Chapter X

Choice

An Open Invitation to Join God's Family......

Choice! Ultimately, that's all that really matters. Not good deeds, certainly not religion, not prayer, ritual, fear, fasting, pilgrimages, taxes, or prophets. No. This is a one on one thing between you and the Creator. He has a gift He wants to give you. You can't earn it or pay Him for it. He alone earned the right to present it to you. He alone paid the price. Now He's calling your name, knocking at the door to your heart. If you hear him knocking and open that door He will come to you and be with you. All you have to do is come to know Him and then accept his gift of eternal life. He'll do the rest.

I want you to understand, I have nothing to do with this gift. It's not mine to give. I can't save you. I get no bonus points for you accepting. All I can do is point you in the right direction, explain the rules of passage, and let you know how wonderful it is on the other side. Working for God is the greatest joy of my life. Every day is a grand adventure. You see, I'm on a first name basis with the Creator of the universe. Craig and Yahweh: He's my friend and my father. And we're a lot alike because He created me in His image. Sure I'm a little rough around the edges, but He loves me in spite of that. I'm sure I make Him laugh, as He does me. I can almost hear Him cheer as I battle the Devil. I can see Him smile when I figure something out that He put in His Scriptures 3,000 years ago, knowing that I'd find it.

Yes, this is all very personal with me, as I hope it will be with you someday. That said, it's time to make introductions. God's name is Yahuweh. It means I Am. His name answers the most important question we humans can ask. His divine writ, called the Scriptures, was given to us so that we might know Him. It's comprised of 66 books with a singular message: "I love you. And I created you in My image so that we might enjoy a personal relationship."

The message is simple enough, but it's hard to develop a relationship with someone you don't know - especially when you don't even know yourself very well. So the Scriptures serve many purposes. The Word introduces us to Yahweh. It explains what He is like so that we can know Him, come to love Him and not fear Him. That was half of Yahshua's mission. God incarnate came to earth in the form of a man to show us what He is like. And what an example He set: He's loving, approachable, knowable, talkative, caring, brilliant, powerful, funny, creative, even humble - something we don't think of God being.

The Bible is also an "Owner's Manual." In it we learn how to operate all of our really advanced features. It tells us that faith is trust and that love is power. It explains each of the spiritual gifts that we have been given and how to use them effectively. But there is a problem. Sin separates us from our Creator. He is perfect and we aren't. He is just and we are guilty.

Fortunately, Yahweh recognized this problem and provided a cure. Centuries before the Messiah Yahushua came into our world in the form of a man, Isaiah wrote: "All of us like sheep have gone astray. Each has turned to his own way. But Yahuweh has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him. He was pierced for our transgressions and by his scourging we are healed. He Himself bore the sin of many, and interceded for our transgressions." Yahweh told us how He was going to solve the problem of sin; how He was going to build a bridge from our polluted world to His perfect one. He said that He would sacrifice Himself for our iniquity. The bridge is His gift to you.

Paul, centuries later, in his letter to the Ephesians wrote: "You were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you did according to Satan and his spirit working through the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging in the desires of the world and of our mind. But Yahuweh, being rich in mercy, and because of His great love for us, made us alive together with the Messiah. By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of Yahuweh, not as a result of works that no one should boast. By the blood of Yahushua, the Messiah, we have been brought near Yahuweh."

John, the most passionate of the Savior's disciples, composed these stirring words: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. Whoever receives Him, He gives the right to become His children, even to those who believe in Him. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world; but that the world should be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is no longer judged."

Therefore, according to Yahweh's Word, there is no day of judgment for those washed by the Redeemer's blood. There are no rituals that earn passage on His bridge - one built entirely out of the timbers upon which He hung. There are no taxes, no tolls, no devotional obligations, no pilgrimages, or prayer performances. Your salvation isn't dependent upon the submission to, or acknowledgement of, any prophet. Fear and fighting have no role. A simple "I do" will suffice. Yahshua said, "I am the way the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father but by me." He paid the price to ransom you, so that your sins would all be forgiven, completely forgotten. His Passover sacrifice frees you to enter a personal and eternal relationship with Yahweh in paradise.

To cross that bridge, you don't need to get on your knees, close your eyes, bring your hands together, bow your head, or face Jerusalem. You do, however, need to make a choice.

Thirty years ago I was confronted with some of the prophecies revealed in Yada Yahweh. I came to the only rational conclusion possible: the prophets knew the future because they spoke for God. So I did what I encourage you to do. I prayed: "Yahuweh, I'm a sinner. Thank you for sacrificing yourself so that I might know you. I accept your gift of eternal life. Thanks for forgiving me. Please reveal yourself to me through your Scriptures and your Spirit so that I might come to know and serve you better."

Then, just as He promised, His Spirit entered me. He changed me. He did not make me perfect (although I am in his eyes); He made me better. I began to read the Word and His words pierced my soul, they leapt off the page and into my mind and heart. I speak to you today as His son, as a child born from above in His image.

May you come to know the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and through this knowledge, become a member of Yahuweh's eternal family...