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for Japanese history and culture.
Because of the storm of protests,
the J apanese government an–
nounccd that it would take another
look at the controversia! changes in
the interest of regional harmony.
On top of the textbook contro–
versy there carne to light new evi–
dence of brutal disease and human
endurance tests carried out on
prisoners of the Japanese in occu-
Personal from...
(Continued from page
2)
lence , destruction. H e has de–
stroyed all of God's earth his hands
could touch or change- polluted
the air and the water, worn out the
soil. But WHAT
IF
Adam had taken
of the tree of LIFE which God freely
offered him?
" He Would Have ... "
He would have received the Holy
Spirit of God. He would thus have
been given a spiritually compre–
hending mind. He would have con–
tinued in close relationship with
God, especially in the Person of the
Word, later designated as Yahweh,
who would have revealed knowl–
edge and truth progressively to
Adam as he was able to absorb and
understand it. He would have
received the LOVE of God, God's
divine !ove for fulfilling the law. He
would have received the FAITH of
God, and even spiritual POWER to
resist evi l and for self-control.
But, would Satan have been ban–
ished from the earth at the time?
From here on many questions may
ari se that God has not as yet
revealed to us in the Bible. But
sorne answers are evident, and
others indicated by what is
revealed.
Christ, the second Adam, resist–
ed and rejected Satan in the great
temptation (Matt. 4). But he did
not take over the throne of the
earth from Satan at that time,
although he had qualified to take it
over.
We, who do receive the Holy
Spirit, are not made immortal at
once, nor even in this mortal life.
We must continue to overcome, to
grow in grace and spiritual knowl–
edge, and we must endure to the
end of this mortal existence before
6
pied Manchuria during the war.
Then Americans were treated on
television, in late 1982, toa gripping
account of the suffering of American
and Philippine soldiers in the Philip–
pines from 1942 to the end of the
war. The documentary was entitled
Bataan- the Forgotten He//.
Ke y l s Confide nce In U.S.
Because of recent past history,
we shall be made immortal. So it is
indicated surely that Adam would
have continued as a mortal, having
God's Spirit, until God's righteous
character had been developed in
him. Eventually he would have
been made immortal, Satan would
have been deposed and Adam
would have sal on the throne of the
earth.
He would have been taught by
God continually. He surely would
have learned to teach Caín, Abel,
Seth and other children, from the
cradle, in God' s way of life and in
resisting Satan.
God has not revealed it aH. But
we may know it would have been a
far different world than that which
Satan has deceived .
What DIO and Wlll Happen
But the first human, Adam, did not
take of the freely offered tree of
LIFE. So what is important to us is
what did, and will happen.
God's PURPOSE in creating and
putting on earth the human family
was and is to reproduce himself–
to create in and through the human
family his own Goo FAMILY WITH
PERFECT SPIRITUAL CI-IARACTER, to
have the human family born into
the Goo FAMILY. God's PURPOSE
stands. It
sha/1
be accomplished.
But how?
God's own perfect character can
only be created in us by him, but
with our own individual free
choice, decision and wi ll. The first
Adam did not then acquiesce in
that decision and free will . He
yielded to Satan and opposite char–
acter through his wife Eve.
Thereupon God moved swiftly to
do certain things.
First, he shut off access by
humans to the tree of LIFE- to
immortality. God was not willing
that humans should live eternaJly in
the unhappy torture of perverted
Japan 's leadership will certainly
be cautious before translating its
enormous economic power into
greater political and military
influence.
For now, at least, the Japanese
are content to crouch safely behind
America's nuclear shield. But, no
doubt, leading Japanese are begin–
ning to have grave doubts about
(Continued on page 42)
minds and the consequences of sin .
At the same time, so that sinning
man be not lost from God-like hap–
piness and the possibility of being
born into the God family, it was
thereupon necessary-at the very
foundation of the human world–
that Christ should come, be born
human, and through death pay the
penalty for the sins of all humans
who repent and turn to God's way
of life.
Simultaneously, it was appointed
that all humans should die, but
after this, through a resurrection,
come to judgment (Heb. 9:27) in
which the book of Iife could be
opened (Rev. 20: 12)-and, that as
in Adam all should once die, so in
Christ should all be made alive
(1 Cor. 15:22) and then judged.
In due time, nearly 4,000 years
from the foundation of this world,
Christ carne. He said, "1 will build
my Church." As a foundation
(with the prophets), he called and
taught his 12 disciples. He commis–
sioned them, as apostles, to teach
all whom God would call. To them,
upon repentance and belief, the
Holy Spirit would be given, beget–
ting them as sons of God. Even
the n, the Holy Spirit was still
closed off to all except those chosen
and drawn by God.
At the end of the Church age
and 6,000 years from Adam, Christ
would return to earth as King of
kings and Lord of lords, ruling all
nations, with the saints, for one
millennium.
After this shall come the Great
White Throne Judgment when all
not called previously shal l be resur–
rected in the judgment and come to
understand what only a privileged
few, who are called now, already
understand .
Undoubtedly, billions of humans
finally shall be born into the God
family. o
The PLAIN TRUTH