For me, the biblical view is paradoxical out of necessity. Not because it is blatantly contradictory, which it is sometimes, but more to the point it brings many meanings to mind, great and small, penetrating and at times whimsical. Ask yourself, how could the truth be understood? It is obvious and self evident because it is the truth.

The truth appeals to everyone’s best intentions, highest ideals, and is the most sought after goal. The truth speaks to every aspect of the human experience regardless of the human experience. Jesus taught in parables, poets and song writers in metaphors and analogies, leaving the truth hidden in the inspiration of the moment. If its true and it is, God uses our unique life histories to bring us close to Him, then the truth must be draw on the experiences broader than our own; again the delightful web of paradox.

For me this paradox is found in the moment a soldier realizes all the things in life which are worth dying for are all the same things in life which are worth living for. Understanding our intent is not to redefine the words, but to refine the knowledge. Yet the biblical lens demands a distinctive portal and a focused vision. So God doesn’t help the ones who need the most hope; God hopes the ones who need the most help, for God’s hope is for sure and for certain. We don’t struggle with belief and unbelief; we are conflicted between belief and obedience. The world is not divided between good and evil, evil is the absence of good not the opposite of it. Can it be, we seek God until He finds us? God’s grace and unconditional love has been given to us without measure, yet in the moment of self realization we simultaneously receive and accept His gifts. Every one believes in the Lord, the question becomes do you trust in the Lord.

My brothers and sisters in Christ, you have spoken to my heart and now I will speak from my heart. There is no greater joy in this world than the fear of the Lord. From the Old Testament witnesses to the Holy Twelve who followed Jesus in fear and awe; all who glimpsed His majesty trembled in fear and cried for joy. To experience the presence of His power, to know in that moment the splendor of His creation, to realize our place in His design is as fearful as it is joyous; a joy which began before time, is now and will forever be. The mighty hand of the Lord lifts us as it stretches out over us. The cosmos exploded from His law into the laws of physics and we were there. He made us as His creation, in His creation and we were there. We were made to yield to His power and to be His power.