Armageddon

Moving Toward armageddon – Micheal Baigent

I believe that the author is viewing religion from a secular view in which religion with organization is not a good thing for him after all. If you read the whole book, it just criticizes all three main Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, by giving some sort of proves, and history. The main idea is that all three religion pay their attention on a place, a holy land called Jerusalem. Why this place is so important? This is because this place where all three religion apocalyptic view as a place where the messiah will come, and the final fight between the evil and the divine forces in Armageddon. I understand that the author’s approach is mainly want to convince the reader to know more about the radicalism of the three main religions, and also what will be in future if people embrace and involve deeply inside it. He is the one who stand for the truth that God may not be exist, and all the texts either from Torah, Bible, or even Koran, is just a piece of art that derive from imitation of others cult and culture. He would like to remind the people of America that don’t fanatic for Jesus, as if we do so, the world will be end very soon because of our radicalism. Islam wait for the Mahdi to come back in Jerusalem to reign the world from the capital, and fight with dajjh, which is the Antichrist. Christians are waiting for the second coming of Jesus, the rupture and judgment day, and reign in New Jerusalem. While the Jews waiting their messiah to come back to reign like a king, and rebuild the temple of Solomon for their God, Yahweh. All these makes conflict more complicated as, more radical group forms from each religion that will put the world at risk. After all, the author gave a grey ending for the book, which I think is like encourage us not to believe any one of it, the religion, and also mainly not religion is the matter, but the individualism is more appropriate, for the world now. I think this book had given me a very good perspective on the three religion in an secular’s eyes. Moreover, it is informative that gives us a lot of challenge that makes me have the initiative to find the truth myself as a Christian. It doesn’t bend down my beliefs but it stimulate and trigger my instinct to hold and protect my beliefs from the arrows and swords from the people which they against my God.

The Enlightenment of Words

Happy New Year for myself.

As the is the new year ahead, I felt that is a great need to renewing myself for many important areas for me to develop. What i cannot lack of is the Words of God. I never be truthful to myself before that I'm not really sufficient is in His words as His words is the light of my path and the strength of my souls. C.S. Lewis said that :"Their delight in the law (words of God)is a delight in having touched firmness;like the pedestrian delights in feeling the hard road beneath his feet after a false shortcut had entangled him in a muddy fields." I know my security should be from God, and the most easiest way I know more about Him is through His words. Like Joshua 1:8, "This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success." For a leader, from here I need to spend more time in the Word and think about it all the time. Moreover, I need to have obedience that results from such exposure to the Word which is the key to success.
Carl Henry, an American theologian said that:"A satisfactory religion must satisfy. But satisfy what and why? The Greek mysteries satisfied the emotions; brute force can satisfy the will; but Christianity satisfies the intellect because it is true, and the truth is the only everlasting satisfactions."

I felt I'm small and more to study through His words in my lifetime,

therefore, this quotation from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, become my prayer and also proclamation:

Because I am a Christian. Therefore, everyday in which I do not penetrate more deeply into the knowledge of God's Word in Holy Scripture is a lost day for me. I can only move forward with certainty upon the firm ground of the Word of God. And, as a Christian, I learn to know the Holy Scripture in no other way than hearing the Word preached and by prayerful meditation.

Because I am a preacher of the Word, I cannot expound the scripture for others if I do not let it speak daily to me. I will misuse the Word in my office as preacher if I do not continue to meditate upon it in a prayer. If the Word has become empty for me in my daily administration, if I no longer experience it, that proves I have not let the Word speak personally, to me for a long time. I will offend against my calling if I do not seek each day in prayer the word that my Lord wants to say to me for that day."

For me, it's crucial for beginning the year with the words of God.

Let my words walk and make it counts in this brand new year, by His words accompanies.