In Search of Reliable Truth

Preface This book represents the complete collection of letters I penned to a young couple in 2009; they in turn have generously given permission to share it ith others! "y reason for riting these letters is to give a solid understanding of those things in life that are reliably true# that is$ things that are true to such an e%tent that one can fully depend on them for support and use them to build up a solid belief system hich ill stand firm through life&s storms! In the interest of protecting the privacy of the individuals involved$ I have changed their names! 'ther ise$ these letters remain in their original form! (ames )rooks (une 2009

*ote+ This publication may be copied at ill!

,etter -+ .n Introduction /ear Scott and .my$ 0ou have probably heard such things as 12no ledge is po er$3 or 1The truth ill set you free!3 If you ill forgive the pun$ there is some real truth to these sayings! In contrast$ false kno ledge 4something you hold to be true but is actually false5 can hurt you very badly if you put eight on it and trust it ith your hole being! "ost people don&t fear flying in a plane because they kno that$ in general$ commercial flights are safe and reach their destinations safely! Passengers thus reason that the flight is safe and they trust their lives to the plane and the pilot! )ut hat if their trust is not ell6founded 4perhaps the particular plane they are boarding has failed all safety codes and the pilot has never flo n before57 It could mean disaster! 8e have to put our trust in something$ or else e can&t function in this life! The key 9uestion is+ 8hat can be trusted7 8e need to be confident in our ans ers$ or else face possible disaster! .s I rite this I am reminded of my hobby of learning hich ild plants are edible and hich are poisonous! Suppose I learn from 8ikipedia that Poke berries are edible and I trust this information enough to eat a handful of them!

I ould die! :alse kno ledge can kill you! )ut hy ould anyone spread false kno ledge hen they kno it is not true and that it could seriously hurt someone7 The ans er is simple! )y planting false kno ledge 4propaganda5 you can more easily control people by making them believe hat you ant them to believe! In fact$ there are multitudes of folks these days ho desire to control you so that they can benefit from it! Thus$ false kno ledge is very

common! "any people ho believe false kno ledge spread it to others ithout ever reali;ing it is false$ and this leads to a general consensus that such false kno ledge must be correct since so many believe it! The times in your life here kno ing truth is especially important is after a huge loss < perhaps the loss of someone ho is very close to you! It is at this point that you may begin to 9uestion things you have never had reason to 9uestion before+ /oes =od really e%ist7 If so$ ho could >e allo this to happen7 If you have thought through such agoni;ing 9uestions beforehand < before your loss < the ans ers can be a great comfort to you and can allo you to grieve ithout the unnecessary baggage of 9uestioning everything! .fter all$ grieving takes up most of your mental energy and you really can&t think very ob?ectively! "y plan is to continue corresponding in this manner$ to give you a series of letters hich I hope ill be useful to you as you seek out the truth of things for yourself! "y goal is to present information in such a ay that you can verify each step for yourself$ to see if it is indeed reasonable! I ant you to be convinced in your o n mind of the truth so that you are illing to trust it ith your hole being! 0ou can&t ?ust take the easy road of distrusting everything+ such distrust of everything tends to make one bitter to ards life! )ut total trust in something you deem to be trust orthy brings ?oy#it allo s you to live life to the fullest! ,ove .l ays$ (im PS#This series of letters are being ritten specifically on your behalf$ but I don&t mind you sharing them ith others!

,etter 2+ Trusting 'ur Senses /ear Scott and .my$ @an you trust your senses7 8here have I heard that 9uestion before77 'h yeah$ in science class! .fter posing this 9uestion$ the teacher then introduces various optical illusions to sho that in fact you can&t al ays rely on your senses! '2$ so hen you board an airplane$ you trust your life to it$ right7 Is that because airplanes can al ays be trusted7 *o$ of course not! 0ou kno for a fact that there have been airplane crashes! 0ou trust the airplane ith your life because in general airplanes don&t crash! ,et&s transfer this logic to our senses! @an our senses al ays be trusted7 *o! )ut are they trust orthy in general7 .bsolutely they are! So$ yes$ you can trust your life to your senses! There are actually people in this orld ho claim that they do not trust their senses$ even in general! >o ever$ I&ve seen them drive! 8hen they come to a red light$ they stop! @learly$ they are trusting their senses! They say one thing$ but act in a completely different manner! The truth is that e can&t survive long in this orld ithout trusting our senses! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter A+ @reators of /eception /ear Scott and .my$ So far I have stated the importance of detecting false kno ledge and embracing reliable kno ledge! I have also argued that e should trust our senses; e should embrace them as a source of true and reliable kno ledge! In this letter$ I ant to talk some about the people ho create false kno ledge ith the intent to deceive! .re there any tell6tale signs of someone ho maliciously creates false kno ledge7 Surprisingly$ yes! The key to identifying these people#those ho intentionally hurt others#is this+ they have little to no visible conscience! They don&t seem to care that they hurt people! They have orked hard to dull their feelings of right and rong! 0ou can verify this for yourself using this logic+ if it ere not true 4if they ere bothered by rong5$ they ould not be able to stand themselves! In fact$ there is a simple test you can use! 8hen the person in 9uestion is overcome ith happiness$ is it al ays because he got his ay7 If so$ then you are dealing ith a person ho probably creates false kno ledge on a regular basis ith the intention to deceive! If$ ho ever$ the person sometimes is over?oyed because something good happened to someone else$ this is not a person ho deceives intentionally! So e no have a test! It is great for detecting those ho manufacture false kno ledge! >o ever$ there are still very ell6meaning people 4people hom e call 1sincere35 ho pass along loads of false kno ledge ithout ever kno ing it! These people are lovable$ and therefore particularly influential!

8e like them and therefore e tend to believe hat they say! :or this reason$ these are the ones ho do the most damage! There is no easy test to detect them! The only ay

to avoid their influence is to take the long ?ourney of reasoning for yourself hat is true and reliable$ then comparing your kno ledge of the truth ith hat they are telling you! This series of letters is meant to guide you on this ?ourney! Bnfortunately$ there is no easier ay! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter C+ )ehold the )eauty of ,ifeD /ear Scott and .my$ In a former letter I sho ed that our senses can be trusted$ and that e can rely on them as e search for reliable truth! In this letter I ant to talk about the beauty conveyed to us by our senses! I do not ant to be lopsided$ and I reali;e that not all of hat e sense is pleasant! I ill deal ith the not6so6pleasant side of things in another letter! In this letter$ I ant to focus on beauty! It is interesting to note that nothing that e sense is beautiful by itself! 8e must respond to hat e sense$ and that response is an integral part of the e%perience of beauty! 8e need both#the input from our senses$ as ell as our response to that input#to e%perience beauty! 'ne such e%perience of beauty is the e%perience of being in the midst of a huge e%panse$ ith no one else around! It is the feeling of being a part of something much larger than oneself$ and it is incredibly calming! I e%perienced this gro ing up in *e "e%ico$ looking out over hundreds of acres of empty land$ immersed in the orange brilliance of the setting sun!

The best ord to describe it+ serenity! . fe years ago$ I met a fello ho spoke of flying his airplane solo over the ocean$ ith no land in sight! >e e%perienced the same sereneness$ the same beauty! This e%perience can be found in many other situations here e are confronted ith something in our natural environment much bigger and more po erful than ourselves+ -5 .stronauts in space$ as they look at the earth$ a small ball in the e%panse of the stars and gala%ies! 25 >earing the roar and spray of *iagara :alls! .nother very beautiful sensation is the melting a ay of

something sharp and painful into something peaceful and smooth! This is a 9uality of art ork that appeals to our senses! It is especially found in music! 8e cannot listen to sharp$ painful 4dissonant5 music for long$ unless it is follo ed by a resolution into an open$ airy type of music 4consonance5! /issonance follo ed by consonance in music does something onderful to us! It gives us the feeling that although there is pain$ it does not last long$ and gives ay to peace! *e%t$ a very po erful and beautiful sensation is that of being rescued from something bad! If I o e money to the bank$ and they hound me day and night for it$ but then someone sho s up and pays the bill for me#that is a very beautiful thing indeed! )eing forgiven for something I did rong is another po erful e%ample of this! It is truly beautiful! There is the very beautiful and deep serenity that comes from being cared for! If I kno someone loves me unconditionally$ and ill never abandon me regardless of the stupid things I might do$ there is a feeling of orth#that I can do anything I ant to do as long as I put my mind to it! This feeling of being cared for is one of the most po erful and beautiful things one can e%perience! :inally$ there is the a esome feeling of making a difference in someone&s life! If I can do something hich ill bring beauty 4such as the things mentioned above5 into someone&s life$ it brings beauty into my o n life as ell! To feel useful is a huge thing$ and the beauty that comes from it is indescribable! ,ife is truly beautiful! . person is ise ho takes the time and effort to e%perience the beauties of life! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter E+ /ecay /ear Scott and .my$ 8e have looked at the incredible beauties that abound in life! They are so beautiful that no one$ not even the most skilled poets$ can ade9uately describe them! I ant to eventually look at the dark side of living$ to investigate hat our senses tell us about the painful aspects of life! )ut before e do that$ I ant you to think through your o n e%perience and see if you agree ith me on this+ Fverything dies! Fverything runs do n eventually! Some things last much longer than others$ but they all eventually ear do n$ get thro n a ay$ or die!

In fact$ the only ay that humanity 4or any species5 can survive is by reproducing itself! People tend to have babies hich gro up to have babies of their o n! )ut a baby cannot have a baby right a ay#there needs to be some gro ing6up time first! .nd survival is critical during this gro ing6up time; other ise$ there ill be no chance for reproduction! This continual cycle of survival and reproduction has been touted by some as a means hereby generations get better ith time$ and thus evolve to higher and higher levels of sophistication! The idea for this as best presented by @harles /ar in in the mid -G00&s! It as not a scientific theory$ per se; it as ?ust a hunch that /ar in had as he recorded his observations of the orld around him! >ere&s ho it ould ork+ an organism hich is successful at surviving passes this success to his offspring$ so offspring do not have to repeat the mistakes of the parents but can begin here their parents left off! 8e can see this phenomenon to a great e%tent in

human culture$ but /ar in thought that such information could be passed from one generation to the ne%t through the genes$ so that the organisms actually improve biologically over time! /ar in felt that the ultimate test of his theory ould be to put significant effort into digging up fossils of ancient organisms! If his theory is right$ there should be multiple thousands of simpler$ less sophisticated organisms found$ the precursors of hat e see living in the orld today! Some time after /ar in&s treatise$ the nature of genetic material as made kno n$ and it as found that the genetic makeup of a single organism does not change#genes cannot record an organism&s e%periences$ to be passed to its offspring! .dditionally$ many digging e%peditions have been performed$ and the fossils needed to support /ar in&s theory have not been found! 8hat ere found ere mostly the same life forms e see living today! *evertheless$ there are many people in the orld ho ant to dull their consciences$ and they need for personal reasons to believe that there is no =od! These people cling to /ar in&s theory$ because they see it as the only theory that ill allo them to believe they do not have to ans er to a higher authority! >aving said all that$ I do not ant you to discard /ar in&s ideas totally! /ar in&s idea of 1natural selection3 has been sho n to be very useful in understanding the orld e live in! *atural selection ?ust means that if you look at all the genetic information in a species$ then look at the genetic information in that same species many generations later$ some of the genetic information ill be missing in the later generation! In other ords$ there is a loss of genes in the species gene pool over time! The genes that survive tend to be ones that are best at surviving in the recent past$ but if the environment changes back to the ay it as previously 4 hich it almost surely ill5$ suddenly some of the genes needed for survival are no longer there! *atural selection is a tragedy! It is the reason there are so many species going e%tinct! It is not because of pollution! It is because this is hat natural selection does! 'ver time$ more and more species go e%tinct$ and the beauty that once as is no more! 8e no longer have dinosaurs$ or the 2i i bird$ or the 8ooly "ammoth!

So the picture is indeed grim! *ot only are things earing out and dying$ but the diversity of life is decreasing over time! Some ne diversity is generated through mutations 4such as /o n&s Syndrome$ Sickle @ell .nemia$ or @ystic :ibrosis in humans5$ but that&s no substitute for the diversity lost through natural selection! /iversification through mutation is like diversifying a car by taking a sledge hammer to it! This discussion of /ar in is much more than I ant to say to you$ but I feel it is necessary simply because there is a lot of false information surrounding his theories$ and I ant to give you some information to help you sort it out in your o n mind! I myself$ as a graduate student and researcher$ as misled for many years on this very topic! I listened to hat 1nice people3 said to me regarding evolution and the origin of life$ rather than thinking it through for myself! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter H+ Suffering /ear Scott and .my$ This letter ill e%plore hat our senses can tell us about suffering! >elmut Thielicke$ a famous =erman theologian$ at the end of an e%tensive tour of the Bnited States$ as asked hat he felt the greatest defect as among .merican @hristians! >e replied$ 1They have an inade9uate vie of suffering!3 .mericans$ as a rule$ make it a point to think about suffering as little as possible! .nd they have tools to help them ignore it+ entertainment$ medications$ and a general attitude of avoiding e%posure to suffering people! That&s hy I ant to devote a letter to suffering! To embrace truth$ e must embrace not only the beautiful parts of life$ but the painful parts as ell! 8e ill be much better e9uipped to live life to the fullest if e face the truth! The orld is filled ith suffering$ and not ?ust a little suffering! >umans and animals suffer through sickness because they are earing out 4see my last letter5! :rom the day e are born e ear out slo ly over time$ and eventually the degradation of our bodies produces sickness of various types! Physical in?ury produces suffering as ell! 8e can be burned by fire or harsh chemicals$ poisoned$ stabbed$ beaten$ scraped$ shocked$ or chilled! .dditionally$ e can suffer through being deprived of something e need to survive+ air$ food$ ater$ light$ or space! These things can happen by accident or$ horror of horrors$ they can be done intentionally by other people 4usually to try to make us do something against our ill5!

.s unbelievably painful as these physical sufferings are$ especially if they are e%perienced over prolonged periods$ there are even orse things hich people suffer from! :ear is at the top of the list! If e are afraid$ e lose control of ourselves and allo our environment to control us! President :ranklin /! Roosevelt in his first inaugural address 4in the midst of the =reat /epression5 said these ords+ 1So$ first of all$ let me assert my firm belief that the only thing e have to fear is fear itself 66 nameless$ unreasoning$ un?ustified terror hich paraly;es needed efforts to convert retreat into advance!3 .nother emotion that causes tremendous pain is bitterness to ards someone$ the refusal to forgive! )itterness ill eat a person alive from the inside out! There is so much suffering in the orld#seemingly ithout limit#especially no that communist and other regimes have made torture into a science! They take notes and measure their victims& responses$ and find ne ays to make them suffer more! They have medical doctors standing by to make sure their victims do not die$ because death ould relieve them of their pain! The orld is a very sick and painful place! 8e need to understand that#and embrace it! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter I+ ,oss /ear Scott and .my$ The last letter spoke of suffering+ bad things happening to your body and some inappropriate reactions to suffering 4bitterness and fear5 hich lead to even greater suffering! This letter is about loss$ the unpleasant e%perience of losing something dear to you! If you have ever e%perienced a ma?or loss$ you ill probably agree ith me that it is not so much the thing itself that you miss so much as the piece of you that ent ith it! The pain of loss is not a constant thing#it comes in aves$ and the aves hit you ithout arning!

'nce you lose something of e%treme importance to you$ you never get over it! The feelings of loss ill al ays remain$ but the fierceness of the aves subside some hat ith time$ and the aves do not roll in 9uite so often! ,oneliness is a type of loss! . lonely person tends to remain lonely$ but if one&s need for companionship is satisfied$ the lonely feelings subside some hat ith time! ,oneliness often starts in childhood hen the relationships the child craves are not there$ or are inade9uate! 8hat do you do for a friend ho has e%perienced the death of a loved one or some other great loss7 >ere are three things you can do+ -5 Treat your friend like you normally ould! /on&t try to 1handle him ith care!3 25 /on&t bring up the sub?ect of his loss! A5 )e ith him even more than usual so that he has the opportunity to share his feelings ith you if he so desires!

The best ay to understand loss$ unfortunately$ is to e%perience it$ but the follo ing poem paints a good picture of hat it&s like!

SIFRR. =R.*/F The very first time I heard the ne s . chill ent up my spine! )ut after that it as surreal .nd I as feeling fine! It seemed to me unneeded .ll the fuss and care! 8hy ere onlookers in tears 8hile all I did as stare7 Soon people carried on 8ith all their normal plans! /id they forget about the drama$ The other orldliness at hand7 I start to feel anger! I guess their tears that flo ed /ried up before the stage as cleared )efore the curtain closed! People start to say things! >e&s taking it real hard! 8hy do they look at me7 8eren&t they sad right from the start7

I look inside my heart To search again my soul! I find no heart at all this time$ (ust one consuming hole! The current as going in$ not out! 8as pulling me inside! The first ave hit me from behind Torrential tears I cried! I sa the beauty$ memories$ The things I took for granted! .ll gone before the smoke could clear =od ho much I miss it! :inally I stepped back some To vie the hole again! I sa it as much smaller no )ut tied to all I am! If I can ?ust untie those cords$ Re6 ire around the hole! To find a ork6around someho Restore again my soul! I&m used to leaning hard on =od 8ith everything I am! )ut grief is not to be dismissed$ *ot something you can calm! =od kno s I need this time; "y reason I abandon! I ?ust ant to be alone$ To dro n in tears I&m making!

The ans er&s simple yet not so$ To atch and not do something! )ut all my grief needs to heal Is absolutely nothing! I lean on =od for all I need >e keeps my vision firm! )ut tears I cry afresh each day :or those ho do not kno >im! I cannot escape my grief$ "y loss$ my tears$ my pain! )ut ith =od I have purpose$ The flo ers from the rain! 66.nonymous ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter G+ )laming =od /ear Scott and .my$ This letter is on the topic of getting mad at =od hen things go rong$ especially after e%periencing ma?or suffering or loss! @overing this sub?ect no seems out of se9uence because e have not yet established that believing in =od is reasonable 4but stay tuned5; nevertheless$ blaming =od is a very common reaction for people$ even those ho say they don&t believe in >im!

In almost every case$ the =od people are blaming is the =od of the )ible! The key is this+ Being angry at God comes from the belief that having faith in God and doing what is right should make ones life on earth better, not worse! ,et&s fasten our seatbelts$ open our )ibles$ and see if this belief is biblical! Start by reading II @orinthians --+2A6AA! This passage is a summary of the unbelievable sufferings e%perienced by Paul$ a man ho follo ed after =odD Soon after Paul became a @hristian$ he as almost captured by his enemies and narro ly escaped by being lo ered in a basket from a indo in the all of the city! I am sure at that point Paul began to reali;e ho ha;ardous life can be as a @hristian! In fact$ =od even says concerning Paul$ 1I ill sho him ho much he must suffer for my name!3 4.cts 9+-H!5 Is it ?ust Paul ho must suffer for (esus& sake7 Take a look at hat Paul says in II Timothy A+-2 + 10ea$ and all that ill live godly in @hrist (esus shall suffer persecution!3 The godly should not be surprised hen they e%perience hardship$ hether it be suffering or loss in general$ or suffering and loss through persecution! To sum up$ being mad at the =od of the )ible is not reasonable! To be mad at >im$ you must believe in >im! .nd if you believe in >im$ then you should e%pect to e%perience

suffering based on hat the )ible says! 8e should by all means get rid of the belief that being righteous makes our life on earth more comfortable! If anything$ it ill make it less so! So$ go ahead+ be mad at =od#>e&s big enough to take it! .lmost everyone does it at one time or another! )ut you must eventually reali;e that you are rong in doing so$ and refrain from letting your anger turn into bitterness! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter 9+ Intent or .ccident7 /ear Scott and .my$ Pretend for a moment that you are a detective ho has been called to the scene here someone has died! The 9uestion on everyone&s mind+ 8as the death from natural causes or as there foul play7 It is up to you to determine hether or not the person as harmed intentionally!

8hat do you look for7 :ortunately$ you have been highly trained to detect things hich are caused versus things that ?ust happen by accident! . hole body of kno ledge has developed along these lines! )riefly$ from your training you kno that things hich are caused have these 9ualities+ -5 they are highly improbable 4to have happened by chance5; and 25 they e%hibit a pattern or purpose hich can&t be e%plained by the surroundings! If I find burn marks around the corpse&s neck$ is that highly improbable to have occurred by chance7 @ould it be e%plained by something in the surrounding area7 *o $ e%tend the same logic to the orld around you! 0ou go to the beach and find ripples 4long hills and valleys5 in the sand! 8as it caused by some person ho likes making ripples in the sand7 *o! .lthough ripples like that are highly improbable to have occurred by chance$ they are readily e%plained by the action of the ocean aves as they repeatedly ash over the sand and then retreat! Suppose$ ho ever$ that you go to the beach and find a picture of >illary @linton&s face in the sand! It is highly improbable that this ?ust happened by chance! .lso$ there is nothing in the environment that can e%plain it! So e assume someone must have dra n it!

8hat about your body7 0ou are able to survive day after day$ long enough to gro up and mature! Is this by chance7 To survive$ you must be able to find food and ater$ and get sleep! Internally$ your heart must keep beating$ your orn6out cells must be replaced$ and foreign organisms must be destroyed! 8here did all this come from7 @ould it have happened by chance7 *o$ it is too purposeful! Is this purpose related to purpose e find in our surroundings7 0es$ in a ay! 'ur ability to do these things is determined by our genes$ and thus our parents& genes$ and the genes of their parents$ and so on! So here did the comple%ity found in the genetic code come from7 It is ay too comple% to have occurred by chance$ and there is nothing in the environment that could e%plain it! The reasonable conclusion is that our genes 4and therefore e5 ere designed! .m I saying I kno this ithout a doubt7 *o! )ut it ould be ridiculous to assume other ise! =iven the evidence e have$ the only reasonable thing to do is to believe in a creator! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter -0+ .rt Reflects the .rtist /ear Scott and .my$ I love listening to soothing music$ such as that of )eethoven or >andel! "y soul feels at rest! @an I infer from this that )eethoven and >andel must have felt these feelings$ too7 I stare at a painting in an art gallery and feel angry and chaotic inside! /id the artist feel these things7 I read a love poem$ and am deeply moved! /oes this mean the author kne love in this ay7 'f course$ the ans er to these 9uestions is yes! 'ne cannot create something unless it is in some ay a part of him! . single painting does not tell us everything there is to kno about the artist$ but it should tell us something! In my last letter I concluded that e are created! 8hat are e like7 .s e&ve seen$ e can e%perience ?oy unspeakable$ and yet also e%perience unbearable pain and suffering! 8e can e%perience loss that brings us to our knees! 8e can think logically about the orld around us! 8e can love each other$ and communicate comple% ideas! 8e have personality! 8e have definite ideas about hat is right and rong# e are moral beings! )ased on these 9ualities$ hat is our creator like7 'ur creator is not a thing$ but a person! .nd by person$ I don&t mean a human! 'ur creator has the ability to e%perience incredible ?oy$ but also the deepest pain! >e communicates to others like >imself$ and can think logically like e can! >e loves! >e is moral! 0ou may ask$ 1There is a huge amount of evil in the orld >e created! /oes that mean >e is evil73 To ans er that 4very good5 9uestion$ e need to go back to my letter to you on the topic of decay! 'ur senses tell us that the orld is running do n$ becoming more orn out and disorgani;ed! It is 9uite possible that evil itself could be a part of this disorgani;ation$ rather than part of the original creation! ,et&s look at an illustration of this! Suppose I have never seen a guitar before! I am strolling through a dump and find a broken one ith no strings! I can tell that it must have been created$ but I can&t really tell hether it as created broken like that$ or hether it as in one piece originally!

*o $ suppose instead that I have seen plenty of guitars before! Bpon seeing the broken guitar$ I immediately kno that this as not the state in hich it as created#simply because I am ac9uainted ith guitars in their unbroken state! In the same ay$ since e do not at this point have any idea of hat state our @reator created us in$ e need to be careful about attributing states of chaos 4like evil5 to >im! The chaos of evil e no e%perience may not have been a part of the original creation! >o ever$ comple% and onderful 9ualities such as personality$ love$ and communication had to have been part of the original creation 4either that$ or something even more comple% and onderful than hat e see today5$ because they are not effects of chaos and decay! >ere then$ is hat e kno about our @reator! 'ur @reator is a person ith personality! >e thinks and feels like e do! >e is not alone$ but communicates ith others like >imself! >e kno s right from rong! .nd >e loves! These are things that e can logically accept as reliable truth! 8e can put our eight on these beliefs$ and trust them to hold us! They are pegs hich e ill use to climb to even higher heights in our understanding of the orld e live in! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter --+ @ommunication 8ith 'ur @reator /ear Scott and .my$ 8e have established so far that e ere created$ and that our @reator has personality and communicates! This letter e%plores the possibility that our @reator may ant to communicate ith us$ and discusses hat form that communication might take!

Since e are created$ e can ask$ 18hat is our purpose73 The @reator must have had a purpose in mind$ something that e&re supposed to be doing! >e could have made that purpose so obvious to us that e don&t have to ask the 9uestion! If that ere true$ there ould not be any need for >im to communicate ith us about hat our purpose is! 8hat do you think7 Is it obvious to you hat your purpose is7 .s for me$ I don&t have a clue$ unless my @reator reveals my purpose to me! .pparently e are not designed to kno up front hat our purpose is! If e don&t kno hat it is$ then ho can e follo it7 8e have to communicate ith our @reator in some ay to get this information! It appears then that our @reator ants to communicate ith us! >o does that ork7 Should I start talking first$ or is >e going to begin the conversation7 I don&t have a clue ho to communicate ith >im$ so the only ay it ill ork is if >e goes first! The ama;ing conclusion+ 'ur @reator is trying to contact usD >e ants to give us needed information about our purpose in life!

Since >e is trying to contact us$ >e must have been successful to some e%tent and contacted someone some here ith the needed message! )ut ho7 .nd hen7 Someone some here has likely heard this message from the @reator$ and it is e%tremely likely that the message as ritten do n in a sacred te%t for others to read! .nd it is also likely that this te%t is available for many to read for themselves; other ise$ our @reator ill not have succeeded in conveying >is message to us! "y ne%t letter to you ill e%plore the te%ts available to us that are considered sacred by various religions$ to see if e can identify the real one from the many imitations that abound! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter -2+ Sacred Te%ts /ear Scott and .my$ .s e%plained in my last letter$ our @reator has most likely communicated to us hat our purpose is by speaking to a person in the past ho has ritten it do n in a sacred te%t! "y goal in this letter is to ade through the many te%ts that claim to be sacred and find the one that really is from our @reator!

To eed out the false te%ts$ e need some criteria to use as a test! >ere are my criteria+ -5 The te%t must be fairly common and available for people to read; other ise the @reator has largely failed to communicate to mankind as a hole! 25 The te%t as a hole must not be mystical and difficult to interpret! Such mystical$ non6logical riting is meant to convince$ but not to communicate! A5 The te%t must convey our purpose$ not ?ust give a list of rules to live by! It must sho the big picture of hat our purpose$ our goals in life$ should be! C5 .ny te%t that is built on top of 4or depends in some ay5 on another te%t ill be put aside for no in favor of the te%t it depends on! It could be that such a dependent te%t is from our @reator$ but for no I ant to ;ero in on the most critical te%t 4one independent of other te%ts5! Bsing the first criterion 4it must be fairly common5$ one te%t

?umps out immediately! The largest religion in the orld is @hristianity$ hich uses both the (e ish Scripture 4'ld Testament5 and the *e Testament as te%ts! The *e Testament is based on the 'ld Testament! The 'ld Testament$ in turn$ is composed of A9 books having various authors$ and all of them rest on the first five books 4the Torah5 of the 'ld Testament+ =enesis$ F%odus$ ,eviticus$ *umbers$ and /euteronomy! These E books have the same author and can be considered a single te%t! So$ based on prevalence$ e ould choose the Torah! Interestingly$ the second largest religion in the orld is Islam$ hich also ultimately rests on the Torah! "any other religions in addition to 4or imitations of or e%tensions of5 @hristianity and Islam are based on the Torah+ (udaism$ ,atter /ay Saints$ =nosticism$ @atholicism$ Protestantism 4including )aptists$ "ethodists$ Presbyterians$ Fpiscopalians$ .nabaptists$ @hurch of @hrist$ etc!5$ @erdonianism$ "arcionism$ (ehovah&s 8itnesses$ Satanism$ Rastafari "ovement$ "eher )aba$ 0a;idi$ "anichaeism$ "andaeism$ S edenborgianism$ Bnification @hurch$ Samaritanism$ and others! So$ based on sheer prevalence$ the Torah ould in hands do n! ,et&s e%plore the second criterion! The follo ing are te%ts that can be eliminated based purely on the fact that they are cryptic and confusing 4obviously not meant to clearly communicate our purpose in life5+ the Principia /iscordia of /iscordianism$ the >ermetica and Fmerald Tablet of >ermeticism$ the >avamal of .satru$ the .kilam of .yyava;hi$ the many te%ts of (ainism$ the 'rphic Poems of 'rphism$ the Tao Te @hing of Taoism$ the =athas of Joroastrianism$ and the 2angyar and Tengyur of Tibetan )uddhism and )on! 'n to the third criterion! The follo ing te%ts 4 hich have not already been eliminated5 can be eliminated based on the fact that they are lists of rules$ but do not tell us hy e&re here$ or hat our purpose in life is+ the 2itab6i6.9das of )ahai$ the Pali @anon of Theravada )uddhism$ the Tripitaka of "ahayana )uddhism$ the >oly )ooks of Thelema 4of Thelema5$ the =uru =ranth Sahib of Sikhism$ the =enesis .ccording to Spiritism 4of Spiritism5$ the :our )ooks and :ive @lassics of @onfucianism$ the Fpistles of 8isdom of

/ru;e$ and the Sanskrit of >induism! 8hat does that leave us ith7 *ot much$ believe it or not! The only te%ts left are the Torah$ and things like the Kur&an of Islam$ *e .ge books$ and books hich are e%tensions of @hristianity such as the )ook of "ormon$ Pearl of =reat Price$ and /octrine and @ovenants of the ,atter /ay Saints! .ll of these depend on the Torah$ e%cept perhaps the *e .ge books! The *e .ge books may or may not depend on the Torah#they piggyback off other religions$ including those using the Torah; in other ords$ they have no independent sacred te%ts of their o n! This e%ercise sho s us that e can look to the Torah ith confidence as the core of communication to us from our @reator! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter -A+ "essage of the Torah /ear Scott and .my$ 8e have discovered to our delight that our @reator has a message for us$ and that e can read that message in the Torah$ the first five books of the )ible! The message is easy to understand; in fact$ it reads like a novel!

8hat does the Torah tell us about our purpose in life7 The Torah as ritten in >ebre $ and there e find that our @reator is referred to as =od$ hich in >ebre is plural 4=enesis -+-5! Then$ in =enesis -+2H e read$ 1.nd =od said$ L,et us make man in our image$ after our likeness!&3 8hat does 1us3 and 1our3 mean7 @ould =od be talking about angels ho are helping >im create7 That might make sense if =od needed them to bring him materials or tools to use! )ut =enesis makes clear that =od created the orld out of nothing! The angels can&t help ith that! The only conclusion that makes sense is that =od is more than one person! 8e have been created by a group of @reators! If e look further ahead in the Torah$ e read in /euteronomy H+C6E$ 1>ear$ ' Israel+ The ,'R/ our =od is one ,'R/+ .nd thou shalt love the ,'R/ thy =od ith all thine heart$ and ith all thy soul$ and ith all thy might!3 This is interesting! It tells us that =od is not many$ but one! To understand this better$ look at =enesis 2+2C! It says$ 1Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother$ and shall cleave unto his ife+ and they shall be one flesh!3 8hat does this mean7 8hen you get married$ do you cling to your spouse and your bodies stick together permanently$ becoming a person ith C arms and C legs7 'f course not! It means that

the husband and ife love each other so much$ and take care of each others& needs so much$ that they are of one mind and soul! They function as a single unit! That is in fact hat =od does! Though >e consists of multiple persons$ >e is 'ne! The last part of /euteronomy H+C6E 4above5 tells us our purpose+ to love =od totally ith no reservations#to love >im more than anything else! Sounds simple$ doesn&t it7 It&s not! There are so many things in life that compete for our affections$ and they are things e can see! =od is invisible$ yet >e is to be first in our lives! To help us understand our purpose$ =od gave us -0 rules to live by$ referred to as the Ten @ommandments 4found in F%odus 20 and /euteronomy E5! The first five of the @ommandments speak of loving =od ith all our strength! @ommandment ME is interesting because it is the commandment to honor your parents! 8hat does that have to do ith loving =od7 It is very important to =od that e honor and obey those >e has placed over us 4as long as they are not going against =od&s ill5! )y honoring and obeying them$ e are honoring and obeying =od! The last five of the @ommandments talk about loving other people 4don&t kill$ commit adultery$ steal$ itness falsely against someone$ or covet5! =od ants us to love other people simply because >e created them! 8e are not to pre6?udge them as not orth our love based on some ideal e have! 8e are to admire and respect the homeless man or prisoner as much as a movie star or the President of our country! 8e are to treat them as if they ere us! The rest of the 'ld Testament basically repeats the message of the Torah$ and chronicles the history of the (e ish people! It is the e%tension of the Torah$ giving history and the ords of their prophets! It is orth our hile to e%amine the rest of the 'ld Testament$ and to treat it as a reliable document$ supplementing the Torah! 'ne ay to increase our confidence in the reliability of the 'ld Testament is to check its prophecies and see if they really predicted future events! 8e ill be looking at a fe of these prophecies in my ne%t letter! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter -C+ Prophecies /ear Scott and .my$ 8e have seen so far that the Torah is here e must turn for reasonable truth revealed directly from our @reator! :urthermore$ e have noted that the (e ish Scriptures 4the 'ld Testament5 is a continuation of the message of the Torah$ ith an account of the history of the (e s as ell as prophecies of things to come! In this letter I ish to look at a fe of these prophecies 4 hich have come true in glorious detail5$ both as confirmation of the truth of the 'ld Testament as ell as the key for understanding more of hat =od$ our @reator$ ants to say to us! The first prophecy is found in /aniel 9+2C62H! =od had already told the prophet (eremiah that the city of (erusalem ould be torn do n and ould lie in ruins for I0 years 4(eremiah 29+-05! /aniel kne this prophecy 4/aniel 9+25$ and as agoni;ing over it in prayer hen the angel =abriel came to /aniel and told him the follo ing+ Seventy NsevensN are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression$ to put an end to sin$ to atone for ickedness$ to bring in everlasting righteousness$ to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy! 2no and understand this+ :rom the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild (erusalem until the .nointed 'ne O"essiahP$ the ruler$ comes$ there ill be seven Nsevens$N and si%ty6t o NsevensN!!!.fter the si%ty6t o Nsevens$N the .nointed 'ne ill be cut off!!!! 4/aniel 9+2C62H!5 /aniel$ because he had been meditating on the I0 years of (erusalemQs desolation$ as already thinking in terms of years! =abriel does not e%plicitly say that he is speaking of years$ but it is implied by the conte%t of hat /aniel is thinking about! =abriel told /aniel that it ould be seven NsevensN plus si%ty6t o NsevensN 4years5 after the decree to rebuild before

the "essiah ould come and be cut off 4die5! If e do the arithmetic$ =abriel is talking about a span of 4I%I5 R 4H2%I5 S CGA years! 8e must be careful$ though$ because the calendar e use today is different than the one /aniel used! Specifically$ our calendar has E additional days per year! So to convert to our calendar$ e must subtract E days for every year$ subtracting E%CGA days S 2C-E days$ hich is HR years; so e must subtract H years from the CGA years given by =abriel$ and this gives CII years! .rta%er%es$ the ruler of Persia$ ordered *ehemiah to restore and rebuild (erusalem 4see *ehemiah 25 in CCC )@! If e add our CII years to CCC )@$ e get AA ./! So =abriel is saying that the .nointed 'ne$ the great ruler 4the "essiah5$ ill die around AA ./! 8hat really happened in AA ./7 This as the year$ according to history$ that (esus died on the cross! 8ho as (esus7 >e as a man ho claimed to be the "essiah predicted in the 'ld Testament 4see (ohn C+2E62H5! This prophecy given by the angel =abriel gives us reason to take (esus seriously as being the .nointed 'ne predicted in the Scriptures!

There are several historical accounts of hat happened to (esus hen >e died! It is totally ama;ing that many of the details of >is death are prophesied in the (e ish Scriptures! In particular$ Psalms 22 and Isaiah E2+-A6EA+-2 predict many things about (esus that happened e%actly as prophesied! >ere are some of them+ -5 "ocked$ insulted$ people shake their heads at >im! Prophesied in Psalms 22+I! .ccount of it happening+

"atthe 2I+A9! 25 'nlookers say$ 1>e trusts in =od! ,et =od rescue him!3 Prophesied in Psalms 22+G! .ccount of it happening+ "atthe 2I+CA! A5 >is bones are pulled out of ?oint! Prophesied in Psalms 22+-C! This is a kno n conse9uence of being hung on a cross! C5 >is hands and feet are pierced! Prophesied in Psalms 22+-H! @rucifi%ion involves nailing the hands and feet to the cross! E5 /ice are thro n to see ho gets >is clothing! Prophesied in Psalms 22+-G! .ccount of it happening+ "atthe 2I+AE! H5 >e is beaten so badly that he no longer looks human! Prophesied in Isaiah E2+-C! .ccount of it happening+ >istorical accounts of Roman floggings$ as ell as "ark -E+-E$-9! I5 >e is punished because of our trangressionsTsins! Prophesied in Isaiah EA+C6H$-2! This is a ma?or belief among @hristians$ based on (esus& death on the cross! G5 >e keeps silent! Prophesied in Isaiah EA+I! .ccount of it happening+ "ark -C+H-! 95 >e is placed in an elaborate grave$ as one ho is rich! Prophesied in Isaiah EA+9! .ccount of it happening+ "atthe 2I+EI6H0! -05 >e comes back to life! Prophesied in Isaiah EA+--! .ccount of it happening+ "atthe 2G! The only doubt one could have is to onder hether the prophecies ere ritten after (esus as crucified 4by altering hat as actually ritten in Psalms 22 and Isaiah E26EA5! >o ever$ the /ead Sea Scrolls$ discovered by an .rab shepherd in -9CI$ ere manuscripts that e can confirm e%isted before (esus lived! In these manuscripts e find multiple copies of Psalms and Isaiah as e kno them today! In fact$ a complete 2C6foot6long scroll of Isaiah as found! This confirms that there is no ay that the prophesies could have been ritten after the crucifi%ion of (esus!

'ur conclusion is this+ (esus is the promised "essiah of the (e ish Scriptures! In addition$ >e suffered and died for our transgressions$ and then rose from the dead! "y ne%t letter ill e%plore the reliability of the *e Testament$ hich directly deals ith (esus& life and teachings! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter -E+ *e Testament /ear Scott and .my$ "y last letter established that (esus is truly from =od$ that >e suffered and died for our sins$ and that >e rose from the dead! This letter ill e%plore the *e Testament$ hich deals specifically ith (esus& life and teachings! Specifically$ I ant to e%plore hether the *e Testament can be trusted as a source of true$ reliable kno ledge!

8e kno from history that (esus had disciples 4called apostles5 ho follo ed >im during >is lifetime! 8e also kno that after (esus died and rose to life$ that these apostles suffered greatly; in fact$ historical accounts tell us that -0 of the -2 disciples ere tortured and killed because they believed in (esus& message and ould not stop telling people about it! (esus obviously had a huge impact on their lives$ and they ere illing to give all they had to tell others about >im! They sho ed by their sacrifice that they really believed hat they ere saying! Thus$ e can trust that the apostles speak the truth hen they rite about hat (esus said and did! T o of the apostles#"atthe and (ohn# rote accounts of (esus& life hich e have today! These accounts are part of the *e Testament and are named$ appropriately$ "atthe and (ohn! .ccording to these t o accounts$ hat did (esus say7 In "atthe E+-I6-G (esus says that the ,a 4meaning the Torah5 and the Prophets 4meaning the prophecies of the 'ld Testament5 hold true$ and that >e ill in no ay override them! In (ohn -0+AE (esus says that the Scripture cannot be broken! In these passages e find that (esus says that the 'ld

Testament is reliable truth and should be taken seriously! This is a confirmation to us that our trust in the 'ld Testament is ?ustified! Peter$ an apostle of (esus$ rote t o letters 4I Peter$ II Peter5 hich are found in the *e Testament! )ecause Peter is an apostle and ultimately gave >is life 4he as crucified5 for (esus& sake$ e can trust hat he rites! Peter says in II Peter A+-E6-H that the ritings of Paul are Scripture! 8hat Peter is saying here is that e should trust Paul&s ritings in the same ay e trust the 'ld Testament! Peter also says in II Peter A+2$ 1I ant you to recall the ords spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our ,ord and Savior through your apostles!3 >ere Peter is saying that =od speaks to us through (esus& apostles! This means that the ritings of the apostles are on par ith the 'ld Testament and ith the teachings of (esus and the ritings of Paul! If e consider that the ritings of Paul 4 ho is considered an apostle even though he as not one of the original t elve5 and the other apostles are reliable$ hat does that mean7 It means that the ritings of "atthe $ (ohn$ Peter$ and Paul found in the *e Testament are reliable truth! The remaining books of the *e Testament ere authored by E people+ "ark$ ,uke$ (ames$ (ude$ and the author of >ebre s 4probably .pollos5! .ll five of these people are kno n to have been ardent follo ers of (esus! "ark as Peter&s assistant and his book 4called "ark5 is the record of hat Peter remembers about (esus& life! ,uke as a doctor and historian 4thus very good ith details5 and orked closely ith Paul! (ames and (ude apparently gre up ith (esus+ they ere (esus& brothers! They did not believe in hat (esus as saying until (esus appeared to them after >e died and rose again 4yeah$ I guess that ould make me a believer too5! .pollos as a trusted colleague of Paul$ kno n as a scholar of the (e ish Scriptures$ and passionate in his dedication to (esus! Thus$ e can say ith confidence that the *e Testament is a reliable source of kno ledge! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter -H+ The ,a of =od /ear Scott and .my$ 8e have taken pains to reason out hy the )ible is a reliable source of kno ledge$ and for good reason! In this letter I ant to begin e%ploring hat the )ible tells us! In particular$ I ant to e%plore the ,a of =od! In my former letter on hat the Torah tells us$ I said that =od has revealed hat our purpose in life is+ It is to love =od ith all that e are$ to love >im more than anything else! I also said that this purpose is e%pressed in more detail in the Ten @ommandments; the first five of them speak of loving =od$ and the last five deal ith loving other people! In =enesis$ e learn that in the very beginning$ after =od had created the earth and all that is in it$ all of creation as totally good#no pain$ suffering$ murder$ envy$ nor anything else that is bad! =od had created the first humans$ .dam and Fve$ and they too ere perfect! They loved =od ith all of their hearts$ and spent time communicating ith =od! Then one day they decided they anted to be like =od; they decided they ere no longer happy ith their =od6given purpose! They anted something more! It as at this very point in history that suffering entered the orld! It entered because .dam and Fve decided to go against =od&s plan! .s a result$ =od had to refashion the orld to match .dam and Fve$ and no e live in an imperfect$ evil6filled orld! =enesis tells us$ in fact$ that the orld became so filled ith evil that =od decided to ipe it out$ leaving only *oah and his family alive! .nd =od did ?ust that$ in a orld ide flood! *oah as a man ho loved =od ith all of his heart$ and =od saved him and his family from the flood! =od continued along the same lines$ destroying most people and saving a fe ! =od chose to save a man named .braham$ ith all of his descendents! These people became kno n as the Israelites$ and =od continued destroying many nations$ and giving their land to the Israelites! Thus$ the Israelites 9uickly gre into a large and prosperous nation! In the process$ =od rote do n the Ten @ommandments for the Israelites to live by$ to make it easier for them to love =od and

do hat as right! The Israelites did pretty ell ith keeping the Ten @ommandments hen things ere going badly for them$ but as soon as =od sho ered them ith good things$ they started to get comfortable and forget to put =od first and to love >im ith all of their heart! 8hen this happened$ =od punished them severely 4usually by killing many of them5$ hich usually brought them back into obedience again! (esus& teachings made it much more difficult to keep the ,a of =od! :or instance$ in (esus& Sermon on the "ount 4"atthe E6I5 (esus said that the si%th commandment 1/o not murder3 actually means 1/o not ish bad things on someone!3 If you harm someone in your mind$ it is the same as murder in =od&s book! .lso$ the seventh commandment 1/o not commit adultery3 actually means 1/o not lust after someone!3 8hat (esus as saying is this+ It is your thoughts that are the problem! If your thoughts are pure and you love =od ith all your heart in your thought life$ then you are obeying =od&s ,a ! If not$ you are sub?ect to =od&s rath! Remember$ =od iped out every single person in the orld e%cept *oah and *oah&s family! If in your thoughts you are thinking of anything other than putting =od first in everything$ you are guilty before =od! 8hy is =od so particular$ that he even monitors our thought life7 The ans er is simple+ .ll the suffering and loss that e e%perience in our lives are a direct result of inappropriate thoughts that ent through people&s heads at various points in history! "ark I+20 says$ 1It is the thought life that pollutes!3 Inappropriate actions$ as described in the Ten @ommandments$ are simply manifestations of our thought life! The thought life$ in its perversion$ eventually leads to perverted actions$ and these actions bring suffering and loss! Think of it this ay+ There are thousands of criminals ho rape$ torture$ murder$ and destroy lives and families each year and never get caught! If =od is fair 4 hich the )ible tells us >e is5$ ill >e let them go ithout punishment hen they die7 'f course not! =od ill punish them for hat they have done! The )ible tells us that =od has reserved a terrible place called hell for punishing the devil and his demons$ and that criminals ill have a spot there$ too!

=iven that criminals ill be punished in hell$ consider =alatians E+-962-+ )ut hen you follo your o n rong inclinations your lives ill produce these evil results+ impure thoughts$ eagerness for lustful pleasure$ idolatry$ spiritism 4that is$ encouraging the activity of demons5$ hatred and fighting$ ?ealousy and anger$ constant effort to get the best for yourself$ complaints and criticisms$ the feeling that everyone else is rong e%cept those in your o n little group #and there ill be rong doctrine$ envy$ murder$ drunkenness$ ild parties$ and all that sort of thing! ,et me tell you again as I have before$ that anyone living that sort of life ill not inherit the kingdom of =od! >ave you been guilty of any of this7 If so$ =od is angry ith you$ and ill punish you for hat you have done! There is in fact nothing you can do to make up for it! /on&t you think .dam and Fve ould have given anything to erase the sin that caused the orld to become corrupted7 =od respects us enough to take our thoughts and actions totally seriously! 8e can&t ?ust say$ 1'h$ I as ?ust ?oking! I didn&t really mean it!3 =od holds you responsible for everything you say and think!

That is the beautiful thing about ho =od created us! >e has a huge opinion of us# hat e say and do! >is opinion of us is much higher than our opinion of ourselves! )ut as a result$ e are bound for hell$ because >e ill ?udge us fairly according to everything e have thought about! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter -I+ :earing =od /ear Scott and .my$ "y last letter to you as not easy to rite! It is the most terrible ne s anyone can be told$ that =od ill one day hold us accountable for everything e have done! :airness seems like a good thing until e reali;e that every time e have not put =od first$ it has damaging conse9uences for ourselves and others$ and =od in >is fairness must hold us accountable for that! In this letter I ant to e%plore the natural conse9uence of this understanding$ and that is to fear =od! =od is in no ay bad! In fact$ >e is all good$ and that is here the fear comes in! )ecause >e is good >e must punish us for the evil e have done! If you are not petrified hen you think of this$ you have not thought deeply enough about your situation! The fear of =od permeates the )ible$ in both the 'ld and *e Testaments! >e is to be feared$ because of the punishment e face! .s an e%ample$ consider Isaiah hen >e encountered =od personally+ 1Then said I$ 8oe is meD for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips$ and I d ell in the midst of a people of unclean lips+ for mine eyes have seen the 2ing$ the ,'R/ of hosts!3 4Isaiah H+E!5 8hy is Isaiah upset7 It is because he reali;es he ill be accountable for every stray ord and every unholy thought that comes from his lips and mind! Isaiah is terrified!

,et&s look at another e%ample$ this time in the *e Testament! =od as angry at a couple ho ere respected in

the early church! =od as so angry that he killed them both instantly! :or hat7 :or lying about ho much money they gave! 8hat as the result7 .cts E+-- says$ 1.nd great fear came upon all the church$ and upon as many as heard these things!3 8hy ere they afraid7 @learly it as because they reasoned that if this couple ere punished so severely$ ho could they themselves possibly escape the rath of =od7 *o consider (ames C+96-0+ 1)e sorro ful$ cry$ and eep! @hange your laughter into crying$ your ?oy into gloom! >umble yourselves before the ,ord$ and >e ill lift you up!3 >ere e see that hen e are afraid of =od 4afraid of our sin against >im5$ this is the beginning of a beautiful thing! .nd this is something that is almost impossible to understand+ =od is rich in mercy! It says throughout the )ible that if e ill cry out to >im and humble ourselves$ prostrate ourselves before =od because of our sin$ and make the decision to put =od first$ >e ill have mercy on us and ill forget our sins! 8hat7 >o can that be7 >o can =od be fair and yet choose to overlook sin7 This is a great mystery! The great truth$ hich seems like a contradiction at this point$ is that =od holds us accountable for everything e have done$ yet at the same time >e forgets our sin completely 4therefore not holding us accountable for it5 hen e fear >im and as a result e humble ourselves before >im! This seems totally contradictory$ but the resolution of this contradiction is the most incredible good ne s you ill ever hear! Stay tunedD ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter -G+ Price to be Paid /ear Scott and .my$ .s e&ve seen$ e ere created to love =od ith all that e are$ and to love >im more than anything else$ in every thought e think and every ord e speak! That is the ay e ere created to be! 8e fall oefully short of that$ and hen e do$ it leads naturally to much suffering and pain$ both for ourselves and others! :urthermore$ since =od is fair$ >e has no choice but to punish our sin! 0et$ =od has incredible mercy to ards those ho fear >im and ho turn from their sins$ those ho truly try to honor =od in everything they do in spite of themselves! >o does that ork7

Suppose you are guilty of murder$ and are standing before a human ?udge! 0ou plead for mercy$ but the fact is 6 you murdered someone$ and you must pay the price! .s the ?udge is about to pronounce your sentence$ you see out of the corner of your eye the ife of the man you murdered! She approaches the ?udge and the ?udge pauses as she hispers something in his ear! The ?udge looks at you and says$ 10ou are free! 0our penalty has been paid!3 0ou are so full of ?oy that you literally bolt out of the court and call all of your friends to tell them the good ne s! ,ate that night$ a thought

occurs to you! 0ou must thank this oman$ the ife of the man murdered! 0ou ruffle through some papers and find her address! Farly the ne%t morning you knock on her door! . neighbor sees you and shouts$ 10ou on&t find her there! She as taken to prison early this morning! I don&t understand hy$ but she chose to go to prison for the rest of her life$ so that her husband&s murderer ouldn&t have to!3 0our knees give ay! 18hy7 >o 7 8hat can I ever do to repay her73 8hen you humble yourself$ hen you thro yourself at =od&s mercy$ >e forgets your sin and pronounces you free! >o is >e able to do this7 It is because someone has taken your penalty for you! This is clear in the Torah$ starting ith .dam&s sons! The price must be paid$ and it must be paid by killing the innocent$ by the shedding of blood! .ll through Israel&s history$ this as accomplished through the butchering of animals! )ut all this blood and gore as nothing compared to hat =od did hen >e sent >is Son (esus 4(esus is also our @reator and is =od$ see (ohn -+-6E5 to earth! =od is like the ife of the murdered man! >e chose to suffer in your place! @an you imagine sending your o n son to die for murderers7 :or those ho cause unbelievable pain to others7 That&s e%actly hat =od did$ and (esus bore the pain and agony$ the price of your sin! If you choose to humble yourself$ and truly desire to put =od first$ you are free! 0our penalty has been paid! It is a free gift$ but it is far from cheap+ (esus ent through horrific pain$ shame$ and agony on your behalf! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter -9+ The @hurch /ear Scott and .my$ In my last letter I e%plained that =od 4the :ather5 sent =od 4the Son5 to die for our sins! 8hy did >e do that7 The ultimate ans er is that the :ather ishes to glorify the Son$ the 'ne ho as illing to give >is life for those >e loves$ even for those ho have not yet desired to serve =od! )ut (esus$ the Son$ didn&t only come to die for our sins$ be raised from the dead$ and then celebrate! *o$ >e is still in the battle$ but operating through us ho have benefitted from >is sacrifice! 8e$ the ones ho humble ourselves before =od$ are part of hat the )ible calls (esus& )ody$ the @hurch! 'ur mission as >is )ody is to do hat (esus did hile on earth+ -5 Tell people 4 ho are not a part of the @hurch5 about =od&s ,a $ fearing =od$ and the sacrifice =od made on their behalf! 8e are to tell people this regardless of the conse9uences to ourselves$ ?ust as (esus did hile on earth! 25 (oyfully suffer the conse9uences of telling others about =od$ regardless of ho severe those conse9uences may be 4starvation$ ?ail time$ torture$ or death5! .s e suffer$ e are to pray for those ho cause the suffering+ pray that =od ould get through to them so that they can believe in (esus too! A5 ,ove each other 4others in the @hurch5 in the same ay (esus loves us! >o much does (esus love us7 Fnough to give up >is life! These three things are impossible to do on our o n! )ut hen e die to ourselves 4humble ourselves before =od5$ (esus gives us supernatural po er to accomplish >is purposes! >e does this through the >oly Spirit 4 ho is also =od5$ the same >oly Spirit ho raised (esus from the dead! If you are illing to follo (esus$ to be part of >is )ody$ >e ill give you the strength you need to do these things! I have said that e ere created for the purpose of putting =od first in everything! That is true$ and the ay e do that is by doing hat (esus did+ tell others regardless of the conse9uences$ love enemies and pray for them$ and sacrifice for other follo ers of (esus! This then is our ultimate purpose in life$ and if e do these things e ill be filled ith so

much ?oy e ill hardly be able to stand it! There is an account of the .postle Peter$ ho after being threatened ith persecution in Rome decided to flee the city! .s he as traveling a ay from the city he sa (esus alking to ard him! *ot kno ing hat to say$ Peter asked >im here >e as going! (esus said$ 1I am going into the city to be crucified again!3 Peter immediately understood$ reversed his direction$ and ent back into the city! Peter as crucified that day! (esus continues to suffer through >is )ody$ the @hurch! The purpose of this suffering is to glorify (esus$ to bring many to humble themselves before =od and accept >is free gift$ and# it is also for your o n good! .fter all$ it as hat you ere created to do$ and nothing else ill satisfy! ,ove .l ays$ (im

,etter 20+ :inal @omments /ear Scott and .my$ I started this series of letters by telling you hy I bother to do this < to serve as a guide for you as you determine for yourself hat is reliable truth! If you put all your energies into something that isn&t real$ you&re going to get burned! The final conclusion of these letters$ of course$ is that you ill be burned if you do not choose to follo (esus$ using the guidelines I mentioned in my last letter! I sho ed you that the )ible can be trusted! Read the )ible for yourself$ and see if I am telling you the truth! If you truly ant to follo =od regardless of the conse9uences$ the >oly Spirit ill sho you truths from the )ible#not all at once$ but little by little#as you need them! Read the )ible diligently! "emori;e as much of it as you can; =od can speak to you through memori;ed passages in ays not possible by ?ust reading or studying them! Spend as much time as you can listening to =od! Try to talk less and listen more! .nd if you do talk$ talk as ho you are #a sinner terrified by =od$ and because of that fear you thro yourself at >is mercy at the foot of >is cross! :rom this position let >is grace and mercy ash over you! )ecause you are >is follo er$ you have a great re ard in heaven! ,et that hope of heaven spur you on! @oncentrate on >is mercy to you$ letting it ell up inside you until you burst forth in songs of praise to >im 4see Psalms 2G+H6I5! /on&t change your position in life! If you ant to be an artist$ then be an artist! If you ant to make money$ then do that! )ut hatever you do$ do it for the glory of =od! .nd =od ill use you in hatever position you find yourself to influence others to be follo ers of >im$ too! It is also orth mentioning that as a believer in (esus you ill find many opportunities to undo the damage of sin! It is important to do these things$ both to make the orld a better place$ but also as a itness to the orld of ho you are#a follo er of (esus! :inally$ surround yourself ith other believers in (esus$ particularly those ho are suffering the most$ suffering simply because they refuse to be 9uiet about (esus! >ebre s -A+A says$ 1Remember them that are in bonds$ as bound ith them;

and them hich suffer adversity$ as being yourselves also in the body!3 To interact ith these fello sufferers of (esus you ill most likely ant to order a free maga;ine hich ill allo you to learn about these persecuted believers and to minister to them! "y favorite maga;ine of this type is from the Uoice of the "artyrs 4 !persecution!com5$ but there are other similar and very good agencies such as 'pen /oors$ @hina .id$ and =ospel for .sia! ,earning about these believers$ praying for them$ and doing hat you can to minister to them#all these things ill strengthen your faith and your resolve to follo (esus hatever the cost! "y =od&s grace be ith you abundantly! ,ove .l ays$ (im