Very soon now, I (The Lord Jesus Christ) shall be with you again, bringing the reward to be given to every man/woman according to what he/she deserves. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. Happy are those who will have washed their robes clean, so that they will have the right to feed on the tree of life and can come through the gates into the city. - Revelation 22:12-14 -
In such a crucial historical context, the message of the Book of Genesis would have been of tremendous spiritual help to its first hearers. That is: the 'creation of the world', 'the beginnings of sin and disobedience', 'the principle of judgement and deliverance', the scattering of the nations', 'the call and covenant God made with Abraham', and 'the checkered careers of the first descendants of Abraham'.
The Book of Genesis takes the reader to the moment when the Creator spoke into being the sun, moon, stars, planets, galaxies, plants, moving creatures, and mankind. Those who seek to discredit the Book of Genesis by pointing to alleged discrepancies between religion and science are blind to the 'exalted spiritual' content of this work. If anyone expects to find in Genesis a scientific account of how the world/earth/universe came into existence, with all questions concerning primitive life answered in technical language, he/she will be disappointed. The Book of Genesis is not an attempt to answer such technical questions.
This ancient division of the Law into five sections is supported by the 'Septuagint' a third century B.C. translation of the Hebrew Old Testament into Greek, and also by the Samaritan Pentateuch which is even earlier. The five books together present a history of humanity from creation to the death of Moses, with particular attention to the development of the Hebrew people. The activity of God receives special emphasis throughout, and the Pentateuch reveals a great deal about God's nature and His purposes for mankind.
The Pentateuch is generally divided into six major sections: (1) the creation of the world and its inhabitants - Book of Genesis: Chapter1 to Chapter 11 - (2) the period from Abraham to Joseph - Book of Genesis: Chapter 12 to Chapter 50 - (3) Moses and the departure of the Israelites from Egypt - Book of Exodus: Chapter 1 to Chapter 18 - (4) God's revelation at Sinai - Book of Exodus: Chapter 19 to Book of Numbers: Chapter 10 - (5) the wilderness wanderings - Book of Numbers: Chapter 11 to Chapter 36 - (6) the addresses of Moses - Book of Deuteronomy: Chapter 1 to Chapter 34 -
From the time it was written, the Pentateuch was consistently accepted as the work of Moses. His specific writing or compiling activity is mentioned in the Pentateuch - Book of Exodus Chapter 17:14; 24:4; 34:27 - while in the post-exilic writings the Law or Torah, was often attributed directly to Moses. - Book of Nehemiah 8:1; Book of 2 Chronicles Chapter 25:4; 35:12 - This tradition was supported by Christ Jesus in the New Testament times.
Now about the dead rising again, have you never read in the Book of Moses, in the passage about the Bush, how God spoke to him and said: I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob? He is God, not of the dead, but of the living. You are very much mistaken. - Mark 12:26-27; Exodus 3:6 -
Jesus answered, 'One work I did, and you are all surprised by it. Moses ordered you to practice circumcision - not that it began with him, it goes back to the patriarchs - and you circumcise on the Sabbath. Now if a man can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the Law of Moses is not broken, why are you angry with me for making a man whole and complete on a Sabbath? Do not keep judging according to appearances; let your judgment be according to what is right.' - John 7: 21-24 -
The Pentateuch was also called the Law of the Lord - 2 Chronicles 31:3; Luke 2:22-24 - and the Book of the Law of God. - Nehemiah 8:18 - The word book should not be understand in its modern sense, for several different writing materials were used by Old Testament scribes, including papyrus and leather scrolls or sheets, pieces of broken pottery, clay tablets and stone. The word book has two important usages in connection with the Law. First, it indicates that the material referred to was in written form at an early period. Second, it shows the combination of divine authorship and human transmission that gave the Law its supreme authority and made it The Book for the ancient Hebrews.
The Mosaic authorship of the Pentateuch was accepted without question for centuries by both Jews and Christians. Occasionally, the account of Moses' death was questioned - Deuteronomy 34:5-8 - but in the Jewish Talmud, a collection of rabbinical laws and interpretations of the Torah, the section was said to have been written by Joshua. In the Middle Ages Jewish and Christian scholars began to point to supposed contradictions and insertions in the Law, some of the latter being credited to Ezra.
In spite of these objections, most people believed unquestioningly in Moses as the author. However, in the 19th century the Book of Deuteronomy began to be regarded as the Law Scroll found in the time of Joshua and written about that period. - 2 Kings 22:3-10 - The view of the compilation of the Pentateuch has had its critics at every stage. The Ebla Tablet discoveries show that a sophisticated language was in use in the ancient world about 2500 B.C. And it is now known that all priestly pronouncements dealing with social organization in the ancient world are always early rather than late, because priests were originally responsible for such matters. Furthermore, exhaustive comparative studies have shown that no other composition of the ancient Near East was assembled in the manner that liberal scholars claimed was the case with the Pentateuch. Archaeological and linguistic studies have confirmed many old customs recorded in the Pentateuch. These discoveries have provided an excellent background against which we can understand the Law of Moses.
To date, no articles that would prove the existence of such persons as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob have been recovered. But if the traditions about nature and location of the cave of Machpelah are correct, we know the actual burial place of Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, and Jacob. Studies in Genesis have shown that the book was compiled from genuine literary sources. But these are vastly different from those imagined by liberal scholarship. Generally speaking, the liberal view has failed to take account of ancient methods of compiling and transmitting information. Liberal scholars have supposed that Western editorial methods can be applied equally well to Near Eastern compositions which is simply not true.
Whereas the 19th century critics relied heavily upon the handing down of material by word of mouth [oral and written tradition] subsequent studies have shown that anything of importance in the ancient world was written down when it happened or shortly afterward. Furthermore, this record was quite independent of any verbal accounts passed on to later generations. Not all written or spoken material survived, of course; but it is enough to provide us with the Pentateuch, as well as other Sacred Scriptures. Any suggestion that the five books of Moses are basically fraudulent in nature, not actually having been compiled or written by Moses, is contrary to Jewish tradition, as well as the nature of God as revealed in the Torah.
The Beast or Satan influence in earthly and worldly affairs is clearly revealed in the Sacred Scripture/Holy Bible and in our everyday, earthly and worldly lives/life. Indeed, Satan is permitted to afflict God's people. But he is never permitted to win an ultimate victory over them. Satan nature is malicious. Satan leads people into sin by various methods, and of the method used by Satan in carrying out his evil work, none is more characteristic than 'Temptation'. Satan brings disorder into the physical world by afflicting human beings. At times he opposes the work of God by violent means, and disguise themselves as messengers of God. Along with his work of tempting mankind, Satan delights in deception. The great falsehood which Satan uses so frequently is that, good can be attained by doing wrong or sinning, that is, sin against God. As a great deceiver, Satan is an expert at falsifying truth.
As God permitted: Strength for a Christian's victory over sin has been provided through the death of Christ Jesus, our Lord.
Now my soul is troubled.
What shall I (The Lord Jesus Christ) say;
Father, save me from this hour?
But it was for this very reason that I have come to this hour.
Father, glorify your name!
A voice came from heaven, 'I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.' People standing by, who heard this, said it was a clap of thunder; others said, 'It was an angel speaking to him.' Jesus answered, 'It was not for my sake that this voice came, but for yours.'
'Now sentence is being passed on this world;
now the prince of this world is to be overthrown.
And when I am lifted up from the earth,
I shall draw all men to myself.' - John 12:27-32 -
By these words Jesus indicated the kind of death he would die. - John 12:33 -
I (The Lord Jesus Christ) have told you all this
so that you may find peace in me.
In the world you will have trouble,
but be brave:
I (The Lord Jesus Christ) have conquered the world. - John 16:33 -
Many people have trouble admitting the existence of such an enemy as Satan. Thus, many people wonder why God would allow Satan, this great embodiment of evil, to exist in His creation. No completely satisfying answer to this question has been found. Perhaps God allows it to show that evil and wrongdoing do not provide the key to the ultimate meaning of life which man/woman so desperately desires.
How did you come to fall from the heavens,
Daystar, son of Dawn?
How did you come to be thrown to the ground,
you who enslaved the nations?
You who used to think to yourself,
"I will climb up to the heavens;
and higher than the stars of God
I will set my throne.
I will sit on the Mount of Assembly
in the recesses of the north.
I will climb to the top of thunderclouds,
I will rival the Most High."
What! Now you have fallen to Sheol
to the very bottom of the abyss! - Isaiah 14:12-15 -
The New Testament accepts the Old Testament teaching about demons, evil spirit and advances the doctrine significantly. Demons are designated in a number of different ways in the New Testament. Quite frequently they are called 'unclean spirits'. Another descriptive phrase for them is 'wicked or evil spirit'. Apostle/Saint Paul calls them 'deceiving spirits'. John refers to 'the spirit of falsehood or error' and in Revelation it is refers to 'demons spirit'. Satan himself is never referred to as a demon, is the one called Abaddon in Hebrew and Apollyon in Greek and he was a fallen angelic leader. Legion is probably a collective name for a group of demons, devils and evil one rather than the name of a single one.
A prime purpose of Jesus' earthly ministry was to overcome the power of Satan. This included His conquest of the demonic realm. This explains the fierce conflict between Jesus and these demons, devils, evil and unclean spirits while He was on earth or in the world. "Knowing what was in their minds Jesus said to them, 'Every kingdom divided against itself is heading for ruin; and no town, no household divided against itself can stand. Now if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; so how can his kingdom stand? And if it is through Beelzebul that I cast out devils, through whom do your own experts cast them out? Let them be your judges, then. But if it is through the Spirit of God that I cast devils out, then know that the kingdom of God has overtaken you. Or again, how can anyone make his way into a strong man's house and burgle his property unless he has tied up the strong man first? Only then can he burgle his house." - Matthew 12:25-29 - "So Jesus called them to him and spoke to them in parables, 'How can Satan cast out Satan?....... 'I tell you solemnly, all men's sins will be forgiven, and all their blasphemies; but let anyone blaspheme against the Holy Spirit and he/she will never have forgiveness: he/she is guilty of an eternal sin.'" - Mark 3:23-30 - "Others asked Jesus, as a test, for a sign from heaven; but, knowing what they were thinking, Jesus said to them, 'Every kingdom divided itself is heading for ruin, and a household divided against itself collapses. So too with Satan: if he is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand?.............. He/She who is not with me is against me; and he/she who does not gather with me scatters." - Luke 11:17-23 -
since the devil was a sinner from the beginning.
It was to undo all that the devil has done
that the Son of God appeared. - 1 John 3:8 -
Yet Jesus' enemies accused Him of being in alliance with Satan kingdom. The same accusation was made against His forerunner, John the Baptist. But Jesus' works of goodness and righteousness showed that these claims were false, distorted, deceptive and unfounded.
Following the resurrection of Jesus and His return to heaven, these demonic principalities and powers have continued their warfare against those who are His apostles, disciples and followers. In all certainty, Satan and his allies will finally be overthrown by God. After Christ Jesus returns, the devil and his false angels will be defeated and thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone. This is a doom with which demons are quite familiar. God will be the ultimate victory in this conflict which has been going on since the beginning of time. In fact, the Lord Jesus Christ had already won and overcome death [the Satan] through His Passion, Death, Resurrection, Ascension, and by sending the Holy Spirit to dwells among His chosen one and allows us [the baptized] to be in His Presence through the institution of 'The Holy Eucharist'.
'But you,' he said 'who do you say I am?' Then Simon Peter spoke up, 'You are the Christ,' he said, "the Son of the living God". Jesus replied, 'Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. - Matthew 16:16-18 -
For I am certain of this: neither death nor life, no angel, no prince, nothing that exists, nothing still to come, not any power, or height or depth, nor any created thing, can ever come between us and the love of God made visible in Christ Jesus our Lord. - Romans 8:38-39 -
Finally, grow strong in the Lord, with strength of his power. Put God's armour on so as to be able to resist the devil's tactics. For it is not against human enemies that we have to struggle but against the Sovereignty and the Powers who originate the darkness in this world, the spiritual army of evil in the heavens. That is why you must rely on God's armour or you will not be able to put up any resistance when the worst happens or have enough resources to hold your ground. - Ephesians 6:10-13 -
When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive all the nations in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, and mobilise them for war. His armies will be as many as the sands of the sea; they will come swarming over the entire country and besiege the camp of the saints which is the city that God loves. But the fire will come down on them from heaven and consume them. Then the devil who misled them, will be thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur where the beast and the false prophet are, and their torture will not stop, day or night, forever and ever. - Revelation 20:7-10 -
Wishing you, 'Happy Reading', and may God, the Father, the Son of the living God, Jesus Christ, fills your heart, mind, thoughts, and grants you: The Holy Spirit, that is, Wisdom, Knowledge, Understanding, Counsel, Piety, Fortitude, Fear of the Lord, and also His fruits of the Holy Spirit, that is, Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Trustfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control. Amen! God blessing be upon you!
Why do you call Me, "Lord, Lord" and not do what I say?' "Everyone who comes to Me and listens to My words and acts on them - I will show you what he/she is like. He/She is like a man/woman who when he/she built his/her house dug, deep, and laid the foundations on rock; when the river was in flood it bore down on that house but could not shake it, it was so well built. But the one who listens and does nothing is like the man/woman who built his/her house on soil, with no foundations: as soon as the river bore down on it, it collapsed; and what a ruin that house became!" - Luke 6:46-49 -
If we live by the truth and in love, we shall grow in all ways into Christ Jesus, who is the head by whom the whole body is fitted and joined together, every joint adding its own strength, for each separate part to work according to it function. So the body grows until it has built itself up, in love." - Ephesians 4:15-16 -
I still have many things to say to you but they would be too much for you now. But when the spirit of truth comes, he will lead you to the complete truth, since he will not be speaking as from himself, but will say only what he has learnt; and he will tell you of the things to come. He/She will glorify me, since all he/she tells you will be taken from what is mine. Everything the Father has is mine; that is why I said: all he/she tells you will be taken from what is mine." - John 16:12-15 -
Your generous contribution and support is profoundly cherish. I sincerely pray that: God blessing be upon you, always. Amen! Bank transfer: Name: Alex Chan Kok Wah - Public Bank Berhad account no. 4076577113 - Country: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
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