It depends on how you define faith. Some people define it as something you believe in but cannot prove. One way Webster’s defines it is as a strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion rather than being able to prove it as real.

     If you can’t prove something is true, then it doesn’t correspond to reality. I may have faith that I can fly, but if I can’t prove it, it’s not real. It doesn’t correspond to reality. It may even give me comfort, but I’m believing in someone or something that isn’t true. This is blind faith.

     The bible has a different definition of faith. In the New Testament book of Hebrews, chapter 10, verse 1, it says faith is “…the assurance about what we do not see.” The word “assurance” means evidence or trust. Evidence are things that we know to be true, beyond a reasonable doubt. In a courtroom, evidence are facts that point the way to something that we decide is true. Since we cannot see that something, like a murder, the evidence of it will point the way for us to make a decision that’s beyond a reasonable doubt.

     The “…of things not seen” refers to things that we cannot directly observe anymore. What things can we not observe anymore? Hebrews 11:3 says things like the creation of the universe, Abel bringing an offering to God, Enoch being taken up alive to heaven, Noah and the flood, etc. We cannot observe anything in history. We also cannot observe things like love and trust. We can observe their effects but we cannot observe these things. For example, what does love look like, how much does it weigh, what are its dimensions?

     In our present time, we have proof of Jesus being raised from the dead (https://bsssb-llc.com/video-courses-overview/the-real-easter-story/   weeks 2 thru 4) and the accuracy of the bible (https://bsssb-llc.com/video-courses-overview/how-we-got-the-bible/).
We didn’t observe these things but we have proof that they happened. When Jesus says that He will come back again to set up His eternal kingdom, we have proof that He can be trusted based on the evidence of His prior claims. We can trust what the bible says based on it being a trustworthy source.

     So, Christians don’t have blind faith in Jesus. We have evidence that corresponds to reality. That is real faith.

Faithfully Yours,
Dave Maynard

When Will The Wrath Of God Come To The Nations?

In Revelation 11, the twenty-four elders fell with their faces to the ground and worshiped God. They were praising Him for both His rewards and His wrath. In eternity everyone will experience either one or the other. Click on the link below to read the post.

https://ramckinley.com/enraged/

Multi-Grammy Award-Winning Gospel Artist Hezekiah Walker Establishes Center for Gospel Music at Virginia Union University

June 02, 2021

RICHMOND, VA – Virginia Union University (VUU) will launch the Hezekiah Walker Center for Gospel Music at Virginia Union University. The academic center is the first of its kind in the United States. It will provide education and resources to help musicians and budding gospel artists to learn the cultural and business aspects of gospel music and the industry. Courses will be available to all VUU students and a variety of certification courses related to work in the industry will also be available to the general public.  

Walker, a second-year student of the Virginia Union University’s Samuel Dewitt Proctor School of Theology said, “the strong theological training I’ve received here at Virginia Union during the past two years has helped to shape my ministry.” He continued, “My goal is to give back to the school that has poured so much into me, by helping emerging gospel artists learn the business, as well as theological aspects of the gospel music industry.”

“Gospel music is an important part of our culture and VUU is honored to partner with  Walker to create a central hub for the study, writing, and preservation of gospel music. Walker has poured his spiritual gift and innovative ideas into the development of courses and events planned for the Center,” said Dr. Hakim J. Lucas, President and CEO of Virginia Union University. “VUU is growing to meet the changing career interests of our students by creating academic programs where the workforce demand is high or where students can explore opportunities in STEM, history, or the arts.”

The primary purpose is for the Hezekiah Walker Center for Gospel Music at Virginia Union University is for all components of gospel music to work cohesively to blend our vast areas of ability and excellence in the knowledge of the arts. Students will learn through the study of sacred arts and how it relates to African heritage; explore music and worship traditions that promote understanding of biblical texts in faith-building; and participate in several planned live recordings to be produced under the direction of  Walker and VUU Choir director and award-winning gospel producer, Elder J. David Bratton.

The Center will launch in June 2021 and is an extension of Walker’s mantra, “And Because God is the greatest power, we will not be defeated!”

About Virginia Union University

Virginia Union University is a premier liberal arts urban institution of higher education and Center of excellence for the preparation of students and the development of leaders for tomorrow’s world. It was founded in 1865 to give newly emancipated slaves an opportunity for education and advancement. Virginia Union University offers a broad range of educational opportunities that advance liberal arts education, teaching, research, science, technology, continuing education, civic engagement, and international experiences. Visit https://www.vuu.edu/ for more information.

How To Live Without Fearing The Law

Are you a law abiding citizen? Laws help us to have a peaceful and orderly society. But is there a better way to live?  I'm not even suggesting lawlessness. What I am talking about is living in God's Grace. Check out the post by clicking on the link below.

https://ramckinley.com/doing-right-fears-no-law/

How to Live a Better Life - Free eBook
This eBook contains 12 "How to" chapters pointing you to live a better and fulfilled life. It includes links to other helpful articles and a bonus chapter.
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Did You Know That Jesus Specifically Prayed For You?

The entire chapter of John 17 is a prayer by Jesus. Along with praying for his disciples, Jesus specifically prayed for you as well. Click below to check out this post.

https://ramckinley.com/who/

Crusade Coloring eBook

We’re Celebrating 39 years with these guys by giving away a free printable coloring eBook

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See if you can guess who said the following:

“In this age of space flight, when we use the modern tools of science to advance into new regions of human activity, the Bible – this grandiose, stirring history of the gradual revelation and unfolding of the moral law – remains in every way an up-to-date book.
Our knowledge and use of the laws of nature that enable us to fly to the moon also enable us to destroy our home planet with the atom bomb. Science itself does not address the question whether we should use the power at our disposal for good or for evil.
The guidelines of what we ought to do are furnished in the moral law of God. It is no longer enough that we pray that God may be with us on our side. We must learn to pray that we may be on God’s side.”

A few years later, he wrote:

“One cannot be exposed to the law and order of the universe without concluding that there must be design and purpose behind it all…The better we understand the intricacies of the universe and all it harbors, the more reason we have found to marvel at the inherent design upon which it is based…
To be forced to believe only one conclusion – that everything in the universe happened by chance – would violate the very objectivity itself…What random process could produce the brains of a man or the system of the human eye?…
They (evolutionists) challenge science to prove the existence of God. But must we really light a candle to see the sun?…They say they cannot visualize a Designer. Well, can a physicist visual an electron?…What strange rationale makes some physicists accept the inconceivable electron as real while refusing to accept the reality of a Designer on the ground that they cannot conceive Him?…
It is scientific honesty that I endorse the presentation of alternative theories for the origin of the universe, life and man in the science classroom. It would be an error to overlook the possibility that the universe was planned rather than happening by chance.”

You probably think these were made by a preacher or a theologian. If you think this, you’d be wrong. The above 2 quotes were made by the “Father of the American Space Program”, the director of NASA and the U.S. guided missile program, Dr. Werner von Braun (1912-1977), one of the top space scientists in the world.

What do you think of his statement that we should present other scientific theories on the origin of the universe in our classrooms?

For his Kingdom,
Dave Maynard
https://bsssb-llc.com

One of the stories of the Bible that I find most intriguing, is the story of Deborah (D’vorah). Deborah was a judge and prophetess, one of only three prophetesses listed in the Old Testament, along with Miryam, the sister of Moses, and Huldah who lived during the time of King Josiah. Deborah lived between Ramah and Bethel in the hills of Efrayim and would sit under a tree called “D’vorah’s Palm”, and the people would come to her for judgement. She was a woman surrounded by lightning. Her husband’s name was Lapidot, which torch, and by extension lightning-flashes. She would send for another man whose name would mean lightning, a warrior by the name of Barak.

Deborah said to Barak that God was ordering him to march to Mount Tavor with 10,000 men from the tribes of Naftali and Z’vulun, and that He would cause Sisra the commander of King Yavin’s army to encounter Barak with his chariots and troops, but that God would hand Sisra over to him.  Barak’s answer was one that would cost him personal glory. He told Deborah that if she went with him that he would go. She agreed to go but told him that Sisra would be handed over to a woman.

There was a man by the name of Hever, a descendant of Moses’ father-in-law, who informed Sisra that Barak had gone to Mount Tavor, so Sisra gathered 900 iron chariots and all the troops he had with him.

Debora said to Barak, “Get going! This is the day when Adonai will hand Sisra over to you! Adonai has gone out ahead of you!” I want to pause for a moment in the story to point out that Adonai is still in the business of saying “Get going! I have gone out ahead of you!” Whatever battle you are facing, always remember, the battle belongs to the Lord. (Psalm 121) Unbeknownst to Barak, Adonai prepared a torrential storm to hit at the time of this battle. It was unexpected because it was an unseasonable thunderstorm that caused the valley soil to soften, causing Sisra’s chariots to become stuck, causing fear and panic within his army. One by one they fell to Barak and his 10,000. Sisra however, fled on foot and escaped. Or so he thought.

Sisra ran to the tent of Ya’el (Jael) the wife of Hever, the very one who informed to Sisra about Barak, and she offered him shelter inside her tent. He no doubt thought he would be safe there as her husband was an ally. This is something that in normal circumstances he would have never done. She was a woman, and a married one at that. For a man to enter to tent of a woman in this culture was a death sentence. It was forbidden, yet he took her up on the offer because of this very reason. Who would think to look for him in the tent of a woman? He asked her for a drink of water, instead she gave him a goatskin of milk to drink from. One commentary says that the milk was sour milk, meaning it was fermented. As he lay on the floor of her tent, he told her to stand at the entrance and if someone should ask if anyone were there, she was to reply “no”. When she saw that he was deeply asleep, she took a tent peg and a hammer and crept into where he was sleeping and drove the tent peg into his temple, fastening him to the ground. He died without ever waking up. This fulfilled the prophecy which Deborah had spoken to Barak that Sisra would be handed over to a woman. When Barak, in pursuit of Sisra, came upon the tent of Jael, she stepped out to meet him and told him, “Come, I will show you the man you are looking for.” There he found Sisra, lying dead with a tent peg through his temple. The final two verses of Judges chapter 4 reads, [23] Thus God on that day defeated Yavin the king of Kena’an in the presence of the people of Israel. [24] The hand of the people of Isra’el came down more and more heavily against Yavin the king of Kena’an, until they had completely destroyed Yavin the king of Kena’an.

God created a mighty victory from which a song was birthed, much like the song that was sung at the time of the Exodus after Adonai defeated the Egyptians. Sung by Deborah and Barak, the first line of the song, in Judges 5:2 is, When leaders in Isra’el dedicate themselves, and the people volunteer, you should all bless Adonai. The KJV reads a bit differently, “Praise ye the Lord for the avenging of Israel, when the people willingly offered themselves.” Praise or bless in the Hebrew is the word, barach. The literal translation of barach is to kneel or to bless God, adore with bended knees. This is the praise we offer on our knees in worship, in prayer, in communion with Adonai. When leaders dedicate themselves to Adonai, and when people volunteer under their leadership, mighty things happen in the kingdom of God.

I took three words from this verse in the CJSB translation. Barach, of course being one as it is our key word. The other two were leaders and volunteer. Leader(s) in Hebrew is para while it does mean leader, it also means “to let go, let loose”. We have all heard the saying, “let go and let God”, and I think that applies to the first part of this verse; When the leaders let go and dedicate themselves. Para is made up of the letters Pey (פ), Reysh (ר), and Ayin (ע). When looking at Chiam Bentorah’s descriptions of each of these letters we see that Pey means “A point where something significant is about to happen”, Reysh means “Leadership”, and Ayin means “perception and insight”. While these are just one of the possible meanings for each of these letters, it shows that the leaders used perception and insight (discernment) and was shown that something significant was going to happen, but they had to let God go before them into the battle. We see that He did just that, causing an out of season thunderstorm, securing the victory for Israel.

The second word, volunteer, is the word nadab and in this context of scripture means to volunteer for war or as a solider. I am the wife and mother of veterans. I could not be more proud of both my husband and my son for their service to our country. They were not forced to enlist, they volunteered, giving their hearts to the nation in which we live. Nadab is spelled Nun (נ), Dalet (ד), and Bet (ב). Again, using descriptions from Chiam Bentorah, Nun means faithfulness, Dalet means humility, and Bet means God’s presence. I could not help but think of my son during his time of service when I looked at this. He is faithful, he is humble, and he served with that type of heart, but he also walked with God and spent time with the Chaplain and would tell us of those moments when he would call home. He summed up the Hebrew word for volunteer without even knowing it.

This brings us back to barach. Bet (ב), Reysh (ר), Kaf (כ), and Vav (ו). Bet meaning love, Reysh meaning repentance, Kaf meaning an empty vessel, and Vav meaning a uniqueness in our experience with God. Love brings us to repentance. When we kneel and repent, we are forgiven and cleansed, we become an empty vessel open to a unique experience with God.

Psalm 95:6 says, Come, let’s bow down and worship; let’s kneel before Adonai who made us. We see this type of worship in Revelation where after the Cherubim say “Holy, holy, holy is Adonai, God of heaven’s armies, the One who was, who is and who is coming!”, the twenty-four elders “fall down before the One sitting on the throne, who lives forever and ever, and worship him. They throw their crowns in front of the throne and say, ‘You are worthy, Adonai Eloheinu, to have glory, honor and power, because you created all things – yes, because of your will they were created and came into being!’” One of my favorite praise and worship songs was inspired by this heavenly worship in the song, We Fall Down.  While I always loved this song, having a deeper understanding of barach makes it even more powerful.

When Solomon completed the temple, it says in 2 Chronicles 6:13-14 [13]  for Shlomo had made a bronze platform eight-and-three quarters feet long, eight-and-three quarters feet wide and five-and-a-quarter feet high and had set it up in the middle of the courtyard. He stood on it, then got down on his knees before the whole community, spread out his hands toward heaven, [14] and said, “Adonai, God of Isra’el, there is no God like you in heaven or on earth. You keep covenant with your servants and show them grace, provided they live in your presence with all their heart.” What a humble and beautiful way to start a prayer that by its conclusion, fire would come down from the heavens, consume the burnt offering and sacrifices, and the glory of Adonai filled the house where the priests could not even enter. Upon seeing this, all the people bowed down, with their faces to the ground, giving thanks to Adonai saying, “for he is good, for his grace continues forever.”

When was the last time that we have seen such a presence of the Almighty? When was the last time that we have collectively felt that type of connection with our Creator? When was the last time we have each individually felt that unique experience with God? It comes when we barach, when we volunteer our lives in humility, when we fight on our knees, when we praise Him and seek His face, and we make this the new normal. This type of praise, coupled with humility is powerful. Ephesians 6:12 tells us, For we are not struggling against human beings, but against the rulers, authorities and cosmic powers governing this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realm. Like Deborah and Barak, we have a battle that we are in, but in this battle, we aren’t fighting a general with iron chariots. However, just like Deborah and Barak, Adonai has gone before us. Instead of a torrential thunderstorm, the victory was won on the cross. Our best fighting comes when we are in our prayer closet on our knees. Kneeling is a position of vulnerability, and when we kneel, we offer ourselves as a living sacrifice of praise.  

Please share on your websites and social media and with your members, listservs and audiences. Thank you!

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A brief introduction to my business partners (See image) and my great article to keep you engaged:

https://www.facebook.com/ivanwilliammathias/posts/2944584065869269

Bihar CM announces 33% reservation for girls in engineering and medical colleges of Bihar

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Is There An Eternal Unquenchable Fire?

About the end times, we know that fire will be involved. If nothing else motives you to share the gospel with those you love, the eternal unquenchable fire should. Today's post is evangelistic in nature and is well worth reading.

https://ramckinley.com/the-fire/