IMPORTANT SKYWATCH NOTICE: This series is being offered in the leadup to THE UNVEILING—an urgent Defender Virtual Conference event (May 13) wherein experts from around the world will update the public on (among other things) swiftly developing Human Enhancement / Hybrid Age advances directly tied to ancient prophecy and a coming seven years of Great Tribulation. Are you aware governments are enacting legislation NOW to protect the rights of the coming Human-Non-Human genetically engineered entities? (Early registration discount here).
Unfortunately, as previously mentioned, there are some who pervert God’s Word. An idea has resurfaced today called the “manifest sons of God” doctrine. This ideology is pulled from Romans 8:19: “For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.” It also pulls from 1 John 3:2, and is the idea that mankind can attain immortality or completed state before Christ returns and without the need for Him to be completed. It holds hands with the dominionistic Kingdom Now theology whose adherents believe Christ will not return until the Church prepares the world for Him. Further, we can’t successfully complete this task for Christ until the manifestation of the sons of God occurs. By means of “the Holy Spirit” we can attain the status of manifest sons of God, become immortal, and help usher in the kingdom of God to assist in bringing down the Antichrist. According to one author/teacher, “The Earth and all of creation is waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God, the time when they will come into their maturity and immortalization.… When the Church realizes its full sonship, its bodily redemption will cause a redemptive chain reaction throughout all of creation.”[i] Remember that this redemption and immortalization are not dependent on the Church coming to a realization; the Bible tells us clearly that it is solely dependent on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Kenosis Christ
To further complicate the issue, I also need to add that the “Jesus” being taught by this belief system is a kenosis Christ. In Philippians 2:7, Paul says that Jesus “made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.” According to R. C. Sproul, this means that Jesus “willingly cloaked his glory under the veil of this human nature that he took upon himself.”[ii] In other words, the inner being or soul that inhabited the flesh shell of Jesus of Nazareth for 33 years was 100 percent God. Contrary to this understanding is kenosis. Simply put, Kenostics believe that the making “himself of no reputation”—or “emptying of himself,” as some translations put it—is interpreted to mean that Jesus laid aside His divinity at incarnation and lived life as a man led by the Holy Spirit. Therefore, we can do the same and become the manifest sons of God. The idea holds that Jesus was the first of the manifest sons of God, and we are commanded to walk in His footsteps and go and do likewise. This opens the door for transhumanism to invade church doctrine.
But I believe Jesus is God. Jesus always has been God. Jesus always will be God. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Kenosis reduces Jesus to a man who was sinless and in right standing before God, which allowed Him to work the supernatural while on earth. By lowering Jesus to man’s level, Kenosists offer that His level is attainable by man. Supernatural abilities, miracles, that normal men aren’t born with are also attainable. Become one of the manifest sons of God and you, too, can perform these signs and wonders. Transhumanism would be a fast track to these ends.
Joel’s Transhuman Army
Joel’s Army is a similar doctrine that holds hands with this train of thought. It follows Kingdom Now theology in the belief that the Church was given dominion over the earth in Genesis 1:28, and once we regain this authority, it will be ready for Christ to return. A big problem with this idea is that God granted Adam dominion over the animals, not over humanity. Also, Adam and the Church are not interchangeable. It is not up to us to subdue mankind into submission for Christ to return. It is our command to go and make disciples of every nation. Only the Holy Spirit can draw a person to God. Back to Joel’s Army. This doctrine pulls from a passage located in Joel chapter 2, which is an exciting read. When reading the descriptions of this demonic army, it almost sounds like Lex Luthor plotted with a physicist and produced an apocalyptic Legion of Doom to fight against the Justice League. This takes place on the Day of the Lord.
2 A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.
3 A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
4 The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run.
5 Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array.
6 Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness.
7 They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks:
8 Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded.
9 They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief.
10 The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:
11 And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it? (Joel 2:2–11)
The series will go on to show that this army is allowed to come in and wreak havoc in order for the people to repent of their sin, fast and pray, and return their hearts to the Lord. If they do this, the Lord will turn away this army from them, send it to a barren land, and deal with them accordingly. Believers in the Joel’s Army doctrine have a different understanding of this passage. They hold that the transhuman army described here, very reminiscent of the army from the bottomless pit spoken of by the Apostle John in the book of Revelation, will actually be believers who are given supernatural abilities. They are convinced they will become supernaturally equipped to fight against the Antichrist and release God’s judgments on the non-believing world, as well as “normal” Christians who get in their way.
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WHY IS “THE UNVEILING” CONSIDERED SO IMPORTANT THAT OVER 2-DOZEN INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED EXPERTS ARE GATHERING TO DISCLOSE DEVELOPMENTS TIED TO THE END TIMES!?
Once again, Scripture tells us the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7). Salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus, not of works (Ephesians 2:8), and the Church is not the redeeming agent. If this scenario is the desired commission being taught by some in the Church, one would think that using science and technology to achieve this level of existence would not be looked down upon.
One last area to reference within the Church is the Christian Transhumanism Association. I’m sure this idea spans denominational lines, so I won’t put a blanket over them to combine them into Dominionism, Kenosticism, Manifest Sons, or Joel’s Army followers. Without coupling them to the previous misinterpretations of Scripture desiring to become Human plus before Christ returns, their self-professed title still clearly announces their stance on the topic of becoming posthuman. They see transhumanism as a chance to use “science & technology to participate in the work of God, to cultivate life and renew creation.”[iii] That mission statement does sound very appealing: participating in God’s work, cultivating life, and renewing creation…and using science and technology to do it. The concerns I have with this ideology in relation to creation and God’s plan for it are as follows: God is the Creator of all things. Mankind is such a prized possession to Him that, after man separated himself, Jesus still gave His own life to save it. God is our renewal and He is the Renewer. He makes all things new. Mutating and manipulating DNA, the structure used to build man, isn’t a renewing alteration; it is a corruption of what God said was good after He created it. Transhumanism is an abomination in direct defiance to the Lord.
Acceptance goes back to predictive programming. It’s much easier to see, feel, and understand how the process works with print, and more so with cartoons, television, and film. But, live presentations, speeches, sermons, and stage plays all predate the history of motion pictures. Predictive programming is an age-old method of directing society. All forms of communication effect the recipient upon receipt, through the delivery of a message. It is vital to pause and process the information before digesting it. This is even more important within the Church. Unfortunately, just because someone claims to be anointed and say that he or she comes in the name of Jesus doesn’t mean that person has the Church’s best interest at heart. Christ tells us in Matthew 24:4–5 to “Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.” This is simple, but many times overlooked. This passage doesn’t exclusively mean to be aware of people falsely claiming to be Jesus, although that is also covered. Specifically, in Greek, “Christ,” or Christos, means “anointed”—that is, “the Messiah,” an epithet of Jesus. It comes from the root word “anoint,” or chriō, which means “to smear or rub with oil that is by implication to consecrate to an office or religious service.” Jesus warns us to “take heed,” blepō, the same word used in Revelation 6, to come and see, behold, that we are not deceived by anyone—and there will be many coming in His name and claiming to be anointed or consecrated to an office. Know the truth, and the counterfeits will be become obvious.
Let’s take a last moment to draw a connection. Satan is the ultimate counterfeiter. He always has been. He always will be. As we have the Holy Trinity: God the Father, Jesus the Son—the Christ, and the Holy Spirit, Satan has himself playing the role of the Father, the Antichrist is in the place of Jesus, and the False Prophet is in the place of the Holy Spirit. As we are all one in Christ who are the Church, the Body of Christ, in a bizarro world is the body of the Beast. Our resurrected, completed, immortal bodies in Christ are offered counterfeits via transhumanism’s desired end game of evolved H+ with a hive mind, completing the Singularity. Selah.
With the differing doctrines creeping in unaware into churches, added to the fascination of the revived superheroes, it’s not a huge leap to see how many could be deceived and fall for the idea of a transhumanist future. The Body of Christ must stand fast! It is late in the game, and there is no other option. Don’t be one of those who perishes due to lack of knowledge. Continue to keep the Lord first in your life. Continue to stay in the Word and filter everything in this life through it. Continue to hold one another accountable and edify the Body. Carry one another’s burdens and walk in love. Diligently live ready!
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Dr. Thomas Horn and Jimmy Evans Explain The Greatest Threat Transhumanism Poses To Humanity On Daystar
From Flawed Man to Enhanced Beast: The Philosophical and Political Dilemmas of Transhumanism
Like many new technologies and developments in their infancies, transhumanism makes powerful claims to justify the movement as morally correct. Among these are promises of a cure for cancer and every other conceivable disease, vast extension of longevity to the point of immortality, and an evolution of the human species. This view of morality is separate from the issue of human biology, yet it defines humanity. For example, in an article from The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy: A Forum for Bioethics and Philosophy of Medicine entitled “Moral Transhumanism,” authors Ingmar Persson and Julian Savuescu argue the point that humanity is defined by morality rather than biology.[iv] To quote:
This paper argues that biomedical research and therapy should make humans in the biological sense more human in the moral sense, even if they cease to be human in the biological sense. This serves valuable biomedical ends like the promotion of health and well-being, for if humans do not become more moral, civilization is threatened. It is unimportant that humans remain biologically human, since they do not have moral value in virtue of belonging to H. sapiens.
It would seem, at least to some transhumanists, humanity is fundamentally a moral pursuit rather than a biological fact. Some obvious issues with this interpretation should come to mind immediately. How do we define morality? The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy provides two possible definitions for morality:
1 – descriptively to refer to certain codes of conduct put forward by a society or a group (such as a religion), or accepted by an individual for her own behavior, or
2 – normatively to refer to a code of conduct that, given specified conditions, would be put forward by all rational persons.[v]
If we consider the first definition in light of humanity, would this mean some groups, societies, or (dare I say) races are less human if they have differing moralities? If they are, how could anyone else rationally hold them to any other moral structure? If not, and if there is one, central morality that should be accepted by all humans, how do we define exactly what that moral structure looks like? If it is defined by religion, would this mean some religious beliefs offer greater humanity to some rather than the religious beliefs of others? Is a Catholic more human than a Protestant? Is a Buddhist more human than a Muslim? How would atheists rank on this scale?
The second definition provides even more worrisome problems. Who exactly defines the terms of morality that should be generally accepted? How do we define a “rational person?” If someone disagrees with the status quo of morality due to religious or cultural reasons, does it make that person less human?
While these two definitions outline fairly well what morality actually is, it shows us that “morality” does not mean “humanity.” To conflate the subjectiveness of a concept such as morality with the biological fact of humanity is to do a grave disservice to all religions, races, children, the disabled, and countless others. It defines a select few as the most human while leaving the rest of the people on earth on some odd, varying scale of humanity that is impossible to objectively define. The only true, scientific, and objective definition of humanity is based on biology rather than morality.
A human being can be defined in a broad sense quite simply. The English Oxford Living Dictionaries defines “human being” as: “A man, woman, or child of the species Homo sapiens, distinguished from other animals by superior mental development, power of articulate speech, and upright stance.”[vi]
The majority of transhumanist goals, if successfully carried out, would not fit within this definition, or rather, would surpass it. Homo sapiens now, compared to other animals, are considered to have superior mental development. However, one of the goals of transhumanism is to increase that development to a state far surpassing what is possible to mere Homo sapiens. We now have the power of articulate speech, yet if something like uploading a person into a global brain is available, the speech available in that environment would no longer be articulate or even understandable to normal Homo sapiens. Even the idea of upright stance would be a moot point in a virtual environment.
This is why many transhumanists explain transhumanism as a directed evolution from Homo sapiens to something new, improved, enhanced, and wholly different.
NEXT: Transhumanism As Directed Evolution From Homo Sapiens INTO SOMETHING ELSE
[i] Bill Hamon, The Eternal Church (Shippensburg, PA: Destiny Image, 1981, revised 2003) 385. (http://reachouttrust.org/manifest-sons-of-god/), accessed December 15, 2017.
[ii]R. C. Sproul, How Could Jesus Be Both Divine and Human? (http://www.ntslibrary.com/Online-Library-How-Could-Jesus-Be-Both-Divine-and-Human.htm), accessed December 4, 2017.
[iii] (https://www.christiantranshumanism.org/).
[iv] The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy: A Forum for Bioethics and Philosophy of Medicine, Volume 35, Issue 6, 1 December 2010, Pages 656–669, (https://doi.org/10.1093/jmp/jhq052).
[v] The Definition of Morality (https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/morality-definition/)
[vi] (https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/human_being).
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