Amended 15 Nov 96
The three heavens! It is reasonable for us to question the existence of Extra-Terrestrial (ET)
life. However, where are we to really look for answers? Before we look for any answers in the
heavens, we must realize that there are at least three levels of heavens.
The first heaven is the space encompassing the earth's atmosphere, including the ionosphere.
What we have now is somewhat different than what existed prior to the flood. At the initial
creation, the first level of heaven, the firmament, had water above it and below it. Genesis 1:
6-8 says in the KJV: "And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let
it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters
which were under the firmament from the waters which wereabove the firmament: and it was so.
And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second
day."
The second level of heaven is the physical space from the earth to infinity. This is what many
refer to as the universe where we observe the galaxies. Deuteronomy 10:14 says in the KJV:
"Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the LORD'S thy God, the earth also, with all
that therein is."
Finally, there is still one more heaven that is beyond the physical. It is what the Bible refers to as
being the heaven of heavens or the heaven of God's kingdom. 1 Kings 8:27 refers to it when it
says in the KJV: "But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of
heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded?" 2 Chronicles 6:39
says in the KJV: "Then hear thou from the heavens, even from thy dwelling place, their prayer
and their supplications, and maintain their cause, and forgive thy people which have sinned
against thee." The heaven of heavens is the spiritual heaven which is the fifth dimension beyond
time and physical shapes. I believe that we should not be so captured by the outer space to the
point of missing the true source that impacts physical activities, the heaven of heavens! Should
we limit our search for intelligence to only the physical heaven or should we also seek answers
in the spiritual realm, the inner space of our "hearts?"
Seeing the third heaven and angels. It is very important to realize the existence of the third
heaven and also to understand how one can see it! Jesus said in John 3:3 of the New
International Version (NIV): "I tell you the truth, no-one can see the kingdom of God unless he
is born again." After having read the New Testament and specifically John chapter 3, some have
found the fulness of life (John 10:10) when they entered the world of the spiritual heaven
through new birth! Many questions of life were answered; especially the way to be saved from
universal decay and death. Furthermore, they discovered that there was intelligent life forms in
that heaven! You may have heard of them under the name of: angels! As recorded in Judges
6:22, 2 Kings 6:17, Psalms 68:17, Zechariah 6:4-5, Matthew 1:20-24, Luke 1:11, Acts 5:19,
Revelation 22:6, or from personal testimonies, many have seen them! These are the oldest
known extra-terrestrials (ETs) recorded throughout history.
Aside from angels, I also wondered about additional ET beings! What should I think of
Unidentified Flying Objects (UFO)? The understanding of beings, not human, is very relevant as
we see so much information on TV which is affecting our thinking. We are bombarded by such
films as "Lost in Space," "ALF," "Mork from Ork," "Star Wars," ET," "Space Above and
Beyond," "The X-file," "Star Trek - The Next Generation," "Voyager," "Deep Space Nine,"
"Babylon Five," "Sighting," "PSI Factor," "Millennium," "Outer Limits," "Bay Watch Nights,"
etc.
The intelligences battling over mankind from the third heaven! Realizing that angels are real,
I became more concerned with what their purpose was in life and how they affected the earth! I
suddenly realized that Satan and his angels were and are very busy against God's work over His
physical creation. Satan's primary aim is DECEPTION unto death for all mankind! He
deceives mankind and uses those deceived to deceive others. 2 Timothy 3:13 says in the KJV:
"But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived."
Furthermore, I believe that one easy area of deception is to have humans focus on something
other than God as the source of ultimate perfection, intelligence and power.
Even the search of knowledge to gain wisdom and understanding of the universe can be a form
of distraction which can take away from seeking God and the real knowledge of the truth that
saves! 2 Timothy 3: 7 says in the KJV: "Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge
of the truth." Neither seeking a miracle or wisdom is the answer. Only Jesus and the truth in
Him is the answer! 1 Corinthians 1:22-24 says in the KJV: "For the Jews require a sign, and the
Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block,
and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ
the power of God, and the wisdom of God." Only through Jesus can we find access to the
greatest intelligence. This is why Jesus said "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man
cometh unto the Father, but by me (John 14:6)."
But you may ask, "Does Scripture really say nothing about other created physical intelligent life
beside the spiritual ones, angels and living beasts (Revelation 4:6)?" I believe that the Bible
gives us enough knowledge to discern what is important about this issue. Scripture tries to
prevent us from being deceived by the attempts which come our way from the prince of the air,
Satan! I believe that deceptions are on the increase and rampant in these last days as we get
closer to the return of our Lord and Saviour. Do you have a spirit of discernment?
There is no third powerful kind between mankind and angel kind! Do you really believe that
there are created intelligent beings, Extra-Terrestrial beings between created man and created
angels! If so, are they less or more powerful than the angels? One thing we know from 2 Peter
2:11, it is that angels are more powerful than mankind! Assuming that the ETs exist and that
they are more powerful than angels, how come the Bible does not refer to them as fighters in the
spiritual realm? If less powerful than angels, what are the evil angels doing to them or with
them now? Are they good or evil? If good, how come they are not mentioned in the Bible as
fighting evil? Shouldn't they be fighting evil angels unto submission or restraining them?
Overall, is mankind the greatest created physical being?
Redeemed man will eventually judge angels! The Bible does say that man was created as the
greatest in the physical world but presently a little lower than the angels who are in the spiritual
world. Hebrews 2: 6-8 says in the NIV: "But there is a place where someone has testified:
"What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him
a little lower than the angels; you crowned him with glory and honour and put everything under
his feet (Psalms 8:3-6)." In putting everything under him, God left nothing that is not subject
to him. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him." Indeed angels are not yet
subject to mankind! However there will be a day when angels will be judged by redeemed man.
1 Corinthians 6: 3 says in the KJV: "Know ye not that we shall judge angels?"
Creation of the physical universe. When looking at the universe and the earth, we wonder
about its infinity, its beauty, its order, its laws, etc. Where and when did it all start? There are
two ways of approaching the question. We can go at it with or without the Scripture text. I
personally have come to believe the Bible where it says: "All Scripture is God-breathed and is
useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God
may be thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17 NIV)." Seeing that no
humans were there at the origin of the universe, I will listen to the one that was there!
Consequently, I will approach my search for the truth from a Biblical perspective.
The Scripture states in Hebrews 11:3 of the NIV that it is "By faith we understand that the
universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was
visible." Note that the KJV uses the word "worlds" instead of "universe." The original Greek
word is "aion," Strong Numbers 165, which is sometimes also translated as "world." It can also
refer to time, periods of time or age. So the visible, in its smallest form, started from nothing,
from the invisible. It was in the will of the invisible, the Spiritual Almighty, that the world came
into being through His son Jesus Christ (Hebrews 1:2 and Ephesians 4:10). It all started from the
third heaven. By faith I can believe that, or I can believe that the visible always was and there
was a pig bang! I personally would rather believe in an intelligent form so powerful that He
commanded and created instantaneously with power. So, when did the universe with its stars
come into being?
The account of the creation is the starting words of the Bible. How appropriate that the Bible
should start that way so that we may remember who is in control, where we came from, why we
are here and where it is all going. As we will see, man was meant to have dominion over the
whole physical creation! Psalms 8:3-6 in the KJV says: "When I consider thy heavens, the work
of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art
mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little
lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have
dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet."
Creation of the 24 hour cycle of human time. After having created the earth with its vegetation
(Genesis 1:9-13), the fourth day of creation came and God decided to create the universe with its
stars such as our sun and its planets such as our moon. Genesis 1:14-19 records the accounts and
tells us that they were created for signs and also as landmarks for time, to recognize the
seasons, etc. Note that time existed from the first day. The 24 hours concept had no humanly
clear representation until the fourth day where God gave us the first natural "clock!" That
"clock" for a cycle of what we now recognize as 24 hours distributing a time period cycle for a
day and a night.
Man was the last and the culminating achievement, the ultimate, the image of God! Genesis
1:20-23 says that on the fifth day, living creatures came into being on the earth. Life was
rampant, yet without any sign of mankind. It was not until the sixth and last day of creation, that
God culminated His physical creation with mankind. We were created as special beings in the
image of a maker who had three entities. Consequently, this created image resulted in a body, a
spirit and a soul. Genesis gives us a hint of a Godhead composed of more than one person.
Genesis 1:26-27 in the NIV records it as follows:
"26 Then God said, "Let us make man in ourimage, in our likeness, and let them rule over the
fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the
creatures that move along the ground." 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image
of God he created him; male and female he created them."
Was man the central and final thought in God's creative mind? Many argue that humans are
NOT the centre of universe activities. Is it so? I believe that mankind is the centre of cosmic
events for two primary reasons. First, the Genesis's creation accounts for the special status of
man in relation to perfection, God. Secondly, the whole universe felt the sin of mankind; the
decaying effect spread from the earth to the infinity of the creation!
It is interesting to see that man was the last being to be created before God rested. It seems that
the culmination of creation ended with mankind. Furthermore, the creation was to be subdued
by mankind. However, because of Adam and Eve's disobedience, the prince of darkness
infiltrated the human world and became the prince of the air on earth (Ephesians 2:2). Evil
became a part of this world; God's curse and wrath also became a reality!
Curse, decay and death on the universe - Man's sin affected the WHOLE physical universe.
Because of the sin of Adam and Eve, the whole universe was put under a curse and is dying.
Just imagine the consequences of this truth! No matter how many light years away we go, death
is there! No matter how far we look with our telescopes, decay is there! Scripture says that the
universal curse centred on man and the universal blessing will also be focussing on mankind and
its redemption. The central text for this truth is Romans 8:19-23 where it says in the NIV:
"The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation
was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it,
in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the
glorious freedom of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as
in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have
the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the
redemption of our bodies."
If it is so, any and all created intelligent life forms are experiencing death in our physical
universe because of mankind's initial sin! Furthermore, if the curse on the universe came
through mankind and if the redemption of this universe is through mankind, it definitely points
to mankind as the central figure of the physical world! According to the Bible, mankind is the
supreme physical life form with which God is concern! But why, as human beings, are we
drawn to search for other greater physical life forms outside the ultimate perfection? As
indicated in Romans 1:25, the Bible's aim is to have us look at the creator and not at the
creatures!
Must first seek after what? We need to seek for answers to our problems. However, we are not
to first seek in the physical universe for answers! The Bible says to "seek ye first the kingdom of
God... (Matthew 6:33)" It also says that there are no extraterrestrial beings with the solution for
eternal bliss. It states that there is no perfection in any other way but through the Son of God!
This is what the Scripture says in Acts 4:12 "Salvation is found in no-one else, for there is no
other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." If so, why are we drawn to
look short of God? Why would we be tempted to look at anything outside the truth of the Word?
Who is attempting so hard to keep our eyes away from God's Word and His plan?
Any possible deception in the ETs? Extra-terrestrials may be real for many! However they may
not have their origin from the second heaven. Scripture states clearly that there is a battle going
on over the souls of mankind. The players are, good versus evil, the prince of light versus the
prince of darkness, truth versus lies. There are no superior physical life form BUT there
certainly are spiritual or angelic intelligent life forms! Satan and the forces of evil are real!
Throughout the Bible we can see the different spiritual battles surrounding mankind.
Furthermore, as Paul says in Ephesians 6:12 NIV:
"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities,
against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly
realms."
Encounter of the third kind with evil and not with good! There are more and more people
seeking for the great ET to come! As prophesied in the Bible, the inhabitants of the earth will
eventually have their encounter of the third kind! When it happens, Satan with all his deception
will cover the truth so that the disobedient may not see! The UFOs will not come from the
frontier of the physical universe but from the frontier of the Spiritual world. The Scripture
prophecies of the day when Satan and his angels will be cast down to the earth and not allowed
to be in the heavenly realm anymore. The account is recorded in the book of Revelation chapter
12 verses 7 to 17 as follows, from the NIV:
"7 And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the
dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in
heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down-that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan,
who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. 10 Then
I heard a loud voice in heaven say: ``Now have come the salvation and the power and the
kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who
accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. 11 They overcame him by
the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much
as to shrink from death. 12. Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe
to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury,
because he knows that his time is short.'' 13 When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to
the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 The woman was
given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the
desert, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent's
reach. 15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman
and sweep her away with the torrent. 16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth
and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 Then the dragon was
enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her offspring-those who obey
God's commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus."
From reading these words in Revelation, I realize that it is very important for Christians to
recognized that "upset" evil angelic beings will soon arrive as permanent "neighbours" in our
human world. In whatever form these "ET" beings may appear, we should be aware of the truth
about them! At first, they may seem very friendly to a rebellious world and may provide a
solution to our struggles. However, they definitely won't be so loving for those believing and
trusting in a supreme God. Satan and his angels are the enemy of the God of love and the true
Saviour and Lord of mankind! But then, greater is He that is in Christians than he that is in the
world (1 John 4:4). Even to death, I do not need to fear man and evil but Him (God) who has
power and authority to throw intelligent creatures into the everlasting fire of hell (Luke 12:5)!
Indeed UFO activities may occur. Yet, the question to ask is, 'who is behind these phenomena?'
Is it good or evil? Are these activities from physical intelligent life forces or are they coming
from the beings in the spiritual realm?
The final scene to the whole human drama will soon be played out on this earth prior to having
the true King of kings and Lord of lords take His rightful place. Many will be deceived and
these will not recognize who the evil players really are! Are you or will you be deceived?
The Old versus the New, the Cursed versus the Blessed universe. At the end of this age, this
universe with its evil angelic ETs will be rolled away. The judgement of God on the unrighteous
will culminate with a new earth and heaven where God will dwell with man! The following
quotes from the NIV are clear on this point:
2 Peter 3:13
"But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the
home of righteousness."
Isaiah 34:4
"All the stars of the heavens will be dissolved and the sky rolled up like a scroll; all the starry
host will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like shrivelled figs from the fig-tree."
Revelation 21:1
"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed
away, and there was no longer any sea."
Isaiah 65:17
"Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered,
nor will they come to mind."
Isaiah 66:22
"As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me," declares the
LORD, "so will your name and descendants endure."
The ultimate intelligent force is not to be found in this physical universe but in the spiritual
heaven. God is our supreme extra-terrestrial to look for. He will one day be with mankind
where sin, evil, decay and death will no more separate us from His glory, joy and peace.
Revelation 21:3 of the NIV says "And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the
dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God
himself will be with them and be their God.' To God be the glory! Even so, Come Lord Jesus
and redeem us unto our God!"
In summary, the question is not 'are ETs and UFOs real' but 'what is the reason and source of
these phenomena?' Should we be concerned with possible deceptions which would take
mankind "the garden path," away from the ultimate ET, God? Why should we try to hear from
physical ETs when we have a hard time hearing God who is attempting to communicate with us?
He is trying very hard to talk to His human creation through the Bible, through visions, dreams,
prophecies, other people, etc! Are we tuned in to that frequency?
In His name, Mario Gaulin.