“For in him we live and move and exist, even as some of your own poets have said, 'We also are his children.” Acts 17:28 NAU “for in him we live and move, in him we exist; - - The NEB puts it, ‘We are also his offspring.”

Paul used the occasion of his visit to Athens to challenge them about the altar they had erected in their desire to cover all the gods even if they didn’t know them, “to an unknown God.” Paul reminded them that they knew they were HIS children, his offspring. Indeed We, meaning ALL who live are the children, the offspring of God. The Greek word GENOS is used (Strong’s #1085) means, “race, kindred, kind and children.” It comes from the word GINOMAI [#1096] meaning: to become, or cause to be. A modern word with this context is genome which tells about our genetic make up and the word genome interesting relates to the word genesis which is about origin or beginnings.

God is the Father of all, and the SEED of GOD is planted in all of mankind in spite of how it appears for does not Luke 3:38 tell us that Adam was the son of God? Why God has anything to do with fallen humanity, other than hand out fearful punishment, is strange to many. All we see is sin, sinners and death. God has always been quite aware of the fall and sin problem from before the beginning of man’s creation. He wasn’t taken by surprise when what we call The Fall took place. He had already provided Jesus Christ as the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8). Is not God the “SOURCE, GUIDE, and GOAL of all that is?” (Romans 11:36 NEB) We began IN Him and ultimately we shall RETURN to him.

There is a saying that some have a problem with which is, “There is a little bit of good, or God, in everyone.” Many have considered it false or wishful thinking, but perhaps there is some truth in it. The reality is that we have written off all but for a few members of humanity, because mankind via Adam and Eve had lost intimate fellowship with God, and the covering of His glory. We basically believe that Jesus by his death and resurrection provided salvation for only some, who if they hang on long enough, may make it through the Pearly Gates to heaven’s paradise. The question must be asked, “If this is all God intended, or was capable of doing, would he not be a major failure?” What kind of all powerful, all knowing, all wise God is this?

In Matthew 13:3-9 Jesus told of the sower who sowed seed in different kinds of soil. ONLY the SEED that was sown in soil that was previously PREPARED, sprang up, remained, and reproduced. The seed sown on hard unproductive soil didn’t germinate. The seed sown on the soil that had stones or thistles sprouted and died quickly. It would appear that the sower wasted a lot of precious seed. But, remember, it was ALL GOOD SEED and since HE the LOGOS (Luke 8:11) was the SEED, should we be writing it off?

While meditating on the Parable of the Sower, the Potter of Jeremiah 18:1-4 came to mind. While the Potter was making a vessel of clay, he found it to be marred in his own hands, yes MARRED, DEFECTIVE, and DAMAGED in his hands and fit only for the SCRAP HEAP. That is where most of us religious people would have dumped it. BUT the Potter remade it into another vessel, no doubt one of honor. This speaks of reconciliation and resurrection. God, “has committed to us the word of reconciliation.” The margin note reads, “Lit. placed in us.” (2 Corinthians 5:19) Is our ministry one of reconciliation or of condemnation? The NEB puts 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 this way, “He has reconciled us men to himself through Christ, and he has enlisted us in this service of reconciliation. What I mean is, that God was in Christ reconciling the word to himself, no longer holding mens misdeeds against them, and he has entrusted us with the message of reconciliation.”

Every seed carries the germ of life, or the genetic material, to reproduce after it’s kind. Some plant seeds spring up within days, while others take years. The human seed takes nine months. The seed is planted into death, then it springs forth in resurrection life. The result is, a life takes shape in the appearance and likeness of the Christ the Seed!

What is becoming clear is that God took that which was good and in his own purposes designed it to go into death, like a plant seed. Romans 5:14 says, "death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come." The planted seed of creation is to rise into a new life enriched by the eternal glory of God.

We read, ”Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; - - so God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female created He them.” (Genesis 1:26 - 27) What is the image and likeness of God? John 4:24 says, “GOD IS SPIRIT.” Because we live in a physical body, with its demands, we tend to forget that we are SPIRIT BEINGS WHO LIVE IN A BODY. Our spirits CAME FROM GOD, and Ecclesiastes 12:7 reminds us, “WILL RETURN TO GOD WHO GAVE IT.”

In Genesis 2:21-22 God caused Adam to go into a deep sleep, during which time he performed surgery. Out of Adam was taken that which would become Eve. Adam, upon his first sight of the woman exclaimed, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” Or, as a preacher I once heard, suggested that Adam said, ”WOW! This is it!” Ephesians 5:25 reads, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and GAVE HIMSELF UP FOR HER.” How, and when did this happen? When Jesus died we were included in him and in his resurrection, (Ephesians 5:30) “we are MEMBERS of his BODY.” The church is a type of Eve, and Christ is God’s LAST, or “Ultimate” ADAM.

Genesis Three records the temptation and fall from fellowship with God of man. The evangelical world teaches that this resulted in spiritual death. The problem is, “spirit” can’t die. It was Adam’s RELATIONSHIP that changed as his carnal nature took control from then on. The genealogical recorded of Adam in Genesis 5:1-3, begins with God as his creator, skips mention of Cain and Abel, and says that Adam lived 130 years before producing a son named, Seth - IN HIS ADAMIC LIKENESS and IMAGE. Within the fallen race of Adam there is a yearning after God, and a seeking for restoration, but no knowledge of the path, therefore many have wandered about seeking fulfilment in many ways with no success as they journey down many dead end trails.

Romans 6:23 teaches, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (wages - pay in kind, rather than money) While meditating on this I looked for the meaning of DEATH. Thinking I knew it, I was surprised by the following from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary: “PROGRAMMED CELL DEATH.” This took me to the word APOPTOSIS. While a bit technical please read it.

Main Entry: ap.Ao.Apto.Asis. Function: noun. Etymology: New Latin, from Greek “apoptOsis” a falling off, from “apopiptein” to fall off, from: apo + piptein, to fall. Date: 1972: a genetically determined destruction of cells from within due to activation of a stimulus or removal of a suppressing agent or stimulus that is postulated to exist to explain the orderly elimination of superfluous cells -- called also programmed cell death.

Another source said: APOPTOSIS: Programmed cell death as signalled by the nuclei in normally functioning human and animal cells when age or state of cell health and condition dictates. An active process requiring metabolic activity by the dying cell, often characterized by cleavage of the DNA into fragments that give a so called laddering pattern on gels.

No consider what God said to Adam about the results of eating from the Tree of Knowledge of GOOD and EVIL in Genesis 2:17, “for in the day that you shall eat from it you will surely die.” Adam Clarke comments: “Literally, "a death thou shalt die," or, "dying thou shalt die." - - from that moment thou shalt become mortal, and shalt continue in a dying state till thou die. This we find literally accomplished; every moment of man's life may be considered as an act of dying, till soul and body are separated.” Doesn’t this sound like APOPTOSIS?

We know that the LAW clearly defined SIN, and sin produced DEATH. Romans 6:23 ends with, “the free gift of God is eternal life IN Jesus Christ our Lord.” We have death verses life. The payment of sin was death, BUT the CHARISMA (#5486 - free gift) is life IN (#1722 - en) Christ Jesus our Lord.

“This is life eternal, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” (John 17:3) What we have is a quality of life based upon relationship! The Greek word for KNOW is GINOSKO (#1097). It means to know, and to keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. This is speaks of relationship, and of intimacy.

Where does God see us? He sees us in Christ. Galatians 2:20 makes it clear, "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith IN (en #1722) the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” This is not a mental belief in, but a RESIDING IN his faith. He has both placed us IN Christ, and Christ who is LIFE, IN us.

Colossians 2:9-10 reads, “For in Him ALL the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made COMPLETE, and He is the head over all rule and authority;” In Christ ALL FULLNESS DWELLS. We are COMPLETE (Greek PLEROO #4137 - to be made full), or full in Christ. Think about it. Let the LIFE OF CHRIST in you rise up!

The study of DNA is fascinating. We as humans have DNA within each cell of our body. One half is inherited from each of our parents. Yes, we are half of dad and half of mom. Within each of us is the SEED or GENETICS that go back to father Adam who in his original state was really something to behold as genesis suggests. We know that this changed because of his fallen state. But, is the original pattern of DNA hidden within us that which we inherit today? Only our Father knows.

Some scientist today are seeking ways to change “corrupt” areas of DNA to prevent horrible things like cancer happening. With out a doubt in time scientists will seek ways to bring an end to APOPTOSIS - Programmed Cell Death. Then the dream of living forever could in theory happen. But will God permit man to live forever physically without a radicle change? He made sure that Adam and Eve could not return to the garden and eat of the Tree of Life in their fallen and out of relationship condition.

The composer of an old hymn, “I’ve Found the Pearl of Greatest Price,” had a revelation of truth back in the 1700's that few possess today. He really got it right!

V.3 My Christ, He is the Tree of Life, That in God’s Eden grows, The living clear as crystal stream Whence life forever flows.
V.4 Christ in my Meat, Christ is my Drink, My Medicine, and my Health; My Portion, mine Inheritance, Yea, all my Boundless Wealth.

Within every believer there is the spiritual DNA to come to full maturity, we are “bone of His bone, and flesh of His flesh.” Yes, we have damaged DNA from Adam, but we have the DNA of CHRIST that restores the damaged genes, and will add that of Himself that will bring us ultimately to a higher relationship than Adam ever had. Yes! into all that our Father intended.

One may view the present state, as one of transition. What we are seeing is God who took that which was good, and in His own purposes designed it to go into death so that, as Romans says, "death reigns until." The planted seed of creation is to rise into a new life enriched by the eternal glory of God. (Romans 5:12 - 21) For Adam “was a type of Him who was to come.” God’s LAST and ULTIMATE ADAM has come! “The last Adam became a LIFE-GIVING SPIRIT.” (1 Corinthians 15:45)

Now I leave you with this knowing that there are many threads of thought unfinished, and that much more could be said. So I will close with the following Scripture from Romans 8:18-25 NAU.

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the GLORY that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the REVEALING of the SONS of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he {already} sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”