Still Truly Saddened In America Today!

The blog below was written two years ago, in July 2015, but unfortunately the racial and political divide created in the Obama years is still alive and well today.  When Obama was first elected in 2008, and even when he was reelected in 2012, we Conservative Americans - especially we Conservative Christian Americans - were very disturbed and worried what this would mean for America. 

Sadly we have seen what it meant ~ growing racial tensions - the beginning of socialized healthcare - same-sex marriage and LGBTQ lifestyles becoming the societal norm - Obama declaring that America is no longer a Christian nation - and so many other disturbing changes across America.

Yet in 2008 and 2012, even though we were disappointed and justifiably concerned - we accepted the outcome of the elections and determined to make a change in the next election of 2016.  We did make that change when we elected President Trump and Vice President Pence.  In other words, we were disappointed but we chose to constructively work toward making America great again through our votes.

Compare that to the way the Liberal Left has reacted to the outcome of the 2016 election - militant protests, physically attacking people who express Conservative beliefs, and doing just about anything the Soros/United Nations money could buy to disrupt American life - leaving no stone unturned to widen the racial, political, and religious divisions all across our beautiful homeland.

Folks, we can read the blog below and just "Read It And Weep!"  ~  OR  ~  we can start working harder toward creating an environment of Unity Across America.  Unless our Liberal Friends want to totally destroy America and the American way of life - they will join us in that effort. 

With that said, this is the blog I posted two years ago in 2015:

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TRULY SADDENED IN AMERICA TODAY! -  In less than two weeks I will be 78 years young, and what I see happening to my homeland, America, in the last few years is breaking my heart.   In the nearly 50 years I worked in the computer industry, I traveled to virtually every major city in America and a few in England and Scotland.  During those travels it has been my joy to take long walks - through countryside, through city streets, through local communities - just enjoying walking and seeing parts of America and the world we normally do not take the time to see in our very busy get-ahead world.

When I walk, I have always had the habit of speaking to people I pass on the street.  I suppose that is just part of my Southern heritage, mixed in the last 28 years with my Christian spirit.  There is an old saying, "Give away a smile - and it will always come back to you!"   I have lived by that philosophy and I have enjoyed the many smiles I have received in return.

Never in all those years have I been aware of any real racial tension when I walked.  People tell me, "You should not walk in that neighborhood.  It is too dangerous."  And, I replied, "Why?  Because their skin is a different color than mine?  We are all one race, the human race - created by God."

When I walk I speak to people as I pass - young, old, or whatever, and never notice a skin color.  My God is color-blind.  Isn't that what He would want of me?

In all my years of walking, the ONLY trouble I have ever had - has come from white teens.    A number of times in my walks I have met groups of young blacks, Hispanic, etc., wearing their "in the hood" clothing.  I always greet them, "Hi, guys.  How are you today?"   And, I would say that 90% have always responded in a civil manner; a few have just said nothing and walked on past.  But, the vast majority responded in the same tone with which I greeted them.

Only a couple of times have I had a problem?  About 15 years ago, Dory and I lived temporarily for several months in a city which was predominantly black.  The only trouble I had during that time was one evening as I was walking alone to a Bible study.   It was chilly and I was wearing my dark rain coat/wind breaker.  As I was walking, two white teen boys and a girl were standing in a home driveway.  One of the boys, trying to impress the girl I suppose, yelled, "Hey, Mr. Magoo!  How are you?"  

Well, to be honest, the movie with Leslie Nielsen had recently come out (1997) and I suppose, with my blonde hair (at that time) and my dark rain coat, I did look a wee bit like his Mr. Magoo character.  The teen girl he was trying to impress told him, "Why don't you just shut up?"   I just smiled and kept walking.

About ten years ago, Dory and I were taking an evening walk and talking about the effects of the 1963 Supreme Court decision to remove God and prayer from schools - done to appease the ACLU and Madelyn Murray O'Hair.  I reminded Dory that part of the ruling was also the removal of teaching Absolute Moral Values in schools - and replacing them with the teaching of Relativism, Relative Moral Values, i.e., if it feels right to you, it is right for you.  

So, under Relativism, if being promiscuous feels right to you - it is right.  If cheating on a test, or stealing from your neighbor feels right to you - it is right.  But, teachers, don't you dare teach Absolute Moral Values in our schools.  Why?  Because that is too closely related to Biblical Moral Values - which, since 1963, can never again be taught in America's public schools.

That evening, as Dory and I were walking and discussing this issue - we passed three white teens walking toward us, two boys and a girl.  I smiled and said, "Hi guys.  How are you?"

They did not say anything until they were about 10 to 15 foot past us.  Then, one of the boys, one who was very short, turned and yelled, "We are better than you, old man!  We are better than you!"   I could only assume he was trying to impress the girl.

I looked at Dory and told her, "That is exactly what you and I have been talking about tonight.  That is a result of our schools being forced to teach Relative Moral Values since 1963."   Respect for others, especially older people, is part of the collateral damage of removing God and Godly values from our schools.

Why am I writing about this now - and how does it tie in with my opening statement:  "TRULY SADDENED IN AMERICA TODAY!"?

Well, as I have previously written, throughout the years, as I have walked in many cities and towns, I have treated people with respect, and except for a couple of incidents - I have been shown the same respect, regardless of color, ethnicity, or racial makeup.

Yet, in the past couple of years I have been seeing that change.  I have long felt that the Obamas do not like really like nor respect people they consider "not of color."  And I believe we are seeing their animosity being played out on the streets of America today.  I believe the Obamas and their Liberal Socialist administration have cultivated and created racial disharmony in America today.   It would seem that is their goal - to widen the gap of racial disunity.

In 1970, I attended a large Reform church in Garden Grove, California, even though I was not yet really a Christian believer.  After a year, I grew disenchanted with the pastor of that church, because I felt he was not exhibiting the Gospel message he was teaching, and I stopped attending.  Fast forward to 1977 when I met and married Dory.  She was attending that same church, so I joined her and we attended as a family - even though I was not all that thrilled with the pastor.  

One Sunday as we were leaving church, Duane, who was 12 years old then, made a comment - repeating almost word for word what he had heard me say about that pastor.   And, it was like someone throwing cold water in my face.  I realized then that I had to be careful about showing my attitude and sharing my words - for those we are responsible for most often will follow our lead.

That is what I believe has been happening in America since Obama was first elected.  The Obama arrogance and racial feelings have been spreading to many who foolishly voted him into office.

So, back to the reason for this writing.  One evening last week I walked a few blocks to my local Target store.   As I was walking down the rather wide sidewalk, a black family was approaching me, the mother pushing a baby stroller with two older children beside her, and a man and woman walking behind.  When I approached them, I moved to the far right side of the sidewalk, assuming she would veer a bit to her right, allowing us to pass one another.  The woman refused to veer to her right, pushing the stroller right at me, and giving me her Michelle Obama sneer.  I stepped into the grass to let them pass - and even smiled.  They walked past me with stone faces reminiscent of Michelle Obama - not even acknowledging me.

My Friends, that has never happened to me before, not in all my years of walking, even in predominantly black cities or areas - until now.  Not until the Obama-cultivated racial tension began spreading across America.   This is not the only incident of negative racial attitude I have experienced recently.  But, this one really put a punctuation mark on the whole issue.  Are the Obamas trying to start a racial war in America?  That is what worries me.

Has Obama been creating this racial divide - just to gain black, Hispanic, and gay votes for the Democratic party?  Is it really worth tearing our country apart just to get votes?  Evidently to those whose goal is to make America just another world community under the control of the United Nations - it is worth it.

Yet, I believe there are many, many millions of Conservative Americans, folks who are willing to stand up and be counted in the fight to maintain the sovereignty of our homeland.  I believe there are many, many millions of Conservative Americans who are ready to stop this takeover of America, to stop the Liberal Socialist and their RINO buddies from giving America away to international powers.   I believe there are many, many millions of Conservative Americans who will tell Obama, Rev. Wright, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, et al, that they cannot destroy our home by creating a racial war among true Americans.

How do we stop them?  WITH OUR VOTES! 

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill

"What Would Jesus Do?" Tract

Since I have long loved to read, and since I am not as rich as many folks I worked with in the computer industry (Bill Gates, Paul Allen, Paul Terrell, etc.) - it has been my habit to search for written treasures in more economical locations such as "Friends Of The Library" and other used book stores.  In early 1998 I found a real treasure, "In His Steps" written by Charles M. Sheldon in 1896 and long out of print. 

After reading the book, I was inspired to write a Christian tract challenging folks to consider the question posed in that book:  "What would Jesus do if He were faced with the decisions you have today?"    I wrote the tract in 1998 for our local church bulletin and I sent it out to all the folks in my Friends Ministry eNewsletter mail list - at that time between 800 to 900 people around the world.

Fast forward about a year and I started seeing that book appearing in the Christian Discount Book monthly catalog.   And, then I began to hear about a WWJD Movement across America.   Looking into it, I found these on the internet:

A youth group leader in Holland, Michigan, named Janie Tinklenberg, began a grassroots movement to help the teenagers in her group remember the phrase; it spread nationwide in the 1990s among Christian youth, who wore bracelets bearing the initials W.W. J. D.  (http://www.mortaljourney.com/2010/11/1990-trends/wwjd-bracelets)

When Christians began wearing bracelets with the acronym for "What would Jesus do?" in the 1990s, the phrase was a reminder for them to attempt to act in a way that personifies Jesus' teachings from the Gospels.

So how did this get us to the 1990s (and beyond) W.W.J.D. bracelets and other product?  Janie Tinklenberg read Sheldon’s book in 1989 and had taken the message of “What would Jesus do?” to heart.  She decided to use it in her job as a youth leader at a church in Holland, Michigan, where she encouraged her students to keep it in mind as they went about their daily lives.

As a way to make sure the kids didn’t forget, Janie decided to emblazon the slogan on something wearable, settling on wristbands, since “At the time, 1989, beaded friendship bracelets were popular.  I figured a bracelet was perfect:  They could wear it all the time and it was even kind of cool.”  However, since the phrase “What would Jesus do?” was kind of awkward to fit on a bracelet, she opted for the abbreviation W.W.J.D.  

Along with looking neater, this was also doubly ingenious since it prompted others to ask what W.W.J.D. meant - thereby spreading the message a little further and giving an opportunity for her students to evangelize.  (www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2014/06/origin-jesus-slogan/)

This is the Christian tract which I published in 1998:

What would Jesus do?  Have you ever considered what an effect it would have on your life if, daily, before you make any decision which will affect your personal life or your business life, you asked yourself that question - and then made your decision based upon your honest judgement of "What would Jesus do if, today, He was faced with this decision?"

I read a very inspiring book, "In His Steps" by Charles M. Sheldon.  This is a fictional novel which is based upon that premise, that question: "What would Jesus do?"  The book was written in 1896; yet the question is even more relevant in America and in our world community today.

In the First Church of Raymond, Dr. Henry Maxwell, pastor for eleven years in this affluent church, was just finishing his Sunday sermon when an unkempt, unshaven, but not offensive man rose from a rear pew and walked to the front of the sanctuary.  The man was an unemployed printer whose wife had died of starvation, malnutrition, and exposure in a New York City tenement.  He had to leave his young daughter with a friend while he searched for employment.  The man turned to address the congregation.

"I'm not an ordinary tramp, though I don't know of any teaching of Jesus that makes one kind of tramp less worth saving than another.  Do you?"  He put the question as naturally as if the whole congregation was a small Bible study class.  "I lost my job ten months ago.  I am a printer by trade.  The new linotype machines are beautiful specimens of invention, but I know six men who have killed themselves inside of a year because of those machines.  Of course I don't blame the newspapers for getting the machines, but, what can a man do?  This is the only trade I know.  I'm not complaining, just stating facts."

"As I sat in the back of the church, I was wondering if what you call following Jesus is the same thing as what He taught.  What did He mean when He said, 'Follow me!'?  Your pastor said, 'It is necessary for the disciple of Jesus to follow His steps, and he said those steps are - 'obedience, faith, love, and imitation.'  But I did not hear him tell you just what he meant this to mean, especially the last one.  What do you Christians mean by following the steps of Jesus?"

"I've tramped through your city for three days looking for a job; and in all that time I've not had a word of kindness or comfort except from your minister, who told me he was sorry for me and hoped I would find a job somewhere.  I'm not blaming anyone, just stating facts.  I understand that you cannot go out of your way to hunt up jobs for people like me; I'm not asking that.  But, I am puzzled; what is meant by following Jesus?  What do you mean when you sing, 'I'll go with Him, with Him, all the way?' "

"Do you mean that you are suffering and denying yourselves and trying to save lost, suffering humanity just as I understand Jesus did?  Somehow I get puzzled when I see so many Christians living in luxury and singing,

'Jesus, I my cross have taken, all to leave and follow Thee,'

- and remember how my wife died in a New York tenement.  Of course, I don't expect you people can prevent every one from dying of starvation and lack of nourishment, but what does following Jesus mean?" 

"I understand that Christian people own a lot of the tenements.  A member of a church was the owner of the one where my wife died, and I wonder if following Jesus all the way was true in his case.  I heard some people at a prayer meeting singing,

'All for Jesus, all for Jesus, all my being's ransomed powers, all my thoughts, and all my doings, all my days, and all my hours,'

- and I kept wondering what they meant by it.  It seems to me there's an awful lot of trouble in the world that somehow wouldn't exist if all the people who sing such songs went and lived them out.  But what would Jesus do?  Is that what you mean by following His steps?"

As he finished speaking the man clutched his chest and collapsed; three days later he died from exposure.  But Dr. Henry Maxwell's life was changed forever.  The next Sunday he made a proposal to his congregation.  He asked for volunteers from his church who would pledge themselves, earnestly and honestly, for an entire year - not to do anything without first asking the question, "What would Jesus do?"  And then to follow Jesus as exactly as he or she knows how, no matter what the consequences.

The effects caused during the following year by a small group in that church making that pledge, and then living up to it, changed the whole town of Raymond and eventually spread across the state and then the country.

Yes, this is a fictional story; but what would happen in your church, in your town, in your life - if you honestly made this pledge and lived up to it for one year?

1 Peter 2:21, "For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps." 

Matthew 16:24, "Then Jesus said to His disciples, 'If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.'" 

If Jesus Came To Your House
by Lois Blanchard Eades

If Jesus came to your house to spend a day or two -
If He came unexpectedly, I wonder what you'd do.
Oh, I know you'd give your nicest room to such an honored Guest,
And all the food you'd serve to Him would be the very best,
And you would keep assuring Him you're glad to have Him there -
That serving Him in your own home is joy beyond compare.

But when you saw Him coming, would you meet Him at the door
With arms outstretched in welcome to your heavenly Visitor?
Or would you have to change your clothes before you let Him in?
Or hide some magazines and put the Bible where they'd been?
Would you turn off the radio and hope He hadn't heard?
And wish you hadn't uttered that last, loud, hasty word?

Would you hide your worldly music and put some hymn books out?
Could you let Jesus walk right in, or would you rush about?
And I wonder - if the Savior spent a day or two with you,
Would you go right on doing the things you always do?
Would you go right on saying the things you always say?
Would life for you continue as it does from day to day?

Would your family conversation keep up it's usual pace?
And would you find it hard each meal to say a table grace?
Would you sing the songs you always sing, and read the books you read,
And let Him know the things on which your mind and spirit feed?
Would you take Jesus with you everywhere you'd planned to go?
Or would you, maybe, change your plans for just a day or so?

Would you be glad to have Him meet your very closest friends?
Or would you hope they'd stay away until His visit ends?
Would you be glad to have Him stay forever on and on?
Or would you sigh with great relief when He at last was gone?
It might be interesting to know the things that you would do
If Jesus Christ, in person, came to spend some time with you.

Food for thought:  Have you ever considered that question: "What would you do if Jesus came to your house today?" 

I think the best response would be, "He lives in my home every day!"

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill
 

Is Your Bible Study Really A Bible Study?

Recently I received an e-mail from Christianity Today and one article really caught my attention.  Why?  Because it touched on a subject near and dear to my heart - Bible Study! Yes, that is a hot button for me - what is, and what is not, a Bible study.  Why do I take this issue so personally?  Well, in 1987 I was saved in a Bible study.  

After ten years of my wonderful wife praying for me to become a Christian, I met a Godly pastor, Sam Lacanienta, of the Fil-Am Church of Irvine (CA) who exuded the love of God.  And, that love permeated the whole congregation and their weekly Friday Night Bible Study.  That love kept me coming back - and after about six months they loved me all the way to the cross.   That was mainly a result of a consistent Family Friday Night Bible study.

Once I was a Christian believer, I began to grow and mature in my faith through our Bible studies and through listening to Pastor Chuck Smith and the Calvary Chapel pastors teaching expositionally through the Bible on KWVE Christian Radio.  I never attended Calvary Chapel - but Chuck Smith and Calvary Chapel were very instrumental in my process of maturing in God's Word.  So, you might say that I grew and matured through three forms of Bible study:  corporate expositional Bible study at my local church, expositional Bible study via the KWVE airwaves, and personal Bible study.

So, when I read the article "Stop Calling Everything a Bible Study" it struck a chord in my heart and gave me flash-back moments.   From 1987 through 1998, Dory and I were active in Fil-Am (Filipino-American) churches in Orange County (CA) where we always had active "interactive discussion style" Bible studies and Sunday School Classes.  In late 1998 when we moved to Riverside County we became members of a small, relatively new Fil-Am church in Corona.  Initially the church was not having a weekly Bible study.  So, Dory and I started one in our home which eventually grew to become several larger Friday Night Bible Studies in different homes.

I believe it was the year 2000, in our Corona Friday Night Bible Study, that I was so blessed to see a family - a mom and two sons - respond to an unscheduled altar call at one of our Friday Night Bible Studies and become saved believers.  Those two young sons went home and witnessed to their dad - who came the next week and joined the family of God.  Over the years that family has been a strong Christian family - and today the oldest son is an associate pastor while attending seminary.  That, my Friends, is the power of consistent expositional discussion-based Bible study.

The article "Stop Calling Everything a Bible Study" also touches on a trend I have witnessed over the past 15 to 20 years, mislabeling discussion groups and Bible studies.  About 15 years ago, I started receiving information on Cell Groups and even saw the words start to filter into my local church.  I was not sure what a "Cell Group" entailed.  Was it a new name for Bible studies?  Was it a new church plant?  Was it what I experienced in 1970 at the Garden Grove Community Church (later the Crystal Cathedral) which they called weekly "Talk It Over" meetings?  I had no idea. 

So, I decided the only way to understand was to ask questions.  Believe it or not, when I sent an e-mail to the organization which sent me Cell Group literature - I got two responses.  First, I was ignored.  Then, becoming more persistent - I got an angry response basically telling me, "Why are you asking such a stupid question?"   So much for Cell Groups, whatever they are!

Over the years Dory and I would occasionally take a break from our Corona church and go help a new church plant in the area.   But, always coming back to the Corona church.  Once when I came back I noticed that they were not having Bible studies anymore.  They were having Men's Care Group and Women's Care Group meetings.   Assuming these were just new names for Bible study (no idea why they were segregated into men and women groups) - I invited the men to come to my home.  I had two neighbors whom I wanted to invite to Bible study, so this was a good opportunity.

The group came and we began by introducing ourselves and, at the leader's suggestion, we each gave a short testimony.  During the testimonies one of my neighbors mentioned that he did not have a Bible - so I gave him one of mine.  That was the only time a Bible was mentioned in what I thought was to be a Bible study.

As the testimonies continued (far too long), one of my neighbors, Greg, whose wife was Roman Catholic, several times asked questions, telling us, "You guys know the Bible better than me."   When the leader did not respond to Greg's questions and comments, I finally suggested to him, "Why don't we take time now to look at the book of John?"   And, I was shocked when the leader responded, "We don't have time today."

Wait a minute!  What I thought, and what I had told my neighbors when I invited them, was supposed to be a Men's Bible Study - was really only a two hour session of testimonies - without the Bible being opened even once?

The group left shortly after that and Greg came to me and told me, "Bill, I enjoy talking with you one-on-one.  But, I don't want to attend your Bible studies again."   Talk about an opportunity blown!

Folks, we should have three goals as Christian believers:  (1) To become more mature in our own knowledge of God's Word, so that we will be better prepared to be His witnesses, (2) To help new believers grow in their knowledge of His Word, and (3) To take that His Word, His Gospel, to the unbelieving world (Matthew 29:19-20, Acts 1:8, Mark 16:15).  The pathway to making this happen is consistent, corporate, expositional Bible studies.

Now that I have poured out my heart, let me share the article which inspired me:

Stop Calling Everything a Bible Study
Why It Matters What Churches Call Their Classes
By Jen Wilkin/ February 17, 2017
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2017/march/stop-calling-everything-bible-study.html

In the South, our beverage vocabulary can be confusing to those from other regions.  When we offer you a Coke, we are asking if you’d like a soda of any kind.  And when we offer you tea, we do not mean Earl Gray in a mug.  We will assume that you understand this implicitly.  As a Southerner with Northern relatives, I can affirm that many a family gathering could have been saved from such confusion by a simple clarification of terms. 

Using a term too generally can cause greater misunderstanding than simply serving someone the wrong drink.  Take, for example, the term “Bible study” as it is often used in the local church.  On the typical church website, it’s not uncommon to find classes on marriage, finances, parenting, prayer, and books of the Bible all listed as “Bible studies.”

In these gatherings, good things happen.  People connect to one another in community.  They share needs, confess sins, and explore topics through the lens of Scripture.  But not all of these classes are Bible studies.

Over time, “Bible study” has become a catch-all to describe all kinds of gatherings.  In the words of the esteemed linguist Inigo Montoya from The Princess Bride, “You keep using that word.  I do not think it means what you think it means.”

As we have expanded our use of the term, we have decreased the number of actual Bible studies we offer.  Churches have gradually shifted away from offering basic Bible study in favor of studies that are topical or devotional, adopting formats that more closely resemble a book club discussion than a class that teaches Scripture.   Biblical illiteracy pervades our churches, unintentionally aided by our labeling.

The evidence of this trend is everywhere, from church web sites to the bestseller section in the Christian bookstore.  Not many Christians are clamoring for the release of a line-by-line study of Deuteronomy, but a book on how the Bible addresses body image or another hot topic flies off the shelves.

Topical studies, devotional groups, and book discussions are beneficial, but not foundational.  The church serves its members well by offering learning environments dedicated to opening the Bible and exploring it one passage at a time, one book at a time.  Such classes build the Bible literacy today’s Christians so desperately need by passing down the skills to observe, interpret, and apply the text.

And the church needs to announce the presence and purpose of these classes with clarity.

Churches must distinguish clearly between what is Bible study - and what is something else.   Because the average churchgoer may not be able to on his/her own.  Knowing they should study the Bible, earnest Christians sign up for what we have labeled a Bible study, assuming that it is.

Yet, biblical illiteracy pervades our churches, unintentionally aided by our labeling.  Too often, I’m told at the end of a basic, line-by-line study, “I’ve done Bible studies for years, and I’ve never studied the Bible like this.”   (Bill Gray Note:  This is referring to the difference between a topical Bible study, often a devotional - and an expositional Bible study where we study and discuss verse-by-verse through books of the Bible.)

The late Howard Hendricks challenged aspiring Bible teachers with this principle:  Never do for your students what they can do for themselves.  If it’s called a “Bible study,” it should be a place where the disciple is learning to do the good work, where he learns how to be “a worker unashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

So, what’s the solution?  At my own church, we’ve taken care to be precise in our terminology.  We still offer classes on topics and books, but we don’t call these gatherings Bible studies, nor do they dominate our offerings.  We commit significant budget and calendar space to providing basic, literacy-building Bible study environments.  We speak precisely and unapologetically about their purpose and value, and we set a clear expectation for what they entail.

Calling classes by accurate names helps students keep track of how they allocate their choices.  It helps them view non-Bible study classes as supplements to - not substitutes for - basic Bible study.

Plain and simple, if you sign up for a Bible study, you should study the Bible.  By adopting a purer definition of “Bible study” and offering classes that fulfill it, churches help their people to do just that.  They offer a tall drink of water for those thirsting for Scripture; no beverage confusion allowed.

Jen Wilkin is a wife, mom, and Bible teacher.  She is the author of "Women of the Word" and "None Like Him."

In Summary I pray that your local church has an evening each week dedicated to nothing but the study and discussion of God's Word, i.e., a real Bible Study.   Preferably a Family Bible Study.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill 

A Walk Down Memory Lane With Bill Gray

Recently at church one of our Youth, CD, a ten year old who has impressed me with his willingness to participate in our Sunday School discussions, Scripture reading, and other worship activities, came to me and asked, "Did you really work for Bill Gates?"  I explained to him, "No, I have never worked for Bill Gates.  But, I did work with Bill Gates and Paul Allen before they started Microsoft."  

In the mid-1970s, before there were PC desktop computers or Apple computers, Ed Roberts, owned a small company in Albuquerque, New Mexico named MITS.  The company made and sold build-it-yourself electronic calculators and test equipment.   With the advent of the new 8-bit Intel and Zilog microprocessors, Ed Roberts decided to package them into build-it-yourself computers for hobbyist, small companies, and such.   Roberts developed the first real home computer, the Altair 8800, which was featured on the January 1975 cover of Popular Electronics magazine.  Paul Allen, a young engineer at Honeywell, and his friend, Bill Gates (who was in college at Harvard), saw the magazine and began writing software for the Altair computer.   Soon, Bill dropped out of college and they moved to Albuquerque to do software contract work for MITS.  Basically they became the company's programming staff.

At that same time, I joined MITS as their Western Region Sales Manager with the responsibilities of selling the Altair computer to industry.  Initially, my main task was twofold: (1) to contract independent Manufacturers Sales Representative organizations to sell the product, and, (2) to organize and present Microcomputer Seminars to prospective hobbyist and engineers who wanted to learn more about this new idea, a small microprocessor based desktop computer, to use in their homes and businesses.

While working at MITS, Bill Gates and Paul Allen started Microsoft in Albuquerque and originally named it "Micro-Soft" as Paul Allen recounted in his 1995 Fortune magazine article.  The company later moved their small company, now called Microsoft, to Seattle, Bill and Paul's hometown, where Bill's dad had a successful law firm.   And the rest is history.

At a 1975 MITS Microcomputer Seminar I presented at Ricky's Hyatt Hotel in Palo Alto, California, a young man, Paul Terrell, attended the seminar and signed on to sell the MITS computer through his Sales Rep organization.  At that time there was one hobby computer store in America - owned by a couple in Los Angeles.   After signing on to represent the MITS Altair computer - Paul and his partner, Boyd Wilson, opened the Byte Shop computer store in Mountain View, California - the second hobby computer store in America.  Paul and Boyd successfully grew that one store into a nationwide chain of computer stores, also named the Byte Shop.  Fast forward a few years, other computer store chains were formed - and the Byte Shop stores were sold to another chain, allowing Paul and Boyd to pursue other interests.

And, that recent chat at church with my young friend, CD, prompted me to take another walk down Memory Lane:

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 In a 2014 TimesDaily Religion Forum discussion titled "Let's Talk About It" - a Forum Friend, who tells us he is a Christian believer, yet attacks everything I write about God's Word and the Christian faith - now shares his opinion of me with folks on the Religion Forum:

The troll (that is me, Bill Gray) was initially in computer sales.  And to tell you what the industry thinks of their sales people would take more time than I have.  He subtly, and carefully, hints that he worked in Field Service Engineering - attempting to give the impression he was a Field Service Engineer.  Anyone experienced in the field knows that the title Field Service Engineer is reserved for those with an engineering degree.  There is some question in my mind if he actually graduated from high school.  Computer expert indeed! 

That tirade was prompted by the Religion Forum discussion named above which was begun by another Forum Friend - who questions whether I even know how to use a computer or not.

So, just for the record, let me respond to their Religion Forum posts - Bill Gray, This Is Your Life!

Fresh out of the Air Force in August 1958, I joined Burroughs Corporation as a Computer Systems Technician at their plant in Pasadena (Sierra Madre), California.  A year later, in 1959, I transferred into the company's Field Engineering department and was assigned to help maintain the Burroughs B220 computer system at the Naval Supply Depot in Norfolk, Virginia.  Nine months later, I was transferred to the Burroughs office in Washington DC - where I was lead Field Engineer on their system at Atlantic Research Corporation in Virginia.  Later, I was assigned to test and then install a Burroughs computer which was part of much larger Melpar Corporation system installed at the Air Force SAC Headquarters at Offutt AFB in Omaha, Nebraska.

These articles explain more about that installation and the Burroughs computer system: 

Strategic Air Command Gets $15-Million Data Processor(Electronic Design, June 21, 1961, p. 34) :   http://electronicdesign.com/displays/strategic-air-command-gets-15-million-data-processor

Burroughs 220 Computer System:    https://wiki.cc.gatech.edu/folklore/index.php/The_Burroughs_220_Computer

A few years later, I was recruited from Burroughs by the man, Chuck Hill, who had been my Burroughs Washington DC Regional Manager.  By the way, he was also the same man who, in 1958, hired me to work in the Computer System Test department in Pasadena.  He was hired away from Burroughs to establish a Test Department for Ramo-Wooldridge (later TRW) in Canoga Park, California, and asked me to join him in that endeavor.  Ramo-Wooldridge designed the first military spec minicomputer, the AN/UYK-1 - and our job was to create a test department for that computer.   Later, I wrote the AN/UYK-1 Test Manual to guide newly hired test technicians as we expanded the department.

After helping establish the Test Department for the AN/UYK-1 at Ramo-Wooldridge, I moved into their Military Support/Field Engineering department.   After that transition, I traveled to the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard where I installed an AN/UYK-1 computer onboard the USNS Kingsport where it was the antennae control computer. This was the ship which controlled the Syncom satellite which allowed President Kennedy to make the first satellite based telephone call between two continents.

While working in the Military Support/Field Engineering department at Ramo-Wooldridge, I was asked to help the Training Department.  Each month I would spend two weeks teaching classes on the AN/UYK-1 computer system to engineers and technicians sent for training by client companies.  The rest of the month I would visit customer sites to install new computers or repair existing installations.

A few years later, I left Ramo-Wooldridge and joined Scientific Data Systems where I was a member of their initial corps of experienced Field Engineers.  I installed the first SDS-930 computer system at MIT Lincoln Labs near Boston; then I traveled to Boeing in Seattle where I installed the second SDS-930 computer as part of a larger Boeing designed and implemented Space-Flight Simulator (Astronaut Reentry Training Simulator System) - which trained astronauts for their reentry flights, one of the most critical and dangerous times in the entire mission.  I was honored to be there the day the first group of astronauts arrived for training.

Later, North American Rockwell-Downey was using a larger SDS-9300 computer system as part of their Space Capsule Simulation System.  When the local SDS Field Engineers could not get the system to operate as it was supposed to, I was sent to the site to correct the problem.  I designed a temporary fix to make their computer function as they wanted.  And my temporary fix was still in that system when I visited the site several years later. Why fool with success?

After a period of time working as a Special Systems Engineer at SDS, I found that I was being asked to visit and repair systems at customers' sites which the local Field Engineers should have been able to diagnose and repair.  I asked our department manager to allow me to set up a special intensive training class designed to help the Field Engineers learn techniques for trouble-shooting the SDS-930 and SDS-9300 computer systems.  He arranged to have half the Field Engineers in the first one week class, then the other half in for the second one week class.  For the second class, the head of the SDS Training department asked if he could have his instructors and several visiting customer engineers sit in during the class.

In the mid-1960s, as a Field Engineer/Special Systems Engineer for SDS, I spent time at UC Berkeley where I worked with the Project Genie team headed by Professor Wayne Lichtenberger, given an ARPA (Advanced Research Projects Agency) grant to develop a time sharing computer, and Melvin Pirtle (who later became Dr. Mel Pirtle, Director of NASA Ames Research Center, and who also married our SDS Palo Alto office secretary).  My task was to modify the SDS-930 computer by adding more memory hardware to the system.  Point of interest:  ARPAnet, developed by the Department of Defense in conjunction with several universities, was the precursor to the Internet we use today. 

Project Genie was an ARPA funded computer research project started in 1964 at the University of California, Berkeley.  It produced an early time-sharing system based upon the SDS-930 computer and the Berkeley Timesharing System software (the pioneer time-sharing operating system), which was then commercialized as the SDS-940.  The system that Scientific Data Systems (SDS) would call the SDS-940 was created by modifying an SDS-930 24-bit commercial computer so that it could be used for timesharing.   And, implementing those hardware modification designs for the Project Genie team at UC Berkeley was my task.

A few years later, Dr. Lichtenberger and the modified computer system now called the SDS-940 moved to the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Hawaii to work on another ARPA project.   By then I was in sales for Digital Equipment and made a sales call at the University of Hawaii.  I was able to visit with him and my SDS-940 computer system on the Hawaii campus.  It was like running into old friends.

Once the system had been developed at UC Berkeley, SDS began building and selling SDS-940 Timesharing computer systems.  I installed the first one at a newly formed company named Tymshare Corporation in Cupertino, California.  The company, founded  by Tom O’Rourke and Dave Schmidt, was the first to offer commercial timesharing computer services.   

During my 12 years as a Field Engineer/Special Systems Engineer - I worked with a number of distinguished and very interesting customers and systems all over the country. 

My engineering and technical knowledge was a big asset when I transitioned into sales and marketing.  Those were the days when we traveled to prospective client sites, sat down with client engineers to better understand their needs, and helped them configure systems to meet their requirements.  Those applications ranged from Mission Planning and Defense, to Simulators, to Ocean Surveillance, Computer Aided Design, Animation, Geophysical and Chemical Data Analysis, Process Control, Biomedical Engineering, and many more very interesting applications.  That was the excitement of being a Sales Engineer in those days - we got involved in and gained knowledge (jack of all trades/master of none) in many different areas of science, engineering, manufacturing, and education.

However, my Forum Friend is right about the way people view computer sales people today.  And, mostly for very good reason.   Most computer sales today are done over the telephone or in computer stores - where intimacy with client needs and applications is rarely experienced.  Many telephone sales people today are merely warm bodies who have been taught a few technical words, given a script of questions to ask, and placed in a cubicle with a telephone.  When the computer industry transitioned to that level, that is when I lost interest and, praise God, that is when God gave me a writing ministry to keep me focused on Him.

My first job in Sales was with Digital Equipment Corporation.  I began as a Sales Application Engineer in the late 1960s.  In that position I would help customers apply our computer products to their applications.  I recall getting a phone call from a gentleman in a small company in Nevada.  He wanted to configure an interface to connect a DEC PDP-8s computer to a television screen for a game he was designing.  I was able to design and configure that interface for him using DEC Logic Modules.  The small company was Atari and the game was Pong.  The rest, as they say, is history.

Later, at DEC, I designed a Stimulation/Response system, using a DEC PDP-8s computer and DEC Logic Modules, for the Psychology department at Stanford Research Institute which allowed them to apply different stimuli to lab rats to train them for specific responses.

At the same time, I was also giving one day Logic Seminars for DEC clients and prospective clients - teaching them to use DEC computer logic modules to implement special systems for their own needs.  The first seminar I gave was at the University of Cal, Berkeley - where 80% of the attendees were Ph.ds from the university faculty and staff, and from Lawrence Berkeley Atomic Energy Lab.  That full day seminar was my baptism into presenting Computer Seminars - and with that level of attendees, the baptismal water, at times, got a wee bit warm.

Then, I went into full time sales - as a Sales Engineer.   During my years in sales for DEC - in Northern California and in their Huntsville office - I continued to give Computer and Computer Logic Seminars for customers and wanna-be customers.

In 1968, I worked with Judith Edwards, director of a government funded education program formed to put computers into local blue-collar schools in Oregon.  This program was to address the social/societal aspect of the coming computer society, rather than the more common academic application.  It was a program aimed at children from blue collar homes who were more likely to go into vocational training rather than college - to take the mystery out of computers and help them better understand how computers would impact their lives in the future.  We installed a group of DEC PDP-8s computers in Elementary School classrooms and allowed the children to get hands-on experience using a computer.

Fast forward to the mid-1970s and I joined a small company based in Albuquerque named MITS.   The company had just introduced a kit-form "build it yourself" microcomputer called the Altair.

My task there was to establish a network of independent sales offices (manufacturer's rep companies) to sell our Altair product - and to travel around giving Microcomputer Seminars.  At that time, there was only one computer store in all of America.  It was a store-front computer store in Los Angeles owned by a man and wife team. 

A Microcomputer Seminar I gave at Ricky's Hyatt Hotel in Palo Alto, California, was so successful that a gentleman named Paul Terrell met with me that evening and agreed to represent our company in Northern California.  A month later, he and his partner, Boyd Wilson, opened the first Byte Shop computer store (the second computer store in America) in Mountain View, California.  Then, with his brother he opened another store in Palo Alto - and then with a second brother he opened a third store in Oregon.  That grew into the first computer store chain, also called the Byte Shop.   Some years later other computer store chains were begun - and Paul and Boyd sold the Byte Shop chain, now 250 stores, to another chain and retired, young.
  

By the way, when I was at MITS, there were two young computer programmers who comprised the company's programming staff.  Their names are Bill Gates and Paul Allen.  They left MITS and started a new company.  You may have heard of it - they named it Microsoft.  That was in the mid 1970s.

Fast forward about ten years and I was hired as Regional Manager for Ferranti International Controls Corporation, a Houston based subsidiary of the larger Ferranti International PLC of Manchester, England.  The company, Ferranti, a large user of computer graphics terminals and systems, hired me because they wanted to develop their own computer graphics manufacturing capability.  But, because they did not want to limit the market for this new computer graphics product to just Ferranti companies - they asked me to do a rather extensive market survey across America to determine what kind of computer graphics product the U.S. market wanted.

I spent three months traveling around America meeting with and interviewing top level Engineering people, typically VP Engineering and Engineering Management level.  I did this with small, medium sized, and large corporations - and with computer consultants and many government agencies.  At the end of my market survey tour, I made several trips with our U.S. senior engineering managers to Ferranti in Manchester, England, and Ferranti in Edinburgh, Scotland, where we spent days bringing them up to speed on what U. S. companies wanted to see in the new Ferranti computer graphics product.

From those meetings in England, a new product was born and the following article in Computer Technology Review, Summer 1986 issue, describes the design philosophy behind it:

Article: Design Factors Limit 2-D Raster Graphics System Architectures (F. Rodney Belch, Ferranti Computer Systems PLC, and Bill Gray, Ferranti International Controls Corporation)
https://www.facebook.com/notes/bill-gray/article-design-factors-limit-2-d-raster-graphics-system-architectures/806686719377483

So, to my "Doubting Thomas" TimesDaily Religion Forum Friend, as you can see I have lived a rather dull, mundane life in the computer industry.  But, not too bad for a guy whom you suggested did not even make it out of high school.   I am sure that my teachers and classmates, those of my Sheffield High (Alabama) graduating class of 1955, will be disappointed by how, according to you, I have wasted my life. 

But, somehow I struggled through, finally left my computer industry career behind me, except for using the products - and have spent the past twenty-five plus years, and counting, concentrating on sharing the Word of God with the world, using a computer.  My Friend, I pray that I will have many opportunities to share His Word with you over the coming years.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill 

Let's Talk About Hell

Last Sunday in our worship service we had a very good message by one of our church elders, Ben Gallardo.   In his message he spoke of hell and how different denominations, churches, and even secular groups view heaven and hell.

Ben mentioned a hoax story which has been on the internet since the 1990s and was even broadcast on Trinity Broadcast Network (TBN).

The Well to Hell Hoax
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Well_to_Hell_hoax

The "Well to Hell" is a putative borehole in Russia which was purportedly drilled so deep that it broke through into Hell.  This urban legend has been circulating on the Internet since at least 1995.  It is first attested in English as a 1989 broadcast by a U.S. domestic religion-based TV broadcaster, Trinity Broadcasting Network.  The legend holds that a team of Russian engineers purportedly led by an individual named "Mr. Azzacov" in an unnamed place in Siberia had drilled a hole that was 14.4 kilometres (8.9 mi) deep before breaking through into a cavity. 

Intrigued by this unexpected discovery, they lowered an extremely heat-tolerant microphone, along with other sensory equipment, into the well.  The temperature deep within was 1,000°C (2,000°F) - heat from a chamber of fire, from which (purportedly) the tormented screams of the damned could be heard.  However, the recording was later found to be looped together from various sound effects, sometimes identified as the soundtrack of the 1972 movie Baron Blood.

We know that the distance from the earth's surface to its core is almost 4000 miles.  So, a hole drilled 9 miles deep is still virtually on the surface of the earth.  This would expel the theory that the Russians found hell in the core of the earth.

The average distance to the centre of the Earth is 6,371 km or 3,959 miles.  In other words, if you could dig a hole 6,371 km, you’d reach the center of the Earth.  At this point you’d be in the Earth’s liquid metal core.   (http://www.universetoday.com/48919/distance-to-the-center-of-the-earth/)

This should raise the question: "If hell is not in the center of the earth, then where is hell located?"

Various theories on the location of hell have been put forward.  A traditional view is that hell is in the center of the earth.  Others propose that hell is located in outer space in a black hole.  In the Old Testament, the word translated “hell” is Sheol; in the New Testament it’s Hades (meaning “unseen”) and Gehenna (“the Valley of Hinnom”).  Sheol is also translated as “pit” and “grave.”  Both Sheol and Hades refer to a temporary abode of the dead before judgment (Psalm 9:17; Revelation 1:18).  Gehenna refers to an eternal state of punishment for the wicked dead (Mark 9:43).   (https://www.gotquestions.org/where-is-hell.html)

This correlates with the teaching we read in Luke 16:19-31, which is Jesus Christ relating the true story (parables do not use real names) of Lazarus and the rich man.  Both died and went into Hades, Lazarus into Hades/Paradise (refer also to Luke 23:43, the thief on the cross) - and the rich man went into Hades/Torment. 

Hades/Paradise, also called the Bosom of Abraham, was the temporary resting place for Old Testament believers - and Hades/Torment was, and continues to be, the temporary abode for all non-believers until they are resurrected to stand before Christ at the Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:5a).  When Christ was crucified, He descended into Hades from where He led the Old Testament believers out of Hades/Paradise and into heaven (Ephesians 4:8).  Since then, all believers go directly into heaven upon death (2 Corinthians 5:8).

"But, Bill, doesn't Revelation 20:5 tell us that ALL the dead will not resurrect until after the 1000 year Millennial Reign of Christ?"  Not really.  Let's look at this very controversial, and often misread, Scripture passage:

Reading of Revelation 20:4-6 (nkjv):

Revelation 20:4, "And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them.  Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands.  And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

Revelation 20:5, "But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

Revelation 20:6, "Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years."

A better reading of this Millennium passage:

Revelation 20:4, "And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them.  Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands.  And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years."

Who is sitting on the thrones and judging?

But who are these kingly judges, and who are they to judge?  In terms of the narrative just preceding, there can be only one answer as to the identity of the judges.  They are the same saints, dressed in fine white linen, appropriate not only for the wedding feast but also for judicial robes, who comprised the armies accompanying Christ as He returned to earth (Revelation 19:8, 14, 19).  All those who had been redeemed by His blood, resurrected from the grave, raptured into His presence, and evaluated for their rewards at His judgment seat will apparently be assigned individual thrones of authority and judgment, unless they are deemed undeserving of any reward at all (1 Corinthians 3:11-15).

This remarkable situation is promised in many Scriptures, both directly and in parables.  “Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?” (1 Corinthians 6:2).  “Judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom” (Daniel 7:22)

"The Revelation Record" by Dr. Henry Morris, Institute For Creation Research - https://thebookofrevelationartist.com/Page_150.php

Revelation 20:5b,  ".  .  . This is the first resurrection."

Revelation 20:6, "Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection.  Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years."

Bill Gray Note:  Actually Revelation 20:5b should be viewed as the continuation of the First Resurrection - which began with Jesus Christ's resurrection - then will continue at the Rapture when all New Testament and Old Testament saints are resurrected into their glorified immortal bodies fit for heaven (1 Corinthians 15:50).

"Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness" refers to all the Tribulation believers who died during the seven year Tribulation, having missed the earlier Rapture because of their previous unbelief.  They now are resurrected into their glorified immortal bodies.  And, we all - Old Testament saints, New Testament saints (Bride of Christ), and Tribulation saints - will accompany Jesus Christ as He comes again in His Victorious Second Coming.

Revelation 20:5a, "But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished.  .  ."

Bill Gray Note:  This, I believe, is speaking of all non-believers - Old Testament, New Testament, Tribulation - who have been waiting in painful existence in Hades/Torment (Luke 16:23-24).  After the 1000 year Millennial Reign of Jesus Christ on earth, those non-believers will be resurrected into their immortal bodies to stand before Jesus Christ at the Great White Throne Judgement, the judgment of eternal punishment.  From there, they will go directly into the Lake of Fire, which is hell, the eternal abode which God created for Satan and his demonic angels - but, after the fall of man (Genesis 3), also became the eternal abode for all non-believing humans.

"So, Bill, if hell is not in the center of the earth and heaven not out beyond our universe - where are they?"  Glad you asked.

Personally, I believe that our mortal world occupies the same spatial location, i.e., space, as heaven and hell, all three existing within the same space in our universe.  Whoa, hold on!  No stone throwing, please.

"Bill, please explain this lunacy you propose!"   I'll be happy to explain my thinking and why I believe it to be true.

I believe our universe consists of at least ten dimensions, maybe more.  Four dimensions make up our known universe:  height, width, length, time.  Heaven and hell exist in a different set of six dimensions - but in the same spatial location, i.e., same space.   Why only six dimensions for heaven and hell?  Simple, time is a dimension which God created for our mortal world.  We live in linear time.  There is no time in heaven and hell, only eternity.  So, each only requires three dimensions - height, width, length.  Three for heaven and three for hell.

Technically our mortal linear time begins when we are conceived in our mother's womb.  Nine months later, we start counting the seconds, minutes, hours, days, years which define our mortal life.  Why?  Because in this mortal life, since the fall of man, we have have only so many minutes, days, years to live - and then no more, at least not in this mortal body.  When we leave this body, we enter into eternity where linear time is irrelevant.

What does this mean?  It could mean that our earth and universe, heaven, and hell are all occupying the same space or spatial location - but in different dimensions. 

Wouldn't that explain how Jesus could just appear in the room with the apostles - without coming through a door (John 20:19, Luke 24:36)?  And, just disappear instantly, as with the two men on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:31)?

Why does this seem plausible to me?  In my opinion the Bible teaches it.

John 20:19, "Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, 'Peace be with you.'"

Jesus just appeared in the room with His apostles.  The door was locked, He did not come through the wall.  Wouldn't that imply that He has the ability to travel from one set of dimensions into another?

With the men on the road To Emmaus:

Luke 24:30-31, "Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.  Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight."

Luke 24:35-39, "And they (Emmaus road men speaking to the apostles in Jerusalem) told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread.  Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, 'Peace to you.'  But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit.  And He said to them, 'Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts?  Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself.   Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.'"

John 20:26-28, "And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them.  Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, 'Peace to you!'   Then He said to Thomas, 'Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side.  Do not be unbelieving, but believing.'  And Thomas answered and said to Him, 'My Lord and my God!'"

More thoughts on a universe of ten or more dimensions:

The ancient Hebrew scholar Nachmonides, writing in the 12th century, concluded from his studies of the text of Genesis that the universe has ten dimensions: that four are knowable (our mortal universe) - and six are beyond our knowing (heaven and hell).  Particle physicists today have also concluded that we live in ten dimensions.  Three spatial dimensions and time are directly discernible and measurable.  .  .  .

Fracture in Genesis 3? - There is a provocative conjecture that these ten (or more) dimensions were originally integrated, but suffered a fracture as a result of the events summarized in Genesis Chapter 3 (fall of man).  The resulting upheaval separated them into the "physical" and "spiritual" worlds.  ("Quantum Physics: The Boundaries of Reality" by Chuck Missler - http://www.khouse.org/articles/1998/62/)

If, in the beginning, the dimensions of heaven and earth were integrated, i.e, in the same spatial realm - wouldn't that explain how God could walk in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve in the cool of the evening (Genesis 3:8)?

Is this, the ten or more dimensions, the only possible explanation of Jesus Christ appearing and disappearing supernaturally or God walking with Adam and Eve?  No, of course not.  After all He is God.  He is Omnipresent (all places present), Omnipotent (all powerful), and Omniscient (all knowing).  Being Omnipresent, could He not just appear and disappear - or walk with man?  Yes.  But, does that disprove the theory of a multi-dimension universe with His being able to move effortlessly between spatial dimensions?  Not really.

Let's talk about hell.  What can we know about hell from the Bible?   Are hell and hades the same?  Is anyone in hell today?

I would say no one is in hell, the Lake of Fire, today.  The first mention of anyone being cast into the Lake of Fire is in Revelation 19:20 when the Antichrist and the False Prophet are "cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone."  

Then, in Revelation 20:10 we read, "The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the Lake of Fire and brimstone where the Beast (Antichrist) and the False Prophet are.  And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever."

After the Great White Throne Judgment, we are told in Revelation 20:14-15, "Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.  And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire."

This is two ways of describing mortal people who died in non-belief:   "Death and Hades" means those who were waiting in Hades/Torment for the Great White Throne Judgment and their second death, eternal hell, the Lake of Fire.  And, those people are described as those whose names were "not found written in the Book of Life."

"But, Bill, doesn't the Bible, in Jude, tell us that some fallen angels were cast into hell?"               

What does Jude 1:6 tell us?   "And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day."

I would suggest that the "judgment of the great day" refers to the time of the Great White Throne Judgment - but not for the fallen angels.  It is the day, when, after the Great White Throne Judgment all non-believers are cast into the Lake of Fire to join Satan, his Antichrist, and his False Prophet.  At that time all the fallen angels will also be join them in eternal judgment.  There is no judgment for the fallen angels, for there is no salvation for the fallen angels.  When they chose to follow Lucifer/Satan and turn against God - that sealed their eternal fate.  

Jesus Christ came to earth in full humanity, to offer forgiveness and eternal life to mankind.  We are told in Hebrews 2:17 that He came as our High Priest, to make propitiation for all people - but nowhere are we told that fallen angels can be restored to God.

Moving on, there are several other lines of false teaching related to hell which we should mention:   Universalism , Annihilationism, and Soul Sleep.  All three are unBiblical, but let's take a moment to look at them individually:

Universalism is the teaching that all people will eventually go to heaven.  Obviously this teaching denies the presence of hell and teaches something similar to Roman Catholicism's Purgatory.   Universalist churches such as the Unitarian Universalist teach this false theology.  And it would seem that Joel Osteen of Lakewood Church in Houston - Mark Driscoll, former pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle - Rob Bell, founder and former pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church in Grandville, Michigan - along with many Emerging Church leaders embrace some form of Universalism.

Christian Universalist disagree on whether or not Hell exists, however they do agree that if it does, it is not Eternal, that the punishment there in hell is "disciplinary," and not eternal.   "Patristic Universalism" or "Purgatorial Universalism" was the belief of some of the early church fathers such as Clement of Alexandria, Origen, and Gregory of Nyssa.  It asserts that the unsaved will undergo hell, but that hell is remedial (neither everlasting nor purely retributive, that post-mortem [after death] conversion is a possibility) according to key scriptures and that after purification or conversion all will enter Heaven.   (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Universalism)

To deny the existence of hell is to deny the Word of God.  To teach that non-believers will have a second chance to repent after death - is giving them false hope.  Hebrews 9:27 makes it clear that man will die once - and then face judgment.  Until that last mortal breath, man can repent and be saved.   Once he has breathed that last mortal breath - his next breath is in eternity, heaven or hell, and, after death, there will be no second chance to repent (Hebrews 9:27, 2 Corinthians 6:2, Luke 16:19-31).

Annihilationism is the teaching that no one is condemned to eternal hell.  Churches such as the Herbert Armstrong's Worldwide Church Of God, Seventh-day Adventists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and others teach some form of this false doctrine.   It is also the belief (or maybe better described as "hope") of atheists.  It teaches that, upon death, or after some time of punishment non-believers all are annihilated, poof, no longer existing.  No hell, no suffering, just nothing.

Question: "Is annihilationism biblical?"

Answer:  Annihilationism is the belief that unbelievers will not experience an eternity of suffering in hell, but will instead be “extinguished” after death.  For many, annihilationism is an attractive belief because of the awfulness of the idea of people spending eternity in hell.  While there are some passages that seem to argue for annihilationism, a comprehensive look at what the Bible says about the destiny of the wicked reveals the fact that punishment in hell is eternal.  A belief in annihilationism results from a misunderstanding of one or more of the following doctrines: (1) the consequences of sin, (2) the justice of God, (3) the nature of hell.  (https://www.gotquestions.org/annihilationism.htm)

Basically, you might say that both Universalism and Annihilationism would fit in well with the "Feel Good" Churches - those churches which will not teach about sin, hell, or anything which might make folks feel uncomfortable.  After all, if we make folks uncomfortable with our teachings - they might not come back to church.  Then, how would anyone build a megachurch?

Soul Sleep is the teaching that, at death, the person just goes to sleep and knows nothing until the resurrection and final judgment.    Yet, 2 Corinthians 5:6-8 (and Philippians 1:23) tells us that when we are absent from this mortal body, i.e., dead - we are at home with the Lord.   At our last breath in this mortal body - our next breath will be in heaven.   This is another false teaching of the Worldwide Church of God and its offshoot churches.

Pastor David Guzik, Calvary Chapel, in his Philippians Study Guide tells us:

Philippians 1:21, "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain."

i. Paul's death at the time would be a gain in two senses - First, his death for the cause of Christ would glorify Jesus, and that was gain - Second, to be in the immediate presence of the Lord was gain for Paul.

ii. The idea that Paul could consider death a present gain argues against the idea of "soul sleep."  This false teaching says that the believing dead are held in some sort of suspended animation until the resurrection occurs.  His understanding that his death might be considered gain also argues against the idea of "purgatory" which says that the believing dead must be purified through suffering before coming into the presence of God.

Folks, if what we teach about God and the Bible, about heaven and hell, does not make a non-believer uncomfortable - we are NOT doing our job as Jesus commanded us.  We are not fulfilling His Great Commission to "Go, Make disciples, Baptize them, TEACH them.  .  .  Be My witnesses in all the world"  (Matthew 29:19-20, Acts 1:8, Mark 16:15).

These are my thoughts on heaven and hell.  I pray this has been helpful.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill