Down an Unfamiliar Road

GOD’S DISCIPLINE IS NOT DAMNATION –

When Judah was being invaded by heathen forces, many of God’s people spent days and hours agonizing before God, trying to find something to give them hope that all King David and Solomon did to erect a place of worship would not be ruined by these infidels. The writer of this psalm wanted to make sure that future generations would not forget what can happen when believers begin to disregard God’s will and God’s ways. But at the same time he expressed how God’s steadfast love and patience can endure, even when His own people seem helpless or unwilling to act. When bad things came to good people the Psalmist did not want the people to automatically conclude that God was mad at them and wanted to see them suffer. Too often God’s people felt punished when in fact it was designed to motivate them to grow stronger through their struggle because of things they would face up ahead.

“O LORD Eternal, please don’t hold our past mistakes against us; we need Your compassion now because we’ve reached the end of our rope. Help us, O One True God our Savior, as You’ve been known to do; You paid the price to cover our failures because Your reputation was at stake. We don’t want unbelievers asking, ‘doesn’t their One True God care?’ Let them see that You won’t let Your children suffer needlessly without taking action. You’ve heard all the prayers of Your children who feel taken advantage of; let people see how great You are by delivering them from certain ruin. Make our enemies eat their words spoken against You, and heap upon them what they wished for Your people. Then those You love and care for will magnify You with testimonies of praise, forever and ever.” Psalm 79:8-13

Reflection: You can only imagine what the church staff thought when they saw their pastor wheel into the church parking lot in a pickup truck; back it across the lawn to his office door; begin to empty his study of files, books, plaques, diplomas, and other paraphernalia; carelessly tossing them into the back of the truck in a heap without asking for any help, then getting in and driving away in a hurry. Later they learned that he drove straight to the city dump where he threw everything onto the trash heap with little regret. Soon they found out that this was his way of putting behind him the overwhelming sense of failure he felt in the ministry. Things were not going the way he thought they should, and he was not appreciated enough for all his hard work. Too bad he didn’t read what the great inventor Charles Kettering suggested, that a person must learn to fail intelligently. Kettering wrote, “Once you’ve failed, analyze the problem and find out why, because each failure is one more step leading up to the cathedral of success; the only time you don’t want to fail is the last time you try.” Asaph’s descendants knew it was one thing to watch a person suffer while being disciplined; but it was another when people stand by and laugh, thereby making fun of a hurting and humiliated individual. Such action can do irreparable damage to that person’s relationship with you and destroy their faith in God. Instead, the Psalmist asks God to put His arms around them; let them know that He still loved them and wouldn’t walk out and leave them to stew in their grief. If anyone understands what’s going on in a believer’s heart and mind during discipline, it’s God. So instead of being upset with the Lord and pushing Him away, everyone is better served by trusting Him and letting Him hold them in His arms until they learn their lesson and are ready to move on to victory.

In King James Version rendering of 2 Kings 18:17 we read, “And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rabsaris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great host against Jerusalem.” On the surface it appears that Tartan, Rabsaris, and Rabshakeh were high ranking Syrian government officials. But a study of Near East documents reveals that these were titles, not names. Thus, the New International Version renders it, “The king of Assyria sent his supreme commander, his chief officer and his field commander with a large army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem.” By the same token, in Acts 8:27, the KJV has, “And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians.” This implies Ethiopia’s queen was named Candace. But research into manuscripts from that era give a different connotation. Therefore, the NIV has, “So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means ‘queen of the Ethiopians’).” That’s why the study of God’s word with comparative studies of documents available from that time in history will help clarify what translators sometimes miss. The same is true when we use words such as “salvation,” “redemption,” “condemnation,” “repentance,” and other important phrases. This information is easily available, you just need the urge, motivation and dedication to find it, so it can be used for the enlightenment of believers and done to the glory of God the Father. Take Paul’s words to young Timothy to heart. I like the way the Amplified Version puts it: “Study and be eager and do your utmost to present yourself to God approved (tested by trial), a workman who has no cause to be ashamed, correctly analyzing and accurately dividing [rightly handling and skillfully teaching] the Word of Truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15.) – Dr. Robert R. Seyda

Maryam Rostampour and Marziyeh Amirizadeh were born and lived in Iran all their lives. Raised as Muslims, both women grew dissatisfied with the teachings of the Koran and converted to Christianity after personal encounters with Jesus Christ. Sensing a call from God, Marziyeh and Maryam spent several years in Tehran passing out Bibles and talking about Jesus. Said Marziyeh, “We decided to cover all parts of Tehran. We usually went at night and distributed Bibles in mailboxes. Every day we went shopping or to restaurants and talked to people, often handing them a New Testament. We also started a house church for young people and another for prostitutes. All of this is illegal and dangerous because no one is allowed to talk about any religion except Islam. Maryam tells that for the first two years they just distributed Bibles. They sometimes had thousands of New Testaments in their basement. As time went on and less and less interest was shown for the message and testimony, the women became somewhat discouraged. One day Maryam told Marziyeh that she would carry 10 New Testaments to the mountain area outside Tehran, because there are always many people vacationing there. She went to the mountain area, and after two to three hours she returned home. She couldn’t give even one New Testament to anybody. Said Maryam, “We suspected that something was going to happen, that there would be a change in our lives. We thought maybe our mission was going in a different direction. But that’s when their world turned upside down. Without warning, overzealous young men, who were members of the radical Islamic ruling party, suddenly showed up unannounced and began to question them and ransack their apartment. It was good they passed out many of the bibles they had stored, because the day they were arrested they had only 190 books in their apartment. Said Maryam, “If we would have had 7,000 New Testaments in our apartment that day, our chances of ever being freed would have been nil.” After the radicals found some Christian literature and CDs that had little to do with Christianity, they continuously interrogated the women before they arrested them in 2009 for promoting Christianity, and were ordered to renounce their faith or face execution. Refusing to turn from Christ, the women spent terror-filled months in the women’s ward of one of Iran’s most notorious correctional institutions, Evin Prison, where they saw the harsh effects of Islamic law on women. But even there they found hearts that were open to the hope found only in Jesus Christ. As word got out about their arrest and treatment, calls went out all over the world for believers to pray for their safety and release. After hours and hours of intercession, along with international pressure from the United Nations, Amnesty International, and other human rights groups, the women were finally released in November 2009. God then made it possible for them to leave Iran to continue ministry through writing and speaking in the United States. They finally obtained their U.S. citizenship while living near Atlanta, Georgia. This story should give every believer the motivation to continue to pray for those around the world who are suffering for the cause of Christ. Prayer does make a difference.

HAVE YOU DONE YOUR PART –

The Psalmist was convinced that with the threat of an invasion by the heathen Assyrian king Sennacherib, God’s people needed to get back to the basics of what they had been taught. The nation had drifted away from those principles that made them the object of God’s favor and protection. If conquered, there was the possibility that they would be deported into foreign countries like the Israelites to the north. Asaph’s son wanted to make sure that they and their children knew who they were and where God had brought them from in order for them to have the motivation to survive. So they wrote this reminder to serve as a wake-up call for God’s people to get back to being the people of God.

“All God’s children, please be open minded to what I’m about to tell you; yes, listen carefully to what I’m about to say. I’ll begin with an illustration to explain deep truths from the past; truths we were taught and came to believe, passed on to us by our elders. Let us not keep these truths from our children, so they can pass them on to their children. Let us give praise to the LORD Eternal for everything He’s done and the wonders He has performed for us. He instituted a system for our ancestors, and ordained procedures for our people, instructing our forefathers to teach these truths to their children. He wanted future generations, and those yet unborn, to learn these truths as well, so they too could pass them on to their children; in order that they might learn to trust in the One True God, and not forget what their Heavenly King did for them; to obey His instruction so they would not end up becoming a hardheaded and contentious generation; yes, to prevent them from being a generation with insincere hearts, straying away from being dedicated to the One True God’s will and purpose for their lives.” Psalm 78:1-8

Reflection: In one introduction to “Causes for the Fall of the Roman Empire,” we find a list of major factors that brought on its collapse. Put in modern language, we see frightening similarities of what is happening today: (1) Antagonism between the Executive Branch and the Legislative Branch of the federal government. (2) Decline of morals in society. (3) Political corruption and the excessive power given to the Executive Branch advisers and staff. (4) Fast expansion of the Federal Government’s influence. (5) Constant Wars and Heavy Military Spending. (6) Known enemies having access to military secrets. (7) Failing Economy. (8) High unemployment in the Middle Class. (9) Civil disobedience and unrestrained demonstrations. (10) Drastic decline in Ethics and Values, especially among the countries leadership. (11) Uncontrolled expansion of undocumented workers. (12) Increase in natural disasters. Another item listed involved the fact that the pagan religion of the Romans was being eclipsed by the rise of Christianity in their midst; eventually becoming the state religion. In modern terms we see the reverse: the basic tenets of Christianity giving way to atheism and pagan philosophies and becoming a secular society. As Asaph’s son realized for his fellow Jews, so must we awaken to the truth that unless our children are given a strong and solid foundation to stand on, they too may become victims of the growing tidal wave of those who are falling away in these last days. We must remember that Jesus prophesied that this would happen, but promised that those who remained faithful until the end would be saved.

GOD CAN’T BE CHANGED –

When Syrian king Sennacherib invaded northern Israel, many of Asaph’s descendants fled south to Judah to become involved in the temple music ministry there. They had seen how Israel slowly decayed into an idolatrous nation, and when this despot came roaring in their new gods could not save them. But now that same heathen monarch wanted to take over Judah as well. One of Asaph’s sons now feared that the humiliation Israel suffered in Samaria under these idol worshipers would become Judah’s fate in Jerusalem. But, inspired by the prophet Habakkuk’s writings he composed a song about standing on God’s promises.

“I admit, sometimes I yell when I pray to make sure my One True God hears and pays attention to me. For whenever I am stressed I run straight to my Heavenly Master. Yet, though my heart was bleeding inside and my eyes were streaming with tears all night it didn’t seem to help. I try my best to understand why my One True God doesn’t answer, but it just makes me that much more miserable and fainthearted. Questioning You, O Master, keeps my eyes open all night; I’m so frustrated it leaves me speechless. This causes me to think back on the good old days years and years ago. During the night I begin to hum the songs I used to sing and I reflect on those times and I began to wonder what happened. ‘Will my Master abandon me? Does He still care? Does He still love me? Has He forgotten what He promised me? Has He no pity, no compassion?’ Then it dawned on me, I may have brought all this on myself. It’s not Him; He hasn’t changed; He’s still the same. Then I recalled the wonderful things my Master did for me and decided to write them down and think them over. I concluded, our One True God is unchangeable; there’s no god like Him; He’s the One who makes things happen; He’s the one who shows everyone how great He is; nothing can ever stand in His way.” Psalm 77:1-14

Reflection: Years ago a football coach took his team into the locker room at halftime trailing the other team by three touchdowns. He stared at his players sitting around with their heads down; with desperate looks clouding their faces. After getting their attention he told them with a calm and reassuring voice, “I don’t mind when my men get knocked down, run over, and laid out flat trying to win a game. But when they refuse to stand back up, that’s when I know we’ve lost any chance to win. But even if we do lose, as long as I know you will keep standing back up I’ll be proud of you; your parents, friends, and fans will be proud of you.” One by one he asked each player, “If you are ready to go back out and try your best to win, stand up!” Soon the whole team was on their feet. They charged back out on the field and won the game. Just like the coach, the Psalmist knew that God did not promise we would never get knocked down, but He did promise to always be there to help us stand back up and keep going; He was not going to give up on us, even if we gave up on ourselves. However, He leaves the decision to get back on our feet up to us. Remember, if you want to be on the mountain top, you must first go through a valley to get there; if you want to be victorious, first you must fight a battle. So, to follow the coach’s advice and be like the Psalmist in letting God help you triumph, you must accept the responsibility to stand up and follow Him. No path God selects for us to follow ever leads to defeat, they all lead to victory. That’s what should motivate us; that’s what should encourage us to always stand back up and tell the Lord, I’m ready to go on because I know You will go with me.

IS GOD WAITING ON YOU TO BELIEVE –

Everyone living in Judah saw the havoc that Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, brought on their brethren along the coast of Israel. But now it was their turn as Sennacherib decided he wanted to rule over Judah as well. They felt so ill prepared to repel the mighty force of this heathen monarch. Why didn’t God do something to stop this tyrant before he got so close? Why must they live in fear when their God was more powerful than this despot? However, when King Sennacherib’s troops reached Mt. Zion’s slopes, God took over. His defeat of this great Assyrian army caused the descendants of Asaph to write a psalm to commemorate that victory. Thus, it became a song for all God’s people to sing down through the ages as a reminder of God’s support for the people who trust Him to do His best for their best.

“Our One True God is revered by His people in Judah; yes, He is renown in Israel because of who He is. His presence has been established in His sanctuary in the City of Peace; He lives among His people in Zion. He was there to brake all the fiery arrows shot from the bows of their enemies; putting an end to every conflict by smashing their shields and breaking their swords. You were brilliant in the way You defending the holy mountain under assault. Even the battled-hardened among the enemy were fatally wounded and stripped of their weapons, making these foreign troops unable to carry out a successful attack. O One True God, You spoke and both horse and chariot froze in terror; yes, You proved to be awesome! Who can possibly stand up against You once You decide to take action? From on high You declared victory; and Your people, though gripped with fear, calmed down as they saw You O One True God rise to carry out Your plan to deliver all those in the land unable to fight back against the enemy. One day even the fiercest of Your enemies will kneel before You; yes, our One True God will bring them to their knees. So everyone everywhere join in and give the LORD Eternal our One True God all the praise He deserves. For He keeps in check all those who rule without compassion, thereby inspiring reverence for Him among all those in power.” Psalm 76:1-12

Reflection: Years ago whenever the well-known infidel Colonel Robert G. Ingersoll would deliver one of his lectures against religion and the Bible, his fame and oratorical ability always assured him of large crowds of both admirers and skeptics. Although he was the son of a Congregational minister, his father’s own liberal thinking clashed with those of the conservative congregation and this ignited the flame of doubt in young Ingersol’s mind. Even though he was a civil war veteran and trained as a lawyer, he found his most popular forum was that of bashing politics, the clergy, and the Bible. Sometimes he attracted crowds numbering over 50,000. After one very inflammatory speech in which he severely attacked people’s faith in God, he dramatically took out his pocket watch and said loudly, “I’ll give God a chance to prove that He exists and is almighty; I challenge Him to strike me dead within 5 minutes!” Dead silence came over a stunned audience; as the time ticked away people began to grow uneasy. Some left the hall, unable to take the nervous strain, and the increasing suspense caused one woman to faint. At the end of the allotted time the atheist exclaimed derisively, “See! There is no God. Look, I’m still alive!” After the lecture a young fellow saw a Christian lady he knew and said to her, “Well, Ingersoll certainly proved something tonight!” Her reply was memorable. “Yes he did,” she said. “He proved God isn’t taking orders from atheists.” When my father told this story, he ended it this way: “The Christian lady replied, ‘Yes he did. He proved you cannot exhaust God’s patience in 5 minutes.’” Either way, God’s patience proves to be more powerful than any weapon the enemy might throw at His people. In this psalm the writer illustrates how sometimes God’s patience proved to be more powerful than any weapon the enemy might throw at His people. So often believers want God to act or react within seconds after the wicked make their threat. It helps to remember God chose to wait over 400 years before bringing His children out of Egypt; he allowed David to run for years from Saul before letting him become king; He caused Hezekiah to experience tremendous fear and anxiety before bringing the threat of invasion against him to an end. It all worked out according to God’s will and purpose, and that’s what counts in the long run. We all may become frustrated with God’s method of dealing with our enemies, but never make the mistake of trying to outguess our Heavenly Father.

HAVE FAITH IN YOUR FAITH –

Asaph’s positive way of responding to a crisis with faith is repeated here by his descendants. This time it was the Syrian King Sennacherib’s army that invaded Judah. Although things looked bleak, the composers of this psalm wanted God’s people to know that no matter what ideas their enemy entertained in order to defeat His children so they could gain control of everything for their benefit, He had other plans (Read 2 Kings 19:32-37). They were encouraged to hold onto their faith, because their Creator would not relinquish control to those who did not worship Him and were not “the called” according to His purpose. God may allow the wicked to do their work, but He will never call on them to do His work.

“O One True God we offer You praise after praise after praise! For when our ancestors told us about all the plans You have for us, Your presence became even more real. You once said, ‘When the right time comes I will do what’s right; even if there’s rioting and chaos I will put things back in order.’ So to fools and radicals we say, ‘Be careful! Don’t be conceited! Don’t go around bragging about yourself in a stuck-up and insulting manner! You can’t get ahead no matter how many friends you claim to have in high places. It’s the One True God, not man, who decides who triumphs. The LORD Eternal has established the rules by which He measures success; and like it or not sinners must do things His way. Here’s my status: I’m already praising the One True God that Jacob served for victory; for the plans of evil-minded people are already headed for failure; and His plans that bring victory to the right-minded are already in place and ready to go.” Psalm 75:1-10

Reflection: Bette Nesmith Graham, a single mom raising a son while working as a bank secretary in Dallas, Texas was looking for a better way to correct the errors she made while typing. As an amateur artist she knew how to paint over mistakes on canvas, so why not find a way to paint over mistakes on typing paper! So she mixed some water based paint to match the color of stationary, put it in a little bottle and took it to work. She started using it to correct typing errors; it was so good her boss never noticed the typos. Soon another secretary begged her for it. So she filled a little bottle and wrote: “Mistake Out” on it and gave it to her. Before long the word spread and all the secretaries in the building were asking for some. She ended up using her blender at home to mix batch after batch. It became so popular she started selling it on her own. Then she contacted various marketing agencies and companies like IBM, but they all turned her down. Bette was smart enough to get a patent and began her own enterprise that earned her $3.5 million annually. Soon she found a buyer and sold her idea for $47.5 million. Her product then became known as “White Out.” The Psalmist exhibits the same attitude we see in Bette; not giving up just because no one around believes in the method she used to solve a dilemma. The company that failed to see the genius in Bette’s invention was forced to watch a rival firm take the idea and make billions of dollars. So from both the Psalmist and Bette we can learn a lesson on how God can direct our lives. After all, He knows the future better than we do. The question is, do we trust Him enough to go against our doubters and become what God wants us to be, by doing things His way, not their way?

DON’T LET FEAR HOLD YOU HOSTAGE –

The Temple musician Asaph continues his lament about what happened to God’s people since King Solomon died and the religious downward spiral that increased under his son Rehoboam’s reign. This spiritual weakness led to the treachery of Jeroboam, the man King Solomon once appointed to help rebuild Jerusalem; who fled to Egypt as a fugitive and there conspired with King Shoshenk to invade Judah and install him as King of Israel. When Shoshenk and Jeroboam arrived to carry out their planned overthrow it caused Asaph to panic and cry out to God for deliverance. How could anyone who had been given so much, turn around and try to destroy it out of pride and envy. But He knew that God had the answer, even though it looked hopeless at the time.

“O One True God, it looks like You have abandoned us? But why would You do that? Why would You be mad at those You chose to take care of? Don’t forget, You were the one who claimed us believers as Your own a long time ago; the special people for whom You paid a ransom, and gave us the mountain where the sanctuary in which You dwell sits. You’ve got to do something to put an end to the outrageous way those who oppose us are desecrating Your sanctuary. How they rushed into Your sanctuary, cheering all the way as they waved their flags as an insult. Then like wild men swinging axes in the forest, they knocked all the symbols of our faith off the walls, and then they set fire to Your sanctuary and profaned the very place where Your presence dwells. They were yelling, ‘Let’s tear every one of these places down!’ They then took off to put the torch to every House of God throughout the country. Now there are no signs and wonders anymore; no more anointed preachers; and nobody seems to know when this will all end. So how much longer will You let them run wild like this; taunting us and blaspheming Your name over and over again? It looks like You just put Your hands in your pockets; pull them out and do something now! After all, You are our One True God, our Eternal King; You are supposed to provide religious freedom for Your people all over the earth. After all, You are in full control day and night; You’re the one who put the sun in place, who established earth’s seasons; summer and winter are Your idea. Never forget, our enemy has blasphemed You, O LORD Eternal; yes, these mindless fools have tried to ruin Your reputation. So don’t surrender Your darling to these monsters! Remember, You made a promise. So don’t let these things cause those being persecuted to become disappointed and backslide; make it possible for those who are down and out to celebrate You for who You are. O One True God, it’s time for You to send an awakening to support Your own cause.” Psalm 74:1-12, 16-19a, 20a, 21-22a

Reflection: Some years ago therapists did a study to determine what brought on people’s greatest fears and anxieties. They discovered that 40% of an average person’s worries come from things that will never happen—building bridges for rivers they will never cross; 30% came from things in the past that cannot be changed—constantly wishing for things the way they should be instead of the way they are; 12% from what they considered criticism by others—feeling inferior for no reason; 10% from concerns over health problems that didn’t exist—family history of certain diseases they may have inherited; but only 8% came from real problems they actually faced but had not yet decided how to cope with. Asaph had plenty to be upset about, and was in danger of letting his anxiety bog him down and diminish his importance to God so that he ended up wallowing in a mud puddle of hurt feelings. But he decided to trust the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to give His people back their sense of dignity, and allow them to worship Him without fear of the consequences. Experience tells us that God’s people triumph when they keep their fears from haunting them. We see this clearly in the lives of the three Hebrew children in Babylon; those who lived through the torture of Nazism and Communism. And even though the picture Asaph painted of the circumstances in his day is being repainted in the minds of many believers today as they see where our country and other countries in the world seem to be headed; we too can control our anxiety by allowing God to calm our fears. We must believe that nothing happens to us without His knowledge; without His permission; and without it serving His purpose for our lives. You can chose to trust this truth or allow fear to hold you hostage.

The Greek philosopher Aristotle was so fascinated as to how things came into being and then remained and continued to flourish, that after using rigorous logic and theorizing he finally concluded that there had to be someone or something behind everything in existence. But Aristotle was so convinced that it could not be postulated that the One who brought all of this to be, could then become part of what was created without also becoming contaminated and thereby diminishing Itself. So he adopted the term “Unmoved Mover,” or Prime Mover as some translate it, to describe the One who initiated everything in existence. The Prime Mover to Aristotle is the first of all substances, the necessary first sources of movement which is itself unmoved. It is a being with everlasting life. In “Metaphysics” Aristotle calls this being ‘God’ (Aristotle, Metaphysics, Book XI). In the O.T., we find this immovable God described, in that He is from eternity to eternity (Malachi 3:6). However, He is involved with that which He created. This led Jewish philosopher Moses Maimonides to conclude that God can share all of man’s senses except Taste and Touch. Apparently, Maimonides did not know that in Isaiah 53:5, the Messiah, who is God, was being referred to, “But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.” When it comes to taste, Maimonides did not accept Jesus as being the Messiah, so he would not be knowledgeable that Jesus drank and ate both before His death and after His resurrection. Here we see how limited even great human intelligence can be at times, but how far reaching faith in the simplest of minds can progress. So whatever limitations man believed held God back from empathizing with His creation, God sent His only Son to complete the connection. – Dr. Robert R Seyda

I’m often amused at the reaction I see in others when someone who has not been very vocal suddenly speaks out. It reminds me of the teaching of that great Jewish Philosopher, Moses Maimonides, who once wrote: “Every man possesses a certain amount of courage, otherwise he would not stir to remove anything that might injure him. This psychical force seems to me analogous to the physical force of repulsion. Energy varies like all other forces, being great in one case and small in another. There are, therefore, people who attack a lion, whilst others run away at the sight of a mouse. One attacks a whole army and fights, another is frightened and terrified by the threat of a woman. This courage requires that there be in a man’s constitution a certain disposition for it. If man, in accordance with a certain view, employs it more frequently, it develops and increases, but, on the other hand, if it is employed, in accordance with the opposite view, more rarely, it will diminish.” Maimonides believes the same is true with our intuitive faculties. We all possess it, but in varying degrees. Says, Maimonides, “Man’s intuitive power is especially strong in things which he has well comprehended, and in which his mind is much engaged. Thus you may yourself guess correctly that a certain person will say or do a certain thing in a certain matter. Some persons are so strong and sound in their imagination and intuitive faculty that, when they assume a thing to be in existence, the reality either entirely or partly confirms their assumption. Although the causes of this assumption are numerous, and include many preceding, succeeding, and present circumstances, by means of the intuitive faculty the intellect can pass over all these causes, and draw inferences from them very quickly, almost instantaneously.” This is all caused, says Maimonides, by what he calls “the Active Intellect.” Without this, prophets such as Moses, Ezekiel, Jeremiah and others could have never been motivated to speak their minds and say what they believed. Thus we may deduce that if you are not prone to speak out and express your thoughts without fear of what others may say, then you do not possess an active intellect. We can never learn anything from closed books or nonattendance at sessions of education where the status quo of our thinking is challenged. Some people go through life with the mute button on. So that after years of living, they know nothing new and say nothing unique. Don’t mimic the three Japanese monkeys seen in the carving over a door of the famous Tōshō-gū shrine in Nikkō, Japan: see nothing, hear nothing, say nothing. It is certainly permissible for anyone to choose not to express their opinion when it comes to politics, performance or personality, but when it comes to one’s faith in God, His Son, His Spirit and His Word, that should never be met with silence.