline split where these two Realms of the third  
dimensional Earth and the fifth dimensional Earth  are still interacting with one another and they  
will continue to interact and to engage with one  another and to even look like they are coexisting  
in inside the same realm when in reality we are  at a massive Choice point we are in Two Worlds  
at once and we cannot tell the difference because  we are not at that full timeline split yet we are  
in different Realms of Earth and within these  different Realms now we have our own personal  
curriculum and within our own personal curriculum  it is looking as though that we are on one solid  
earth with all other people who are on the same  exact timeline when in reality we are pulling all  
of our vibrational momentum in One Direction which  is love and Consciousness which is represented by the fifth dimensional timeline as we are at the  very same time experiencing the world around us  
pulling its Consciousness deeper into division  deeper into separation and unconsciousness  
when these two worlds fully pull into their own  vibrational Realms that is when we will see the  
completion of this timeline split and it won't  even be in front of our very eyes because the  
universe has brilliant editing software all we  will see with our physical eyes is the continuous  
strip of film the movie of Earth go into different  plots and go into different storylines where all  
of a sudden we drift further apart from our  environment further apart from the people who  
are no longer of frequency matched to us further  apart from a collective that is no longer a  
frequency matched to us there will be different  storylines as to why this occurred but we won't  
actually see the split instead we will see the  Journey of the choices we made and the really  
cool thing is the more you use your free will to  make radical changes and empowered choices your  
free will becomes a conduit to the higher order of  this universe the fifth dimensional timeline and  
the higher order of this universe is expressed a  synchronicity which aligns things to make it look  like it was fate all along

                    afterskool.net/about                          

         -try-1

BIBLICAL SUPER NATURE:The Rebellions(w/"headmusik")

                

- [Michael] God gives us a new identity as His children. We belong with him as he intended.

The Bible says we will one day replace the rebellious sons of God in His Divine Council.

He also gives us a mission. We're here to grow God's family.

- We're gonna go on a fascinating journey. We'll explore some strange passages. We'll reexamine some familiar ones

with meanings hidden in plain sight. We'll look at the Bible through the supernatural

worldview of its writers. By the time we're done, you'll never be able to look at your Bible

the same way again. There's a lot to be seen when it comes to the unseen realm.

(etheric music)

- The Bible asks us to believe a lot of strange things about the spiritual world.

At first, we might be tempted to ignore them, but if we say we believe the Bible, we can't avoid these concepts.

Much of what we think we know about the spirit world isn't true. It's been filtered down through centuries

of church tradition. Angels do not have wings. Demons don't have horns or tails.

And for the biblical writers, the unseen realm was home to more than angels and demons.

There were other bigger players. So do you believe what's in your Bible? (mysterious music)

- The rock at Caesarea Philippi might be the most imposing rock face in Israel.

Imagine standing in front of the 500-foot wide face and hearing Jesus' words,

"Upon this rock, I will build my church." This is the place where Jesus and His disciple stood,

the scene of Peter's confession. And when Jesus added, "And the gates of hell

will not be able to withstand the church," he knew what he was talking about.

- Gates to hell, really? The authors of scripture believe the gods

of the nations were real. Look at Psalm 82 carefully.

- When you really look at Psalm 82:1, it's kind of shocking, but there it is plain as day.

God presides over an assembly of gods that he calls His sons.

We're just not used to thinking of the heavenly host in those terms, but that's what the Hebrew text says.

Psalm 89 says the same thing about God's council in the heavens.

- The Hebrew word translated Gods in Psalm 82 is Elohim. Now, most of the time it should be translated

as capital G God, but sometimes it's plural, and Psalm 82:1 has both.

The problem for us is that we think this is a problem for monotheism, but it's not.

We're taught to associate the letters G, O and D with a specific set of unique attributes.

That's why putting an S on the end makes us queasy. But the word Elohim is not about a set of unique attributes.

The Bible itself tells us that. (heavenly orchestral music)

- Elohim is simply a word used to describe a supernatural being.

It says nothing, nothing about attributes. That's why the biblical writers used Elohim

for other spirit beings besides God. It's used for the gods of the nations.

It's used for demons, it's used for angels, even the disembodied human dead.

However, Yahweh is one of those Elohim, and no other Elohim is like him.

I repeat, no other Elohim is like him. The Bible describes him in unique ways.

There is only one of Him, one of Him existing as three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

and he is the creator of all other Elohim. (soothing music)

- Psalm 82 places the heavenly host in a council. That term is appropriate because these beings participate

in God's rule of the world. Now, certainly God doesn't need their help, but he lets them participate.

Consider the strange story that the prophet Micaiah gave to the wicked Israel like king, Ahab.

- Did you catch where the Bible asked you to believe? God meets with His heavenly host to decide what happens on Earth?

These beings, the gods of the council are spirits, not people or idols.

(pensive music) - Remember, Yahweh, the God of Israel is an Elohim,

a spirit being, but no other Elohim is Him. He is one of a kind. He is the true God with a capital G.

He alone is the perfect Sovereign Creator. He is the Most High God.

Now, Psalm 82:6 says God has sons. "Sons of the Most High," is the phrase.

- Who are these sons of God? It sounds odd. What about Jesus? How can there be all these other sons of God?

The answer is found in verses like John 3:16, where Jesus is described as the unique Son of God.

Now, some translations say only begotten, but the word actually means unique, one of a kind.

How is Jesus unique? The New Testament says He is God, the one uncreated God in the flesh.

None of the other sons of God fit that description.

- The sons of God language made sense to ancient people. God was king, and kings assigned their sons

high-ranking jobs in their government. So it is in the unseen realm.

It's important because the sonship language reminds us that God wants a family.

His family extends to both the unseen world and to Earth, and those two families come together in Eden.

(dramatic orchestral music)

- God addressed His council when He created the first man and woman, the council was already there.

- God told His heavenly family he wanted to create humanity. Now, people often think God addressed

the other members of the Trinity, but that is not the case. The other members of the Trinity

are co-equal and co-omniscient. God wouldn't need to tell them anything.

God speaks to his heavenly host here. Job 38 tells us the sons of God were present

at the creation. (pensive music)

(etheric vocalization music)

- The image of God concept helps us to understand how humans and the heavenly host are both like God.

Both of God's families represent Him. The supernatural sons of God represent Him

in the unseen realm and we represent God on Earth.

- But how do we represent God? We saw how divine beings participate in God's rule.

God created humans to participate in His plan to make the earth all He envisioned

and to enjoy it with Him.

- Imaging God is a status we have on Earth, not a specific ability.

We bear that status from the moment of conception until death. To be human is to image God,

but God also shares His attributes with us. Beginning with Adam and Eve, we were supposed to take care of Creation and develop it.

God wanted the whole earth to be like Eden.

- The knowledge that all humans are representatives of God prompts us to see all human life as sacred.

It leaves no room for racism. Injustice has no place, and the abuse of power at home,

at work or in government cannot be justified. (ominous music)

- Obviously, the world isn't like Eden. People don't treat each other as equal imagers of God,

not even close. What happened? The answer lies in God's decision to share His attributes

with both His supernatural and human children. And one of those attributes is freedom or free will.

It is freedom, not mere intelligence, that allows for meaningful choices. God didn't program His children like robots.

If He did, we wouldn't truly be like Him. Having freedom meant God's children might choose to rebel.

That's what happened. (ominous music) - Remember, we don't have God's perfect nature,

even though both humans and the heavenly sons of God represent Him in their respective realm.

God tells us in Job 15 that He doesn't trust His holy ones.

He knows they can fail.

- Eden was the home and headquarters of God. His supernatural and earthly families resided there.

God wanted them to image him in their own ways, heaven and earth blended together into one family.

But, one family member didn't like that idea. (instrument hissing)

- We've all heard about the serpent in Eden, but why a serpent, what's that supposed to tell us?

Ancient people knew how to take this scene, but we don't. We assume the serpent is merely an animal.

His form is important, but the story is not about zoology. The story is about a supernatural rebellion.

Isaiah alludes to that rebellion.

- Isaiah is talking about the sons of God in the assembly. Just like Job, he refers to them as stars.

They were present before Eden. Ezekiel 28 mentions the rebellion in Eden as well.

In Ezekiel's case, a guardian cherub gets kicked out of Eden.

- Ancient Mesopotamian tablets talk about cherub throne guardians and describe them

as snakes and dragons. The serpent of Eden was actually a supernatural being

whose job was to guard God's throne. An ancient person would've known the scene

was about a rebel in the Divine Council.

- Like the supernatural rebel, Adam and Eve rebel too. Eden was lost, the rebel security guard was cast down.

He brought death to earth, and now everyone would die. He became Lord of the dead.

Since everyone would die, humanity would be his. (orchestral music rises)

Now most people know the basics of that story. Christians believe it's why the world is the way it is,

but that's actually incomplete. What happened in Eden was just the first of three reasons

why there's so much evil and death in the world. There were actually two more supernatural rebellions.

(ominous music)

- Genesis 6 describes the second supernatural rebellion. Some of the sons of God, members of the heavenly council,

transgressed the boundary between heaven and earth. (mystical flute music)

- Both Peter and Jude references story in the New Testament.

- Jude also tells us about the judgment of these angels.

- Both of these writers understood that Genesis 6 recorded the second supernatural rebellion.

The fallen sons of God were sent to Tartarus for their transgression.

Tartarus is a Greek word for the realm of the dead, what we think of as hell.

They'd stay there until the Day of the Lord at the end of days.

A term like fallen angels makes us think of demons, like the ones Jesus cast out,

but the rebels of Genesis 6 are imprisoned, so they can't be the demons Jesus encountered.

So where did they come from? The answer lies in the offspring produced

by the forbidden union between the sons of God and the women in Genesis 6.

Those offspring were known as the Nephilim. They were giants. Their descendants became the giant clans

Moses and Joshua battled.

- In the books of Numbers and Deuteronomy, we learned about the giants Moses and Joshua ran into.

They not only descended from the Nephilim, but they are called by other names like Anakim

and the Rephaim. That last name stands out. Several Bible passages described the dead spirits

of the Rephaim in the realm of the dead, again, what we would think of as hell. (ominous music)

- Extra-biblical Jewish writers believe the demons, like those described in the gospels,

were disembodied spirits of the giants. They base this on the Bible's mention of dead Rephaim

in the underworld. Jewish books like 1 Enoch and the Book of the Giants from the Dead Sea Scrolls make that point explicitly.

(dramatic orchestral music)

- If demons come from dead giants, what happened to the giants?

Believe it or not, the answer comes from a very familiar story. (ominous, bassy music)

God told Joshua to destroy entire populations in the land of Cannon, but if you read the conquest account closely,

you'll also see places where God told Joshua only drive them out, not kill them.

Now this seems inconsistent. However, when you understand the supernatural rationale

for what God wanted Joshua to do, things become more clear.

- It's fascinating to discover that the conquest actually began with the giants.

Moses initially sent 12 spies into the land. They reported about the places they had visited

and where they saw the giant Anakim. 10 of the 12 spies convinced the rest of the people

they could not win against the Anakim. God judged Israel with 40 years of wandering.

Notice that the giants were a focal point from the very beginning of the conquest effort.

- At the end of the 40 years, God took Israel up through the east side of the Jordan.

He told them not to bother the people of Moab and Ammon, since the giant clans in those lands

had already been removed by the people of Esau, relatives of the Israelites.

(etheric music) God sent Moses and Joshua to Bashan, the realm of Og,

king of the Amorites. Og was a giant the last of the Rephaim.

The prophet Amos described them.

- The point is that once all the giants from the other side of the Jordan were removed, Joshua could take the people into Canaan.

Joshua took the Israelites into the land. It's important to notice that the places

that were designated for total destruction correspond to the places where the giants were seen.

The giant descendants of the Nephilim were the real targets of the killing. Many people died because the Anakim lived among them,

but the descendants of the Nephilim were the lethal threat. (uplifting drumming music)

- The Nephilim and their descendants were from the divine rebellion of Genesis 6.

They had been raised up by supernatural rebels to oppose God and destroy his people.

Now in this light, the conquest, the spiritual warfare laid out on earth,

either God's people Israel would survive or be annihilated.

The story is cast as an epic battle of good and evil, in both the spiritual and earthly sense.

Joshua could drive out people, but the descendants of the Nephilim had to be eliminated.

(triumphant music)

This is why when Joshua defined victory in the conquest, he said there are no more Anakim in the land.

The only ones left went to the Philistine cities. One of those cities was Gath,

the home of Goliath and his brothers. And eventually David would complete the task of eliminating

the descendants of the Nephilim. - The conquest is ultimately about God

protecting his own children against a cosmically empowered threat bent on stopping Yahweh

from reestablishing Eden. - God's original program was for Adam and Eve

to spread Eden throughout the Earth. All people were to be God's people.

The whole earth was to be God's domain, but that gets ruined and destroyed,

but God never gives up on his original plan, God called a people to himself, the nation of Israel.

Yahweh wanted a land to restart a new Eden, and the Anakim, descendants of rival gods,

would stop at nothing to prevent that. (ominous music)

- The first two spiritual rebellions produced Satan, the giants, and the demons who came from them.

But there was one more ancient rebellion looming ahead. This one would produce another set of bad guys

and change the entire landscape of God's relationship with humanity, but ultimately they would become

the catalyst of God's redemption plan. (uplifting music)

- Now this is a really familiar story. Less familiar is how the story is told in Deuteronomy.

(pensive digitized music)

- When was humanity divided into nations? That was at Babel. Got a lot of the nations to the members

of his Divine Council. The Bible says this is why the ancient nations worshiped other gods.

God decided to let the members of his Divine Council govern the other nations in response

to humanity's rebellion at Babel. - But the gods of the nations failed to rule justly.

God chastises them in Psalm 82.

- Then God pronounces a judgment on them. - [Announcer] "I have said you are gods and sons

of the Most High, all of you. However, you will die like men

and you will fall like one of the princes." - The gods will be judged, punished and will die.

It's startling to read these things. God is so angry with His corrupt heavenly sons

that He condemns them. Some passages in the prophets place the fulfillment of this punishment in the end times at the Day of the Lord.

- This situation is at the heart of what scholars call cosmic geography.

It's the idea that the nations around Israel were under the dominion of other hostile gods.

Those nations and their gods surrounded the holy ground of Israel, Yahweh's portion of the earth.

(pensive digitized music) The Book of Daniel picks up on that idea.

It discloses that supernatural beings govern individual nations. In other words, evil intelligences influence

the geopolitics of those nations.

- Each of these nations has a supernatural prince, a term that means 'ruler'.

- Michael is the guardian of Israel. The big picture reveals that there is an unseen

spiritual conflict behind the empires of the Earth.

- 2 Kings 5 illustrates the idea of holy ground well. In that story, Naaman, a military commander from Syria,

visits Israel in search of the prophet Elisha. To a surprise and joy, Elisha heals him of leprosy.

But afterward, he makes a really interesting request of Elisha.

- Naaman asked Elisha for dirt from Israel. Why? Because now he worshiped Yahweh.

He wanted holy ground to worship on. (pensive orchestral music)

Cosmic geography is something we see a lot of in the Bible. It's about holy ground, a place for Yahweh to dwell

with his people, just like Eden. Do we realize how dramatic the judgment at Babel really was?

When it was over, God had no relationship with humanity, but God still wanted a family,

and He already had a plan to fix that problem. He'd begin with one man named Abraham.

- The Bible recounts many stories of God speaking from heaven, but God did something more dramatic

when it came to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He appeared as a man. Both Genesis and Acts will tell us God came to Abraham

in a vision. Visions are things you see. The Old Testament often describes God in visible terms:

standing, sitting, walking. Invisible voices don't stand, sit and walk, do they?

God appears as a man in the Old Testament, most often as the angel of the Lord.

Jacob first encountered Yahweh at Bethel, a man who was more than what He appeared to be

wrestled Him there. That man was described by the prophet Hosea as an angel and an Elohim.

That's why the angel of the Lord could say, "I am the God of Bethel."

That's amazing. An angel refers to Himself as God. But even more startling is the quote in Genesis 48

where Jacob blesses Joseph's children before he dies.

- Jacob's prayer has three lines. "May the God before who my father's walked,

may the God who shepherded me," and in the third line where we expect him

to mention God again, he swaps in "May the angel who redeemed me from harm."

And then he asks, "May He bless the boys." Not may they bless the boys, but may He bless the boys.

That's what the Hebrew text says. Jacob identified the angel with God.

Genesis intentionally draws a parallel between the identity of the angel of the Lord and Yahweh,

but it goes even deeper. Two other concepts are associated with the angel.

They're the word and the name.

- When God tells Moses His name is in the angel, He's telling Moses that He is in the angel.

The angel here possesses the power to forgive sin, something only God can do.

When Yahweh says He put his name in the angel, He's referring to His own presence.

It sounds odd, but sometimes the name is actually described as a person.

(uplifting music)

- The Bible does that because the name can be a person. Even today, observant Jews who don't want to pronounce

God's name will refer to God himself as Hashem.

That's Hebrew for 'the Name'. This reminds us of the burning bush

where God reveals His name. Exodus 3 says both God and the angel were in that bush.

(uplifting music)

- Yahweh reveals His name to Moses at the burning bush. Jesus revealed it as well.

- Of course, the Jews already knew God's name. It was in their Bible. Jesus was saying He had manifested God to them.

If they had seen Him, they had seen God. God's appearance as a man in the Old Testament

prepared people to receive God as man in Jesus.

- On their way to the promised land, God gave Israel the law, but obedience to the law

wasn't how Israelites obtained salvation. It was how they showed loyalty to Yahweh.

It would help them to live in harmony with God and each other. Salvation in the Bible is the same in either testament.

Israelites had to believe God was the God of all Gods. He made them to be with Him as His family

because He loved them. They needed to refuse to worship any other God.

- Salvation today and in the New Testament makes the same demand in a different way.

We must believe that the God of all Gods came to earth as a man in Jesus Christ.

We must believe that He loved us enough to die on the cross so that we could be in God's family forever.

And we must put our faith in Christ alone and no other God.

(pensive music) - The law taught people how to approach God.

God is holy and the space He occupies is sacred. Sacred space is physical space,

set apart and dedicated to the use and service of God.

- [Announcer] The Mosaic Law comprises 613 laws. Many of them sound quite strange.

You couldn't eat shellfish or combine different kinds of material and clothing. There was an entire litany of clean

and unclean animals and behaviors. - These laws were about ritual purity.

They taught people the space occupied by God's presence was different than their living space.

Cosmic geography encompasses sacred space. The most holy part of the land was where God's presence was.

Certain laws alerted an Israelite to the idea that Yahweh's living space was special.

Sacrifices reminded the Israelites of this and also purified sacred space and objects

so God's people could worship Him. - Sacred space encompasses more than the purification

of physical things. It distinguishes between the 'holy' and the 'normal'.

It even marked the unholy territory outside of Yahweh's land. (ominous music)

- In Israel's world, sacred space reminded Israelites of Eden. It was the place where God lived

and where He desired humans to live. (pensive windpipe music) The design of the golden lampstand and the holy place

of the tabernacle was a reminder of the Tree of Life, God's throne room, the holy of holies,

where the Ark of the Covenant was marked off by a veil. The Ark's lid functioned as a throne for God.

This echoes God's presence in Eden. - Over the Ark, sat two cherubim,

just as cherubim guarded the entrance to Eden. Lush decorations of vegetation, flowers, palm trees,

lions and pomegranates filled the tabernacle. They reminded the Israelites of God's first abode on Earth,

the Garden of Eden. (etheric music)

- You might wonder how cosmic geography worked before Israel got into the land.

The Israelite camp was holy ground. Outside the camp was the domain

of the lesser gods from Babel. (slow, dramatic music)

- Think about it, while Israel was traveling to the promised land, they were not yet in Yahweh's portion of the Earth.

Laws about sacred space taught Israelites that Yahweh's people were sacred, their home was sacred

and that other nations were estranged from God.

- If the Israelite camp in the wilderness was considered holy, outside the camp was unholy ground.

The annual Day of Atonement ceremony illustrated this point.

- Two goats were involved in the ceremony. One goat was sacrificed but one was not.

The one sacrificed was for the Lord. The one left alive was for Azazel.

- The crucifixion of Jesus paralleled the Day of Atonement ceremony. His cross was placed outside the city,

away from the temple area which was holy ground.

Jesus bore the sins of the world outside holy ground. (dramatic music rises)

- Why didn't the powers of darkness understand what would happen at the cross? Well, Paul gives us some insight into the way

God shrouded His plan for redemption in mystery.

- Do you realize what Paul is saying here? If the forces of spiritual darkness had understood

Jesus was coming to give His life as a sacrifice for sin, they never would've had Him killed.

- Even the disciples didn't understand why Jesus had come. Consider how they responded to Jesus when He told them

He was going to Jerusalem to die. They were shocked. Peter even rebuked Jesus.

- Jesus would have none of it. Jesus was on a divine secret mission.

- The Old Testament leaves clues scattered throughout dozens of places about God's plan,

but it doesn't spell it all out in one place. God didn't want the powers of darkness to know the plan.

The intelligent, supernatural, evil beings knew that the prophesied son of David had arrived.

Matthew records an encounter.

- They recognize Jesus, but their words never indicate that they understood what Jesus was up to.

(heavenly vocalizing music) The forces of darkness were duped into conspiring

to kill Jesus. It was a divinely-designed misdirection.

- Intelligent evil, Satan, demons, the lesser gods do not know everything.

Only God is all knowing, and He is on our side.

- Why did Jesus have to die? Why would God plan such a thing?

So that His children would have eternal life. That's what Eden was supposed to be.

The first supernatural rebellion in Eden brought death into God's world.

Everyone was destined to end up in the realm of the dead where the serpent was cast down.

- Death had to be overcome. That means resurrection. But you can't have a resurrection without a death.

- Now, Jesus knew what had to be done. He volunteered for that role. He would die in our place, rise again and overcome death.

God wants us to believe in His plan. He never gave up on including humans in His family.

That's why Jesus came. There was no plan B.

(pensive music)

- It's easy to get the impression that Jesus's ministry leading up to the cross was somewhat random,

but there's an important subtext to what Jesus was doing. He was outwitting the evil one.

Jesus drew the battle lines when He declared.

- Satan is the ruler of this world. He's also very clever.

Satan knew that Jesus wanted as many people as possible to be part of God's family and kingdom,

so he offered Jesus all the kingdoms of the world. There was just one catch.

- There's no clearer example of cosmic conflict. Satan's offer to Jesus was real.

The thought of Jesus, Yahweh in the flesh, prostrate, worshiping at his feet is his dream.

He's the ultimate megalomaniac. Jesus told Satan to get lost.

He knew something Satan didn't, that He was going to die and then rise again to liberate

anyone who believes in Him from death. God and His son already had a plan

to bring people into God's family, one that didn't involve worshiping Satan.

- When Jesus had His confrontation with Satan, He didn't reveal God's plan.

That plan was to reclaim the nations of the world allotted to lesser gods at Babel.

Jesus didn't even tell His disciples until a very specific incident. You remember that huge rock we saw earlier?

It's time to talk about what happened there. (heavenly vocalizing music) - Jesus brought us disciples to a place

called Caesarea Philippi, named after Caesar and Herod Philip. That was the Roman name.

It's in an area known in the Old Testament as Bashan. Canaanites believe Bashan contained gateways

to the underworld, the gates of hell. But in New Testament times, it had been the city of Pan, Panias,

one of the Decapolis cities. And Pan's Cave was also known as a gateway

to the underworld, but why did Jesus bring them there? Because the implicit message when Peter confessed Jesus

to be the Messiah, the son of God was, Jesus is the real Messiah, the son of God,

and these statues and that emperor are so not the sons of God.

- Caesarea Philippi was also located at the base of Mount Hermon. In some of the Dead Sea Scrolls from Jesus' day,

Mount Hermon was the place where the fallen sons of God descended to earth before the flood.

Bashan and Hermon were ground zero for the cosmic evil powers.

Jesus was standing at Satan's front door when He announced the gates of hell

would not withstand the church. - In this place, Jesus asked Peter,

"Who do you say I am?" And Peter answered.

- Jesus commended Peter and declared.

- The identification of this rock has been debated for a very long time.

The area's geography is the key to understanding this passage. (ominous music)

- Eventually this place became known as Pan's Grotto. The god Pan was represented with horns, a goat's beard,

a crooked nose, pointed ears, a tail and goats feet. That's why the early church described the devil

in those ways. In a few days, Jesus would take three disciples with him

up into Mount Hermon and put the entire spiritual world on notice with the Transfiguration.

- Right after Jesus did these things at the gates of hell in Mount Hermon, He began to teach His disciples

that He needed to go to Jerusalem to die. The thought panicked them. They didn't understand.

But Jesus knew it was time to fulfill God's plan. (slow, heavenly music)

- A week later, Jesus arrived in Jerusalem for His triumphal entry. Jesus's provocations of the supernatural powers

led to the devil striking back. Satan entered Judas whose betrayal in the garden led to Jesus' trial.

He stood accused before the high priest, Caiaphas, who demanded that He defend himself.

- Jesus' answer sounds evasive to us, even cryptic. He replied.

- Caiaphas burst into a rage. He tore his robe saying, "He has blasphemed."

But why did Caiaphas think the reply was blasphemy? Jesus had quoted an Old Testament passage

that Caiaphas knew very well.

- Why was it so shocking to hear Jesus claim that He was the one coming on the clouds?

Because everywhere else in the Old Testament, that expression was used only of God himself.

For instance in Psalm 104, Yahweh, the God of Israel,

makes the clouds His chariot. (pensive music continues)

But Daniel 7 is an exception. God was already in the scene. He's the Ancient of Days seated on His throne.

That means the one coming on the clouds was a different person.

The scene has God in human form twice. He is the seated Ancient of Days,

and you would also expect God to be the one coming on the clouds because that is a title for Him.

Because of this scene, ancient Jewish theology had a doctrine called the Two Powers in Heaven.

They actually identified two Yahweh figures in this scene. Jesus claimed to be one of them,

the son of man riding on the clouds.

- Jesus claimed to be God was enough for the priest to declare that He should die, and die He did.

Psalm 22 gives us a glimpse of the suffering Messiah on the cross.

(eerie vocalizing music) - The creepy part is the description

of the mighty bulls of Bashan. Remember that Bashan was known as ground zero

to demonic gods and the realm of the dead. The area was a leading center for the worship of Baal,

symbolized by bulls and cows. Mighty bulls of bichon refers to demons

and the powers of darkness. - C.S. Lewis captured the force of the psalm in "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe."

No one can forget when Aslan surrenders his life to the hordes of the White Witch and dies on the stone table.

But just as Aslan outsmarted the White Witch, so too Jesus turned this apparent defeat

into the greatest triumph of all time. - Jesus triumphed over death.

He was granted authority over all things. Satan has no claim over God's people.

Jesus conquered death through His resurrection. (triumphant music)

(slow, pensive music) - In the Book of Acts, the Holy Spirit explodes under the scene

with His arrival at Pentecost. It's a familiar story to Christians. There's more there than you first realize.

(uplifting orchestral music)

- The Old Testament associates the rival of God with fire in a violent wind.

Ezekiel 1 is a good example.

- The spirit of God enabled the Jewish followers of Jesus to speak in the languages of the surrounding nations

enslaved by enemy gods. (etheric vocalizing music)

- God was reversing the judgment at Babel. Part of that judgment had been the confusion of languages

to divide nations. The Spirit was supernaturally overcoming that obstacle,

but there's more going on. Pentecost was a slap in the face to the gods of the nations.

Their authority had been nullified. God was going to take the nations back.

God gave the risen Jesus all the authority he had once given to them.

This is why the Great Commission begins the way it does.

- The nation's listed in Acts 2 cover all of the geography associated with the disinherited nations from Babel.

Pentecost sent the message that God was reclaiming those nations. They could once again be included in His family.

(ominous, bassy music)

- The Apostle Paul often talked about the evil entities whose domains he violated

in the wake of Pentecost. He understood the Old Testament's cosmic geography.

- Paul lists rulers and principalities, authorities, powers, dominions, lords and thrones.

All of these terms indicate geographical rulership. They reflect how the Old Testament depicts the relationship

of the unseen and the seen worlds. Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles.

He knew that he was up against the old gods of the nations allotted to people,

excluded from God's family back at Babel. - Paul says something in the book of Romans

that helps us see that what happened at Babel influenced the way he thought about His mission.

- Why did Paul care about getting to Spain? On the one hand, some think it's the only

disinherited nation not mentioned in the Book of Acts, the land of Tarshish.

Clement, the early church father from the end of the 1st century AD says that Paul went to the limits

of the West in order to reach the full scope of Gentiles in the Roman empire.

- In other words, Jonah went to Tarshish to get away from proclaiming to Gentiles in Nineveh.

Paul went to Spain to reach the Gentiles at the end of the earth called the Roman Empire.

(slow, pensive music) - God knew that the Great Commission was bigger

than just Paul could imagine. It falls to us to bring the gospel to the uttermost parts of the Earth.

- Paul had a supernatural view of his own life. He viewed himself as set apart

as an instrument for God's use. We have the same task of invading the demonic strongholds

of this world with the message of the love of Jesus Christ. (pensive music)

- Remember our discussion of holy and unholy ground. You might wonder where God's presence is today.

And sure, the Bible teaches us God is everywhere, but it actually marks His presence more specifically.

- Paul writes that God is specifically present within each believer.

In other words, every believer is sacred space. (heavenly vocalizing music)

- God was present in the temple today. The same is true wherever believers gather as a group.

The Bible says the people of God are collectively God's temple.

- Together, we are God's temple, the special place where God's spirit resides.

Wherever believers gather, the spiritual ground we occupy is sanctified amid the powers of darkness.

- Believe it or not, baptism is a declaration of spiritual warfare.

Peter explains that idea in a perplexing passage. It's odd to us, but people in Peter's day

would've known just what to do with it.

- At first glance, Noah, a good conscience. Spirits in prison, baptism, angels, authorities,

and powers seem to have little to do with each other, and baptism can't save us.

Believing in Jesus saves us. What's going on here? (pensive music)

- To understand what Peter wants to say here, we have to understand that, like Paul used Adam

as an analogy for Jesus in some of His teaching, Peter uses Enoch.

- We don't learn much about Enoch in the Old Testament, just three verses. He walked with God after living 365 years,

and God took him to heaven. That makes it hard to see much of an analogy, but we have to remember that New Testament writers

read other books besides the Old Testament, and one of those books is called 1 Enoch.

1 Enoch isn't inspired, but biblical writers quote from some uninspired books they knew their readers were familiar with.

Those familiar books helped them make their points. That's what Peter is doing in 1 Peter 3.

- The book of 1 Enoch says the fallen sons of God were imprisoned after they rebelled.

Peter's Second Epistle mentions those rebels being held in chains of gloomy darkness.

In 1 Enoch, the fallen sons of God asked Enoch to see if God would forgive them.

Since Enoch had God's favor, they thought it was worth a try. In 1 Enoch, God rejects the plea of the fallen angels

after Enoch reports to him. He sends Enoch down into the abyss. He descends to the spirits in prison to announce their doom.

That's the point of analogy for Peter. Just as Enoch descended to the fallen spirits,

so Jesus descended into the same realm to proclaim something to them.

What did he proclaim? They thought that since Jesus was in the realm of the dead, they had won.

Jesus told them they were wrong, and he rose on the third day to prove it.

They were still doomed. - But how does this connect to baptism and a good conscience?

- An appeal to God for a good conscience in 1 Peter 3 means a sincere pledge.

In essence, baptism was a loyalty oath and repeated the message Enoch and then Jesus

gave to the demonic powers and anyone present of just whose side of the spiritual war you were on.

(water whooshes dramatically) (triumphant, heavenly music)

- That's why baptism is an instrument of spiritual warfare. Whether we realize it or not,

we're being watched by both sides of this supernatural war. (etheric, pensive music)

- Being partakers of the divine nature means we will be like God. We will have a body like Jesus did after the resurrection.

We will have eternal life, and with the loyal members of the heavenly host,

we will be in God's family and worship Him forever. God will succeed in uniting His divine

and human family for eternity. But the most amazing part of being in God's family

is how Jesus, the unique son of God, sees us.

When Jesus became a man, He was made, for a short time a little lower than the angels.

Listen to the writer to the Hebrews.

- Because God became man in Jesus, His mortal followers will become like Him

and members of God's family. We are Jesus' siblings and the fruit of His ministry.

- It's stunning that Jesus is not ashamed to call mere mortals His brothers and sisters.

In fact, in the presence of the Divine Council, He revels in introducing God to us and us to God.

- [Michael] Consider the reason that Paul gives for our glorification.

- The exultation of Jesus is the reason for our glorification. He is the firstborn or the head,

the One who receives the inheritance among many brothers. John puts this even more succinctly.

- That's our future, but what about now? Sometimes when we hear that we'll be like Jesus,

we process it only in terms of being less bad, but our eternal destiny doesn't hinge on merit.

That turns grace into duty. That's just bad theology. The Bible teaches salvation is not of works but of grace.

God loves us and wants to give us everlasting life, if we will only believe in it.

- Until that day, God wants us to tell the epic story of His war against supernatural rebellion

to help Him release those still held captive by unseen powers of darkness.

(uplifting orchestral music)

- Well, it's pretty obvious we're not living in Eden today. The world is full of darkness, but supernatural evil has no claim on us.

Jesus is ruling at the right hand of God. We are sacred space, since God's spirit dwells in us,

but we await the Lord's return to transform the Earth. As theologians like to say,

"The kingdom is here already, but not yet."

- The 'already-but-not-yet' paradox is an important biblical idea.

On the 'already' side of things, God gives us a new identity as His children.

We belong with Him as He intended. He also gives us a mission.

We're here to grow God's family.

The 'not yet' part of our mission is what we often miss. The Bible says we will one day replace

the rebellious sons of God in His Divine Council. Consider what Paul says.

- The book of Revelation promises believers a future where we will rule with Christ over the nations.

- Think about it. Believers will be granted authority over the nations.

Who rules the nations now? The fallen sons of God. We're going to replace them and rule with our father

in a new world. But what do we make of the gift of the morning star?

In the ancient, world stars were associated with divine beings. The morning star is symbolic of the reign of the Messiah.

- Jesus is the Morning Star. That's a title for the ruling Messiah.

- Incredibly, we share the Morning Star. We share the Messiah's rule in the New Earth.

Elsewhere in the book of Revelation, Jesus shares His throne with us.

(triumphant music) - God and man will be reunited in fellowship.

The dominion of the world will return to its proper sovereign.

Heaven will return to Earth. Eden will be restored.

[Michael] God gives us a new identity as His children. We belong with him as he intended. The Bible says we will one day replace the rebellious sons of God in His Divine Council. He also gives us a mission. We’re here to grow God’s family.

We’re gonna go on a fascinating journey. We’ll explore some strange passages. We’ll reexamine some familiar ones with meanings hidden in plain sight. We’ll look at the Bible through the supernatural worldview of its writers. By the time we’re done, you’ll never be able to look at your Bible the same way again. There’s a lot to be seen when it comes to the unseen realm. (etheric music)

The Bible asks us to believe a lot of strange things about the spiritual world. At first, we might be tempted to ignore them, but if we say we believe the Bible, we can’t avoid these concepts. Much of what we think we know about the spirit world isn’t true. It’s been filtered down through centuries of church tradition. Angels do not have wings. Demons don’t have horns or tails. And for the biblical writers, the unseen realm was home to more than angels and demons. There were other bigger players. So do you believe what’s in your Bible? (mysterious music)

The rock at Caesarea Philippi might be the most imposing rock face in Israel. Imagine standing in front of the 500-foot wide face and hearing Jesus’ words, “Upon this rock, I will build my church.” This is the place where Jesus and His disciple stood, the scene of Peter’s confession. And when Jesus added, “And the gates of hell will not be able to withstand the church,” he knew what he was talking about.

Gates to hell, really? The authors of scripture believe the gods of the nations were real. Look at Psalm 82 carefully.

When you really look at Psalm 82:1, it’s kind of shocking, but there it is plain as day. God presides over an assembly of gods that he calls His sons. We’re just not used to thinking of the heavenly host in those terms, but that’s what the Hebrew text says. Psalm 89 says the same thing about God’s council in the heavens.

The Hebrew word translated Gods in Psalm 82 is Elohim. Now, most of the time it should be translated as capital G God, but sometimes it’s plural, and Psalm 82:1 has both. The problem for us is that we think this is a problem for monotheism, but it’s not. We’re taught to associate the letters G, O and D with a specific set of unique attributes. That’s why putting an S on the end makes us queasy. But the word Elohim is not about a set of unique attributes. The Bible itself tells us that. (heavenly orchestral music)

Elohim is simply a word used to describe a supernatural being. It says nothing, nothing about attributes. That’s why the biblical writers used Elohim for other spirit beings besides God. It’s used for the gods of the nations. It’s used for demons, it’s used for angels, even the disembodied human dead. However, Yahweh is one of those Elohim, and no other Elohim is like him. I repeat, no other Elohim is like him. The Bible describes him in unique ways. There is only one of Him, one of Him existing as three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and he is the creator of all other Elohim. (soothing music)

Psalm 82 places the heavenly host in a council. That term is appropriate because these beings participate in God’s rule of the world. Now, certainly God doesn’t need their help, but he lets them participate. Consider the strange story that the prophet Micaiah gave to the wicked Israel like king, Ahab.

Did you catch where the Bible asked you to believe? God meets with His heavenly host to decide what happens on Earth? These beings, the gods of the council are spirits, not people or idols. (pensive music) - Remember, Yahweh, the God of Israel is an Elohim, a spirit being, but no other Elohim is Him. He is one of a kind. He is the true God with a capital G. He alone is the perfect Sovereign Creator. He is the Most High God. Now, Psalm 82:6 says God has sons. “Sons of the Most High,” is the phrase.

Who are these sons of God? It sounds odd. What about Jesus? How can there be all these other sons of God? The answer is found in verses like John 3:16, where Jesus is described as the unique Son of God. Now, some translations say only begotten, but the word actually means unique, one of a kind. How is Jesus unique? The New Testament says He is God, the one uncreated God in the flesh. None of the other sons of God fit that description.

The sons of God language made sense to ancient people. God was king, and kings assigned their sons high-ranking jobs in their government. So it is in the unseen realm. It’s important because the sonship language reminds us that God wants a family. His family extends to both the unseen world and to Earth, and those two families come together in Eden. (dramatic orchestral music)

God addressed His council when He created the first man and woman, the council was already there.

God told His heavenly family he wanted to create humanity. Now, people often think God addressed the other members of the Trinity, but that is not the case. The other members of the Trinity are co-equal and co-omniscient. God wouldn’t need to tell them anything. God speaks to his heavenly host here. Job 38 tells us the sons of God were present at the creation. (pensive music) (etheric vocalization music)

The image of God concept helps us to understand how humans and the heavenly host are both like God. Both of God’s families represent Him. The supernatural sons of God represent Him in the unseen realm and we represent God on Earth.

But how do we represent God? We saw how divine beings participate in God’s rule. God created humans to participate in His plan to make the earth all He envisioned and to enjoy it with Him.

Imaging God is a status we have on Earth, not a specific ability. We bear that status from the moment of conception until death. To be human is to image God, but God also shares His attributes with us. Beginning with Adam and Eve, we were supposed to take care of Creation and develop it. God wanted the whole earth to be like Eden.

The knowledge that all humans are representatives of God prompts us to see all human life as sacred. It leaves no room for racism. Injustice has no place, and the abuse of power at home, at work or in government cannot be justified. (ominous music)

Obviously, the world isn’t like Eden. People don’t treat each other as equal imagers of God, not even close. What happened? The answer lies in God’s decision to share His attributes with both His supernatural and human children. And one of those attributes is freedom or free will. It is freedom, not mere intelligence, that allows for meaningful choices. God didn’t program His children like robots. If He did, we wouldn’t truly be like Him. Having freedom meant God’s children might choose to rebel. That’s what happened. (ominous music) - Remember, we don’t have God’s perfect nature, even though both humans and the heavenly sons of God represent Him in their respective realm. God tells us in Job 15 that He doesn’t trust His holy ones. He knows they can fail.

Eden was the home and headquarters of God. His supernatural and earthly families resided there. God wanted them to image him in their own ways, heaven and earth blended together into one family. But, one family member didn’t like that idea. (instrument hissing)

We’ve all heard about the serpent in Eden, but why a serpent, what’s that supposed to tell us? Ancient people knew how to take this scene, but we don’t. We assume the serpent is merely an animal. His form is important, but the story is not about zoology. The story is about a supernatural rebellion. Isaiah alludes to that rebellion.

Isaiah is talking about the sons of God in the assembly. Just like Job, he refers to them as stars. They were present before Eden. Ezekiel 28 mentions the rebellion in Eden as well. In Ezekiel’s case, a guardian cherub gets kicked out of Eden.

Ancient Mesopotamian tablets talk about cherub throne guardians and describe them as snakes and dragons. The serpent of Eden was actually a supernatural being whose job was to guard God’s throne. An ancient person would’ve known the scene was about a rebel in the Divine Council.

Like the supernatural rebel, Adam and Eve rebel too. Eden was lost, the rebel security guard was cast down. He brought death to earth, and now everyone would die. He became Lord of the dead. Since everyone would die, humanity would be his. (orchestral music rises) Now most people know the basics of that story. Christians believe it’s why the world is the way it is, but that’s actually incomplete. What happened in Eden was just the first of three reasons why there’s so much evil and death in the world. There were actually two more supernatural rebellions. (ominous music)

Genesis 6 describes the second supernatural rebellion. Some of the sons of God, members of the heavenly council, transgressed the boundary between heaven and earth. (mystical flute music)

Both Peter and Jude references story in the New Testament.

Jude also tells us about the judgment of these angels.

Both of these writers understood that Genesis 6 recorded the second supernatural rebellion. The fallen sons of God were sent to Tartarus for their transgression. Tartarus is a Greek word for the realm of the dead, what we think of as hell. They’d stay there until the Day of the Lord at the end of days. A term like fallen angels makes us think of demons, like the ones Jesus cast out, but the rebels of Genesis 6 are imprisoned, so they can’t be the demons Jesus encountered. So where did they come from? The answer lies in the offspring produced by the forbidden union between the sons of God and the women in Genesis 6. Those offspring were known as the Nephilim. They were giants. Their descendants became the giant clans Moses and Joshua battled.

In the books of Numbers and Deuteronomy, we learned about the giants Moses and Joshua ran into. They not only descended from the Nephilim, but they are called by other names like Anakim and the Rephaim. That last name stands out. Several Bible passages described the dead spirits of the Rephaim in the realm of the dead, again, what we would think of as hell. (ominous music)

Extra-biblical Jewish writers believe the demons, like those described in the gospels, were disembodied spirits of the giants. They base this on the Bible’s mention of dead Rephaim in the underworld. Jewish books like 1 Enoch and the Book of the Giants from the Dead Sea Scrolls make that point explicitly. (dramatic orchestral music)

If demons come from dead giants, what happened to the giants? Believe it or not, the answer comes from a very familiar story. (ominous, bassy music) God told Joshua to destroy entire populations in the land of Cannon, but if you read the conquest account closely, you’ll also see places where God told Joshua only drive them out, not kill them. Now this seems inconsistent. However, when you understand the supernatural rationale for what God wanted Joshua to do, things become more clear.

It’s fascinating to discover that the conquest actually began with the giants. Moses initially sent 12 spies into the land. They reported about the places they had visited and where they saw the giant Anakim. 10 of the 12 spies convinced the rest of the people they could not win against the Anakim. God judged Israel with 40 years of wandering. Notice that the giants were a focal point from the very beginning of the conquest effort.

At the end of the 40 years, God took Israel up through the east side of the Jordan. He told them not to bother the people of Moab and Ammon, since the giant clans in those lands had already been removed by the people of Esau, relatives of the Israelites. (etheric music) God sent Moses and Joshua to Bashan, the realm of Og, king of the Amorites. Og was a giant the last of the Rephaim. The prophet Amos described them.

The point is that once all the giants from the other side of the Jordan were removed, Joshua could take the people into Canaan. Joshua took the Israelites into the land. It’s important to notice that the places that were designated for total destruction correspond to the places where the giants were seen. The giant descendants of the Nephilim were the real targets of the killing. Many people died because the Anakim lived among them, but the descendants of the Nephilim were the lethal threat. (uplifting drumming music)

The Nephilim and their descendants were from the divine rebellion of Genesis 6. They had been raised up by supernatural rebels to oppose God and destroy his people. Now in this light, the conquest, the spiritual warfare laid out on earth, either God’s people Israel would survive or be annihilated. The story is cast as an epic battle of good and evil, in both the spiritual and earthly sense. Joshua could drive out people, but the descendants of the Nephilim had to be eliminated. (triumphant music) This is why when Joshua defined victory in the conquest, he said there are no more Anakim in the land. The only ones left went to the Philistine cities. One of those cities was Gath, the home of Goliath and his brothers. And eventually David would complete the task of eliminating the descendants of the Nephilim. - The conquest is ultimately about God protecting his own children against a cosmically empowered threat bent on stopping Yahweh from reestablishing Eden. - God’s original program was for Adam and Eve to spread Eden throughout the Earth. All people were to be God’s people. The whole earth was to be God’s domain, but that gets ruined and destroyed, but God never gives up on his original plan, God called a people to himself, the nation of Israel. Yahweh wanted a land to restart a new Eden, and the Anakim, descendants of rival gods, would stop at nothing to prevent that. (ominous music)

The first two spiritual rebellions produced Satan, the giants, and the demons who came from them. But there was one more ancient rebellion looming ahead. This one would produce another set of bad guys and change the entire landscape of God’s relationship with humanity, but ultimately they would become the catalyst of God’s redemption plan. (uplifting music)

Now this is a really familiar story. Less familiar is how the story is told in Deuteronomy. (pensive digitized music)

When was humanity divided into nations? That was at Babel. Got a lot of the nations to the members of his Divine Council. The Bible says this is why the ancient nations worshiped other gods. God decided to let the members of his Divine Council govern the other nations in response to humanity’s rebellion at Babel. - But the gods of the nations failed to rule justly. God chastises them in Psalm 82.

Then God pronounces a judgment on them. - [Announcer] “I have said you are gods and sons of the Most High, all of you. However, you will die like men and you will fall like one of the princes.” - The gods will be judged, punished and will die. It’s startling to read these things. God is so angry with His corrupt heavenly sons that He condemns them. Some passages in the prophets place the fulfillment of this punishment in the end times at the Day of the Lord.

This situation is at the heart of what scholars call cosmic geography. It’s the idea that the nations around Israel were under the dominion of other hostile gods. Those nations and their gods surrounded the holy ground of Israel, Yahweh’s portion of the earth. (pensive digitized music) The Book of Daniel picks up on that idea. It discloses that supernatural beings govern individual nations. In other words, evil intelligences influence the geopolitics of those nations.

Each of these nations has a supernatural prince, a term that means ‘ruler’.

Michael is the guardian of Israel. The big picture reveals that there is an unseen spiritual conflict behind the empires of the Earth.

2 Kings 5 illustrates the idea of holy ground well. In that story, Naaman, a military commander from Syria, visits Israel in search of the prophet Elisha. To a surprise and joy, Elisha heals him of leprosy. But afterward, he makes a really interesting request of Elisha.

Naaman asked Elisha for dirt from Israel. Why? Because now he worshiped Yahweh. He wanted holy ground to worship on. (pensive orchestral music) Cosmic geography is something we see a lot of in the Bible. It’s about holy ground, a place for Yahweh to dwell with his people, just like Eden. Do we realize how dramatic the judgment at Babel really was? When it was over, God had no relationship with humanity, but God still wanted a family, and He already had a plan to fix that problem. He’d begin with one man named Abraham.

The Bible recounts many stories of God speaking from heaven, but God did something more dramatic when it came to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He appeared as a man. Both Genesis and Acts will tell us God came to Abraham in a vision. Visions are things you see. The Old Testament often describes God in visible terms: standing, sitting, walking. Invisible voices don’t stand, sit and walk, do they? God appears as a man in the Old Testament, most often as the angel of the Lord. Jacob first encountered Yahweh at Bethel, a man who was more than what He appeared to be wrestled Him there. That man was described by the prophet Hosea as an angel and an Elohim. That’s why the angel of the Lord could say, “I am the God of Bethel.” That’s amazing. An angel refers to Himself as God. But even more startling is the quote in Genesis 48 where Jacob blesses Joseph’s children before he dies.

Jacob’s prayer has three lines. “May the God before who my father’s walked, may the God who shepherded me,” and in the third line where we expect him to mention God again, he swaps in “May the angel who redeemed me from harm.” And then he asks, “May He bless the boys.” Not may they bless the boys, but may He bless the boys. That’s what the Hebrew text says. Jacob identified the angel with God. Genesis intentionally draws a parallel between the identity of the angel of the Lord and Yahweh, but it goes even deeper. Two other concepts are associated with the angel. They’re the word and the name.

When God tells Moses His name is in the angel, He’s telling Moses that He is in the angel. The angel here possesses the power to forgive sin, something only God can do. When Yahweh says He put his name in the angel, He’s referring to His own presence. It sounds odd, but sometimes the name is actually described as a person. (uplifting music)

The Bible does that because the name can be a person. Even today, observant Jews who don’t want to pronounce God’s name will refer to God himself as Hashem. That’s Hebrew for ‘the Name’. This reminds us of the burning bush where God reveals His name. Exodus 3 says both God and the angel were in that bush. (uplifting music)

Yahweh reveals His name to Moses at the burning bush. Jesus revealed it as well.

Of course, the Jews already knew God’s name. It was in their Bible. Jesus was saying He had manifested God to them. If they had seen Him, they had seen God. God’s appearance as a man in the Old Testament prepared people to receive God as man in Jesus.

On their way to the promised land, God gave Israel the law, but obedience to the law wasn’t how Israelites obtained salvation. It was how they showed loyalty to Yahweh. It would help them to live in harmony with God and each other. Salvation in the Bible is the same in either testament. Israelites had to believe God was the God of all Gods. He made them to be with Him as His family because He loved them. They needed to refuse to worship any other God.

Salvation today and in the New Testament makes the same demand in a different way. We must believe that the God of all Gods came to earth as a man in Jesus Christ. We must believe that He loved us enough to die on the cross so that we could be in God’s family forever. And we must put our faith in Christ alone and no other God. (pensive music) - The law taught people how to approach God. God is holy and the space He occupies is sacred. Sacred space is physical space, set apart and dedicated to the use and service of God.

[Announcer] The Mosaic Law comprises 613 laws. Many of them sound quite strange. You couldn’t eat shellfish or combine different kinds of material and clothing. There was an entire litany of clean and unclean animals and behaviors. - These laws were about ritual purity. They taught people the space occupied by God’s presence was different than their living space.

[Announcer] Cosmic geography encompasses sacred space. The most holy part of the land was where God’s presence was. Certain laws alerted an Israelite to the idea that Yahweh’s living space was special. Sacrifices reminded the Israelites of this and also purified sacred space and objects so God’s people could worship Him. - Sacred space encompasses more than the purification of physical things. It distinguishes between the ‘holy’ and the ‘normal’. It even marked the unholy territory outside of Yahweh’s land. (ominous music)

In Israel’s world, sacred space reminded Israelites of Eden. It was the place where God lived and where He desired humans to live. (pensive windpipe music) The design of the golden lampstand and the holy place of the tabernacle was a reminder of the Tree of Life, God’s throne room, the holy of holies, where the Ark of the Covenant was marked off by a veil. The Ark’s lid functioned as a throne for God. This echoes God’s presence in Eden. - Over the Ark, sat two cherubim, just as cherubim guarded the entrance to Eden. Lush decorations of vegetation, flowers, palm trees, lions and pomegranates filled the tabernacle. They reminded the Israelites of God’s first abode on Earth, the Garden of Eden. (etheric music)

You might wonder how cosmic geography worked before Israel got into the land. The Israelite camp was holy ground. Outside the camp was the domain of the lesser gods from Babel. (slow, dramatic music)

Think about it, while Israel was traveling to the promised land, they were not yet in Yahweh’s portion of the Earth. Laws about sacred space taught Israelites that Yahweh’s people were sacred, their home was sacred and that other nations were estranged from God.

If the Israelite camp in the wilderness was considered holy, outside the camp was unholy ground. The annual Day of Atonement ceremony illustrated this point.

Two goats were involved in the ceremony. One goat was sacrificed but one was not. The one sacrificed was for the Lord. The one left alive was for Azazel.

The crucifixion of Jesus paralleled the Day of Atonement ceremony. His cross was placed outside the city, away from the temple area which was holy ground. Jesus bore the sins of the world outside holy ground. (dramatic music rises)

Why didn’t the powers of darkness understand what would happen at the cross? Well, Paul gives us some insight into the way God shrouded His plan for redemption in mystery.

Do you realize what Paul is saying here? If the forces of spiritual darkness had understood Jesus was coming to give His life as a sacrifice for sin, they never would’ve had Him killed.

Even the disciples didn’t understand why Jesus had come. Consider how they responded to Jesus when He told them He was going to Jerusalem to die. They were shocked. Peter even rebuked Jesus.

Jesus would have none of it. Jesus was on a divine secret mission.

The Old Testament leaves clues scattered throughout dozens of places about God’s plan, but it doesn’t spell it all out in one place. God didn’t want the powers of darkness to know the plan. The intelligent, supernatural, evil beings knew that the prophesied son of David had arrived. Matthew records an encounter.

They recognize Jesus, but their words never indicate that they understood what Jesus was up to. (heavenly vocalizing music) The forces of darkness were duped into conspiring to kill Jesus. It was a divinely-designed misdirection.

Intelligent evil, Satan, demons, the lesser gods do not know everything. Only God is all knowing, and He is on our side.

Why did Jesus have to die? Why would God plan such a thing? So that His children would have eternal life. That’s what Eden was supposed to be. The first supernatural rebellion in Eden brought death into God’s world. Everyone was destined to end up in the realm of the dead where the serpent was cast down.

Death had to be overcome. That means resurrection. But you can’t have a resurrection without a death.

Now, Jesus knew what had to be done. He volunteered for that role. He would die in our place, rise again and overcome death. God wants us to believe in His plan. He never gave up on including humans in His family. That’s why Jesus came. There was no plan B. (pensive music)

It’s easy to get the impression that Jesus’s ministry leading up to the cross was somewhat random, but there’s an important subtext to what Jesus was doing. He was outwitting the evil one. Jesus drew the battle lines when He declared.

Satan is the ruler of this world. He’s also very clever. Satan knew that Jesus wanted as many people as possible to be part of God’s family and kingdom, so he offered Jesus all the kingdoms of the world. There was just one catch.

There’s no clearer example of cosmic conflict. Satan’s offer to Jesus was real. The thought of Jesus, Yahweh in the flesh, prostrate, worshiping at his feet is his dream. He’s the ultimate megalomaniac. Jesus told Satan to get lost. He knew something Satan didn’t, that He was going to die and then rise again to liberate anyone who believes in Him from death. God and His son already had a plan to bring people into God’s family, one that didn’t involve worshiping Satan.

When Jesus had His confrontation with Satan, He didn’t reveal God’s plan. That plan was to reclaim the nations of the world allotted to lesser gods at Babel. Jesus didn’t even tell His disciples until a very specific incident. You remember that huge rock we saw earlier? It’s time to talk about what happened there. (heavenly vocalizing music) - Jesus brought us disciples to a place called Caesarea Philippi, named after Caesar and Herod Philip. That was the Roman name. It’s in an area known in the Old Testament as Bashan. Canaanites believe Bashan contained gateways to the underworld, the gates of hell. But in New Testament times, it had been the city of Pan, Panias, one of the Decapolis cities. And Pan’s Cave was also known as a gateway to the underworld, but why did Jesus bring them there? Because the implicit message when Peter confessed Jesus to be the Messiah, the son of God was, Jesus is the real Messiah, the son of God, and these statues and that emperor are so not the sons of God.

Caesarea Philippi was also located at the base of Mount Hermon. In some of the Dead Sea Scrolls from Jesus’ day, Mount Hermon was the place where the fallen sons of God descended to earth before the flood. Bashan and Hermon were ground zero for the cosmic evil powers. Jesus was standing at Satan’s front door when He announced the gates of hell would not withstand the church. - In this place, Jesus asked Peter, “Who do you say I am?” And Peter answered.

Jesus commended Peter and declared.

The identification of this rock has been debated for a very long time. The area’s geography is the key to understanding this passage. (ominous music)

Eventually this place became known as Pan’s Grotto. The god Pan was represented with horns, a goat’s beard, a crooked nose, pointed ears, a tail and goats feet. That’s why the early church described the devil in those ways. In a few days, Jesus would take three disciples with him up into Mount Hermon and put the entire spiritual world on notice with the Transfiguration.

Right after Jesus did these things at the gates of hell in Mount Hermon, He began to teach His disciples that He needed to go to Jerusalem to die. The thought panicked them. They didn’t understand. But Jesus knew it was time to fulfill God’s plan. (slow, heavenly music)

A week later, Jesus arrived in Jerusalem for His triumphal entry. Jesus’s provocations of the supernatural powers led to the devil striking back. Satan entered Judas whose betrayal in the garden led to Jesus’ trial. He stood accused before the high priest, Caiaphas, who demanded that He defend himself.

Jesus’ answer sounds evasive to us, even cryptic. He replied.

Caiaphas burst into a rage. He tore his robe saying, “He has blasphemed.” But why did Caiaphas think the reply was blasphemy? Jesus had quoted an Old Testament passage that Caiaphas knew very well.

Why was it so shocking to hear Jesus claim that He was the one coming on the clouds? Because everywhere else in the Old Testament, that expression was used only of God himself. For instance in Psalm 104, Yahweh, the God of Israel, makes the clouds His chariot. (pensive music continues) But Daniel 7 is an exception. God was already in the scene. He’s the Ancient of Days seated on His throne. That means the one coming on the clouds was a different person. The scene has God in human form twice. He is the seated Ancient of Days, and you would also expect God to be the one coming on the clouds because that is a title for Him. Because of this scene, ancient Jewish theology had a doctrine called the Two Powers in Heaven. They actually identified two Yahweh figures in this scene. Jesus claimed to be one of them, the son of man riding on the clouds.

Jesus claimed to be God was enough for the priest to declare that He should die, and die He did. Psalm 22 gives us a glimpse of the suffering Messiah on the cross. (eerie vocalizing music) - The creepy part is the description of the mighty bulls of Bashan. Remember that Bashan was known as ground zero to demonic gods and the realm of the dead. The area was a leading center for the worship of Baal, symbolized by bulls and cows. Mighty bulls of bichon refers to demons and the powers of darkness. - C.S. Lewis captured the force of the psalm in “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” No one can forget when Aslan surrenders his life to the hordes of the White Witch and dies on the stone table. But just as Aslan outsmarted the White Witch, so too Jesus turned this apparent defeat into the greatest triumph of all time. - Jesus triumphed over death. He was granted authority over all things. Satan has no claim over God’s people. Jesus conquered death through His resurrection. (triumphant music) (slow, pensive music) - In the Book of Acts, the Holy Spirit explodes under the scene with His arrival at Pentecost. It’s a familiar story to Christians. There’s more there than you first realize. (uplifting orchestral music)

The Old Testament associates the rival of God with fire in a violent wind. Ezekiel 1 is a good example.

The spirit of God enabled the Jewish followers of Jesus to speak in the languages of the surrounding nations enslaved by enemy gods. (etheric vocalizing music)

God was reversing the judgment at Babel. Part of that judgment had been the confusion of languages to divide nations. The Spirit was supernaturally overcoming that obstacle, but there’s more going on. Pentecost was a slap in the face to the gods of the nations. Their authority had been nullified. God was going to take the nations back. God gave the risen Jesus all the authority he had once given to them. This is why the Great Commission begins the way it does.

The nation’s listed in Acts 2 cover all of the geography associated with the disinherited nations from Babel. Pentecost sent the message that God was reclaiming those nations. They could once again be included in His family. (ominous, bassy music)

The Apostle Paul often talked about the evil entities whose domains he violated in the wake of Pentecost. He understood the Old Testament’s cosmic geography.

Paul lists rulers and principalities, authorities, powers, dominions, lords and thrones. All of these terms indicate geographical rulership. They reflect how the Old Testament depicts the relationship of the unseen and the seen worlds. Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles. He knew that he was up against the old gods of the nations allotted to people, excluded from God’s family back at Babel. - Paul says something in the book of Romans that helps us see that what happened at Babel influenced the way he thought about His mission.

Why did Paul care about getting to Spain? On the one hand, some think it’s the only disinherited nation not mentioned in the Book of Acts, the land of Tarshish. Clement, the early church father from the end of the 1st century AD says that Paul went to the limits of the West in order to reach the full scope of Gentiles in the Roman empire.

In other words, Jonah went to Tarshish to get away from proclaiming to Gentiles in Nineveh. Paul went to Spain to reach the Gentiles at the end of the earth called the Roman Empire. (slow, pensive music) - God knew that the Great Commission was bigger than just Paul could imagine. It falls to us to bring the gospel to the uttermost parts of the Earth.

Paul had a supernatural view of his own life. He viewed himself as set apart as an instrument for God’s use. We have the same task of invading the demonic strongholds of this world with the message of the love of Jesus Christ. (pensive music)

Remember our discussion of holy and unholy ground. You might wonder where God’s presence is today. And sure, the Bible teaches us God is everywhere, but it actually marks His presence more specifically.

Paul writes that God is specifically present within each believer. In other words, every believer is sacred space. (heavenly vocalizing music)

God was present in the temple today. The same is true wherever believers gather as a group. The Bible says the people of God are collectively God’s temple.

Together, we are God’s temple, the special place where God’s spirit resides. Wherever believers gather, the spiritual ground we occupy is sanctified amid the powers of darkness.

Believe it or not, baptism is a declaration of spiritual warfare. Peter explains that idea in a perplexing passage. It’s odd to us, but people in Peter’s day would’ve known just what to do with it.

At first glance, Noah, a good conscience. Spirits in prison, baptism, angels, authorities, and powers seem to have little to do with each other, and baptism can’t save us. Believing in Jesus saves us. What’s going on here? (pensive music)

To understand what Peter wants to say here, we have to understand that, like Paul used Adam as an analogy for Jesus in some of His teaching, Peter uses Enoch.

We don’t learn much about Enoch in the Old Testament, just three verses. He walked with God after living 365 years, and God took him to heaven. That makes it hard to see much of an analogy, but we have to remember that New Testament writers read other books besides the Old Testament, and one of those books is called 1 Enoch. 1 Enoch isn’t inspired, but biblical writers quote from some uninspired books they knew their readers were familiar with. Those familiar books helped them make their points. That’s what Peter is doing in 1 Peter 3.

The book of 1 Enoch says the fallen sons of God were imprisoned after they rebelled. Peter’s Second Epistle mentions those rebels being held in chains of gloomy darkness. In 1 Enoch, the fallen sons of God asked Enoch to see if God would forgive them. Since Enoch had God’s favor, they thought it was worth a try. In 1 Enoch, God rejects the plea of the fallen angels after Enoch reports to him. He sends Enoch down into the abyss. He descends to the spirits in prison to announce their doom. That’s the point of analogy for Peter. Just as Enoch descended to the fallen spirits, so Jesus descended into the same realm to proclaim something to them. What did he proclaim? They thought that since Jesus was in the realm of the dead, they had won. Jesus told them they were wrong, and he rose on the third day to prove it. They were still doomed. - But how does this connect to baptism and a good conscience?

An appeal to God for a good conscience in 1 Peter 3 means a sincere pledge. In essence, baptism was a loyalty oath and repeated the message Enoch and then Jesus gave to the demonic powers and anyone present of just whose side of the spiritual war you were on. (water whooshes dramatically) (triumphant, heavenly music)

That’s why baptism is an instrument of spiritual warfare. Whether we realize it or not, we’re being watched by both sides of this supernatural war. (etheric, pensive music)

Being partakers of the divine nature means we will be like God. We will have a body like Jesus did after the resurrection. We will have eternal life, and with the loyal members of the heavenly host, we will be in God’s family and worship Him forever. God will succeed in uniting His divine and human family for eternity. But the most amazing part of being in God’s family is how Jesus, the unique son of God, sees us. When Jesus became a man, He was made, for a short time a little lower than the angels. Listen to the writer to the Hebrews.

Because God became man in Jesus, His mortal followers will become like Him and members of God’s family. We are Jesus’ siblings and the fruit of His ministry.

It’s stunning that Jesus is not ashamed to call mere mortals His brothers and sisters. In fact, in the presence of the Divine Council, He revels in introducing God to us and us to God.

[Michael] Consider the reason that Paul gives for our glorification.

The exultation of Jesus is the reason for our glorification. He is the firstborn or the head, the One who receives the inheritance among many brothers. John puts this even more succinctly.

That’s our future, but what about now? Sometimes when we hear that we’ll be like Jesus, we process it only in terms of being less bad, but our eternal destiny doesn’t hinge on merit. That turns grace into duty. That’s just bad theology. The Bible teaches salvation is not of works but of grace. God loves us and wants to give us everlasting life, if we will only believe in it.

Until that day, God wants us to tell the epic story of His war against supernatural rebellion to help Him release those still held captive by unseen powers of darkness. (uplifting orchestral music)

Well, it’s pretty obvious we’re not living in Eden today. The world is full of darkness, but supernatural evil has no claim on us. Jesus is ruling at the right hand of God. We are sacred space, since God’s spirit dwells in us, but we await the Lord’s return to transform the Earth. As theologians like to say, “The kingdom is here already, but not yet.”

The ‘already-but-not-yet’ paradox is an important biblical idea. On the ‘already’ side of things, God gives us a new identity as His children. We belong with Him as He intended. He also gives us a mission. We’re here to grow God’s family. The ‘not yet’ part of our mission is what we often miss. The Bible says we will one day replace the rebellious sons of God in His Divine Council. Consider what Paul says.

The book of Revelation promises believers a future where we will rule with Christ over the nations.

Think about it. Believers will be granted authority over the nations. Who rules the nations now? The fallen sons of God. We’re going to replace them and rule with our father in a new world. But what do we make of the gift of the morning star? In the ancient, world stars were associated with divine beings. The morning star is symbolic of the reign of the Messiah.

Jesus is the Morning Star. That’s a title for the ruling Messiah.

Incredibly, we share the Morning Star. We share the Messiah’s rule in the New Earth. Elsewhere in the book of Revelation, Jesus shares His throne with us. (triumphant music) - God and man will be reunited in fellowship. The dominion of the world will return to its proper sovereign. Heaven will return to Earth. Eden will be restored.