I Would Still Be Running...

In Part One of this two-parter, I have given reasons why I have questioned the Christian faith, attempting to put myself in the atheist's line of reasoning. Issues, such as how could God forgive a serial killer, just because he now believes in Jesus, after sending the souls of his victims into a lost eternity, they have not heard the Gospel or properly understood the good news? Or that of a baby born in a non-Christian country apparently doomed for all eternity right from birth just for growing up under a different religion. Or reading Biblical stories vindicating God's victory over Israel's enemies, the Amalekites, by ordering King Saul to have the entire tribe slain - men women, their children and even their newborns - all destined for the kill, including their livestock - cattle, sheep, donkeys and camels - neither they nor any of the younger children and infants having any awareness of the tribe's violent history against Israel.

Or the case of the natural world where carnivores prey on their helpless victims, whether it's a spider rolling up a bug caught in its web as the latter makes its final struggle. Or a crocodile drowning a zebra in the river, or a pride of lions chasing and surrounding a herd of fleeing cattle. And that dreadful creature, the box jellyfish thriving off the Australian coastline. Such is the creation of a loving merciful God, yet, its sting can be fatal to an adult without treatment with an antidote, let alone a child screaming in pain - for daring to venture into the jellyfish's territory.

But, what I didn't mention in last week's blog was the two cases of talking animals, both found in the Old Testament. The first one was the snake who spoke to Eve in the language she understood. As this was in the brief period of innocence, Eve took in the conversation as something normal, to be expected. The fear and dread of the serpent weren't initiated until after the Fall when God pronounced judgment on all the three subjects - the snake, Adam and Eve.

The second occasion occurred when Balaam the prophet was riding on a jenny donkey to deliver a curse on Israel's campground, under the command of the Moabite king Balak in return for a rich reward. As the prophet was on his way to deliver his curse, an angel of God stood in the way, and the donkey ended up lying on the ground with Balaam, consumed by the anger of his journey frustrated, beating the beast to coax it to proceed. The donkey then cries out, also in a language understood by the rider, asking why she was beaten three times when, up to then, she was always loyal to him - Numbers 22:21-41.

It's here that I'm pondering on Balaam's reaction to the donkey's protest rather than the speech itself. Suppose that I was riding that donkey when it suddenly spoke in a clear English language. I would cry out, What the... then dismount and run - and keep on running!

Instead, Balaam answers the donkey's question as if in a normal day-to-day conversation - as if it's perfectly natural for donkeys to talk all the time. It's Balaam's casual reply to the supernatural manifestation, rather than the manifestation itself, that stumps me, sending my head whizzing!

It needs to be realised that all the above are contributions delivered by a host of different atheists, and not from just one. Hence, I feel it's relevant. For example, I have taken the total views of just five different atheists on YouTube. Between them, there are at this moment, 207,438,554 views and rising rapidly, and by using the comment forums as a yardstick, I could see the vast majority of visitors agreeing with them rather than defending their faith. Then not to mention TV naturalists such as staunch evolutionist David Attenborough with his first series, Life, broadcasted in 1979, it was watched by up to 500,000,000 viewers worldwide, with up to 6,840,000 in Britain alone. Not to mention later series, such as The Blue Planet with its beautiful background music, released on air in 2001 and watched by more than 12,000,000 viewers in the UK.

And so, I feel a bit of a plonker trying to convince anyone that the Bible, with its Young-Earth creationist theory, even a spurious flat-Earth theory, two talking animals, and a vengeful, vindictive God authorising the slaying of young children for their ancestor's sins - as all historic events. Added to this, the concept of just one man atoning for an unnumbered quantity of believers is perceived by them as utterly foolish and inept. 

As one who believes in Jesus Christ as Saviour, I take it that the world sees me as someone who is reasonably harmless but addle-headed, an eccentric, one who is out of touch with the real world of science, and considered untrustworthy in all most other matters. If I was to say that I believe in a talking snake, a talking donkey, that a shadow cast by the sun on a sundial went backwards, and that there was an extra-long day with no record of a corresponding long night, and that dead people had been resurrected back to life - all as historic, then hardly anyone would take me seriously. Especially when there's a small group of Christians who, despite their insignificant numbers, have mouths so loud in declaring that the Earth is flat, is covered by a dome and saying that the Bible endorses this fallacy, makes me look utterly foolish in the eyes of a well-educated group of YouTube atheists with their 208,000,000 viewers - around three times the entire UK population.

Therefore, how can I defend my faith in God and verify the historicity of the Bible?

Well, no other book, religious or secular, contains any fulfilled or unfulfilled prophecies. Thus, for a book to contain prophecies in the first place makes the book very unique. And even the Old Testament points to Jesus, his death on the Cross, his burial and his Resurrection just three days after his Crucifixion, making the Bible unique, placing the Cross as the most important event in the whole of human history. Old Testament prophecy can be hidden in apparently unrelated stories, such as Samson's riddle given to the Philistine elders: Out of the strong came something sweet. The answer to the riddle is the lion is strong and from its carcase, honey was provided.

Can honey be extracted from a lion?

Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. He was crucified, and from his death, the sweet honey of salvation is now freely available to all who wants it. Or the case of Abraham about to sacrifice his son Isaac on the altar. Here, God intervenes and provides a ram whose horns were caught in some nearby bushes, to take Isaac's place. Thus, the patriarch's own phrase, the Lord will provide, is a direct reference to Jesus Christ and his own death taking our place instead of us having to face eternal death.

Or the case of the Passover Lamb, an annual custom celebrated by all Jews across Israel and scattered worldwide. It's a remembrance of the evening when the Hebrews were slaves in Egypt. On their final evening in Egypt before their exodus, Moses instructed them to slay a lamb, one without any blemish, and paint their doorposts with the lamb's blood. Then they were to roast the carcase and eat it hurriedly without breaking any of its bones. The Passover foreshadows the Crucifixion. As the blood of the lamb spared the death of their firstborn that was inflicted upon the Egyptians, so the shedding of Christ's blood atoned for us. As the bones of the slain lamb were not broken, neither was the Lord's bones broken either, even if those of the two thieves were.

Other customs we practice without further thought originated from the Bible. Are you married and raising a family? That was the first commandment God gave to Adam and Eve. Are you dressed? Soon after the Fall, God supernaturally clothed Adam and Eve with the fur taken from a slain animal as a substitutionary offering for atonement. Another foreshadow of Jesus Christ. Do you rest from paid work at weekends? That was from a command from God for Israel to observe the Sabbath, itself connected to the death and the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. That is, we now worship on a Sunday, the day of the week Jesus had risen from the dead, thus symbolising the eternal rest God gives to all believers.

However, the Bible contains direct prophecies of the coming Messiah. Psalm 22, Isaiah 53, and Zechariah 11:12-13 are striking examples of the foretelling of Christ's first coming. For example, how could both King David and the prophet Isaiah describe with stunning accuracy the suffering of Jesus while he was hanging there on the cross - and then Isaiah then saying afterwards that he will prosper, and be given a portion with the great, and also divide his spoils with the strong. A complete contradiction within one chapter? Not if the Resurrection is to be believed!

Also worth considering here is a prophecy of Almighty God actually sent by Almighty God. It's found in the whole 2nd chapter of the prophet Zechariah, the last-but-one book of the Old Testament. For the Jews, who have always believed that "God is one, there is just one God" - this prophecy I find astonishing to see it there in the Hebrew scriptures written by Jews, for Jews. That means that the Christ crucified is non-other than Almighty God himself, God the Son, or the Son of God. That was why the Atonement was effective enough to cleanse the whole world from sin. For it to be made, Jesus Christ had to be not only sinless but had to be God himself.

And all this is endorsed by mathematics, the science of space and quantity. Back in the late 1940s and into the 50s, Californian professor Peter Stoner gave his students a set of Old Testament prophecies and assigned them the task of finding the probability of these prophecies fulfilled purely by chance and without divine intervention. For example, Micah 5:2 says that the future Messiah will be born in Bethlehem. But why there, if there are many other towns in Israel where the Messiah could have been born? On top of this, Mary and Joseph didn't live in Bethlehem when she became pregnant, but at Nazareth, a three-day journey north of Bethlehem.

Oh, what a coincidence that the Roman Emperor orders everyone to return to their original home towns for registration. It was the timing of this call, to coincide with Mary's arrival into Bethlehem with her time of delivery. Furthermore, the Emperor knew absolutely nothing about Mary and her pregnancy!

The probability of such prophecy being fulfilled without divine intervention was added to 47 other Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah's first coming, including the few I had already mentioned. Using the factoring of probabilities, the experiment revealed that the chance of all these prophecies fulfilled purely by coincidence is one chance in one, followed by 181 zeros! 

To see the significance of this enormous number, imagine a ball of tightly-packed tiny electrons many, many times larger than the known Universe. A single election is so small, that it would take billions of them to form a line just one centimetre long, but here is a ball of them so huge to even try to imagine. Mark out one electron to distinguish it from the rest, and stir it thoroughly into the ball. Then send a blindfolded man into the ball. If he comes back with the marked electron on the first try, then it would be safe to say that the Bible isn't inspired by God.*

Little wonder that many who were convinced that the Bible was divinely inspired and historical willingly gave their lives, even to the extent of being burned alive at the stake. The story of Ridley and Latimer, two bishops who were burned alive at the stake at Oxford University on October 16th, 1555, is one of the most striking stories. They gave their lives to uphold the truthfulness of the Bible.

And to this day, we see church buildings all around us. A brick-and-mortar testimony of the historicity of Jesus Christ and the Bible. Just as mosques exist because Mohammed once lived. And Buddhist temples exist because Buddha the monk was once alive. But these two died and their bones are with us to this day. By contrast, Jesus rose from the dead, thus proving to be the promised Messiah.

Indeed, the stack of evidence to believe outweighs any reasons to remain an atheist.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

* Henry M. Morris, The Bible and Modern Science, 1951, Moody Press, pages 119-120.

Some Challenging Issues to the Faith

I always recall my earlier days of church life. With each of us holding the Baptist Hymnbook with its characteristic green hardback cover, all our heads were slightly bowed as we sang with gusto:-

The perfect redemption, the purchase of blood, to every believer the promise of God,

The vilest offender who truly believes, that moment from Jesus a pardon receives.

Then the song burst into its chorus:-

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, let the earth hear His voice!

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, let the people rejoice!

Oh, come to the Father through Jesus the Son and give Him the glory, great things He has done.

It's a beautiful song, a classic, written by Francis J. Crosby in 1875, and unlike most modern songs, it's still sung in churches to this day, over more than a century after publication.

Francis Jane Crosby

It's without a doubt that Crosby felt excited over her redemption. That was why she wrote the hymn - to express her feelings by thanking and praising God, and that despite she was blind! And as one not long after becoming a believer myself, I felt my own spirit rise with encouragement as I too sang with gusto.

But looking back into history, I can't help thinking of the anomalies such songs would cause me to think, such as looking back into British history, for example. One issue is to come to terms with the possibility of Jack the Ripper having believed in Jesus after murdering several London prostitutes and yet not only escaping legal justice but his identity remaining a mystery to this day. If this character heard the Gospel whilst on the run, and believed, how does it make me feel about him entering Heaven while his female victims are languishing in Hell, not having had the opportunity to hear and respond to the Gospel before their demise?

Then not to mention other serial killers who were active in the UK: John Reginald Christie, Dr Harold Shipman, Peter Sutcliffe, Fred and Rose West, all of them targeted mainly women, then there were Ian Brady and his partner, Myra Hindley, who in the mid-sixties, having killed five children just for kicks, While she was in prison, it was said that Hindley became a Christian sometime before her death. Only God knew the state of her heart during her latter years. There were even female killers too, such as Mary Ann Cotton who poisoned more than twenty victims, Amelia Dyer, who killed young children in her care as a nurse and then as a Victorian baby farmer. Then there was Beverly Allitt, also known as the Angel of Death, who killed four babies and attempted to kill nine more.

These are just a few of many British serial killers, any one of them could have "truly believed, that moment from Jesus a pardon received" - despite the possibility of the souls of many of their victims remaining eternally lost.

I have read at least two books on ex-gangsters who, later in life became Christians and even entered the ministry. Nicky Cruz, in his book, Run Baby Run, tells of his life as a New York gangster who harmed many victims. Whether any of them died in his hands, here I can't say - it's a long time since I read his biography. But he was remarkably saved by God and should enter Heaven in his afterlife. Unfortunately, his victims may not be so fortunate. The other book I read was Hell's Angel by Brian Greenaway. According to his biography, after causing much trouble and harm to others as a Hell Angel, he became a Christian while serving at Dartmoor prison, and retaining his long hair, he too entered the ministry.

Indeed, according to Jesus' own words, the tax collector and prostitutes may enter the Kingdom of God before the Pharisees, but that doesn't calm my concerns about all those born in a Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu or even a Catholic country. Is it really more fortunate to be born in a Christian country where the Bible can be expounded in churches without any opposition? Is it true that a baby born in the USA, Canada, Australia, or Great Britain has a far greater chance of receiving salvation than one born in India, China, Iran, or even in Catholic-dominated Mediterranean lands or a baby born in South America? These issues I have found to be challenging to my own faith.

It's believed by most Christians that if a baby dies soon after birth, or even stillborn, its soul would be immediately with Jesus in heaven, although not as a baby but as an adult, yet devoid of any memory of its earthly life. But if the doctors fought hard to save the baby's life, so it grows up to see adulthood - but also brought up by unbelieving parents to become an atheist, would he had been far better off having died in infancy? And so, such questions circulate my mind.

Talking of atheists, how would I answer if one of them came to me with his knowledge of God ordering King Saul to have his army slaughter all the Amalekites just so God can have his vindication? But here, it's not just the men, but women, children, and all infants must also be killed, along with all their cattle, sheep, camels and donkeys - 1 Samuel 15. I would find my answer - that the children would have still gone to Heaven - a very weak and pathetic excuse to justify the love and goodness of God. This, I honestly admit, is one of the "crunchers" in the Bible with which I can't look an atheist in the eye.

And, oh yes, that very obscure verse found in 2 Samuel 12:8. Here, it's God who, through the prophet Nathan, said that he gave to David his master's house and all his master's wives into his bosom (KJV) and if that wasn't enough, he would have given him more. Of all that the Bible says about marriage, this is indeed the oddest verse to be found therein. In Genesis 2, God assigns Eve to be Adam's wife, and apparently, this is upheld throughout the New Testament that the man must be the husband of one wife only. And so, the churches endorse this, even in some cases, threatening Hell for anyone who divorces and remarries. One well-known itinerant English preacher, the late David Pawson, taught this quite clearly, and one year in the 1990s, during Spring Harvest at Butlins, Minehead, he almost sent an entire auditorium into a near-riot after announcing that to marry a divorcee will cost them their salvation.

Spring Harvest Bible Festival, Minehead, UK.

Too bad for poor Abraham, who slept with his maidservant Hagar while his wife Sarah was still alive. Or Jacob, who had two wives, Leah and Rachel, as well as sleeping with two other maidservants. And there was Elkanah who also had two wives living concurrently, Peninnah and Hannah - 1 Samuel 1:1-2. Peninnah had children, but Hannah was barren, that is until she prayed fervently for a son and promised to dedicate him to the services of God for life. After the birth of Samuel, Hannah sang a song of thanksgiving and praise to God, a song that was also sung by the virgin Mary in the company of Elizabeth the mother of John the Baptist.

If these modern preachers such as Pawson and his ilk were right, then all these men and women in the Old Testament would now be eternally lost. But it looks far more plausible that they are now all in Heaven. I, therefore, conclude then that it's okay for me to sleep with other women as long as I still have my wife Alex. But if Alex and I were to divorce and I marry somebody else, then it will be Hell for both my new wife and me, and perhaps for Alex, too! However, most churches would be quite likely to accept a divorced person into its congregation, even one who has remarried - but if a male homosexual who has "come out for honesty's sake" - was to join the church, or attempt to join, then everyone would look at him with suspicion - even if that person abstains from any sexual activity for the sake of the Gospel!

But for the gay person, as for those who are mentally distressed, or physically ill, there is always the healing ministry. While I'm writing this (on a Saturday) I am aware that at tomorrow's service, the preach will be about supernatural healing performed by Jesus during his ministry, recorded in the Gospel of Mark, and part of the sermon would include how willing for God to heal today. Indeed, I have heard of numerous tales of people of every calibre receiving healing. But that is often for very mild ailments. However, even the healing of the more serious illnesses, such as kidney failure or even cancer, such testimonies usually stay within the church and never find their way even to the local newspaper with the Doctor's official endorsement, let alone on TV or on a national scale. 

The truth is, after watching my beloved suffering a neurological disability for the last eight years, and even our church elders and I praying over and over again for her, throughout the whole of my 69 years of life, I had never seen any form of supernatural healing with my own eyes. Or, as I have admitted during a Zoom prayer meeting, throughout the whole of my Christian life dating back nearly fifty years, I have heard about but never seen any supernatural healing. Surely, real healing - such as that of a lifelong paralytic - would impact the church so much that the Media will want to know more about it. How much of a greater impact would a literal raising of a dead individual make?

And so, around 1998, one of our church members died of leukaemia. As the body lay inside our church building, a charismatic pastor from another church several miles away and who has guest-preached at our church several times already, arrived to try to raise him from the dead utilizing prayer through faith. Nothing happened. Instead, the fellow remained as much dead as before. Eventually, this preacher stopped visiting us. But had he been successful, alas! I wouldn't have been there to witness the miracle.

To the atheist, along with most unbelievers, our present tales of healing are lacking enough substance not to convince them of the presence and the power of God. Even in Jesus' day, when he performed miracles of healing, including raising the dead, word spread rapidly across the whole of Israel, and beyond. Apparently, people as far apart as Egypt and Sidon became aware of them. Nevertheless, the greater majority of the Jews refused to believe in the demonstrated power of God, even rebuking the Lord for healing on the Sabbath instead of acknowledging his divine being. Supernatural healing doesn't necessarily result in mass conversions.

Listening to the atheist express his opinion on a YouTube video can be quite enlightening on what he believes in, what he doesn't believe in, and why. And one ex-Jehovah's Witness who has turned to atheism list five animals to prove that God doesn't exist. Yes, I have already discussed this in a previous blog which was recently posted. However, these five animals include the box jellyfish, the snake, the bed bug, the mosquito, and the human. On the box jellyfish or the sea wasp, as it's also known by, he asks why did God create such a creature that has the potential to kill an adult man if its sting is left untreated, let alone a child first screaming in pain! Yet, according to the presenter, there is no benefit for such a creature to exist. 

As for the human, he asks why, if God is so perfect in his creation if childbearing is such a strain to the mother. This includes morning sickness, pain in the lower abdomen, a general feeling of discomfort, miscarriage or spontaneous abortion, the possibility of stillbirth, premature birth and needing intensive care for the baby, labour pains, bleeding... If God had created everything so lovingly perfect, then why so much distress in childbearing? Rather, isn't this the result of the imperfections picked up during the process of Evolution, and that in its last explosive stages, Evolution had skewed in its upward progress - a theory fully in line with proper scientific thinking?

And another atheist asks why, if God is so loving and merciful, then why are some animals created to be carnivorous? He then chooses the crocodile lunging at a zebra as it tries to cross the river to reach better pastures. He then describes how the mammal suffers prolonged pain as it struggles to escape the reptile's jaws as they penetrate the flesh and bleeds, staining the river water with blood. And then the sorry sight of a newly-hatched chick, a favourite snack for some preditors. The scene is filmed by the camera crew as the fluffy hatchling struggles to escape the jaw of its attacker while it was waiting for its mother to return with its food. And so, in the African grasslands, herds of peaceful herbivores suddenly panic and flee from the advancing lions or cheetahs, and the meat-eaters go for the cub, struggling to flee as it's caught up and subdued by the hungry predator. 

Such is the real world created by a loving, merciful God. With such mountains of knowledge so easily accessible, to share my faith to win converts would be nigh impossible. Even with the raising of the dead right in front of them, they would find some scientific proof that the deceased wasn't dead after all, and all he needed was a nudge to wake him up. 

Yes, I have some issues against my Christian faith. But will all this make me an apostate? Will I turn atheistic after picking up so much knowledge and revelation?

No, for at the end of the day I will never lose my Christian faith. And Part Two of this blog, which will deal with defending my faith, will be posted next week. 

The Most Glorious Gift.

Although the characters and circumstances here are fictitious, the story is based on various true incidences I have seen, heard and even read about in the past.

                                                                      ***

There were two friends, two men about the same age. One was married, the other single. The married one was Ted, the other, Doug. Ted was the married one. The two had known each other for several years. Then one day, Doug's church closed down due to a combined shrinking congregation and in deep financial debt, and the building where the main services were held went into administration.

Doug, who lived on his own, began to miss the Sunday corporate worship, and he began to feel lonely. One day, he phoned his mate Ted and asked whether he can come around to enjoy the company of his mate and his wife, Sandra, as Doug was also aware that both of his friend's daughters had already flown the nest. Their eldest daughter had just started a career up in Nottinghamshire, the other a student at Bristol University.

Doug was keen on both comedy and documentaries. And so, Doug began to call at Ted's home once a week for lunch and TV, whilst also visiting other churches with a hope of finding one that has permanent suitability.

Both liked to greet each other with a hug, and also to part with a hug too. And it was for this reason that, on one occasion, Ted assured his friend that despite such affection, he was not gay - his years of happy marriage to Sandra verifying this. Sometimes, the two mates went out together. Day trips to London were also common, both with and without Sandra. However, if one of the two boys needed to answer a call of nature at a public restroom, the other usually waited outside. Neither thought otherwise, except for those occasional moments when both had to meet their need.

Yet, Ted slowly began to worship Doug. This was out of admiration for his friend's academic qualities, including a doctorate. Ted was just the opposite. He failed at school and left education to enter the real world of manual work without any qualifications, much to the disappointment of his parents, who were ashamed of their comparatively dim son living in a neighbourhood full of bright kids.

In turn, Doug's high level of education made a deep impression on Ted's psyche, and he began to develop a fetish for Doug's bare arms, as he tends to wear a tee-shirt whenever the weather is mild. For weeks on end, the husband and father felt attracted towards his mate's sleeveless limbs and even stroked them whilst sitting at a table in a bar or restaurant. Doug seemed to enjoy the sensation.

Then, one day, Ted was becoming tired of what he thought was living a lie. Even in his wife's arms in bed, his spirit felt agitated, and he was unable to sleep properly. He knew that he had to confess to his friend what was going on in his mind. He felt that he couldn't go on like this. He then phoned and confessed to the fetish he felt for his friend's upper limbs.

The response was not what Ted had hoped for. What he would have wanted was Doug's sympathetic attitude expressed in a talk concluding in an agreement with a promise from Ted that he won't stroke his bicep anymore, and it would help if his mate wore a long-sleeved shirt or a jumper. But instead, his response was:

Thanks for your honesty. I won't be seeing you or Sandra anymore. And that was it. Ted then realised that Doug was sitting in Moses' seat. By heck, Ted then thought to himself: With Christians like Doug, along with others with similar attitudes representing the churches, no wonder atheism is spreading across this so-called "Christian country" as fast as mould spreads across stale bread!

Yet despite the shock, Ted felt deeply for his former friend. How he now regrets making the confession and how much he wishes to turn back the clock! Doug was the closest friend he has ever had, a mate who cared for him and had none of the snobbery or the arrogance that many well-educated men have over those not so well endowed academically. He was a far cry from many an Etonian, for example, whose privileged upbringing gave him that sense of entitlement - that attitude history has shown to be obnoxious. As a doctor, Doug was never like any of those posh people. And so, Ted sits there and looks around. How he wished that he simply kept his hands to himself and his mouth shut! 

But his conscience wouldn't allow it. Rather, he knew that even as a Christian, he was still accountable to God, and one day he will stand before the Bema Seat of Christ, a rostrum where rewards are given out to faithful believers. It will be no place to shed tears of regret. Hence, his initial confession.

In the nights following the loss of his friend, Ted began to have dreams of his relationship with Doug. The first one was of Doug acting with such hostility that Ted thought that he was about to be killed. A few nights later, another dream Ted had, was of Doug and himself becoming reconciled and the friendship resumes. He was disappointed when he woke up to reality.

With his wife's encouragement, it didn't take very long to re-acquaint to life without Doug visiting, even though he still miss his friend's weekly calls. As he sat and meditated, he knew that he wasn't a homosexual. Although he had a fetish for his friend's arms, that was it. He also knew that the very thought of a naked embrace with another man - any man - was repulsive enough never to engage in such activity, let alone share a bed!  

                                                                        ***

Yet, both Ted and Doug were true Christian believers. With Ted, did he commit a serious sin? I guess that would be up to him to decide. And perhaps it's exactly about this issue that I watched a YouTube video presented by a one-time Christian-turned-atheist. According to the unbeliever, religion binds a heavy burden of condemnation on those who may have such fetishes. In truth, they can't help feeling the way they do, but God will still judge them, nevertheless. Although some gays like to "live it up" - the vast majority would never have chosen to be that way. Had it been entirely up to them, most would have preferred to be "straight" - marry and raise a family. Furthermore, the rate of suicides committed by gay men had always been the highest among all other causes of suicide, according to what I once read. Indeed, given the choice, one doesn't choose to be gay.

But, according to the atheist's worldview, he is still condemned by God and by the Church, and therefore, he will spend eternity in Hell, even if he can't help feeling that way. It does make me wonder: of the two kinds of "sexual deviation" having a fetish for another man but hardly making any form of physical contact or a man who sleeps with other women, or even with a prostitute? Is one more acceptable to other Christians than the other, and thus, have a better chance for salvation?

And so it brings me to ask about Ted and Doug. If Ted, say, out on a gardening or landscaping job, finds the lady of the house attractive and she too likes him, and the two end up in bed, how would Doug react? Would he stay away and end the friendship with Ted? Or would he give him a stern telling off, but decide to continue with the friendship? Or even merely encourage him that we all have weaknesses and these things happen - with reassurance that the church will cover for him?

And so, the debate goes on both within and without the church - campaigns against gay marriage, even a Court case over whether to bake a cake for a homosexual couple, is it right to be friends and associate with a gay person? Is it right for anyone to divorce and remarry? Will he who marries a divorced woman suffer God's judgement? 

And so, the debate is continually thrown back and forth across the table, with fundamental Christians sitting on one side and liberals sitting on the opposite side, the nominal onlooker walks away feeling confused, even discontented, and the atheist hardens his heart as he embraces Darwinism with a greater sense of enthusiasm. 

And so, in his letter to the church in Rome, Paul the Apostle lists a whole plethora of sins, including "men burning with lust towards other men and reaping in their bodies (STD, AIDS etc.) the consequence of their actions" - Romans 1:27. Surely, not quite like Ted's mere fetish for Doug's arms! Or is it?

Then, further on in his letter, Paul quotes Genesis 15:6 -

Abraham believed in the Lord and it was credited to him as righteousness.

This single line is, to my opinion, the most powerful verse in the entire Bible. In his letter to Rome, Paul devotes three full chapters to that quote. He mentions it again in his letter to the churches in Galatia, and James also uses the same quote in his general letter to all Jewish Christians everywhere. In Paul's other letters, especially to the church in Ephesus, further implications of those words can be read.

Most theologians call this doctrine, Justification by Faith. I like to call it Imputed Righteousness - an answer to the Roman Catholic soteriology of Infused Righteousness, where salvation is a gradual process of faith combined with the believer's works needed to get to Heaven. Since I was born a Catholic and thus, fully able to make comparisons, I can see that the whole letter to the Romans is the answer to the future Roman Catholic Church which the Holy Spirit foreknew beforehand of its rise.

In the forensic sense, Imputed Righteousness is to be declared righteous by God the Judge without the need of a single work from the believer. It literally means that God the Father sees the believer as equally righteous and in the same light as his own Son, Jesus Christ. As Paul writes:-

However, to the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness. Romans 4:5. 

Imputed righteousness is a free gift from God given to the sinner by grace. It cannot be earned, neither is it for sale. Rather, it's a free gift given to everyone who believes that Jesus of Nazareth died on the cross to make atonement, was buried, and three days later, he rose physically from the dead, thus proving that this Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.

Therefore, is Doug doing the right thing by abstaining from Ted's presence? If Ted is a true believer, and I take it that he is, then Doug has no right to keep his distance from him. Rather, Doug should recognise that Ted has his own set of weaknesses, for whom Christ died to atone and to make an effort to reconcile and restore the friendship. And that means not counting any of his shortcomings against him. Likewise, Ted should also recognise Doug being in Christ and pay him due respect by vowing not to stroke his arms anymore.

The Resurrected Christ, the base for our justification.

Imputed Righteousness, Justification by Faith, Forensic Acquittal, Eternal Security, Once Saved Always Saved, Regeneration, a New Birth, Adoption into God's Family - whatever you want to call it, it all means one thing - salvation is given as a free gift through grace. Such a wonderful gift does not encourage the believer to sin more, rather it persuades the believer not to sin, mainly out of love for both God and his brother.

But, being human, I'm convinced that there is a bit of Ted and Doug in all of us, to a greater or lesser level. The temptation to fulfil a curiosity is never far away, sitting on Moses' seat isn't far from us, either. As if you see another sinner who appears black, you would feel as if you're white, even if you're actually grey.

Unfortunately, that was how Doug saw himself when he discovered Ted's true colours.

Yes, So It's Winter - Yet Again...

Oh, the joys of Winter! I remember at one point before retirement, indeed, even before 2010, I sat on a low wall on a particularly cold day. The ladders lay on the sidewalk, the bucket of warm water also stood nearby. There I sat, shivering with cold, yet a strong sense of envy was eating me up and draining my energy from work. And it was only ten in the morning.

That's the advantage of having been a self-employed domestic window cleaner. Under my own steam, I can just sit there and indulge in my own despot of envy, allowing vivid images of the check-in desk at Heathrow Airport, and visualising four people preparing to board their flight to Singapore. As I sat there alone, at least for once I was grateful for not sitting in a busy office under the eye of a controlling bully of a boss. Instead, as it was, I was able to sit alone at a quiet housing estate, mulling at my thoughts and comparing the expectations of these four, consisting of two courting couples, with my own past experiences of world travel.

Window Cleaning, my former trade.

The two young men I knew personally. They were lifeguards of a local leisure pool in which features the spa suite, a facility I visited regularly every week, and my patronage there going as far back as 1992. One of them, Adam by name, was so proficient and so well skilled at his job, that he featured in our local newspaper, The Bracknell News. as the centre's best ever lifeguard. It was he, along with another mate and their girlfriends, who quit his job as a lifeguard to take a sabbatical Round-the-World backpacking trip featuring Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, and the USA.

Weeks of buildup led to that day, with Adam and I being friends on Facebook, I was able to post my own RTW experiences on the social site. But as I sat there mulling over my thoughts, I was wondering how sensitive some people could be. Here was a proficient lifeguard whose knowledge on lifesaving wasn't far below that of a paramedic, when he got offended with my jokey comment that the Sea Wasp is a jellyfish and not an insect. 

As a result, he quickly severed his ties with me, or "unfriended" me, and it has always remained a mystery to me how I had offended him. However, he did deliver some public posts informing us all that although he loved the Australian Pacific Coast, he wasn't impressed with New Zealand. As for the Great Barrier Reef, I can't recall any mention of it. Had his awareness of the Sea Wasp stung his usual confidence in the water? And to add to this, my realisation that Queensland during its summer months is subject to monsoons. Bah! No matter how hard I tried to shake off my envy of them by thinking about these things, I could still feel it.

Eventually, I got around the situation, got up and resumed work. Coming to think of it, the expenditure of physical energy cleaning windows is psychologically benefiting as well as keeping blood flowing through the muscles and creating body heat, a good combatant against cold weather. The Sea Wasp, better known as box jellyfish with their deadly sting, are in abundance at that time of the year. However, it's their inclusion of New Zealand basking in summer sunshine that has aroused my envy, with the salt of unfriending me just before take-off, adding to the wound.

On that particular day, I was working at an estate which has a high number of senior citizens. Throughout my business, I saw that pensioners made the best customers. I had found them to be more warm-hearted towards this lone itinerant tradesman, more generous with coffee and a biscuit, in addition, they were more trusting when allowing me into their kitchens to refill my pail, and they were never hesitant with payment or unnecessarily delaying to pay me. A few even got me to sit at their table after all their windows were cleaned, for coffee, a sandwich and a good chat. With such a friendly environment they gave me, it didn't take long for me to forget about those boys flying halfway around the world.

But working outdoors during winter was challenging. There was one street where nearly all its residents were at work, leaving each property empty of people, although an occasional dog barked. During the summer or when the air was mild, I was okay with that. But I recall one bitterly-cold Winter's day. With everyone out, I served one empty property after another. There was no source of fresh hot water. Indeed, I felt my hands turn blue with the cold as I kept on dipping them in cold, dirty water. I recall then packing everything away and going home early, during mid-afternoon. A refill with hot, clean water would have made all the difference!

And now, I read in a national newspaper that there is such thing as the most depressing day of the year, and it's either a Monday or a Tuesday in early January. I never heard of that before. I wonder where they got that from? However, perhaps the thought of the next quarter of long nights, short days, cold weather, the threat of a thin layer of snow bringing the country to a halt...

If that didn't have such an impact on our lives, I guess I would see the funny side. If the Council - heaven forbid - should forget to grit the roads beforehand or have not watched the Met Office forecast, then the chaos resulting when roads and their intersections turn into skid pans... hardly worth thinking about. Furthermore, trains were known to become marooned and even aeroplanes may not be able to take off. The fear or concern generated by the threat of a snowflake falling makes any anticipation for Spring more intense, along with catching flu or even a common cold, those dark days, long nights and the chilly wind from the Northeast - they all come around, year in, year out, but with the universal surprise it brings, I sometimes wonder whether it's the first time I realise that this cold season is annual.

Coral Reef Sauna Suite, my haunt since 1992.

Perhaps, it's since during Winter here in the UK, it's not every day that I open the bedroom curtains first thing in the morning to see a layer of falling snow covering our garden lawn, and lining the branches of the surrounding trees and bushes spectacularly. Yet, despite all the inconveniences posed upon modern transportation, such a wintry scene is so beautiful, so spectacular. The brilliance of the snow reflecting all the daylight back into the air makes even the contrast with the dull, overcast sky quite notable. Should the sky clear and the sun comes out, then how dazzling the scene is when romanticised into Christmas card fantasy.

And so I ponder at the mode of transport before the invention of the steam engine when horses ruled the day. These mammals were not afraid of the snow, they were able to pull the cart as easily as any Summer's day. No wheels were spinning on an icy patch while the vehicle remains stationary with the engine revving, filling the air behind it with a cloud of toxic fumes. There were no traffic queues stuck on the motorway with drivers phoning their bosses with an apology and a lame explanation why they will be late - if ever arriving at all. No, the guy sitting in a horsedrawn chariot overtakes them all as his beast trots happily along with the snow, leaving a trail of hoof-marks and cartwheel tracks behind.

Yet, from my bedroom window, I can admire the view of the snow-covered garden and ponder on why this stuff is so brilliantly white while any rainwater forming a puddle on concrete or on anything non-porous is as clear as crystal. Indeed, anyone who is good scientific knowledge can explain how water, when it freezes into accumulated snowflakes turns the whole scene brilliant white rather than remaining clear, yet even science can fail to explain why this happens, the beauty of each flake as it falls to the ground, each flake unique in itself, every one different - despite the vast numbers of them needed to cover a large field.

All this causes me to thank and glorify God for his creation rather than curse my fate at the steering wheel. Not that I can drive anyway - I have never owned a car driving licence, let alone a car itself. But as the snow on the road turns into dirty slush by a combination of partial melting and traffic pollution, I can't help but to wish away everything frozen, except ice cream of course, and long for Spring to arrive. After all, one of the positives to ponder on during this cold season is that the winter solstice is already behind us and the days are already becoming longer and the nights shorter. Furthermore, the Earth is at its perihelion, that is, it's closer to the sun in its orbit. No wonder Down Under, the Aussies has to apply a liberal amount of suncream on their bronzed torsos, else that dreaded mole will start burying into the skin, indicating Melanoma.

And so, another Winter's day arrives and with it, The Daily Mail national newspaper carries a story on two of its inside pages:

£44m Brexit success story to make Remoaners choke on their sea bass.*

The two-page article was written by journalist Robert Hardman in his How I see it series of articles. Checking on the text itself, Hardman himself does not use the word Remoaners, but Remainers. As far as the mechanics of the Press goes, the writer doesn't title his contribution. Rather, that's done by the editors. That is, by the newspaper itself. Indeed, I'm tempted to ask them, Is the Winter chill addling your brains?

As one who voted my support to remain in the European Union, the use of the word Remoaner in 2cm high lettering is an insult. I find it insulting because the word is purely detrimental. Furthermore, this isn't merely between two people talking in private. Rather, it's for the whole world to read.

And so, as the cold winter wind blows and blizzards are driven across the UK, those who voted to leave the EU will, sooner or later, find something to prove their point. And when one item is found, so the gloating begins. They look down on us Remainers with a condescending look as they turn up their noses, and if that's not enough, they then publicly insult us! Not a nice Christian attitude, is it? I wonder how Jesus would have reacted had he been around at present?

Earlier in the week, I emailed a message to two Christian people with a suggestion that an unclean spirit in the air has influenced Brexiteers with such subtlety, according to Ephesians 6:12, that even committed Christians who want to serve the Lord were also hoodwinked. With one of the recipients, that didn't go down well. But then, when I emailed those two, the headline hadn't yet appeared. 

Traffic slowed down by snow.

In an analogical sense, with the pandemic, lockdowns, hospitalisations, along with xenophobic, even racist attitudes, including physical and verbal violence, thus driving many Europeans back to their homelands, indeed, it's been a bleak winter - one that lasted for the past two years.

If we're about to go over the hill with the pandemic, at least there is, at last, hope that Spring is on its way.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*Daily Mail Newspaper, Saturday, January 8th 2022, pages 50-51.

Looking back through 2021...

Reading today's Daily Mail national newspaper, I have gotten the impression that 2021 was an awful year, they were glad to see the back of it, and left it to be forgotten. I was rather surprised to read all that, as for me, it hadn't been the worst in my life. The journalists who submitted their pieces to the newspaper's Editor focussed mainly on the pandemic. According to their line of thinking, the vaccine rollout was so rapid that, by now, it should have all but eradicated the pandemic. Instead, a full year after its initial launch, we're still wearing facemasks as the nation watches the infection rate rise to a new phenomenal level.

The lockdown, early in the year and going further back into 2020, had brought closures to our churches, affecting all live worship, from house meetings to services in huge cathedrals, thus missing out on social togetherness, or in theological definition, fellowship. It was during this period when a friend and I agreed on a social bubble, thus, he came round to our home every Sunday for lunch, followed by up to three hours of daytime TV.

After several weeks, we were all familiar with the comedy series of Mr Bean, with Rowan Atkinson as the lovable titular, who also acted as a secret agent in another series, Mr Johnny English. In this role, he plays a serious role as an agent, but his deliberate clumsiness and lack of foresight had sent us all into peals of laughter. Rowan Atkinson was then followed by Patricia Routledge in her comedy series, Keeping Up Appearances. As the wife of a typical English middle-class couple kept on trying - and failing -  to impress the neighbours of her apparent aristocratic background. Watching her becoming unstuck in her attempts kept the three of us entertained for weeks.

Rowan Atkinson as Mr Bean.

Later in the year, I was impressed by how much he enjoyed watching documentaries on a rather obscure TV commercial channel that seemed to be virtually unknown to mainstream viewers. Such a channel specialising in the history of our monarchy, along with the life of Hitler, and other similar documentaries, especially focussing on the two world wars and Britain's involvement in them. Some of these documentaries were good, a few quite boring, the latter endorsed by my friend's falling in and out of sleep during the programme.

But back in January, there was one point of disagreement between me and my bubble-mate. That was his love for naff quiz shows where a gormless contestant attempted, and usually fail, to win the top star cash prize of thousands of pounds. Such shows such as Pointless, and Celebrity Pointless, are good examples. He loves those sorts of programmes, I hated them! Therefore, shows that takes up much of Saturday evening BBC timeslots, such as The Wall, and The Wheel is enough to save on energy by keeping the TV firmly switched off.

Indeed, what's one man's meat is another man's poison may cause an argument, along with my request for him to stay away for the following week, nevertheless, 2021 was the year when I felt it to be a privilege to host someone who had nowhere else to go, and thus for him to find an escape from loneliness, as well as in need for a hug. And that applied to both of us. I needed a hug from him as much as he needed it from me. 

As for our church in Ascot, we all had to endure sixteen months of live "virtual services" on YouTube, followed by a frame of pigeonholes on Zoom. What I find most irritating was the host breaking the main pigeonhole frame into "rooms" - where I was stuck with three or four others so technically or business-minded - in others words, their talk was as exciting as watching paint dry - that I just sat there, staring at the laptop screen in silence as I tried to understand the conversation and wishing for the changeover to come quickly, while at the same time, the person I wanted to talk to was in another room. Little was I aware that I had the technology to simply switch rooms, but back then, not only was I unaware, but I considered to be rude to suddenly drop out just like that.

However, there was one feature that arose from the lockdown, the daily Zoom prayer meetings held each weekday morning for twenty minutes. During my early years of church participation, I attended the weekly prayer meeting regularly, as the venue where it was held was a short hop from home. But since I moved to the church at Ascot, attending prayer meetings were far less frequent, and during my later years, quite inconvenient, as this involved cycling in all weather conditions while not getting any younger.

Thus, the wonder of technology. Here, just a single stairway separated the bedroom from the prayer venue. I have found that participation to be edifying and actually plays a role in setting me up for the day, along with the morning Bible readings. Such a Zoom meeting had caused me to ponder how Paul the Apostle would have thought about it, and whether any mention would have appeared in his epistles. How would he react? Would he encourage us all to meet on Zoom? Or would he give the participants a good kick in the backside and tell us all to meet in person?

At last, by early Autumn, the Government's "Freedom Day" with the lifting of restrictions, has allowed us all to meet in person again. And so, after more than a year, we as a church are back together again. But without the welcoming and after-service refreshments, I mounted my bike to ride home quite hungry, and longing for the roasted chicken thighs my wife was preparing.

It was the welcoming cup of coffee or hot chocolate I missed most, just before the start of the service. After a cycle ride up that hill to reach the racecourse, nothing would be more soothing than a hot drink to warm up my insides. The worst thing about riding in cold weather is that I feel obliged to wear a coat to keep the chilly wind off my chest. After arrival at the venue, my shirt under the coat has dampened with sweat. Then I enter the meeting room, a spacious upstairs restaurant converted into a cold wind tunnel.

Old Paddock Restaurant, where our church meets

It was still obligatory to keep the windows of all public meeting venues open, or at least ajar so that any virus-infected air can waft out. However, our meeting place happens to have a row of windows on each side of the room. Thus, opening the windows on both sides whilst we all faced towards the south makes an ideal tunnel for the predominant westerly wind to blow straight through the building, chilling my wet tee-shirt and forcing me, and others around me, to keep their thick overcoats on throughout the whole service. There was even one gentleman dressed in a woollen scarf in addition to his coat, as if out on a Polar expedition. But at least, throughout the Autumn, wearing a mask wasn't mandatory anymore, but the Elders still encouraged us all to wear a mask during worship.

That is until the wearing of the mask became mandatory again in all shops and other enclosed public spaces, including churches, just a couple of weeks before Christmas. This was due to the sudden rise in the number of infections from the new Omicron variant of Covid. This I found so frustrating, so annoying! After lining up for ninety minutes to receive my booster jab at our local surgery a few weeks earlier, suddenly, we're back at square one, with Christmas under threat of another cancellation, the re-introduction of restrictions in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland sweeping the New Year celebrations under the carpet and jeopardising many hospitality businesses. Not to mention the re-introduction of mandatory mask-wearing.

However, I can't help but feel more optimistic than I did at this time last year. As it stands, more than half of all adults over twelve years of age are not only double-jabbed but have also received their booster. In theory, this should provide a reasonably strong wall of immune resistance, or herd immunity, against this variant. So far, despite the very high rate of infections, the numbers of those in hospitals from the virus remain very low, and deaths even lower. To add to this, it's been reported that this variant is weaker in causing severe illness than its predecessors, despite that it spreads at a faster rate. And so the South African authorities tell us. Yet, our own scientists were too cautious to believe them.

In all, for me, 2021 hadn't been too bad a year. True enough, our health was constantly monitored. For example, my beloved had to attend our local GP surgery to receive her monthly jab of hormone restraint to prevent any more malignant cells from forming after suffering from cancer in 2018. The jab is inserted into her lower abdomen. Within the last few months, she had suffered intense pain in her lower abdomen. We didn't know what it was. So, on one very severe case, I called 999 for an ambulance. But, due to the pandemic, no ambulance was immediately available and we were instructed to make our own way to A&E at Frimley Park Hospital.

With a total of £25 out of pocket after using the taxi for transport, we ended up in the minors waiting room, where we waited for quite some hours while we kept her pain under control with both morphine and Ibuprofen. At last, she was called into the Radiology dept, a posh name for the X-ray room. After exposure, it was decided that she would have a proper scan to find what's causing her intense belly pain.

But that was not due until the following morning. Therefore, she was kept overnight. I left the hospital on my own to board a bus for a free ride home (I had a pensioner's bus pass, and now being on my own, I didn't want to spend more on another taxi.) It started to rain. And I knew that very soon my roof would begin leaking, with the rainwater dripping into the two buckets I placed in the loft back in August.

The bus arrived. I jumped on board. Then it began to head the wrong way, towards the town centre instead of towards home. I spoke to the driver. I was informed that I took the wrong bus. Just then, the one I should have taken passed by on the other side. I alighted at the next bus stop and made a dash back to the hospital. Its bus stop was deserted. I had no option but to wait for the next one, the very last one for the night. Even then, after changing busses at Camberley, due to a road closure in the outskirts of my home town, I had to alight at an earlier stop and walk the last couple of miles home in the rain.

Ah! It all goes to show that attempting to save money isn't a brilliant idea after all. That is unless you pay proper attention to the destination name scrolled on the front of the bus instead of gazing excitingly at the bus itself. However, by the following morning, she had her scan, and nothing amiss was seen. She didn't have appendicitis, as one of the doctors first suggested. The source of her pain remained a mystery to everyone.

Then, at a recent appointment at a health centre in Aldershot, the doctor who discharged her previously confirmed that there was nothing physically wrong. It was then when I brought up the suggestion that, after noticing a corollary over several months between her hormone jabs and her intense pain, I made a cautious suggestion to the doctor that her jabs could be the cause of the problem. Much to my surprise, the doctor didn't fob me off, as I was expecting, but instead, he heeded my input. At this moment, I'm hoping that the monthly dosage is now under review, and I hope to receive news of some changes in her treatment.

Frimley Park Hospital

And oh, yes, the roof leak. It was my wife Alex who discovered that on one evening when it rained heavily, she saw water literally dripping from the ceiling of our daughter's bedroom, causing the Artex to bubble. The water ran down the wall and soaked the carpet, indicating that the leak was ongoing for a good while.

At first, I was in a state of panic. I read up on the tenancy repairs to find the appropriate phone number. Much to my surprise, the roof leak was not classed as an emergency. The next day, I made a phone booking, only to be told that, due to a shortage of roof workers, it will be several weeks before anyone would call to inspect the damage!

Therefore, I made my way to my garage where my old window cleaning ladders were stored, and I took one of them and hoisted it into the house via the upstairs bedroom window. I found a spare bucket in the garden and placed it at the appropriate spot in the loft - right under where I can see the source of the dripping.

Great! I'll beat this once and for all!

I didn't have to wait long before it rained again, courtesy of our British summer weather. And again, the rainwater started to drip through my daughter's bedroom ceiling.

In a state of near-panic, I climbed fully into the loft to see why this was happening. Only then did I notice a second source of the dripping. Fortunately, there was a large plastic container tucked away in one of the kitchen cupboards. I wasn't even aware we had it. I took it and placed it in the loft under the second source of the dripping, which was almost right next to the first container. The bedroom dripping stopped, and the ceiling, wall, and carpet dried out completely, even with further rainfall.

Five months later, we're still waiting for the repair. We already had an inspection and our problem was taken seriously. But with a shortage of roofers, heaven knows how long this wait will be. But having everything under control makes all the difference.

2021 was quite a year.

With that, I wish you all a happy New Year for 2022.