December seasons greetings from Inspiration from a Blind brought to you monthly by www.ShirleyCheng.com !
Why do you believe what you believe? Are your beliefs established on sound basis? How do you decide what to believe?
Let's do a fun exercise together. Answer "true" or "false" for each statement below, and then explain why you believe it is true or false. Go ahead:
1) The sun will rise tomorrow.
2) The Earth is round.
3) I will experience a safe flight the next time I travel by plane.
4) Only one true God exists, and He created everything.
Done? Great; me, too. Now let's go over our answers. Here's how mine look:
1) True, because the sun has been rising every day ever since we know.
2) True, because before I lost my eyesight, I had seen photos of our Earth, and also saw Earth captured on film shown on television shows. All the images I had seen showed that our Earth is round.
3) True, because traveling by plane has been proven to be generally safe.
4) True, because we have evidences of the existence of the one and only true God who created all.
Do you see a common thread running through your responses? Knowing and understanding this common thread will help us understand why we believe what we believe. So what's this common thread?
This common thread is faith and reason. Indeed, the two elements that many believe to be incompatible and conflicting are actually supporting each other, playing a very vital role in our daily lives.
Faith
First, let's look at faith. "Faith" has several definitions, but in the general belief system, a mixture of two kinds of faith is usually implied:
1) Trust or confidence in something or someone that is generally established on sound basis
2) Belief without any sound basis
While much of our faith should be built on sound basis (i.e., facts or evidences), we can exercise a healthy dose of faith that isn't supported by evidence. For example, as life is never a 100% guarantee, any belief that involves the future requires a certain amount of such faith. Whenever we get into a car, we have faith that we will arrive at our destination safely. This faith is of the two kinds: trust based on evidences (traveling by cars is proven to be generally safe), and faith not based on evidence (we can't see into the future, so we can never be 100% certain that our ride will be absolutely safe).
But the faith that is entirely a faith based on evidences is belief in the only true God, Jehovah, contrary to the popular notion that belief in God is a blind faith. Faith in God is "assurance of things hoped for, proof of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1, WEB.) This faith is like a "title deed," a legal document you have that proves that you will certainly own what you don't see yet.
Reason
Next, let's look at reason. Knowing and understanding why you believe what you believe is done through reason. During the reasoning stage, we think over the evidences or lack thereof that either support or discredit what we are to believe or not to believe. Without analyzing our reasons for belief, our belief would become a blind faith—believing in something "just because." Rumors, for example, are blind faith—any kind of notions (from the everyday to the religious) that are passed on from one person to another without supporting evidences.
Belief without reason can often be destructive or even dangerous. One harmful result of religious blind faith comes to mind: a while back, a woman fatally shot her son because she wanted to send him to heaven. Hence, it's vital that we gather the facts before choosing to believe in something.
Going back to our exercise...
How do we see the faith and reason elements in our answers in the exercise we did? Well, let's review our answers again, and study their "faith" and "reason" components:
1) We believe that the sun will rise tomorrow because that's just what it has been doing for as long as we know. The faith part of this belief is believing that the sun will rise tomorrow even though we cannot see into the future. The reason part of this belief is that we are basing our belief on what has evidently happened every day before (reason established on sound basis).
2) We believe the Earth is round (faith) because we've seen actual images of it (reason based on evidences).
3) We believe that we will most likely have a safe flight (faith) based on time-proven reliability and safety of planes (reason).
4) We believe in the only true God (faith) because this belief is based on facts and undeniable evidences, one of which is the Bible (reason). a) Archeologists and historians have proven the Bible's historicity, finding many evidences of the people, places, and events described in the Bible. b) The Bible is scientifically sound, stating certain scientific facts thousands of years before scientists actually proved them, and the Bible's accounts do not contradict any scientific facts. c) The Bible is accurately prophetic, having fulfilled hundreds of prophecies exactly as they were foretold hundreds and thousands of years before the events actually took place.
Here, we can sensibly conclude that in order for a belief to be valid and stand firmly, it needs both faith and reason. Because if we take away the reason parts (establishing beliefs on sound basis) from the four examples in our exercise, our beliefs would have no foundation upon which to stand, and it would do little to convince people of our beliefs. Don't believe me? Well, then see for yourself just how our beliefs would look in the following scenarios:
1) "I believe that the sun will rise tomorrow because I just believe it will." (Pretend that you somehow don't know that the sun has been rising every day.)
2) "I don't believe the Earth is round because it looks and feels flat to me."
3) "I believe my next flight will be unsafe because I just have a strange feeling."
4) "I don't believe in God because I don't see Him. I won't believe in something I can't see."
As you can see, the above beliefs are weak because they either go against the facts or have no sound basis to support them. How convincing would they be if you were to share these beliefs with someone?
In closing, faith and reason should be an integral part of our beliefs. Often, our faith is a blend of supported and unsupported faith, with the exception of faith in Jehovah, which is a faith entirely founded on sound basis. Without reason, our beliefs become merely blind faith. Before believing or disregarding something, we first must examine our reasons for doing so, and our reasons should be established on sound basis.
~*~Q&A with Dr. Shirley~*~
Question: All unrepentant wicked people will be cast into hell, where the fire will burn for eternity. But what does "eternal" fire of hell mean?
Answer: Let us study what the Bible says below about the condition we know as "hell:"
1) Jesus said, "…fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." (Matthew 10:28, ASV)
Here, we see two things:
a) *Both* body and soul will go to hell, contrary to the popular belief that only the soul will go to hell
b) That the soul will be *destroyed* in hell, not being burned for eternity.
2) Another passage confirms that God will completely destroy—not torment—evildoers: "'For, behold, the day comes, it burns as a furnace; and all the proud, and all who work wickedness, will be stubble; and the day that comes will burn them up,' says Yahweh of Armies, 'that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.'" (Malachi 4:1, WEB.)
Note that God will "burn up" the wicked, leaving them neither root nor branch. In other words, the evil will be destroyed forever, with no hope of life ever again.
3) The Bible describes hell, as the "lake of fire." Take special notice of Revelation 20:14: "And death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire."
Note that Hades, which is also a term used for hell in some Bible versions (but it really means the common grave), is said to be cast into the "lake of fire."
Here, we must ask ourselves:
• How could death burn in a never-ending fire?
• How could hell be cast into hell, the lake of fire?
This verse shows us that the lake of fire is simply eternal destruction. Death and the common grave will be symbolically cast into hell, signifying that death will be eternally abolished as the last enemy God will destroy (I Corinthians 15:26).
4) "Eternal fire" refers to eternal destruction. Note this verse: "Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them, having, in the same way as these, given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the punishment of eternal fire." (Jude 1:7, WEB.)
Are Sodom and Gomorrah still burning? No, they were destroyed for good thousands of years ago. Likewise, the wicked will be thrown into hell when they are judged on Judgment Day to suffer the punishment and torment of eternal fire.
5) What about the references to Gehenna? Is Gehenna hell?
"Gehenna" is Greek for the notorious Valley of Hinnon. After the Jews returned from their Babylonian captivity, they turned this valley into a garbage dump, where they burned junk, dead animals, and criminals.
Jesus mentioned Gehenna a handful of times, each time using it as a symbol of hell-like garbage dump, where evildoers will be destroyed for good. If there indeed were a literal burning hell, then why did Jesus use "Gehenna"? Could he have not used a specific term that solely meant "hell"?
As a matter of fact, the entire Bible does not have a single word for "hell." Any and all mentions of "hell" have been incorrectly translated from Gehenna (garbage dump), Hades (the common grave), Sheol (the common grave as well), and Tartarus (a spiritual prison for the demons only). If there is a literal hell, then why is there no word for hell in the Bible?
As you can see, hell will be the final destruction—not endless torment—of the wicked, for Jehovah "preserves all those who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy." (Psalm 145:20)
A very inspirational photobook has been published in Vietnam by Tuoi Tre Newspaper. It's titled They Have Lived in That Way. The photos are taken by Nguyen A and it's translated by Nguyen Bich Lan. It's editor? Yours truly.
This book highlights dozens of physically disabled individuals who do not allow their challenges hinder them from achieving big in life. There's the extraordinary woman, Nguyen Thi Ai, who can climb trees nimbly and swim—without legs! We have Nguyen Thi Hanh who performs all tasks, from brushing her teeth and feeding herself to household chores—using only her feet, for she was born without arms. And let's not forget Nguyen Bich Lan, the translator of the book (also of the Vietnamese edition of my book, Dance with Your Heart): due to muscular dystrophy, Lan had to stop attending school at age fourteen. She self-taught herself English, and four years later, she was so proficient in the language that she began teaching English to children in her area. By her early thirties, she has had over 200 students, eight of whom have gone on to become English teachers.
Do you want personal, one-on-one guidance or help in better understanding the Bible? Then be my Bible buddy and e-mail me! I'd be more than happy to study the Bible with you via e-mail, without any cost to you. Our study will be in your own pace, in your style, at the comfort of your home. I'll answer Bible questions you may have, or help you better understand specific passages. You name it, and we'll do it! Just see me as your friend/guide/answer lady. I look forward to our journey together. Thank you.
~*~A Biblical Wisdom Nugget~*~
"Don't judge, so that you won't be judged. For with whatever judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with whatever measure you measure, it will be measured to you." (Matthew 7:1-2)
This verse is one of the most misused verses in the Bible. Many people use this verse to censure others for judging them for wrongdoing. Is this verse telling us not to judge at all under any circumstances? No. In the Bible, "to judge" means:
1) To discern
2) To decide
3) To condemn
4) To avenge
In this verse, judgment is referring to a judgment of condemnation. Since we are all sinners, absolutely no one has the right to condemn others. Regardless of what others have done, we can never condemn them or say, "They're going to hell." That kind of judgment lies in the hands of God. Jehovah alone has the authority to condemn. If we condemn others, we ourselves will be condemned by God. Nor are we to avenge, for vengeance and recompense belong to God alone as well.
On the other hand, we are exhorted to exercise good judgment in the sense of discerning and deciding right from wrong. The apostle Paul reprimanded the early Christians for letting the unrighteous judge their own matters for them. He reminded them that all of God's people will judge the world and even the angels, so surely they could—and we can—judge matters between one another! (1 Corinthians 6:2-3)
Thus, if we see someone do wrong, we must judge and speak up. If we don't, we'd be guilty of silently approving their wrongdoing (Leviticus 19:17). Our judgment must always be fair, administered to everyone equally, regardless of social status, race, age, background, and the like. And we must never, never accept bribe.
See you in 2011!
May the grace and peace from Jehovah God and Jesus Christ be with you.!
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Best regards,
Dr. Shirley Cheng
Award-Winning Author with 27 Book Awards
Proclaimer of Jehovah God's Good News of Salvation through Jesus Christ
Author/Contributor/Editor of 32 books by age 27, Poet, Motivational Speaker, Self-Empowerment Expert, Advocate
Board member of World Positive Thinkers Club
http://www.shirleycheng.com Having a bad day? Then meet Shirley Cheng, A.K.A. the modern day Helen Keller, to inspire, empower, and motivate you to go for the gold medal in life!
"Although I'm blind, I can see far and wide; even though I'm disabled, I can climb high mountains. Let the ropes of hope in Jehovah God haul you high!"
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