(Nansings,

Apparently, both you and I were taught about preexistence by the mormons when we were children.

Yet neither of us are mormons, for which I am glad.)

(I read Donna's letter to you about John the Baptist and Elijah, and it was a good letter, as she always presents her positions well.

The intention, here, is not to necessarily echo her points, although I do agree with her.)

(There was one person, for sure, who walked this earth, that was preexistent, and that is Jesus.

He, as the Almighty, was in heaven before he came down and took on a body:)

John 6:62 What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?

(He told us that he came down from heaven to do the Father's will:)

John 6:38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.

(Even John the Baptist knew that Jesus existed before coming here:)

John 1:15 John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.

(Yes, Jesus truly was before, but all the other people on earth were not from a before, including Abraham.

Abraham had a beginning, but the "before" was before Abraham's beginning, and that is why it can be stated as, "before Abraham was".

Not only was there a before, with Jesus there, yet in the continuous present tense while in the before, as he said, "I am"; because he said, "Before Abraham was, I am":)

John 8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

(In this sense, also, Jesus differs from all other people on the earth, he had a before, we didn't; he is from heaven, but we are of the earth, earthly:)

John 3:31 He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all.

(Jesus is from above, we are from beneath; Jesus is not of this world, but earth-dwellers, until they're saved, are of this world:)

John 8:23 And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.

(Levi did not have an heavenly heritage before he was born, but he had an earthly heritage as a descendant of Abraham:)

Hebrews 7:9 And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham.

  10 For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him.

(Levi didn't preexist in heaven before his conception, nor did he preexist on earth before his conception.

He was simply an earthly descendant, of Jacob, Abraham, and Adam, where perhaps he could have even looked like Jacob his father, as some children look like their father.

Things are passed down to subsequent generations, and there was one thing, for sure, that was passed down from Adam to all his descendants:)

Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

I Corinthians 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

(Adam and Eve started out different than all the rest of their descendants, they were not born from parents, but were directly created by the LORD.

They began innocent, but when sin came, they died - spiritually immediately, then physically, a number of years later.

As their descendants, we do not start out innocent like they did, but because of Adam's sin, we start out condemned, until be believe on the Lord Jesus:)

John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

(Because of Adam, we started out spiritually dead:)

Ephesians 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;

II Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:

(If any of us, as Adam's descendants, would have actually had a preexistence in heaven before conception, we would have started off innocent.

And if beginning innocent at conception, there would have been no death sentence upon us, and no children dying naturally in the womb.

Nor any young children dying naturally until they reached the age where they first sinned on their own.

And there would have been no need for any of the "born innocent" children to come to Jesus; so, he wouldn't have said, "Suffer the little children to come unto me".

And Paul never would have written:)

I Corinthians 15:22a For as in Adam all die,

(additionally, Adam didn't have a preexistence, he only began when the LORD created him:)

Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

(Adam didn't start out heavenly, but earthly, when he was created; additionally all his descendants also started out earthly, when we were conceived:)

I Corinthians 15:45a And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul;

  47a The first man is of the earth, earthy:

  48a As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy:

(Our spirits are formed in us, by the LORD, they were not sent down from heaven:)

Zechariah 12:1d  and formeth the spirit of man within him.

(The LORD wasn't David's God in some preexistent life in heaven, but he was David's God from conception:)

Psalms 22:10 I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother’s belly.

(Similarly, this was the same for both Isaiah and Jeremiah, their relationship with the LORD was not from some preexistence, but from the womb, upon conception:)

Isaiah 49:1 Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.

  5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength.

Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

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