The Natural Congregation of Yahweh is what the secular world, modern traditional 'Christians',

and the modern 'Jews', would phrase as, "The Natural Church of God"

AUTHOR'S PHILOSOPHY

Refers to the “Author” of this Web-Site and the free book, "A New Mind!". Yahweh is the Author and Founder of His Congregation!

 The Natural Congregation of Yahweh proclaims no other teacher, pastor, leader, author, founder, or administrator, than Yah'shua the Messiah, and we humbly accept that, "One is our Teacher, the Messiah, AND WE ARE ALL BRETHREN" (Matt.23:8-12). The importance does not lie in whether or not any of us claims to be a member of Yahweh's Congregation, but rather that we acknowledge that Yahweh has proclaimed that membership in His Congregation, is indeed registered in heaven. We will all partake of this registry according to Yahweh's Will.

Author’s  Note:

When you read any of the information throughout this site including the book “A New Mind!”, you may notice that you will not be able to find any claim of “credit” being taken by the author. In fact you will notice that the author has proclaimed that any such acts of a “personal” or private claim to information such as “copyrights”, “patents” or “legal” ownership are contrary to Yahweh’s word.  

Simply put, the author not only believes in Yahweh as Father and Creator of all that is, the author actually “believes” Yahweh. Yahweh’s Word clearly says that all good things come from above, and that as we have freely received so we shall freely give. In another place it says that when we have done all that we are commanded to do, then we should not glory in that because all we have done is what our minimum obligation was to do. 

Hence if there is any good value in truth, or any good value in concept or idea, or what we generally interpret as “progress”, technologically or otherwise, then that good value has come freely to us as a gift from our Father, not from the intellectual abilities of any one of us, in spite of what our vain imaginations might wish. The information on this site is of no exception. The credit therefore, belongs always to Yahweh.  TOP ^

Yah'shua the Messiah SAID,

"I WILL BUILD MY CONGREGATION"!

[Author’s Confession]

"This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Yah'shua the Messiah came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief" (1 Tim. 1:15). These words were first penned by the Apostle Paul, when he was giving instructional advice to young Timothy, his "spiritual son in the faith".

Paul's claim to being "chief" among the world's sinners, was undoubtedly a heartfelt expression, although it was obviously not true in any literal sense. Nor is it true that I myself, am chief among the world's sinners. It is patently true however, that I also suffer heartfelt feelings of abhorrence for my own past conduct, not entirely unlike that of Paul's. Few, if any of my life experiences prior to coming to the knowledge of the Bible, are worthy of any report, save for the fact that they were stepping stones of progress toward my Father and His Messiah.

Through my own empathy for Paul's feelings, I have gained such confidence in Yah'shua the Messiah, so as to become determined to "wage the good warfare" (1 Tim. 1:18) as best as I am given opportunity. And "for this reason, I [hope] to obtain mercy, that in me first Yah'shua the Messiah might show all longsuffering, as a pattern for those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life" (1 Tim. 1:16).  

And so, as Yah'shua's humble bondservant, it seemed fitting to me to prepare an orderly account of the practical application of Yahweh's Word for the modern day reader. Thus, I offer this Web-site and my book, “A New Mind”, as tools for the better understanding of Yahweh’s word, together with the world’s first and only non-copyrighted edition of Yahweh's Word with both Old & New Covenants properly divided into the original 7 divisions and published in a 7 volume set with all 49 original books arranged in their original order and numbered sequence – the Natural Israelite Bible English Edition (NIB)!

 This non-copyrighted material is freely available to all of Yahweh's children; the Congregation of the Family of Yahweh, where "membership is registered in heaven", and is focused in part, on helping the reader to overcome the apparent barriers of time and language that have crept in since the original writings of the Bible.

I do not profess to hold any superior qualifications - in fact, I am simply a farmer. I do profess a profound ability to seek for, and find the simple answers to life's questions. Ironically, I spent nearly forty years searching the world over, only to find them all right before my eyes in the pages of the Holy Bible. I pray that you read this book, and then more importantly, read the entire NIB version of the Holy Bible yourself. You will find answers to all of life's concerns. And in your search for wisdom, remember, it is "the peace of Yahweh, which surpasses all understanding" (Phil. 4:7).

I was raised with a Sunday school background until my early teens and I had no church or religious involvement until I was about 38 years old.  I grew up on a modest family farming operation in south western Ontario, with parents who had a fundamental belief in Yahweh, but did not teach, or live by any particular "religious" tradition. 

By the time I had reached my late teens, I had lost all interest in religion, in fact I felt quite adamant about the Bible being only a "collection of fairy tales" made up by a bunch of old "con-artists" with ulterior motives.  I have no idea how I came to such a conclusion, except to say that, the little bit of organized religion I had been exposed to, was so very ludicrous that it left me with this equally ludicrous opinion.  More recently, however, there was a considerable twist. I had, due to a very personal challenge, and as a direct result of my new-found understanding of basic Bible Truths, changed my entire outlook as to the purpose of my life.  In the spring of 1986, a very good friend of mine, a Christian, became quite upset with me when I expressed my personal opinion of the Bible. My friend responded with what was an obvious challenge - how could I express such a strong opinion on a Book that by nature of the opinion itself, proved I had never even read the Book? He was absolutely right! 

I set about to read the Bible in the same manner my experience with all other books had shown me was the most "efficient" for me.  While in school, I had developed the habit of reading the last chapter of a book first. Obviously, if you know how the book is going to end, then everything leading up to this ending will make a lot more sense and be easier to understand - right?  Well in most cases, yes.  But certainly not with the Bible!  I don't know if you have ever read the last chapter in the Bible or not, but it definitely on its own, does not make understanding of the rest of the Book any easier - especially on the first reading! 

I had to admit, that the book of Revelation was one of the few things that I had ever read without at least, some basic level of understanding.  This very fact was the impetus for continuing my "challenge" to fully understand the entire Book - the Bible.  So I thought, well I certainly don't want to go to "Church" to learn this, I must be able to learn it on my own - I was obviously very independent in my way of thinking.  But I did break down, and began watching several different "religious" shows on television, to help give me a better perspective on what the Bible really said. 

Ironically, for the most part, this did not help at all!  I found that almost every one of these programs had its own, unique interpretation and/or understanding of various Bible topics.  By this time I had diligently read the Bible from cover to cover more than seven times, and had found certain things in it, that I concluded I was either misunderstanding, or in fact, all of these religious programs and churches, were also either misunderstanding, or more probably, were interpreting in a way that conformed to their "traditional market needs"! 

This was a major concern for me.  Was I correct and all of them wrong?  Surely not!  After all, I was certainly not an expert, and many of these organizations were connected with, controlled, or influenced by highly respected, very reputable "theologians", who were indeed "experts in the field". 

Of all these "traditional" Christian television programs, there was one produced by a local Vancouver Pastor, who was a dentist prior to putting together his church and television ministry.  I only saw about three of his programs from that time era, but he seemed to me to be a very "normal" type, who had come from "regular" society and background into his new "religious" experience, somewhat along the lines of where I felt I was coming from.  Then his program went off the air. 

For the most part, the remaining Christian programs, I found very shallow and boring as well as very IN-consistent with what I had been learning through my own Bible study.  I did watch a number of televised episodes of a program, produced by a Ministry that preached the keeping of the Sabbath, and found them to be MORE consistent with what I was learning from the Bible.

They were certainly NOT consistent with the fundamental teachings being expressed by the majority of the "traditional" Christian programs at the time. But as I said, they were also, not totally consistent with my understandings either!

It was all very frustrating. I decided to dedicate myself to at least two hours a day for the next five years to study this matter, on my own, in depth from the Bible itself. By this time I had reached the point where I understood the value of faith in Yah'shua the Messiah, His crucifixion and resurrection. I accepted Him into my life through private prayer and began to experience fellowship with Yahweh the Father - as reconciled by Yah'shua the Messiah, and a new-found, wonderful prayer life, which proved its effectiveness in my daily living continually. (I had by this time, obviously renounced my former opinion of the Bible!)

During those next five years, my life gradually changed. The way I thought, how I felt about myself, about others, my priorities, my goals and life long objectives; everything about me and my outlook on life changed dramatically.  I had come to enjoy a new wealth of richness in my personal relationship with Yahweh and in the dedication of my life and efforts, to Yahweh. Although, I was still what you might call, a "closet" Christian!

I thought at this point (through 1990 and 1991), that I had now developed, and was experiencing the totality of Christianity from the Biblical perspective. Then I was confronted with the meaning behind one statement made by Yah'shua the Messiah, that I was reading during a nightly study session:  "I will build My Church" (Matt. 16:18). 

This is the first place in the common Bible versions I had been using where this word "church" is used. Then I wanted to know "where" is this church, and more importantly "what" is this church that Yah'shua the Messiah said He would build?  I became curious again. What is a church? What did Yah'shua the Messiah build?  Why did He build a Church? Where did He build it? Did He build one church, or many? Is the church that Yah'shua the Messiah built represented by the many denominations of "Christian" churches? Or is there one true church?

The English word "church" is translated from the original Greek word "ekklesia", meaning "congregation", or "an assembly" of "called out ones". Most appropriately for most applications in the Bible, the erroneously translated word "church" should have properly been transliterated as, "congregation".

Symbolically this Congregation in Bible usage is referred to as the household, or family of Yahweh (Eph. 2:19-21).

So at that time,  I chose at least temporarily, to interpret these verses about the congregation - the called out ones, in the way that was most convenient for my lifestyle.  Through more studying, it seemed easy to determine that in the Bible, the word congregation did not refer to church buildings, but rather to the people - the people "called out" to understand the truth of the Gospel.  Well, I figured that I did indeed know the truth about the Gospel - therefore I was "called out" and therefore I was part of the congregation, right? Well, maybe!  I then learned that the Bible teaches that Israelites must "gather together of one accord" to have "fellowship"  with one another as well as with Yahweh, in order to receive the full benefits of their relationship with Yahweh, and to help each other to grow in grace and character of Yahweh through the power of His Holy Spirit.

So then, in 1992, I found myself searching for a "church congregation" to become involved with, somewhere that I might have fellowship with other Israelites. For some reason, the dentist-come-Pastor that I had watched on television some years previously, kept coming to mind. By this time I had even forgotten his name. With a little effort, it was not very difficult to ask around and find out who this Pastor in Vancouver was, that had been a dentist prior to being on television. A few days of querying and someone told me this man's name, the name of his church and how I might contact him. I was still having difficulty with this whole idea about going to church, so when I contacted him, I suggested that I would like to talk to him, ostensibly about a retirement housing project that could have some spin-off benefits for his church.  He agreed to meet and I was excited and quite full of anticipation at the prospect of being invited to attend his church services. 

Well we met, we had a very interesting meeting with respect to the "business" proposal, and he then greatly disappointed me by not inviting me to church!  Instead, he invited me to a downtown businessmen's Bible study class that he was hosting each Tuesday morning at 6:30 a.m.  I went to the Bible study and found it enjoyable, and then he invited me to attend his church service for the following Sunday.  

For close to one year, I attended the Bible study sessions, faithfully every Tuesday at 6:30 am and attended his church services every Sunday - sometimes twice on Sundays. I wanted to get everything I could out of this "fellowship" aspect of things.

But somehow, something just wasn't quite right. I did not know what or why, but I did "know" something was wrong. I had been enjoying the Bible study and the church services - in fact I eagerly looked forward to both each week. As well, I had developed a good friendship with the Pastor and with several of the congregation - it almost seemed to be "working" the way it was supposed to be.

I had been praying earnestly and fervently since 1986 for a full and complete "understanding" of the Bible, especially the book of Revelation, and not until late 1993 did Yahweh fill in most of the pieces for me. I had studied the Revelation and all the related Bible prophecies for literally thousands of hours, reading, praying, taking notes, making comparisons, until it finally started to come together. Many times, for several nights in a row, I would awake at 2 or 3 o'clock in the morning with an uncontrollable passion to study these prophecies and with a "certain knowledge" that if I did, Yahweh would bless me with the understanding I had prayed for.

I can only explain the final stages of this revealed understanding as miraculous - not because the book of Revelation is so "mysterious" as some would think - or not because I'm so "smart", but quite literally, the opposite!  I had been told, and I had originally led myself to believe, that the Revelation was extremely complex and difficult to understand; that it was a "mystery", that only a few people have ever understood it. Well, maybe only a few people have ever understood it, but the rest of these "myths" about it, are just that - myths!  Once Yahweh helped me to remove my prejudice toward understanding the Revelation, it became as easy to understand it as simply reading it! Just exactly like Yahweh said it would be!  After all, Yahweh, through Yah'shua the Messiah does say in the Revelation, that a blessing would be bestowed on all who read it, provided they are obedient to keep the things that are written in it. 

Well the one thing I had by then learned about Yahweh that was absolute, is that Yahweh does not lie - He does not play games! He tells it how it is!  If Yahweh says He expects us to understand and keep what was written in the Revelation, then He also wrote it in such a way as this must be possible - right?  Well, again, maybe! IT IS VERY EASY TO UNDERSTAND - by the few who have not been deceived by Satan. But just as Yahweh says that these "few" would not be deceived, and would therefore understand, He also says that "the many" would be deceived, and would therefore NOT understand!

Since the Revelation is KEY to understanding ALL Bible prophecy, it is of vital importance. It is also important to note that there is no blessing, no benefit, not the slightest advantage in simply "understanding" the Revelation. Rather the advantage, the promise of benefits, or the blessing, comes as a result of OBEDIENCE to what the Revelation says; obedience to Yahweh's Word, the Bible, which almost anyone could understand (if they would simply read it), but which very few will actually OBEY!

I've since come to understand that the "church" is not a physical place I need to search out in order to fellowship. Rather, the "remnant" of the faithful; those who share "like precious faith" consummate the congregation of Yah'shua the Messiah. These "called out ones", are the "body" and Yah'shua the Messiah is the "head" of His Congregation, where membership is "registered in heaven". 

When we gather together for fellowship with those "of one accord", we place obedience to the Gospel of the kingdom of Yahweh that Yah'shua the Messiah preached, above all else. Unfortunately, my friend and former Pastor, like most traditional Christians, teaches that we should "worship Yahweh according to the dictates of our own conscience", which is contrary to Bible instructions, which are simply that we must: "worship Yahweh in spirit and in truth", and that, "Thy Word is truth". My HOPE is that this book will help motivate he and his congregation, together with countless others, to read the Bible with a NEW MIND, and to be drawn away from their false traditions, customs and beliefs, to a new-found faith - "the substance of things HOPED for". TOP ^

A Leap of Faith - and The Atheist Professor

 Have faith! Enjoy having faith – it truly is a lot of fun! And it is so very simple to do!. . . “be renewed in the spirit of your mind” (Eph. 4:23).   

What’s the purpose of life anyway? Only to eat, drink, play, make love? Or do you have a mind, designed to dream? Can you imagine beautiful accomplishments? Think of this. Man is the only creature in the universe that has capacity for exercising creative imagination. This divine quality of dreaming – what you want to be, where you want to go, what you’d love to do, projects you hope to achieve, goals you’d like to reach – all of this makes us the most unique creatures in all creation.

We really are “made in the image” of our Creator! So you are fulfilling your destiny as a child of Yahweh when you dream the beautiful dreams Yahweh inspires in your mind. That’s exciting! That’s faith! Faith is dreaming Yahweh’s dreams!

. . . “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). 

It’s terribly important to understand that a believer is a normal person. Faith is in fact, the mark of normality. A persistently negative and cynical attitude is a mark of emotional illness – the results of unbelief, or “mis”-belief.

Birds are designed to fly. Fish to swim. Humans to live by faith! It is normal to have faith. It is abnormal to be cynical. When you practice positive belief, you are controlled by positive emotions – love, joy, courage, enthusiasm – faith! These are the qualities of an emotionally happy person; one able to think clearly, creatively, as he was designed to do. You were created to be a believer! That’s why you feel so great when you are optimistic!

  . . . “Delight yourself in Yahweh, and He shall give you the desires of your heart” (Ps. 37:4). 

Faith is a choice not an argument. Faith is a decision, not a debate. It is a commitment, not a controversy. Faith fulfills a need in your heart. It can be defined as wanting more out of life. Everyone, even the super affluent, at some time or other, realize a void in their lives. We suspect that out there, somewhere, there is always something more. Where does this intuition for something more come from? It is built right into our very nature – man has been called an incurably religious spiritual animal – by instinct and by nature.

Wanting is believing and believing produces results – so be careful what you want – you’ll get it! No doubts! Strong faith is the expression of deep desire. Likewise doubt is the lack of desire. A host of conscious and subconscious forces can keep you from wanting to believe. Fears of what Yahweh might do to your life or in your life can keep you from wanting to believe. Internalized guilt can make the possibility of an Almighty, All Knowing God a threatening concept. Deep-seated negative emotions can kill the desire to believe, leaving you with a negative inclination to doubt. Having trouble believing? Well, why don’t YOU want to believe?

Yahweh promises to bless the person who has strong desires. This is because in Yahweh’s eyes, desire and faith are one and the same: “He shall give you the desires of your heart”.

  . . . “There lives more faith in honest doubt, than in half the [religious] creeds”, wrote Alfred Lord Tennyson, in his “In Memoriam”.

  I find that many who have serious questions about the existence of Yahweh, want desperately to believe in something. Their probing inquiry and creative alternatives, reflect thoughtful doubt. Actually they are for the most part, far more responsible and serious in their pursuit of a “faith” – in something, or anything, than they realize. Even more so than those who blindly recite religious creeds without really daring to know or to explore the really tough questions.

Doubt can be a very positive force when we learn to doubt our doubts! And to have faith in our faith! It is apparent that the believer in Yahweh and His Word, has as strong of a foundation for a rational system of belief as does any doubter for his philosophy of irreligion he has fabricated or been victimized by.

If your doubts collide and clash with the viewpoint of faith, it is the better part of wisdom to believe the believer in you and doubt the doubter within you. Then you are on your way to a great life. 

. . . “and when Yah'shua went out He saw a great multitude, and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick” (Matt. 14:14).

  In the Broadway play, “The Man of La Mancha”, Don Quixote was mocked and scorned for being such a positive thinker! Finally, in a splendid self-defense, he asks the ultimate question, “who is crazy? Am I crazy because I see the world as it could become? Or is the world crazy because it only sees itself as it is?”

Who is normal, the cynic or the believer? The positive thinker or the negative thinker? The man of Godly faith or the atheist?  The despairing pessimist or the hopeful optimist? By now we all know the answer. We must affirm that health is normal and sickness is abnormal. That very basic value judgment is beyond controversy. Unbelief is a sickness, and skepticism is damnably dangerous. It gives birth to a multitude of spiritual demons that can destroy your mental health and spread an epidemic of despair wherever you go. As soon as you surrender to negative thoughts, you become host to an infectious spiritual disease and become the carrier of an epidemic of doom and gloom.

It is normal for a child to laugh and play and dance. It is not normal for a child to be downcast, to withdraw, or to sulk in isolation. It is normal to be a happy believer! Who is crazy? The realist or the idealist? Obviously, the beautiful dreamer, with his exalted visions of glorious possibilities, is the uplifting force in society. He comes bringing solutions. He is the great problem solver. He is the great physician, the healing source, the hopeful friend. He follows Yah'shua the Messiah! He imitates the perfect example to the best of his ability and is proud of it! After all, it was commanded of him! His optimism is his faith, the faith that recognizes the value of being the very best you can be, which truly only comes from following the very best example that has ever been. And it is easy! You don’t even have to work out any new ideas – just “imitate” what has already been perfectly done! 

. . . “for I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says Yahweh, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jer. 29:11).

  Each new year is an appointment to become an authentic optimist. Each new day is justification for being enthusiastic about life. Each dawning is Yahweh’s invitation to begin with  the present moment, to make new and noble resolutions. Every day you have a standing appointment to meet new opportunities.

Faith is such a positive opportunity. It is a positive idea. A positive idea is the greatest power in the world. Godly faith opens your mind for Yahweh’s thoughts to enter in. The most powerful positive idea is one that comes directly from the God who created you, who fathered you and who broke sunshine through the darkness of night.

You were created to think Yahweh’s thoughts! You are set free, liberated, listening to the desires of your heart. Be excited about them – they are Yahweh’s promised gifts to you! Be excited about today and be excited about your future – it is in Yahweh’s hands! A truly rewarding knowledge!

  . . . “show me your ways, O Lord, Teach me your paths, Lead me in your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation” (Ps. 25:4).

  The walk of faith is an adventure. In the depth of your heart, you know with an unflinching certainty and with an invincible awareness, the course of action your life must take. This is Yahweh’s answer to your purpose in life.

  . . . “One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of Yahweh” (Phil. 3:13,14).

  Faith is not merely thinking happy and holy thoughts. Faith takes the form of good and Godly goals. No act of faith is more dynamic, more constructive, than setting incredible goals! Ever notice how negative thinkers avoid setting goals? “Goals – who needs them? Or, I’ll just wing it thank you. Or, I prefer to roll with the punches. I don’t want to get trapped by a commitment, etc.”.

Failure is not a matter of failing to meet your goals. Failure is in not making goals or in not making the most of your possibilities, seen and unseen, known and unknown, in the present and in the future! Use faith to set positive goals and you’ll be sure to rise to higher plateaus – I guarantee it! You’ll be happier, healthier, wealthier and wiser! You’ll be farther ahead tomorrow than today – even a little can turn out to be a lot.

Someone recently asked me why I most often seem to be happy and to see the positive side of things. My answer; “Because I’ve always got a lot of unfulfilled goals, just waiting to be achieved, and this pleasantly distracts me from anything I might otherwise worry about!”

If you use faith to set and strive for positive goals you will always inspire those around you. Imitate Yah'shua the Messiah! He inspired millions to believe Yahweh! What a positive goal! What are positive goals? They are the impossible problems just waiting to be solved by someone with this incredible and miraculous power called faith!

  . . . “Go your way, and as you have believed, so let it be done for you” (Matt. 8:13).

  We truly are a manifestation of our beliefs! Miracles never happen just through meditation, but by mighty action – the result of belief! Read carefully the words of Yah'shua and notice the verbs: “follow, go, seek, do, ask, knock”. The walk of faith is not merely the serene, silent, spiritual, unspeaking stroll of a holy man in the stillness or silence of day. Faith is the mental activity that draws Yahweh into our mind and our imagination, until a passion inflames our will and motivates us into action!

It is then that commitments are made! What are commitments? They are entering into an honourable contract, pledging oneself to the task well before the problems are solved. Every commitment generates by definition, a new set of problems. If we waited for the solutions to the problems before we made the commitments, the commitments would never get made. This is not the walk of faith! It is for this reason that commitments in anything, in marriage, in fulfilling a project, in business, in family, in whatever, are self-inspiring!

  . . . “I can do all things through Yah'shua the Messiah who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13).

  Faith is the inner conviction, the unshakable assurance, the profound knowing that becomes the reality before the event. It is what we choose to believe in before we can start to act as if it were true! It is a sense of destiny – of knowing you can. Walking by faith is knowing you can solve any problem!

  . . . “so he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them – walking, leaping, and praising Yahweh” (Acts 3:8).

  Faith is often a leap. How appropriate! How else could you possibly move from one place to another where there were no direct links? The healed man had no experience with standing or walking, there was no direct link, yet by faith, he “leaped” up, stood and walked!

Faith is leaping across the chasms that exist between the:

-               known and the unknown

-               proven and unproven

-               actual and possible

-               the grasp and the reach

-               the I’ve got it and the I’ll get it

-               knowledge and mystery

-               material and spiritual

-               achieved and pursued

-               sickness and health

-               sin and forgiveness

-               life and death.

Yes there are chasms between today and tomorrow. I cannot be sure I can cope with tomorrow, but by faith I’ll leap into it with expectation. There is always a chasm between my present and my unfulfilled hopes and dreams, and by faith I’ll make the leap toward their achievement – and grow – and have fun doing it!

  I believe in faith, I believe in believers, I believe in hope for believers, I believe believers are happier and more fulfilled, I believe in Yahweh and I believe in fun-filled tomorrows. I believe I am always in a leap of faith! TOP ^

The Atheist Professor

"LET ME EXPLAIN the problem science has with Yah'shua the Messiah." The atheist professor of philosophy paused before his class and then asked one of his new students to stand.

"You're student of the Bible, aren't you, son?"

"Yes sir."

"So you believe in Yahweh?"

"Absolutely."

"Is Yahweh good?"

"Sure! Yahweh is good."

"Is Yahweh all-powerful? Can Yahweh do anything?"

"Yes."

"Are you good or evil?"

"The Bible says I'm evil."

The professor grins knowingly. "Ah! THE BIBLE!" He considers for a moment. "Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you can cure him. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try?"

"Yes sir, I would."

"So you're good...!"

"I wouldn't say that."

"Why not say that? You would help a sick and maimed person if you could... in fact most of us would if we could...Yahweh doesn't." No answer.

"He doesn't, does he? My brother was a Believer who died of cancer even though he prayed to Yahweh to heal him. How is this Yahweh good? Hmmm? Can you answer that one?" No answer.  

The elderly professor is sympathetic. "No, you can't, can you?" He takes a sip of water from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax. In philosophy, you have to go easy with the new ones. "Let's start again young man. Is Yahweh good?"

"Er... Yes."

"Is Satan good?"

"No."

"Where does Satan come from?"

The student falters. "From... Yahweh..."

"That's right. Yahweh made Satan, didn't he?" The elderly man runs his bony fingers through his thinning hair and turns to the smirking, student audience. "I think we're going to have a lot of fun this semester, ladies and gentlemen." He turns back to the Believer. "Tell me, son. Is there evil in this world?"

"Yes, sir."

"Evil's everywhere, isn't it?

Did Yahweh make everything?"

"Yes."

"Who created evil?" No answer.

"Is there sickness in this world? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All the terrible things - do they exist in this world?"

The student squirms on his feet. "Yes."

"Who created them?" No answer.  

The professor suddenly shouts at his student. "WHO CREATED THEM? TELL ME, PLEASE!" The professor closes in for the kill and climbs into the Believer 's face. In a still small voice: "Yahweh created all evil, didn't He, son?" No answer. 

The student tries to hold the steady, experienced gaze and fails. Suddenly the lecturer breaks away to pace the front of the classroom like an aging panther. The class is mesmerized. "Tell me," he continues, "How is it that this Yahweh is good if He created all evil throughout all time?" The professor swishes his arms around to encompass the wickedness of the world. "All the hatred, the brutality, all the pain, all the torture, all the death and ugliness and all the suffering created by this good God is all over the world, isn't it, young man?" No answer.

"Don't you see it all over the place? Huh? "Don't you?" The professor leans into the student's face again and whispers, "Is Yahweh good?" No answer.

"Do you believe in Yahweh, son?"

The student's voice betrays him and cracks. "Yes, professor. I do."

The old man shakes his head sadly. "Science says you have five senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen Yahweh?"

"No, sir. I've never seen Him."

"Then tell us if you've ever heard your Yahweh?"

"No, sir. I have not."

"Have you ever felt your Yahweh, tasted your Yahweh or smelt your Yahweh... in fact, do you have any sensory perception of your God whatsoever?" No answer.

"Answer me, please."

"No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't."

"You're AFRAID... you haven't ?"

"No sir."

"Yet you still believe in him?"

"...yes..."

"That takes FAITH!" the professor smiles sagely at the underling. "According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your God doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son? Where is your God now?" The student doesn't answer. "Sit down, please." The Believer sits...Defeated.  

Another Israelite Believer raises his hand. "Professor, may I address the class?"

The professor turns and smiles. "Ah, another Believer in the vanguard! Come, come, young man. Speak some proper wisdom to the gathering."  

The Believer looks around the room. "Some interesting points you are making, sir. Now I've got a question for you. Is there such a thing as heat?" "Yes," the professor replies. "There's heat." "Is there such a thing as cold?" "Yes, son, there's cold too."  

"No, sir, there isn't." The professor's grin freezes. The room suddenly goes very cold.

The second Believer continues. "You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat, mega-heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat but we don't have anything called 'cold'. We can hit 458 degrees below zero, which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold, otherwise we would be able to go colder than 458. You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it."           Silence. A pin drops somewhere in the classroom.

"Is there such a thing as darkness, professor?" "That's a dumb question, son. What is night if it isn't darkness? What are you getting at...?"  

"So you say there is such a thing as darkness?" "Yes..." "You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something, it is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light but if you have no light constantly you have nothing and its called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to define the word. In reality, darkness isn't. If it were, you would be able to make darkness darker and give me a jar of it. Can you...give me a jar of darker darkness, professor?"           Despite himself, the professor smiles at the young effrontery before him. This will indeed be a good semester. "Would you mind telling us what your point is, young man?"

"Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to start with and so your conclusion must be in error...."  

The professor goes toxic. "Flawed...? How dare you...!"

"Sir, may I explain what I mean?" The class is all ears. "Explain... oh, explain..." The professor makes an admirable effort to regain control. Suddenly he is affability itself. He waves his hand to silence the class, for the student to continue.  

"You are working on the premise of duality," the Believer explains. "That, for example, you claim there is life and then there is death; a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of Yahweh as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science cannot even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism but has never seen, much less fully understood them. 

“Your questions regarding good and evil are even contrary to your own science in that they presuppose them to be ‘things’. Can you quantify good for me professor, or can you quantify evil, or perhaps bring me a jar of either of them. You see professor, good and evil cannot be quantified and thus they cannot have had an original maker as you claim. The good and evil you ask of are the results of choices we make. If we choose what is right, good results; whereas if we choose what is wrong, evil results.  

“To view as you do, death as the opposite of life for example, is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life; death is merely the absence of life. But again, you cannot quantify life in the sense of putting it into a jar, yet you know it exists. Likewise, hatred is not anything aside from the absence of love; ugliness is the absence of beauty; suffering is the absence of enjoyment; brutality is the absence of kindness. You cannot prove it, yet you know all of these ‘things’ exist, because you ask very pointed questions concerning them; questions concerning my God. The God you say does not exist because you cannot prove it."  

The young man holds up a newspaper he takes from the desk of a neighbour who has been reading it. "Here is one of the most disgusting tabloids this country hosts, professor. Is there such a thing as immorality?"  

"Of course there is, now look..."

"Wrong again, sir. You see, immorality is merely the absence of morality. Is there such a thing as injustice? No. Injustice is the absence of justice. Is there such a thing as evil?" The Believer pauses. "Isn't evil the absence of good?" The professor's face has turned an alarming color. He is so angry he is temporarily speechless.  

The Believer continues. "If there is evil in the world, professor, and we all agree there is, then Yahweh, if he exists, must be accomplishing a work through the exercise of evil. What is that work Yahweh is accomplishing? The Bible tells us it is to see if each one of us will, of our own free will, choose to exercise the good within us, or whether we will exercise the evil within us. Because you see, professor, Yahweh knows that evil does not exist in and of itself, it is merely the absence of good resulting from our wrong choices."  

The professor bridles. "As a philosophical scientist, I don't view this matter as having anything to do with any choice; as a realist, I absolutely do not recognize the concept of Yahweh or any other theological factor as being part of the world equation because Yahweh is not observable."  

The student continues; "I would have thought that the absence of Yahweh's moral code in this world is probably one of the most observable phenomena going"! "Newspapers make billions of dollars reporting it every week! Tell me, professor, do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?"  

"If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man, yes, of course I do."

"Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?" The professor makes a sucking sound with his teeth and gives his student a silent, stony stare.  

"Professor, since no-one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this theoretical process is an on-going one, are you not teaching your opinion, sir, or worse, the unfounded opinion of another? Are you now not a scientist, but rather an occult priest?"

"I'll overlook your impudence in the light of our philosophical discussion. Now, have you quite finished?" the professor hisses.  

“So professor you basically believe in the new age existentialist philosophy, that claims that life simply came into being and through this theory of evolution, now simply ‘exists’?”

“That is correct young man, and all men of science are in agreement!” 

“Well then sir, perhaps you could resolve one simple issue for me regarding the question of which came first, the chicken or the egg. And that question would be, “how did the first existentialist chicken and the first rooster it mated with, come into the required simultaneous existence in order to pro-create via the first fertile egg?”

“I won’t answer that ridiculous question, its nonsense!”

“Sir, is the matter really that you won’t answer the question, or rather that you cannot answer it without making nonsense out of your evolutionary theory?”

"I believe in what is - that's science!"  

"Ah! SCIENCE!" the student's face splits into a grin. "Sir, you rightly state that science is the study of observed phenomena. Science too is a premise which is flawed..."

"SCIENCE IS FLAWED..?" the professor splutters. The class is in an uproar. The Believer remains standing until the commotion has subsided.

"To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student, may I give you an example of what I mean?" The professor wisely keeps silent.  

The Believer looks around the room. "Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen one of the professor's ‘scientific’ thoughts?" The class breaks out in laughter. The Believer points towards his elderly, crumbling tutor. "Is there anyone here who has ever heard one of the professor's thoughts, not his speech...felt one of the professor's thoughts, touched or smelt one of the professor's thoughts?" No one appears to have done so.  

The Believer shakes his head sadly. "It appears no-one here has observed, or has had any sensory perception of the professor's thoughts whatsoever. Well, according to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol that our professor calls science, and in complete harmony with the professor’s view on Yahweh, the professor has no thoughts; he merely relies on his own “faith”."  

The class is in chaos. The Believer sits...because that is what a chair is for. An atheist has a reason, but no hope for his reason. A hypocrite has a hope, but no reason for his hope. A Believer has a reason for his hope and a hope for his reason; and, I might add: Life with Yah'shua the Messiah is an endless hope. Without the Messiah it is a hopeless end.

Grace and peace to you, from our Father, Yahweh, and Yah'shua our Messiah!

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Updated on 10/06/2008