COMMON QUESTIONS:
QUESTION:
Since Adam and Eve were made in the image of God, do human beings have latent spiritual abilities such as astral projection, levitation, teleportation, distance seeing, telepathy, mind-reading, and E.S.P.?
ANSWER:
Yes.... and No....
Yes, in that God made man in His image (with full capacity to know and interface with all spiritual aspects). Since the beginning (whether you believe a literal garden of Eden exited or not), mankind was internally wired to explore spirituality in all its forms (individual capacities, religious practices, spirit entities, etc.).
As the Bible progresses it refers to two versions of men and women. Adam and Eve were the original versions (formed out of the dust of the earth).
This will become more important to the discussion in relation to the first and last Adam (points to be made in the paragraphs to come).
It's important to note that (according to the book of Genesis) the spiritual capacities inherent in Adam and Eve were diminished when they chose to listen to and follow the evil one. for reference see the verse below:
New King James Version
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
we know from the following verses that adam and Eve did not physically die that day but what died was their capacity to interface with God. The temptation had grave implications that I don't have time to go into in this essay. For the sake of this discussion, I'll repeat that their connection to their creator died the same day and years later, the part of man that made him an eternal being died. I think the evil one tampered with the d.n.a. and switched off the eternal part.
As mentioned above, Adam (of the garden in Genesis) is referred to as the 'first Adam'. Jesus Christ is called the 'last Adam'.
Adam and Eve were "of the earth, earthy" and the resurrected Christ is called "the heavenly man or the man from heaven" see the passage below for reference:
1 Corinthians 15:39-49
39 Not all flesh is the same: People have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another.
40 There are also heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is another.
41 The sun has one kind of splendor, the moon another and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendor.
42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable;
43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power;
44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.
45 So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being” ; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit.
46 The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual.
47 The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven.
48 As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven.
49 And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man.
Jesus is also referred to as "the firstborn from the dead". This means Jesus is the progenitor of an entirely new type of 'man'. Men and women who believe in Him will be 'clothed with' super-human bodies like His current resurrected body.
Adam and Eve's bodies (and ours by from that bloodline) are like the original model. I like to think of this using some comparisons. One such comparison is between a horse and a race car. A horse is like the original model of mankind. It can run really fast (maybe even win the Kentucky derby) but it will still max out at around 55 miles an hour and is made of horseflesh. The new bodies Christians will have are the new improved model of human beings. These will not be four-legged riding 'machines' but a turbo-charged race car capable of going up to 245 miles per hour and beyond. These super-beings have different bodies composed of metal, glass, rubber, and complex electronics. Its 'horse power' is five times that of the original model.
But (you may be asking) if we are still the old model why can some of us walk through walls (some gurus can) or get super-natural healing (as some in various religions can). You ask: how do some of us have mental telepathy or see into the future?
The answer is this:
People can be turbocharged by spirit beings. The complicated part is this. Spirit beings are usually invisible and are never benign. They are either entirely good or completely evil.
All spiritual empowerment ultimately comes from angels, demons, God, Christ, or the devil.
Our current 'Adamic', earthly physical bodies are not built the way spirit beings are. In our present state, we are the horses, not the race cars.
Yogis levitate with the help of spirit-power. Christians minister healing with the assistance of spirit-power.
NOTE: For more on the distinctions see the other pages on this site.
Let's consider an example of spirit turbocharging from the Bible. This is the record where Jesus's disciples were in a boat and a storm came up and Jesus walked on the water to rescue them. Was Jesus walking on the water-assisted by spirit-power from God? I believe the answer is yes because He was not yet in His resurrected body.
Next, we read that He told Peter to come to Him on the water (and Peter did until he sunk). Was Peter's ability to walk on water an ability latent in all human beings? I do not think so. But...why not?...
In this record, we see the physical laws of the universe being over-ridden. When this happens (as when the sun stood still at Joshua's command and many other instances in the Bible) it's defined as a miracle.
NOTE: Since Joshua's incident involves him saying something, I would like to make this clear...(unlike many people), I do not think miracles happen simply because people speak something into being. There is power in what we say. Words have tremendous power. An individual's self-talk can influence his or her blood pressure and many other factors. Wars can be started with words. The problem is that many people now generally accept the ancient new age idea that we create our own reality with the words we speak. This is a metaphysical concept that breaks down when taken to its logical end. for instance: If people are capable of creating their own reality by the words they speak, then what wrong words have all the starving people in Africa or India spoken? Are the forces of nature dictated by our words as well? What if someone is praying for rain because their entire life's savings are wrapped up in their crops and it has not rained for weeks? What if at the same time another person in the same geographic area has a tourism business that depends on lack of rain and sunny skies? Who arbitrates the power of conflicting words? Perhaps a better solution is to reconsider the verses we believe say our words have so much power. One is the verse about Jesus speaking to the mountain. Many people believe this is a verse that can be used to prove the power of our words. If Jesus is using this to teach us a methodology for faith then shouldn't we be attempting to move things? If so, should we start with small objects like sand and pebbles and move up to mountains? But what if this verse is one of Jesus' parables? Are we to literally apply parables to our lives? What if Jesus is not talking about literally moving a mountain? Maybe this is a parable meant to teach us about the power of faith in Christ not the power of our own wrods. Another verse often used as proof that words have even supernatural power is about the way the tongue has the power of life and death. Many people believe this verse describes an important way to attain physical healing (to say that one is healed repeatedly). Let's hold another scripture up next to this one in order to analyze this idea. If this method for being healed is so important, why didn't Jesus explain this key in detail to His disciples? When Jesus asked the lepers and the blind men what they needed and they replied they wanted to see, or be cleansed of leprosy why didn't Jesus correct these errant words? why didn't Jesus ever say anything like-"You do not have leprosy", or "Do not say you have leoprosy, say you are healed". In conclusion, I assert it is not a good idea to base a theology of healing (or anything) on two to three verses. For more information about how Jesus taught His disciples to carry out healing and miracles as He did, please see my site healingandprophecy.org (clickable link at the bottom of this page).
In the Bible, miracles are granted by God (and performed by human beings in league with God). They are always given for a particular benefit or profit; they are never 'parlor tricks'.
NOTE: The Bible does record phenomena and miracles done by those in league with the dark side but they either do not share this litmus test of having a particular profit (or benefit) directed toward another human being, or the profit is short-term and is followed shortly after with doom or the demise of those involved. For more on this topic see the page SPIRITS GOOD OR BAD.
Jesus' disciples were in danger (due to gail force winds that whipped up on the sea of Galilee).
Therefore, Jesus determined to walk over to the boat and command the waves and wind to cease, but he needed spirit-assist, (extra horse-power) in order to do so.
This was a perilous situation, had Jesus not intervened. Time was of the essence and Jesus needed to walk to them (instead of futilely rowing a boat against the wind). So God over-rode the laws of the universe and enabled Jesus to walk on top of the water to save his disciples.
Lastly, when Peter walked on the water (until he began to sink and was grabbed by Jesus) was this a latent human capacity being expressed? The Bible does not describe it as so. What is recorded is that Jesus used this situation to teach Peter about faith. Peter needed faith in Christ to do the miraculous. Peter was also granted the super-natural horse-power in order to be able to walk on the water.
“If it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.” And Jesus responded, “Come.” (Matt. 14:28–29.)
NOTE: This event falls into both the category of miraculous and phenomenal. Spiritual phenomena have clearly defined parameters. First of all, they are supernatural things God unilaterally chooses to do for His purposes. In other words, God does not guarantee that every time someone gets stuck in a storm while in a boat they will be able to walk on the water, but God does promise to always save and deliver His people. Equally of note, spiritual phenomena will always line up with God's nature. Lastly, these occurrences will always have symbolic significance within the context of other Biblical characters and events. Another example of a spiritual phenomenon is the appearance of cloven tongues of fire over the apostles' heads on the day of Pentecost. Again, the scripture does not guarantee that tongues of fire will appear whenever a believer first speaks in tongues, but the Bible does promise that all believers will speak in tongues. ADDITIONAL NOTE ON THIS TOPIC: Phenomena occurring in some of the Christian churches are the erratic emulations of animal movements and sounds (dogs and chickens specifically). This is connected with what is known as the Toronto Blessing. It is not within the Biblical parameters I have explained. There is no Biblical symbolism connected and the actions of the people are not within the character of God or Christ. The Bibles' mandate is for all things to be done decently and in order and for the to be no confusion.
When Christ returns, His followers will be given their new immortal incorruptible bodies. These bodies will (very possibly) have the capacity to walk through walls. We surmise this from the record where Jesus appeared to His disciples when they were hiding for fear of the Jews (for fear of being crucified like their Lord was and the Jesus had that power in concert with the Roman government). The Bible says they were behind closed doors and Jesus appeared in the midst.
John 20:19 It was the first day of the week, and that very evening, while the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them. "Peace be with you!" He said to them.
additional referenced verses following:
The passage is as follows (note that the ESV uses “imperishable” rather than the KJV “incorruptible”):
42 So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. 43 It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”;[e] the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. 47 The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall[f] also bear the image of the man of heaven. 50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
Matthew 14: 26-32
26When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear. 27But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”
28Peter said to Him, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” 29And He said, “Come!” And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” 31Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32When they got into the boat, the wind stopped. 33And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “You are certainly God’s Son!”
clickable link coming soon.
for now, the site is
healingandprophecy.org