I’m old enough to remember the black and white Flash Gordon series that aired on TV in the 1950’s and early ‘60’s. These were adapted for TV from earlier 35mm theater film from the days of good old-fashioned drive-in theater. Could hardly wait until Saturday when Flash would vanquish the tree-men or the stone-men monsters on a black and white television screen about 12 inches across .

Monster movies were the craze, yet, movies having to do with outer space and men from Mars always attracted me the most, simply because I did not come away with the same fear and dread which caused me to tuck my arms in at night under the covers, so as to keep ‘the blob’ from getting me. Then late in the decade came the Star Trek series with William Shatner and the gang. Oh, the places and beings they’d encounter!

Recently, due to a major operation, my wife and I binged on the Stargate series up on Netflix. Every episode filled with wonder as we wiled the recovery time away. One thing bothered me though, other worldly monsters, creatures, and beings (human or otherwise) died in these stories, and that got me thinking about death.

Could these other entities, off on other planets actually die, or was this an entirely earth concept applied to supposed other worldly creatures by Hollywood script writers?

In the biblical writings of the early Christians, the apostle Paul writes to the church there in Rome. In chapter 2:12-19 he makes a unique argument regarding death;

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:

¹³ (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.

¹⁴ Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.

¹⁵ But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

¹⁶ And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.

¹⁷ For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)

¹⁸ Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.

¹⁹ For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

In the above parenthetical portion (vs. 13) sin was in the world but not imputed while the “law” (Mosaic Law) was absent. In other words, law had not been established whereby the one who would break the law should suffer death as a consequence! Sin was in the world he states. Interesting. But not imputed, or charged to anyone’s personage. Yet we see Adam was first to sin by disobeying the Garden command not to partake of the Fruit of the knowledge of good and evil. He did, thus his ‘original’ sin was imputed to him, and any progeny thereafter came under that condemnation, thus there was death right up until the Mosaic Law was given.

In other words, Adam the first created being disobeyed God’s command, which was a sin, and this sin resulted in condemnation because he disobeyed a direct command, and the condemnation extends to all human beings who descended from that first couple, with no way to ever regain that relationship of rightness with God as there had been in the beginning. However, Paul goes on to introduce Christ who innocently gave his life (in just payment) thus re-establishing the right relationship (the ‘gift’) between God and his human creation.

So, what has all this got to do with Stargate and death. Well, for us human descendants of Adam, death is a consequence of that first disobedience. Sin was around before that happened, but condemnation resulting in death was not imputed. Yet we see in the Hollywood scripts that other worldly creatures do die, they are subject to death. If I am correct, had Adam not disobeyed God, he would have been immortal! The bible does say that man was created a little lower than the angels, perhaps the free-will choice to sin against God is the difference.

Why should it be that other-worldly creatures suffer death? Perhaps because the God of the bible known as Yahweh is creator of all, above all gods, and all these others have sinned in some way resulting in condemnation leading to death potential. Only God is immortal and to whomever he imparts immortality, e.g. angels. Hollywood doesn’t know what to do with immortality!

Our fight is not against flesh and blood (mortal beings) but against powers and principalities in high places (immortal beings), they cannot be killed/ annihilated but for the moment only kept at a distance, until the King deems otherwise. The name of Jesus and pleading the blood of Jesus are weapons in our struggle. Use them!