Faithful Writers

How you answer says everything. Brett Jordan It doesn’t matter if you are an oldie in the faith or a newbie. This question will always remain the same. This is about the most profound question a Christian will face, and how you answer says everything. There is no… Yes, I do, but!   or any other verb or adjective that could possibly follow that yes. In my journey, I have asked myself a lot of questions, battled with myself internally many times, learned and then relearned many concepts, had little faith, had a lot of faith, and I’ve even been angry with God. One day, I was faced with one of my biggest storms, and I had no choice but to face this question head-on.  I couldn’t skirt around it, I couldn’t “back burner” it any longer. Once faced with it, it wasn’t going anywhere. The Holy Spirit made sure of that, I was being convicted to make a choice. I thought, I prayed, I fought with myself, and I prayed some more. Then one day I chose.  My answer was yes. Such a simple answer said in an emotional whisper, but also the most complex answer I have ever had to give. My life and journey have never been the same since. The growth, guidance, love, and peace since then have been profound. You either trust God or you don’t. There is never an in-between. © Jane Isley Thank you for taking the time to read, and please consider  supporting my work . Your gift helps keep this work going, blesses others, and means the world to me. You can visit me at Faithful Writers  on Medium, where other Christian writers have joined me in sharing the word of God. You can also find me on   Tumblr  and   Facebook.

Today we’re going to answer the age old question of “From where does evil originate?” “God said to Noah, ‘the end of all living beings has come before me, for because of them , the earth is filled with violence. I will destroy them along with all the earth.’”-Genesis 6:13 In the above verse, God announces He is going to destroy the human race because on account of them, the Earth has become filled with violence. Notice something interesting in this scathing indictment the Lord has just pronounced. He never blames Satan for this sorry state of affairs. He holds the human race fully responsible for the evil that has come upon the earth. In an earlier post, I mentioned that contrary to popular Christian teaching on the subject, the ancient rabbis believed that from the very beginning God created human beings with both a good inclination and an evil inclination. God did not create us as robots. We have been given a will that allows us to freely exercise both inclinations as we see fit. In this post, I am going to demonstrate from the science of physics that the ancient rabbis were indeed correct!!! So get your thinking caps on. Do you recall in the creation story from Genesis Chapter One it says… When God began to create the heavens and the earth, the natural state of the universe was CHOSHEK or “complete darkness." Then, in an instant of time, upon God’s verbal pronouncement, “light” broke forth into the universe. Again, recall from an earlier teaching that the “light” I am referring to here is not a light-emanating object like the sun, but God’s holy and spiritual light. In Hebrew, this light is called OWR. At that very instant, the universe was comprised of two polar opposite forces; darkness and light. Based on the creation story, the first scientific point I want to make is that our universe is based on the “Principle of Opposites." At the very atomic level of our universe, for instance, each individual atom has a positive electric charge and a negative electric charge. If there is an up, there has to be down. If there is a male, there has to be a female. If there is black, there has to be white. If there is a Holy Spirit in our universe, there has to be an unholy Spirit, etcetera. This principle is woven into the very fabric of our universe. In fact, if you were to sit back and take a look at your own thought patterns, you would notice that the way we distinguish one thing from another is based on the “Principle of Opposites." “Was it expensive or not? ” “Was she hot or not? ” “Do I want it or not? ” The Chinese also touched on this principle with their yin-yang concept. So accordingly, when God created Adam and Eve, He created them with both a “good inclination” and an “evil inclination." NOT more of one than the other. I believe Christian theology errs when it teaches that unsaved man ONLY has a nature hellbent on sinning. The truth is we have both. We are equally capable of doing both good and bad. Actually, even after we are saved, we still carry both inclinations inside of us. This is evidenced by the fact that we still struggle with sin even after accepting Christ. So God created man with the capacity and freedom to commit good or evil when confronted with moral choices. And this is the reason why God does not blame Satan for the evil that has broken out into the world. He holds man responsible. “Freewill” is simply another word used to describe the good and evil inclinations that reside in all human beings. Think about it, having the power to do good or evil when confronted with a moral choice is none other than the characteristic of “freewill." So based on the way God has constructed our universe, it is IMPOSSIBLE to have one thing without its opposite. This gives us the answer to the origin of evil in the universe. Since we can’t have one without the other, evil is a byproduct of good. Below are some Scriptures testifying to this reality. “I form light, I create darkness; I make well-being, I create woe; I, Adonai, do all these things .”-Isaiah 45:7 “When the shofar is blown in the city, don’t the people tremble? Can disaster befall a city without Adonai having done it ?”-Amos 3:6 “Don’t both bad things and good proceed from the mouth of the Most High ??”-Lamentations 3:38 Again, keep in mind that evil is a natural byproduct of good. God didn’t create a lump of good in one place and then in another place create a lump of evil. Evil was not manufactured per say. Let me give you an admittedly imperfect example. Let’s say you’re sitting inside a well lit room. You decide to leave the room for a while, so you switch the lights off. As a result, the room becomes dark. Now let me ask you a question. Did you create the darkness? No you didn’t. It is simply the absence of light that caused the darkness. In the same way, where there isn’t God’s presence, evil is. Here’s what the great scientist Albert Einstein had to say on the matter: “Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God’s love present in his heart. It’s like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there is no light.” Albert Einstein I believe Einstein was right. What good is having a freewill if there is no opportunity to exercise it? Can you see now why God gave to give Adam and Eve a one law Torah (instruction) that they were NOT to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good & Evil? Without that choice, Adam and Eve would have been relegated to a robotic existence. It would be like being given the right to vote in an election where there is only one candidate to choose from. You can vote for Trump or you can vote for Trump. In order to do good, the option to do evil has to also exist, or else the good we do is meaningless, simply because we have no other choice in the matter. So Moses’ Torah had the same purpose for the Israelites that the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil had for Adam and Eve. Its purpose is not only to tell us the difference between right and wrong but provide us opportunities to exercise our capacity to do either good or evil. Without the Torah, there is no knowledge of sin or the opportunity to do good. CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT For what law brings is punishment. But where there is no law , there is also no violation. -Romans 4:15 Sin was indeed present in the world before the Torah was given, but sin is not counted as such when there is no Torah . -Romans 5:13 © Richoka

“Look all around you from where you are, to the north, the south, the east and the west. All the land you see I will give to your descendants forever. ” Once God promised Abram that he and his descendants would inherit the land of Canaan forever, a new law of the universe had been set into motion. Notice that there are no ifs or buts in this proclamation that God has just given Abram. This is a PERMANENT covenant. It is NOT a conditional covenant. Here is a quick biblical rule about covenants. If man has to continue upholding some part of the covenant in order for it to remain valid, then it is a conditional covenant, which means it can be broken, and therefore a consequence will come about. However, this covenant is unconditional. Also, notice the word “ forever ." In Hebrew, this word is AD OLAM. And it indeed means forever. God has unconditionally given the land to Abram and his descendants forever. This is a point that needs to be forcefully communicated to any church that still holds to the idea that the Christian church has somehow replaced Israel. While it is true that God warned Israel that they would be removed from the land for a time, it was only temporary. Despite this, the 17th-century church adopted a “replacement theology” that taught that this promise given to Abraham had been turned over to Gentile Christians, as the New Israel. NONSENSE!!! “Forever” means “forever” and I tell you with every fiber in my being that until every inch of land that God promised to Abram is returned to Israel, there will never be peace in the Middle East. No matter how hard our President tries, I can guarantee that God will ensure that any proposed “two-state solution” will fail. This is one area where supporting Israel and the Jews is our duty! © Richoka

Although the Bible is God’s Word… Originally given to Moses by YAHWEH on Mount Sinai … It has been revised over time to reflect changes in place names throughout the centuries. For example, if I were to tell you that… “This summer I want to visit ‘T he Land of 10,000 Smokes’ for vacation." Your response would probably be something like… “What place?” “Come again?!” Because you would have no idea which place I’m talking about. Well, the answer would be Los Angeles . Hundreds of years before the Europeans or Mexicans ever settled in that area… L.A. was inhabited by the Chumash Indians, and that is what they called it. However, if I were writing a history book and talking about where the Chumash Indians lived before the white man and the Mexicans… I would say “ They resided in Los Angeles ” simply because that is the name that everybody in our day and age is familiar with. Bible redactors have done the same thing. Look at Genesis 21:34. “And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for a long time.” This is obviously a redaction because the Philistines did not immigrate into Canaan until about four centuries later. So we can see that the Bible editor wanted to use a place name that would be familiar to the people in his time. These changes occur quite frequently in Scripture. For example, in the Bible, we will encounter a place called Jebus . This place is Jerusalem . It’s the same place, but just being spoken about in two different languages in two different periods. A similar transformation also occurred with the name “Jesus." First, it was YEHOSHUA . Then it was shortened to YESHUA . Afterwards, due to Greek influence, it became “ IESOUS ." Eventually, due to Latin influence, it morphed into “IESUS." Next, when the letter “ J ” was introduced into England during the Norman Invasion… All male names that began with “ I ” or “ Y ” were replaced with “ J ” because it sounded more masculine. For example, “ IAMES ” became “ JAMES ” or “ YACOB ” became “ JACOB ." And then finally “ IESUS ” became “ JESUS ." © Richoka

Our universe consists of the four dimensions of height, length, width and time. You may be thinking, okay, I can perceive the dimensions of height, length, and width as they are visible to my eyes. However, how can I perceive time? The answer to that is that time is the measurement of decay. It is a fundamental law of physics that all things in our universe are running down. For example, think of all the things we use in our daily lives that eventually break down and need to be replaced. Or take a look in the mirror and compare yourself to a photo of you taken 10 years ago, and you’ll see what I mean. Time is visible to us because we can observe the physical effects it has on all things around us. However, the four dimensions are only characteristics that govern OUR universe. The sphere of heaven, where God resides, operates under a totally different set of physical laws and principles… AND… Now, there are revolutionary new scientific findings that point to the existence of dimensions outside the four dimensions that make up our universe. In addition to the four dimensions in our solar system, there could potentially be a total of 11 dimensions in existence! In science, this idea is known as String Theory. The reason it’s difficult to wrap our minds around the idea that there could be up to 11 dimensions is because in the universe we live in with our five senses, we are only able to perceive the four dimensions of height, length, width and time. No matter how advanced a telescope we use to peer out into the vast reaches of outer space, any dimension outside of our four-dimensional universe is lost to our five senses. However, if that’s the case, where do the other six dimensions exist? The answer is that they do not exist in our universe. They exist in another universe or universes. In physics, this concept is known as “parallel worlds." I’m aware this borders on science fiction. However, what’s fascinating is that if one peruses the ancient Jewish writings, we see that the ancient rabbis had not only pointed out the existence of 10 dimensions… ….but they had also identified an 11th dimension which they called God. Again, think of heaven. Heaven could be considered a parallel world where the rules and principles that govern our universe do not necessarily apply. For example, from Scripture we know that the dimension of “time” doesn’t exist in heaven. When the Scriptures say that “Heaven is eternal." “eternal” does not mean a very long, long, long time. It means that in heaven “time” does not exist, period. In the Scriptures, heaven is not described as being part of our universe. Think about it for a second. God could not have existed in our universe before He created our universe, right? The Scriptures say He resided in heaven, where our earthly laws of physics do not apply. It is a totally different parallel world. So if there’s no way to discern the existence of other dimensions through our five senses… How do we know there are other dimensions in existence besides the four dimensions that exist in our universe? We can know through the observation of events that are contrary to the normal pattern of things. For example, if you and another person were to see a knife sitting on a table suddenly pick itself up and impale itself into a wall, that would be eyewitness evidence that there is a dimension outside of the mundane plane of existence we reside in. This is basically the definition of a miracle, an event that occurs outside of established pattern. Miracles, whether divine or satanic in origin, are strong evidence that point to the existence of other dimensions outside our universe. Physicists also employ imagination and intuitive mathematical theories to tap into the unseen realm of other dimensions. This is what Einstein did when he came up with his Theory of Relativity. He had a dream he was riding on a bolt of lightning, and then chanced upon the idea that the dimension of time mutated at the speed of light. One fact that should excite us greatly is that the words contained in our Holy Bibles are not of this earth. They proceed from another heavenly dimension. In this sense, our Bibles are different than any other piece of writing in existence. There’s a difference between our time-bound, sinful world with all of it’s limitations and the kingdom of heaven which Yeshua claimed he had brought forth once he started his ministry. And He proved that this other dimensional world had arrived by performing incredible miracles like walking on water and raising the dead! CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT “In my Father’s house are many rooms ; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” -John 14:2–4 But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But, as it is written, " What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined , what God has prepared for those who love him” -1 Corinthians 2:7–9 © Richoka

“Get up and walk through the length and breadth of the land, because I will give it to you.”- Genesis 13:17 Next, in verse 17, we have God commanding Abram to walk the length and breadth of the land. What is this all about? Well, in ancient times, walking around the perimeter of a piece of property was a common legal ritual in the ancient Middle East. In Hebrew, this custom was called Chazakah, and it was the equivalent of signing a real estate contract in our day, which indicates an official and legal transfer of ownership. Historical records show that this custom was well-known by the Egyptians and the Hittites. Some nations even required their rulers to perform this act to reestablish sovereignty over a given region. Now, some of you may be thinking, why did God agree to having Abram perform a manmade tradition to establish sovereignty over the land? Isn’t God God? He doesn’t need to conform to man’s petty ways of doing things. The answer to that question is that it was for both Abraham’s sake and those residing in the territory he was marking out for himself. In the areas where he performed this symbolic walk-through, there were already many established cities and kingdoms. Abram probably angered much of the population in that area via this symbolic declaration of his ownership of their land. Another point we can take from this, and we will see this often in Scripture, is that the Lord often works through established man-made customs and traditions. © Richoka

Today, we begin Genesis Chapter 22. For the Complete Jewish Bible, click here . For the King James version, click here . In traditional Judaism, the sacrifice of Isaac holds such special significance that it has been given a special name. It is called “ Akedah ." “Akedah ” means “to bind” or “the binding” referring to Isaac being bound up on the sacrificial altar that he was placed on top of Mount Moriah. There is one interesting difference between the narration style of Bible stories and all other forms of writing, not only from Abraham’s era but any era of history, period. When it comes to the written recordings of great events in history, NOT a lot of emphasis is placed on the series of events leading up to the big, pivotal event in question. Minor focus is placed on the process leading up to the product. All of the embellishment is saved for a grandiose telling of the final story. However, the Bible is the exact opposite. The Bible focuses more on process rather than product. How Abraham’s life is related to us in the Scriptures is a perfect example of this. Painstakingly, chapter by chapter, the many trials and temptations that Abraham went through to reach this point in his faith journey are related to us. We are told of both his strengths and weaknesses. And then, finally, when we reach that defining point in his life, the breathtaking moment we have all been waiting for, it is given to us in such an anticlimactic fashion. Many pivotal events in Scripture, such as the deaths of major biblical characters or great war victories, are usually related in brief one-sentence snippets. The reason is that when it comes to our character development, it is not so much the final achievement that is important but the kind of person we have to become to grow and attain that achievement. The details leading up to the event are also given to encourage us. Have you ever felt like you were lacking in faith or worried about current circumstances? So was Abraham. Have you ever committed actions that were directly against what God commanded? Well, so did Abraham. So of course, it is reassuring to know that we are not alone when doubt and anxiety strike. God’s best have at times been God’s worst. But through God’s grace, they came through and overcame seemingly impossible circumstances. This is another reason why it is so, so important to immerse yourself in Torah study daily. You are either going to be influenced by the world and all its satanic deception or by God. There is no middle ground! © Richoka

ChatGPT Back in my college days, I was obsessed with the question of why some nations in the world ended up becoming more prosperous than others. My relentless search had me reading books like “Guns, Germs, and Steel” by Jared Diamond… “The Victory of Reason: How Christianity Led to Freedom, Capitalism, and Western Success” by Rodney Stark… “The Wealth and Poverty of Nations” by David Landes… And “What’s So Great About America” by Dinesh D’Souza… As well as many other tomes expounding on a wide variety of evolutionary and political theories. Maybe I’m a super weirdo, but in my late teens and early twenties, I was obsessed with why modernity developed ONLY in the West — in Europe and North America and nowhere else. Nowhere else did science and democracy arise… Nowhere else was slavery outlawed. Only Westerners invented chimneys, musical scores, telescopes, eyeglasses, pianos, electric lights, aspirin, and soap. While different scholars have suggested a variety of reasons, I tend to go with the idea that it was the Judeo-Christian respect for manual labor, summed up in many Biblical injunctions, that was one of the main factors that enabled the West to rise above the other nations. And I believe the story of Noah’s Ark is a prime example supporting the truthfulness of this theory. God commands Noah to “build thee an ark with gopher wood." There is an important principle being established here that I hope everybody caught. God will do His part to save us. But we have to do our part as well. A cooperative effort with God is necessary to secure our salvation. Another important point we learn from Noah’s story is that 1 + God is always a majority. In a world that had completely given itself over to evil, ONLY Noah was found righteous. As a result, only Noah and his family were saved. The remainder of all mankind was completely destroyed. I hope this will give encouragement to those who find themselves on that lonely path where it seems like you are the only one who believes in or cares for the things of the Lord. CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT “Also, at the time of the Son of Man, it will be just as it was at the time of Noah . People ate and drank, and men and women married, right up until the day Noah entered the ark ; then the flood came and destroyed them all. ” -Luke 17:26–27 “But when that day and hour will come, no one knows — not the angels in heaven, not the Son, only the Father. For the Son of Man’s coming will be just as it was in the days of Noah. Back then, before the Flood, people went on eating and drinking, taking wives and becoming wives, right up till the day Noah entered the ark ; and they didn’t know what was happening until the Flood came and swept them all away. It will be just like that when the Son of Man comes .” -Matthew 24:36–39 “Go in through the narrow gate ; for the gate that leads to destruction is wide and the road broad, and many travel it; but it is a narrow gate and a hard road that leads to life, and only a few find it .” -Matthew 7:13–14 © Richoka

Today we start Genesis Chapter 14. For the Complete Jewish Bible, click here . For the King James Bible, click here . Chapter 14 of Genesis represents a radical departure from the smoothly flowing tone and rhythm of the Torah presented thus far. Our protagonist Abram, who up until now has been portrayed as a humble nomadic wanderer, suddenly appears on the scene as a fierce warrior. In order to get our bearings, let me present a brief snapshot summary of what is going on here. If you recall from the last chapter , Abram and Lot had a parting of ways. Soon after, Lot ended up living in a district controlled by a king named Chedorlaomer. This was in the Jordan valley, stretching to the Dead Sea, and included the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Chedorlaomer was the top dog and he had established a mutual peace treaty with all of the nations and kings mentioned in verses one and two. However, after 12 years, a district containing five kings became disenchanted with the existing “peace” arrangement and decided to rebel. They had gotten fed up with paying tribute for their protection and decided they didn’t need the bodyguard services of Chedorlaomer and his allies (the other three kings). A careful reading of the text shows there was quite a geographical distance between where Chedorlaomer and his Mesopotamian allies resided and the district where the five kings who rebelled resided. In order to teach the rebellious five kings a lesson, Chedorlaomer and the kings that were with him had to head down south. We are told that along the way they subdued “the Rephaim at Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzim at Ham, the Emim at Shaveh-kiriatham, and the Horites in the hill country of Seir” . This situation was actually similar to the colonial United States and Great Britain. The United States was paying tribute to Great Britain but got sick and tired of the “taxation without representation” being enforced upon them and rebelled. However, unlike the outcome of the five rebellious kings listed here, the United States won the war. The five rebellious kings went out to fight King Chedorlaomer in the Valley of Siddim and got their butts whipped. As was normal protocol, the district the rebellious kings ruled over was raided. Food supplies, valuable possessions, and people were taken as slaves. What is pivotal to this story is that Abram’s nephew Lot and his family were part of those who were taken hostage. When a fugitive brought the news to Abram, he quickly gathered a small army of 318 individuals and set out on a thoroughly successful rescue mission. He rescued Lot, and his family, and retrieved all their possessions as well. So this ends my summary of what transpired in a nutshell. (Maybe not as brief as I wanted it to be.) © Richoka

When analyzing the story of Noah, the following 4-point salvation formula is revealed. Point One: You must accept God’s diagnosis of the human condition being wicked and deserving of destruction. Point Two: There is a way out of this sad predicament that man finds himself in. Point Three: God Himself has designed or preordained ONLY ONE WAY to escape the impending destruction. Mankind (whether Jew or Gentile) must come to terms with this and accept the one method that God has set down. Point Four: In perfect adherence to God’s directions, take BOLD AND MASSIVE ACTION like Noah did. If God asks you to quit your job, you quit your job. If He asks you to leave your family and nation behind to follow Him as He did with Abraham, you do so. And if he asks you to build a whopping wooden barge in the middle of the desert, you do that too. The secret to a successful relationship with God can be summed up in the following statement: “And this Noah did, as all that God commanded him, so he did . ” When all is said and done, wouldn’t you like the angels in heaven to say of you, “And this ( your name here ) did, as all that God commanded him, so he did.” Thinking that just walking down an aisle and mouthing some canned salvation prayer is the be all and end all of your faith walk is I believe a gross error. It is just the beginning. God has great plans for your life but YOU HAVE TO TAKE ACTION in order to translate those plans into reality. Prayer, Planning and Action! That’s the Noah formula for success. What is the one thing you’ve been putting off that you know in your heart God is asking you to do? Do you need to confess and ask your mother (or father) for forgiveness for something you did in the past? Do you need to break up a relationship with a long-time friend because staying in a relationship with that person is detrimental to your walk with the Lord? Do you need to quit your job because deep down you realize it is not where God wants you to be? Do you need to be more faithful in financially supporting a given ministry? Do you need to stop wasting hours a day watching internet pornography? Do you need to get off your chicken butt and finally ask that girl out that the Lord has chosen for you and placed in front of you? Having a only sincere heart and talk means nothing minus the component of action. CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT But someone will say,“ You have faith and I have works. ”Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works . -James 2:18 © Richoka