“Be fruitful, and
multiply, and replenish the earth !”
Ellen G. White:
“Before increasing their family, they should take into consideration whether God would be glorified or dishonored by their bringing children into the world.“ — Messages to Young People, p. 462.
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I n t r o d u c t i o n
One of the rules of implementation of the basic law of the Ten Commandments presented to Adam and Eve at the very beginning was : “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it ………” ( Genesis 1 : 28 ).
This verse reads as follows: “And God blessed them, and God said unto them, be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it : and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” — Genesis 1 : 28.
These provisions of the law were given to Adam and Eve before their fall in sin. Both had been commanded to fill this earth with their offspring to the full. Even according to the blessings God had bestowed upon them and their descendants, they were also commanded to conquer the earth and master it completely. Thus we see that Adam became the first king on earth with all his descendants as citizens of his kingdom, of one nation and one spoken language only.
But after they fell in sin, the provisions of the law (Genesis 1 : 28) above were no longer fully valid. They no longer conquered the earth and mastered it for all time, but instead they themselves had been swallowed one by one into the bowels of the earth itself to this day. Even the vast population of the earth, the result of the breeding of Adam and Eve during the first 1600 years since the Genesis of the World has been consumed by the flood in Noah’s day. Adam and Eve had already been swallowed by their own earth. Even the animals both in the sea, on the ground, and in the air proved to be no longer fully willing to submit to the government of Adam and his descendants. We must ask : Is the provision of law of Genesis 1 : 28 still valid, or is it no longer fully valid? The flood of Noah’s time proves unequivocally that the great majority of the earth’s inhabitants as a result of the breeding of Adam and Eve turned out to be displeasing to God. Only Noah’s family of eight is still allowed to live to recharge this earth with his descendants. This means that the provisions of the law of Genesis 1 : 28 are in fact not fully canceled.
AFTER THE FALL OF ADAM AND EVE IN SIN
After Eve fell in sin and after Adam became involved therein, a new law came into being that was the result of the first lawlessness or sin. To Eve as the culprit of the transgressions of the law God affirms:
“Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception (wombs); in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.” Genesis 3 : 16. ( In bracket is added )
This verse can be contrary interpreted, that even though Adam and Eve (before they sinned) were commanded to be fruitful and multiply their descendants to fill the earth, it is not God’s will for Eve to bear as many children as possible. And again even if Eve’s status is a wife, her position is actually the same level and parallel to her husband. But because of sin, because Eve had more faith in the demands of Satan than to God’s own word, the result was :
a. Her troubles will be overwhelming,
b. Her conception will be very multiple,
c. Give birth to her children with misery, and
d. Her husband will rule over her
Whoever plays water will be wet, and whoever plays the fire will be scorched. Such is the result of the transgression of the original law, which must be experienced by all the Eves of the earth even up to this day. But this too is not a legal sanction of a judgment, because the heavenly court of justice has not as yet convened at that time.
To Adam who had been involved in the sin, God affirms :
“And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and has eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it : cursed is the ground for thy sake ; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life.” — Genesis 3 : 17.
Because of sin, the earth has been cursed by God. The Adamites must earn a living with great pain and suffering for the rest of their lives.
SIN and BLESSING
Sin and blessing are two things that are hereditary. Both of these can be known from the following provisions of the basic Law of the Ten Commandments, we read here below from God’s own word through Moses His prophet :
“For I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.” — Exodus 20 : 5, 6.
Even though the sin of Adam and Eve has been avenged by God to all his descendants up to this day, God’s mercy is still shown to the thousands who still obey His laws. Noah and his family had escaped the flood. And to this day thousands of God’s people have succeeded in enjoying the various material blessings and completeness of the Word’s truth that has been revealed until the end of time. God showed His mercy through various expressions of the written Word of truth, which continues to grow up to this day. All of these are presented to us by the prophets of the New Testament mentioned by the apostle Paul in Ephesians 4 : 11-13. The New Testament prophets have been building the body of Christ or the Christian Churches, even the end time prophets of those mentioned in Amos 3 : 7 to prepare us for the coming of the Kingdom of Christ in the Palestine.
It may be understood that even if for sins, men and women to this day, must receive the inheritance of suffering and misery that has been spoken to Adam (Genesis 3 : 17) and to Eve (Genesis 3 : 16), but because of obedience to God’s law, then the blessings and assignments spoken of in Genesis 1 : 28 are still valid for all God’s people up to the end of time.
BE FRUITFUL AND MULTIPLY,
O R LIMIT THE CONCEPTION OF WOMAN
If before sin committed by men God said : “Be fruitful and multiply …”, then after sin entered the earth God again affirmed: “I will multiply your womb.” These two words of speech seem to be the same, but in fact they are very contradictory.
Earth’s population has now reached 7 billion (7,000,000,000) souls. The United Nations Population Experts have long been worried, for, however, the earth’s ability to provide a natural life for such a large population will be limited.
Every inhabitant needs land, clean fresh water, food produced by soil, clothing, housing, paper, generally produced from wood, roads, graveyards and so on. The more nature of the earth is changed its shape, the greater the risk for the life of human being itself.
A wise man would possibly think, whether the command “Be fruitful and multiply” and “replenish the earth” is still valid, or “the conception of Eve” that need to be limited?
Truly because of sin, by neglecting most of the laws of God, man deliberately continues to multiply the womb of the world Eves. Even worse, if they think that every baby, he or she is born into the world is of God’s creation, then they continue to fill this earth regardless of the current bleak conditions. Humans generally forget that the command, “Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth” (Genesis 1 : 28), it has been given just to fill this earth with people who obey God’s laws only. The flood disaster in Noah’s time proved that even though Adam and his grandchildren had multiplied so rapidly, it was only Noah’s family of eight who had been pleased to have God’s favor to fill this earth. The population of the earth that died in the floods in the time of Noah were unbelievers, not for the task of filling the earth (Genesis 1 : 28) but only by multiplying the conception of the Eves (to fulfill lust), the result of Eve’s sin that continues up to this day.
Surely the earth at this time is too full filled. But since the people who keep God’s laws are still very limited in number, so in the sight of God this earth is in fact not as yet fully filled. It is because of the interest of His own people that this earth has not yet been destroyed. There are many more of all the inhabitants, who must be “born again” (baptized) to fill this earth, even the words of Genesis 1 : 28.
FAMILY PLANNING
The servant of the Lord Mrs. Ellen G. White said :
“Those professing to be Christian should not enter the marriage relation until the matter has been carefully and prayerfully considered from an elevated standpoint, to see if God can be glorified by the union. Then they should duly consider the result of every privilege of the marriage relation, and sanctified principle should be the basis of every action. Before increasing their family, they should take into consideration whether God would be glorified or dishonored by their bringing children into the world. They should seek to glorify God by their union from the first, and during every year of their married life. They should calmly consider what provision can be made for their children. They have no right to bring children into the world to be a burden to others. Have they a business that they can rely upon to sustain a family, so that they need not become a burden to others ? If they have not, they commit a crime in bringing children into the world to suffer for want of proper care, food, and clothing. In this fast, corrupt age these things are not considered. Lustful passion bears sway, and will not submit to control, although feebleness, misery, and death are the result of its reign. Women are forced to a life of hardship, pain, and suffering, because of the uncontrollable passion of men who bear the name of husband —- more rightly could they be called brutes. Mothers drag out a miserable existence, with children in their arms nearly all the time, managing every way to put bread into their mouths and clothes upon their backs. Such accumulated misery fill the world.” — Counsels on Health, p. 75.
What does this mean? This is the “Family Planning” principle that should be applied in the Laodicean Church of SDA Church Denomination. Through the SPIRIT OF PROPHECY as rules of implementation of the basic Law of the Ten Commandments God’s people are required to live in order and to obey the law of health. Have you adopted this principle?
C o n c l u s i o n
It has long been thought that since we have been baptized in the Laodicean Church of Seventh-day Adventists, we should automatically be the people of God. But let it not be forgotten that at this time of the end, the SDA people should have been divided into at least two classes people, the five wise virgins on the one side and the other five foolish virgins on the other side. Whereas in the meantime the five wise virgins themselves should again be divided into the wise virgins on the one side and the wise virgins with guile in their mouths on the other side. Or in other words, those of wheat categorized ones on the one side and the tares categorized ones on the other side, whereas the wheat categorized ones themselves should also be divided into the wheat categorized ones on the one side and the chaff categorized ones on the other side. Both of the peoples now exist in the Laodicean Church of SDA.
According to the words of Jesus, he acknowledged His people (as the descendants of Adam who still fulfill the provisions of Gen. 1 : 28), only those belonging to the “Wheat”, or the “Class of five wise virgins” were. This means that even if the membership of the Christian world at this time has reached several billion souls on earth, but the actual membership of the people of God in real sense has not as yet reached 144,000 people.
The hundred and forty-four thousand chosen people of God, who will be the first fruits of the coming Kingdom of Heaven on the Mount Zion, Palestine, have been not as yet gathered. And this is why, we are yet to continue praying by saying: “THY KINGDOM COME, THY WILL BE DONE ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN.“
God’s people are now faced with a great challenge. While helping to alleviate the suffering caused by sin, by promoting the restriction of Eve’s conception among us, we are also obliged to fill the earth with men upholding the laws of God for the return of us to rule this earth according to God’s original plan – Genesis 1 : 28.
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