EPISTOL... To The Sage and The Naive

EPISTOL
to the sage and the naive
EPISTOL
TO THE SAGE AND THE NAIVE
EPISTOL
EPISTOL
to the sage and the nave
Toward True Spiritual Regeneration and Intellectual Emancipation
Tolulope .G. Fasanmi
EPISTOL
Copyright 2014 by Tolulope Fasanmi

All rights reserved under international copyright law. No part of this book may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written
consent of the publisher/author. Scriptures are taken from The Message Bible. Copyright
1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress publishing group.
The King James Version of the Bible is used in this book except in places otherwise stated.
Definitions are taken from the Merriam Webster Dictionary.
ISBN: 978-1-291-78960-7
The author acknowledges any copyrighted material that might have been referenced or
featured in this book.
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DEDICATION
To the Immortal, Invincible, the only Wise who made Himself (I dont know how) and His
Faithful Team who have shown consistent Commitment to the Spiritual Regeneration of All
Worlds and the Intellectual Emancipation of All Creation.
And to the many that Grove and Crave to find Meaning and make a Sense of the
Senselessness that has for a Long Time survived its Invasion of the Human World until
Now.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This book has been written in a time of war. Dont worry; it is not the type of war that
youre probably starting to imagine. Yet, no man can by himself make up an effective team
on the battleground. It takes two or more to do so (it takes two to tango; that tells me if you
are more than two, you will do more than tango).
I appreciate my brother, Bamidele Fasanmi for being my first inspiration. Fasdels
motivation and literal examples since high school laid a foundation for much of my own
work.
Much thanks to Venerable Samuel .A. Jegede and many others whose research and
thoughts have added to the completion of this book in different ways. Also Olukayode
Olajide, Tosin Akinto, Michael Ikuepamitan, Taiwo Iyiola and Ayodeji Morakinyo (Author
of inspiring words for ambitious hearts) whose inputs to chapters three and four of this book
were proven useful.
I appreciate the contribution of my biological Father and Mother Mr. & Mrs. J.I. Fasanmi,
my sisters; Funmilayo Fasanmi (Fastem) and Ifeoluwa Fasanmi (Faslove) whom I hold
dear and value with much love.
And finally, Id like to acknowledge the value placed on this book and its resonance by the
publisher.
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CONTENTS
Preface
One
Creation and Existence
Two
Kiroho au Kidini? (Spiritual or Religious?)
Three
Beliefs, Thoughts and Distinct Individual Personality Evolvement
Four
Reality of the Spiritual and Its Super-imposed Influence over the Physical Dimension
Five
How You Can Harness and Deploy Spiritual Resources
Six
Authority of the Book of Books
Seven
Nini Sasa? (What Now?)
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Endorsements
In EPISTOL, Tolu Fasanmi explicitly describes and explains the essential realities that must
be rightly understood to successfully live life to the fullest. As a result of his deeply rooted
passion and zest to enlighten the mind of the confused, misinformed and ignorant, he
possibly exhausted all reasonable, available information on the subject of creation,
humanity and divinity. This book will inundate you with accurate knowledge of your
personal identity, the world you live in, and of course the supremacy of the supernatural. It
is a MUST READ.
Yinka Adelani| President, Impact Makers Intl.| Author of Break Out| Abuja
Wow! Tolu Fasanmis book (EPISTOL) is an eye opener and standard for purposeful living.
This book establishes the Supremacy and Sovereignty of God over Science and Man.
have read the book twice in few weeks; I wont mind reading it over again and again and
again I personally recommend this book to everyone that values truth; those that celebrate
wisdom, those who are thirsty for knowledge, and those who really want to make the best
out of their lives.
Tolu Fasanmi, thank you for giving this Masterpiece to my generation.
Dare Olagoke-Adaramoye| Executive Director | Trailblazer Initiative| Nigeria
This is a mind-blowing work for the matured mind. It will lift you from limiting stereotypes
and show you the truth that holds waters. In a world that is filled with several misinformation that have shaped into wrong paradigms, you wont need another book to reveal
certain truth about spiritual practice and lifestyle to you.
Akinola Akinwumi| Principal Consultant |ThinkMore Solutions |Abuja
This book is personal, informative and practical in knowing the real truth about God. This
book is the answer to all the intellectually and spiritually nave who are facing
discombobulating issues concerning the existence of God.
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Tolu Fasanmi has done a great job by being inspired, also the research on the wisdom of
great men. I recommend this book for curious hearts about God. Stay hooked to the power
source.
Bunmi A. Paul |President | Word Garden Chapel Inc. | Ibadan Nigeria
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FORWARD
If you have just opened this book not knowing what to expect, you are in for a big treat.
EPISTOL is not just one of those collections of human philosophies, it is an extraordinary
treasure chest of factual information and revelational truths you can apply to your life as a
scholar or a believer that will ultimately birth a radical change in your life.
Reading through the script gives me a feeling that this is one book everyone must draw
wisdom and insight from.
Tolu Fasanmi in this classic material has challenged dogmatic, pragmatic, statuesque and
certain believes, theorems and stands of many in our world today concerning the God idea
to all things, and He has been able to establish truths as it relates to the matters.
EPISTOL is a product of careful research and study and divine instructions as it is clear on
every page.
I assure you that this material will eternally damage ignorance, unprofitable religious mindset and heretic teachings you might have imbibed over the years, it's also going to enhance
the truth you have known.
Please sit and enjoy the content of this book...
Ready or not, change is on the way...
Thank you Tolu for giving this to this generation... I celebrate you.
Sam Neye |Purposedbydesign Inc.| Akure, Nigeria
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PREFACE
Sage \sj\ adjective
1: Wise through reflection and experience
2: One (as a profound philosopher) distinguished/characterized by wisdom, prudence, and
good judgment
Naive \n-v, n-\ adjective

1: A person having and showing a lack of knowledge, experience, wisdom, or judgment:
innocent or simple
God \Gad\ noun

1: the supreme or ultimate reality: perfect in power, wisdom and goodness
2: worshipped as the creator and ruler of the universe
Epistol \Er-pistol\
1: a letter, missive or memorandum written and addressed to an individual or a collective
group of people (Authors definition)
Just about time I was completing the writing of this book before its dispatch for editorial
purpose, I met online, a former colleague who had years earlier transited to the United
States of America. Ill refer to him as Dudley and myself asPeniel. After exchanging
pleasantries the conventional way, the following conversation ensued between us;
Dudley:
Well, what makes a good person?
Peniel:
Character, integrity, right values, good personality and strength.
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Dudley:
What do you consider as right values?
Peniel:
I think one should bear in mind that the right values will always have a
positive effect or impact on the human society.
Dudley:
Of course. What kind of things do you consider good values?
Peniel:
Im not about getting specific here (now with a filled spoon making its
way into my mouth. I guess my mind was really on the meal).
Dudley:
Hmm, okay.
Peniel:
Yeah. It is like inquiring about methods to employ in getting a

desired outcome when principles are what should be sought after.
The latter doesnt change and it is universally applicable while the
opposite is true for the former. It is peculiar to the individual.
Dudley:
Well, I would like to believe that I have good values.
Peniel:
Would you like to believe that or do you really have good values?
Dudley:
I said I would like to believe that because what I may consider to be

good values may not be good for you.
Peniel:
An atheist would like to believe theres no God. His belief doesnt

make him right.
Dudley:
Why isnt the atheist wrong?
Peniel:
You mean why is he not right?
Dudley:
Yes.
Peniel:
Ill make sure you get a copy of my book as soon as it is out on

bookshelves. Thatd be my response for now.
Dudley:
Im an atheist; just so you know.
Peniel:
Thats okay. I mean not so good.
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Dudley:
Why isnt it so good?
Peniel:
I think youre trying to get me talking. Its a temptation. Im resisting

that.
Dudley:
Just having a conversation
Peniel:
Yes. Its one.
Dudley:
Exactly.
Peniel:
So, what makes you think there is no God?
Dudley:
There is no evidence that proves that there is a God.
Peniel:
There is no evidence (empirical or not) that proves there is none.
Dudley:
You cant disprove something that has not been proven. It just doesnt
make sense.
Peniel:
Assertions can be made.
Dudley:
Do you believe there are unicorns?
Peniel:
Never watched a documentary on those.
Dudley:
Okay. Say I believe in a flying spaghetti monster. Can you disprove

it?
Peniel:
You are the only person who believes that, Ill reason.
Dudley:
Im just asking if you can disprove it. It obviously doesnt make sense
and we both know nothing like a flying spaghetti monster exists can
you prove it doesnt exist?
Peniel:
In that case, I may speculate.
Dudley:
So you agree that there is no evidence supporting your god or any god.
Peniel:
I didnt say I agree and I dont agree.
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Dudley:
But there is none. Or is there any?
Peniel:
There are many! Ill mention one or two. 1) only life can produce or
bring forth life under any circumstance. I think scientists also
established that. You know, if I were told that a suicide bomber is in
the city and could detonate some explosives, I wouldnt as much
disagree that there is such a person as a suicide bomber. I can see the
wreckages inferred (Id only be sane enough to reason along). I
wouldnt honour an appointment by this guy unless Im ready to exit
the world. Thatll never nullify nor disprove the fact that he exists.
Wreckages of past quest by him would be enough to convince any
reasonable person.
Dudley:
You havent proven anything yet.
Peniel:
Are you expecting me to prove? Oh, Im not making an attempt to

prove. Im only reasoning with you here.
Dudley:
Oh, okay.
Peniel:
The proof is not what I want to engage in. Right now, Im at the
dining table for my lunch and its a whole lot of work to type stuffs like
this while warring with a plate of food simultaneously.
Dudley:
Lol. Okay. Its 2am here. I have to go to bed. Talk to you later.
Peniel:
Sure (and so, I hanged the chat).
The world is characterized by different sects of belief, religious practices and institutions.
There are individuals who are without a clue about what is and what is not. This, even
concerning themselves and their environment. They are not informed about the global
subtle events underlying every major happening eventually broadcasted on the media. The
content of this book is for those who know, those who understand the wise and the
experienced. It is also for those who dont know, who dont understand nor have a clue and
are simply unaware. The nave takes all the time possible to project to the world, their
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ignorance and nuisance value as it were, believing that they are making some progress into
whatever it is they might appear to be diligently engaged with.
People can be so earthbound that they are of less or no spiritual relevance. They live to
follow and appease the crowd while some others are psyched up in the frenzy of a marathon
spiritual pursuit and end up being of no earthly relevance, which either way is wrong and
imbalanced.
Some think that the world has neither a meaning nor logic behind it. And the thought of
some is that, one day, man will come to the place of sovereign power-fusion and ability, to
unquestionably govern the universe in the strength of a flagrant limited intelligence. Some
others believe that there are several gods reigning in the affairs of men. You know, people
think that supremacy is a nuisance word in the unseen plane of existence and only relevant
in the physical. Can you imagine that someone believes that there is no God, the supreme
God? That you believe in an idea does not substantiate the factuality, reality and level of
appropriation of such an idea. Can you comprehend the baseness of the human mind to the
point of being void of the capacity to comprehend the existentiality-properties of the selfexisting being in the person of God? Wait! Maybe you really think that world event and the
wonderful creatures all around; the blossoming plants in the field and wild animals hunting
for food, the earthquakes and the evolving constellations of galaxies are all accidents? Well,
it is time to put an end to all these frenzies and turn the wheel aright once again.
I believe it is high time the global human community opened their minds to see and
understand the realities, the facts and the important truths that have been street-dancing
through the centuries without good attention. Someone once said that the best place to hide is
in plain sight and cleverly, the truth has been made hidden from the sight of the crowd! And
this, we will uncover.
Would you follow me as we journey through the pages of this book? Please keep your mind
open. This is not going to be boring!
Tolulope .G. Fasanmi |Akure, Nigeria | April, 2014.
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Caveat emptor (Let the buyer beware)
CHAPTER ONE
Creation and Existence

The greater the spiritual evolution of mankind advances, the more certain it seems to me that the path
to genuine spirituality or religiosity does not lie through the fear of life, and the fear of death, and blind
faith but through striving after rational knowledge.
-Albert Einstein
I have often had reason to be in scientific laboratories over the years to observe and
participate in experiments, establishment of hypothetical phenomenon and the validation of
theories. To also make observations scientific, in all ramification.
Scientists of the 21st century and in preceding times would establish the validity of their
beliefs and ideologies on a readily collected body of informative scientific document which
could be, re-observed, re-evaluated, proven, and re-validated over time. Access to such
materials is made possible via visits to scientific libraries, encyclopedias and the likes. It is
glaring that such scientific discoveries, hypothesis and even theoretical facts are subject to
modifications of all sorts in the presence of more valid and accurate findings.
Knowledge as it were, grows, verifies itself (its own correctness and relevance) and is
subject to change. The only thing that is arguably constant in itself is CHANGE. And this,
it happens all the time.
A wise man is one who knows how and does assess, accept and align himself to changes as
they occur and adapt himself in finding meaning and making sense of such in their
occurring and re-occurring sequence. A nave individual does the exact opposite.
The point is, if it is acceptable and in-view that these non-assumptive claims are right, it also
applies that the use of available references in critical examinations, explanations and
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thorough objective evaluation of on-stage and off-stage weighted matters such as the
scientific and divine claims are permitted in rendering such information for the purpose of
affirming and communicating the precise understanding of either its nuisance or relevance,
adding claims to concerned and interested governing entities and individuals.
Therefore, with the awareness that I am addressing millions of people across the world, I
will make use of both scientific and religious information available to make my points
understandable. I have a logical and exceptionally keen interest in a document and Ill often
quote and refer to it in this book. It is a contextually old body of missive penned centuries
ago. Some men with good intention helped rewrite it as circumspectly as they could to suit
the modern world for easier comprehension because of the archaic language mannerism in
which it was indictedly written back then by the profound authors. It is a collection of facts
and information supposedly to have been uttered by God via men through the ages and also
by men and women who have had encounters with this God. This document is laden with
the inherent ability and the potential energy to pilot intellectual and spiritual courses. I call
this book The Book of Books or The Bible. The content has been found vastly
informative, reasonable, and logical. It carries the insignia of a superior intelligence. It is
self-explanatory and happens to be the right manual or tool as you may prefer to employ in
navigating through life and all plane of existence.
Year 2010 World statistic show that the percentage of Christians in the whole wide world is
estimated at 31.59% (of which the Roman Catholic is 18.85%, Protestants 8.15%, Orthodox
4.96%, and Anglican 1.26%) Muslims 23.2%, Hindu 15.0%, Buddhist 7.1%, Sikh 0.35%,
Jewish 0.2%, Bahai 0.11%, other religions 10.95%, non-religious 9.66%, Atheist 2.01% and
still growing.
Atheists comprised an estimated 2.01%, and non-religious a further 9.66% of the world
population according to The World FactBook in the year 2010. In East Asia, atheists and
the irreligious are the majority. Outside of East Asia and some European countries atheist
or non-believer percentages are typically in the single digits. According to one study, the
number of atheists is on the rise across the world, with religiosity generally declining.
However, another study has concluded that atheism is on a global decline due to continuing
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steady increases in religiosity in China, which harbors the majority of atheists and nonreligious people, and Eastern Europe which has had significant changes in religiosity after
the fall of communism.
The reason why there have been defections between sects and systems of belief have been
because of inconsistencies, intuitive and heart-felt convictions, and logical reasoning which
lacks the energy to establish one in an ideology for a long time against human emotions,
feelings and cognitive influences which are the bedrock of religion. And these, science lacks.
Science does not engage emotions, feelings, intuition and cognitions. It bears on facts and
figures, limited only to what the five senses of a man can perceptively interact with.
Recent scientific findings are beginning to influence scientists all over the world into making
bargains with the inbuilt, human emotions, feelings and most especially intuition which
builds a bridge between religious claims and scientific claims. These have made several
millions of people believe that both parties are about having wide range of agreeable points
in their findings and observations.
Atheistic groups have been on the rise, though still in their minorities, the growth has been
quite impressive. This is owed to the rapid defections from different faiths and belief
systems.
The differences between religion and science could be made up only in the presence of
interruptive divine or spiritual experiences and ecstasies. Winston Churchill once said
correctly that men occasionally stumble over the truth, most of them pick themselves up and hurry
off as if nothing had happened.
When I was in high school, one of my teachers mentioned that a certain man named Edwin
Hubble propounded and theoretically established that nothing existed in the universe until
sometime outside the realm of time, when a big bang occurred. Then through the passage of
specifically incalculable period, and over billions of years, things began to formulate, co-join
and emerge. This gradually resulted in the formation of mountains and hills, animals and
plants and every other kind of creature. Now, I wonder where the elements or bangees
that collided or exploded over those billions of years came from. If they truly birthed
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everything else, what brought all the fundamental elements that unite together (the bangees)
to create everything else 15 billion years ago?
Now, it is said that the universe happened after a big bang. What happened before the big
bang? This is neither to nullify nor substantiate the globally embraced idea of the bangees
and evolution, but to make more obvious, visible and perceptible, the image of the selfexisting energy, being and personality that sovereignly stands beyond and outside time and
space, controlling, influencing and dictating what happens at any point, including the big
bang (if it ever occurred). This Supreme Being is whom many refer to as God.
Philosophy, religion and beliefs make the world system spin around just like the principle of
right and wrong as propounded by the author of this book:
The Right Might Not Seem Good; The Good Might Seem Right, Hence
The Confusion Of Decisive Determinants. When Right And Good
Clashes, Right Will Always Supersede Good As It Is Evidently Superior
To It: Occurring And Re-Occurring Events Within The Universe Might
Not Appear Good At The Time, Its Only Right That They Happen The
Way They Do, When They Do, To Whom They Do And The Purpose
For Which They Do Occur.
It was discovered that atoms move in zigzag motion within a specified confinement, at a
specific speed for the purpose of maintaining an even temperature within the host to keep it
in shape. Yet, it appears like they move seamlessly without a purpose. The visibility or nonvisibility does not negate nor affirm the substantiality of the purpose of its existence.
Science agrees with the Bible that the universe has not always existed. How then, did the
universe arise? Did it come from nothing? Can science provide an answer to that? Sir John
Maddox, author of What Remains to Be Discovered wrote a Time magazine article; A Theory
of Everything. According to his thoughts, Only 70 years ago, the universe was found to be
expanding, now there is a model of how it began: the Big Bang. At the beginning, it is said,
there was literally nothing ('the void,' Genesis), not even space. Then there came into being
a tiny speck of superheated space that contained enough energy to create all the stars and
galaxies that fill the skywith enough left over to drive the expansion of the universe ever
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since. (Thats also saying that the universe is still expanding) The beginning sounds more
like the name of a person to me.
(Time magazine of March 29, 1999. Page 206)
Maddox continues, "There are also serious philosophical problems created by the Big Bang,
which can be described, not explained. Worse, nobody has been able to reconcile quantum
physics with the other great triumph of 20th century physics: Einstein's theory of
gravitation. Until that is done, the true nature of our universe will remain beyond our ken."
(ibid.)
Asking whether or not religion conflicts with science is a question that is too broad. The
more interesting and nuanced question is whether having any belief system which can be
neither confirmed nor refuted by science is inherently in conflict with the scientific method
and the body of knowledge weve amassed. The answer to this question, as you will see, is
that having such a belief system is not a necessary and sufficient condition for being in
conflict with science.
Let me first point out that religion and science have many similarities. Unless God slides
down from the Heavens to kindly prove his existence for us, most religious beliefs cannot be
proven to be true; they are taken on faith. Some scientists may find this laughable; science
has the identical characteristic, which is also its greatest strength. By and large, scientific
theories can never be proven to be correct. Evidence can be gathered in support of it, we can
never know with 100 percent certainty if gravity works the way we think. Sure, general
relativity describes it well, as so many professors emphasize, our scientific theories are
models. We continuously refine those models as new information comes to light. Less
commonly known fact is that religions do the same thing. The beliefs of a religion are reexamined and refined as time passes and new knowledge is attained. In fact, some religious
groups, such as Catholicism, gather groups of its members periodically for that explicit
purpose.
Science and religion generally pursue knowledge of the universe using different
methodologies. Science acknowledges reason, empiricism, and evidence, while religions
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include revelation, faith and sacredness. Despite these differences, most scientific and
technical innovations prior to the scientific revolution were achieved by societies organized
by religious institutions. Much of the scientific method was pioneered first by Islamic
scholars, and later by Christian Scholars. Hinduism has historically embraced reason and
empiricism, holding that science brings legitimate, incomplete knowledge of the world.
Confucian thought has held different views of science over time. Most Buddhists today view
science only as complementary to their beliefs.
While both parties gather evidence, it might be argued by some that the evidence in science
is a lot more solid than that in religion. After all, science has the ability to measure things
quantitatively, religion cannot measure how much of God is manifest in a church using the
same approach as science. Even so, religions have also gathered evidence; its just a different
kind, taking the form of texts, claims of miracles, and other personal evidences. Some find
those evidences compelling enough to form a belief, others do not.
Today, we have extensive measurements of gravity; everyone disagrees on what gravity is.
Recent research suggests it might be an entropic force while others support the brane
theory of gravity. Quantum mechanics, a field that dates back to the early 1900s, is still
argued about today. Does the wave function collapse, or are there an infinite number of
universes, one for each possible state as claims that there are several or many-worlds? It is
not the evidence in science or religion that is in question; its what people make of it. Its the
interpretations that split them. Each interpretation of the religious evidence throughout
history that has spurned the creation of so many different sets of beliefs is a unique faith.
Similarly, each interpretation of quantum mechanics (scientific claims) is nothing more,
and nothing less, than a faith.
Many religions use Miracle events as evidence to support religious claims, yet walking on
water is not supported by science itself. Science has not presented any evidence which
stands in direct conflict to the claim that an all-powerful being could not change the rules
locally or engage some forces that science do not yet understand or know to perform the
miracle. This is a contrast to claims that are held onto despite being in direct conflict with
science and capable of being proved impossible. Miracles are an example of one of the
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elements of religion that science has nothing to say about, just like religion has nothing to
say about general relativity yet. Science is apathetic to whether or not a supreme being could
bend the laws of physics locally and religion is apathetic to whether or not general relativity
is the best description of gravity.
Is it any surprising that scientists, metaphycists, spiritualist and several others finds the Bible
contents worthy of reference in their courses of action and ideological operations? No, its
not.
Scientific and technological feats progressively make discoveries daily into the dimension of
the existence of the sovereign power behind the scene, God. When you sit to examine a
product, youll find information about the maker or manufacturer as you progressively
observe it. Most likely, youll come across signs, prints and clues that lead to its maker. In
the same vein, if you carefully observe the universe, you will find out that it is entirely the
product of a being.
An argument that might be made by believers of science-religion conflict would be that, as
religion lacks certain aspects of the scientific method, it does not hold the same weight as
science. Yet this claim is based on the assumption that the scientific method is in some way
superior to the religious method, The scientific method is as superior to the religious
method as a recipe for cookies is to one for salad; they have two completely different goals,
which will of course have different methodologies. Its just not reasonable to apply the same
process to both fields. The religious method is relatively useless in science, and the scientific
method is relatively useless in religion. As Einstein said, If you judge a fish by its ability to
climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing its stupid. So lets judge each of these fields by the
distinct criteria that apply to them.
Religion and science do not contradict each other as it were. They are both systems which
produce theories that some people will have faith in, albeit through different methodologies.
Science is concerned with describing and more accurately predicting the universe; religion is
concerned with explaining it. Believing in some religion is not inherently a sufficient
condition to be in conflict with science. Only when religion makes claims that are obviously
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refutable by well-established scientific evidence is it ever in conflict with science, thats the
trivial, uninteresting case. In fact, many believe that science and religion complement each
other well. Each covers one domain and largely stays out of the other; when you put them
together, you have a solid Theory of Everything. As long as science cannot disprove the
possibility of Gods existence, the two disciplines will continue to complement each other
well. Ill add that they are close to agreeing on the subject matter.
As earlier said; Religion is the framework for Science, and Science is still the bedrock of
Atheism and agnostic beliefs.
Humans, individuals in the world believe or at least are aware of a dimension of existence
that is beyond the physically perceived; it is more abstract, more spiritual and yet real. An
atheist fights so hard, pumps so hard to force himself, his consciousness into believing in the
product (Universe) and yet neglects the maker or manufacturer (God) even when He (God)
persistently stares at him within the confines of the created space or universe.
I remember going through the bible at an odd hour. I checked and came across a peculiar
phrase in the collection of the selected writings. The phrase reads, that man is a fool who says
to himself, theres no God! Anyone who talks like that is warped and evil and cannot really be a good
person at all.
Does the universe at all have a beginning? The Famous astrophysicist Stephen Hawking, in
a lecture titled The Beginning of Time stated the view of most astronomers today: "The
universe has not existed forever. Rather, the universe, and time itself, had a beginning in the
Big Bang, about 15 billion years ago." This is what the bible teaches as the emergence of
time from eternity.
Dr. Jeffrey Fall wrote: "Science now confirms that there has been no past eternity of matter!
Amazingly, science is finally catching up in understanding with the Bible concerning the
origin of the universe."
(The Origin of the Universe. Tomorrow's World. January-February 03. Pg 28)
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Also notice this statement by the Nobel Prize-winning scientist, George Wald: "The
reasonable view was to believe in spontaneous generation; the only alternative, to believe in
a single, primary act of supernatural creation. There is no third position. One has only to
contemplate the magnitude of this task to concede that the spontaneous generation of a
living organism is impossible. Yet, here we are as a result, I believe, of spontaneous
generation."
(The Origin of Life. Scientific American. August 1954. Page 46)
A Nobel Prize-winning scientist calls it is "impossible" and yet believes it to be true! We
must not be deceived by scientific theorizing that has no basis in reality. Wald's phrase
"spontaneous generation" may sound impressive, despite how erudite such a phrase may
sound; it is not a scientific truth and does not agree with true science and the real world! As
true science recognizes, life can only come from life.
The Bible explains that life originally came from the Life-Giver: "The time came when the Lord
God formed a mans body from the dust of the ground and breathed into it the breath of life. And man
became a living person." (Genesis 2:7). Or, as the King James Version puts it, "Man became a
living soul." God gave physical life to human beings and many other life forms. God is also
the giver of spiritual life as Tomorrow's World Editor-in-Chief, Roderick C. Meredith,
explained in his article Your Incredible Future.
But can we say that some scientists have recognized the significant evidence of intelligence
behind the natural laws of our universe? Yes! Albert Einstein, the great physicist and Nobel
Prize winner, saw awesome intelligence revealed in the existence of natural law. He wrote
that The scientist's religious feeling takes the form of a rapturous amazement at the
harmony of natural law, which reveals an intelligence of such superiority that, compared
with it, all the systematic thinking and acting of human beings is an utterly insignificant
reflection."
(Einstein: A Centenary Volume, ed. A. P. French, Harvard University 1979. p. 305).
Einstein was also amazed at the intelligence he saw in natural law. He called human
intelligence, compared to that superior intelligence revealed in natural law, "an utterly
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insignificant reflection." That far superior intelligence behind the laws of the universe is the
God who created the universe.
There are certain scriptures through which God and men who knew and believed in Him
supposedly issued out disclaimers concerning the worship and esteem of creation and
creatures. They include the following:
So why are you trying to find out the future by consulting witches and
mediums? Dont listen to their whisperings and mutterings. Can the

living find out the future from the dead? Why not ask your God? Check
these witches words against the Word of God! He says. If their
messages are different than mine, it is because I have not sent them; for
they have no light or truth in them.
Isaiah 8:19-20
Dearly loved friends, dont always believe everything you hear just
because someone says it is a message from God: test it first to see if it
really is. For there are many false teachers around, and the way to find
out if their message is from the Holy Spirit is to ask: Does it really agree
that Jesus Christ, Gods Son, became man with a human body? If so,
then the message is from God. If not, the message is not from God but
from one who is against Christ, like the Antichrist you have heard
about who is going to come, and his attitude of enmity against Christ is
already abroad in the world.
1 John 4:1-3
Do not defile yourselves by consulting mediums and wizards, for I am
Jehovah your God.
Leviticus 19:31
Then this wicked one will appear, whom the Lord will burn up with
the breath of His mouth and destroy by His presence when He returns.
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This man of sin will return as Satans tool, full of satanic power, and will
trick everyone with strange demonstrations, and will do great miracles.
He will completely fool those who are on their way to hell because they
have said no to the truth; they have refused to believe it, and love it,
and let it save them, so God will allow them to believe lies with their
hearts and all of them will be justly judged for believing falsehood,
refusing the truth, and enjoying their sins.
2 Thessalonians 2:8-12
Oops!
If there is no God, then all that exists is time and chance acting on
matter. If this is true then the difference between your thoughts and
mine correspond to the difference between shaking up a bottle of
Mountain Dew and a bottle of Dr. Pepper. You simply fizz atheistically
and I fizz theistically. This means that you do not hold to atheism
because it is true, rather because of a series of chemical reactions.
Morality, tragedy, and sorrow are equally evanescent. They are all
empty sensations created by the chemical reactions of the brain, in turn
created by too much pizza the night before. If there is no God, then all
abstractions are chemical epiphenomena, like swamp gas over fetid
water. This means that we have no reason for assigning truth and falsity
to the chemical fizz we call reasoning or right and wrong to the
irrational reaction we call morality. If no God, mankind is a set of bipedal carbon units of mostly water. And nothing else.
Douglas Wilson
My argument against God was that the universe seemed so cruel and
unjust. How had I got this idea of just and unjust? A man does not call a
line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line. What was I
comparing this universe with when I called it unjust? If the whole show
was bad and senseless from A to Z, so to speak, why did I, who was
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supposed to be part of the show, find myself in such a violent reaction
against it?... Of course I could have given up my idea of justice by saying
it was nothing but a private idea of my own. If I did that, then my
argument against God collapsed too for the argument depended on
saying the world was really unjust, not simply that it did not happen to
please my fancies. Thus, in the very act of trying to prove that God did
not exist in other words, that the whole of reality was senseless I
found I was forced to assume that one part of reality namely my idea of
justice was full of sense. If the whole universe has no meaning, we
should never have found out that it has no meaning: just as, if there were
no light in the universe and therefore no creatures with eyes, we should
never have known it was dark. Dark would be without meaning.
C.S. Lewis
This is not writing about scientists or science, reason with the fact that if we find design in
the universe, we naturally expect a designer. Significantly, then, we may ask: was the
universe designed for a purpose? Patrick Glynn notes in his book, God: The Evidence, "The
most basic explanation for the universe is that it seems to be a process orchestrated to achieve the end or
goal of creating human beings." (pg.32). Glynn states further: "From the scientist's viewpoint, the
fact that the universe looks as though it had a definite beginning might be upsetting enough. What
appears to drive cosmologists nearly to distraction is the anthropic principle"that the earth and the
universe were created for mankind (pg. 42).
Certainly one may ignore the evidence of design behind the laws that govern the universe,
and behind the universe itself. In the face of so much evidence, itll require much of a
deliberate and conscious effort to believe in a godless universe than to follow the evidence to
its logical conclusion: the existence of the Creator God who set in place His laws for a
purpose. Why would people exercise so much self-will to ignore the evidence right in front
of their eyes? Even some atheists and agnostics admit that by choosing to remain ignorant,
they can continue living their lives without God, denying the consequences.
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Aldous Huxley, the famous English author, expressed this perspective well: "Most ignorance
is vincible ignorance. We don't know because we don't want to know. It is our will that decides how
and upon what subjects we shall use our intelligence. Those who detect no meaning in the world
generally do so because, for one reason or another, it suits their books that the world should be
meaningless."
Huxley's statement sounds very much like what the Apostle Paul wrote in the Book
of Books:
Since earliest times men have seen the earth and sky and all God made,
and have known of his existence and great eternal power. So they will
have no excuse when they stand before God at Judgment Day (No
excuse for saying there is no God). Yes, they knew about him all right,
they wouldnt admit it or worship him or even thank him for all his daily
care. And after a while they began to think up silly ideas of what God
was like and what he wanted them to do. The result was that their
foolish minds became dark and confused. --Romans 1:20-21
Examine the universe, creation and the purpose of human life, and you will find that their
design demands a designer!
Id like to add that the atheist can't find God for the same reason that a thief can't find a
policeman. Once you come to the consciousness of Him, hold fast to it.
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Creation
Standing in the midst of nothingness,
Amidst non-existing co-existing existential,
Sudden claddings and eruption of strange forms,
Strange forms from beneath the crusts and above,
Mountains and Hills we call them,

Wildlife weve adopted as barbeque,
Water bodies streaming forth till a kiss,
So wondrous they were I couldnt keep on my feet,
Flowers blossom of sparse colours trees flourish,

Grasses and plants evolve so rich,
These couldnt just evolve I reasoned,
Before I thought the answer thundered,
Saw thunder claps, fire blaze,

I beheld sights of earthquake so terrific,
There came a voice so peaceful and calm,
I made all, son, for all,
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Your guess is just as good as mine,
I heard God speak, I saw Him move.
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CHAPTER TWO
Kiroho au Kidini? (Spiritual
or Religious?)
So He explained it to them. I am the Gate for the sheep.
It was a dawn fast approaching at a turtles pace on the second day of the first week of an
ember month, straps of covering clothes and blanket which had lost their grip on a thin line
of copper wire attached from one end of a bamboo tree to others standing in isolation at the
back shield of an African black king were flying all around. CEO Timmy and Gen. Peggy
(state governorship aspirants) were hesitantly dragging their dusty feet along the aerial view
of the kings palace filled with cutting stone pebbles washed from the frozen sea. The soft
summer night sighed gently, and whispered quietly to the nodding willows fringing the little
town. Faint ripples undulated across the placid lake as some early-rising fish search the
surface for unwary insects. Above the hard, high mountain peaks, with the everlasting
spume of snow flying banner-wise from it, a solitary star shone with glittering brilliance in
the luminescent sky. The granaries faint squeaks and rustles betrayed the presence of hungry
mice foraging in the barley barrels.
Stealthy footsteps and two glaring eyes as Timmy and Peggy walked briskly on the pricking
sand bringing a scuffle of scurrying mice and then utter silence.
Timmy and Peggy sniffed around suspiciously, then, satisfied, jumped to a low window and
sat looking out at the fast-approaching dawn. Flickering butter-lamps hissed and spat and
momentarily flared brighter as night-duty guards replenished their supplies. From the city
square came a subdued murmur and the tiny tinkle of different silver bells.
Timmy worked his jaws around a bit and wiped his nose on the end of his TM shirt. Then
he spat expertly and with precision between two filled buckets laid on the bare floor by some
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little pranks. He stopped a moment and chewed around his jaws again, and looked at the
rippling water. Somewhere in the distance a guard had thrown a pebble and hit a frog and
now the frog was croaking in astonished complaint. Silence, comparative silence, fell upon
the scene, disturbed only by faint chanting from the mountain top above and by the sleepy
protests of some bird who thought it was rather too early to get up and go about the business
of the day.
Tired, not from physical exhaustion, but from the rigorous observation of the societal
razzmatazz which has been accepted as norm and has become a permanent visiting citizen
of their nation-state.
Just two months earlier, there was this news of a white science preacher intruding and
interrupting the peace of the community preaching some news about the advancement of
scientific researches and its discoveries. Do these scientists think we dont know all these?
Do they think we are dumb or something? asked Peggy. Two days ago our politicians
had a national dialogue with religious clerics cordially invited. And believe me, it didnt end
well. Replied Timmy. I also got that through my informants at the state house. What
brought the meeting to such a bad end was that, according to the information, General
Piggy. J .K made a statement amidst roaming disagreements on political stands that the
religious leaders (both present and absent at the meeting) were the reason for the capsizing
of the national boat and that the same holds in all countries of the world. That roused the
religious clerics to anger which birthed an abusive word exchange session and brought the
meeting to an ugly end
Religion has a major role to play in the governing of a nation and in all human endeavors.
Yet, there is a principal problem with attempts to separate religion from spirituality and it is
that the former is saddled with everything negative while the latter is exalted with
everything positive. I remember growing up in an orthodox religious setting, as time went
on and I began to really understand things from a broader perspective, I unconsciously
started separating myself excessively and redefine my association from all angles with the
enlightenment I had. It didnt last long as God found a way of curbing the excesses and
correcting such attitudes. Remember I said it was excessive.
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Whats the difference between the two? Arent they the same thing? You may ask.
Unfortunately, they are worlds apart in meaning although ideally, they should really
mean the same thing. Now, being religious means following the beliefs, doctrines, practices,
traditions and rituals of a particular organized religious institution, such as Buddhism,
Islam, Christianity, Hinduism etc.
Its helpful to note the fact that many of the negative things which people attribute to
religions are features of some forms of some religion and not all existing religions.
Religion has a spiritual inclination and spirituality can also be considered somewhat
religious. One tends to be more personal and private while the other tends to incorporate
public rituals and organized doctrines. The lines between one and the other may often not
be clear or distinct depending on the interpretation given to it.
In some religion, for example, a person is regarded as religious if he or she goes to mass on a
designated day, receives Holy Communion, prays the rosary or tesibiu confesses his or her
sins to the priests, and performs charitable deeds. Even if this person treats his maids or
subordinates like slaves, watches pornographic films to defile his mind, tampers with his
income tax and business deals, he is still considered a religious person and respected
member of whatever parish or sect to which he belongs.
Being religious is not the same thing as being spiritual. Religion is dull and unintelligent. A
religious person is prone to fanaticism, superstition and irrational behaviour.
True spirituality quickens the intellect, sharpens the mind and unleashes the Spirit.
Generous thought
All religions teach the worship of Deity and some doctrine relating with the salvation of
man. The Buddhist religion promises salvation from suffering and unending peace. The
Jewish religion promises salvation from difficulties and prosperity predicated on
righteousness. The Greek religion promised salvation from disharmony, ugliness, by the
realization of beauty. Christianity promises salvation from self, deliverance from the evils in
time and in eternity, salvation from sin and sanctity. Mohammedanism preaches
deliverance from the rigorous moral standards of Judaism and Christianity.
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The Hebrews based their religion on goodness. The Greeks on beauty; both religions sought
truth. Jesus revealed the God of love, and love is all-embracing of truth (truth is a
personality), beauty, and goodness. The Zoroastrians had a religion of morals, the Hindus- a
religion of metaphysics, the Confucianists- a religion of ethics. Religion is destined to
become the reality of the spiritual unification of the good, the beautiful, and the true in
human experience. The Greek religion had a watchword Know yourself, the Hebrews
centered their teaching on Know your God, the Christians preach a gospel aimed at the
knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ; Jesus proclaimed the good news of knowing God,
and yourself as a son of God. This differing concept of the purpose of religion determines
the individuals attitude in various life situations and foreshadows the depth of worship and
the nature of his personal habits of prayer. The concept of a semi human and jealous God is
an inevitable transition between polytheism and sublime monotheism. An exalted
anthropomorphism is the highest attainment level of purely evolutionary religion.
Christianity has elevated the concept of anthropomorphism from the ideal of the human to
the transcendent and divine concept of the person of the glorified Christ. And this is the
highest anthropomorphism that man can ever conceive.
The Christian concept of God combines three separate teachings: 1. The Hebrew concept---God as the vindicator of moral values, a righteous God. 2. The Greek conceptGod as the
unifier, the God of wisdom. 3. Jesus conceptGod as the living friend, the loving Father, the
divine presence. It must therefore be evident that composite Christian theology as it were,
encounters great difficulty in attaining consistency. In the study of the religious life of Jesus,
view him positively. Dont think so much of his sinlessness as of his righteousness, his
loving service. Jesus up-stepped the love disclosed in the Hebrew concept of the heavenly
Father to the higher active and creature-loving affection of a God who is the Father of every
individual, even of the wrongdoer. The attainment of levels of morality does not deliver
man from the real struggles of the earthly mortal living. Connectivity to the father and
creator of all that exist does.
Mans physical environment entails the battle for existence; the social surroundings
necessitate ethical adjustments; the moral situations require the making of choices in the
highest realms of reason; the spiritual experience (having realized God) demands that man
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find him and sincerely strive to be like him. Religion is not grounded in the facts of science,
the obligations of society, the assumptions of philosophy, or the implied duties of morality.
Religion is an independent realm of human response to life situations and is unfailingly
exhibited at all stages of human development which are post moral. Religion may permeate
all levels of the realization of values and the enjoyment of fellowship: the physical or
material level of self-preservation; the social or emotional level of fellowship; the moral or
duty level of reason; the spiritual level of the consciousness of universe fellowship through
divine worship. The fact-seeking scientist conceives of God as the First Cause, the God of
force. The emotional artist sees God as the ideal of beauty, the God of aesthetics. The
reasoning philosopher is sometimes inclined to posit a God of universal unity, even a
pantheistic Deity. The religionist of faith believes in a God who fosters survival, the Father
in heaven, the God of love. Moral conduct is always an antecedent of evolved religion and a
part of even revealed religion, never the whole of religious experience. Social service is the
result of moral thinking and religious living. Morality does not directly lead to the higher
spiritual levels of religious experience.
The heart of the matter

Religiosity deals with externals while spirituality deals with internals. Religiosity deals with
the obvious and what can be seen, not with the unseen or the invisible. It is what one shows
to others, or how others see what he does in connection with his religious beliefs and
practices. It practically has nothing to do with what he does in secret or with his unseen
relationship with the divine.
Religiosity then consists of being a member of a group, of a religious community called the
faithful, and doing what is expected of them by that religion. Spirituality, on the other hand,
is an individual phenomenon. It does not conform to the dogmas, practices, beliefs and
rituals of a particular organized religion. One may walk in spirituality completely alone
(though not encouraged) and follow no official rules, doctrines, policies or practices.
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Let us consider the following explanatory definitions:

Religion is an institution that was established by man to exert control, instill morality,
stroke egos, etc. Organized, structured religions all remove God from the equation. You
confess your sins to a clergy member or a God you dont have a relationship with, go to
elaborate churches to worship (service), are told what to pray, how to pray and when to
pray it. These give you access to human relational privileges and not to God. Spirituality is
born in individual persons and cultivated in the person. It may be kick-started by a religion,
or it may be kick-started by a revelation. Spirituality extends to all facets of a persons life.
Spirituality is chosen while religion is often times forced or imposed. Being spiritual is more
important and better than being religious. True spirituality is something that is found deep
within oneself as the revelation of God unfolds to individuals, leading them to God through
Christ.
It is the way of loving, accepting and relating with the world, the people around you.
Consider the following in favour of spirituality:

Religion is for those that require guidance from others.
Spirituality is for those that lend ears to the inner voice.
Religion has dogmatic and unquestionable assembly of rules that need to be
followed without questions.
Spirituality invites one to reason it all, question it all, decide his/her actions and
assume the consequences.
Religion threatens and terrifies.
Spirituality gives inner peace.
Religion speaks of sin and fault only.
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Spirituality encourages living in the present without dwelling on the past to lift your
spirit in God and learn from errors.
Religion represses humanity and returns us to a false paradigm

Spirituality transcends all and makes you true to God and yourself
Religion is not God
Spirituality is infinite consciousness and all that is in God
Religion invents
Spirituality discovers
Religion neither investigates nor question
Spirituality questions everything
Religion is based on organizational rules
Spirituality is divine, without such rules
Religion is the catalyst for division
Spirituality is the catalyst for union
Religion seeks you so that you create
Spirituality causes you to seek
Religion continues the teachings of a sacred book
Spirituality seeks the sacredness in the Book of Books
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Religion feeds the human mind with fear

Spirituality feeds the human spirit with confidence
Religion lives in your thoughts
Spirituality lives in your conscience
Religion is in charge of the "to do"
Spirituality is in charge of the "to be"
Religion requires dialectics
Spirituality requires trust
Religion feeds the ego
Spirituality makes you transcend beyond such carnal inclinations.
Religion makes you renounce yourself to internal realities
Spirituality makes you alive to God, live with Him and not renounce Him
Religion is adoration
Spirituality is meditation
Religion is to continue adapting to the psychology of a template
Spirituality is individuality and oneness
Religion dreams of glory and paradise
Spirituality makes you live it first here and now
Religion lives in the past and in the future
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Spirituality lives in the present even with the hope of the future
Religion lives in the confinement of your memory
Spirituality is liberty in awareness.
Religion believes in the eternal life
Spirituality makes you conscious and lives in the reality of Eternal life.
Spirituality is more abstract than religion. Religion usually promotes a creed and has a
defined code of ethics. It is tangible. Spirituality exists in the nebulous realm of the
indefinable. Because of this, an increasing number of people in postmodern Western culture
view spirituality as good and religion as bad. Ambiguity is "in" today and dogmatism is
"out." Yet, neither spirituality nor religion is inherently good or bad. The practice of religion
may lead to good (the founding of Christian hospitals) or evil (the mass suicide in
Jonestown, Bornu-Nigeria, Al-Qaeda, and Boko Haram). Likewise, one person may claim
that feeding the poor is a spiritual act, while someone else claims that murder is a spiritual
act. Biblically speaking, religion and spirituality should be united, and the end result should
be good works and higher conformation to Godlike attributes.
"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is
this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep
oneself unstained from the world."
-- (James 1:27)
Here, religion is associated with the application of one's belief in ways that help the needy
and lead to a more spiritual lifestyle. The verse also carries an implicit warning against false
or empty religion. Since James specifies "pure" and "undefiled" religion, there must also
exist "impure" and "defiled" religion. True religion is godly; empty religion only has "the
appearance of godliness" (2 Timothy 3:5).
Spirituality is also defined more clearly in Bible. There's nothing vague about Romans 12:12:
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"I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present
your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is
your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be
transformed by the renewal of your mind." (Emphasis added).
True Christ-like spirituality is to dedicate ourselves to the worship and service of God and to
be supernaturally transformed. The religious person, on the other hand, tries all the time to
convince others that he is right and the others are wrong. He believes he has a divine duty to
convert everybody to his own way of thinking. Religiosity therefore divides people while
spirituality unites them. Religious persons promulgate dogmas and creeds and develop
social institutions and structures to perpetuate such beliefs and ensure compliance. They
impose disciplinary measures against members who disobey or disrespect those rules or
dogmas. Thats why Joan of Arc was burned at the stake, and the astronomer Galileo was
arrested, put to trial and almost executed; until he refracted his scientifically valid teaching
that the earth revolved around the sun and not the other way around, as the church believed
it to be.
If you dont believe that religion divides and spirituality unites, place the priests, rabbis,
imams, theologians and defenders of the faith of all religions in one room and they might
kill one another even before you step out of there. If you put spiritual people of different
backgrounds in one room, they will embrace each other as brothers and sisters.
I believe that once we die, God will not ask us what religion we belonged to on earth before
being allowed to enter into His kingdom. Religion is not as relevant to our salvation. What
He would most likely ask is, How have you lived your life and how well did you love
fulfilling the purpose that I predestined for you in my Christ? I am sure religious people
will object to this, which proves my point.
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SpiRelitual
Spiritual or religious, Call it what you will,
But we gun up so high,
Higher into the superior reality,
To find what we seek at least we think,

While He is all along desiring our attention,
To raise and help He wants,
To heal and meet every need,
The God entity is a Spirit,

As spirits He shall have us found,
To perceive and have Him,
And hear Him right in our consciousness,
Its a wakeup call,

A call unto true spirituality,
A call to seek after the unseen entity,
Immortality that dwells perpetually in light,
Quintessence of all light.
\
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CHAPTER THREE
Beliefs, Thoughts and Distinct Individual

Personality Evolvement
A mans thoughts and beliefs are ingredients for his personality.
Systems of belief can be extremely powerful and dangerous. Some people in all form of
belief display what humans can be at their worst. Their beliefs are so important that they
defend them or impose them on others with violence and aggression; often, in ways that are
forbidden by the same beliefs they seek to defend or propagate.
Sometimes, the claim is made that it's not the beliefs which creates such havoc and evil in
the world, the misuse or abuse of beliefs that does the damage. Sadly, that's too naive. Some
believers also ascribe to God a character and the behavior which, if He appears on earth,
would lead to instant arrest. It needs to be remembered that some beliefs have "changed the
world" in more religion than one. For example, few religions had in origin a belief that
there'll be a serious or worthwhile life-after-death which means that the popular assumption
is completely wrong that religion itself came into being to reassure people that death is not
the end. Nevertheless, a belief that there is or likely to be a life after death exists in all
religions.it exists for different reasons and in different forms. In a general way, a belief in life
after death is certainly a belief that has had obvious effect in the world in dramatic ways; it's
not the same in each sect or religion.
The sociologist, Max Weber, famously said that "those who understand one religion
understand none". I would simply add that "those who press-in to understand the world, the
universe without understanding any religion understand nothing."
Religions are made of beliefs, different beliefs which form the backbone of any society.
Leaders in various societies can either belong to any of the already existing religious sects
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with certain beliefs or establish one. Either way, the lives of men are governed by a unified
or different belief system in vogue at any dispensation of time. This obviously affects the
structure, governance and the mechanics of all continuing societies around the globe.
There are several religious institutions in the world and each with its own peculiar beliefs.
Some of these are Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Shintoism and Hinduism. There
are individuals and groups which exist in their minority such as the Animists, Badimos,
Spiritualists, Shamans, Atheists, and Taoists and so on.
None of these religious groups is without significance. There is a wisdom that governs
existence and you as an individual have a choice to make in determining the resultant effect
generated by partnering with this wisdom. All religion has one common belief; there is a
God. The challenge is for us to come to know this Being, interact with Him and get intimate
with Him. I quote a man known to be wise and recognized by several millions of people all
over the globe. This man came to know who God is and he could interact with Him and
introduce several people to Him. Once, he delivered a speech to the citizen of a country
(Athens) when they gathered around to listen to the wisdom he lived by;
So Paul, standing before them at the Mars Hill forum, addressed them as
follows:
Men of Athens, I notice that you are very religious, for as I was out
walking I saw your many altars, and one of them had this inscription on
itTo the Unknown God. You have been worshiping him without
knowing who He is, and now I wish to tell you about Him. He made the
world and everything in it, and since He is Lord of heaven and earth, He
doesnt live in man-made temples; and human hands cant minister to
His needsfor He has no needs! He Himself gives life and breath to
everything, and satisfies every need there is. He created all the people of
the world from one man, Adam, and scattered the nations across the
face of the earth. He decided beforehand which should rise and fall, and
when. He determined their boundaries. His purpose in all of this is that
they should seek after God, and perhaps feel their way toward Him and
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find Himthough He is not far from any one of us. For in Him we live
and move and are! As one of your own poets says it, We are the sons of
God.
Individuation
Individuation is the development of the basic distinct personality of an individual also
regarded as a persisting entity (personal continuity) in a certain phase of life in which
individual characteristics and attributes are possessed or formatted and by which a person is
recognized or known (such as reputation capital establishment etc.). This process defines
individuals to themselves and the society. Pieces of a person's actual identity include a sense
of continuity, a sense of uniqueness from others, and a sense of affiliation. Identity
formation leads to a number of issues of personal identity and an identity where the
individual has some sort of comprehension of themselves as a discrete and separate entity.
This could evolve through individuation whereby the undifferentiated individual tends to
become unique, or undergoes stages through which differentiated facets of a person's life
tend towards becoming a more indivisible whole.
Identity is often described as finite (within a limited definite scope) and consisting of
different and distinct sums or ties of engagement (the family, culture or society, profession,
etc.)
Identity is an ever evolving core within where our genetics, culture,
loved ones, those we cared for, people who have harmed us and people
we have harmed, the deeds done to self and to others, experiences lived,
and choices made come together to form who we are at the moment.
Parker J. Palmer
Another philosopher, Erik Erikson, believes that throughout each person's lifetime, they
experience different crises or conflicts. Each of the conflicts arises at a certain point in life
and must be successfully resolved for progression to the next of the eight stages.
1) Trust vs. Mistrust (infancy) from birth to 18months
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2) Anatomy vs. Shame and Doubt (early childhood) 2 to 3 years

3) Initiative vs. Guilt (pre-school) 3 to 5 years
4) Industry vs. Inferiority (school age) 6 to 11 years
5) Identity vs. Role confusion (adolescence) 12 to 18 years
6) Intimacy vs. Isolation (young adulthood) 19 to 40 years
7) Generativity vs. Stagnation (middle adulthood) 41 to 64 years
8) Ego integrity vs. Despair (maturity) 65 till death
The particular stage relevant to identity formation takes place during adolescence. This
stage is called "Identity versus Role Confusion".
(Ages. page 12-20),
The Identity versus Role Confusion stage consists of persons trying to figure out who they
are in order to form a basic identity that they will build on throughout their life. The
primary concerns of a basic identity for this study are social and occupational identities.
Once a person has accomplished the task of figuring out "who they are", then, they are
ready to enter the next stage of Erikson's theory "Intimacy versus Isolation" where they will
form strong friendships and a sense of companionship with others. If the Identity vs. Role
Confusion crisis is not solved, an adolescent will be confused about their identity and the
roles they should have as adults. The idea is that failure to form one's own identity leads to
failure to form a shared identity with others, which could lead to instability in many areas as
an adult. The identity formation stage of Erik Erikson's theory of psychosocial development
is a crucial stage in life. There are different forms of identity in the global society today, and
Ill mention a few of them:
Religious Identity: religious identity is the set of beliefs and practices held by an
individual, which involves adherence to codified beliefs, rituals and the study of ancestral or
cultural traditions, writings, history, and mythology, as well as faith and mystical
experience. The term "religious identity" infers personal practices related to communal faith
and to rituals and communications stemming from such conviction. This identity formation
begins with association with a parent's religious contacts and individuation requiring that
the person chooses the same or a different religious identity than that of the parents.
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Business Identity: in business, professional identity is the persona of professionals or a

professional designed to facilitate the attainment of major business objectives. Professional
identity plays out when there is a philosophy which is manifest in a distinct corporate
culture the corporate personality. A business professional is a person in a certain profession
with the types of skills that often requires formal professional development training(s) within
the business realm and many careers is the role of management. A managerial task
enhances leadership, by creating an environment where all team members know and
assume the responsibility for their roles. Employees' self-concept and affiliation are often
aligned with their roles in an organization. Professional training is a form of identity setting:
it does not only upgrade knowledge, also affects the team member's self-concept.
Knowledge of the position, on the other hand, introduces a new path of less effort to the
trainee, which prolongs the effects of the training and promotes a stronger self-concept.
Other forms of identity setting in an organization include business cards, specific benefits by
role and task forwarding.
Ethnic and National identity: ethnic identity involves identification with a particular
ethnic group, usually on the basis of a presumed or common ancestry. Recognition by
others as a distinct ethnic group is often a contributing factor to developing this bond of
identification. Ethnic groups are also often united by common cultural, behavioral,
linguistic, ritualistic, or religious traits. Processes that result in the emergence of such
identification are summarized as ethno-genesis. Various cultural studies and social theory
investigates the question of cultural and ethnic identities. Cultural identity remarks upon: a
place, gender, race, history, nationality, sexual orientation, religious belief and ethnicity.
National identity is an ethical and philosophical concept where all humans are divided into
groups or sects called nations. Members of a nation share a common identity, and usually a
common origin, in the sense of ancestry, parentage or descent.
Interpersonal identity development

What is recognized to be social relation can refer to a multitude of social interactions,
regulated by social norms, between two or more people, with each having a social position
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or standing and performing a social role. In sociological hierarchy, social relation is more
advanced than social behaviors, actions and contacts. Social relations form the basis of
concepts such as social organization, social structure, social movement and social system.
Family: one of the most important affiliations is that of families. These could be biological,
extended or adoptive families. Each family has its own influence on identity through the
interaction that takes place between the family members and the individual person.
Information regarding possible identities of possible selves comes from various contexts
that surround adolescents and temporal commitments that are tested and practiced in
interaction with others in the environment." Researchers and theorists basically state that an
individual's identity is influenced by the people around them and the environment in which
they live. Also, if a family does not have integration, this seems to help create identity
diffusion; meaning that an individual has not made commitments and does not try to make
commitments. This is true for all sexes. These concepts prove that a family has influence on
an individual, which could be positive or negative.
Formation of beliefs
A lunatic is someone who has been diagnosed as a mentally unhealthy individual because of
the way they speak and behave in private and public. Such a person does not have any
stable belief because their mind is unable to perform its intended function. Therefore, the
consistency of their beliefs swings with spikes in mental illness and is independent of
rational thinking.
When I was about ten years old, we moved into a new neighbourhood. One day, while I
was trying to cross a road in the street, I observed that a fairly old woman tried to slap me.
Her palm had missed my face and left a brief whoosh to my hearing. I was quite shocked as
I reached the other side of the road and looked at her to find out the reason. She was a
short, fair and well-dressed woman who was grumbling loudly and walking fast with short
steps. I noticed that she did not even look in my direction after the quick scene. Instead, she
kept walking down her side of the road as if nothing had happened. I was later informed by
passers-by that she had gone bunkers and also learnt that she was fond of slapping people.
That is how many mad people behave. They do not form their beliefs and thoughts the same
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way other people do. Rather, they act based on impulse and short-circuited thought
processes. So, how are beliefs and thoughts ordinarily formed in human beings?
The beliefs of man (whether male or female, sane or insane) are based on the thoughts they
nurture. From Matthew 12:34b, out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks, it is
easily understood that what comes forth from the lips of men depends on the concentrate of
what goes on in their hearts. Recent scientific research revealed that humans think with
their hearts against the conventional belief that it is with the brain. In other words, overall
output is always a function of the major components of input. Hence, during
communication, people will automatically say what has been processed and saved in their
internal memory. When a situation that requires a persons opinion shows up, the human
brain quickly picks data from short, medium and long term memories, factors in any new
inputs received from external sources and process them altogether. The processing activity
would then generate outputs in form of obvious and pending reactions which are also saved
in a suitable portion of the internal memory whether short, medium or long term memory.
The obvious reactions referred to entails the initial verbal and non-verbal actions that people
make in response to the situations they face. These could be in form of speech, exclamations
or any other forms of action and expression. Alternatively, when people are posed with a
situation that demands a response, they may choose to hold pending reactions. Pending
reactions are outputs of the brains processing activity that end up in the mind without
getting exposed externally. They are held up as lingering thoughts or potential actions and
expressions until the need to show them becomes extinct. Therefore, human thoughts are
continuously formed through a continuous cycle that involves but is not limited to the
aforementioned cycle.
That is;
1. Check stored data
2. Process new & existing data
3. Give output
4. Restart new cycle
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Check stored data---Process new & existing data---Give output---Restart new cycle
However, the predominant outputs of human thought process create individual beliefs. This
is because when man receives information or data through the eyes, ears, tongue, nose, skin
or divine influence and the brain processes them, the facts in the original information
received are checked and compared with existing knowledge to ascertain their validity or
otherwise. The output of such verification process which may be for or against the original
information creates new streams of thoughts that are strengthened over time and result into
the individuals beliefs. Therefore, a belief is an idea that the human mind has accepted as
the truth. Even when the bases of an individuals beliefs are wrong, immoral or
meretricious, they remain true to such an individual until proven otherwise. This is because
human beings are similar in anatomical composition while they exhibit diversified
psychological outcomes due to variation in socio-economic factors; what is true to one
person may be false to another.
When beliefs are established upon strong premises, they are firm. When they are built upon
weak premises, they are fragile. This is what Jesus was explaining to His disciples in Luke
6:47-49 when He said that whoever comes to Him, and hears His sayings and do them is
like a man who built his house upon a deep and rocky foundation that is able to withstand
the vehement effect of floods; whereas, he that also comes to Him and hears Him but does
not do what He says is like a man who built his house upon earthy foundation which floods
will beat against and crumble into ruins. This is the link between human thoughts, their
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beliefs and the essence of their characters. Foundation can be likened to the degree of
importance that is given to a belief in the mind of an individual; and while rocky means the
strongest degree, earthy refers to the weakest.
Therefore, when thoughts are consistent, their predominant outputs become a persons
beliefs and when such beliefs are built upon rocky foundations or strongly regarded premises
in a person, they form the individuals personality.
History of Human Beliefs and Personality

One cannot conceive of a personality as something separate from the human being, or even
from his external and general physical appearance. The personality (Lat. persona= mask) is
the face that confronts us. When in their later years, people do go for plastic surgery and
face-lifts; they change their external appearance, which, as psychological observations have
shown, also changes something in their mentality. Everything in a person is interconnected
and affects the personality as a whole. What a person looks like is the outward expression of
his inner makeup.
A personality is a socially developed person; one who is part of certain historical and natural
context, one or another social group, a person possessing a relatively stable system of
socially significant personal features and performing corresponding social roles. The
personality's intellectual framework is formed by his requirements, interests, frame of
reference, and peculiarities of temperament, emotion, willpower, motivation, value
orientations, independence of thought and consciousness. The central feature of the
personality is world outlook. A person cannot become a personality without evolving what
is known as a world outlook or world-view, which includes his philosophical view of the
world.
The term "personality" implies an integrating principle that unites the biological and social
in a single whole with all the psychological processes, qualities and states that regulate
behaviour, giving it consistency and stability in relation to the rest of the world, to other
people and itself. The personality is a socially historical, naturally conditioned and
individually expressed being. A human being is a personality inasmuch as he consciously
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distinguishes himself from everything that surrounds him, and his relation to the world
exists in his consciousness as a certain standpoint in life.
The evolution of man from Adam to Jesus and from Jesus to the 21st century individual is
practical. Interestingly, it elucidates how human beings developed their present-day
mindsets and personalities through the continuous psychological and social evolutions that
span across several centuries.
First, we consider the creation of the first man to ever exist on earth. History documents
that thousands of years ago, God created a man called Adam and put him in charge of a
geography. Adam was divinely invented by God as His own mirror image. He then took
Adam and put him in charge of Eden to look after and take care of it (Genesis 2:15). He
instructed him to freely eat the fruits of every tree growing in the geography except one.
God warned Adam not to eat of the tree which gave the knowledge of good and evil
because there was a negative consequence attached to it. Here, we see the belief system of
God and can insinuate that He is a supreme being that orchestrates law and order and
prepares automatic consequences for possible aberration.
Therefore, the idea of the creation of laws to maintain order and peace in human societies is
not the invention of any man. God was the first being to create a constitution. Throughout
the Old Testament, we see endless instances of Gods creation of commandments, tenets
and consequences which guided human behaviour and stood as pillars of judgment. Since
human beings were created in His likeness, every good thing we exhibit originates from
God, including every positive inspiration. In fact, it is no joke that God is the actual owner
of all good patents and every questionable invention must have been sourced from or
subjected to corrupt and ungodly sources.
Later on, God saw that Adam was lonely and created neighbours for him. These neighbours
were animals of all kinds and of both sexes. He also made a woman named Eve to be
Adams companion so he would not feel lonely. A testing event occurred in the
neighbourhood as detailed in Genesis chapter 3 and the couple trespassed in the garden.
They committed an offence based on Gods constitution and lost the absolute belief system
and personality of God. So, they were judged and deported from heaven. This was the
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terminal point where impure beliefs and negative personality emerged and over the years,
decades and centuries, we could follow historic series and find the same to have held true.
Down on planet earth, Adam and Eve reproduced and created a family with children who
grew up either as occupational fruit gatherers or animal hunters. These were the two major
occupations at that time.as time went on, Man got inspired with basic inventions and more
professions were created. Therefore, men went into smithery, diversified farming, moulding
and other crafts the bible accurately recorded.
Isaiah 1:18a where God asked man to come and reason together with Him obviously reveals
His thinking, logical and rational nature. Without gainsaying, the origin of human beliefs
and personality in their purest forms is God. Since the fall of man, these beliefs and
personality have been rendered corruptible and vulnerable to the darkest forms of
immorality and impurity. This simply explains the origin of every strange thought, belief
and personality that exists within and outside global laws in this present age.
How Evolvement Happens Today

Today, evolvement happens when people change their beliefs to the extent that it reflects in
their personality. A switch in personality is usually the outcome of non-conformance and
conformance to various ideas which are evidences of changed beliefs. I would discuss four
major ways and three other more subtle ways:
Influences on individual identity

There is an abundant amount of influence on identity formation. Among the many
influences, four influences stand out to be especially important. These include cognitive
influences, scholastic influences, sociocultural influences and parental influences.
Cognitive influences: cognitive development has an impact on identity formation.

When adolescents are able to think abstractly and reason logically they have an easier time
exploring and contemplating possible identities. When an adolescent has advanced
cognitive development and maturity they tend to resolve identity issues more so than age
mates that are less cognitively developed. When identity issues are solved quicker and
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better, there is more time and effort put into developing that identity. Having a solid identity
earlier is a preferred situation and is one of the first steps in forming the desired life and
individual goals.
Scholastic influences: adolescents that have a post-secondary education tend to make

more concrete goals and stable occupational commitments. So going to college or university
can influence identity formation in a productive way. The opposite can also be true, where
identity influences education and academics. The two can play off of each other, ultimately
forming identity in the process. Scholastics as an impact on identity can be beneficial for the
individual's identity in the sense that, the individual will be getting educated on different
approaches and paths to take in the process of identity formation. Ultimately scholastics are
important for our brains as well as our identities.
Sociocultural influences: sociocultural influences are those of a broader social and

historical context. Here is an example. In the past, adolescents would likely just adopt an
occupation or religious belief that was expected of them or the same as their parents. In
todays society, adolescents have more resources to explore identity choices as well as more
options for their commitments. This influence is becoming less significant due to the
growing acceptance of identity options that were once less accepted. Also, more of the
identity options from the past are becoming unrecognized and less popular today. The
changing sociocultural situation is forcing individuals to develop a unique identity based on
their own aspirations. Sociocultural influences are playing a different role in identity
formation now than they have in the past. However, it still has an impact on identity, only
in a different way.
Parental influences: the type of relationship that adolescents have with their parents has
a significant role in identity formation. When there is a solid and positive relationship
between parent and adolescent, they are more likely to feel freedom in exploring identity
options for themselves. Studies have found that, for boys and girls, identity formation is
positively influenced by direct parental involvement and specifically in the areas of support
(financial and emotional), social and school monitoring. In contrast, when the relationship
is not strong and adolescents fear rejection from their parents, they are more likely to feel
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less confident in forming separate identities from their parents. There are other possible
outcomes in adolescent identity formation when examining parenting as well as the parentchild relationship.
Three subtle means of personality evolvement would now be discussed;

First; people generally conform to what makes life easy for them. For instance, in Africa,
many government workers conform to laziness because there is poor accountability along
the hierarchy and it is easier to be lazy than to be hardworking. Also, in other parts of the
world, cops are fond of demanding bribes from citizens indirectly. This includes a situation
where police officials that have been designated to roadblocks for security purpose
deliberately frustrate the movement of some road users by checking vehicle papers with
ulterior motives. Under the guise of ascertaining car ownership, some of these officials act
as vehicle inspectors an activity that is not their main responsibility and delay travelers.
Out of frustration, many road-users yield to their pressure and give bribes to get through.
Consequently, it is easier to conform to corruption than to stand for honesty and maintain a
good patriotic attitude.
Secondly; people conform to what they see in their environment. For instance, the media
has had a lot of influence on many young people. Most youth form their ideologies based on
what they see on TV and the Internet. In this age, the media of nations with stronger
economies have pervaded cultures globally and hybrids of such cultures have been created.
In the African music industry, the American hip-hop music culture has gotten headway and
seems to be the contemporary form of musical entertainment. In fashion, the dressing of
ladies in jumpy attires that reveal cleavages, bum shapes and thighs are evidences of the
invasion of foreign media while for men, it is exemplified through the wearing of earrings
and sagging of trousers. All these ideas were originally foreign to us they have been adopted
here because an average African youth tends to place high value on the Yankee lifestyle
which he sees on media channels.
Thirdly; people conform to what they cannot question. In some religions, a person is only
considered faithful when they do not question their beliefs. Such beliefs may be unwritten
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but generally known or they may be printed and published as holy books or guiding texts.
However, inability to question ones belief may prevent the growth of such individual
because he or she would not know to verify the suitability of their beliefs and may not even
know if they are good at all.
To experience benefiting change, one must be ready to stick to beliefs that would prosper
ones cause. This means maintaining consistency with beliefs that promote the ability to
reach ones goals without intentionally preventing other people from achieving worthy
causes too. While you cannot satisfy other people, you should not set out to destroy their
good works because of your own goals.
A person who is to evolve must be ready to demonstrate non-conformance to their
environment when necessary. In other words, though there are several circumstances
wherein the need to ensure peace and obey the law makes one conform to the environment,
one must not make conformance to other peoples ideas an automatic objective. Rather, one
should subject existing thoughts to screening and check the justness of such ideas before
deciding whether or not to conform. This may not include the laws guiding the conduct of
citizens in a nation but certainly includes the constitutions of professional bodies or groups,
opinions of friends and families and the pillars of ones religion.
Finally, Romans 12:2 enjoins the human race to be transformed through mental or mind
renewal that we may prove what is good, and is acceptable and is the perfect will of God.
This renewal refers to the changing of thoughts to further move in the direction of our
pursuits and it can only be achieved through the consumption and demonstration of the
word of God in our lives. It does not happen by accident or coincidence but by conscious
individual efforts to hold fast unto what is true and receive new inspiration continuously.
This is the most certain channel through which the peak of goodly, rocky beliefs can be
formed and an excellent personality can be realised. In the end, the individual has no choice
other than to become a beneficiary of such deliberate and conscious effort to define or redefine his or her individual personality.
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The Thoughts of God
Fallen beliefs live on faded words,

Wrapped with disbelief in Thomas heart,
They evoke the emptiness in a faithless heart.
A bitter heart holds venomous words,

And if sweetened with gracious kindliness,
It turns calm and speaks grace and kindness.
An evil heart will think evil of others,

A good heart may forgive even its offenders,
But neither is like the Spirited one that daily surrenders.
The heart of a man is wide, who has filled it?

The heart of a woman is deep, who has emptied it?
No one knows the measure of these two except the Spirit.
Surely, the thoughts of God are not like our own,

When He speaks, His words and personality are not alone,
Truly, they come out of Him with fire, power and brimstone.
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CHAPTER FOUR
The Reality of the Spiritual and Its Super-Imposed

Influence over the Physical Dimension
Immortality operates at a higher frequency than mortality.
Understanding the Spiritual and Physical dimension of reality

The spiritual and the physical are similar but they have different natures. On the one hand,
the nature of the spiritual can be explained from its root word, spirit. A spirit is an immortal
being that does not have a physical body and exists independently. It can hardly be
perceived through mere human senses but can be easily seen and sensed in divine ways. In
Job 32:8, there is this description of the spirit of man as one through which man receives
inspiration from God. Also, in Acts 29:3, a spirit is compared to an angel. This suggests that
a spirit is perceived just like an angel. Therefore, the spiritual refers to what happens or
exists in the realm of spirits; the events that occur in the environment of man but is unseen
by them.
On the other hand, the physical refers to the realm of man with all its earthly features. We
can understand the genesis of the physical aspect of creation from the Bible. We see in
Genesis 1 that in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth or planet
Earth comprises the biosphere, hydrosphere as well as the oceanic and continental crusts.
Everything that God made on earth that can be naturally perceived by the present-day man
is enveloped by the physical. These include man himself and everything that he can
naturally see, touch, taste, smell or feel. The physical is a vague representation of the
spiritual because most of the things that exist physically also have their spiritual
equivalence. However, the physical has an attribute of mortality such that things that live in
the physical always age with time. They grow and grow until they naturally die. This is
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unlike the spiritual realm where living things never age or die natural deaths because they
are immortal.
God and the Immortal Team

The realm of the spiritual is as real as God and His team of immortal beings. This is a major
and perhaps, most worthy evidence of the spiritual. Among others, the minority consists of
the fallen beings in the dark world and they do not deserve the attention that they would like
us to give them. The second evidence is the reproductive ability of living things. We know
that living things bring forth offspring in their own likeness and this has been a continuous
process for several years.one pertinent question to ask ourselves is, How did the first set of
all living things get here in the first place or what reproduced to form them? It should
interest us to know how they came into existence and started multiplying. That is what we
are going to discover next.
Genesis 2:8 further explains how man was created; we understand that the breath of God
gives life. This is one of the traits of his immortality. Now, to know the team of immortals
or spiritual beings that was involved with God in the creation process, we examine the book
of Genesis. From Genesis 1:1, we know that God created the heavens and the earth. That
verse neither tells us who else was there with Him nor does it say what existed before then.
So, we are going to do a little research and find out who and who were on His team.
In Genesis 1:2, one of the members in the person of The Holy Spirit. The scripture says that
the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters and this was after God had created
heaven and earth. This easily reveals the Holy Spirit who is the Spirit of God as a member
of the immortal team. In verse 26 of the same chapter, we see God say, Let usagain,
asides the Holy Spirit, we do not know who the spiritual beings that worked with God are
yet. However, going back to somewhere before verse 26, God had been active as the
commander-in-chief, saying, Let there be and those things were being done. I believe
that these things were being performed by the Holy Spirit and other members of Gods team
who were involved in the creation process under the leadership of God. If we fast-forward to
Genesis 3:22, where God had discovered the spiritual death of man and said that He had
become more like immortal beings in terms of knowledge, He said, man has become like one
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of Us. However, this scene gives us a lead to another member of Gods immortal team. In
verse 24 of the same chapter 3, we see that angels are enlisted on that team because after
God passed His judgment and drove man out of the Garden of Eden, He placed a creature
called a Cherubim and a flaming sword at the East of the garden to safeguard the tree of life.
We understand that Cherubim are angels of the highest order. Therefore, it is realistic to say
that angels were involved in the creation process.
Jesus can be proven as another member of the team based on the records in the book of
John. In John 1:1, the Bible says that the Word was in the beginning, the Word was with
God and the Word was God. It goes on to say in verse 3 that all things were made by Him
(the Word) and without Him was not anything made that was made. This means that the
Word was there when God was creating the world. This Word is brother Jesus and He is a
member of Gods immortal team. How do we know that He is Jesus? Thats quite easy.
John 1:14 gives Him away, And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld
his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father) full of grace and truth. Based on John 3:16,
Jesus is the only begotten son of God. In the next verse, John the Baptist gives a
confirmation. So, it is Jesus that was made flesh and He is a member of the immortal team.
Therefore, we have the Holy Spirit, angels and Jesus in Gods immortal team. All these
beings function together under the leadership of God and are by far, the most important
proofs of the reality of the spiritual which only chosen, saved, sensitive, gifted or inspired
men can perceive. The choice of who is given the privilege to physically perceive the
spiritual realm lies with the supernatural world itself under Gods supreme approval.
The Superimposed Influence of the Spiritual

There is a major difference between the spiritual and the physical which is yet to be
mentioned. This difference is in terms of their visibility and an illustration of it is given in
1Timothy 6:15-16 where the Bible refers to God as the only One who is immortality
dwelling in unapproachable light. Ordinarily, the spiritual has automatic visibility of the
physical the physical lacks such benefit regarding the spiritual. This is because the spiritual
operates at a hierarchy or frequency and vibration of life that is higher than that of the
physical. In addition, if authorized, spiritual beings can easily manifest in the physical. For
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instance, the devil who himself is a fallen angel (Isaiah 14:12) can see what is happening in
the physical realm. He can even speak to the minds of men and tempt them. He is a
practical example of how spiritual beings, whether evil or good, can influence things in the
physical realm.
However, if a physical being were to manifest in the spiritual, it would require a stronger
form of authorization. When God created Adam, He was a matured man and not a baby.
He was a spiritual being that was naked and did not even know it. He never aged because he
had an immortal nature and simply existed as a spirit. It was not until he ate the forbidden
fruit, died spiritually and lost his original nature that he became a spiritual being that lives
inside a mortal body. I believe that the tree of life had the ability to restore life to man after
his spiritual death hence, the reason why God had to put angels around it to prevent man
from accessing it. If man was allowed to eat from the tree of life, he would have renewed the
power to live forever and still possess the knowledge of good and evil. This was what God
wanted to prevent. Man had access to the tree of life before then once he had eaten from the
forbidden tree and received knowledge of good and evil, they had to prevent him.
So, man was deported to earth where even if he wanted to exhibit disobedience a second
time, he would not have access to the fruit from the tree of life in the Garden of Eden. Yet,
here on earth, man has had to continually fight to gain and retain dominance in the physical
realm because of the devil. Since the devil lost membership of Gods team through
irrevocable eviction due to gross misconduct in the order of pride, he is available to
influence the physical through his spiritual tactics and gimmickry. he is not to be feared
because we have received Jesus Christ who has restored the citizenship of Gods kingdom to
us, a benefit from which the devil can never partake. This does not mean we should
overlook him. We should know that we are above him based on our joint-heirship with
Christ. In fact, in Ephesians 6:10-12, we are further informed about the reality of the
spiritual and its superimposed influence on the material, Finally, my brethren, be strong in the
Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God that ye may be able to stand
against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
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The Bible then goes on to list the specialized tools for fighting and gaining advantage in the
spiritual.
The influence of the spiritual is also revealed through diverse spirits which operate on earth
in forms of provocative fashion, sexual perversion, terrorism, murder, diverse abuses of the
human body and the likes. This is because the human body houses a persons spirit and it is
the temple of the Holy Spirit. So, once the devil is able to temper with it, through spiritual
works that manifest in the physical, he is making progress by destroying Gods creation. The
devil always seeks an opportunity to make the death and resurrection of Jesus look vain and
it is our duty to prevent it by using the right tools.
We should also know that it takes a physical or spiritual tool to solve a physical problem,
only a spiritual tool can solve a spiritual problem. In other words, while it is possible to see
the solution to a problem in a dream, vision or trance and apply it physically, it is
impossible to shoot a ballistic missile at the devil and expect him to die. This is the ultimate
proof of the superimposition of the spiritual over the physical
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Immortality
Men and women only see the beginning,
The gifted ones see the end of the beginning,
But He sees everything, up and down, inside out.
We say its morning when the day is bright,

We say its noontime when the sun shines light,
But He could bring a new morning even at noontime.
We count our days and say we age,

Wrinkles on our faces that say we change,
But He neither ages nor changes cos He is the rock of ages.
We are born and grow in strength and age away,

We grow old and become dependent and die away,
But He has not known childhood nor youthfulness or agedness.
We live here on earth to fulfill His pleasures,

We are running a race that we may win His treasures,
He is the eternal judge of all, who Himself has no judge.
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We are mortals in the midst of this unequalled One,
We are only immortalized by the salvation gift from His Holy One,
He is God of all mortality and immortality, who Himself is boundless immortality.
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CHAPTER FIVE
How to Harness and Deploy Spiritual Resources
The realm of the Spirit is vast and resourceful, and therein lies enough and perhaps, more
than enough resources and provisions to meet the demands placed on it by the entire
creation.
Sometime ago, I was at a meeting with the executives of a financial institution. We had
stretched hours of discussions and deliberations, the attendants grew famished.
Consequently, we had a break and most of the discussants walked out of the conference,
returning with serviettes and toothpicks and I wondered what was happening. After the
meeting ended, I met one of the executive outside the conference room and he understood
through our discussion that I seriously needed a meal treat. He explained that all expenses
had been paid for all meal anyone could take for the day and the requirement for accessing
this privilege was the attendance card that each attendant wore. Mine was dangling around
my neck while I remained famished! Though I wasnt aware of that privilege until the
meeting ended, ignorance has never been an excuse and it will never be one. What you do
not know is bigger than you.
When you take away the way we look, our clothing and even our skin, underneath them all
is our spiritual entity. Most of us may have forgotten that this attribute is our true form
because we are currently caught up with playing the role of being human. Yet, it is our real
and primary spiritual identity as seen by the Spirit World and by us once we are taken out of
our physical bodies at the moment of transition or during the moment of physical
death. It will be in this moment that many will once and for all give up any fear of death or
doubt of an afterlife, as we will immediately realize and completely remember our total
connection to the Spirit World.
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The moment will be magnificent, and as you allow yourself to notice, you will find that you
are being surrounded by one exploding epiphany after another! You will realize the wonder
behind all creation and absolutely know that God is certainly real, eternal and atomically
thriving; in you and in every single manifested object! You will understand that all things
and events hold an intrinsic purpose and for even one of them to go missing, it would tear a
huge gulf into the very fabric of time and space. To consider this, using human intellect
may seem meaningless. From the spiritual perspective, you will see how vital all things in
creation are and how they all fall perfectly in sync with a masterfully intelligent design. And
then lastly, you will come to realize what an amazing being in creation you are! There is no
one like you in all of God's Super Universe and there never will be again. You are so
important to all of creation that without you, even God would cease to exist. Incredible,
huh? Well, it is true and the most wonderful thing about it is that God would not have it any
other way! We are LOVED that much!
Someone once related a dream he had. While sleeping, he saw himself having a cup of
coffee in a garden while his older colleagues approached and bullied him for not
acknowledging their presence. The young man resolved to self-defense and got into a fight
with them. He couldnt overpower their strength because he was alone. He did all he could
do to defend himself. He suddenly heard a voice instructing him to switch over to the
Spirit. He quickly heeded the counsel and defeated the gang effortlessly.
Things unfolded the way they do in dreams and he found himself in another scene. This
time, he got enlisted among selected participants who were to represent his University in an
academic competition. He found himself on a queue, waiting to tender his semester reports
before a committee to get registered and prepared for the upcoming event. When it was his
turn, he passed his report over to Mr. Robin who went through it and raised his head. He
looked back at the young man who got cold ice on the spot. Mr. Robins glare means
everything but approval. Performance in your previous exams are unapplaudable, Mr.
Robin remarked. How did you ever get enlisted among the participants?, He asked.
Before the young man could muster enough courage to give a response, Mr. Robin blurted
out, Make this golden opportunity count my dear. Encouraged, the young man
responded, I will do my best sir and took his leave.
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Moving out of the hall, he got some ridicule from his colleagues who saw his reports and
had eavesdropped while Mr. Robin was speaking to him. Hes a complete disaster waiting
to happen, a lady said. That is very unfortunate. You cant expect a good prospect from
him based on such performances, another added.
Despite all criticism, the young man got himself prepared and took advantage of the
opportunity. He emerged as the winner of the competition and grew popularity in six
national and international educational magazines. His praise was sung and other students
were implored to emulate him. He mentioned that he woke up from his sleep one day and
heard a voice speak to his heart, If you will muster courage to press on and be ready to
engage your adversaries in a fight like you did in your dream, your performance will
become an enviable one. He hadnt been performing well in his courses and had contemplated
dropping out.
The story above elucidates the direct interaction of the physical realm with the spiritual.
You must accept the fact that a realm exists, though unseen that is different from the
physically perceived which you and I have known and related with over the years. Things
dont just happen in our world like you might have been made to believe. The spiritual
realm controls the physical. If you are a Buddhist, Hindus, Shintos or whatever religion
you practice, you must have known about acts of meditation, ritual practices or prayer and
worship that engages your subconscious mind with another world. Such practices are
believed to help the respective faithful followers and believers to enforce a breakthrough in
the physical dimension. Here, there is no such thing as Qui sera sera or whatever will be, will be!
Nothing truly happens in the world without the help and influence of some spirits.
In one of the verses of the Bible, it is written, so that the things which are seen were not made
of things which do appear. If you can harness and deploy the resources in the spiritual
realm to your advantage, you will soon become enviable in the physical realm.
It is a normal transaction that upon buying a new product brand or item, the buyer requests
for the manufacturers manual to know how the product works and learn how to put it into
effective use. We agree to this fact but fail to consciously submit our lives over to the being
that formed the universe and the entire human race. You probably are not suffering under
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the illusion that everything self-existed or came to be without a creator, like you believe
there cant be a vessel without a potter, aircrafts, electricity and the vast technologies that we
see today, high-techs, bio-tech; which were once alien to us. There has to be a being behind
the order and creation of our physical world and a meaning to your life. The bible teaches
that what is known about God is evident to all because He has made Himself known in
the inner consciousness (and the subconscious) of mankind, even through the physical
things we see every day (see Rom.1:19-21). You arent just a product of circumstance or
random events, someone fashioned you and made you a distinct look, different from other
people on the earth. You are the handiwork of a being called the Creator.
An amazing record:
This is too glorious, too wonderful to believe! I can never be lost to your
Spirit! I can never get away from my God! If I go up to heaven, you are
there; if I go down to the place of the dead, you are there. If I ride the
morning winds to the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide
me, your strength will support me. If I try to hide in the darkness, the
night becomes light around me. For even darkness cannot hide from
God; to you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are
both alike to you. You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and
knit them together in my mothers womb. Thank you for making me so
wonderfully complex! It is amazing to think about. Your workmanship
is marvelousand how well I know it. You were there while I was
being formed in utter seclusion. You saw me before I was born and
scheduled each day of my life before I began to breathe. Every day was
recorded in your book! The earth is the Lords and its fullness, the
world and those who dwell therein. All souls are yours.
Psalm 139:6-17
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The creator knew you before conception; you are a product of His will and purpose.
Therefore knowing Him intimately and having a loving relationship with Him should be
of utmost interest to you and it is the simple basic secret to harnessing and deploying
spiritual resources made to be at your disposal.
Upon coming to the awareness of the existing creator, (God), we should then know about
His provisions for humanity to live a life worthwhile here on planet earth.
Spiritual provision
Like any good father, the creator has made provisions for us all. The provisions of God and
His graciousness to humanity is a matter of His own willing and choosing. A man named
Paul, who knew the God intimately and walked with Him thousands of years ago, captured
this in his thought and wrote:
Blessed be God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in
the heavenly places (spiritual realms) in Christ.
Ephesians 1:3
From the statement, we know that God has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in the son
whom He loves. So, knowing His son is important in assessing His great blessings.
Face unveiled
Archaeologists and historians of impeccable accuracy have shown that the various systems
of pagan mythology originated in Babel, Mesopotamian, in the time of Nimrod, shortly
before 2000 BC. It was about this time that monotheism (the worship of one high God')
degenerated into pantheism, polytheism and animism. (New gods emerged on the scene).
During this period God had to scatter the human race all over the earth.
It was within the early second millennium, shortly after 2000 BC that God began to deal
with the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Now, this man is the offshoot and signifier
of the covenanted promise God made with to the world with the patriarchs. He is the reason
for creation. He is co-equal with God, His father. He is one with Him. Hes the magnificent
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brightness of His father and the express image of His personality. The son is the hope of all
creation, the messiah who traded a glorious heaven (the place of His abode) for a wooden
cross here on the earth, to reconcile man back to the creator. He died on the cross 2,000
years ago for humanitys lawlessness, so we can become blameless before the Father and be
able to receive the affectionate love with which He had loved us before fashioning the earth.
He also rose up again (History record Him to be the only one who ever died, rose and
ascended beyond the sky physically with the promise of returning in the same way He has
ascended for a global reconciliation judgment and the annihilation of wrongs and evil from
creation). We are to believe on Him and be found in Him before Gods gracious provisions
can flow into our lives as He intends. There are certain benefits and privileges available to
all life in Christ. These benefits and privileges are found 1) outside of His son 2) In His son.
Ill explain these facts. The first is LIFE and the second is ETERNAL LIFE (life without
end. Available to all but exclusively and vitally enjoyed only by those who believe and
follow His teachings and instructions, living the way God would have man live. Those who
have come to know Him and accept His gift to creation to set aright the lawlessness and
corruption deeply rooted in all). The son is the right and the best way to know and have a
relationship with the creator, God.
Provision of Eternal life

The creators first provision for humanity in His Son is eternal, indestructible life that He
possesses Himself. The Bible says:
For the wages of sin is death, the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(Rom. 6:23)
But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and that believing
you may have life in his name.
(John 20:31)
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And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his son. He who has the
son has life; he who does not have the son of God does not have life.
(1 John 5: 11-12)
God made provision for the outward expression of Himself, of Himself in and through man.
His divine life is not the same as the natural life we have trapped within the earth; its
His loving Spirit coming to indwell us. This life enables us to live, see and to exert positive
influences on the earth. We are able to represent Him and all He stands for, when we
become custodians of the divine life.
Categories of life existentiality
Zoe (The God kind of life)
Psuche (The Natural human life)
Bios (The Animal and Plant life)
Anastrophe (The life in solid unresponsive objects and materials like rocks, hills
and sands)
The Bios, psuche and Anastrophe are the basis of scientific observations scientific
speculations, observations and experimentations oscillates around these three. The divine
life of which we are concerned is the life that grows in us by our continual communion and
fellowship with God. We can have Gods divine life and have it in abundance.
I (Jesus Christ) have come that they (you & I) may have life, and that
they may have it more abundantly.
(John 10:10b)
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Privileged right of supernatural interactions

Its amazing to imagine that we can hear and know Gods mind over every situation in our
lives; we can know His will and ways of doing things and handling situations. This is a
privilege that we have once we are connected and in synch with Him.
...I am the good shepherd; and I know my sheep, and am known by my own. My sheep hear my voice,
and I know them, and they follow me.
(John 10:14, 27).
The Bible implores us to walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because
the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. We are
wise only to the degree that we seek to understand and to do the will of God. God is
willing and able to show us His plans and intentions if we embrace Him lovingly as our God
and father and would seek after Him in the simplicity of the heart. His willingness to speak,
communicate and interact is beyond comprehension.
The world changes and if you must know or probably be reminded, we are in an era called
the end of the age which interestingly is the beginning of another. This was prophetically
foretold by men like you and I who heard God speak while they delivered the messages just
as they heard them. It is historically on record that it would be signaled by wars, famines,
pestilences, and earthquakes we see and hear of on the media almost every other day. Jesus
said these events will unfold just as travail comes on a woman in labor. Even in the midst
of the darkness and gloominess upon the global world, God seeks to speak to His own.
Those who desire to hear Him and do what He says, so they could know ahead and
prepare themselves and not to be overtaken by the global negative occurrences. These are
the days of unprecedented dreams, visions and prophecy for both young and old and the
people who know God. He seeks to reveal His intentions through these and other means;
just like the story in the beginning of this chapter where a man was told through a dream
not to quit schooling. Thanks to God he didnt.
In the last days, God said, I will pour out my Holy Spirit upon all mankind, and your sons and
daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men dream dreams.
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Yes, the Holy Spirit shall come upon all my servants, men and women alike, and they shall prophesy.
(Acts 2: 17-18).
Be a true seeker of God and choose to live wisely! Being a follower and disciple of Jesus
Christ gives you joy and inner peace unperturbed. Joy is the disposition of a cheerful heart,
an inner feeling and sensation of satisfaction and great consolation. It differs from
exhilaration, euphoria or happiness in that it is independent of any outward circumstances
events. You can be meritorious and joyful even in the midst of terrible and frightening
situations. You can plunge headlong into unfolding discovery of revelatory and lifetransforming insights and information. Joy is the love-gift from the creator that overflows
from within the heart. This joy is the attribute of Gods presence in and with a person and
an everlasting gift for every true and daily seeker of His kingdom. Oh, how it gladdens the
heart to know that in the midst of conflicts, confusion, darkness and depression in the
world, the heart can remain resolutely calm, clear, comforted and exonerated from
gloominess. Through the instrumentality of joy, you can also receive from God, every
blessing that pertains to His life. (Isaiah 12:3).
Natural provision
Gods provisions and physical blessings for humanity are vast and numerous. Today in the
world, the very existence of God cant be easily misconstrued or denied as they are made
obvious by the physical things around us. The Bible says that Gods invisible attribute,
invisible qualities and Godhead are clearly seen, understood by the things which are made,
so that men are without excuse. Matthew 7 teaches us that our human, biological fathers
who give and provide for our daily needs can never measure up with God. It says, If they
being evil wont give us stones in place of bread, serpents for fish, and scorpions instead of eggs, we
shouldnt expect God whose nature is righteousness to fail in his responsibilities as our heavenly
father. We are also informed that God knows about our needs before we ask Him. He seeks
to bless us as much as we allow him and do not limit Him by our doubts, fears and
unyieldingness to His words. The scripture says, He daily loads us with benefits. Lets see
some of His provisions for us.
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Locating His place for you

The creator, God in His sovereignty, predetermined where every one of us would live on
earth. He even determined the time and age or era in which wed live.
He created all the people of the world from one man, Adam, and scattered the nations across the face of
the earth. He decided beforehand which should rise and fall, and when. He determined their boundaries
(and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live)
(Acts17:26).
God took time to determine what your gender would be, saw your unformed body and
knew you before you were conceived, also foreordained the city or nation where you would
be born. Literally, He made an accommodation for you in this world. His incarnated son,
Jesus came into this world and was born in a manger (the plate in which animals feed) and
was raised up in Nazareth. And eventually, for the greater good became the savior of
mankind. Mr. Abraham, was born in Ur of Chaldeans, but was instructed to go to Canaan
nation which his descendants would later possess as their own property. Isaac was warned
by God to remain in Canaan so that he could be blessed, and in famine, he sowed and
reaped a hundredfold. Oops! What a harvest! Where you are and live presently is not the
determining factor of where you will be if you follow Gods lead. God determines your
place of birth and where you should reside. You might have to remain in that geography
or transit to another. He provides you a physical abode where His blessings would reach
you! He has given us richly all things to enjoy.
Tell those who are rich not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which will soon be gone,
their pride and trust should be in the living God who always richly gives us all we need for our
enjoyment.
(1Timothy 6:17)
God gives to us and meets our needs. His plan is to bless us in our righteous engagements,
to prosper us and make us fruitful like the palm tree. He wants us to enjoy life to the brim.
He seeks to make us have all sufficiency in all things and to become a blessing to people
around us. Everything in the world is Gods; so His hands are not shortened to meet our
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needs. His purpose of blessing us is not so we would to build our confidence in those things
but in Him alone. Yet there are times when we have feeling for a period of time that our
lives are on hold. God may also be involved in those unpleasant, uninteresting, and
seemingly stagnant moments of our lives. That also defines His blessing. His truest and
real blessing far outweighs natural things; His intention is to help us partake of His holiness
and be glorified together with His son, because, truly we are sojourners and pilgrims in this
world. His enduring, unceasing and everlasting blessing is to give us His divine life in
abundance so we could live in His sphere and become like Him.
There were two major trees in the Garden of Eden as recorded in the bible. Obviously, there
were other trees but two were major; the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good
and evil.
The devil came in his craftiness and deceived Adam and Eve into breaking the laws enacted
by God; laws through which their activities in the garden were governed. The devil did this
to make them be as God by knowing good and evil. This meant that they would have the
capacity to differentiate between things and make independent decisions without having the
need to consult with God on any matter. And this is the problem today with humanity;
people finding their sufficiency within themselves aside God.
In the way and manner that God created man, it is very possible for man to have a form of
life where God is not part of the equation; an equation where man supposedly develops his
manhood outside God and divine life. Humanity then gets developed with the goal of
arriving at the place of god outside God; living without Gods involvement and founding
culture upon our limited human capacity.
And what Jesus came to do is introduce Himself as and connect humanity to the tree of life
where everything initiates with God away from feeding on the tree of the knowledge of
good and evil which is the source of all existing religions today. Feeding on the tree of life
makes it possible for the intervention of God in the affairs of man. What God desires is to
have the people who know Him feed on this tree of life continually and foster the emanation
of the life that shows the world who Christ really is.
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Some men labored and worked all through the clock without finding a catch from the sea:
Jesus told them, If you will continue toiling on your own strength from the energy derived from the
tree of knowledge of good and evil, theres nothing for you. If you will let the steps you take, the choices
you make flow from the energy produced as a result of feeding on the tree of life, you will get results.
Jesus being the way, the truth and the life released words for direction and as they obeyed, they
caught so much fish that their ship began to sink away on the sea.
He said, Im the bread of life. Meaning, the one sent by God to bring back life to
humanity. He opens the eyes of people who are involved in a personal relationship with
Him to see Him and feed on Him from the scriptures. As you begin to study the Bible, you
come into fellowship with Him in intimacy in your heart as He imparts understanding and
knowledge into your heart. He said, The letter kills, the Spirit gives life.
If youre going to walk with God and at the same time see results in your life, you will have
to learn and make habitual practice consulting with God concerning issues in and every
detail of your life. It is not what you say or think is right that is right. It is what God says is!
You have to be able to differentiate between your opinion, peoples opinion and what God
says. People can accuse you of not respecting other peoples opinion. The truth is, nobodys
opinion is worth the respect if it is not in line with what God says. If you live by the opinion
of men, giving it priority over Gods word to you, you are looking for some serious trouble
in your own life, and talking about real, big time trouble in terms of your destiny in God.
You are going in a way that eventually will militate against the destiny and plan of God for
your life.
It is not about who is right but the fact that God is right and He always is. The bible says,
There is a way that seems right to a man but it eventually leads to death and destruction. That
something seems right, logical and rational does not make it right.
The Western world is trying to prove to us that it is possible to attain heights without the
involvement of God. It is like the tower of babel that was built centuries ago but it is
coming down after it must have been built. This involves man trying to develop himself
from within without the assistance of God in any obvious way. This is where everything
outside of Christ came in; metaphysics, spiritism, just name it.
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Man, in the fullness of his own rational, logical thinking can never find out what is in the
mind of God. The height of humanity, the fullness and excellence of humanity will never
touch even the fringe of the divinity of God. This is not a theological debate or argument.
This is about what God says.
A friend once told me, This is how I want to build my life and my home. I said, Stop it.
You are not the one who instituted it, God is. Instead of saying this is how I want to build
my life you should go to God, search the scriptures and let God tell you how He has
mandated things concerning the subject matter. This is why so many people file for
avoidable divorce and plunge headlong into other predicaments at the end of the day.
Integrity
Integrity is a very important virtue. Yet, it is possible for you to do things and be sincere
about them and be wrong. You could be sincerely wrong. Here is an example:
Abraham travelled with his wife Sarah to a country and the president, Abimelech just
happened to be taking a peep out of his armored limousine (I guess), when he saw Sarah
and something leapt in him for her (lust,). He asked Abraham who she was, and Abraham,
afraid that he could get jailed or even killed for the lady to become the presidents quickly
ducked saying that Sarah was his sister. This was also true since they were from the same
father but different mothers. This probably gave Abimelech the liberty to think of having her
as one of his concubines or wives. So, Abimelech brought her into his presidential
apartment but didnt have the room or space to make sexual advancement with her. God
appeared to the president in a dream and told him, You are a dead man; for taking the wife
of another. Who would hear such statement and not be terrified? Of course, I bet by the
time Mr. President woke up, he was shivering. Thats not the point. He immediately
ordered the release of Sarah from his house and sent her back to Abraham, writing him a
Cheque for the trouble he had put him through, saying he did what he did in the purity and
integrity of his own heart.
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The Monday morning could have been a lucky day for the journalist who would have
published the news of Mr. Presidents death with the headline, Mr. President, strangled to
death in bed by unidentified assassins.
Abimelech escaped death because he did what he did in the integrity of his heart and
corrected his error immediately it came to his awareness. The point is, men of integrity have
mercy-granted access to revelatory information which wouldnt come to them if they engage
deliberate evil or wicked acts. God demands that we live with pure and clean conscience
with full integrity of heart and cleanliness of hands. So, you have to be responsible for your
decisions under God and relate with Him.
Abimelech got deceived, made a decision and it almost cost him his life. God told him he
wasnt dead yet only because he had deliberately restrained him from having sexual affairs
with Sarah. God is interested in the way you relate with people around you, in your
workplace, school, neighbourhood, fellowship and even at social gatherings, all in the
measure of the integrity and purity of your heart and conscience.
Intentional living
Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that dont really matter.
Francis Chan
Intentional living is a lifestyle that is based on an individual or group's deliberate and
conscious attempts to live according to their core values and beliefs. These can include
lifestyles that are based on religious or ethical values, as well as life-coaching, personal
transformation and leadership training.
Intentional living requires you to be aware of your fundamental beliefs and to be willing to
make an effort to have your behavior and attitude reflect these beliefs in a form of integrity
in relation to your conscience and environment. In some cases, such changes are drastic
enough that like-minded individual forms a group together in intentional communities.
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Intentional living happens when you combine information, insight and wisdom from
reflections and actions. We are each bombarded by information constantly but few people
take the time necessary to reflect on their experiences, develop insight, generate practical
wisdom, and taking necessary action. This is the art of intentional living.
The word, intention, is synonymous with consciousness. There is a sense of deliberateness
about it. The word speaks about purpose, desire, objective, and motive. Other words would
be plans and goals. There are two broad groups of people on the earth: those who are living
intentionally and the others. The former are very sensitive to the state of matters in their
lives and that of others. They are not content to be on the receiving end of events alone but
to make things happen.
Anyone is capable of living intentionally. More importantly, living an intentional life leads
to a more deliberate and effective approach to life a life with greater impact, identifiable
accomplishments and greater satisfaction. We dont have to drift through life fatalistically.
We can choose to craft lives to positively impact our families, communities and nations of
the world.
You dont need to feel special, famous, or wealthy to enjoy the benefits of intentional living.
You can start living intentionally and enjoy the benefits of living an intentional life right
now. The key to living intentionally is mindfulness and thats something anyone can do.
However, while living an intentional life is simple, it is not usually easy. Along with all the
information that bombards us comes anxieties and distractions, which sap our energy and
steal our focus. Thus, we must recommit to living an intentional life, every day, evaluating
previous accomplishments in the light of the next big picture.
The Creator has chosen that the most important things on this side of the divide be done
intentionally. Things like enrolling in academic training, wealth building, erecting buildings,
putting machines and gadgets together as manufacturing firms, running of communities,
getting married, bringing forth children. These are issues that dont just happen. They
cannot be left to chance successfully. If left, they may never occur or they could happen in
unwanted forms.
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Ask any successful farmer and you will find that farming is an art. Some factors must be put
into consideration to reap good harvests. The peculiarities of the crop, the soil-type,
availability of light, water, nutrients are all factors that determine what kind of harvest the
farmer takes home, if any at all. When in doubt of the sufficiency of the right nutrients for
the crop, the farmer applies organic or inorganic manure. He does not lament the absence of
sufficient quantities of water; he works on irrigating the crops. He devises strategies to keep
weeds and pests out or to destroy them. At the end, he achieves his goal. Notice that any
successful area of life somewhat becomes an art or science and specific factors are put into
consideration when doing it; be it management, administration, healthcare, construction or
architecture. They may have been discovered by chance by different individuals over time
but they are later put together and designed into a system that anyone can learn to safely
practice as an art or science.
Life is a science and an art. Each community and individual has a life and each of these
entities has several aspects that make them up. The goal of the sensible individual will be to
make the most of each aspect of his life.
Friend, if farming, health, music etc. need so much thought put into them, what of human
lives, families and communities? Are they less important? The costs of leaving things to
chance include:
Missing of opportunities
Undecided people rarely get informed about good opportunities since nobody is sure of
where they are going. Even when they are seen by the people in question, they cannot act
promptly and properly on them since there is no clarity about what exactly they want to do
or who they want to be. Every man has missed some opportunities because of indecision.
Indecision could be of help sometimes as long as it is temporal. Such period is used for
clarification of the objective commitment, consultations and fact-finding to find out the best
course of action and approach.by and large, the undecided miss chances and opportunities.
In other cases, lack of self-discipline which is key to intentional living often makes people
lose opportunities. Some opportunities arrive with conditions that will need urgent
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adaptability. They sometimes need people staying up, spending extra hours and money to
meet such obligations and deadlines but the undecided cannot muster the confidence to go
through with them since he doesnt know where he is going or how to get there.
Missed obligations and loss of integrity

Some have the habit of not putting into consciousness their commitments and as such lose
their integrity. They make pledges and fix dates without thinking through or really having it
in mind to keep their commitments. Havent you met individuals who rarely keep their
appointments as scheduled or stick to any particular project or relationship? They either
have psychological issues that they cant seem to handle on their own or dont know the
importance of commitment. If you have issues, why not seek assistance, if you keep
forgetting dates and time, it is not a normal phenomenon and you need help. You could
help yourself with devices such as your alarm clock, a wristwatch, your cell phone to keep
note of your appointments and have them remind you automatically.
If you have to make a trip maybe the next morning, you should note all the factors that could
go wrong and fix them ahead. If you are taking a car, you need to make sure it is in shape to
make it or else, plan an alternative means of getting there. A carefree attitude is an unserious
one and people who have such rarely get critical things out in their care. If you have not been
getting important and weighty positions even though you have been applying severally, check
yourself. How you handle your personal life and issues will reflect on your obligations and
maybe the prospective stakeholders in such concerns have done background checks on you and
found that they would be risking the outcome of their projects by handing them over to you.
Success in self-management qualifies for responsibility in handling what belongs to others or
the corporate community.
I have come to see some folks as unreliable because they have failed to keep to their words
over and over again. I wont be so foolish to let matters of grave importance hang on them.
The irony of the matter is that they are not even aware of what they are missing. Be
intentional about your integrity, reputation, skills and appointments.
Transfer of the consequences of your indiscipline and indecision to others
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No individual exist alone entirely. Every action or inaction has a ripple effect and affects the
scheme of things. For instance, the decision to use thalidomide years ago has led to
situations where some women give birth to gene defects that produce severely handicapped
offspring such as babies with unusable or no limbs. This shows that the consequences of
somebody's action or inaction can be unfortunately transferred to others.
Another example would be the loss of several lives as reminded in the movie Titanic because
adequate lifeboats were not provided due to overconfidence in the ability of the ship to
withstand oceanic turmoil; a belief that turned out as a city assumption. Many families
suffered loss as a result of the decisions of others. The lives and properties that were lost in
Hiroshima due to the dropping of an atomic bomb during the Second World War included
innocent citizens who were just victims of the decisions of their leaders to engage in warfare.
Fulfillment of negative trends and prophecies

In every age and generation, some positive things are bound to happen; some negative
things are also bound to happen. Many of these are predicted by organs close to the unseen
realm in generic formats, not mentioning any specific individual. In other words, they are
unlabeled shoes. Anyone could fit into those shoes by chance or by choice. Oftentimes,
those who are indecisive unknowingly subscribe to being involved in the negative by virtue
of their act of indecision. In every generation, there are broken homes, houses razed by fire,
terrorists, robbers, split homes these are only possibilities; they hang over every member of
that society. The more indecisive and undisciplined a unit is, the more likely it is to fulfill
the negative. This is because, by default, things have been re-programmed to be retrogressive
and negative if left to chance in this age.
Poverty, loss of jobs, recession and divorce are some of these negative states in every age. It
is up to each individual to immunize himself and his family and unit against the possibility
of happening or positioning how not to be severely affected by them if they occur.
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Starting out on the journey of intentional living

Ask the right questions
Questions are tools that can be used to depress or uplift. The right questions asked can bring
astounding revelations. Ask questions that will stir up in you your creativity, optimism and
ingenuity. Dont ask questions the average people ask. They are average because of the kind
of questions they ask themselves, the tone in which they ask them and the nature of their
answers, if any at all. You should question the credibility of your beliefs and that of your
community. Some of the assumptions and beliefs that we hold are the reasons for our
backwardness. They are often unfounded. Sometimes, they are obsolete and time has made
them irrelevant.
A poor family cannot afford to keep pointing accusing fingers at the stakeholders in the
economy or the individuals that refused to help them. They are most likely poor because
they have excuses for not doing what will lift them out of poverty. Some of these excuses are
all about sentiments. They spend more than they earn and yet refuse to take trainings that
will put them at advantage in the job market because they look at the time they will 'waste'
doing so or their age. Still, they buy what they cant afford.as for you, you need to ask
yourself the right questions. Ask questions that will task your mind. Sometimes, your mind
may take its time in finding the answers but it is built to do that for you.
Who are you? Were you born to be poor and always in need? Will you live all your life
being average and without impact? Will your business die? Will it end as a local business?
Will you accept to die just because you have been diagnosed positive with some form of
disease? Will you drop out of life just because you experienced failure? Will you drop your
ambitions and dreams just because the people in charge are not letting you in? Courage
comes to those who ask the right questions. Self-discipline comes to those who ask the right
questions.
Purpose, the objective-end of all things.

A life without the most likely end of it in mind is not worth living. There are lots of pathoptions of that each life can travel on but we have to choose. How do you want your family
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to turn out? Do you want your children exchanging punches like Mike Tyson and
Mohammed Ali over disagreements when they are grownups? Do you want quarrels over
your inheritance after your demise? Do you want to exit the earth unknown and unmissed?
What kind of house would suit your person to live in? What will be your scope of
operations and influence? How will your years end? What will the next 52 weeks look like
for you? At your burial, what do you want people to remember and say about you? Would
they be similar to the speeches that were given at Nelson Mandelas burial? What kind of
character do you want to build and have? What kind of professional do you want to be?
How many countries do you want to pay visits to in your lifetime? What quality of spoken
languages do you want your children to speak? How do you want your businesses to end up
as a small store, a warehouse or a publicly-traded company? All these depend on your
choice(s).
Dont fight those who wont join you in the things you do or think and talk the way you do
because they have chosen a different path. Associate with people with like minds. The
clearer the picture of the life you want to lead, the easier it is to make your decisions because
you will know what to accept and what to reject. You will know when and what you can or
cannot compromise on.
This must be done at specific times. Do it as often as you need to keep it in your
consciousness. If necessary, you should communicate it to parties that will be involved in
carrying out one or two parts in the vision. Put yourself on restrictions. A life that has no
restrictions is subject to anything. I believe you will think and live intentionally. I believe
you will lead others in the same path and connect with others in your sphere of influence.
The world is likened to a centre stage where people come around to play different roles in
the production of something specific or with the aim of passing across, a definite message to
others present. In movie production, all these people are called actors and actresses, movie
directors, the make-up artist and interestingly, the audiences are always present to watch.
Everyone works hand-in-hand within a specified work-perimeter and job description to
make things work the intended way. And so it is in the world. There is a necessity that you
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find out which part has been designated for you to play and of course, you have a choice to
make.
There are two major classes of people in the world with respect to our subject consideration:
Those who make things happen
Those who watch things happen
Right now, you belong to a group out of the two. And the good news is that you can
migrate freely from the one to the other. You could be one of the usual, conventional and
tremendously crowdy watchers, watching and hailing others who have aims, achieve things
and make impacts in the global community. Or, you can as well choose to be among the
relatively few movers and shakers who make the things being watched happen. Youve got
to think, engage your spirit, soul and your body and wisely choose on which side you want
to live the rest of your life. Which part would you rather play?
In my meetings with teenagers and adults, I have always reasoned and asked that if at the
age of 16 or 18, the society sees you as responsible for your decisions and actions, both good
and bad, and these are being rewarded according to the national and international laws
holding at present, such that you could be conveniently sentenced to life imprisonment
behind bars for criminal or illegal act(s), then, NOTHING should be your excuse for not
having global recognition and reputation as a man or woman of positive influence and
impact and be celebrated all around the world in the global human society as result of your
decisions and actions. Your actions and inaction, your decisiveness and indecisiveness
contributes to the gross total of the experiences you are having in your life at any point in
time, even right now!
Sometime ago, I wanted to relocate from one apartment to another. I asked God to help me
find one. I never went out in search of any several months after then. The day I stepped out
of the house for a search, three good, vacant apartments presented themselves so
unexpectedly within 30 minutes. I could have stayed indoors trying to pray God into getting
me an apartment while He would have been waiting for me to step out and for Him to show
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me a good one. When I took the first step, He showed up with options for me to make a
choice.
Your decision and indecision as an individual, apart from the direct effect they have on you
personally, go a long way in affecting the entire human race. However, we should be careful
not to be sidetracked into blind optimism, coming from an inordinate focus on outcomes
and disconnect from reality. To guarantee the future, we must be active in the present, that
is, we must learn to align our actions with the future we prefer. Start living deliberately,
consciously make your decision and follow the path assigned to you with undivided
attention.
Dont be a fool whose eyes are always at the ends of the earth, who sees so clearly the future
but forgets where he is.
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He is
In the eye of the storm I was born,
So far from home and away from all,
To ask me where Ive been is to seek after the wind,
For if you find the end,
You have also found the beginning,
Hes the beginning and surely also the end.
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CHAPTER SIX
Authority of the Book of Books

It is impossible to enslave, mentally or socially, a bible-reading people. The principles of the
bible are the groundwork of human freedom. -Horace Greeley
There are many books that claim to be the Word of God today. The Quran, the Bhagavad
Gita, The Book of Mormon and other religious works that claim to be divinely inspired.
The Bible claims to be the only book that is divinely inspired and that all other claims of
inspiration from other works should be ruled out. Does the Bible confirm its exclusive claim
to be the Word of God? Ill say that the totality of evidences presents a strong case for the
divine inspiration of the Bible.
The strongest comprehensive explanation for the divine inspiration of the Bible is the
testimony of Jesus. Jesus claimed to be the divine Son of God and confirmed His claims
through a sinless, miraculous life and His resurrection from the dead which even history,
people who saw it happen confirmed its authentication. The events of His life have been
recorded in the four Gospels (Matthew Mark, Luke and John), which have proven to be
historically accurate and written by first century eyewitnesses. Since Jesus is God incarnate,
whatever He taught is true, and anything opposed to His teaching is false. Thats so easy to
understand.
Jesus directly affirmed the authority of the Old Testament and indirectly affirmed the New
Testament. In Luke 11:51, Jesus identified the prophets and the canon of the Old
Testament. He named Abel as the first prophet from Genesis and Zechariah the last prophet
mentioned in 2nd Chronicles, the last book in the Jewish Old Testament (which contains
the same books we have today although placed in a different order). In Mark 7:8-9, Jesus
refers to the Old Testament as the commands of God. In Matthew 5:17, Jesus states that the
law and prophets referring to the Old Testament is authoritative and imperishable.
Throughout His ministry, Jesus made clear His teachings and His corrections and actions
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were consistent with the Old Testament. He also judged other teachings and traditions by
the Old Testament. He thus demonstrated His affirmation of the Old Testament to be the
Word of God.
Jesus even specifically affirmed, as historical, several disputed stories of the Old Testament.
He affirms as true the accounts of Adam and Eve (Matthew 19:4-5), Noah and the flood
(Matthew 24:39), Jonah and the whale (Matthew 12:40), Sodom and Gomorrah (Matthew
10:15) and many more.
Jesus confirmed the Old Testament and promised that the Holy Spirit would inspire the
apostles in the continuation of His teaching and in the writing of what would become the
New Testament (John 14:25-26, 16:12-13). The apostles demonstrated that they came with
the authority of God through the miracles they performed as Jesus and the prophets did
before them. The Book of Acts, which records the miracles of the apostles, has also proven
to be a historically accurate record written by first century eyewitness.
Prophecy?
Many religious books claim to be divinely inspired, only the Bible has evidence of
supernatural confirmation. We have seen that Jesus, being God incarnate, affirms the
inspiration of the Bible. Another evidence of supernatural confirmation is the testimony of
prophecies. The biblical authors made hundreds of specific prophecies of future events that
have come to pass in the manner they were predicted. No book in history can compare to
the Bible when it comes to the fulfillment of prophecy.
Here are some examples: Ezekiel 26, which was written in 587 B.C., predicted the
destruction of Tyre, a city made up of two parts: a mainland port city and an island city half
a mile offshore. Ezekiel prophesied that Nebuchadnezzar would destroy the city, many
nations would fight against her, the debris of the city would be thrown into the ocean, the
city would never be found again, and fishermen would come there to lay their nets.
In 573 B.C., Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the mainland city of Tyre. Many of the refugees of
the city sailed to the island, and the island city of Tyre remained a powerful city. In 333
B.C., however, Alexander the Great laid siege to Tyre. Using the rubble of mainland Tyre,
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he built a causeway to the island city of Tyre. He then captured and completely destroyed
the city.
Today, Tyre is a small fishing town where fishing boats come to rest and fisherman spread
their nets. The great ancient city of Tyre to this day lies buried in ruins exactly as
prophesied. If we were to calculate the odds of this event happening by chance, the figures
would be astronomical.no, it was not by coincidence.
Here's another example. There are nearly one hundred prophecies made about Jesus in the
Old Testament, prophecies such as His place of birth, how He would die, His rejection by
the nation of Israel and so on. All these prophecies were made hundreds of years before
Jesus ever came to earth. Because of the accuracy of the prophecies, many skeptics have
believed that they must have been written after A.D. 70 after the birth and death of Jesus
and the destruction of Jerusalem. They have thereby tried to deny that they are even
prophecies.
However, in 1947 the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. These scrolls contained the book of
Isaiah and other prophetic books. When dated, they were found to be written from 120 to
100 B.C., well before Jesus was born. It would have been an incredible accomplishment for
Jesus to have fulfilled the numerous prophecies. Some say these prophecies were fulfilled by
chance; the odds against this would be exceptionally large. It would take more than a great
leap of faith to believe in the chanced happening than in the fact that Jesus is God and these
prophecies are divinely inspired.
The record of prophecy is such an evidence for the unique and supernatural origin of the
Bible.
Unity and harmony?

First, The Bible is the only book with supernatural confirmation to support its claim of
divine inspiration. The testimony of Christ and the legacy of prophecy are two proofs for
inspiration. A third line of evidence is the unity of the Bible.
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Second, The Bible covers hundreds of topics, yet it does not contradict itself. It remains
united in its theme. Well, what's so amazing about that? You may ask. Consider these facts.
First, the Bible was written over a span of fifteen hundred years. Second, it was written by
more than forty men from every walk of life. For example, Moses was educated in Egypt,
Peter was a fisherman, Solomon was a king, Luke was a doctor, Amos was a shepherd, and
Matthew was a tax collector. All the writers were of vastly different occupations and
backgrounds.
Third, it was written in many different places. The Bible was written on three different
continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe. Moses wrote in the desert of Sinai, Paul wrote in a
prison in Rome, Daniel wrote in exile in Babylon, and Ezra wrote in the ruined city of
Jerusalem.
Fourth, it was written under many different circumstances. David wrote during a time of
war, Jeremiah wrote at the sorrowful time of Israel's downfall, Peter wrote while Israel was
under Roman domination, and Joshua wrote while invading the land of Canaan.
Fifth, the writers had different purposes for writing. Isaiah wrote to warn Israel of God's
coming judgment on their sin; Matthew wrote to prove to the Jews that Jesus is the
Messiah; Zechariah wrote to encourage a disheartened Israel who had returned from
Babylonian exile; and Paul wrote addressing problems in different Asian and European
churches.
If we put all these factors together, it is obvious that the Bible was written over fifteen
hundred years by forty different authors at different places, under various circumstances,
and addressing a multitude of issues, how amazing that with such diversity, the Bible
proclaims a unified message! The unity is organized around one theme: God's redemption
of man and all of creation. The writers address numerous controversial subjects yet
contradictions never appear. The Bible is an incredible document.
Let me offer you a good illustration. Suppose ten medical students graduating in the same
year from medical school wrote position papers on four controversial subjects. Would they
all agree on each point? No, we would have disagreements from one author to another.
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Now look at the authorship of the Bible. All these authors, from a span of fifteen hundred
years, wrote on many controversial subjects, yet they do not contradict one another.
It seems one author guided these writers through the whole process: yes, the Holy Spirit.
2Peter 1:21 says that no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will or proposition but
men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. The unity of the Bible is just one more
amazing proof of the divine inspiration and authority of the Bible.
Archaeology?
We have studied the testimony of Jesus, prophecy, and the unity of the Bible as providing
supernatural confirmation of the divine inspiration of the Bible. Another line of evidence is
archaeology. Archaeology does not directly prove Bibles inspiration, but it does prove its
historical reliability.
Middle Eastern archaeological investigations have proven the Bible to be true and
unerringly accurate in its historical descriptions. Nelson Glueck, a renowned Jewish
archaeologist, states, No archaeological discovery has ever controverted a biblical reference.
Dr. William Albright, who was probably the foremost authority in Middle East archaeology
in his time, said this about the Bible: There can be no doubt that archaeology has
confirmed the substantial historicity of the Old Testament. At this time, the number of
archaeological discoveries that relate to the Bible number in the hundreds of thousands.
Archaeology has verified numerous ancient sites, civilizations, and biblical characters whose
existence was questioned by the academic world and often dismissed as myths. Biblical
archaeology has silenced many critics as new discoveries supported the facts of the Bible.
Here are a few examples of the historical accuracy of the Bible. The Bible records that the
Hittites were a powerful force in the Middle East from 1750 B.C. until 1200 B.C. (Genesis
15:20, 2 Samuel 11, and 1 Kings 10:29). Prior to the late nineteenth century, nothing was
known of the Hittites outside the Bible, and many critics alleged that they were an invention
of the biblical authors.
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However, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, archaeologists in Turkey
discovered a city which proved to be the capital of the Hittite empire. In the city they
discovered a massive library of thousands of tablets. These tablets showed that the Hittite
language was an early relative of the Indo-European languages.
Another example is the story of Jericho recorded in the book of Joshua. For years, skeptics
thought that the story of the falling walls of Jericho was a myth. However, recent
archaeological discoveries have led several prominent scholars to conclude that the biblical
description of the fall of Jericho is consistent with the discoveries they have made. One of
the leading archaeologists on Jericho presently is Dr. Bryant Wood. His research has shown
that the archaeological evidence matches perfectly with the biblical record.
Archaeology has also demonstrated the accuracy of the New Testament. One of the wellattested New Testament authors is Luke. Scholars have found him to be a very accurate
historian, even in many of his details. In the Gospel of Luke and Acts, Luke names thirtytwo countries, fifty-four cities, and nine islands without error. A. N. Sherwin-White states,
For Acts the confirmation of historicity is overwhelming. . . . Any attempt to reject its basic
historicity must now appear absurd. Roman historians have long taken it for granted.
There is no other ancient book that has so much archaeological evidence to support its
accounts. Since God is a God of truth, we should expect His revelation to present what is
historically true. Archaeology presents tangible proof of the historical accuracy of the Bible.
The Bible alone is Gods word!

We have given several proofs for the divine inspiration of the Bible. These include the
testimony of Jesus the divine Son of God, prophecy, unity, and archaeology. Accepting the
divine inspiration of the Bible leads to the conclusion that all other works cannot be divinely
inspired. This does not mean other works do not contain truth. All people are created in the
image of God and can articulate principles that are true. However, only the Bible proves to
be divinely inspired by God and therefore, other claims of divine inspiration should be ruled
out for several reasons.
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The Bible is the only book that gives supernatural confirmation to support its claim of divine
inspiration. Other scriptures which contradict it cannot, therefore, be true.
The law of non-contradiction states that two contradictory statements cannot be true at the
same time. If one proposition is known to be true, its opposite must be false. If it is true that
I am presently alive, it cannot also be true to say that I am presently not alive. This is a
universal law which is practiced daily in every part of the world. Even if you claim, the law
of non-contradiction is false, you are asserting this statement is true and its opposite is false.
In other words you end up appealing to the law you are trying to deny then making a selfdefeating argument.
Since we have good reason to believe the Bible is the inspired word of God, any teaching
that contradicts the Bible must be false. The Bible makes exclusive claims regarding God,
truth and salvation that would exclude other scriptures. The Bible teaches that any deity
other than the God of the Bible is a false deity (Exodus 20). Jesus declared that He is the
divine Son of God, the source of truth, and the only way to eternal life (John 1 & 14:6).
A look at a few works from other religions illustrates this point. The Hindu scriptures
include the Vedas and the Upanishads. These books present views of God that are contrary
to the Bible. The Vedas are polytheistic, and the Upanishads present a pantheistic
worldview of an impersonal divine essence called Brahma, not a personal God.
The Koran, the holy book of Islam, denies the deity of Christ, the triune nature of God, and
the atoning work of Christ on the cross (Sura 4:116, 168). These are foundational truths
taught in the Bible. The Pali Canon, the holy scriptures of Southern Buddhism, teaches a
naturalistic worldview (or pantheistic, as some schools interpret it). It also teaches salvation
by works and the doctrine of reincarnation. The worldview of the Pali Canon and its view of
salvation contradict biblical teachings. Since these works contradict biblical teaching, we
reject their claim to divine inspiration.
The Bible alone proves to be divinely inspired and its exclusive claims rule out the claims of
other books.
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Are the Gospels historical or mythological?

The first challenge to address is how to account for the differences among the four Gospels.
They are each different in nature, content, and the facts they include or exclude. The reason
for the variation is that each author wrote to a different audience and from his own unique
perspective. Matthew wrote to a Jewish audience to prove to them that Jesus is indeed their
Messiah. That's why Matthew includes many of the teachings of Christ and makes
numerous references to Old Testament prophecies. Mark wrote to a Greek or Gentile
audience to prove that Jesus is the Son of God. Therefore, he makes his case by focusing on
the events of Christ's life. His gospel moves very quickly from one event to another,
demonstrating Christ's lordship over all creation. Luke wrote to give an accurate historical
account of Jesus' life. John wrote after reflecting on his encounter with Christ for many
years. With that insight, near the end of his life John sat down and wrote the most
theological of all the Gospels.
We should expect some differences between four independent accounts. If they were
identical, we would suspect the writers of collaboration with one another. Because of their
differences, the four Gospels give us a fuller and richer picture of Jesus.
Let me give you an example. Imagine if four people wrote a biography on your life: your
son, your father, a co-worker, and a good friend. They would each focus on different aspects
of your life and write from a unique perspective. One would be writing about you as a
parent, another as a child growing up, one as a professional, and one as a peer. Each may
include different stories or see the same event from a different angle, but their differences
would not mean they are in error. When we put all four accounts together, we would get a
richer picture of your life and character. That is what is taking place in the Gospels.
So we acknowledge that differences do not necessarily mean errors. Skeptics have made
allegations of errors for centuries, yet the vast majority of charges have been answered. New
Testament scholar, Dr. Craig Blomberg, writes, "Despite two centuries of skeptical
onslaught, it is fair to say that all the alleged inconsistencies among the Gospels have
received at least plausible resolutions. Another scholar, Murray Harris, emphasizes, "Even
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then the presence of discrepancies in circumstantial detail is no proof that the central fact is
unhistorical. The four Gospels give us a complementary, not a contradictory, account.
The date of the New Testament writings: internal evidence

Critics claim that the Gospels were written centuries after the lifetimes of eyewitnesses. This
would allow for myths about Jesus' life to proliferate. Were the Gospels written by
eyewitnesses as they claim or were they written centuries later? The historical facts appear to
make a strong case for a first century date.
Jesus' ministry was from A.D. 27-30. Noted New Testament scholar, F.F. Bruce, gives
strong evidence that the New Testament was completed by A.D. 100. Most writings of the
New Testament works were completed twenty to forty years before this. The Gospels are
dated traditionally as follows: Mark is believed to be the first gospel written around A.D. 60.
Matthew and Luke follow and are written between A.D. 60-70; John is the final gospel,
written between A.D. 90-100.
The internal evidence supports these early dates for several reasons. The first three Gospels
prophesied the fall of the Jerusalem Temple which occurred in A.D. 70. However, the
fulfillment is not mentioned. It is strange that these three Gospels predict this major event
but do not record it happening. Why do they not mention such an important prophetic
milestone? The most plausible explanation is that it had not yet occurred at the time
Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written.
In the book of Acts, the Temple plays a central role in the nation of Israel. Luke writes as if
the Temple is an important part of Jewish life. He also ends Acts on a strange note: Paul
living under house arrest. It is strange that Luke does not record the death of two chief
characters, Peter and Paul. The most plausible reason for this is that Luke finished writing
Acts before Peter and Paul's martyrdom in A.D. 64. A significant point to highlight is that
the Gospel of Luke precedes Acts, further supporting the traditional dating of A.D. 60.
Furthermore, most scholars agree that Mark precedes Luke, making Mark's Gospel even
earlier.
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Finally, the majority of New Testament scholars believe that Paul's epistles are written from
A.D. 48-60. Paul's outline of the life of Jesus matches that of the Gospels. 1st Corinthians is
one of the least disputed books regarding its dating and Pauls authorship. In chapter 15,
Paul summarizes the gospel and reinforces the premise that this is the same gospel preached
by the apostles. Even more compelling is that Paul quotes from Luke's Gospel in 1st
Timothy 5:18, showing us that Luke's Gospel was indeed completed in Paul's lifetime. This
would move up the time of the completion of Luke's Gospel along with Mark and Matthew.
So we see that the internal evidence presents a strong case for the early dating of the
Gospels.
The date of the Gospels: external evidence

Were the Gospels written by eyewitnesses of the events or were they unrecorded until
centuries later? As with the internal evidence, the external evidence also supports a first
century date.
Fortunately, New Testament scholars have an enormous amount of ancient manuscript
evidence. The documentary evidence for the New Testament far surpasses any other work
of its time. We have over 5000 manuscripts, and many are dated within a few years of their
authors' lives.
Here are some key documents. An important manuscript is the Chester Beatty Papyri. It
contains most of the N.T. writings and is dated around A.D. 250.
The Bodmer Papyri contains most of John, and dates to A.D. 200. Another is the Rylands
Papyri that was found in Egypt that contains a fragment of John, and dates to A.D. 130.
From this fragment we can conclude that John was completed well before A.D. 130
because, not only did the gospel have to be written, it had to be totally handwritten and
make its way down from Greece to Egypt. Since the vast majority of scholars agree that
John is the last gospel written, we can affirm its first century date alongside others with
greater assurance.
A final piece of evidence comes from the Dead Sea Scrolls Cave 7. Jose Callahan discovered
a fragment of the Gospel of Mark and dated it to have been written in A.D. 50. He also
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discovered fragments of Acts and other epistles and dated them to have been written slightly
after A.D. 50.
Another line of evidence is the writings of the church fathers. Clement of Rome sent a letter
to the Corinthian church in A.D. 95 in which he quoted from the Gospels and other
portions of the N.T. Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch, also wrote a letter before his martyrdom in
Rome in A.D. 115, quoting all the Gospels and other N.T. letters. Polycarp wrote to the
Philippians in A.D. 120 and quoted from the Gospels and N.T. letters. Justin Martyr (A.D.
150) quotes John 3. Church fathers of the early second century were familiar with the
apostle's writings and quoted them as inspired Scripture.
Early dating is important for two reasons. The closer a historical record is to the date of the
event, the more likely the record is accurate. Early dating allows for eyewitnesses to still be
alive when the Gospels were circulating to attest to their accuracy. The apostles often appeal
to the witness of the hostile crowd, pointing to their knowledge of the facts as well (Acts
2:22, 26:26). Also, the time is too short for legends to develop. Historians agree it takes
about two generations, or eighty years, for legendary accounts to establish themselves.
From the evidence, we can conclude the Gospels were indeed written by the authors they
are attributed to.
How reliable was the oral tradition?

Previously, the early dating of the Gospels was defended. Despite this early dating, there is a
time gap of several years between the ascension of Jesus and the writing of the Gospels.
There is a period during which the gospel accounts were committed to memory by the
disciples and transmitted orally. The question we must answer is, was the oral tradition
memorized and passed on accurately? Skeptics assert that memory and oral tradition cannot
accurately preserve accounts from person to person for many years.
The evidence shows that in oral cultures where memory has been trained for generations,
oral memory can accurately preserve and pass on large amounts of information.
EPISTOL
Deuteronomy 6:4-9 reveals to us how important oral instruction and memory of divine
teaching was stressed in the Jewish culture. It is a well-known fact that the rabbis had the
O.T. and much of the oral law committed to memory. The Jews placed a high value on
memorizing whatever writing reflected inspired Scripture and the wisdom of God. In a
culture where this was practiced, memorization skills were far advanced compared to ours
today. New Testament scholar Darrell Bock states that the Jewish culture was a culture of
memory.
Rainer Reisner has also presented six key reasons why oral tradition accurately preserved
Jesus' teachings. First, Jesus used the Old Testament prophets' practice of proclaiming the
word of God which demanded accurate preservation of inspired teaching. Second, Jesus'
presentations of Himself as Messiah would reinforce among His followers the need to
preserve His words accurately. Third, ninety percent of Jesus' teachings and sayings use
mnemonic methods similar to those used in Hebrew poetry. Fourth, Jesus trained His
disciples to teach His lessons even while He was on earth. Fifth, Jewish boys were educated
until they were twelve, so the disciples likely knew how to read and write. Finally, just as
Jewish and Greek teachers gathered disciples, Jesus gathered and trained His to carry on
after His death.
When one studies the teachings of Jesus, one realizes that His teachings and illustrations are
easy to memorize. People throughout the world recognize immediately the story of the
Good Samaritan, the Prodigal Son, and the Lord's Prayer.
We also know that the church preserved the teachings of Christ in the form of hymns which
were likewise easy to memorize. Paul's summary of the gospel in 1 Corinthians 15 is a good
example of this.
We can have confidence then that the oral tradition accurately preserved the teachings and
the events of Jesus' life till they were written down just a few years later.
The Transmission of the Gospel Texts

When I speak with Muslims and people of some religious sects, we often come to a point in
the discussion where it is clear the Bible contradicts their position. It is then they claim, as
EPISTOL
many skeptics do that the Bible has not been accurately transmitted and has been corrupted
by the church. In regards to the Gospels, do we have an accurate copy of the original texts
or have they been corrupted?
Previously, we showed that the Gospels were written in the first century, within the lifetime
of the eyewitnesses. These eyewitnesses, both friendly and hostile, scrutinized the accounts
for accuracy.
So the original writings were accurate. However, we do not have the original manuscripts.
What we have are copies of copies of copies. Are these accurate, or have they been
tampered with? As shown earlier, we have 5000 Greek manuscripts of the New Testament.
When you include the quotes from the church fathers, manuscripts from other early
translations like the Latin Vulgate, the Ethiopic text and others, they all accumulate to a
total of over 24,000 ancient texts. With so many ancient texts, significant alterations should
be easy to spot. However, those who accuse the New Testament of being corrupted have not
produced such evidence. This is significant because it should be easy to do with so many
manuscripts available. The truth is, the large number of manuscripts confirm the accurate
preservation and transmission of the New Testament writings.
Although we can be confident in an accurate copy, we do have textual discrepancies. There
are some passages with variant readings that we are not sure of. However, the differences
are minor and do not affect any major theological doctrine. Most have to do with sentence
structure, vocabulary, and grammar. These in no way affect any major doctrine.
The other discrepancies are similar in nature. Greek scholars agree we have a copy very
accurate to the original. Westcott and Hort state that we have a copy 98.33% accurate to the
original. A.T. Robertson gave a figure of 99% accuracy to the original. As historian Sir
Rotzvelskiric Kenyon assures us, "...the last foundation for any doubt that the Scriptures
have come down to us substantially as they were written has now been removed. Both the
authenticity and general integrity of the books of the New Testament may be regarded as
finally established."
EPISTOL
Do miracles discredit the Gospels?

Skeptics also question the accuracy of the Gospels because of the miracles. However, this is
an issue of worldviews. Those who hold to a naturalistic worldview do not believe an
omnipotent creator exists. All that exists is energy and matter. Therefore, miracles are
impossible. Their conclusion, then, is that the miracle accounts in the Gospels are
exaggerations or myths.
Those who hold to a theistic worldview can accept miracles in light of our understanding of
God and Christ. God can intervene in time and space and alter the natural regularities of
nature much like finite humans can in smaller limited ways. If Jesus is the Son of God, we
can expect Him to perform miracles to affirm His claims to be divine. Worldviews are not
where this ends. We also need to take a good look at the historical facts.
As shown previously, the Gospels were written by eyewitnesses to the events of the life of
Christ. Early dating shows eyewitnesses were alive when Gospels were circulating and
could attest to their accuracy. Apostles often appeal to the witness of the hostile crowd,
pointing out their knowledge of the facts as well (Acts 2:22, Acts 26:26). Therefore, if there
were any exaggerations or stories being told about Christ that were not true, the
eyewitnesses could have easily discredited the apostles accounts. Remember, they began
preaching in Israel in the very cities and during the lifetimes of the eyewitnesses. The Jews
were careful to record accurate historical accounts. Many enemies of the early church were
looking for ways to discredit the apostles' teaching. If what the apostles were saying was not
true, the enemies would have cried foul, and the Gospels would not have earned much
credibility.
There are also non-Christian sources that attest to the miracles of Christ. Josephus writes,
"Now there was about that time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he
was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He
drew to him both many of the Jews and many of the gentiles." The Jewish Talmud, written
in the fifth century A.D., attributes Jesus' miracles to sorcery. Opponents of the Gospels do
not deny He did miracles; they just present alternative explanations for them.
EPISTOL
Finally, Christ's power over creation is supremely revealed in the resurrection. The
resurrection is one of the best attested-to events in history.
EPISTOL
The Book of Books
I know a book,
Of all books, its The Book,
A book more than all books,
The king of books with a royal look,
Ancient wisdom,
The sort that framed the world,
And established the earth upon water bodies,
Forever dwelling within its confined boundary,
A book filed with words,

Words of tremendous power,
Such that creates, makes and forms,
Words that breaks mounts and renders oceans dried,
Words that builds and plants, pulls down and destroys,

Such is the word-power, by which the affairs of men are governed,
It holds the galaxies in their constellations,
EPISTOL

CHAPTER SEVEN
Nini Sasa? (What
Now?)
Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of desires.
An army is only an army so long as it has discipline. When discipline fails, an army
becomes a rabble. But, let us look at it rather more closely. Every person, every community,
whether hamlet, a village, a town, a city, or a country, and every world also, has a choice of
the right Path or the wrong Path. It's like a continuous examination. Do people know the
answers? Can they make the right decision, the right choice? Can they take the right Path?
Well, the poor old Earth took the wrong Path and the unrest we started is now upon us in
full force. This is how it started as I recall the account: In 1914 World War 1 began. Men
were sent to the fighting forces and because of avaricious munitions makers and others of
that ilk, women were lured into cutting their hair short, putting on trousers and entering the
factories, taking over the jobs formerly held by men in different nations of the world.
Women went to work, women sought for what they blithely called equality with men.
(And that is nonsense) Men and women are different; no man has ever produced a baby,
and no woman has ever fathered a baby. They are quite different. Each designed for their
own purposes in life. The job of the woman was probably far more important than that of
men, women had equality, and women have always had equality. The supreme
responsibility of women was to look after the family and to train the children to be good
citizens and good people. When the woman was at home looking after the family the world
was a far better place, there were less crimes, less strikes, less civic disturbances. Women
stayed at home, maintained home discipline, and saw that the rising generation had the
necessary training and the necessary discipline with which they, in turn, would take over.
But then women entered the factories, entered the shops, they drove buses, did everything.
And what happened? Young children were shoved out into the streets to play, to look after
themselves. Young children, almost as soon as they could totter, were left to fend for
EPISTOL
themselves and go to a store and fast-food for a hurriedly snatched meal. The weaker
characters among these young people, these quite young children, were soon dominated by
stronger and harder and more vicious characters in the community. Soon children were
racing about in gangs like pack rats. There is no longer a respect for law and order. A
policeman is an object of derision. Everything is done by children to break the law, they lie,
they steal, they gamble, and their sexual precociousness makes one wonder what is to
happen next.
Parents no longer have any real authority over their children. Children stay out all hours of
the day and night; they are not responsible to anyone. These children flaunt the authority of
teachers, and they behave like mad things. They grow up to be gangsters and assassins,
and, in my considered opinion, the whole responsibility is that of parents who are so busy
amassing money and looking for fame and power that it is an economic necessity that
husband and wife both work, and thus the children, the future race, are neglected. As
husband and wife both work there is more money available, so manufacturers put on extra
shifts of workers to produce more goods, to take some of the surplus money in the economy.
The goods are carefully made so that they last a certain predictable time only, or utterly
lying advertisements preach that it is absolutely necessary to have this or that product for us
to belong. Cars are altered year after year in only their tinny details; they are altered to
make last year's cars completely obsolete fashion wise. Yet underneath there is the same old
clunker rattling along, the same old engine which really hasn't improved much over the
years. All that matters to people now isare they keeping up with the More Bettercan
they go one step ahead of the More?
The world has gone mad, the whole world has gone bunker and it's all because men and
women want to take a country and squeeze it like a lemon. Here in Africa, Nigeria,
members of the House of Representative, who had gone on intellectual and wisdom strike
causing distress and hardship for many because they want a certain per cent increase in their
already lavish wages, has gone on the media and broadcast (in by no means cultured tones!)
that the country is like a big cake and they are going to cut out their share of the national
cake. Well, as long as that attitude prevails in the country, and the world, there is little hope.
EPISTOL
The only thing to save the world now is a return to sanity, a return to the realization that the
man should be earning the living and the woman should be the mother, the woman should
stay at home doing the most noble task of all, instilling discipline and spiritual values into
children who later will become adults and so in their turn will have to pass on knowledge
and training. The world lacks true religion. So many religions are busy fighting against each
other.
We need spiritual discipline. A religion is a useful thing for inculcating spiritual discipline
provided the religious leaders are not fighting among themselves and are not looters. If you
get a wonderfully kept orchard, an orchard on which great care and endless expense has
been lavished, and you suddenly withdraw all care from that orchard, everything soon
becomes uninviting. The fruit no longer has the bloom and the fullness of constant care;
instead that fruit becomes wrinkled and bitter. People are getting like that. People are now
of inferior stock, and soon there will have to be the leaving process again so that fresh blood
is brought to the Earth. But first, there will be more suffering. First the whole world will be
engulfed by a form of Communism. Not the Communism of China where even clocks and
cars are supposed to run by the illustrious thoughts of dear Chairman Mao Tse Tung, and
where, if a person has some interior obstruction he just thinks of old Mao Tse Tung, and
there is such a disturbance that everything is cleared away immediately! No, not that.
A great religious leader, Martin Luther King, was assassinated. He was a good man and had
much to give to this Earth. As for some others currently serving in religious and political
positions, wellthey are just political people and (I do not want to tread on anyone's toes!)
history will prove that these were dwarfs raised to giant stature only by the appalling power
of their advertising tactics, an advertising method which blew out a lot of stinking hot air
and made dwarfs appear like giants, just as you can get a toy soldier and by placing a light
behind him you can make his shadow giant size on the wall behind. But here, too, the toy
soldier's shadow is a shadow only, something without substance, something that soon will
be forgotten. Martin Luther King was no shadow, Mahatma Ghandi, Nelson Mandela.
They were good men, working for the good, not only of coloured people but people of all
colours throughout the world. There would still be time to save this Earth from its
degradation, from its shame, if only women would return to their homes and look after the
EPISTOL
children and see that those children had proper training, because it is the lack of training
which makes it possible for assassins to go about their filthy work. It is the lack of training
which enables race riots to take place, theft, even national theft, looting, and rape. These
things were not common in the days when women had more than equality at home; when
she occupied the supreme place of honour as Mother to her family.
It would be much, much better if the criterion of womanhood could be: How well behaved
are the children? How contented is the husband? How useful is this woman to the
community? Is she an example to others? If so she is a woman to be proud of. Now, sad to
say, a woman is judged by her mammary development, whether they stick up or down, how
accessible they are, and how many guys she has had. Sex is a wonderful thing, but this isn't
sex. The people who go in for this type of thing are immature. They don't know anything
about love, but only about the most functional aspects of procreation, and then, interestingly
enough, most of these sex queens are as impotent as a eunuch who has been treated twice
by mistake!
If all of us would put the necessary efforts for a Great Leader to be born in us and help
straighten out the mess, that Great Leader would come, not with flaming sword and
embattled hosts because wars never settle anything, wars just make misery, wars make more
troubles. It's not necessary to have any of those things. The way of peace is the best, and I
tell you, the best way to get peace is to get women back in the homes teaching decency to
the male and female members of the family. They can do it, you know. Remember the old
saying? A woman who is good is very good, but a woman who is bad is worse than any
man could ever be no matter how bad.
If we trust spiritual visions and promises and the nature of a new creation recorded in the
Book of Revelations in the Bible, then what can we do to help make that promise and intent
expressive in the realm of time here? Im glad you asked! We can give ourselves to the work
of comforting those in grief and of changing a status quo that perpetuates sorrow and
depression especially on the part of the most vulnerable ones: the children, the elderly, the
poor and the marginalized. We can share with others the hope that physical death is not the
end of our story but a new birth; a spiritual transition and the beginning of all things. And
we can work to see that people do not die needlessly, that they dont die in coal mines, gold
EPISTOL
mines, mega factories and industries because the necessary safety laws are not enforced, that
governmental positions are never usurped and deployed as a murder weapon on the citizens
of our nations. Religious bias wont be an excuse to deny people of their constitutional
rights and no one comes into a political office or gets appointed to administrate the affairs of
state without being eligible morally, intellectually, integrity-wise and with the proper
leadership and administrational skills and experience. The judicial system must be up and
strong, laws should be enforced and everything that constitutes a vibrant, strong, peaceful
and progressive society must be put in place.
We can work to see that people dont die needlessly in wars that do not have to happen
because there is no will or creativity to pursue peace and find non-violent resolution to
conflict. We can give a cup of cold water in Jesus name to those who are thirsty and we can
change policies and practices that keep sending clean water to those who already have more
than they need and keep it from those who dont have enough or have at all. We can also
prepare ourselves for those times in our lives when our own tears inevitably flow, when
death in its many forms comes to us and those we love, and when the wellsprings that feed
our lives begin to run dry. Each of us can appropriate the promises of Gods new creation.
After all, its for us. We need to spend time to tune in to the divine presence within
ourselves and within each person, and respect that presence in all of life. We need to invest
ourselves in the community of this congregation by seeking out new relationships with
people here. Talk with someone you dont know very well in order to strengthen
relationships and find a place of service that nourishes you maybe a workgroup. Perhaps
you will want to get involved in an organization like more or some other aspect of the
ongoing work of fellowships (crossroad fellowships). There are assertions that we can make
by faith like the writer of Revelation that heaven is Gods very presence here and now
with us and among us.
The believers at the end of the first century were suffering terribly. People were killed for
their faith, forced to recant, or at least keep quiet and pretend they didnt know or follow
Christ. The vision of the Book of Revelations was meant to give them hope and comfort.
Most of us today dont suffer such brutality, not in the same way, but we experience
EPISTOL
pressures of other kinds that push or pull us away from that quality of life we know was
promised by Jesus through the Gospels.
To live abundantly is a life not ruled by our fear and a life that makes a difference. The
vision of a new heaven and a new earth is still given to us: the promise of sorrows
comforted, the fear of death confronted and removed, and the dryness of lifes tension and
confusion washed away in the waters of new hope. This vision waits for us to see it. This
promise waits for us to claim it. Lets live out our hopes here and now!
This is not a Pollyannaish book. It would serve no purpose for me to indulge in a
sweetness and light assurance that the world is going to be a better place in which to live
in the next few years and that your children and grandchildren are certain to inherit a finer,
happier environmentif you do nothing about it.
What can we do?
Lets think about it.
Some other time, wed look into some vitals in-depth for those who are PEOPLE OF THE
WAY.
EPISTOL
FATHER, NOW I SEE.
The scars on my flesh,

The pains I recall,
The hurting strokes,
Delivered by you my African father,
In response to my many childish acts of foolishness,
Since I am valuable to you,
Dear to your heart,
You could not bear to see my future decay in advance,
You knew you could do something,
Something before it was too late,
I will be frank; those strokes hurt,
Just like you meant them to be,
I still carry some memories of them,
You wouldn't listen to pleas from other parents around that I was 'just a little kid'
Now, Im in the big, real world,
I find myself one of the few sane,
I am better for it though,
I don't regret your dealings,
I just feel they should have been milder,
Your standards were firm,
I praise your skilled hands and canes,
EPISTOL

Your look that got me in my senses in the presence of visitors
Just like telepathy,
Your steel voice, your push for me to read,
I finished all the novels in your library including the Nigerian war story 'why we struck'
Novels like-things fall apart,
Murder in the cathedral,
Petals of blood, and many others,
You woke me up at 4am daily to read for an hour,
You handed me over to my tutor to coach me in the holidays,
While my mates played in the sand and on the field,
I sweated but I got better, I got better; you got happier,
I brought home prizes; I won money and certs from competitions
I won bible competitions and you were so happy then,
You were sad whenever I lied; you beat me whenever I lied,
And spared me some when I told the truth,
You showed me any child can be bright if he has a tutor,
A tutor who would not takes NO for an answer like the mother of Dr. Ben Carson
I smile when I recall,
You demanded I talk to you in English,
And I had to repeat myself until I got it right,
I recall the way you laughed when I was reporting an incident,
And referred to an elder as 'they' because of the Yoruba culture of respect,
I had to say it again and again,
I don't think I ever made that mistake after then,
From you, I learnt that parents have a lot to do with their children's development
EPISTOL

Parents must develop themselves so as to help their children,
You cannot trust the development of your children to schools,
Where they teach them to say 'I used to eat everyday' as though they no longer do,
I learnt from you humour,
In fact, no child legitimately yours can be devoid of humour no matter the 'temperament',
At appropriate times though,
You would call me to come watch Cyril stober, Eugenia Abu etc. on NTA news,
Sola Atere was always reporting,
I would have to stop chattering and join you,
I remember the NTA montage of those days,
Showing Aso rock with a peculiar sound in the background,
After you read the dailies,
It would be my turn to read them aloud while you listen,
My notes always had to be neat,
This was like saying I should boil yam with candle stick,
With no strange objects in my bag,
I recall waking up at midnight to see you awake as usual,
Checking my bag to see if I was 'borrowing things permanently' from my school mates,
And I would quickly go back to sleep with one eye slightly open,
Others praised my results,
But I knew you would have issues with them,
Why couldn't I read well enough?
And score nothing less than 80 % in every test and exam?
Why were there dashes in some boxes? Was I absent for some tests?
EPISTOL
The good marks and teachers' comment earned me bowls of pounded yam with vegetable
soup plus meat and any soft drink I desired,
Plus more books, of course,
You were always ready to help with problems I had solving knotty questions,
What skills do you not have?
Drawing house plans? Constructing cabinets? Making our settee? Repairing our cars?
Making concoctions when we were sick? Fixing our electrical and gadgets?
Yet you were also an expert in administration,
A genius in teaching,
A role model to many,
Trustworthy at home and work,
Mobilizing our neighborhood for community development -drainages, sanitation, installing
Electric poles and wires when NEPA (National Electric Power Authority) refused to spend
Their money,
I recall the strolls we took under the moon,
Though we always took our torchlight,
And I learnt about plants, animals from you,
You told me moonlight stories,
And the cool breeze blew across our faces,
You will never know what those nights meant to me,
You painted dreams of the future in my little heart,
Sometimes I would grow tired and slumber,
And you would carry me back home in your arms,
Life didn't treat you fair as a child,
Your father died while you were young,
But God helped you,
EPISTOL

Also your determination,
And you dreamt greatness for your kids,
You dreamt of honest, dependable citizens coming from you to the community,
I have my dreams too, I am no bastard,
I would give the world excellent, skilled, Godly, honest, wise geniuses
I recall those days.
The seemingly dark days were necessary for the bright days called today
Father, TWALE!
FATHER, I call you as an African child,
DAD is western- I am African,
Thank God you are still very much alive to call me SON,
I honour you, knowing long life is mine as I do,
And what I celebrate will multiply.
This poem was written by my brother; Bamidele Fasanmi. Hes known as Fasdel
Our father is MR J. I. FASANMI. We love Him. He is our hero in many ways and mind
you, this is no obituary eulogy. He is a living hero.
EPISTOL
About The Author
Tolulope .G. Fasanmi is a Spiritpreneur, Change Inspirer, Spiritual-Maturity Emissary,

Author and Builder.
He resides in Nigeria and can be engaged via;
Twitter; @Fastolpen
Whatsapp; +2348136205687
Facebook; Tolulope Fasanmi
Email; tolufasanmi@yahoo.com

EPISTOL... To The Sage and The Naive

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EPISTOL

to the sage and the naive

TO THE SAGE AND THE NAIVE

to the sage and the naive

Toward True Spiritual Regeneration and Intellectual Emancipation

Tolulope .G. Fasanmi

to the sage and the naive

Copyright 2014 by Tolulope Fasanmi

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

Naive \n-v, n-\ adjective

God \Gad\ noun

Well, what makes a good person?

Character, integrity, right values, good personality and strength.

to the sage and the naive

What do you consider as right values?

Of course. What kind of things do you consider good values?

Yeah. It is like inquiring about methods to employ in getting a

Well, I would like to believe that I have good values.

I said I would like to believe that because what I may consider to be

An atheist would like to believe theres no God. His belief doesnt

Why isnt the atheist wrong?

You mean why is he not right?

Ill make sure you get a copy of my book as soon as it is out on

Im an atheist; just so you know.

Thats okay. I mean not so good.

to the sage and the naive

Why isnt it so good?

I think youre trying to get me talking. Its a temptation. Im resisting

Just having a conversation

Yes. Its one.

So, what makes you think there is no God?

There is no evidence that proves that there is a God.

There is no evidence (empirical or not) that proves there is none.

Assertions can be made.

Do you believe there are unicorns?

Never watched a documentary on those.

Okay. Say I believe in a flying spaghetti monster. Can you disprove

In that case, I may speculate.

I didnt say I agree and I dont agree.

to the sage and the naive

But there is none. Or is there any?

You havent proven anything yet.

Are you expecting me to prove? Oh, Im not making an attempt to

Sure (and so, I hanged the chat).

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

Creation and Existence

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive

to the sage and the naive