Religion and Theology

1. People today who are called by God to live a life of service to His kingdom, in my perception, are no longer graced with the opportunity to see Him face-to-face.  Unlike the prophets in the Old Testament, such as Isaiah, who was called upon by God and was able to see firsthand His glory and those of the angels, modern times seemed to be deprived of these encounters.  However, I still believe that some of us are still being personally called upon by God to serve a special purpose. Although not on a physical level that the eyes can see, these events nonetheless are still ethereally genuine in the sense that these callings are truly from God.

Perhaps this explains why these people seemed to be possessing of an unbreakable fortitude and will in their quests for the propagation of the Gospel.  Some of them, such as the missionaries in hostile third world countries that practice non-Christian religions, seemed even to be willing to sacrifice their lives for this mission.  Perhaps it is possible that they were able to see God through their hearts instead of their eyes.

Also, I believe Gods calling, particularly in the modern times, has not been limited to religious inclinations.  This may include a diverse field of expertise such as what we have witnessed in the field of medical research, where a miracle drug was often invented by scientists by chance after a particular plague has claimed millions of lives.   Whether this was the result of human ingenuity or divine intervention, one thing certain is that it was considered a miracle by those who had benefited from the said innovation.

Hence, I believe that despite of the modern philosophies being practiced by todays societies, God still calls on His chosen few to bring hope, miracles, and even salvation to the people who are in dire need of these graces.  His words have always remained true to every person whose prayers had searched for His wisdom.

2. It is my belief that the prophecies in discussion as foretold in Isaiah concerns with the coming of Jesus, even if these were written hundreds of years before His birth.  It is striking to observe some of these, such as what is written in Isaiah 714, stating that a virgin is with child and bears a son and calls his name Immanuel.  It was clear from this particular verse that it concerns Mary, the mother of Jesus.  After all, where else in the entire bible does one encounter a virgin bearing a son, except with Jesus mother  Likewise, chapter 40 verses 1-11 tells of the redeemer of the sins of Jerusalem, and that her guilt has already been paid for.  Just like Jesus representation of Himself as the sacrificial lamb for the sins of mankind, here it is also strongly implied that these are actually prophecies of what His mission would be in His ministry.  I addition to all these, Isaiah 11 verses 1-5 reinforces this argument, as it was stated here that the Messiah will be a descendant of Jesse, just like David was.   The four Gospels in the New Testament establishes this to be a fact, as evidenced in the chronology of Jesus ancestry from His birth all the way back to David and even beyond.

I believe that Jesus is the culmination of the prophecies in the Old Testament.  He has shown innumerable times, through the miracles that he performed, that His authority covers not only the spiritual, such as in forgiving sins, but also in the physical sphere, such as what was demonstrated in His miracles of turning water into wine, in calming the storm, the loaves of bread and the fish, in healing the sick, and above all, in the raising of the dead.  He showed through these miracles that He was not just another prophet sent by God, but He was God-made-man.  Likewise, the very fact that John the Baptist himself, who was also prophesied as being the one to prepare for the way of the Lord, and who, during his time, had been widely regarded by the Israelites as being a true prophet, had acknowledged Jesus to be the Savior, further serves to strengthen this contention.  Therefore, the prophecies in the Old Testament plus the affirmation of John the Baptist claiming Jesus as the long-awaited Savior makes this fact incontestable.

3. The idols Bel and Nebo in Isaiah chapter 46 verses 1-11 were made by human hands yet were regarded as gods by the Babylonians.  They were statues, and therefore were not capable of helping the people in times of crises.  In a sense, they are merely a creation of artisans.  In the modern American culture, these idols may take the form of several representations.  One of which is money, as it is a man-made necessity that many of us seem to worship.  Indeed, there are many instances where we witness how the power and influence of money was able to corrupt certain individuals and negate morality just to satisfy their greed.  Only recently, we witnessed how a major American oil corporation deceived its investors and the American government into believing that they truly are a multi-billion-dollar enterprise, only to be exposed as a scam.  The decision of the owners to intentionally deceive resulted in thousands of unemployment and had resulted in the bankruptcy of several well-established enterprises, even some of the most financially stable commercial banks in the United States.  Greed was the root cause of all of these, with money at the helm.

Also, the modern American culture, especially those belonging to the younger set, seems to place too much idol worship on its pop music icons.  This can be evidenced in the manner that we worship these individuals, especially during concerts.  Here, their footstools become the altar, the stage becomes the church, the laser and light displays are the miracles, and we become the followers.  We try to dress like them, look like them, and sound like them.  We try to emulate these idols too much that the sins they commit, such as drugs and illicit sex, seem to be acceptable for us.  Yet in reality, these individuals are just the products of media hype and excellent commercial productions just like Bel and Nebo made by human hands to be worshipped.

4. The representation of an all-powerful God in Isaiah, as the creator of light and darkness and the giver of prosperity and calamity, is a reality that is eternal.  He alone possesses the authority to award and take away these things whenever He deems it correct.  Even Jesus pleaded to His Father during His time on the cross, to spare us from His wrath because we were not aware of what we were doing.  Thus, the crucifixion was allowed because it was destined to happen.

In absolute contradiction to the Holocaust wherein millions of Jews and people of other faiths were murdered throughout the world, it did not involve destiny, but sin.  It was the culmination of greed, power, and the false belief of racial superiority that triggered this unprecedented magnitude of murders.  The oppressors during that era, just like we all are, were gifted with freewill.  They were free to which actions to take in order to advance their political and military agendas.  Thus, it is my belief that the Holocaust was not the action of God, but of man, more particularly, of mans falling into sin.

Those who question Gods Omnipotence in the Old Testament, that it no longer is true in todays modern age, seem to derive their contention from the seeming absence of God.  Unlike in the biblical era where God appears to his prophets, often times in plain sight such as with the towering smoke that engulfed Mount Sinai or with Moses parting of the sea, some modern men ask why God has suddenly stopped appearing.  More so, they argue that that the modern man has become more intelligent that he no longer needs Gods assistance in his everyday struggles. He has learned to trust science, technology, and his own resourcefulness in attaining what the past prophets had relied from God to provide.

While it is true that some of these arguments are correct, it is also accurate to say that man, even in this modern age, still has his limitations and weaknesses that only God can fill.  Exponential advances in science and technology have indeed made men wiser and more knowledgeable, but he still is just a creation of the One who is immeasurable.