Jesus Was Not Always Human

Hebrews 10:4-6, “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.”

I love Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001), but even he gets it wrong sometimes (and I do too; no preacher is always right in his doctrine). As I often do, I listen to random sermons by Brother Hyles. I have amassed a collection of 3,256 sermons and Bible studies so far by Dr. Hyles, which is worth more than gold to me.

Jesus Was Not Always Human

Today I heard a strange sermon titled, "Human Nature Is Not really Human Nature." The gist of the sermon is that animals have a body and soul, but no spirit. Dr. Hyles teaches that born-again humans have a spirit, soul and body, but unsaved people are as animals, not humans, since their spirit is dead. I humbly disagree. Dr. Hyles says at about 31 minutes into the sermon:

"You either walk in the Spirit or you're not human."

That is strange doctrine. At about 21 minutes into the sermon Dr. Hyles says:

"Man in his unregenerate state is not human."

I humbly disagree. When Adam sinned, he opened the floodgate of sin and death upon the world (Romans 5:12). Consequently, we were all born dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1). Being spiritually dead is not the second death (Revelation 21:8). The "second death" is when a person dies in their sins without Christ and goes to Hell forever. But we were already spiritually dead when we were physically born.

That is why we all must be born-again to become alive (quickened) spiritually by the Holy Spirit of God. Whether a human being is spiritually dead or alive, we still have a spirit. Your spirit may be dead as an unbeliever, but you still have a spirit. Ecclesiastes 12:7 says that when a human dies our spirit return to God that gave it. 𝗘𝗰𝗰𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝟭𝟮:𝟳, "𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀: 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗶𝘁 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗴𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝘁."

Dr. Hyles also teaches that:

"Jesus was always human."

Respectfully, Dr. Hyles says that Jesus has always been the God-man in eternity. He says that Jesus became flesh when he was born of the flesh, but says He was already human. I cannot find any Scriptural support for what Dr. Hyles is teaching in this sermon, so I cannot ascribe to this strange doctrine. The reason why saints in the Old Testament went to Paradise and not directly to Heaven, was because Christ had not yet died on the cross for their sins. Although some Bible students reject the idea of a place of Paradise, I humbly believe it is the only biblical conclusion if you rightly divide the Word of Truth. Please read, "Where Are The Dead?"

I have no doubt that his intentions are pure, trying to get us to realize that when we walk in the flesh we are behavior like animals; albeit, RIGHT DOCTRINE MATTERS!

I find no pride in contradicting a great man of God. Dr. Hyles is and always will be my hero of the Christian faith. My ministry website wouldn't exist without Pastor Hyles' godly influence in my life, but Dr. Hyles taught us preacher boys to be loyal to truth and principles and not to men and institutions; that is what I am doing! I was saved at age 13 under the preaching of a Hyles-Anderson College graduate pastoring in Chicago. I owe Pastor Hyles a debt of gratitude which cannot be expressed in words.

Before Jesus came to earth, He was with God, and He is God (John 1:1-3, 14).

Jesus Did Not Pay For Our Sins By Being Trapped In A Body

Having said that, I read a strange doctrine recently in The Strand Study Bible, with which I humbly disagree. Brother Strand teaches that Jesus only existed in Spirit form before He became incarnate (i.e., He became flesh). Pastor Strand teaches the opposite of what Dr. Hyles teaches. Pastor Hyles says Jesus was always human; Brother Strand says Jesus existed only as a Spirit prior to His fleshly birth.

Pastor Strand errantly teaches that Jesus couldn't possibly pay for our deserved eternal punishment of Hell in just 6 hours on the cross, so His eternal punishment was to be confined in a human body forever. That is his exact word used, "confined." I humbly disagree. Brother Strand teaches that Jesus forfeited His eternal Spirit form and is now confined in a human body, which is His eternal punishment by which He paid for our sins. Kindly, using Pastor Strand's rationale, how could one man die for billions of humans? Jesus' punishment was not being confined in a physical body forever. It makes no sense to me and is strange doctrine nowhere taught in the Bible. I wrote a blog about it. Jesus paid for our sins with His precious blood (Romans 5:9; 1st John 1:7; 1st Peter 1:18-19; Revelation 1:5).

I love these dear men of God. My purpose in this post is not to tear down or diminish the greatness of these men; but rather, to preach the Scriptural truth which I believe to be true, for the sake of maintaining correct doctrine. RIGHT DOCTRINE MATTERS.

The Bible speaks in Revelation 13:8b of "the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." Some theologians think this verse refers to the innocent animal which God killed to provide skins of clothing for Adam and Eve, when God rejected Adam's fig-leaf religion (clothing). Other Bible students think this verse refers to the innocent animal which Abel killed and offered as a blood sacrifice to God, which demonstrated his faith in the coming Messiah. I humbly think this verse refers to Jesus, who in God's mind had already been crucified before the world was even created. Does this mean that Jesus always existed in human form, crucified before the world began? I simply do not know.

We also see in Daniel that when King Nebuchadnezzar peered into the fiery furnace, he saw four men (but only 3 had been cast in). The heathen king said that the fourth man looked like the Son of God (Daniel 3:25). Clearly, Jesus appeared in a preincarnate form in the Old Testament in a physical body. I believe it was Jesus who appeared unto Abraham, while on their way to visit Sodom to see the conditions of that woeful city.

I also believe Jesus is none other than Melchisedec in Hebrews chapter 5, since He has neither mother or father. But I won't dare say that Jesus appeared in His earthly human body throughout the Old Testament in the same body conceived by Mary. That would be strange doctrine in my humble opinion. I agree with Dr. John R. Rice that where the Bible is silent we should also be silent.

I humbly think it is okay to speculate, just so long as we tell our audience that we are doing so. The Apostle Paul at times mentioned that he was merely giving his personal opinion, and that God had not told him to say those things; and yet we see that God chose to include Paul's personal comments as inspired Scripture.

Where The Bible Is Silent We Should Be Silent

I do not claim to have all the answers. But I certainly don't believe Jesus is being punished for our sins by being "stuck" in a human body forever. Nor do I believe that we are animals when we refuse to walk in the Spirit. The vilest human being still has a spirit, dead as it may be. When the Apostle James says faith without works is "dead" in James 2:17, it is still faith. Dead faith is still existing faith. Many believers are woefully lacking works to shew their faith in the sight of men, but their faith is nevertheless 100% real and still saving faith.

I thought I'd share these intriguing Bible truths with everyone. I'm not saying that I am right on everything, but I do not feel comfortable with the sermon I heard today by Brother Hyles, because he couldn't back up his teachings with Scripture, and neither could Pastor Strand in his commentary. I absolutely love his commentary, but I don't cut anybody any slack if I sincerely think they are in doctrinal error. The doctrine of Christ is important.

I used to tell people to "invite Jesus into your heart" to be saved, but I learned about 15 years ago from Pastor Max D. Younce that it is unbiblical, so I never used that phrase again. A "heart" is a muscle about twice the size of one's fist. A child cannot understand how to invite Jesus into a muscle. We get saved by BELIEVING Jesus did it all for us through Calvary's cross, not by inviting Him into our heart or life. Judas was a part of Jesus' life but went to Hell.

I hate that religious tract titled, "Missing Heaven By 18 Inches." The tract says inside that 18 inches is the distance between your mind and your heart. The tract is stupid and makes no doctrinal sense at all. The biblical "heart" is our subconscious brain, where our feelings and will reside. Effectively, the heart is a part of our human brain. So it makes zero sense to try to explain to someone that they may not be saved if they merely believe the Gospel in their mind, but not their heart. We should never tell someone that theological junk. You may know the facts of the Gospel in your mind, but not believe (trust) those facts; but it is impossible to BELIEVE those facts in your mind but not your heart.

I humbly disagree with Dr. Jack Hyles that Jesus was always human, and that Jesus could somehow be “human” prior to His incarnation without a fleshly body. Until Jesus was conceived in Mary's womb by a miracle of the Holy Spirit, Jesus was not a human. I don't think Dr. Hyles should make bold claims when the Bible does not.

Respectfully said, nor should Pastor Brad Strand teach that Jesus' paid for our sins by being confined in a physical body for all eternity, giving up His previous Spirit form. These are strange doctrines. I've never heard anybody teach these things, except these two men. As I mentioned, I love Dr. Hyles and Pastor Strand, but I humbly disagree with their teachings regarding the person of Christ. The Bible is very clear in many passages (e.g., 1st Peter 1:18-19) that Jesus paid for our sins with His precious blood, which He sprinkled on the Mercy Seat in Heaven (Hebrews 9:12, 22-24; 10:1; 12:24).

Jesus did appear in some sort of a physical visible body in the Old Testament. Pastor Hyles preached a helpful sermon titled, "Jesus In The Old Testament." Since I got saved 43 years ago at age 13 in 1980, I have always believed that Jesus didn't become "human" until He was virgin-born into the world—the only begotten (biological) Son of God (John 3:16).

The strange notion that Jesus was always human, but lacked flesh, cannot be supported with the Scriptures. I think it is important to set the matter straight, because I have had professed Christians want to argue with me on this matter, in defense of Brother Hyles' heresy. Nobody loves Dr. Hyles as much as I do, but I love God, truth and principles first and foremost. Our text passage from Hebrews 10:5 says, “but a body hast thou prepared me.”

When we die someday and our soul and spirit depart and separate from our body of flesh, will we still be human? I think not. We will exist in spirit form. The Bible teaches that when our earthly tabernacle (body) can no longer provide housing our "soul and spirit" (Hebrews 4:12), we have a house in Heaven made without hands. 2nd Corinthians 5:1, “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” I honestly do not know exactly what that means. Does it mean that God has a new temporary body for us in Heaven, while we wait until we receive our immortal body at the Rapture, which will be fashioned like unto the Lord's resurrected body? (1st Corinthians 15:51-58; Philippians 3:21). Or does it simply mean that we have a home in Heaven? I do not know. Someone has said that "B.I.B.L.E." can be expressed as an acronym: "Basic Instruction Before Leaving Earth." I like that!

I don't like when religious leaders speak with authority about matters they cannot support with the Scriptures. I am as narrow-minded as the Bible. Ecclesiastes 7:29, “Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.” It was never God's intention for mankind to fall into sin and rebellion, although in His foreknowledge He knew that it would happen. There are far more unanswerable questions than there are answers. God told us what we need to know to prepare for eternity. I think the saying is true: If God were small enough to be understand, He wouldn't be big enough to be worshipped.

We know that Jesus created all things (John 1:1-3 - King James Bible). The modern Devil's Bible revisions corrupt this passage in John 1:3, changing the preposition "by" to "through," which attacks Jesus' deity as the Creator. God the Father didn't create everything through Jesus; All things were created by Jesus as part of the Godhead. Genesis 1:26, “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.” There is the Godhead (aka, Trinity). The Godhead created mankind.

Jesus was never created. He is and always has been God. John 1:1-3, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” John 1:14 teaches that the Word became flesh, and we beheld His glory as the only begotten Son of God. Revelation 19:13 says that Jesus' name is "THE WORD OF GOD." Dr. John R. Rice (1895-1980) called them "twins." Jesus is the Living Word and the Bible is the Written Word. Jesus told us in John 5:39, "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." The inspired Scriptures are inseparably connected with Jesus Christ, for they are one and the same.

Jesus Appeared In The Old Testament As The Angel Of The Lord

Many Bible scholars believe Jesus appeared on earth in the Old Testament, not as a man, but as the Angel of the Lord. The Old Testament contains more than 50 references to the "Angel of the Lord." The Angel of the Lord rescued Sarah’s handmaid Hagar and her son Ishmael. The Angel of the Lord appeared unto Abraham on the way to Sodom to respond to the victim's cries from the city. The Angel of the Lord appeared in a burning bush to Moses. He fed the prophet Elijah. He came to call Gideon. Appearances of the Angel of the Lord stopped after Jesus’ birth. He could not be on earth as a human being and as an angel simultaneously. These pre-incarnate manifestations were called in theology, theophanies or christophanies, the appearance of God to human beings.

I cannot explain all this, and neither can you nor anybody else. We can only claim to know what the Bible states as a fact, the rest is mere speculation. Thankfully, the Holy Bible is very clear on the Gospel (1st Corinthians 15:1-4), so there is no speculation regarding how to get to Heaven. I do not believe Jesus was always human, even though He did appear as the Angel of the Lord throughout the Old Testament. I think it is safe to conclude that Jesus first became human when He was conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of a virgin, Mary (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23). Thank you for reading my blog.

We Simply Do Not Know

There are more questions than answers about God and the Bible. God doesn't tell us many things, but we know enough to live this life for Christ and get to Heaven by faith alone in Him. Where the Bible is silent it is best to remain silent. It is okay to speculate, just so long as we call it that.

I have always thought a "human" begins at conception in the womb. We know that Christ appeared in the Old Testament in many places as the Angel of the Lord, but not as a human. Angels appeared in the Bible as humans. In fact, the Bible says that some saints have met angels but didn't even recognize them as angels. Hebrews 13:2, "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares." Angels look just like humans. Lot prepared a feast for the two angels who came to him (Genesis 19:3). So we know that angels can eat food and drink with enjoyment. That is interesting. Yet, angels are not humans.

The idea that Jesus was always human doesn't set right with me, since He hadn't been conceived yet in Mary's womb by the Holy Spirit. Jesus is God. He was never created. John 1:3 says Jesus created all things. Genesis 1:26 says that the Godhead ("us") created man in "our image" (i.e., in God's image). Here we see the Trinity. The King James Bible mentions that "godhead" in Romans 1:20, Acts 17:29 and Colossians 2:9. All of the Devil's modern Bible revisions remove these words, changing it to "divine nature" (which sounds like new age).

The details of Christ's person are unsearchable by humanity. All we know is what the Bible tells us. Revelation 19:13 says Jesus' name is "THE WORD OF GOD." John 1:1-3 and 14 teach that the Word became flesh. I am not sure what that means. How does "the Word" become flesh? To me "the Word" refers to the printed Bible. But the Bible also says that Jesus is "the Word." That is difficult to grasp. Perhaps it means that since the Word was authored by God, it is effectively Him. The adage is true that: A man is only as good as his Word. A man's word is his bond.

Psalms 138:2, "I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name." I understand why God elevates His Word above His name, because as with men, God's name is only as reliable and trustworthy as His Word. If the Bible is not 100% true, then God is a liar and we cannot trust Him. So, as best that I can tell, when the Bible says that "the Word became flesh" (John 1:14), it means God is inseparably connected with His written Word, that is, God's integrity is dependent upon the trustworthiness of the Holy Bible. The Word became flesh and His name is Jesus.