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Him, chey had seen whac God looks
like, for He was formed and shaped
like God che Fa cher in heaven. And
Jesus looked like any ocherJew of His
day - else His enemies should noc
have paid Judas 30 pieces of si lver ro
point ouc and idencify Him.
Much of God's appearance is re–
vealcd in che Bible. God has hands
and feec - noc claws, paws or hoofs.
God has ceo lingers and ten toes. God
has rwo eyes, a nose, a mourh, rwo
ears. He has anns and legs. He is
formed and shaped like a man, be–
cause He creaced man afrer H1s image
and likeness.
Man, ir is plainly revealed. then, is
NOT AN ANlMAL!
The evolucionary rheorisrs debase
man as a mere animal - and des–
cended
from
lower animals. The Bibli–
cal revelarion of man 's beginnings
sers bim empharically in a GOD care–
gory. The Bible reveals thar man was
made ro have a special relarionship
with God, urcerly impossible wich
animals!
Yet of Material , not Spiritual
Composirion
Buc iris also viral ro note rhar man
is composed of material subsrance. In
Jobo 4:24 ir is plainly revealed rhar
God
ú
a Spitit
-
composed of spirit,
not of maccer.
Why was man made of marrer,
morral, wirh a chemicaJ exisrence sup–
plied by circulation of blood, oxi–
dized by breaching air, fueled by food
and water?
As srared before, che Bible reveals
rhar che crearion described in Genesis
1 was a PHYSTCAL crearion. In ir God
produced rhe physical material - pri–
marily man, wich whích ro BEGfN che
far more imporranr SPJRfTUAL CRE–
ATION. We are che clay. God is our
Potter (Isa. 64 :8). And fhar spiritual
creacion is srill going on. Thar relaces
ro man's rranscendent pocenrial -che
very PURPOSE for which che Creacor
pur rhe human fami ly here on che
earrh !
Genesis 1 describes a physical re–
newaJ of rhe face of che earrh - che
PLAIN TRUTH July 1972
presence of physical water in seas,
lakes and rivers, material grou nd, rhe
physical sun and moon, physical planr
life, physical animal Life - and, fi–
nally, pbysical HUMAN li fe.
In Genesis 2:7: "And rhe Ecemal
God formed man of rhe dusc of che
grou nd, and brearhed into bis nostrils
che brearh of Ji fe; and man became a
living soul. "
In ocher words, God took marrer
from rhe ground, and rhen formed
and shaped char marrer like God
Himself. Bm chis man (and woman)
carne out of che ground - material
subsrance. Then God breached PHYST–
CAL AIR inro man's nosrri ls - che
brearh by which man receives his tem–
porary physical
LIFE.
Then rhe brearh–
ing, living, physical man
became
a liv–
ing SOUL.
WHAT became a "soul"?
Nor someching spiricual - bur
somerhing formed and shaped from
rhe dusr of che ground. The "soul,"
rhen, came FROM che ground, and is
wholly MATTER - nor spirit!
The "soul," rhen, is material and
MORTAL. There is no sueh expression
anywhere in che Bible as " immorral
soul." A soul is NOT immortal. Buc it
is wrircen: "The sou] rhar sinnerh, ir
shall die" (Ezekiel 18:4). Ir is written ,
for emphasis, a second rime : "The
soul rhar sinneth, rT SHALL DJE" (Eze–
kiel18:20). God disrincrly cold Adam
and Eve rhac if chey sinned, rhey
would SURELY die (Gen. 2:17).
HOW Different From Animals
At chis poinr ir is well chac we
come ro UNDERSTAND anocher basic
tru rh abouc man - a truth ro which
even rhe minds of rheologians have
been blinded. Yer wirhour chis rruch
one could never come ro undersrand
WHY man is as he is - WHY man has
such advanced, complicared, and mar–
velous inrellectual powers - and why
he srill cannoc solve his own prob–
lems in living wich fellowman.
Nei rher, wichour this missing di–
mension of knowledge, can we com–
prehend che rrue
destinJ'
of man - rhe
PURPOSE of human Jife - che purpose
for wh ich che living God PUT man–
kind on the earrh!
The Missing Link
Paleonrologisrs have searched in
vain for rhe missing link, in fossiJ
findings, berween man and animal.
They wou ld devore their time more
profirably if they would seek che
Missing Li nk berween man and Goo
- Jesus Chrisr.
Why was man formed in rhe very
likcness of God? The Biblical revela–
rion answers rhat quescion. Ir says
humans may be acrually begorten by
God-may become actual SONS ofGod!
Speaking of Christ, you will read,
in John 1:12: "Bur as many as re–
ceived him, ro rhem gave he power ro
become rhe sons of God." Again, in
Romans 8:14, 16-17: " Por as many as
are led by rhe Spirir of God , rhey are
rhe sons of God.... The Spirit itself
bearerh wicness wich our spirit, rhac
we are the children of God: and if
children, chen heirs; heirs of God and
joinr-heirs wirh Chrisr; if so be rhar
we suffer wirh him, that we may be
also glorified cogerher."
Man Created for Special
Relationship Witb God
No such relacionship wich God is
menrioned regarding animals!
Man was creared rhat he mighr
have rhe close relarionship of aérual
fellowship with God and wich rhe
resurrecred, living Chrisc. Read ir, in
I Jobo 1:3: "That which we have
seen and heard declare we unto you,
rhar ye also may have fellowship with
us: and rruly our fellowship is wich
che Farher, and wirh His Son Jesus
Christ.'' In I John 3:2: "Beloved now
are
we
rhe sons of God , and ir
dorh nor yer appear whar we shaJI be:
bur we know rhat, when he shall ap–
pear, we shall be like bim; for we
shall see him as he is."
Man was creared ro have a very spe–
cial
f~lationship
wirh God rhat is ur–
terly nonexisrenr with animals.
The mosr remarkable rhing abour
mortal man is his MfNU.
There is a direcr re larionship be-
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