Satisfaction

Since today is my birthday, rather than post my normal prose blog, I thought of posting a poem instead, if you can call it that. It is of my own creation, something I wrote and had published in our church magazine some twenty years ago, when I lived alone as a single individual, and had apprehensions of reaching old age among the world's loneliest men...

The poem is called, Satisfaction.

As I count each penny at the superstore,
My small income restricting what I eat,
I walk into a neighbour's house,
To see a table spread with abundance,
With hunger, I pray,
"Lord, help me find satisfaction in You."

As I walk along the street,
Looking at smart homes,
Each with two or three fast cars,
I ponder on my tiny apartment,
And cry,
"Lord, help me find satisfaction in You."

I walk up the hill,
Pushing my bicycle,
A puncture in the back tyre,
I watch Porches and Jaguar cars whizz past,
I Pray,
"Lord, help me find satisfaction in You."

I compete in a cross-country foot race,
And I come last, well almost,
I stand in a large hall,
Within the rostrum stood,
And loud cheers as the winner receive his trophy.
I quietly pray,
"Lord, help me find satisfaction in You."

England had just won a major tournament,
The crowds cried, "England! England!"
St George flags forming a sea of red on white,
As a lone Italian I cry,
"Lord, help me find satisfaction in You."

I congratulate a friend,
He has landed a job of his dreams,
Big income, secure future,
All becuse he has a degree,
I think,
"Lord, help me find satifaction in You."

Then one day a man in a wheelchair comes my way,
Born this way he never walked,
He was hungry,
So I cooked him a meal.
He was thirsty,
So I gave him some orange juice to drink.

His face was radiant, his eyes sparkled,
I felt my heart burn within as we talked.
He told me of the wonderful place he was going,
Where he would fly!
And said that he will see me there too.
I exclaimed,
"Lord, I have found satisfaction in you!"

Some time later I saw the Grim Reaper approach,
His skull grinning,
He swung his sickle,
And I went down,
To breathe my last.

In Heaven I saw Him on his throne.
Thousands upon thousands worshipping,
He rose and walked towards me,
I thought, "Oh dear!"
I remember the times I disobeyed Him,
The times I failed Him, neglected Him,
I trembled at the admonishment he was about to deliver,
The rebuke over my rubbish spiritual life.

But as he lowered his head,
And put his mouth to my ear,
He whispered,
"My friend, I have found satisfaction in you."

For any readers born on the 16th September, I too wish you a happy birthday.
 

Paralympic Glory - With Boos!

In my last blog, I wrote about the disabled scientist Stephen Hawking encouraging all the athletes to reach for the stars during the opening ceremony of the 2012 Paralympic Games. This had been the most successful games ever, with as many as 1,440,000 spectators attending the athletic stadium alone, with 80,000 watching each of the eighteen sessions spread over nine days, where up to 1,100 athletes competed at the 166 medal events. Add to this, 80,000 had attended the opening ceremony, and the same number will be expected to fill the stadium to full capacity for the closing ceremony taking place this evening, making a total of 1,600,000 spectators for the athletic stadium alone. And this does not include the many more watching all the other events live, including the swimming, cycling - both track and road - and team sports such as wheelchair basketball and rugby.

Last week, I took an afternoon off work to watch on TV the men's track cycling held at the velodrome. Personally, I prefer watching road cycling, but I could not help letting my emotion rise at the magnificent performance put in by these athletes. Two of them were leg amputees who can only pedal with a single leg. Too bad that at the time I did not note down who these riders were or the countries they represented, but the ability to pedal the specifically adapted bicycle to such a terrific speed has put me to shame - one as able-bodied who completed in triathlons which feature road cycling, back in the 1980s.

But the title of greatest Paralympic of all so far, surely, will go to British champion of the T54 category, David Weir. This athlete who has massive shoulders and barrel-shaped biceps to compensate both legs incapacitated, won Gold at the 800 metres, the 1500m, the 5000m and today, the Marathon, in the racing wheelchair like the one pictured above. Such athletes have certainly reached for the stars indeed, and according to a street survey conducted by Sky News, the Games have raised society's respect for the disabled, with one person declaring that the Government now need to deal with the needs of the disabled in general with a greater sense of empathy and compassion.

If this person's view of our Government is nationally universal, this could be the reason of the booing from the 80,000-strong crowd who filled the stadium on Monday, September 3rd. This was when our second most important politician after the Prime Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, arrived to present medals to the three winning athletes of the men's 400m, of the category T38 - athletes with cerebral palsy. When his name was announced, just about the entire stadium booed.

Newspapers went into overdrive on why this had happened. What I found remarkable were the two opposing reasons for the booing. According to the Daily Mirror, the reason for the huge unpopularity was due to the severe scrutiny every disabled claimant has to undergo in order to receive incapacity benefits. One of the Games sponsors was ATOS, a French firm contracted by the present Government to undertake the scrutiny. This resulted in many disabled claimants forced off benefits to take on employment. Although at first this may sound reasonable, according to Daily Mail columnist Sonia Poulton, these are low paid jobs more suited to able-bodied workers if such work can be found. Rather, such firms are either going out of existence or refusing to hire such employees. The end result, according to her report, is the rise of suicides among the disabled whose futures were thrown into confusion.

On the other side of the debate board, Daily Mail reporter Tom Utley has defended the Chancellor, declaring that he had sympathy for the beleaguered politician after being so humiliated by such a baying crowd. Utley reasoned that the majority of the crowd were probably foreigners or those who did not realise who Osborne was, and simply joined the growing chorus of boos started by a militant few who had issues with the Government.

I have grave doubts on Utley's opinion. I wouldn't mind betting that almost the entire crowd were British, many from the Home Counties. They were certainly not ignorant of Osborne. Rather, I tend to see an arrogant attitude in this columnist who accuses the crowd to what adds up to being ignorant hooligans, out to find an excuse in putting down the politician simply because they did not want to be left out from the pleasure of the taunting started by a few.

Whatever the reason behind the booing, in general George Osborne is disliked, accused of being snooty, out of touch and lacking both empathy and compassion, particularly for the disabled and most likely also the lower working classes. After being privately educated, Osborne attended Madgalen College in Oxford, where he was also a member of the Bullington Club, an elitist organisation with a questionable reputation.

Bullington Club member George Osborne

And it this what strikes me, the irony of it all!

Britain is world renowned for its class system. No matter how questionable such a system is, the British population loves to talk or read about it, and either exalt or talk it down. One prime example is during Sunday evening TV drama. These are normally period films depicting social class, snootiness, and imperialism at its peak. The day before the closing ceremony of the Paralympics were to begin, the Daily Mail Weekend TV guide had on its front cover the snapshot of the immaculately dressed upper/middle class couple, Matthew Crawley and his fiancee Mary Crawley, of the new series of Downton Abbey. The feature extended to the first sixteen pages of the magazine, such priorities such a drama series was given. The show, based in the early 1900s, is about the stormy romances and shady dealings within an aristocratic family who are clearly separate from the downstairs servants.

The Crawleys from the TV drama Downton Abbey. Englishness at it peak.

They usually have a quasi "Christian" attitude on which they claim that they are in God's complete will due to their nationalism - the William Blake's Jerusalem in which England is God's unique country, and by submission to the King, who is the intermediate between the Almighty and his green and pleasant land, the only way that God's will is fulfilled is to spread the Empire by fighting, conquering and subduing. Yet the very plot of the drama has brought in a massive audience. The Brits love a scandal among the aristocracy - the unfaithfulness, betrayal, adultery, deception - all under the umbrella of fierce snobbery, snootiness and imperialistic patriotism. Such is the popularity of Sunday evening TV viewing. And the verdict given of Chancellor Osborne at the Paralympics.

All in the past now? Actually, I have Christian friends who are a few years younger than me, who still uphold the class system and lament over the loss of Empire! And not forgetting newspaper journalists, particularly of the Daily Mail, the Daily Express and other "Tory" newspapers, who still grieve the loss of Empire and uphold the rights of the privileged. Utley's article say it all. The generation of the Crawleys continue on, without any signs of phasing out.

So it makes me wonder how all this can be reconciled with the idea of an itinerant Jew with his twelve sandal-shod followers, some just working class fishermen. Not only these were the founders of the Christian faith, but this Jew taught his disciples to spread the message of salvation through faith in him, and also taught compassion to the poor and to heal the sick, and to bring hope to the lost, to the disadvantaged and those on the wayside. In one of my blogs, about the rich man and Lazarus, it was Lazarus who ended up in Abraham's presence. Unlike the wishes of the Crawleys, and with the impression I have gotten, also unlike the wishes of our "Tory" Government, the rich man did not get any honour when his time came, as was expected.

Our Paralympians deserves great honour and respect. Their dedication, guts and sheer determination to win had brought them the distinction they so richly deserve.

But empathy and compassion are even greater virtues, because these bestow life and hope to those who don't have hope. And these should be found in those who claim Jesus Christ as their Saviour.

Stephen Hawking Praises Human Effort

As with the opening ceremony of the Olympics, Alex and I watched the opening of the Paralympics, another thrilling party held at the same London 2012 stadium. The guest star of this ceremony was (now retired) Professor Stephen Hawking, of Cambridge University. Here is one brilliant mind imprisoned in a body paralysed by Amyotrophic Lateral Disease, a form of Motor Neurone Disease, first diagnosed in 1964 when he was only 22 years old, and while studying for a doctorate degree at Cambridge.

Professor Stephen Hawking

During the Paralympics, Hawking gave a speech which fitted perfectly the tremendous effort and training put in by the athletes, all with some kind of disability, whether it was an amputated limb, a birth impairment or mental disability. The professor likened the determination of the athlete to the same determination the academic had contributed to the rise and advance of scientific knowledge, with Britain itself being the chief founding nation, hence the speech delivered while the games were hosted here, making his speech so appropriate.

Britain has a lot to be proud about with its academic achievements. For example, the invention of the steam engine, leading to the mobility of the "horseless chariot" - resulting of the rise of the railways, the industrial revolution and the advance of medicine all having taken place here. Even the Internet has its origins here in the UK, as featured in the opening of the Olympics. And not forgetting two prominent scientists and authors who were to revolutionise our understanding of our origins and that of our planet itself. The first of these two was Scottish Geologist Charles Lyell, author of his book, Principles of Geology. In it, Lyell proposed a theory known as Uniformitarianism, an idea rising from his observation of the stratified rock layers, each layer laid by water over a long period of time, and the type of fossils each rock layer contained determining the age of the rock. As such, from these rock layers, the Geological Time Scale was worked out, with the earliest signs of life appearing some 2,000,000,000 years ago.

The other great scientist who was born and grew up here was none other than Charles Darwin, author of On the Origin of Species. He was the more famous of the two, and unlike that of Lyell, Darwin's name is spoken in every household, and he is upheld as Messiah of Evolution by such atheists as Richard Dawkins. Darwin based much of his research on Lyell's book, and the Theory of Evolution began to take its place in the academic world. Through these two Charlies, Britain was to play a leading role in turning people away from the truth of the Bible and the credibility of the Christian faith.

Basing his speech on our academic achievement, Hawking encouraged us to reach for the stars, so to speak, in human endeavour and effort, and never give up. Neither let any bias or prejudice from the ignorant discourage us. Primarily, his exhortation was addressed to the athletes, encouraging then never to let their disabilities hamper or to get in the way of their determination and progress. And this can be applied to all of us, particularly in schooling and higher education. If possible, why not go for the doctorate degree, like he did despite his degrading health, and reach for the stars? After all, his discipline, alongside mathematics, is on how the Universe originated, without the need for a God to get in the way of its evolution.

In short, reaching for the stars and reaching for Heaven is basically one and the same thing - by human endeavour and something to be proud of. After all, like Richard Dawkins, Stephen Hawking is an atheist who has dismissed any possibility of an afterlife, but without Dawkins' aggressive take on this issue.

Reaching for the stars, or as in this case, the moon.

What a contrast all this is to the Gospel of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ! The very word "salvation" itself depicts a rescue of someone by another. Sure, Hawking does have a point about academic achievement and endeavouring to train hard to win a Paralympic gold. But winning a gold medal through human effort is one thing, trying to pull himself out from the bottom of a deep pit by clutching his own hair is quite another!

Our nation, and England in particular, as I was born and grew up in England, relish on the pride of its own achievements. Being of Italian parents, therefore Italian through and through, together with a mild mental retardation as a boy, complete with an odd accent to my speech, had made it difficult for me to blend in with my fellow countrymen. Not only did I fail at school to near disaster level but I had to endure classroom and playground bullying. If I tried reporting this to the staff, the one-size-fits-all response was, "Don't tell tales!" Little wonder I had to keep all my sorrows bottled up. Bullying, mostly verbal, continued during my first years at work until I was about twenty, when I found another job as a poolside lifeguard in 1973.

The verbal abuse mainly centred around my nationality. The times my accent was mimicked, and even nicknamed "Spaghetti" or "Spaghetti face" are too numerous to count, as being called a dimwit for failing at school and "puny" for not performing at team sports. I believe that any ambition I might have had was all but destroyed.

I had, in my twenties, become antagonistic against the British social class system, which I believe, lay behind the abuse. As explained in one of my blogs, Alan Sugar at the Kerith? - even as a Christian adult, I felt an air of prejudice. And this is felt to this day. At Ascot, back in 1997, I gave a short talk touching on the Second Advent of Christ. After the service, I was told by one listener that during the discourse, a couple sitting behind was muttering on how could I know anything, I'm just a window cleaner after all. (For readers outside the UK, domestic window cleaning is a well established British trade, where the need for the ladder is off-putting to many residents, hence they are happy for someone to clean their windows for a payment, the source of income.)

At present, the son of a London professor has blocked me on Facebook, because I asked him to connect to my profile, after watching this young lad grow up, then leave our church to attend University. The reason given for the blocking, was that I disregarded Englishness in its true form and "he was uncomfortable," meaning that I showed too much affectionate emotion during his youth. I was aghast in discovering his website, that he had posted videos pertaining to the occult. With such attitudes, and there are quite a few among unbelievers displaying exactly the same attitude towards me to this day, little wonder I have a degree of delusion over our culture which is full of praise for the strong, the well-schooled, the academic, the wealthy, the sporting celebrity and the successful, yet also have a disdain towards those, like me with no deliberate fault of my own, who don't quite fit in.

Just as with the case of blind former Health Secretary David Blunkett. After reserving his seat at the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympics, he was refused admission by "a jobsworth" because of his guide dog, Corby. Another seat, at a wind-swept area next to a gantry, was instead assigned to him and his dog. This was almost as bad as forty years earlier, when a pub landlord refused his admission to his bar because of the presence of his guide dog Ruby, an incident which caused sensation among newspapers the next day.

But in this blog, am I asking for pity? No, by no means! Because, the whole of this article is not about "poor little me," but how great is the love of God.

As a one-time evolutionist and a highly-strung young individual, God knew me from eternity past, long before I was even born. So my Heavenly Father knew that way back in 1973, I put faith in Jesus Christ. I have written enough here that in this world, I am a nobody, but in the eyes of God, I am a trophy of grace. All I had to do was believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ and I was welcomed into his family. And not an ounce of self effort, not a single penny paid towards the cost of the gift. Jesus Christ paid for my salvation, all I had to do was take it. Absolutely free. None of me, all of Jesus Christ, who loved me enough to die on the cross for me. And dare to say, that throughout my difficult first twenty years of life, God was with me all the time, from the moment of conception, waiting for me to turn to his beloved Son.

Stephen Hawking was absolutely right. The disabled athletes deserves heaps of praise for their outstanding endeavour and self effort, commitment to their training with absolute determination to overcome their disabilities. Their winning medals are well deserved and worthy of praise and my admiration.  But as for salvation, there is nothing I can do about it, but believe. God alone can rescue.

How I wish for God to rescue Stephen Hawking!

 

God HATING Esau???

Way back in 1974 I found myself sitting next to a very distressed man at St Jude's Anglican Church in South London. When I saw his despair, I turned to him and asked what was the matter.

He then explained to me that he had read in the Bible that God loved Jacob, and HATED Esau. He felt that he had committed enough sins in his life for God to hate him too. Having access to a Bible, he turned to Romans 9:13: Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. I saw the tears and the fear of Hell in his eyes. Over time, I can't remember what I said to him, neither was I able to go into depth back then, for I had only been a true believer since early 1973, and as a strapping twenty-one year old, I still had a lot to learn.

Whatever I said to him in reply I can't fully remember, but his grief ceased, his spirits lifted and his face shone with a new found freedom. Then this guy, all of two metres tall and a physique to match, gave me a bear hug in gratitude, and after the service left in a better state of mind.

I wish I could remember what I said to him back then. But even with the basic learning I possessed, there was a good chance that the individual named Esau was referred to as a nation of people, as suggested in Malachi 1:2-5, from where Paul quoted when writing to the church in Rome. Here, the prophet writes that God had loved Jacob but Esau he had hated and has turned his mountains into a wasteland suitable for jackals. In addition, a people always under the wrath of the Lord, mainly for oppressing Jacob, that is, Israel, and refusing access for Moses and the fledgling nation to pass through their land on their way to Canaan from Egypt (Numbers 20). It was a typical example of the antagonism Esau (Edom) had against his younger brother. And they were under the wrath of God, according to the prophet Malachi, which was before Jesus Christ was crucified, through which God had made peace with the world, including Edom. It is through this peace that Edom, along with his cousins Moab and Ammon, will escape the future times of trouble. More of this later. But just before Esau and Jacob were born, God did not say anything about loving one and hating the other. All he said was that one will serve the other.

Esau was the older of the two brothers born to Isaac, the son of Abraham, and his wife Rebekah, who did not have children for the first twenty years of marriage. When Rebekah eventually gave birth to twins, it was already confirmed by divine decree that Esau shall serve Jacob.

But during their lives, Esau never served his younger brother! Esau was his father's favourite son, an icon of masculinity. He went out each day hunting for game, which would feed the entire household, including the servants. In other words, he was the breadwinner, the pride of Isaac his father. Jacob, on the other hand, was Rebekah's favourite son. As a Mummy's boy, he stayed at home, engaged in "women's work" according to eastern culture. Jacob did the cooking, prepared the table, took care of the tablecloth and cutlery and did the washing and tidying up. Jacob, as with the rest of the family, was sustained by Esau's hunting skills. To bring this to modern times, one can say that Jacob stayed at home with Mother while his brother went off each day to work at the shipyard.

Jacob was the craftier of the two. As their father grew old and his vision became impaired, the rest of the family knew that the time for the blessing from Isaac was drawing near. One day, Esau came home hungry and bitterly frustrated in not catching any game. Jacob saw an opportunity to steal his brother's birthright. When Jacob offered some stew to his hungry brother in exchange for his birthright, Esau was too hungry and frustrated to give a moment's careful thought. Not long after, Isaac called for Esau to go out on a hunt and bring back game for him to feast on, and he will receive the blessing. Rebekah overheard the conversation and sent her son Jacob to fetch a goat and prepare it for his father, while Esau was out. Jacob's objection to all this was the deceit, not because he felt that it was wrong, but in fear of being caught out by his father. However, his mother disguised him with some fur on his neck and arms, and clothed him with his brother's clothes, making him feel and smell like his brother Esau.

Isaac was surprised at the rapidity of the dinner being prepared and served. After the meal, Isaac called in his son, believing him to be Esau. In fact, his vision was impaired, therefore blind. His sense of touch fooled him, as did his sense of smell. Only his sense of hearing was telling him the truth, and immediately aroused his suspicion. Jacob had to lie to his father in order to keep him deceived and receive the prophetic blessing.

Meanwhile, Esau returned from a successful hunt and prepared the feast. But when he discovered that his brother, through deceit, had stolen his blessing, he was furious, and vowed to kill Jacob. Rebekah had to send her favourite son away to spare his life. Lying and deceit is always sinful, no matter the circumstances. Rebekah's punishment was that after sending her favourite son away, meant for a duration of just a few weeks or several months at most, she was never to see her son again, having died before his return.

Jacob remained in exile for more than twenty years at his uncle's tent. But when the time came for him to return to Canaan with his own family, he was literally terrified of his own brother, and prepared gifts to offer for peace and reconciliation. When the two eventually met, Esau was far from angry. Rather, he was joyous to see his brother return, and both went to the tent of their elderly father Isaac, still alive but widowed. After his death and burial, the two brothers went their separate ways, Jacob remaining in Canaan while Esau settled on Mt. Seir, a territory south and east of the Dead Sea.

The people of Edom, descendants of Esau, were never subservient to Israel. Rather, the two became hostile to each other. Not long after the exodus, Moses begged the king of Edom to allow his people pass through their land, promising that nothing of theirs would be taken or even disturbed. But the Edomites railed at Israel and even sent troops to destroy or disband the fledgling nation. Their unkindness to Moses and all Israel was what brought the wrath of God, and not Esau himself! It was a part fulfillment of what God had told Abraham that he will bless those who bless him and curse those who curse him, Isaac and Jacob (Genesis 12:3). It was not until nearly a thousand years after Jacob and Esau had died that Edom became subservient to Israel under King David, who set up garrisons across their land.

Edom's subjection under King David foreshadowed a greater fulfillment which, even in the present day, is still future from our standpoint in time. In the book of Daniel, there is a prophecy which foretells the deliverance Edom will share along with cousins Moab and Ammon (Daniel 11:41). This verse is in context of a passage (verses 36-45) which many, if not most, Bible students consider to be the rise and reign of the future Antichrist, the Man of Perdition of the second chapter of 2nd letter to the Thessalonians. In short, God will deliver Edom, Moab and Ammon from the terror of the future world dictator. So who is Edom, Moab and Ammon? According to Biblical chronology, they are all descendants of Terah, Abraham's father. Abraham had a brother, Haran, whose son was Lot, making Lot the nephew of Abraham. Lot became the father of  Moab and Ammon. The present city and capital of Jordan, Amman, comes from the name Ammon.

Therefore the three nations of Edom, Moab and Ammon makes up the modern Arabs who to this day, are an irritant to Israel. At present, Edom is by no means serving Jacob. Rather, it has been one of Israel's oppressors for many years, particularly from 1948, the year the sovereign nation of Israel came into existence. This is the age of grace. God in Jesus Christ has removed all hostilities between himself and mankind, including Edom and the Arabs in general. God's grace is available for all believers in Jesus Christ being God and the Jewish Messiah, regardless of which nation the believer comes from. For God so loved the world - all who believe will receive eternal life and be saved. Therefore who will Esau be serving? I think it's none other than Jesus Christ himself, the seed of Jacob. This will be the final fulfillment of the prophecy Rebekah received from God during her pregnancy, that their Messiah will come from the younger brother Jacob, whom Esau, and everybody else, will willingly serve.

God hating Esau? Not anymore! Jesus Christ died on the cross to reconcile all mankind to himself. Now that looks very much more like the love of God, not hatred.

What is Hell? Pt 2 - Rich Man and Lazarus

This blog is the continuation of my last one, What is Hell? - The Fall Of Lucifer - and I recommend reading the first article if you have not done so yet, before reading this one.

The inspiration in writing these two articles was gotten from another blogger on this website who posted an article about the lake of fire, and I felt a confirmation of my long held suspicion over the "one size fits all" theory that the fiery lake of burning sulphur will be the final destiny for every soul of those who had lived and died without the rebirth of his spirit through faith in Jesus Christ. The suspicion originated on basically two issues here, both found in the Bible. The first one is that this lake of fire will be the final destiny of Lucifer and his angels. As pointed out in my previous article, Lucifer and his angels - in fact the whole of the realm, were spirits. They never had bodies. So how would a physical fiery lake affect them?

The second cause of concern I felt was that when Jesus Christ spoke of the afterlife, he referred to two different kind of destinies for the lost. One was the fiery lake or furnace of fire. The other was outer darkness, giving an impression of empty space with nothing tangible nor any source of light. In both cases the lost soul would "weep and gnash his teeth," depicting emotional torment and anger over his decision to reject or ignore the calling of God during his lifetime. Whether his eternal state would involve physical pain is a matter of opinion. Experience seem to indicate that pain causes the sufferer to forget everything else and concentrate on the affected area of his body. For example, suppose you were in debt, and as you were preparing dinner, you also were trying to figure out how to settle the debt. Due to a momentary loss of concentration, you upset a saucepan of boiling water, and you are scalded by it down your chest or across your arm. The sudden intense pain will not cause you to keep thinking about the debt. Rather you call for an ambulance, that is, if you don't fret around the room in frightful panic in the first place. If the lost soul is in intense pain, it would be the pain itself tormenting him, not the realisation of loss of eternal life in Heaven.

And I might add a third reason against the "one size fits all" eternity. That is, that the lost, at Judgement, will be judged "according to their works" (KJV) or "what they have done" (NIV). The Bible makes this clear in Revelation 20:12-13 and Matthew 16:27 that the punishment will be according on how one has lived his life while alive. Therefore a little old lady, who lived and died without ever hearing the Gospel, would not get the same level of punishment as, for example, Adolf Hitler who slew six million Jews in the Holocaust, or Joseph Stalin who had many killed for not adhering to his Communist manifesto. On the other hand, it does look grossly unfair for the little old lady, who was faithful to her husband and had never done anything maliciously wrong, to be immersed in fire for all eternity while at the same time, a strapping trucker, who had pub fights and bar brawls in his younger days, enjoys Heaven for having placed faith in Jesus Christ.

And what about the great many throughout history who lived and died without ever hearing the Gospel (and this would include all in Old Testament times.) It looks to me that in these cases, judgement will be by conscience. Romans chapters one and two seems to say a lot about this, stating that at first, creation itself provides testimony of God's greatness and power. Then Paul writes that his law is written in their hearts, with the conscience being the alarm whenever a sin is committed. But the conscience can be seared and the desire to sin grows with time. The person becomes aware of his wrongdoing, but grows to love this, pushing the truth about God aside. On this basis will they stand before God at the Judgement.

Then we need to consider the judgement Jesus himself makes right here on Earth, found in Matthew 25:41-46. This involves the hospitality shown to the 144,000 Jews of the seventh chapter of Revelation, of whom Christ refers to as "my brothers" (v. 40). Those on his left hand were sent to the eternal fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels, just as the heavenly judgement of the lost of Revelation 20 were sent to the same place. Showing hospitality is something anyone can do, whether he has faith in Christ or not. It is tragic, as I see it, that here in Britain, which calls itself a Christian country, hospitality does not rate high in our culture as it does, so I read, in Hindu India. So I believe that this judgement, the way the Jews were treated, will be the fulfilment of the edict God gave to Abraham in Genesis 12:3 where God will bless those who bless his descendants, and curses those who curses them.

Therefore, in my last blog, I suggested that both the eternal fire and total darkness may be illustrations of the eternal state of the lost. Much of this is to make sense of the Bible rather than swallow everything the Vatican dictates. But I, as a believer, have elderly parents who, by their own admission, are agnostics. Lately, my father, in his mid eighties, have been in and out of hospital, after suffering a series of strokes and heart palpitations. My mother struggles as she tries to take care of him. The thought of eternal fire gives me grief, believe me, it is a burden impossible to bear. But I have approached this issue with caution. I accept that I could be wrong. The lake of fire could well be a literal place. Then again, with this idea there are further problems - and this concerns the rich man and Lazarus found in Luke 16:19-31.

The rich man lived a sumptuous life, feasting everyday and enjoying life to the full. Outside his home was a beggar Lazarus, placed there so he could enjoy some hospitality from the rich man. Instead, the rich man's heart was like solid steel while the beggar starved. Eventually, both dies. The soul of Lazarus is taken to be comforted by Abraham, while the rich man falls asleep - and wakes up being tormented in Hell.

And here are three inconsistencies if the rich man was tormented in literal fire. One is on how he could hold an audible conversation with Abraham right across a wide gulf or chasm separating them. The other is why a drop of water placed on his tongue should bring such lasting relief if he was immersed in flames. And thirdly, after his death he was buried. This means that the rich man is suffering Hell as a discarnate spirit, without a body. And why was the tongue such an important organ for want of relief, if the whole of his soul was immersed in fire?

The tongue was his organ of taste. With it, he enjoyed such delicacies during life. But more important, his tongue was the organ of speech. With it, he cursed Lazarus as being wicked due to his poverty, and spoke of himself as righteous, his riches being proof of this. But as another blogger had pointed out, all this is a prophetic parable. After doing some research, I think we are able to identify who this rich man was, and prove how divinely the Bible is in being the true Word of God, and furthermore that Jesus Christ is the true Messiah and the risen Lord!

The rich man was Joseph ben Caiaphas, the High Priest at the time of Christ. He married a daughter of Annas ben Seth, also High Priest and one of the members of the Sanhedrin. Annas also had five sons, whom the historian Josephus was able to identify:

Eleazer ben Ananus
Jonathan ben Ananus
Theophilus ben Ananus
Matthias ben Ananus
Ananus ben Ananus

Caiaphus became son-in-law of Annas, and in Jewish custom, were as close as birth father and son, and his brothers-in-law as actual bloodline brothers. Therefore, through marriage, Caiaphas was a member of Annas' house, and his five sons became actual brothers.

Lazarus in Luke 16 was the brother of the two sisters of John 11, Martha and Mary. John tells us that Lazarus died and was buried at a nearby tomb, where he lay for four days. Jesus deliberately withheld himself for this duration to convince all that not only was Lazarus truely dead, but decomposition had set in and the corpse started to smell with decay. Caiaphas the High Priest knew this, and the Pharisees came to comfort his two grieving sisters, including Caiaphas' five brothers. Jesus was to perform a miracle that would change everything and seal his fate. After rebuking the two sisters for their lack of faith, he ordered the stone seal to be rolled open. He then called to Lazarus to come out, which he did. The miracle caused tremendous commotion among those who watched it. The common people were ready to hail Jesus as King and their Messiah, and they greeted him in this manner on his Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, by laying palm leaves on the road in front of his donkey.

But the Pharisees, despite witnessing such a miracle, refused to believe in Jesus as their Messiah and instead, they made plans to have him executed by crucifixion. John also tells us that many of the Pharisees as well as the common people went to see Lazarus as well, who must have told them over and over again what it was like beyond the grave, and how Jesus raised him up, proving that Jesus is the Christ. The five brothers of Caiaphas must have also seen Lazarus but refused to believe. Rather, according to John 12:9, they planned to execute Lazarus along with Jesus.

Christ before Caiaphas

In anwser to the rich man in Hell, by God's grace, Lazarus was sent to the five brothers by Abraham. Abraham, according to the parable, was right in predicting that the five brothers of Caiaphas' household would not believe even if he was raised from the dead.

The miracle of Lazarus was to show the population that Jesus is the long awaited Messiah, foretold by Moses and the prophets, such testimony about Jesus which the five brothers also refuse to believe. But John assures us that all who believe that Jesus is the Christ has eternal life and is born of God.

The parable of the rich man and Lazarus was a prophetic story told by Jesus Christ as he ministered to the Jews, and in the company of the Pharisees, who constantly monitored and questioned his teachings instead of believing in him. Jesus performed many miracles throughout his ministry, all of them to prove that he was their Messiah, yet the Pharisees remained in stubborn unbelief.

The rich man in Hell pleaded for the wellfare of his five brothers, that they may not enter this place of torment. His request was refused. I too plead for my parents. Will my request be refused too?

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28.

Trusting in God's goodness is all I can do.

What is Hell? Pt 1 - The Fall of Lucifer

The idea of Hell as a place of eternal fire where one burns for ever and ever after death was something I grew up with since childhood, as a Roman Catholic, this was the central issue peddled by the Vatican. The Catechism has always insisted that after death, the discarnate souls of the unsaved  suffer intense pain, at a level nothing here on Earth can match. When I was converted to faith in Jesus Christ as Saviour, I have found that this teaching of a literal eternal hellfire remained unchallenged within the Protestant faith. Even just a few years ago, I came across the front cover of a Christian magazine carrying a snapshot of Methodist minister, preacher and author David Pawson, who looked as if to be smirking. Behind the snapshot was an image of a volcanic lava lake, very much like that of  Kilauea Crater on the Hawaiian summit of Mauna Loa.

The message Pawson was immediately conveying on the cover was not addressed to unbelievers, although he firmly insist that all of the unsaved will end up in such a lake. Rather, the cover illustration was about the fate of true Christian believers who had either slipped from their faith, failed to overcome their sinful desires, sinned wilfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, or for that matter, divorce and then re-marry. Such believers, according to Pawson, will lose their salvation and end up in the lake of fire.

It is of little wonder that Catholicism and Arminian theology (of which Pawson advocates) has led to liberalism and spawned a crowd of atheists, who visualise God as a crushingly cruel tyrant and sadistic bully whose existence is an offence to human intelligence. Darwinism, for one, grew to mainly discredit Biblical Creationism, and once this had been achieved, then the Christian faith is robbed of all merit altogether. To the educated and the academic, the idea of a literal hellfire remain in the imagination of the deluded.

Yet the fiery hell of the Catholic faith continues to be preached by eminent men of the evangelical Protestant faith. Authors and preachers such as David Pawson, Dan Corner, Fred Phelps, Hal Lindsey, Dave Hunt, Norman Robertson, Tim LaHaye and a host of others all agree on the issue of a literal place of burning for the unsaved dead.

In Matthew 25:41-43, we read of the Lord Jesus teaching this:

Then he will say to those on his left (hand) "Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me."

And John wrote this in Revelation:

And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulphur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them.
And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done.
Then death and hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.
If any one's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Revelation 20:10-15.

Little wonder that the teaching of a literal fire of hell is believed on by both Catholic and Protestant faiths! But as I emphasised in the two passages above, the lake of fire was prepared for the devil and his angels. Apparently, God's intention in creating man was not to perish in a fiery lake. The whole intention of creation was to share and partake in the intense love existing between Father, Son and Holy Spirit, a Trinitarian love which had existed from eternity past and will continue into eternity future. Accompanying this love is peace and joy, a high form of happiness. They make a magnificent combination of emotions that are entirely unspoilt by any sin or its consequences. And it is, and will be, ours for the taking.

The angelic realm was created before the Universe, the planet Earth and mankind. God did not want his creation to be automatons, loving him by force or even by obligation. So God gave each angel free will, the ability to love and serve willingly.

Lucifer was the chief of the angelic realm. Apparently, he was to be guardian of the planet Earth, and according to Ezekiel 28:13 in the KJV, he was given the role of worship leader of the entire realm. It is worth quoting the entire text from the KJV:

Son of man, take up a lamentation the king of Tyrus and say unto him, Thus says the Lord GOD; Thou sealed up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.
Thou hast been in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius (ruby), topaz and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets (harps) and of thy pipes were prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.
Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.
Thou wast perfect in all thy ways from the day thou was created, till iniquity was found in thee.
Ezekiel 28:12:15.

Until iniquity was found in you! How could it happen?

Lucifer was startlingly handsome, of glittering beauty. I believe that he had a double role of leading the entire realm in worship to God, he was also put in charge of our planet. The whole of evil originated in the heart of this being. How could this happen? After all, this guy had absolutely everything one could wish for. He was stunningly rich, he had need of nothing, he never grew up in a slum environment, neither did he ever experienced poverty or hardship. His work was a joy, not a burdensome task. I would go as far to say that he was fulfilling the happy roles we as true believers will one day fulfill in God's presence for ever. Then it happened.

Worshipping God was not enough for Lucifer. He wanted to be God himself. As pride filled his heart, he was in effect saying, "Move over, God. I want to be the centre and focal point of worship from now on."

When this was denied, Lucifer shook his fist at God and dared the whole realm to leave their established positions and follow him as leader and ruler of his own kingdom, to be set up on our planet. Amazingly, a third of the entire angelic population made up their minds to accept Lucifer as their leader as they were thrown out of the heavenly realm to settle upon the Earth. The other two thirds, however, remained true to God.

Students of the Bible are not sure when this particular event occurred. Some think that it occurred after Adam and Eve were created, and Lucifer arrived on this planet from Heaven to tempt Eve by speaking audibly to her through a snake. Others, including myself, believe in the "Gap Theory." This means that there was a period of time between Genesis 1:1 and verse two. The fall and rebellion of Lucifer took place before Adam and Eve were created. Verse two says that after God created the heavens and the earth, that the earth was without form and void. The Hebrew words for "Without form and void" indicates a state of chaos. If Lucifer rebelled after the creation of the Earth but before the six day creation, this could indicate that Lucifer's rebellion threw the planet into chaos, and God had to make sweeping changes to render it habitable for mankind.

Lucifer, which, after the fall, became known as Satan and the Devil, took full charge of man's affairs, but already knowing of his coming defeat when God promised that the seed of the woman will bruise his head.

The crucifixion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ sealed Lucifer's fate. As promised, he and his angels are destined for the lake of fire. Which leads to a problem worth considering. Is the lake of fire literal?

What is fire? For flames to exist, something material and tangible must be consumed by burning. Fire burns wood, paper and coal. It has the power to turn iron red hot and eventually melt it. Volcanic lava is heated rock, mainly basalt. Lucifer and his angels are spirits who has never had physical bodies. If that is true, then how could literal fire hurt them?

And this leads us to the question: If the Catholic Church insists that discarnate spirits of the unsaved dead are thrown into a literal lake of fire, then without bodies to consume, how would the fire affect them? And what is being consumed by the fire? And returning to the subject of Lucifer, if before his fall he was wearing precious stones, how could this be relevant if this guy was (and still is) a spirit and had no body? Were the precious stones to be taken literally?

In Revelation 20:10-15, along with Matthew 25:41-46 a fiery end is stated for the wicked. In Matthew 13:42 a fiery furnace is also stated by Jesus Christ. Yet in Matthew 8:12, 22:13 and 25:30, there is talk about eternal darkness. This seem to indicate something like outer space, where there is complete darkness, with nothing tangible or of any source of light. There seems to be an inconsistency between literal fire and this darkness. Fire is a source of light. For millennia, fire was always used for torchlight. Could this eternal fire and outer darkness be illustrations of the state of being separated from God's presence?

That, I believe, is a strong possibility. Although I'm being cautious here, the idea of fire and darkness being illustrations seems to be backed by the statement, "weeping and gnashing of teeth," which appears in all verses, along with Matthew 24:51 where the sinner is thrown out of the banquet.

Weeping and gnashing of teeth indicates mental and emotional torment, including anger, along with a sharp feeling of regret, rather than physical pain. Experience has shown that physical pain result in screaming and hollering. We don't seem to see any of this in the Bible, but much about weeping and gnashing of teeth (gnashing of teeth indicating anger at his own decision to reject Christ as Saviour during his lifetime). Another indication of emotional torment is found in Luke 13:28. Here we are told that unbelieving Jews will be thrust out of the Kingdom of God. Again we see the emotional torment of weeping and gnashing of teeth, but this time as these sinners see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob sitting inside. It is important to note at this point that the mental and emotional anger and torment will be experienced by both the fallen angelic realm and lost sinners alike.

What can we conclude from all this? That every lost sinner will be shut out from the Kingdom of God, most likely in outer darkness. They will be in mental and emotional torment as if immersed in fire. They will have very strong desires for love and company, but these will eternally remain unfulfilled as their separation from God will also result in intense loneliness. They would have had a glimpse of the magnificent beauty of the Heavenly Jerusalem, and even recognise believers whom they mocked and laughed at during their lifetimes. This will add a deep sense of regret when they realise that all this was offered to them, if only they would have believed.

There is no need to be condemned to eternal separation from God. Jesus Christ is right now offering a free gift of salvation to all who would receive it by faith.

In my next blog, I shall be looking at the rich man and Lazarus, found in Luke 16.

Your comments on this topic would be welcome. God bless.

The Great Leveller

There are several events I enjoy watching, and the 2012 London Olympics has given me the opportunity to watch what I believe are the fast endurance events, such as the men's and women's road cycle races and that which is the closest to my heart - the triathlon. The Women's Triathlon was broadcast yesterday (Saturday August 4th) with Nicola Spirig of Switzerland just about taking the gold, after the dead-heat finish with Lisa Norden of Sweden, with both finishing at 1:59:48.00.
Third was Erin Densham who took bronze after finishing in 1:59:50.00

The result of this event was that only the three in the medals broke the two-hour barrier. Fourth was Sarah Groff  (USA) who finished at exactly 2:00:00.00, while the first British female triathlete was Helen Jenkins who came fifth, clocking 2:00:19.00.

As for the Men's Triathlon, at the time of writing, still due to be staged this coming Tuesday, I'll be taking the morning off work to watch it on TV! And the Men's Road Cycling event was won by Alex Vinokurov of Kazakhstan and in the Women's Road Cycling, on the next day, the gold was taken by Marianne Vos of the Netherlands. There was only one British gold winner in such events, as far as I know, and that was Bradley Wiggins who won the men's cycling time trials, not bad either, after winning the Yellow Jersey in the Tour de France just a few weeks earlier.

But the greatest Olympic medal winner of all time must be swimmer Michael Phelps of the USA, who in London, collected four golds and two silvers at the indoor Aquatics pool. In all, throughout his swimming career, Phelps collected a total of 28 Olympic medals, and he had just retired last night after winning gold in the men's relay medley.

The Opening Ceremony of the Athens 2008 Olympics

All these athletes have superb, well trained bodies suited to their chosen sport. But it was during the Opening Ceremony that we were reminded of the dreadful fact that none of them will remain in their peak of fitness over time. Even Michael Phelps chose to retire now, while he was still on top, rather than see himself slipping down the field, then failing to qualify for the next Olympics altogether. At the Opening Ceremony, former world boxing champion Muhammad Ali appeared at the stadium, literally supported by an assistant, as his body is presently wracked by Parkinson's Disease. To see him in such a state was heartbreaking. This was because I was around when he as at the peak of his boxing career. He was born as Cassius Clay in 1942, and began training as a boxer after his bicycle was stolen when he was a boy. In 1960 he won gold in the Light Heavyweight title at the Rome Olympics, and the story goes, that he refused to take the medal off his chest for a period of time, even in the bath. Clay changed his name to Muhammad Ali after joining the Nation of Islam in 1964, then aged only 22 years old. His motto was, I am the Greatest!

Cassius Clay (left) not long after turning professional

And this is where he made his biggest mistake. Ali should not have said "I am the Greatest!" - but "God is the Greatest!" Now we see him, some seventy years of age, having to be supported by an assistant. There are plenty of men who are older than him but can get about as freely as anyone in good health. Even the Duke of Edinburgh is old enough to be Ali's father, yet save for a recent bladder infection, he can get around freely without assistance.

As a Christian, my heart goes out for all these athletes, past and present. God says of them, as he does to all mankind, that he is patient, and not willing that any should perish, but all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).

Death is the great leveller. As Solomon once wrote, there is really no difference between a king and a worm, for the same fate awaits them both. Life, with all its glories, is a cruel vanity.

But God, in his love, is more than willing to give eternal life to all who believe on his Son, Jesus Christ, who was crucified to atone for our sins, and then is risen, conquering death altogether!

Jesus Christ is risen. And we don't have to wait until Easter to celebrate this. We can celebrate any time of the year. In the remainder of this blog, I would like to show some striking similarity between the Olympic Games and eternal salvation.

Christ died to atone for our sins, and is risen from the dead. Thus eternal life is given as a free gift to all who have faith in Jesus crucified. To qualify for the Olympics is also free. The athlete does not pay a sum of money to compete, at least, as far as I know. After qualifying, they get a free entry. They then become Olympians. Likewise, as a Christian believer follows the lead of the Holy Spirit within him, he starts to win crowns as heavenly rewards. These rewards will be at a heavenly presentation known by Bible scholars as the Judgement Seat of Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:5-15, 2 Corinthians 5:10). It is a rostrum, and believers from all ages will be rewarded on how he had lived his Christian life. At the top end, the reward is the Crown of Life, which is given to all who were martyred for their faith. Various other crowns are rewarded, such as the Crown of Righteousness, given to those who eagerly waited for his return. There may be also a soul-winner's crown as well. And there will be other rewards too, such as the crown for overcoming the flesh. But also at the rostrum will be believers who led carnal lives while alive on Earth. These will get nothing, except seeing their flesh-motivated works getting burnt up. For them this will be a time of tears and feelings of regret. Very much like the tears of Olympians who had just missed out on a medal.

But even the carnal Christians will be saved. After God wiping away their tears, they will spend eternity with Christ forever. Why so? Because they are just as much part of the Body and Bride of Christ as the crown-winners. From this rostrum no one will end up in Hell. No bride, as far as I know, had voluntarily amputated any of her body parts before walking up the aisle!

In short one can put it this way:
The athlete, after qualifying, becomes an Olympian, a title he keeps for life.
The believer, through faith, becomes a Christian, and forever be united with Christ.

The Olympian must strive to win the race to receive his prize, a medal.
The Christian must keep on walking in the power of the Holy Spirit to win his prize, a crown.

After the heavenly Judgement seat of Christ is accomplished, according to many Bible scholars, there follows the heavenly communion, the partaking of the bread and wine, a reminder of the breaking of Christ body and his blood spilt in order to atone for the sins of every believer in Heaven (Revelation 19:1-10). This, in my mind, is the most important heavenly event in all eternity. After physical death, this is the greatest leveller ever to take place. Every saint in Heaven is there only because Christ died for them, and death was conquered by him for them. This supper will prevent the one with many crowns looking down on those with nothing. The heavenly supper will prevent any form of boasting. Every saint will be humbled, realising that their presence is wholly the work of Jesus Christ.

I have never known an Olympian gold medallist looking down or boasting over those who had never reached such a pinnacle in life. There seems to be no record of arrogance among Olympic medallists. It seems to me that having a gold medal placed around the victor's neck is a humbling experience.

Being reminded of the sacrifice Jesus Christ made on our behalf will have an even greater humbling effect on all believers. Such is the great leveller.