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Ever since human beings came to inhabit the earth, civilization has been continuously improving. However, there are still innumerable mysteries that humans have not been able to solve. Among them, it is the truth of the human soul that so many people throughout all ages and countries have been most curious to know: Where were we before we were born on this earth? Is death the end of everything or is there another world after death? Unable to find the answers to all these questions of life, they are vaguely afraid of death; since they do not know where they are going, they are not sure what the future holds for them.
God took pity on those human beings who “all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death” (Heb 2:15), and He came to this earth in human likeness and taught them this fact: There is the kingdom of heaven where the saved people are going, and there is also the hell where the unsaved souls are going. Now, let us take some time to understand the spiritual world, based on the teachings of God.
Where do we humans come from?
Through the Bible, let us first find the answers to these questions: Where and how did we exist before we were physically born in human form? And why is it that we were born on this earth?
“The LORD brought me forth as the first of his works, before his deeds of old; I was appointed from eternity, from the beginning, before the world began. When there were no oceans, I was given birth, when there were no springs abounding with water; before the mountains were settled in place, before the hills, I was given birth, before he made the earth or its fields or any of the dust of the world . . . and when he marked out the foundations of the earth. Then I was the craftsman at his side. I was filled with delight day after day, rejoicing always in his presence . . .”Pr 8:22–30
Solomon, who wrote the book of Proverbs, said that he had already been born—from eternity, before the world began. Then he added, “I was given birth, before he [God] made the earth or its fields or any of the dust of the world.” This means that he already existed before the creation of the world.
Solomon also said that he was the craftsman at God’s side when God created the heavens and marked out the foundations of the earth. The King James Version refers to the craftsman as “one brought up with him [God].” Who do you think Solomon called “Father” when he was living with God in God’s kingdom? He must have called God “Father.” On this earth, however, he called David “father”; he was born as a son of David and became the third king of Israel. Thus, we have human fathers on this earth and the Father of our spirits in heaven.
Without realizing our previous life, we cannot understand why we should call God “Father” and “Mother.” When we lived in heaven before we were born on this earth—before we were clothed in human flesh, we called God “Father” and “Mother.”
Through Solomon, one of the Biblical characters, the Bible testifies that all human beings were God’s children like Solomon, and also shows that they will return to God’s arms when they die and leave this earth. Our origin is in heaven, not this earth, and we all have to go back to our true home. The book of Job also shows us this fact.
Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm. He said: “Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand . . . Surely you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years!”Job 38:1–4, 21
In the book of Genesis we can see God’s work of creation; it records that in six days God created the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them and on the last day of creation God made man. In the book of Job, however, God told Job that he had already been born when He marked out the foundations of the earth—when He created the heavens and the earth.
Since Solomon already existed before God created the earth, where did he live then? And where was Job at that time? They must have lived in another world, not this planet earth. It must be the kingdom of God, Heaven, because they lived with God.
Do you think it is only the story of Solomon and Job? Through the case of Solomon and Job, God has taught us where we were and how we existed before we came to this earth. We were beautiful angels, God’s children, who lived in the kingdom of heaven. This fact is proven well in the book of Ecclesiastes, too.
and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.Ecc 12:7
Here, the “dust” means human flesh (Ge 2:7). The above verse says that the dust [flesh] returns to the ground and that the spirit returns to God who gave it. Through this verse, we can clearly understand that our soul came from heaven. We existed in a spiritual body, an angelic body, even before we were born on this earth in the flesh. So, when people die, their bodies rot away in the ground and their spirits return to where they were before they put on flesh.
Now we have a certain place to go. Since we came from heaven, isn’t it also the eternal kingdom of heaven where we will have to go? The kingdom of heaven is a place full of joy and happiness and it is glorious beyond our imagination (1 Co 2:9). That is our spiritual home we must go back to.
We lost the kingdom of heaven because of our sins
As God’s children, we lived in the glorious kingdom of heaven. Then, why is it that we came down to this earth? The moment when we became flesh, we lost our memories of heaven. However, God has reminded us of all the facts through the Bible.
Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.Isa 59:1-2
The Bible says that our iniquities have separated us from God. The reason why the angels who lived in the glorious kingdom of heaven were born in human likeness to live on this earth was because of the grave sins they had committed in heaven. For human beings who were living without knowing this fact, God came to the earth with the good news that they would be able to return to the heavenly kingdom.
“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”Lk 19:10
Jesus says that the reason why He came to this earth was to seek and to save the lost from heaven. He also tells us that the lost from heaven are sinners.
“But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”Mt 9:13
Putting the words of Jesus together, we can understand that all human beings were lost from heaven because of their sins. In regard to this fact, the book of Isaiah says, “Your iniquities have separated you from your God.” We were angels, but we sinned in heaven and have been ultimately cast down to the earth. This earth is a spiritual prison where the angels who sinned are confined. For this reason, our life here on earth cannot help but be painful and laborious.
So God has taught us to repent first. Unless we repent and receive the forgiveness of our sins, we cannot return to heaven, our home, forever.
God has promised us the forgiveness of sins through the New Covenant Passover
Then, what should we do to receive the forgiveness of sins and return to our heavenly country? This is the task which not only Christians but all people, who have been cast down to the earth because of their sins, have to solve. To help them solve it, God Himself came to this earth.
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”Jn 1:29
For about 1,500 years until Jesus Christ came, a large number of animals including lambs had been sacrificed as sin offerings. This sacrificial system of the Old Testament was a copy and shadow showing us how to receive the forgiveness of sins. God took pity on us and came to this earth to become a sin offering for us, and through His blood of sacrifice He gave the forgiveness of sins to those who repented of their sins committed in heaven.
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. And he made known to us the mystery of his will . . .Eph 1:7–10
Christ, who was the reality of the sin offering, gave Himself as a ransom for all people in the world to redeem them from their sins. Without the sacrifice of Christ, we can never receive the forgiveness of sins and the glorious way for us to go back to the heavenly kingdom cannot be opened. Then, what is the “blood of Christ” that brings us the forgiveness of sins?
On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?” He replied, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.’ ” So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover . . . While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”Mt 26:17–19, 26–28
When Jesus gave His disciples the Passover wine, He said, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” Without the promise of the forgiveness of sins, we can never return to the kingdom of heaven. In other words, the New Covenant Passover is God’s promise that He will redeem human beings, who committed sins in heaven and have been thrown down to the earth, from their sins so that they will be able to go back to the eternal kingdom of heaven.
The countless animals, which were sacrificed on the altar of burnt offering to make atonement for sinners over the long period of 1,500 years, show the sacrifice and suffering of God who paid the price for our sins in our stead. To lead us to the kingdom of heaven by letting us participate in the feast of the New Covenant Passover, God shed His blood and sacrificed Himself for us. Through this process, the law of the New Covenant Passover has been brought forth.
So, if we keep the Passover without realizing the spiritual world, it is meaningless. The Passover of the new covenant is the law which God has established to redeem us by cleansing us from the sins we committed in the spiritual world.
“The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah . . . This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”Jer 31:31–34
God promised that He would establish the new covenant, setting aside the old covenant under which He had been forgiving the sins of His people through the sacrifice of animals. And God granted them the complete forgiveness of sins through the new covenant, just as He said, “I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” Since the new covenant is so important, God proclaimed the words of prophecy about it in advance through the prophet Jeremiah hundreds of years before Jesus came to this earth to establish the new covenant.
The Spirit and the Bride call Their children to come
If we have now understood our origin correctly—where we came from, we should also prepare rightly for the place where we are going.
In order to return to heaven, our home, we must receive the forgiveness of sins through the New Covenant Passover. God Himself came to this earth in human form 2,000 years ago to forgive the sins of His children and granted them salvation through the new covenant, seeing their life only full of pain and sorrow. In this age, too, God has come with the truth of the new covenant, as the Spirit and the Bride, to be the God of those who keep the new covenant according to the prophecy, “I will be their God.” As our Gods, the Spirit and the Bride have forgiven our sins and told us to share the blessing of salvation with all people around the world by preaching this good news to them.
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.Rev 22:17
God our Father, who is the Spirit, and God our Mother, who is the Bride, say, “Come! Whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.” So, unless we go to Father and Mother, how can we receive the water of life? How can we know the new covenant that has the promise of the forgiveness of sins and recognize the Spirit and the Bride who are the Saviors in this age?
The Bible prophesies that in the last days people will stagger from sea to sea, searching for the water of life (the word of God), but they will not find it (Am 8:11-13). Even prominent theologians, Biblical researchers, or any other person who has lots of wisdom and knowledge cannot find Father and Mother, who give the water of life, on their own. We must come to God, who calls us to come, and receive the water of life. Only then will God restore us to the kingdom of heaven which we once lost.
If we fail to understand the truth about the soul, we will waste our one and only life with wrong thoughts and deeds and will eventually stand before God’s judgment seat. The reason God has allowed us to realize the spiritual world and has given us the forgiveness of sins is because He wants us to awaken so many people, who are running towards hell without knowing this precious truth yet, as those who have received it earlier than them. Let us look around at our families, neighbors and acquaintances and make efforts to preach to them so that they can also receive the forgiveness of sins and go back to heaven together.
Let us preach our Father and Mother—the Spirit and the Bride, who have become our God through the new covenant, to all people around the world. Then our lost brothers and sisters from heaven will listen to the voice of Father and Mother and come to Zion to receive the forgiveness of sins, so that we will all be able to return to our heavenly country together, which we miss so much.
The kingdom of heaven we are going back to is a place where there is no labor or suffering or pain or mourning but only eternal life and joy. Until we return there, we may have to go through some difficulty and suffering. However, just as the forefathers of faith in the Bible overcame every kind of persecution and suffering with the hope for the eternal kingdom of heaven, let us also overcome all hardships with the heavenly hope and go back to heaven together without fail.