ManChurch: Angels, Aliens and the Image of God

So Genesis 6, turn to Genesis 6. We'll start in there. Aliens, Angels, and the Image of God is what we're going to touch on. Genesis 6:1. I want to give you just a— I actually want to start with the conclusion and then I'll jump into— then I'll fill it back in from there. So, Angels, Aliens, the Image of God, the Nephilim, the Book of Enoch, and Christian Theology. So it's a bit of a It's a bit of a mixed bag. And my aim and my job is to present a biblical perspective as I've researched it. And I understand it's limited to what I'm able to research within the framework of established theology. So if you take your theology from 60-second clips on Instagram, it's going to be a little hard to give that any depth. So I'm not talking about that. I want to talk about what church fathers have said for decades. And this is not a new topic. The thought of astrotheology is not something new. It's something that's been around for a while. C.S. Lewis was a great astrotheologist talking about what is the possibility of things beyond the world. So the Nephilim, the Book of Enoch, and the possibility of extraterrestrial life, they all get tied together in this sort of current discussion that's going on. Whenever I talk to people about it, they wanna ask about, are there aliens? Always the Nephilim come up, always the Watchers outta the Book of Enoch. Mm-hmm. And they come up as bits and pieces of discussions, often threads or flags that people throw instead of seeing it as a complete body of theology. And some of that is because people haven't— that her church hasn't taken the time to discuss it. They have a tendency to dismiss it, and that's not what I want to do. So let's define a couple of things to start with. The Nephilim, Genesis 6. is where it's mentioned. Remains difficult to define. Christians differ over what the term the sons of God as heavenly beings were. And I'll read that scripture in just a moment. But Genesis does not present the Nephilim as extraterrestrials. The Watchers of 1 Enoch is another— and the Book of Enoch is another place where alien life is often attributed to by, by some people. The Watchers are rebellious heavenly beings who violate divine boundaries by having sex with Beautiful women, as it talks about in the Book of Enoch. But the Watchers are not alien. There's nothing in the text that suggests that there are. There's speculation, but speculation isn't theology. So, and then literally the third term, Nephilim, Watchers, and the whole concept of extraterrestrial life. The Bible does not answer it directly. The Bible does not address whether or not there is extraterrestrial life. So, but just because there's the absence of text on it or discussion, Doesn't mean you need to face it with fear. If life does exist, it would be part of God's creation. It would raise serious questions about what is the image of God, the incarnation, redemption, etc. So those questions need to be looked at deliberately, without panic and without sensationalism. And so that's what we're really going to focus on today. So Christian faith does not depend upon an empty universe. And so that's my big statement there. Christian faith does not depend upon an empty universe. It depends upon the living God who made heaven and earth, who judges evil, who reveals himself truly, and who has acted decisively through Jesus Christ. So the universe does not need to be empty in order for that to take place. The final posture of Christian theology should be neither gullibility or fear, but clarity and trust. So again, The Nephilim are not aliens. The Watchers are not aliens. And if God has filled the cosmos with other intelligent life, that life also belongs to Him. The God of Genesis is also the God of galaxies. So the questions of aliens and Christian theology is, as I said, often handled badly. Some people dismiss it as unworthy of our time or a topic. So the Bible doesn't say anything directly about biological extraterrestrial life. It does not tell us whether rational creatures exist on other planets. It does not describe spacecraft, visitors from distant stars, or civilizations beyond Earth. And if that is the assumption of what is being taught, that's just erroneous. There's nothing within the canon of scripture or even extra-biblical books like the Book of Enoch that suggests such. Yet the question still matters because if there is life in other parts of the universe, and there's no reason for us to even assume that this is the only planet in the universe that has life, it's what is the nature of that life? And what does that mean for us from a theological point of view? So let's break it down into these 3 areas, the Nephilim, Watchers, and extraterrestrial life. And we'll take it from there. So Let's start here. Common misconception, or one that's floating around at the moment in the social media metaverse thing, is aliens are not angels, nor are they demons. I believe in angelic and demonic beings. I've seen them. I've encountered both. Can demons take the form or possess people? That's not the discussion. Yes, I believe they can demonically, but that's really not what we're discussing here. So let's not confuse that. And be prepared in conversations or even in your own thought to have a thought like that and put it to one side to focus on what it is you've got to look at. And again, I'm not prepared to be populist clickbait on this. It's like, that's just— it doesn't play in. I would encourage you to take your theology from the Bible and church fathers. So let's define a few things. Aliens. Extraterrestrial life. Living beings whose origins are somewhere beyond Earth. Theologically, the most significant possibility would not be microbes, would not be some sort of interplanetary virus, but intelligent, rational, moral, aware human beings. That's what I would classify as an alien. Angels are heavenly beings. Christian theology, Jewish theology talks about spiritual creatures made by God. They are not biological organisms from another planet. But they're a different order of creation, totally different thought. The Nephilim, and we're going to get to Genesis 6 here in a minute, are mysterious figures mentioned in Genesis 6 and Numbers 13. Their exact identity is debated, but the most we get is that they're sons of God or daughters of humans. Now this is important: sons of gods, daughters of humans. There's nothing else discussed. Anything else that tries to, to come up is just making stuff up. So we've gotta be able to stick with what the parameters are. It's okay to say sons of gods, daughters of humans, and I'm going to make up the following because it sounds really fantastic and entertaining for me. And I'm having a couple of beers with some boys sitting around a barbecue pit. We're a bottle and a half of Jim Beam and a couple of stogies, and we're gonna make up some stuff. Perfect, but don't say that it's biblical. So the watches are found in 1 Enoch. Now there's a book called the Book of Enoch. It's not going to be in your Old Testaments in a can— it's not in the canon. It's a series of Jewish writings. It does appear in the Ethiopian Bible. The canon of scripture is a collection of books that have been put together, approved by church history and church fathers, and over time because of consistency and a range of other parameters And that's what makes up the canon of our faith. An extra-canonical or canonical book is something that sits out of those, that is not dismissed but is not counted as the basis for our faith, which is the books of the Old Testament and the New Testament. So the Book of the Watchers or the Book of Enoch sits outside established canon. Now, it's normally an allegory or a story, a lot like Job, which is an allegory or story within the Old Testament. So we can look at it to learn lessons, and we'll touch on that in a moment. And really, that's what it is. So within the Watchers— the Watchers are rebellious heavenly beings who descend to Earth, take on human women, and produce violent offspring. Angels are not aliens, the Watchers are not aliens, and the Nephilim are not clearly defined. So we really don't know what those fellows are. So the Nephilim, Genesis 6. Turn to Genesis 6, chapter— Genesis chapter 6, verse 1. Genesis 6:1. We'll have a read there. Are you doing Instagram? When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful and they married any of them they chose. The Nephilim were on earth in those days and also afterwards when the sons of God went to daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old and the men of renown. So a lot of people camp on that last part, heroes of old and men of renown and mighty men, and then they go into Goliath and those things. That's great, but again, it's like a bottle and a half of Jack and you're having a conversation. You can't go outside what it actually says there because that's actually what it does say. So the passage appears immediately, and this is interesting placement for me. It appears immediately before the story of the flood, which is the destruction or the wiping out of Humanity, including this group of people. The wider context of Genesis 6 is a world that's deeply corrupted, human wickedness multiplied, violence fills the earth. So where there is the absence of clarification, don't substitute it for speculation. So we come down in this thing and Panos did Genesis. It's not fully explained what the sons of God or the Nephilim are. Now there is some speculation. That is what is talked about when it comes to, and they viewed themselves like grasshoppers in their own mind. So there is that, but we don't know that. We don't know that if that is the case. So there's 3 views that, that people have with the Nephilim. One, a supernatural view. The sons of God were heavenly beings that crossed the boundaries and had sex with earthy women. 2, a ruling view that they're the sons of God. They were all-inspiring, powerful human beings. Or something called the Sethinite view, which isn't, isn't that well known, but is one of those views. That they were the daughters of Seth and they bred with the ungodly line of Cain. So whatever the debate is, they were a group of people, but they're not aliens. So, Book of Enoch, 'cause people like to get this one going. So Genesis 6 gives us a brief biblical encounter. What 1 Enoch does Particularly in a group. One Enoch consists of 36 chapters, 1 to 36. In the midst of that is chapters 6 to 16. Now in this account, you're looking at 200 beings called the Watchers. They come to Earth, they look upon human women, and they desire them, and they breed with them. That's what the Watchers do. They come, they take wives, they fire the giant offspring And that offspring becomes very violent and destructive in the world. So, so God judges the Watchers. They are bound and held for final punishment. Their giant offspring are destroyed. In 1 Enoch's own account, the spirits of dead giants become restless spirits. What some speculation is that the author of Enoch is trying to explain demonic possession as he understood it. So they're saying that's how he goes through the process. So the Watchers came down, they bred, and the evil spirits left their body after the flood, roamed around the earth, and that's what the demonic oppression or suppression is. That's our view, which is totally different from fallen angelic beings and spirits that are demonic spirits. So whatever it was that happened, the flood took place and God cleansed the planet. So the New Testament does touch on Enoch, the Book of Enoch, in the Book of Jude. And as I said, the Ethiopian Church has it. So you can't ignore it, but you can't treat it as canon either. And you certainly can't jump to some conclusions on it. So how's that? Good so far? Touched all the major little bits and pieces? All right. So what do these texts show us? And this is— I found this a fascinating thought exercise. Christianity already has room for non-human intelligence. Christianity already has room for non-human intelligence. So often the struggle we have is when we think of extraterrestrial life or life from other planets is, man, it's not human, therefore, like, I'm freaking out. The Bible is full of non-human, unexplained phenomena. So we can actually relax into that, that the Bible in a sense has already addressed some of these issues. So although the Nephilim and the Watchers should not be treated as aliens, they do— are very relevant and very important. Christianity and Christian theology and Hebrew theology has never been limited to the idea that human beings are the only intelligent creatures God has ever made. Scripture speaks openly of angels. Cherubim, seraphim, principalities, and powers. That does not prove extraterrestrial life exists, but it does mean that Christians do not have to begin from a worldview in which non-human intelligence is impossible. So, all right, now let's talk about astrotheology. I never knew of such a thing. It's phenomenal. C.S. Lewis was— I read a lot of C.S. Lewis's books. He's science fiction. He's got a trilogy on Silent Planet and a couple of others that make up a phenomenal read if you like that. But he was a tremendous thinker around these thoughts, thinker around these thoughts, which is what you do anyway. So the theological study of the questions raised by possibility of life doesn't ask, do aliens exist? But it asks, if intelligent extraterrestrial life exists, How would a Christian think about it? How would we deal with it? It simply asks whether Christian beliefs are large enough to face a larger universe. And it does make you think about a couple of things, fundamental Christian doctrines that it touches on, which are important to put to bed. So Christianity teaches that God makes all things. That's what the Bible teaches. Christianity teaches that God makes all things. Hebrew text teaches that God makes all things. Genesis opens with the creation of heaven and earth. The New Testament speaks of all things being created by Christ and through Christ. So the scope of creation is already cosmic. It's not limited to our blue marble. So have that as the concept that you base everything on, is you're not— our theology doesn't limit us. Genesis is a supernatural book that talks about a supernatural occurrence. And they— all of universe coming in, and then it brings it down to the micro lookable perspective of us on this blue marble. But don't forget, there's all this universe that sits above all of that. If life exists elsewhere, it would not exist outside of God's authority. It would belong to creation because God created the universe. That should not surprise us. The universe is Vast, and God's creation may be richer than what we knew. It would not be weakened. The doctrine of creation would not be weakened by extraterrestrial life. Maybe a response would not be, God can't have made that. Maybe it would be, if that exists, then God created that as well. There's probably another way to frame that question. So the image of God— could extraterrestrial life bear the image of God? It's a very, it's a very important question. So when we think about the image of God, we often look in the mirror or we look at someone else and say that we're made in the image of God and that that's what the image of God is. But it really isn't the image of God. The image of God is our rational capacity, our moral responsibility, our relational nature, our ability to know and respond to the Creator, And a vocation to represent God's rule and justice on the earth within creation. So that— they're the sort of moral attributes that you could attribute to being created and made in the image of God. If extraterrestrial beings exist, possess intelligence, moral awareness, relation, the ability to create and relate, the capacity to know God, then you have to pause and ask. Hmm. Does that mean that they're made in the image of God? Are they created? And the answer is surely yes. So C.S. Lewis made a really interesting point in Religion and Rocketry. He warned us against assuming that humanity must be the only rational race in creation simply because scripture only deals with talking to us about us. Our theology should not be so small that the possibility of other rational creatures is destroyed. Okay, so what about the fall? This is a big one because people— Jesus died for me. It's a very myopic view of God's redemptive power. We've very personalized it, and that's a very modern and Western post-1800s type series of thoughts. Christianity, Christ, personal God relationship. Very much that. Great. Got it. But sin and the fall, would extraterrestrials be fallen beings? And that's where you get into the whole Watchers and people say they've gotta be, they've gotta be demonic forces because they're not covered by the blood of Jesus, which is very limiting if you think in terms of what people say and how people view the all-encompassing atoning work of Christ. Would such beings be sinful? It's very simple to answer. We don't know because maybe they didn't fall. Maybe we were the only ones that screwed up the whole pooch. Maybe everyone else was floating around in the universe, just happily walking with God for all eternities. And we stuffed that up. So we cannot answer with certainty because scripture doesn't tell us. So maybe they're unfallen. Maybe they share in some broader cosmic disorder. So. If they haven't fallen, the New Testament talks about all of creation groaning. So maybe there is something else going on. Maybe all of creation is groaning is because we on the blue marble have stuffed it up and we've actually put all of the universe out of sync. Maybe all of creation is groaning for us to come into final submission to God and for God to finally do the redemptive work of bringing us back into fellowship with the rest of the cosmos. Maybe that is what the groaning is. Maybe the groaning is that there's this disorder or this disruption in the entire universe that is waiting for God to come in. Whatever it is, but if you stop being myopic, all of a sudden your ability to view the world and creation and his— the Creator becomes bigger. This should actually make your view of God bigger and your understanding that he is vast, as vast as the universe. And there's so much more that we don't understand. And I think this is actually a really comforting view in light of what's happening in the world. We've got so much tension, so much fear that's being generated through the repopulation, through media. We lose sight of the vastness of God, lose sight of the vastness and the greatness of all that he's capable of doing. And if you can lift your eyes for a minute and understand that it's not just us growing, but universe is growing. Why? Because it wants the creative order back in place. You can start to take wonder again at the sheer size of the universe and its beauty. So number next is the Incarnation. Would Christ's coming be enough for the cosmos? That's a very big question. Our Christian theology teaches us that the eternal Son of God became truly human in Christ. He entered our history, took our nature, lived without sin, died, rose again, and achieved salvation. If other rational creatures exist, does the Incarnation relate to them? Okay, this is a big one. I've got more notes than I've got here time to discuss it. One, that the Incarnation has cosmic significance. Christ's death and resurrection on earth is significant beyond humanity. It might have been singular in occurrence, But global and universal in application. That's probably the best way to sum up that thought. Number 2 is like the bit of the multiverse version of Jesus, which is like a bit of a head trip for me. Multiple, the eternal Son could have been incarnate in relation to other species if God chose. It's highly speculative. It's Marvel version of scripture. Doctor Strange. Jesus is like some sort of Doctor Strange running around the multiverse being different versions of— Jesus. Whatever. It's not taught in Scripture. Again, a bottle and a half of Jack and you can make up your own mind or whatever you want to do, but as far as Scripture, leave it alone. Number 3, a divine plan not revealed to us. Now I know this is a big thought for us because we should know everything and God should be personally giving us the full download of everything He's got planned, like September 24th at 11 PM in the Andes Mountains somewhere And if you sign over your house and my— your property to me, Jesus will definitely visit you. So not like that. I just think that maybe there is a divine plan that God has not revealed to us. And we're allowed to not know because Jesus said that the— he doesn't know. Only the Father knows some things. And there are some things that are part of God's plan. God has ways of dealing with other creatures that are not disclosed to humanity. Our faith and trust is that God loves us. And he's dealing with us according to what he sees fit, not according to what he's let us in on. And I think there's a difference there. Salvation and redemption. Would aliens need saving? Only if they've screwed up like we did. So that's it as far as the incarnation goes. All right. So just in summary, before we break off for Q&A, I don't think it's a crisis, a theological crisis. I don't think it, I don't think it would create a theological emergency if there were extraterrestrials. It would not disprove creation. It would not erase the image of God in humanity. It would not make the incarnation meaningless. It would not diminish the work of Christ. Instead, it would probably cause us to think a little deeper. And that's what I would encourage all of you to do with things like this is don't run first to fear. We have a tendency to always run first to fear. So, but one is, as long as you see yourself going down that path, Stop and pause and take the other gate. Go, okay, let's have a think about this and let's actually try and work out what people are saying and what the Word is actually saying. There's a very diff— big difference from saying the Nephilim are aliens to saying that ancient Jewish thought talked about realities beyond the human experience. So how should this impact us? And here are my 3 final thoughts before we open the question and answer. It should help us with a sense of humility if there are other beings outside of what we know, the created order. The universe is far larger than we can comprehend. Human beings are significant because God gives us significance, not because creation evolves around us or our ignorance. If God has made more than we know, that should be a very humbling thing for us. It should also be very delightful knowing that He has spent so many thousands of years making us the apple of His eye. Secondly, it should bring wonder to us. Every serious discovery about creation should enlarge our awe. And I would encourage you with things like DNA, for example. And what people thought when they— when DNA was discovered, it would be the end of all Judo-Christian beliefs, because it would show that we all rise from monkeys. In fact, it did exactly the opposite. People were astounded at the hand of God in it all. And I think if you look back over historically over scientific discovery, archaeological discoveries, everything, regardless of people's attempts to pervert it otherwise, ultimately point to a Creator who loves us and is for us. And so I, whatever is coming our way, Is we should be touched with wonder with it and with peace. Fear and faith cannot exist in the same bubble. So choose where you're going to go with it. So humility, wonder, and 3 is love joined with discernment. If humanity ever encountered other rational creatures, Christians would not begin from terror, wonder, or— And just tell it, be straight up. Okay, so a spaceship turns up. And you get a chance to walk up the stairs and go for a fly. I'm in. Like, I'm going to leave a note for the missus, say, hey sweetie, hopefully I'll be back for dinner, but if not, I'll see you where I'm going. I'm out, I'm out of here. I want to wander around the universe and have a walk. We're all going to be— we'll all actually, we need to drop to each other's place and pick us up and go have a party. It would just be awesome. And I think we're allowed to treat it and think like that. It doesn't— just because we want to hold 2 seemingly opposing views doesn't mean there's conflict in it. It just means our head has to be a little bit bigger. Theology should not be speculatively wild, but neither should it be afraid to think. And I love questions like this. And it started— you can blame Dave Carney for this. He sat me down and said, listen, I've got a question and I need someone who's a theologian to answer it. I'm not, and you're the only one I know. I want you to tell me about Nephilim, Watchers, and extraterrestrial life. And I thought, yeah, righto, I'll give this a go because I love the thought exercise, because I'm not fearful of what the truth holds, and I'm not fearful— well, I don't believe that God's small. So there we go.