The Sons of God

And now we have the opportunity here from the local elder, Mr. Greg Thomas, for our sermon.

Well, thank you, Mr. Pachager. Good afternoon, brethren. It's dark in here. It's quiet. It's a little warm. Your eyes are getting heavy.

Good afternoon, once again. I have a question for you. Are you one of the sons of God?

Are you sure? Have you ever thought of yourself as a son or a child of God?

From the earliest writings of scriptures, going back to ancient times, we see a common spiritual threat, and that is the continual struggle of good versus evil. We learn from Ezekiel 28, for example, that there was a time in ancient, ancient, ancient history when some of God's spiritual servants rebelled against him, including some of the highest-ranking angels that were in the entire universe. A beloved angel known as Lucifer rejected his creator and eventually became known as Satan, adversary from light-bringer, from one who brings light and knowledge and understanding to an adversary of God. We see in Revelation 12 an indication that one-third of the angels at that time rebelled against God their creator at that time and followed Lucifer. As time marched on, we see that when Adam and Eve were created, it wasn't very long before they were soon confronted by evil taking the form of a serpent. There were two trees that were offered to them. One was the knowledge of good and evil. So that continual battle of good versus evil, that common spiritual thread continued even at that time. And they were caught in the middle of this common ancient struggle. Very soon, their very own children, or lineage, were also divided between a choice of good and evil. Let's see how this happened. If you'll turn with me to Genesis chapter 4, beginning in verse 8, we will take a look at how the lineage of Adam and Eve began to divide itself into a family line of good and a descendant family line of evil. Verse the evil.

Genesis chapter 4, beginning in verse 8, it says, Now Cain talked with Abel his brother, and it came to pass when they were in the field that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and he killed him. We've covered in a lot of detail in the past about how their sacrifices were different, so we won't go into that in detail. But obviously, Abel's sacrifice was something that was of personal worth to him. It was something that he had to give up of great value, where Cain's was just mere vegetation. You know, Cain's sacrifice was as if we had Holy Day offerings, and Mr. Thomas came in here with a can of Brussels sprouts, and the offering basket goes by, and people are putting in envelopes, and they're putting in checks, and they're putting in cash, and Mr. Thomas puts a can of Brussels sprouts. Now why wouldn't that work? Because I hate Brussels sprouts. I'm not giving up anything. It's not a sacrifice. I wish all the Brussels sprouts in the world would be in that offering basket, because I would never have to look at them or eat them again. So there was a difference between the attitude of those two sacrifices that reflected the attitudes of what was in their hearts. Cain became bitter against his brother, jealous against him, and it says here that when he talked to him in the field, he rose up against Abel's brother, and he killed him. And the Lord said to Cain, Where's Abel, your brother? Of course, God knows where Abel is. He's interested in seeing what Cain's reply is going to be. Is it going to be a reply of remorse? Oh, Lord, I just did a terrible thing. I mean, I am so overwhelmed with grief because I've done really a foolish and terrible thing. Is that what we're going to read here? It says, Where is Abel, your brother? And he said, I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper?

Well, you know what? Yes, he was his brother's keeper. Yes, I am my brother's keeper. You are your brother's keeper. Continuing, he says, and he said, What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries to me from the ground. So now you are cursed from the earth, which is open to his mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. And when you till the ground, it will no longer yield its strength to you, a fugitive and a vagabond you will be on the earth.

So I want you to notice the callous attitude that Cain has towards the death of his brother. He murders, he lies, he denies, and he does not show an attitude of repentance, only sorrow for the fact that he's going to be punished. Even as a response to God, like, is it my turn to watch my brother this week?

Just such a callousness, a carelessness towards the fact that he had just killed his brother. It reflects a character that would be within the entire descendant line of Cain. And it's more than just what the Scriptures say here. It's a metaphor for a value system for a way of life that was represented by the way of Cain. So again, notice the callous attitude he had towards the death of his brother.

He was a murderer, he was a liar, he even denied the fact that he had any responsibility to take care of his brother or have any concern for him. Picking it up here now in verse 13, and Cain said to the Lord, my punishment, notice it's his punishment that's upsets him, not the fact that he's guilty, not the fact that he killed his own brother, my punishment is greater than I can bear. Surely you have driven me out from this day from the face of the ground, I shall be hidden from your face, I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth, and it will happen that anyone who finds me will kill me.

And the Lord said to him, therefore, whoever kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark on Cain, lest anyone finding him should kill him. Then Cain went out from the presence of the Lord. And that's a very powerful statement, meaning any relationship he had, any respect he had for God's value system, anything that he had relating to an intimate close relationship with God was severed.

It says, Cain went out from the presence of the Lord. He cut off that relationship and dwelt in the land of Nod and the east of Eden. Verse 17, and we'll see now about his descendants, and Cain knew his wife and she conceived and bore Enoch. And he built a city and called the name of the city after the name of his son Enoch. Enoch was born Erad, and Erad begot Mehethjael and Mehethjael begot Methusel and Methusel begot Lamech.

Then Lamech took for himself two wives. The name of one was Adah, and the name of the second was Zilla. I've always wondered if Zilla had been religious, which she had been known as Godzilla. Just to... Hey, it's dark in here. I have to do something to keep you awake today. Okay, I won't quit my day job. So it says verse 19, I want you to notice something else that's new enters the world.

Lamech took for himself two wives. The name of one was Adah. The name of the second was Zilla. Adah bore Jabel and was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. His brother's name was Jubal. He was the father of all those who play the harp and flute.

As for Zilla, she also bore two ball cane, an instructor of every craftsman in bronze and iron. Now that means more than just little plows and beautiful little trinkets and so on. That means military armaments as well. Swords and weapons of destruction. And the sister of two ball cane was Nema and Lamech said to his wives, Adah and Zilla, hear my voice, wives of Lamech, listen to my speech. For I have killed a man for wounding me, even a young man for hurting me.

If Cain shall be avenged seventy-fold, then Lamech seventy-seven-fold. So let's stop right here and let's take a look at the immediate lineage of Cain and what do we discover.

What we see, of course, is Cain was the first murderer on the earth. He shows no remorse for sin or anything that he did. The second murder in the Bible is caused by Cain's great-great-grandson Lamech. He should not be confused, by the way, with another Lamech that we'll read a little bit in chapter 5. Same name, certainly different people. The other Lamech we'll read about was the father of Noah and of the lineage of Seth. In this case, this Lamech was the first to begin the practice of polygamy on the earth, or bigamy. Lamech magnifies the increase of sinful pride on the earth. He boasts that if God would punish someone sevenfold for killing Cain, he says, I'm even greater. I'm of greater worth, because vengeance will be 77-fold on anyone who attempts to kill me. And this could be referring to the metal tools that his son, Tubal Cain, was making for war. That if he were to die, that great vengeance would be put upon that city or those people by Tubal Cain's weapons. The scriptures tell us that the lineage of Cain, if you're looking right between the lines and look closely at what we've done, that the lineage of Cain was evil. It continually degenerated until God needed to destroy all physical life on earth and begin all over again with Noah. Again, this is certainly, this occurred, but it's also a metaphor for an attitude, a way of life, the way of get, and a very powerful lesson for us here with just that family. Now let's look at a different lineage from Adam and Eve, dropping down to verses 25.

And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son, and named him Seth. For God has appointed another seed for me instead of Abel, whom Cain killed. And as for Seth, to him also a son was born, and he named him Enosh. That's S-H-E-Nosh, not to be confused with Enoch. Then men began to call on the name of the Lord. So we saw one wicked side. We saw Cain's descendants who had cut themselves off for the presence of God, whose lives were very selfish, you know, polygamy, murder, making implements of war. And now we see a different lineage coming from Adam and Eve, a different side that from their son Seth, that call on the name of the Lord. This is a metaphor for people who were righteous, who wanted to have a relationship with God, who wanted to follow God's laws and his values. So again, the Scriptures mention another lineage from Adam that is different from Cain, and it's a lineage that acknowledges God as creator and desires a relationship with him. Now let's go to chapter 5 and verse 21. Drop down to chapter 5 and verse 21. Enoch lived 65 years and he got Methuselah. After he got Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 300 years and had sons and daughters. So all the days of Enoch were 365 years and Enoch walked with God and he was not, for God took him. So it says here that Enoch was removed from the scene or he was transferred, whatever term you like to use, at a very relatively young age. He was 365 years old at a time when people were living 800-900 years. So his presence is cut short. It's possible that the phrase God took him means that God took his life prematurely so that he would not have to live out his remaining centuries in a very degenerate and doomed, miserable world. But it says he walked with God. That's the part I want to emphasize, not what happened to him or where he went. The fact is that he had a relationship with God and it says Enoch walked with God. God. Now down to chapter 6 beginning in verse 5. Then the Lord saw, like the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that he had made man on earth. He was grieved in his heart. So the Lord said, I will destroy man for whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air. For I am sorry that I have made them. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God. Now what was the genealogy of Noah? It was from the line of Seth.

Seth originally, in spite of another line in which is evil continually, Seth and his family, generation after generation, are involved with people who walk with God, who call on the name of God. They are just people. The earth eventually, as the scripture tells us here, became corrupt, and mankind descended into perversion and sin. But there was one exception, and his name was Noah. He was from a family of character from Seth's lineage. So let me ask this question. If there was a God-fearing lineage through Seth, a family of character, a family of qualities and values that we respect, and on the other hand, in contrast, there was an evil lineage from Cain. How did the world become evil? How did Cain's lineage win control and dominate the earth to the point that there was one man left whom God could spare and he decided to destroy the whole world? Well, the answer is a few verses back. And I purposely did this so that the verse we're about to read now will make more sense. And there's a lesson here. It's a lesson that we were reminded every spring Holy Day season about leaven, and that is that leaven spreads. Let's go back to verse 1 of chapter 6. And now, with that background, I think this particular scripture will make a lot more sense to us. Genesis chapter 6, beginning in verse 1, it says, Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply in the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful, and they took wise for themselves of all whom they chose. And the Lord said, observing this, My spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh, yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years. So God observes what's going on. He says that overall mankind is carnal, fleshly, given into physical desires more than spiritual desires. Now the phrase here, the sons of God in verse 2, come from a Hebrew term, ben ha'elowim, which just means sons of God. And this reference has to do with the breakdown of the godly line of Seth by inner marriage with the godless line of Cain.

The expression, sons of God, refers to the godly who would call in God's name and who had a relationship with them. And over a period of time, they were attracted to these beautiful ladies who were descended of the value system and the way of life from the side or lineage of Cain.

And what do you think happened? Well, over a period of time, their children chose because they grew up in families in which they were given the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, one parent being good, the other parent being evil. They tended to choose evil. Now, some theology teaches that the sons of God were fallen angels who came down to earth and had marital relations with human women and spawned a superhuman race. As a matter of fact, most of the pagan religions of the world taught that the gods, whether you're talking about Greece or Rome or Egypt, that the gods came down to earth, mated with women, and had offspring so that they have a very common theological belief in the ancient worlds. Even some non-biblical Jewish writers believed that and wrote that as well because of the next verse. But let's read the next verse and see if that really makes sense. Verse 4. It says, and I'm reading from the King James Version, there were giants on the earth in those days and also afterward, I want you to hang on to that phrase, and also afterward, when the sons of God came into the daughters of men and they bore children to them, those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown. Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Now let me read you this verse from the New International Version because the word giants is really a poor translation. It comes from the actual Hebrew word was nephilim, n-e-p-h-i-l-i-m, nephilim, and that's the word that's actually used in the New International Version, and I'll read that verse. The nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God went to the daughters of men and had children by them, these were the heroes of old, men of renown. Let me read this to you from the Believers Study Bible. Let me read a few fragments they have in explaining this verse that I think are very good.

They say, quote, the traditional rendering giants follows the Greek translation, that's the Septuagint, written about 250 BC. The etymology of the term nephilim, which is the Hebrew word, is uncertain. Two derivations are suggested. One, the separate ones from the Hebrew word pala, meaning to be separated, to be distinct. Or number two, the fallen ones from the verb naphal, meaning to fall. People of enormous size existed in ancient Israel, and it refers to Numbers chapter 13, and a note in Deuteronomy chapter 2 and verse 20. And here's what the Believers Study Bible also says, and I think this is right on. Quote, and also afterward, did you notice that phrase in verse 4, that there were giants or nephilim on the earth in those days and also afterward when the sons of God went into the daughters of men? They say, quote, and also afterward indicates that the giants existed both before and after the sin of the sons of God, and therefore were not their offspring. So these giants existed before the sons of God went into the daughters of men, and they were also existing at that time. So again, notice that they were on the earth before the intermarriages begin that are mentioned here. Therefore, they are not the offspring of those marriages from which became mighty men. And it is amazing to me how this particular theory of angels or spirits spawning with human beings has taken on a life of its own. The Wrist Free Channel has had episodes and episodes about this, only they call them aliens.

All right. And, you know, if you don't understand God, I suppose you could, you know, you could call an alien something who came from the universe and sparked life and breathed life into the earth. Well, they call it an alien, but it's amazing to me how it has taken on a life of its own. One particular episode that I enjoyed happened to mention my favorite pharaoh of all time.

My favorite pharaoh of all time was a man who was known as Amenhotep IV. But in the fourth year of his reign, he changed his name. He had a religious conversion, and he reigned about 1350 BC. He had a religious conversion, and he changed his name to Akhenaten. Now, what was so remarkable about him?

He turned Egyptian society upside down. He said, you know, the 200 gods that we've always believed throw them in the trash. There's only one god, not 200. He's the Akhen. He moved the royal capital to a whole new city, shook everybody up. He fired the priest of the ancient Egyptian religion, established his own priesthood to worship one god. He was the first monotheist, and he went out and built a city in the desert known today as Amarna, and he established monotheism to worship Akhen, which was the sun god. And it was, if you see the reliefs, it's the sun and the little rays coming out in the sun. And the reason they tie him in with this is because he had an elongated head, and all of his reliefs and his statues, he has an elongated head. Now, the reason this is considered remarkable is until his time and after his time, the Egyptian pharaohs made sure that every monument of them was of a tough, virile pharaoh. They were stylized. Everyone had broad shoulders, thin hips, muscles, Egyptian-type muscles, and they were, you know, they were remarkably strong. Akhenaten has got a pot belly, a sunken chest, spindly little arms, and a head that looks like a tube. I mean, just really kind of like warped a little bit. He also has the only art of any pharaoh in which there were intimate family scenes because that was a no-no before. He's actually, he tenderly touches his wife, who, by the way, was an efateri. I'm sure you've heard of his wife. His son was King Tut, so maybe that puts some of the puzzle pieces together. And because he had an elongated head and because he worshipped the son, the speculators who like to promote this spiritual angel stuff say, well, what happened was he was the result of a spawn of one of these aliens. And that's why he worshipped the son, because the alien came from outer space and he was worshipping his father, who was the alien, and that's why his head is deformed and they try to tie it all together. And they always refer, of course, to Genesis chapter 6 and verse 4, showing that the Bible supports the fact that fallen angels had relationships with human women.

So the reality is, is you just cannot support that concept from the Bible. Another point regarding this issue is this. That creation in Genesis 1, God declared that life on earth would produce, reproduce after its own kind. Okay? For fallen angels to regenerate themselves and the physical humans to mate with women and then produce large giants contradicts God's declaration in Genesis 1. Fallen spirits are not of our kind. All right? Something that's spiritual has a spirit essence, it's of a different kind than we are. I'd like to read a comment here from the Scofield Bible notes. They say, quote, others hold that since angels are spoken of in a sexless way, that's what Jesus said in Matthew chapter 22, that they don't marry, and because of the words married them, referring to the relationship that the sons of God had with the daughters of men, I might add, signify a lasting relationship, the reference has to do with the breakdown of the separation of the godly line of Seth by intermarriage with the godless line of Cain.

So the end result is that in this scripture, the sons of God refer to those descendants of Adam who married or maintained an acknowledgement of God and a respect for God because they had God's values and they basically were good people, they're called sons of God. Unfortunately, in time they were attracted to others and had relationships, marriage relationships, with others who didn't share their values, and their offspring grew up and choose to be evil.

Now, the reason I think this is important to emphasize is that I can only tell you that in my life I have seen that whenever you mix good and evil, it is rare that the good pulls the evil upward towards character. I'm not saying it's impossible. I'm just telling you that in virtually every situation I've ever seen in my life, whenever you put something good and something evil together, it is rare that the good pulls the evil upward towards character. It is far more common that the evil pulls the good downward towards destruction. If you look at ancient Israel, isn't that exactly what happened? Ancient Israel went into the Promised Land and they didn't take care of all of the pagan believers, did they? So what happened? You had the worship of Baal throughout the land. You had the worship of Chemosh and other gods. Then the kings of Israel or Judah would marry foreign wives, political alliances. And what did the foreign wives do? They worshipped their own gods. And then you read over and over again how this idol or this god was worshipped in Judah or this was worshipped in Israel. And all the cities in which this kind of leaven, this compromise, occurred. If you've ever read the story of Solomon, you know that it was his wives that pulled him away, his foreign wives, and their worship of foreign gods that pulled him away from God. If you read the book of Ezra, when Ezra finally showed up after the captives returned to Israel to rebuild the temple, he had to go there because already within a generation, they were marrying those who did not hold the values of Yahweh or the values of the Jewish people.

So leaven does spread, and it's something that we have to be very careful of and to make sure that we associate with people of good values. I'm not saying those people have to be members of the church. I'm saying that they have to be God-fearing. They have to be people of quality, people of good values. These are the kind of people that we should associate with as much as we can in the business world, in our personal lives, in every aspect of our lives as much as we can, because evil eventually pulls good downward. And you see that principle over and over again in Scripture.

So in this case, we see that the sons of God refer to the descendants of Adam who were through through the lineage of Seth and had a relationship with God, who acknowledged God, who respected God and His values, and for that reason they were referred to as the sons of God. Let's look at some other examples where this phrase is also used. First, we'll go through the Old Testament and then the New Testament. Let's go to Job chapter 1, beginning in verse 1, beginning of the book of Job.

Job chapter 1 and verse 1, there was a man in the land of us whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright and one who feared God and shunned evil. And seven sons and three daughters were born to him. Also, his possessions were 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and a large household so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the east. And his sons would go and feast in their houses, each on his appointed day, and would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. So it was when the days of feasting had run their course that Job would send out and sanctify them, that he would rise up early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, it may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts. Thus Job did regularly, some translations say Job did daily. And this is a good principle regarding our children, and that is our loved ones, and that is pray for them every day. Maybe they've made a mistake that we're not aware of. Ask God to have mercy on them. Ask God to have compassion on them, to help them with their problems and their challenges in life and their difficulties. Ask God to help them to maintain the values they were taught as small children, and make these prayers of sacrifice on their behalf regularly. Certainly we can't forgive them, only God can forgive.

But we can be living sacrifices who are examples of godliness in asking God to be merciful to those whom we love. Verse 6, Now there came a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. And the Lord said to Satan, From where do you come? So Satan answered the Lord and said, From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it. Now this is interesting scripture because it implies that God has to demonstrate his sovereignty, that there is a check-in time that everybody shows up before God. Good angels, you know, the bad angel, the former Lucifer, that there is a report session in which the sovereignty of God is reflected and demonstrated, and everyone shows up to report what they're doing. In this case, of course, the sons of God, they came to present themselves before the Lord. This obviously talking about the angels, about God's faithful servants. But also it says that Satan came among them, and the Lord says, What are you doing, Satan? What is Satan doing? Oh, I'm just rolling around the earth trying to poison every attitude that I possibly can, trying to shake the earth a little bit and cause some typhoon to wipe out 10,000 people or tornado through the plains of the Midwest to make sure a few people die. I'm just trying to divide everybody and create war, famine, disease, heartache, sadness, and do everything I can to just foul up every human being's life that I can. So how are you doing, God? But that's what Satan does. Day in and dead, you will not find a harder worker than Satan the devil. Let's go now to chapter 2 and verse 1.

Again, there was a day when the sons of God, speaking of the angels, the faithful, dependent angels that God can rely on to do his will, came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the Lord. So again, it implies that God is in control of the universe. Satan may be given certain perimeters on the earth. He's known as the God of this world, small g, but we should always understand that the sovereignty of the universe, including the ultimate sovereignty of the earth, is God's prerogative and no one else is not even Satan's. Only Satan can go so far. Only Satan can do within his box, which is the earth, and in the realm of the size of the universe, I might add, that's a very small box that he's in. Within the box of this earth, Satan can only do what God allows him to do. So again, we see here a reference to the angels who serve God faithfully and to Satan himself, who just goes to and fro on the earth, trying to destroy and upset as many lives as he possibly can. Now, let's go to chapter 38. Job chapter 38 in verse 4. Another reference to the faithful loyal angels within the heavenly realm.

To give you some context, Job had become a little upset with God, and he challenged God and said, God, you're not fair. I'm innocent here. And God decided that he would have a little talk. They'd go out to the woodshed together, and that they would have a little talk, just man and God.

And here, in part, I'm just a little segment of what God tells Job. He says, where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements? Surely you know. Who stretched the line upon it? To what were its foundations fastened? Who laid its cornerstone when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? So here, God is responding to Job, who challenged God's wisdom and his omnipresence, and he tells Job that I created the world by my hand according to my will, and at that time it was so beautiful and wonderful and perfect that the angels sang for joy.

So those are all the scriptures of the Old Testament that we use that particular phrase, Ben-Ha-Elohim. Now, let's go to the New Testament, Matthew chapter 5. Obviously, these are Greek words used here, not Hebrew words. The New Testament was written in a different language, but we'll see where Jesus uses phrases, and we'll also see a little later on where Paul and John use phrases regarding the sons of God. So let's, in our continuous study here, to discover if we are the sons of God, let's continue our journey. Matthew chapter 5 and verse 2. Matthew chapter 5, beginning in verse 2.

Jesus begins to teach them the beautiful attitudes, otherwise known as the bee attitudes. It says, And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted, blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled, blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Verse 8, Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. I think we had a sermon within the last couple of years and the beautiful attitudes, so I won't go into great detail on that, except to read verse 9. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God.

So here Jesus refers to a person who seeks to promote peace as being called a son of God. Peacemakers called this because they have the same quality and concern that Jesus Christ does regarding peace. Peace is a very important quality that Jesus Christ possesses. Ultimately, he is coming to earth again to establish a kingdom of peace and prosperity for mankind.

He reflects the quality of a God of peace. Let's go to Isaiah chapter 9 and verse 6.

See that very wonderful prophecy about the birth of Jesus. Isaiah chapter 9 and verse 6, because it mentions this quality.

The prophet Isaiah said in chapter 9 verse 6, For unto us a child is born unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulder, and his name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, the Sovereign of Peace, because that's what he's coming to earth to do the second time to establish a kingdom that will finally bring peace to all the warring nations of this world. You see, brethren, it's the attitude of the godless line on earth. Taking the following of the example of the Way of Cain, it's the godless line on earth that's into war and competition and battle and strife and division. These are not attributes of God. These are attributes of selfishness, of self-centeredness, of the way of get, not the way of give. The attitude of the sons of God is striving for peace wherever and whenever possible. Now, I'll be the first to admit that sometimes it's not possible, because it takes, you know, if two people are in strife, it takes at least those two people to sit down and be able to reason with one another. So it's not always possible, but I can tell you this, a son of God always makes the effort to bring peace and harmony and reconciliation, because those are the qualities that God Himself has. So when Jesus said, blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God, that's how Jesus Christ looks at those who endeavor to have peace. And Paul said, as much as lies within you, be at peace with all men. And that's certainly an attitude and an attribute we need to strive for. Now, let's go to Luke chapter 20 and verse 27, and again, see where Jesus uses this phrase. This is also, by the way, a scripture that's used by many scholars to show that the so-called theory of the fallen angels who spawned with human women would not be possible according to the teaching of Jesus. Luke chapter 20 and verse 27.

It says, and some of the Sadducees who denied that there's a resurrection came to him and asked him, saying, Teacher, Moses wrote to us that if a man's brother dies having a wife and he dies without children, his brother should take his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. Now, there were seven brothers, and the first took a wife and died without children, and the second took her as a wife and died childless, and the third took her and in like manner, the seven also and left no children and died. Last of all, the woman died. Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife does she become?

In my opinion, she's like a black widow. Nobody should want to marry that woman.

I mean, what's it take to know that you should not marry a woman? Tell me.

If seven men die in a row, that should tell you something. You should make us suspicious.

All kidding aside, he said, therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife does she become? All seven had her as wife. And Jesus answered and said to them, the sons of this age marry and are given to marriage. That's a physical thing. That's something we as human beings do, and it's a good thing. It's a God-ordained thing, but it's something intended for the physical level. But those who are counted worthy to attain that age and the resurrection from the dead, meaning they enter the spiritual realm, neither marry nor are given in marriage, nor can they die anymore, for they are equal to the angels and are the sons of God being sons of the resurrection.

But even Moses showed in the burning bush passage that the dead are raised when he called the Lord the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, all of whom obviously were dead by the time Moses said that. Verse 38, for he is not the God of the dead, but of the living, and all live to him. So in context here, Jesus is referring to someone who's resurrected from the dead and composed of spirit, and he says that they do not marry. Marriage is a physical union intended to promote and nurture healthy, satisfying, fulfilling physical relationships. When one is spiritual, one moves to another level of existence and another level of joy that makes physical marriage look unremarkable. Now, I know that that's hard for us to understand because we've never been in that realm. We're just human beings, and we only can understand what are part of our five senses, and we think that's pretty great. But I can only tell you in your physical life that if, you know, you might have been a small child and you had something, a toy or whatever, and you thought nothing could ever be better than that toy, or maybe the first time you had ice cream, something could never be better than ice cream. But if you got a little older, you discovered something else that made that toy seem blase, something even more exciting than that toy, or maybe you discovered Brussels sprouts instead of ice cream. So the point that Jesus is saying is that physical marriage is wonderful, it's God-ordained, it's meant to bring two people together in the most wonderful experience that you can possibly enjoy as a human being. But, he said, when you hit the spiritual realm, you take on a whole new level of existence that makes physical marriage. The joys, the excitement, the exhilarations are so rich and wonderful they make marriage look like an unremarkable event and have no importance to you. Now let's go to Romans chapter 8. So we saw here in Luke that when Jesus is referring to the sons of God, he's referring to those who literally are part of the resurrection. Paul takes that understanding even one step farther Romans chapter 8.

The scripture we're very familiar with, and he uses the phrase sons of God actually twice in this segment that we're going to read. Romans chapter 8 beginning in verse 11. But if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors not to the flesh to live according to the flesh. If you live according to the flesh, you will die.

But if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. Verse 14. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God. So Paul even hones it in a little farther and he says not only are you a son of God when you're resurrected, as Jesus mentioned we just read in spiritual essence, Paul says that if you are led by the Spirit of God, if you have this holy Spirit of God imparted in you, as far as God is concerned, you are a son of God. You have a special unique relationship with him. God dwells in you through the power of his Holy Spirit.

The wonderful things are planned for all eternity and you're to be part of those plans. You are a son of God. Now he gives more detail. Verse 15. For you did not receive the Spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, Abba Father.

So we're not part of the family of God because we're spiritual. We're not the son of God because we're better than anyone else. We were adopted. We were bought with a price. That price was the shed blood of Jesus Christ, who made it possible for our sins to be forgiven, for us to be reconciliation with the Father, and to be adopted by him, though we're still physical and have limitations and weaknesses, yet to be adopted by him and have the right to say, Abba Father, which is an Aramaic endearing term like Papa. Yes, Papa. He says you now have that right, that ability, if you're led by the Spirit of God. Verse 16, the Spirit himself, better would be better translated, itself, bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. When God gave us his Holy Spirit and it united with the Spirit and man, which each of us individually have, that records our who and what we are, our attitudes, our thoughts, our history, that make us a remarkable, indistinct individual, that when separated from us, returns to God upon death, there is no immortal soul, the physical flesh dies, the spirit in man, which includes our mind and our thoughts and our attitudes and who and what we are, returns to God. And then at a time of the resurrection, that again will be united. For physical people who never knew the way of God, they'll have physical bodies, for those who are blessed to be part of the resurrection, our uniqueness, once again, will reflect itself in a spiritual way. But he's saying here that the Holy Spirit itself bears witness with our own spirit, the spirit in man. Those two combined, that a change has taken place in our lives. We have been converted. And yes, it's a process. And yes, it takes time. But we are different than we were before. And it's a witness that says that you are the sons of God. And continue here, verse 17, and if children then heirs, heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ, to inherit everything in the universe. Think how remarkable that is. To be offered to worthless creatures like ourselves, physical worthless creatures like ourselves. He didn't even offer it to the angels.

He didn't even offer that to the faithful archangels who have been with him for gazillions of years. But he's offered them to us. He's offered that privilege to us. He says, if indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of creation eagerly awaits for the revealing of the sons of God. And I can assure you that probably right now, none of your neighbors have any idea that you have been called by God in this age and received something special. From their perspective, you're just a weirdo who goes to church on Saturdays.

And that may be one of the kinder things they say about you. But the point is, is that though prophecy is going to unfold, the whole creation is groaning, waiting for something different. The whole creation of this world, which is decaying the entire universe, is waiting for a makeover from the great God. It's waiting for the return of Jesus Christ, for this earth to be refashioned, and for the decay to be made renewed and made beautiful again. And it's waiting for the revealing of the sons of God. And that'll take place in that resurrection. When our feet leave this earth and we meet Christ in the air, and at the twinkling of an eye we're changed from the physical shell that we have to something spiritual. People will be in awe. As tens of thousands, perhaps millions of people return to this earth with Jesus Christ, people's jaws will drop. I didn't know that he or she or they were part of the family of God. I didn't know they were one of the sons or daughters of God. I certainly would have treated them a lot better if I knew.

I would have given them that promotion that Mr. Swope talked about. Instead of treating with disdain and mocking them, I probably would have treated them a lot better. Well, thankfully, for their sake, we will be a very compassionate and merciful and forgiving people, even if we were treated with persecution, even if we were treated poorly. But the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. So Paul teaches here at the Roman congregation that once you're led by the Spirit of God, even though you may still be human and physical and you have qualities that you don't desire, weaknesses that you still possess, as far as God is concerned, you are a son of God. We're told in verse 19 that a time will come when it will be revealed to the whole world who the sons of God are. Now let's go to Galatians chapter 3 and verse 20. Paul is going to say this again in a different way, slightly different context. This time to the Galatian congregation rather than Rome.

Paul talking about being under the law and putting the law of God in proper context, beginning in verse 20. Now a mediator does not mediate for one only, but God is one. Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not. For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. And stop right there. Paul's basically saying that all the commandment keeping will never give you salvation. All the good works or keeping the Ten Commandments or keeping every law and statute in the Old Covenant, the Old Testament, New Testament, both Testaments, any assessment that you add to it, will not provide you forgiveness and salvation. All it does is it reminds us of how far short we fall as human beings to the perfection of God. But it doesn't bias anything. We need someone's shed blood, that is Jesus Christ, to make forgiveness and reconciliation possible. Let's now pick it up here in verse 22. But the Scripture has confirmed all under sin that the promise by faith in Christ Jesus might be given to those who believe. Verse 23, but before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. Therefore, the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. So what the law told us, particularly as we were coming into a knowledge of the truth, is how far short we fall of the perfection of God. It was a tutor. You're not hitting this mark. You're not hitting that mark. You're not living up to this standard. You're not keeping this commandment. Much like an adult tutor to a child, it was teaching, sometimes preaching, sometimes lecturing us like a physical tutor does to a child at times. Verse 24, therefore, the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. Verse 25, but after faith came, we are no longer under the tutor. We voluntarily love God's way, we love God's law, and in those areas in which we fall short, we strive to overcome those sins and transgressions. But we're not under the penalty of the law. The law doesn't hang over our heads like a cloud of guilt, always waiting to pounce on us or remind us how far short we've fallen. Because we now have an advocate named Jesus Christ, the perfect High Priest who intercedes on our behalf. Verse 26, for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for as many of you who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. So Paul is saying right now, as physical believers, if you've been baptized, you've put on Christ, Christ is within you, you are now a son of God through faith in Jesus Christ. Similar to what he says in Romans, in a little slightly different context. Now let's go to the book of 1 John chapter 3 in verse 1.

John says something a little different, and rather using a phrase that's translated, sons of God, he uses a phrase, children of God. And I think that's a good and a healthy thing. Not that the Bible was intended to be gender-specific in any way. But I think what John reminds us here and tells us certainly is in concert with Paul's writings and what Jesus taught. He says here in 1 John chapter 3 in verse 1, Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God. Who calls us children of God? God calls us children of God. Therefore the world does not know us because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies Himself just as He, referring to Christ, is pure. So just like Paul, John uses the phrase, and a little differently, children of God, but to signify a special relationship that we have with God by God's blessing, by God's proclamation.

Well today, we have seen how the term sons of God are used in Scriptures. We started out by looking at the two descendant lines from Adam and Eve. One was the line of the way of get, the way of Cain, and it produced murder, it produced polygamy, it produced creating implements of war, it produced a whole value system that is selfish and destructive and contentious. And we also saw through that study that there was another line that was referred to as the sons of God, and that were the descendants of Seth. They were people who sought God's presence, it uses phrases like walked with God, and these were individuals who sought to have a deep, personal relationship with God. But over a period of time, unfortunately, the good mixed with the evil through intermarriage, the sons of God were attracted by the beautiful daughters of men, and in time, that remnant that held fast to the values of God, all of that was watered down and degenerated to the point in time when there was only one person left on earth named Noah, whom God could start over again after destroying the face of the earth. We also saw that angels can be referred to as the sons of God, depending on the context, because they have a special relationship with God. They're loyal, they're faithful, they're beings that He created and that He can trust. Today, we've seen how these terms have been used in scriptures. Again, it can refer to physical humans who acknowledge God as their creator, like in Genesis 6, sometimes to converted believers who have God's Holy Spirit, as mentioned by Jesus and Paul and John. Sometimes it refers to angels. It all depends on the context. So, in closing, what do they all have in common? What do all the sons of God, the various phrases and ways this is used, all have in common?

Well, first of all, they have a special relationship with God because they humbly acknowledge His supremacy over them. That's where it all has to start. You are God, I am nothing. It all has to start with the right context, the right understanding of God's relationship to us in the world. Now, I say that humorously because when we do receive the Spirit of God and we become the sons of God, our attitudes towards our relation to the world and God's future for us should change from one that's negative to one that's extremely positive, and it should affect the way that we live our lives. Another thing they have in common is that a relationship is built on universal laws of respect for God and for His creation, including other people. That's another thing. Whether it's an angel, whether it's a converted human being that God has given His Holy Spirit to, whatever the context, the Son of God has a relationship built on universal laws of respect for God and for His creation, including other people. Remember the attitude that Cain had? He didn't even care about his brother. When he was challenged, where's your brother? He said, look, I'm not my brother's keeper. It's not my problem. What are you asking me about? Where are my brothers? He didn't even respect God's creation. And that whole lineage, that metaphor for that whole way of life has no need for God and has no respect for anything that anyone possesses, whether it's the world or the possessions of another human being. Every thought continually is selfish and deceitful. Another thing that they have in common, aside from the respect of the universal laws and for God, is that they have a relationship that desires to live obediently to please the Creator. When you look at yourself as subservient to someone greater than you, you want to please them. If it's going to be a healthy relationship, you want to please them.

You want to be obedient. You want to do the things that give them pleasure, that are their laws, their rules, their guidelines, their values. And that's another thing that, whether it's spiritual or human, that is reflected by those who have that title, Sons of God.

It's a relationship that voluntarily chooses to do what is right. A relationship that voluntarily chooses to do what is right, not out of fear, but out of love and respect for God.

Fear will only take you so far. The problem with trying to make someone fearful is that you've got to continually make them fearful. It's external.

The moment you step back and they no longer feel that fear, they'll rebel.

The right type of relationship with God is one that chooses to do right because it's the right thing to do. Because I desired, I love you, I respect you, and I do these things, not because I'm afraid that a two-by-four will hit the side of my head. I do these things because I love you and hold you in awe for your greatness and your goodness. That's the kind of attitude that God desires.

Well, brethren, in conclusion in this prayer or in this sermon, I pray that every day you will be faithfully and joyfully knowing that you, indeed, are the sons and the daughters of God.

Have a great Sabbath day!