Sacrifice and Solace/Secrets of the dark/A Study of Suspicion

I.

Sacrifice and Solace


Again it’s time to wipe the sweat
With fingers smeared in mud and blood.
A fresh flowing stream o’er the eyes
Which seeps and leaves its mark
Of red - such precious life!
A clenched fist of fearless pain,
Drips thick rosy tears upon the earth;
This cry of blood will not be forgotten.


The curse of blood has stained the earth,
Time will pass, indifference, there’s no rewind.
It’s by your loss that others gain
Your toils, your sacrifice
Your time and experiences
Swallowed by the grave – what will survive?
Your faith and hopes, others do not value;
Your blood is left to dry in vain.


The heart that suffers, aches,
Longs for another heart to heal.
The hardened soul will groan in death with
A love for destruction and of pain.
Peace belongs to the gentle in spirit,
To those who learn to forgive and forget;
A love, reaching out to foes, to calm unrest,
A love, willing to sacrifice priceless blood.


The fallen brethren summon your soul,
Their silent stillness softly speaks,
Surrounds the senses of your heart and mind,
For they have buried you in their eternal cause.
So you carry on fighting,
Reckless, no room for sanity
Or empathy, its life or death, for survival
You’re alone, deluded by the delights of darkness.


Alone, you hoard the treasures you cannot keep.
Remember the souls you have betrayed,
What they have done for you, made your path
To live, for your pleasure, but realise their despair;
They’ve memories you cannot dream to comprehend.
When old and frail, you’ll beg for mercy from their might,
They’ll claim your loot, to leave you dethroned, exposed;
A new life begins, but death awaits the weak.


Time will haunt, memories might do well to fade,
So away in your chase for the living, the fallen
Remain in rest, but behold they will rise to be known!
They lived, and their legend lives on with you,
Their blood has been spilt in an ageless past,
Guilty and innocent, hear them speak!
Calls for revenge, cries for peace, yet the pain
Of bloodshed only thirsts for more.


An endless cycle of brutal blows,
All this, to satisfy the living dead.
A selfish justice which knows no mercy -
It is what they rightly deserved.
Yet your life is undeserved, not
From your own labours or sacrifice for
Others have shed blood for the world you know;
Every life is under another’s grace and mercy.


It is your life, your choice
To care for others who do not care,
Remember the fallen, who never knew you,
They fought for a hope, the hope that lives in you.
The suffering mass cries for an unknown saviour,
They find comfort in foreign hearts
That understand, that feel their depression, and
The perishing - a few find rest in future glory.


Some do not find peace in hope
For they have found none, only a fear
Which is best forgotten and ignored.
Was it not through the sacrifice of others
That brought you your freedom?
And still there are those who long for refuge,
So remember those who drowned in rivers of blood
Before yours began to flow; you are their hope.


The lost cannot blame the dead who believed,
True leaders are never blind, their vision is eternal:
From the time blood was first shed,
The earth knew to speak its pain,
A curse, out of love to learn
Sacrifice, suffering in hope, with an endurance of spirit
Through pain, to find a new heart of grace that heals,
Forgives and restores the peace - one love for all.


27/10/09


N.K.


“They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eyes, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.

Lest we forget.”

‘Ode of Remembrance’ – excerpt from ‘For the fallen’ by Lawrence Binyon (1869–1943)






II.

Secrets of the dark


Hush! Do not dare to make a sound,
Lest the watchmen strike us down.
Beneath the covers of the devil’s night,
Hear the cackles of forbidden delight.


The crows circle round before they perch,
It’s safe, hidden from the eyes of the church.
And so he comes after the light of day,
For the game that only he knows to play.


Who can mistake the joker’s grin,
Which conceals the guilt that lies within?
Watch! Know the corners where he’ll lurk,
His face is scarred with a constant smirk.


He preys on fears which deceive the mind,
The fear of death, suffering; he turns them blind.
A love for riches, of self and pleasure,
A loss for others, he cannot measure.


So beware friends of the evil one,
Who makes it seem like innocent fun.
I know of some who’ve taken the bait,
Fooled to believe; the sinner’s fate.


Dragged down a pit that has no end,
The fall is freedom so don’t pretend.
There’s only an end if you choose to turn
And face the light which is sure to burn.


A test of fire, who can endure?
Only those willing to be pure,
A price to pay, but worth the cost;
It’s everything for those who are lost.


A diver who darts from the depths will die.
Always patience, with hope and faith rely,
Surely there’s no rush, no fear,
Nor need to panic, the surface is near.


The light will come, but the waters heal,
A gradual shift makes the pain less real.
Behold the view that unfolds the way,
The clouds of darkness release their prey.


Conditioned in the light, there is no pain,
Darkness will flee; it’s the end of their reign.
The time for light and of darkness, split in half,
Hear the endless insanity; the joker’s laugh.


N.K.


28/10/09




III.


A Study of Suspicion

Good morning John,

____I don’t care who you are! Who am I?


________No. It’s Smith, John doesn’t want to see you today.


____Let me out of here, I’m your real doctor, he’s an imposter!



Ok. How are you feeling today?

____Kill him, he thinks you’re crazy.


________Look, they’ve come to lock you up.


____________Do you know who’s trying to kill me?



____No one’s trying to kill you.


I’m here to help.

____Liar. He knows who it is.


________They all hate you.


____________Help me get killed?


____________Is that what you want?


________Where am I?



____You’re in the car John.


Do you know who I am?

________Your face, I’ve seen it before.


________And that ring,


____________Why are you wearing my ring?


________I don’t think you want to hurt him now John.



Do you remember the day you got married?

____Why can’t things be as they once were?


You really don’t know who I am, do you?

________He knows who did it.


________They killed your wife.


____________You killed her.



John, have you forgotten again?

____And how long have we been married now?


Look into my eyes.

____Be patient please, we’re nearly there.


I have to do this if you want to get better.

________No, no, no, no, not again.


________How dare you do this to me?


________You’re one of them!


____________Tell the doctor to take his own drugs!


____You know not every guy has a wife like you do!



I am your doctor; it’s not an easy life to be me.
Anyway, it’s time for you to go back to sleep.
Now this won’t hurt a bit. That’s the way.

________You don’t care at all do you?


____Do to others what you want them do to you.


________You just want to get rid of me.



I’m sorry I can’t do any more. Good night John.

____You’re not sorry at all.


____I thought it was part of your job not to be sorry.



________One day you will be. Or maybe you are?


____________I know you’d rather me not be here.


____________But you won’t say it to my face.


________How nice.


________Yes, the truth hurts sometimes,


________But not that there’s anything I can do about it.


________So, what day is it today?



____I just want to have a little chat,


____To sort our problems out, I don’t think we’ve had a chance till now,


____You’ve been very busy lately, let’s go for a trip.


And sweet dreams!

____________Good timing doctor!


________And you better have a dream about me in heaven.



____I swear John won’t interrupt again.


____Just me and you, yes and Jesus.


____He’s a very good counsellor, didn’t you know?


____He’s the best there is. No, I am not joking.



Sorry, I can’t let you visit John right now,
He’s just taken his medication.
His condition doesn’t seem to improving,
He’s not responding very well,
But I’m afraid he’s lost all his memory before the accident.

________You can’t be serious.


____If only you could understand. Oh help!


____But you know where I am,


____I’ll be waiting for you in heaven.



Do you want to make another appointment?
Sure, we’ll let you know when he makes progress.
I’m sorry about the news but I hope you have a good day.

____It’s going to be a long wait but I’ll see you there then.


____Good bye for now. That’s one way to end our argument.



____No, I am not going to see the doctor!


____________Oh, that’s it I give up.


____________I never knew you could be so stubborn!


____If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t be driving in the first place!


________What?!


________Oh, so that’s what happened.


____We should have watched the road.


Well, too late to say sorry now.

____Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.


________It’s never too late if you know what I mean.


____A dead person can’t be sorry as much as a live one?


____Well yes, to you I might be dead already but I’m not.


________Do you believe in a God of the living or of the dead?


____A God who forgives and knows the hearts of those


____Who choose to seek Him,


____Bound by love for an eternity.



Maybe it’s easier to forgive those who are dead.
Am I? I don’t think you have any idea at all.
You can say, I’m somewhere in between,
But living or dead, love your enemies.

I think doctors need to have their own doctors.
You might be able to save lots of people,
But in the end you can’t save yourself.
So please clean up the mess before you go,
Before you’re unable to do anything about it.
I know I’ve left a very big mess. Sorry about that.
I hope you don’t think it was intentional.

Yes, we still need to have that little chat.
I haven’t forgotten.
Funny that, memories of the past,
Pushed out by the present
Who knows if they were real?
Yes, it was all a very bad dream.
And I was just your imaginary friend.
In that case, sweet dreams!
But no dreaming while you’re awake.
And I hope you don’t fall asleep again either.

N.K.

29/10/09

A different kind of reasoning

yes..time to get serious about history...
here's a start to your historical research

http://johndickson.org/books

http://johndickson.org/files/thechristfiles_intro.pdf

http://johndickson.org/files/christfiles_chap5.pdf

http://www.biblehistory.net/

http://debate.org.uk/topics/history/bib-qur/bibarch.htm

http://www.probe.org/site/c.fdKEIMNsEoG/b.4466067/k.1914/Reasons_to_Believe_Apologetics.htm

http://www.probe.org/site/c.fdKEIMNsEoG/b.4955427/k.3D58/Archaeology_and_the_Old_Testament.htm

http://www.probe.org/site/c.fdKEIMNsEoG/b.4955431/k.3C35/Archaeology_and_the_New_Testament.htm


Books


How now shall we live - Charles Colson
(issues of evolution, hope, suffering, with scientific studies for support)

The Christ files - John Dickson

The Case for Christ - Lee Stobel

More than a carpenter - Josh McDowell

The new evidence that demands a verdict - Josh McDowell

Faith's Reasons for Believing - Robert L. Reymond

What's so amazing about grace? - Philip Yancey

The Reason for God - Timothy Keller





Revelation is one of those books which isn't easy to understand - hence the different intepretations
which is why it's good to discuss it so you dont get stuck with one view!

anyway... here's a start

Structure of Revelation
Chapters 1-3
Letters to 7 churches
Chapters 5-11
A quick overview from beginning to end
Chapters 12-22
A more detailed view from beginning to end

Chapters 5 – 9 Before the judgement (of Babylon)
Overview of world up to the evil empire where all those who have not been killed are idol worshippers and sorcerers
(the evil empire of ancient Babylon?)
4 seals – conditions of the sinful world
5th seal – plead for judgment by the slain righteous
6th seal – Recognition of God’s wrath by the evil world
144,000 of Israel 12 tribes protected – Israel in Egypt?
The uncountable righteous souls who are saved survivors of persecution - End of time?
7th seal – 6 trumpets of destruction but the survivors are devil worshippers
(led astray by Nimrod? The spreading of continents in earthquake? The judgement of Babylon?)

Chapters 10 – 11 Before the judgment at the end of time
A gap in prophesy (time gap?)
Two witnesses will prophesy. Rise to heaven after death. Earthquake but God is praised.
(a further gap of 1000 years mentioned later?)
7th trumpet – final judgement of the dead

Chapters 12 -19 Judgement on the Beast and the False prophet
Satan and demons banished to earth (Satan was on earth in genesis)
Woman gives birth to Jesus (Eve brought out of the Garden of Eden?)
Literal flood (Noah’s time), or figurative flood of sin (taken away by Jesus’ death)
The Beast and the false messiah (death and temporary resurrection to deceive people)
Killing God’s people and deceiving everyone by sorcery and magic idols
666 (In Greek, Nimrod – Janus, Serpent – Tertian)
144,000 righteous redeemed from spiritual death (not the 144,000 mentioned before?)
3 angels announce fall of Babylon and its destruction because all peoples are drunk with her lust
Harvest of the earth - the 144,000?
Winepress of God’s wrath on earth
7 plagues, 7 bowls of God’s wrath on Babylon in a day
The Fall of (ancient) Babylon in the worst earthquake and giant stone thrown into the sea
Split of city (continents?) disappearance of islands and mountains and destruction of cities
Hail plague
Babylon the deceiver of the world by false magic (the rise of ancient religions?)
White horse throws beast and false prophet into the lake of fire (a massive battle after the fall)

Chapters 20 – 22 Judgement on Satan and the dead (final judgement)
(a possible gap in time after the destruction of Babylon, the beast and false prophet are defeated but Satan still remains, and the coming of the true Messiah on earth)
Thousand years of Satan unable to deceive the nations and first rising of saints with Christ
Defeat of Satan who is also thrown into the lake of fire
The final judgement of the dead
New heaven, New earth, New Jerusalem




A Revelation – Continental drift, the greatest natural disaster? Nathaniel 13/10/09


Assuming the earth was one land mass when created, that is, all the continents were combined at the start of creation, then at some point there would be the separation of continents. It would appear easier for humans to fulfil God’s original command to multiply and take care of the whole world and the animals that live on it if the lands were not physically separated by water as they are today. I’m sure today there are still undiscovered tribes in jungles or forests that are out of touch with ‘civilisation’.


But from the bible account, it makes it clear that all peoples were descendants of Noah, as the flood covered the whole earth, and the only people that survived were the ones on the ship – Noah and his family. And according to the bible all nations were descendants of Noah. Sure it does give an account of all the different names of civilisations that were formed, but it doesn’t really say how the people spread over all the earth until the story of the Tower of Babylon(Greek) or Babel(Hebrew). From Genesis, it says God confused the language, and that was enough for the people to spread all over the earth. But was it that simple?


I would say no. Is there any reason for them to stop building the tower simply because they lost their language? Can’t they learn each other’s language? And would people just start wandering off into distant unknown lands? It would be more reasonable to say that the people were separated as a result of a great natural disaster which caused the destruction of the city and the lands to separate physically putting the many established nations after Noah out of reach with each other as the continents drifted apart.


We are not told what the city was like, only that God saw that they had they had the potential to do whatever they wanted. They had one language, and were united in building a great city and a tower that could reach the heavens. Now this is completely against God’s command to spread over the earth, so we can assume this empire was doing evil in the eyes of God. And who was the leader of this great city? In previous verses, there is mention of Nimrod, who was considered to be the first great conqueror. The bible doesn’t mention much about Nimrod apart from being the founder of Babel or Babylon, and conqueror of Assyria.


If the world was one land mass and all the peoples were descendants of Noah, it would be fair to say that Nimrod at the time was in control of the greatest empire on earth. And surely the greatest city would be the one which had the tower of Babel, and all the nations of the earth which existed then would know about it; even more likely if the continents had not been separated yet. Non-biblical sources might shed more light on the situation.


From different ancient texts, Nimrod was known to be tyrant, a sorcerer, and killer of men. He forced people to worship idols, and he believed that he was the Messiah. Nimrod was indeed a powerful ruler in the ancient world. In Revelation, it mentions the fall of Babylon, and at first inspection, the city with the tower of Babylon fits in with the description of an ancient civilisation which was known to all the nations of the earth. And like the one in Genesis, it was self-indulgent and in rebellion against God’s commands. Part of Revelation tells of the destruction of Babylon though it is necessary to put any complete global destruction by an act of God into context.


There have only been two acts of destruction which have impacted the whole world according to the bible. One is the flood where the people survived on Noah’s ark and the other is the apocalypse mentioned in Revelation. Notice that God flooded the whole earth because the people on the earth had turned evil. He wanted to start again through Noah and his family. But after this it moves on to the character of Abraham and it says all nations will be blessed through him. This implies that God is starting again from Abraham because the people of the earth have once again turned away from him. I would say that between the time of Noah and Abraham, something catastrophic would have happened in order for Abraham to be the sole ancestor of those who have faith in God. Noah’s descendants had turned away from God and whether this was due to the evil acts of Nimrod this remains to be examined.


If Nimrod was so evil in leading people astray, surely there must be some historical record, and an account of God’s judgement on his empire. This is why I say the account in Genesis is unusually brief. However, the fall of Babylon as recorded in Revelation is very detailed and surprisingly fits the view of Babylon as an ancient world power. Furthermore it mentions an earthquake so powerful that the earth has never seen before as it describes islands fleeing away as well as mountains. This may explain the start of continental drift. It definitely would have to be a large earthquake to initiate the splitting of continents. It also mentions how the nations were deceived by acts of sorcery. Obviously the descriptions on evil animal beast by the power of the devil and a false prophet match the criteria for Nimrod as a sorcerer and a false prophet. Now the number of 666 is meant to identify both the beast and a man. In Greek, Nimrod adopted the name Janus, and the word Teitan represents a serpent; both add up to the number which is associated with the devil. Also note the sequence of events which mentioned an attempted flood by Satan to wash away the woman. Taking that literally would imply the flood of Noah, while figuratively speaking it could represent sin and all of it being taken away by Jesus’ death on the cross.


From this account in Revelation, one could say that all the ancient religions came from the supernatural acts of Nimrod. The Egyptians claim for an afterlife lie with Osiris, who was claimed to have defeated death once. This matches the account for a mortal wounding of the beast but its recovery caused people to follow the beast. Surely enough it wasn’t unstoppable. As the Jews were protected from the plagues of Egypt so too could the seals for the 144,000 represent protection for those on earth during the plagues of Babylon. In this case it may be protection of a spiritual death rather than a physical one. The seven plagues and seven bowls of God’s wrath seem to apply exclusively to the city of ancient city of Babylon in a single day. Some of the trumpets at first hand appear similar to the plagues of Egypt, but may apply to Nimrod’s acts of sorcery. Although one has to take in to account the destruction of the Garden of Eden by fire as a possibility. Clearly Eden was not a small place, if indeed it had room for all the species of animals including dinosaurs. I’d like to think of it as an ideal Jurassic Park where the animals ate plants and humans ate fruit all living in harmony with a perfect relationship with its Creator. A single act of obedience caused guilt, and gave way to a decaying paradise as a result of the creation’s lack of trust in the Creator to maintain life and order. A creator cannot fully fix the creation while the creation doesn’t allow it to in the first place. There is a lack of trust which prevents the creator from being able to immediately fix the problem, but that’s even if the creator wants to fix it in the first place.


Science says that hope will give person strength and perseverance through suffering. What if hope in the afterlife was the ultimate hope? Would it give a person endurance over all forms of suffering if they knew that death was not the end? Could the ‘survival of the fittest’ apply to Christianity, where the hope is in eternal life, and Jesus tells Christians to love their enemies so that others too might know this same hope. Christians do not feel they die in vain, as the ultimate authority for judgement lies with God after death. We all know that love can change lives. So did Jesus really rise from the dead? Did he really sound like and acted like he had authority from God? Will the problem be finally fully fixed not on earth but after life on earth?


This is not a threat. It’s only a threat when you know you are in danger. You only know either when you die or if Jesus comes back and by then it’s too late. True Christians will only show love to guide you to look for the truth. People always have a choice to believe as long as there are people proclaiming the truth. Who says that they won’t reach those who are lost? If all people descended from Noah then everyone had a chance. But choices have consequences, impacting the choices of future generations, but since people are never sure of the outcome of life-changing decisions, they always have the perception of choice. And with choice there is more than one outcome, and inevitably some people will sadly make the wrong choice even though they heard the truth. As long as the truth exists, in the past or in the present, there is always a chance to make that choice. In the Old Testament people put their faith in God and in His sending of a Messiah to save the word. Christians today put their faith in Jesus and what he did. All are saved through faith alone. All you can do is to examine for yourself whether historical documents support the bible but more importantly the existence of Jesus and what He did on earth.

some words...

People don’t like fakes, but only if it doesn’t do the same thing as the original.
.

The people who are successful make their own news. People who care want to hear your own experiences, not what you’ve read in the media.
.

Genuine truths come from the heart, not the mind. Real emotions do not lie.
.

Never say people are wrong. They just have a lack of understanding about the truth.
.

People have different perceptions of reality through experience. Can you say they’re wrong? No. Only delusional. They can say the same about you.
.

A creator is always responsible for their creation. Parents are responsible for their children. The experienced are responsible for teaching the inexperienced. All children may grow up to be parents or leaders. How can the truth be known in the future if those who know it do not feel the responsibility to pass it on?
.

What comes from the mind can be refuted. Experiences and feelings cannot. The mind can make things complex but the heart only knows what it can feel.
.

Despair is the absence of hope. Chaos is the absence of order. Evil is the absence of love. Fear is the absence of assurance. Darkness is the absence of light. Hell is the absence of God. You know its eternity when there is no need to measure time, but not that it is possible to measure an eternity of time by any means.
.

True beauty touches the heart. Empathy is the language of souls. Logical reasoning is for robots.
.

What the mind cannot be sure of, the heart can be sure.
.

Love with words but without actions is meaningless.
.

The world is dull if you see things from the mind. The world is endless if you see things from the heart.
.

Better to have a closed mind with an open heart, than a closed heart with an open mind. True wisdom comes from the heart.
.

Rational thinking requires effort. Emotions outpour spontaneously.
.

Reality never changes. But your perception of it can.
.

Desires from the heart can connect with all people, the past, present and future.
.

What is there to fear if one knows that that there is eternal life after death?
.

Wealth and riches are meaningless if they have no sentimental value. It’s the treasures that lie in the heart that really matters.
.

Following orders without question makes you a robot. Choosing what you want to do makes you human.
.

Love can drive you insane, irrational. Do you enjoy doing things you love?
.

Just because a body is broken or incapacitated, it doesn’t mean their soul isn’t there. A soul does not require a physical body to exist. While there is life there is spirit. But a person’s spirit continues to speak after the body has decayed.


5/10/09

Nathaniel

The King’s Tragedy

Prologue


Chaos reigned

And the land was inhospitable

With the smell of death.

The inevitable war

Where is the mercy?

Where is justice?

The casualties,

Countless




All kingdoms have been destroyed

Corrupted as chaos crept

Spread from within

Save one.

The fights have been bitter

Blood has been spilled

For what purpose?

Love for peace?

For love, someone will dare to die

For hope, for justice, for life

There is faith in victory

For they have seen the light

Which shines for eternity




One kingdom stands

That is their hope

Strength and refuge

A home that provides shelter

Security, a priceless treasure

Which warms the heart.

A love for their King

And the land over which he reigns

Such love cannot be restrained

For it is the beaming light which overcomes

All darkness




The true light stands

The others are temporary

A false hope by which many

Have been betrayed

They see the glorious light

Glory for the kingdom that stands

They seek the glory for themselves

Distracting others from the source

And for those who have never seen true light

When will they know the truth?

Only when the darkness prevails

And conquers them

When their false light is

Extinguished and the only light

That remains

Is from the living King




The King has seen the destruction

Around him and his dominion

He seeks to protect with a pure heart

The truth that outside lies certain death

Must not be forgotten

No one has survived except for him




Time passes

The King still stands because he knows the truth

But there are those who have never been outside

His protection and control

They have never seen true chaos




Dialogue


King’s official


Why these rules and laws to uphold?
Surely life is better without them
Is this freedom?
What lies outside this kingdom?
I have never seen it
I trust that the King has
But I’m sure outside is real freedom
The King is hiding the truth
He is a liar




King’s servant


Who are you to question the King?
Do you challenge his authority?
Even though he is old but none of us have been outside
Are you saying that you know better?
I am sure these rules are for good
Wouldn’t there be chaos if there were no rules?
How would you know what was right or wrong?




King’s official


Once I am King
I will set the rules
One day I know I will reign
The King’s laws will be his downfall
Never fear faithful servant I will protect you
Swear not to tell the King of my plan




King’s servant


I am sure the King knows what’s best
I look forward to the day which the King
Will foil your plan
I dare you go forward with your desires
I will not stop you
Nor will I tell others or the King
May the King stop you himself!




King’s official


Very well,
Be warned,
You shall be at my mercy one day




King’s servant


I think not
My allegiance will always be with the one true King
He alone has brought us peace and justice
No one else
He has withstood the test of time
Why else do you think there are no other kingdoms out there?
They have fallen and you are no different
Your arrogance blinds you




King’s official


You believe everything that the King says?
Time will tell who the fool is




Entr’acte




Monologue


The King’s official


The time has come. What will the King do now? Which will stand: the law which he upholds or the love for his daughter? I have the witnesses; she cannot deny the crime she has committed. The King made the laws and no one can escape them. This time not even he can escape them. The penalty is death. If the King is so loving and protecting as he says, will he carry out the sentence for all to see? It is time to watch the end of this reign of tyranny and let the people overthrow and govern a new kingdom of freedom and prosperity. I shall be the new King and everyone will see how great I am. Never will they hear of the past again. He is old and with time he will pass away.




The King


The people have always had no trouble with the law when it justly brought criminals to their end. My love is for the people and to protect them, but of course not everyone can see this. I have tried my best. They have chosen to reject my love for them. I know outside the kingdom lies certain death. That is why I am protecting the people. I do not want to hide the truth from them. If they lived in a kingdom which laws had no death penalty, there would be chaos. They’d think that outside would be a better place to live when I know that death will await them regardless. I cannot hide what happens when people stray from the truth. They will surely die.


I know some have seen my efforts to keep the peace as love for my country and people. They have seen past the rules which maintain order. They know it is out of love, a sign that I care, that all people should have a love for order in the country. But I cannot stop people talking behind my back. I have been everywhere for everyone to see. A true King loves his country and his people and is not afraid to show it. I have spent all my time protecting, maintaining, and loving the country. What have I done wrong?


But everyone has not lived as long as I have. They have not experienced what I have experienced. And that I cannot change. I have told them the truth from the beginning and it is their choice to believe what I say. After all what do they know of the world outside if they haven’t been there? I have protected them from the chaos outside but I have told them about it and so I have done my job. They need to know that my love for them is real and that it will never go away. It is their only hope. A King who saves and a kingdom that lasts; it has always been the only hope, past, present and the future.




King’s servant


And the King has stayed true to his word. His love lives on. The King’s official has fled outside the kingdom and there he shall meet his end. We mourn but we know to seek the truth in everyone; those who belong and those who don’t belong to the kingdom. We give them the choice to leave or stay. There is no more death penalty. Those who desire to live in love for the King and the country and its people will stay. Those that don’t are welcome to leave in peace. We tell them the truth in love. We do not wish judgment on anyone. We make sure that we are clear in proclaiming the truth out of love as the King has done. It is sad to see people leave but we have told the truth and may the truth be known to all. The truth will judge.


In the end it was all about love. The King said he will return back to the kingdom when the time comes. And with that he took the death penalty on himself and vanished from sight. He made the laws and he took them away. The laws did not make people change their hearts. But love did. Those who saw the love while he enforced the laws before he died knew peace and justice. But those who didn’t see the justice in the laws rebelled. But now that the King has died, he died for love; there is no more law but only love which was the original command. His love lives on, and the news of his death will not be forgotten, so people will always remember. Love unites the kingdom; it brings peace, freedom and prosperity with a joy never known before. And those who rebel will leave the kingdom for good. It is finished. The kingdom continues to stand and shine brightly for all to see, unity in love for the King and its people, and united in hope for the return of their King.




Epilogue


Who knows when the King will return? All the kingdom has is a record of what he did and said. And there were many who lived on to tell the truth. The King had never failed them before; he was there at the start of time. And there was no other like him. But his legacy lives on in the people who have faith in him and have the same desire for other people to know the King’s great love for his people and country. They are convinced the King will keep his word; it has always been true, for his heart was always pure. They live in his love and the light has never shone brighter before.





24/9/09



Nathaniel

A talk and response.

Warning: I am a Christian and my tone of voice should reflect that. Sorry if I cause offence, but it shows that I am convinced of what I say. I write so much only to explain my views so people can understand them better.




Preface

Love is real. God is real to Christians because He is a God of perfect love. Therefore logic and reasoning cannot be used to show God is real as He is first truly known by Christians through a change of heart. Logic and reasoning require human effort, yet it is clear that love and grace is something which is undeserved – something you cannot do anything to earn. Therefore if one wants to show that God is real, one does it through love, as only the love of God can touch people’s hearts into conviction. Logic and reasoning is from the human mind. Only the perfect love of God can give Christians - present past or future an assurance and conviction. In the same way that laws cannot change human hearts, arguments from the mind cannot change human hearts. I have written a true love story, the one from God in order that He can touch your heart and give you conviction. May God bless you through these words!
 

Common misconceptions answered

Only God is true love - You might think that God is self-centred or threatening by saying "Love me or hell" - God, because He shows no love to those that don't love Him after life on earth, but if only God is the true source of love, then it becomes "Love Love or no love" - Love. If you treat God as the only source of true love, then hell is just an absence of love because God’s not there.

The only ‘rules’ of this ‘religion’ are to love God and to love other people. But if you know the love of God then you’ll naturally have a love for all people to know this true love because you won’t want anyone to be in the absence of this love. And God’s love never goes away. It is always there if you choose to know it; it’s unconditional. I just want to show that God is true love. All other rules in the bible are to check whether this selfless love is in action.

If I didn’t believe what I say is true, then there wouldn’t be a need for me to say it. I want people to know the truth because it is out of love.

My proof for God lies with love because God shows His love through Jesus and what He did on earth. Of course theoretically if God made all things, then all things should point to God, but the world is not as it was originally created by Him which I shall explain later so practically the answer is no. And of course God has other attributes which man cannot fully understand but I want people to truly know Him for who He is from the heart, not the mind. So I can only speak of love to show a real God of love but I'm definitely not saying that He is only love. So if you say that I'm deluded with love that is fine because I believe in a God who is the source of true love.

What about those poor people who don't know this love? That's the point; all this writing shows that I care for those people. If you understood this same love then you wouldn’t be afraid of telling others everything I have written here because you know its true love. Remember all questions regarding Christianity can be answered with the unconditional and eternal love of God through Christ whether it is in words or actions.

If you think that Christianity has caused evil, then I am sorry that you have this impression. There would be no evil if there was perfect love, so people have been evil because they have missed the whole point of living by the true love of God. You either know love or you don't. And I say that God is true love, so you either know true love or you don't, and unfortunately people who have claimed to know God have not shown that true love of God. If God is true love, how can you say that you know God but not know true love? True love is from the heart, not the mind.


Loving God is being a slave?

But if you love what you do then you don't feel like a slave because it's what you want to do. From my view I'm not being forced to do anything. His only command is to love Him because God is love. Humans are not slaves to God because they can choose to disobey their owner but they would only do that if they didn't see that the owner was the only source of true love. And if Christianity is solely based on love and relationships between God and man, then does this take away our humanity by God asking Christians to love all people?


I know its cliché but,

God loves you/Jesus loves you!

Nathaniel







 

Religion?? Church Ubi talk September 6/9/09 (revised/Facebook note) Nathaniel

I guess that humans have always had a fascination with the supernatural. In ancient times people worshiped the sun, the moon, the stars, trees, wind, dirt, animals.. whatever. Nowadays, humans are more advanced in thinking, with technology, and because we’ve got more control over the environment we don’t tend to believe in these supernatural powers anymore. Evolutionists say that religion was invented by the human brain to give meaning to life. Of course people today might not be so religious, but are still open to the possibility that there is a God, or some other intelligent life form in outer space.


*Short quiz* hands up & name the religion! Book of the dead, Zeus, Quran, Tom Cruise......

So as you can there are many religions out there. Some have rules which you follow to be a good person. Some treat their religious leaders as a God, holy and untouchable. Some do certain things, sacrifices to please their Gods so that they will get better luck or fortune. Ancient cultures had a Rain or Sun god to help their crops grow. Humans are manipulative beings. If it benefits us, we’ll take it. Fortune tellers, Feng Shui, superstitious charms, the lot; we’ll use the help of these ‘spirits’.


The truth is humans seem insignificant; even though we might be able to shape the environment around us and the world, we don’t control everything. There have always been greater powers. There are earthquakes, volcanoes, and animals that wouldn’t mind if they ate you for lunch. There’s asteroid strikes, if you look at it the earth is a tiny part of the universe. Surely there’s something more powerful out there. And its during these times when we feel helpless, that we call on these higher powers for help. You can see how technology has changed our beliefs, we’re no longer helpless creatures that need Gods to send us rain, but that hasn’t changed everything. Hands up if you have prayed to God when things have gone wrong? ...I think we all have.


But religion not only deals with life on earth, there’s the afterlife. As humans we don’t like to think we’re insignificant, we die and that’s the end. No we want to live forever; we want to be powerful just like God. It all started with Adam and Eve, and man has rejected God ever since.


But what makes which religion right? Well, we’re going to do a *design your own religion exercise.* If you could get into groups of ? Just scribble down or draw pictures of your religion. Maybe a rough idea of how you would get to heaven? What rules? Who are the leaders, Gods? Religious texts?


So who had laws as part of their religion? I think all religions have their rules of what to do or what not to do. And there’s the important part of what to do to get into the afterlife or heaven. But how can you be sure your way is the right way to be saved?


Let me say that laws don’t work. They don’t fix the problem of people doing wrong. The truth is nobody is perfect and definitely not good enough for God’s standard. Romans 3:23 says “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Imagine after you die and you come face to face with God and you’re trying to say that you’ve done this and this on earth. What could you say to impress the creator of the universe to let you into heaven? Do you think what you’re idea of good matters? It’s not what you think; it’s what God says is good that matters. And God says no one is good enough. No sacrifice, nothing humans can do can make us good in God’s eyes. We all have done wrong and God’s laws for the Israelites given to Moses show us where we’ve gone wrong.


Obeying laws does not make you right with God. It is only a measure for you to see how far you are from God’s perfect standard. Now here we have a ruler. It’s used to measure stuff. Now let’s say at each millimetre of this ruler there is a rule from God. Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy; they’re filled with them. Thall shall not steal, lie, murder, commit adultery, worship idols, blaspheme, dishonour our parents.... and where we’ve disobeyed, we’ve snapped the ruler. It doesn’t matter where you snap it, or if you’ve only snapped it once, it’s broken, and we all have failed in God’s eyes. Yep, we are sinners.


So what is this ruler a measure of? It is a measure of perfect love. It is the measure of love between you and God and those around you. We’ve seen this before in Matthew Chapter 22 when Jesus answers the Pharisees question of what the Greatest Commandment is. Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”Matthew 22:37-40.


So being a Christian is not about obeying rules. Going to church, doing ushering, singing, it’s not about what you do, a robot could do these things, but it’s what in your heart that matters. If you do things out of duty and habit, you’ll just get tired and lack the motivation. Things done out of love, you’ll only have that desire to do more. Who gets sick of doing things they love?


So what’s the only way to get into heaven? It’s not through laws, but only through a change of heart. It’s a change from a heart from yourself to one for God. Jesus has done everything for us that we could not. He fulfilled the law; He was perfect love in God’s eyes. And by His love and mercy, God took the punishment for our disobedience and rejection of Him. Think of it like this. You owed God something, but He cancelled the debt. It’s the same with sin. We deserved to be punished by death, to be separated from God and His love – i.e. hell, but God Himself has taken that punishment for us. By law, it’s paid for. But to fix the real problem, you have to acknowledge what God did, and thank Him for it. Laws can put people in jail, get you caned with a ruler at school (ask your parents), but laws cannot change hearts. Only love can. And only God’s love can turn hearts and save souls to be truly free from sin.

You might ask how can we be sure about all this, is Jesus the only way to heaven?


Flick with me to John Chapter 3. Here we have Nicodemus, a religious leader of that time; and surely a religious leader would know how to get to heaven. Basically it goes like this. Jesus says “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”And Nicodemus takes this literally as being born again from his mother’s womb. Jesus replies, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.” Then verse 12, “I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven – the Son of Man.” Then I’m sure we all know what John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”


So we can see that Nicodemus is clearly lost. He has no idea what Jesus is saying. What Jesus is saying is not a physical rebirth but a spiritual one; a change from the heart. But what Jesus really says is that He is God, and He is the way to heaven. Nicodemus doesn’t know yet, but we know that Jesus died in place of us on the cross so that we might be saved. You can be sure that Jesus is the only way to heaven, because He says He’s the only one to have come from heaven and of course He rose again from the dead before going back to heaven. Jesus is God; of course He has the authority to talk about heavenly things.

For us Christians, what Jesus has done for us on the cross means that we no longer live by rules but by grace. It is by grace we are saved, not by works. We rely on Jesus to fulfil the law, He is perfect and through Him and what he did on the cross we are made perfect. We ask God into our hearts, to change us, to have him rightfully at the centre of our lives as Lord. Christianity is not about rules. Take the Pharisees for example - Nicodemus. They thought being good meant strictly keeping the law. They made other laws to stop them disobeying the laws God gave them. They missed the whole point. Obeying the laws doesn’t make you right with God. It’s only through repenting of your sins to God, being sorry and saying thank you by embracing Jesus - God’s love and grace in our hearts; that’s the way to being saved. Not religion. It is about a personal relationship with God through Jesus alone. Jesus is “the way, the truth and the life”. What kind of life is this? It’s a life of grace and love, for God, and for everyone around us, that they too might know the love of God and be saved.


I’ll finish with an extract from Philip Yancey’s book, ‘What’s so Amazing about grace?’


“During a British conference on comparative religions, experts from around the world debated what, if any, belief was unique to the Christian faith. They began eliminating possibilities. Incarnation? Other religions had different versions of gods appearing in human form. Resurrection? Again, other religions had accounts of return from death. The debate went on for some time until C.S. Lewis wandered into the room. “What’s the rumpus about?” he asked, and heard in reply that his colleagues were discussing Christianity’s unique contribution among world religions. Lewis responded “Oh, that’s easy. It’s grace.”

After some discussion, the conferees had to agree. The notion of God’s love coming to us free of charge, no strings attached, seems to go against every instinct of humanity. The Buddhist eight-fold path, the Hindu doctrine of Karma, the Jewish covenant, and Muslim code of law – each of these offers a way to earn approval. Only Christianity dares to make God’s love unconditional.”


 

Acknowledgments

Thanks to God; without His love and grace, and sending His son Jesus to take our place, none of this would be possible. We wouldn’t be able to enjoy the rich and rewarding relationship that we can have with Him, and there would be no hope of salvation.

Thanks to the UBI prep team, led by Bernard and Karen, for their guidance and encouragement.

Thanks to Carl, who gives those awesome and inspiring talks at CampusBibleStudy. (especially the one on Religion during the Think! Mission 09) UNSW is blessed to have such a great ministering leaders, and the large community of Christian students who make up CBS.

And Happy Father’s Day to the heavenly father above – God!

God bless you all, whoever is reading this! May the good news of Jesus continue to turn hearts around set lives free!


1 Timothy 4:12 (NIV)

Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.



 

 

Religion? No. It’s Relationships.

Hey Paul (and whoever is reading this),


I will try to answer all problems you have with Christianity here by comparing them to relationships between you and you future family. After all, I said that Christianity was about relationships ie: between Creator and creation, God and man etc. And family is something I hope we can all relate to. I will use this analogy to cover point by point.




Grace


So let’s say you are a father with lots of children. And as a responsible father you love your children, because after all they were made from a part of you. However, your children are rebels. You love them. But they don’t love you back. No matter what you do, you drive them around, you provide them food, they always manage to do something to hurt you. The saddest thing is, the one you love most, your first-born, runs away from your house because he/she thinks you’re boring. You’re left with children in your house, they’re bad but they choose to stay in your home. You want the one you love most to return to you, but basically they’ve left home for good and don’t want you in their life anymore. They choose to live without you. Nothing you can do about that. Oh by the way, they’ve taken some of your possessions as well your youngest child with them. You’ll never see them again. I’m sure they’re having a great time, by themselves without you. How do you feel? There’s nothing you can do to make them change their mind. They’ve decided what’s best for themselves, without asking your permission even though you thought you loved them to the best you could. They say you’re old fashioned.



What about the ones that do stay in your house? Ok, they’re not perfect, not your favourite children, not too good at school, didn’t inherent your good looks but they are still your children, and you love them as your children. They’ve chose to stay behind with you at home, lazy children, can’t afford a job to move out. Things don’t change. They are your children.



When you die. Who cares? The children that moved out, and had fun by themselves, without you? Or the ones that stayed at home. You provided everything for them. They don’t have anyone to look after them now like you did. Of course they miss you. They’ll realise that you did you best to care for them even though they weren’t the best children. They’re crying for you to come back, and promise you that they’ll make sure you know that they appreciate you. They say sorry. They say thank you for what you’ve done. But it’s too late.


Now at this point, all your children see a vision of you in their dreams as though you were back with them in person. Which of your children are happy to see you? Who misses you the most? Who wants you back and never wish they have to let go of you again? But some have forgotten who you are. They don’t want to live in the past anymore.



But say you didn’t die you had a heart attack. You’re in hospital. Who visits you? Who doesn’t care at all about you? When you recover, they realise what you meant to them as a father. They want you back. They finally return your love. That is a real relationship. But there’s a broken relationship; the children who chose to leave home. It doesn’t mean that you don’t love them still. You still do, but they don’t have a heart for you at all. No matter how much those two of your children love each other, they’re happy without you. You have no choice but to leave them in peace. You know they do everything that you would wish them to do for you, like take you to concerts, overseas trips and the like, but the problem is they do all that for their own enjoyment without you. They don’t acknowledge you as their father. They’re ashamed to take you because they say you’re old fashioned. You can imagine that they can only feel the same as you if they have do have children and their children treat them the same way as they treated you. But you know that they’re not the type to settle down. They’ll never know how you feel. You can only look at it in sadness. They’ve rejected you. They don’t need you at all. The creation has happily rejected the suffering Creator. You recover from the heart attack and return home to your children who now really do understand your care and love and return it back. They treasure you in their hearts. That’s enough to put a smile on your face. Your love for your children is grace. They didn’t deserve it. All of them weren’t perfect children, and all have caused you hurt at some stage. But how rewarding is it to see that grace and love returned.



You can see how what God wants is for His creation to love Him. They same way you would want your children to love you. No matter how good people are to each other, no matter how much your children love to spend time with each other, if they choose to reject you, there’s nothing you can do except love them in the hope that they will return it. Some day. It’s not guaranteed. And you wait for them because you love them. Some will. Some won’t. But you can’t wait forever; some children die before their parents do. And all along you just wanted for your children to know that you loved them. But in vain. They chose to live a life without you. Creation without the creator. Creation rejects the Creator and there’s nothing He can do but to show love in the hope that they might see how much they were loved despite what they did and return it one day. Except here, God is the source of love, same with you being a parent. But there are no other parents out there to give love. And only in the presence of God is there love. And when you are fully removed from His presence you will not be able to find love because God is love. Christians who truly know the love of God really treasure it and are selfless in sharing it. They have a love for all people because they see love through God's eyes and they have personally experienced what the love of God can do.


The two different perspectives - Logic and reason is from the mind but love is from the heart. The father’s view is completely different from the children’s view yet they both make their own sense.

Love and grace defies logic. That's why it’s so hard for the rational mind to understand it sometimes. It's not what we deserve but hey, our hearts can feel it unless it’s hardened. But it shows how everyone can associate with love. Not everyone is born with rational thinking and some people develop it better than others. We were made to love because we were created out of love whether it is out of wedlock, or God as creator. Love can overcome rational thinking. Love is from God. Rational thinking is from man. We constantly struggle between the two; emotional bias for example. And as the rational brain develops the more we rely on our own ability, the more we are resistant to the love and grace from others because we think we are better than others. We don't need them because we have a bigger brain. Born to be proud and selfish. Just like the children who've ran away; they think they know the whole world and what's best for them. We know the reality. Love is the opposite. Selfless, humble, ...if only there was perfect love, the world would be a much better place. Heaven perhaps? Rational thinking gets in the way of love. It defies logic to receive something you don't deserve. As I mentioned in my note, God doesn't care about logic or rules; it's about love and relationships. This will always be a part of God's love and superior wisdom. And it is powerful to all those who have experienced it. God's love is eternal. This is the relationship between and Christians and God. That's why you hear 'Heavenly Father' and 'God's children' in the bible. It's God's family.

I forgot to mention the mother. You love your wife, and your wife loves you. Ideally, you guys love each other so much it's a perfect match! Unity in marriage. United in love for your children. She feels the same way as you do, she understands, she's your soul mate, she was there with you in the beginning, before you had all this trouble with your children, at least your heart attack made some of your children realise how much you meant to them.

You can also see that if it's only through the children's eyes, it's a different perspective. Especially the ones that left home, they don't feel that anything’s wrong. We're the same, we look at people and say they're good by our own standards. Only through the father's eyes and heart can you see that they are not good children. They can love each other how ever the like but they don't love you the parent.




Genesis and the start of creation in terms of relationships -The 'fairy tale' has meaning and makes perfect sense with God's desire to restore the relationship between Himself and His creation. Also explains why the world is so stuffed up.



One very important thing to add. When your wife first gives birth to your child, are you happy? How long will that happiness last? At the start they might obey your every word because thats all they know. You teach them names of objects and colours and they repeat what you say. It's good that they listen to you. It's a good relationship, you show them love by teaching them and the return it by obeying you. It's perfect really. But no child is perfect. Your children are only really rebels when they learn to say no. When they choose to say no and disobey you. You still have that happiness from when they were born? For the first time, you have a right to be angry.Your child no longer has a perfect relationship with you. They've stuffed it. You think you can still show them they same love and care when they were a toddler? They're not innocent anymore. They know that they don't have to do what you tell them. Of course you know you're right because you're the parent. You see the world around us. It's not innocent. Things decay and die. It's not perfect. It's because of the broken relationship between Creator and creation, just like you and your child; a.k.a. sin. Now if it was still in a perfect relationship, God the source of love and life, will gladly give these things to you. But because we've disobeyed Him as a creation, just like your child, this disobedience creates a barrier from you giving the perfect love. It's their problem that they don't accept it. You've done nothing wrong as a responsible parent. They're the ones not choosing to receive it. And so in this way our world has been separated from God's complete presence - it's the creation's rejection. And without His full blessing and love, the once perfect, innocent world is rotting away. It's a stuffed up world, because He is the one that sustains life, and the relationship has been broken. But that doesn't mean the father stops loving his child. You see it's not completely stuffed up. There's still some good in the world; because you don't stop loving your children just because they disobeyed you once and intentionally hurt you. (this should really go at the start of my analogy)

You can see how if one person is convinced about the love of God through what they've experienced, then everything falls into place, the bible, the meaning of life, relationships between all people and God. If this love is real, and it makes sense, then why can't one be convinced that God is real? Throughout the bible - God is love. Faith is belief without evidence? Historical evidence is just a bonus in many ways, the love of God is what really matters.


Hope this analogy clears what my talk was about.


God bless you!
And hope to talk to you soon,


Nathaniel



 


Religion? No. God’s love is real.

Thankyou for reading this far. There are more points to cover.


The love from God in human hearts is different to man’s rational thinking.

We've now established that God's love, i.e. God, is real because He exists in changed Christian hearts today. It is God who changes hearts. Those who know me, know that I haven't always been an open person. The power of God gives boldness to those who are shy. This is what real love is; it's open to all people. A father has love for all his children. Ask a Christian today how God has changed and touched their hearts. Or read Christian biographies. Each one will have their own testimony, its not some brain-washing scam; it's the wonder of God's love. Everyone will know God through different ways. Yet it is the same love from God through Jesus - God's love displayed for all to see, hear or read about on earth. You can see what God has done throughout history in changing lives. Even as we speak God's love is reaching out to people's hearts. He desires for them to know His love, just as you would have your children to know that you love them.

Who need's rational thinking when there's perfect love? And especially love from the One who is the source of love, life and wisdom. We use rational thinking to promote ourselves, career, job, make money for ourselves. If there was perfect love there would be no need for money. Perfect love means unity, complete trust, no fear, peace, joy, sharing, fulfilling the needs of others. This is the love of God. Like an innocent toddler with you as father. He trusts you, because he trusts that you'll never put them in danger. It's what you're supposed to do. They're not scared of you. There's no fear because they've never seen you angry. They are innocent. They are assured of your love. Where there is perfect love, there is no fear. The Christian does not do deeds out of fear of being punished by God. The Christian is assured of God's love, through what Jesus has done. They know the love of God. They have a restored relationship with the Father. They know that He's in control. Their hearts are rich with His love. God's anger has already been born by Himself. He suffered so that you could live, restored in his love, without fear. You know the heart of God in the same way that your children can see that your heart is for your other children to acknowledge you and your love for them.


The Bible - Your record of ways that you have shown love to your children.

It's not that you haven't tried telling those lost children that you love them. You've written them letters, you've asked your children at home to try and talk to them, you've sent gifts, letters warning them that there'll eventually be a point of no return. You've done your best. You've even had a heart attack from all of this distress. They've heard about it from someone else. But in the end, they never came to visit you at hospital or after your recovery. It might have come across their minds. But to them, you don't mean a thing. They never knew that what you did for them was out of love. You can hope and wait, but you've got the feeling that they'll never know. After all, you were that close to dying. To them it makes no difference whether you're dead or alive. The creation ignores the Creator even though there's a record of his love through history. Your children at home can testify about the love from you and how good that relationship is, but what use is that if the other children don't listen? You have literally gone through a hell of a life, and I'm sure you're happy with the children that choose to stay at home with you. They are the ones who acknowledge your love. They've experienced it personally. The ways in which the you have loved your children are recorded down in a diary, say a photo album. Your children at home look at it, and say thank you and are grateful for what you have done. It reminds them of how much they are loved. Especially when they remember your heart attack. That's what changed their hearts. This is what the bible means to Christians. It is a record of God's relationship with man, and it is by his grace and love that he even chooses to restore the relationship. If you were not a responsible father, which is possible, you could have just left your children. Why have all this trouble and hurt? But there would be no one else to show them love that a father would to his children. What happens when you give the same photo album to the children who've left home? Meaningless. They'd rather their own album. Nothing to do with you or your home. No trace of you at all. All the evidence of your love is there in your photo album that you've intentionally kept so there's no excuse for them not to know what you've done in the past for them, as well as all the different ways that you've tried to communicate to those children who've ran away. They treat it as rubbish.


Dealing with sin - Your children not always returning you their love

As I said before you know have a perfect relationship with those children who choose to stay with you at home. You love them, and they fully acknowledge you as their father and your love for them. It’s perfect love, because you’re not angry anymore, there’s no need to. That heart attack has made them really treasure it and they know that it’s not worth going back to the way things were. They don’t want to see you unhappy or angry. But either way there’s no need for you to because they really do understand what it means to treasure your love. They know it won’t happen again. Perfect love gives them that assurance. No need to fear. But you know, children aren’t always that perfect. Things weren’t as bad as they used to be, but there’s that occasional act of disobedience. That’s fine. You forgive them because they’re willing to accept all your love for them. They have that desire to know your love and that’s all that matters. So you tell them the ways in which they can have less time to disobey you. You tell them to be surrounded by your love, so they won’t forget it during anytime of the day. You tell them to live by your love. You tell them to have the same love that you have for other children; all children. Your love is present in the hearts of the other children at home. So the times when you’re not in the same room with your children, you tell them to keep each other company to be reminded of your love. After all perfect love unites. You know that the more time your children spend by themselves it’s easier for them to forget you. They have your photo album but its only heart-warming memories. Your love lives on and exists in the other children at home. Perfect love unites your children regardless of their differences, drives out their fear, gives them courage to reach out to other children because they want the other children to realise how wonderful it is to have this restored relationship. Really, if they always spent time with each other, and never by themselves, they would be never bored, and always occupied, no time to do anything else but to live in your love. To them it’s the best thing that they’ve ever known; being in the complete presence of your love. But if they truly knew your love, they would see that your love is for all your children to come back home and acknowledge you as their father so that they might also have this rich relationship of perfect love.




Prayers for signs/miracles today? You’ve done all that you could for those lost children.

As a father, you’ve done everything that you could for those children who’ve ran away from home. You’ve given them gifts, tickets to concerts, photos, letters, signs to show that you love them. You even arranged to have a chat, to personally tell them that you love them and that all you want is for them to acknowledge you as their father and love. That’s the purpose of you doing all these things. Not to show how rich you are. That defeats the purpose. You know that the broken relationship between you and them is what really matters. You want to restore it. Finally you have that heart attack. Your children have left them a message on their answering machine to come and visit you. It is news of death. If this won’t convince them then nothing will. There is no longer a need to send them any more gifts. You’ve done all you could. When your children who chose to stay at home asks you for gifts you’ll gladly give them because they already know your love. They know that the reason you gave them gifts in the first place was to show how much you love them. The other children ask for gifts. You know they won’t treasure it because they don’t know it’s a sign of your love. There’s no need for you to give them anything. Even if they heard the news of your death and it wouldn’t change their hearts one bit.



The meaning behind the words is what really matters - A true love story?

If your heart isn't touched at all, please read all of this again. Including my talk. If it has, then you know that God is speaking to you. God speaks directly to your heart, just like you would want to talk to the hearts of your children and want them to know that you love them. I thank God because He is perfect love. He is real. Ask God to change your heart, and show you what true love really is all about. God has always had the same love through history. And He's always had the power to change hearts. God doesn't change, He'll be waiting for you, just like you would for your children to know your love. God's love is real. It always has, from the beginning to the end. Never changes. Up to you to open up your heart. You know what the father feels like. The lost children don't know what they're missing out on.

One true love. One true God. Love and grace defies logic. God is God because he cannot be seen through man’s logic and reasoning. This is the wonder of God’s love. You can only see God through your heart in the only way you can see love through your heart. Logic and reasoning are for robots, they can’t feel love. Logic doesn’t tell you to cry when your child dies. Some things you have to experience it yourself and these feelings are real. I can only pray that God shows mercy on you to open up your heart to see the truth. Sorry if you thought that it was about being open minded. It’s about being open hearted.

The day that my love for you isn’t real, the day you’ll know that my God isn’t real. I say all this because I know that God loves you through Jesus. He suffered, God humiliated Himself on the cross for your sake so that you could know real life and love. I have that same love for you. We can agree to disagree but do not forget what I have said. God’s love for you doesn’t change. Your heart can.

In the end God gives you a choice. You make choices from the heart. With rational thinking you only do what you think is right. And even then not everyone has the same reasoning ability so that would be unfair if one could rationalise the existence of God while others couldn’t. God gives you the freedom to choose. Humans are not robots that strictly follow orders from their creator according to logic and reasoning. That’s why we have hearts that tell us to do things otherwise.

The best thing to do now is read the bible in its entirety. God’s love may exist in Christian hearts today, but the bible is a record God’s love throughout history. See if what I said fits in the whole picture regarding Christianity as a faith built on love and relationships. A father’s love for his children lasts till the day he dies. God’s love for His children gives assurance, life, and unity in love, no fear, peace, hope, comfort, strength and courage, selfless desires and above all, an open heart for all the other children to know this love. Can you say you know your God? I can say so because God’s love is real. You may rely on logic and reasoning but I rely on love and God is love. If you truly knew your God, you wouldn’t know just about them, you would know them in a direct personal loving relationship like the one between you and your father. An ideal one of course; one where there is perfect love. If God is truly love, then I am convinced that He exists. There is no other love like it. One can only know God through His love and grace that is in Jesus. Jesus, His life, death and resurrection, is the ultimate sign of God’s love. God, Jesus – God on earth, Holy Spirit – the presence of Jesus in Christian hearts, the Bible – a record of God’s love in history, God’s perfect love is eternal and ever powerful.

I think I’ve said all that I’ve needed to say about love and relationships.

And thanks Paul for asking these very important questions.

God’s love is always the answer.
Cheers, always praying, and God willing I will see you : )

Nathaniel






Final words from the heart.

Old Testament/New Testament – Same God?

Paul you yourself have said, or in the words of Richard Dawkins - a man that does not know the perfect love of God, that the God of the Old Testament is a most unloving God compared to the God of the New Testament. This makes sense because God’s anger has not been taken away by Jesus. God has every right to be angry because creation has chosen to reject the Creator. You as a father have every right to be angry with your children who choose to disobey you. Jesus fulfils God’s commands and in doing so takes away God’s wrath for His creation. The earth has not felt the complete presence of God’s love until Jesus walked on earth. Thus it is natural to read the bible and to see clearly that before Jesus, God’s wrath is justice; while in the presence of Jesus on earth till now - as Jesus’ love exists in Christian hearts today, that God has no need to be angry. You have done all you could as a father. You had that heart attack. That is all that is necessary to touch the hearts of those children who choose to return to home in the presence of your love. There’s no need to be angry at the children at home because they desire to live in your love and there’s no need to send any more gifts to the lost children because the news of your death still exists and is all that is necessary to touch the hearts of the children who have not yet returned home.


Doubts? Really knowing God’s heart.

Knowing love and grace does not require logic and reasoning. Logic and reasoning require human effort. Effort is work. Now read Ephesians 2:4-10. Love and grace you cannot do anything to earn. You cannot do anything to know God except to know and accept His love and grace. You’ll know it is God’s love because God’s love is perfect and never changes. Who gets tired of doing things they love? If God’s love is perfect, then you’ll never get tired. But such a perfect relationship can only exist in heaven where you are in the complete presence of God’s perfect love and there is nothing there to distract you from this love. You’ll never get tired, and never go hungry, and won’t have a need for man’s logic and reasoning; because God’s perfect love, the source of love, life and wisdom is enough. Thanks be to God! Love is real. Once you realise that God is true love then God is real.


Need proof of love?

Paul, if you claim your God is also perfect love, then prove it. That means you are assured, not afraid to die to tell everyone about it because you want others to know the truth because you are convinced. Perfect love unites you with those of your belief even though others hate you for it, but because you know it’s true you’re not afraid because you’ve seen other people change hearts, cry, risking their lives. It is the same love recorded in history, the bible, Christian biographies. It is love for the truth that God is the only source of love and no one should miss out. You see others with this same love that causes conviction so that only encourages you to do more. Can you really say that you know the love of your God because you’ve seen that same love through history and you know that you are no different? Paul, if you say you know this same love, why don’t you try it by putting it into action. Risk your life; do not be afraid because you know it’s true. Love with words but without actions is meaningless. Show me this love in person, and yes we shall meet and I will show you what true love means.

May God’s perfect love be known to all those who choose to open their hearts!

Sorry if I do sound arrogant, but I only say what I know is true. And I say so much all because of the love of God. Do not be sidetracked by the grammatical errors. That is using logic and reasoning. It is the meaning that matters. This is a true love story, not an argument, essay or thesis!

God willing, I really do hope all this has touched your heart in some way. It means that what I have said is true. May your hearts be truly opened to see the love of God.

Nathaniel

I do not use logic and reason because the perfect love of God is true wisdom. I can only talk of the love of God from my heart because it is true.

You see it as you choose, from the father's eyes or the children. But I say what I say from the heart, not the mind. And I have said my God is a God of love.



All that I’ve written is out of love, not for the sake of arguing but because I’m convinced of this perfect love of God. My words are proof of this perfect love in writing. I can only try to show you how God is love whether it is through words or actions. I can only pray and hope that you can see what I do comes from the love of God. Love for others to know the truth, and not afraid to hide it. I hope that’s clear.