God - Essentials for Sharing in the Divine Nature

By Alan Gill

God - Essentials for Sharing in the Divine Nature
The one thing unexpected "these days" is the truth. Few believe there is any ultimate truth. One might say people would not know the truth if they met with it face-to-face. Certainly there is good reason to be very pessimistic about the existence of truth. The truth presented in this book is what is needed to achieve heaven or, as God describes His purpose, "to share in the Divine Nature." What is required? The one place NOT to look is to religion. Since you would have to know, which religion should be followed? There is an overwhelming distinction. People seldom realize the critical nature of this understanding. Thinking that religion possesses the truth would be a problem with eternal consequences. The distinction is religion versus truth - they are rarely, if ever, compatible.
The reader will gain the correct perspective of God, and nothing is left out in terms of an understanding that will serve you well. It is unlikely you imagined this much good information regarding God was available. God revealed Himself and did so such that people would know and it could help them. Religion certainly does not emphasize understanding God, but has people focus on THEIR rules indicating they are from God. They most certainly are not from God, as is easily seen from the scriptures. The world is not a place that favors God, but downplays God by ignoring Him in the media, in education, and in general people seldom mention God. Yet life is all about something beyond the present existence, and this can be known with some certainty. It cannot be known if the mention of God is taboo, against normal conversation. Strangely, religion does the best it can to avoid God by focusing on everything but the spiritual. The things of religion are social issues, benevolence opportunities, political aspects; human rights, actually approving in various ways the things God condemns and primarily doing what is necessary to grow their organization. They are not growing the spiritual body of Christ, but the physical aspects of religion including its assests. In the midst of what is believed to be religion, the gospel message is lost. Actually, it was lost a very long time ago, even beginning in the first century, and now few people notice anything is wrong. The truth which does exist is available and is the one thing that can help a person achieve eternal life. Everything from God, God's word fits perfectly together in the scriptures. All is explained and easily understood.
Despite all the deceit in religion and confusion in the world AND the seriousness in relation to your eternity, you can succeed, but admittedly it will require some courage, some diligence. This book covers so much and does so with a sense of urgency that will have you excited in the knowledge of what is really important. You will want to learn more as you realize its importance once you begin.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Alan Gill
• Release date: Oct 1, 2022
• ISBN: 9798986097091

Book preview

God – Essentials for Sharing in the Divine Nature

A l a n  P.  G i l l

God

Essentials for Sharing in the Divine Nature

What is really important

Caring for the planet mentioned above is one of the hundreds of distractions that effectively divert a person's attention from life’s purpose. Life is about the soul, very specifically your soul. God will destroy the planet and all the heavens. Don’t allow temporary things to distract you from spiritual matters. Many people have a larger focus on saving the planet than on succeeding in this life. It is a noble concern to have environmental interests even with all of the related uncertainty; however, some things are infinitely more important and certain.  Indeed, the distractions from the world and from the religions of the world can be substantial obstacles thwarting your success.

Copyright © 2022 Alan P. Gill

Copyright Certificate of Registration:

God – Essentials for Sharing in the Divine Nature

No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, or by any information storage and retrieval system without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of very brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

ISBN: 979-8-9860970-9-1

Publisher: SITDN Books LLC

Author's relevant websites:

www.heavencoach.com

www.catholicsquestion.com

About the title

The title refers to the things needed to share eternity in the presence of God the Father and the Lamb in the new heaven and new earth. There are essential things to know and to do and to become dedicated to such that you meet God’s requirements. Your success will not come by accident, but those achieving heaven will be aware that their lives meet God’s standard as He has carefully revealed in His word. Some of the essential things include a knowledge of things to be avoided as well as characteristics to be developed. It is essential to understand that God has high expectations for those who will succeed. A great number of people never enter the race that the scriptures describe. Those who succeed will live a challenging life that is not lived for themselves. It can be said that God wants all to succeed, but He cannot spend eternity with evil. Dying in sin (evil) will be the reason that Few will enter eternal life. Jesus could state this because He can see all of time and thus knows the outcome and the reasons for failure. This information regarding the difficulty of success will inspire some to please God while making others bitter. God’s plan is perfect in getting those He wants, and it will always be based on the decisions a person makes. A quick test of your character in relation to potentially being successful would be to ask if you are thinking about becoming dedicated to following God’s very essential directives or if you are seeking various reasons to reject God as the God of the Bible. Perhaps there may be good reasons to question God’s fairness or even blame Him for some aspects of His test, and these are typical of people who will never trust God. A few will see God’s unwavering goodness and realize His ability to manage everything, all of your concerns perfectly, for instance, involving love and justice.

Table of Contents

Preface and about the author 

Helping You Understand God and Truth 

Chapter 1  God, the Forever Question 

Chapter 2  Indoctrination 

Chapter 3  The Most Important Question 

Chapter 4  God, the Invention of Humankind? 

Chapter 5  Atheism and Its Growth 

The Growth of Atheism in America 

Atheists might become agnostic or believers if the rules were changed 

Atheism’s Big Misses 

Chapter 6  Removing the Obstacles and Identifying the Characteristics of an Association with God 

Islam Is Difficult to Understand in the Context of Religion 

Pause: Scope of this book 

A Little More Background on Islam in Relation to the Scriptures 

The Religions of Humankind 

Islam Radically Redefines the Concept of Religion 

This Book Is and Is Not 

The Horror of Religions as They Stretch Their Paranoid Tentacles 

Determining the Association Between Religion and God – Another Pause for Clarity 

Characteristics of a Religious Association with God 

Religion: A World of People Missing the Point 

The Religion of God – Connectivity with the Divine 

When You Have Association with God, You Are Constantly Aware There Is a War 

Below Is a Very Distinct, Short Summary Of Removing the Obstacles and Identifying the Characteristics of an Association with God 

Chapter 7  Atheists Attack Religion, But Fail to Show God  Does Not Exist 

The Good and Bad of Atheism 

Pause to Understand Islam and Other Religions with the Same Obvious Problem 

Religion is Far from the Truth 

Who Loves Muslims, Catholics, Protestants, Mormons, And All the People of Religions, Including Atheists? 

The Power of Indoctrination 

Atheism and False Religions Require Wicked Measures for Maintenance 

Atheist Weakness 

Chapter 8  Atheists Seek Scientific Answers to Existence 

The Science of Origins Is Exceptionally Weak, Really Impossible 

Short Verse Says a Lot About God and Creation Titus 1.2 

Theories, Motives, and Creation – Confusing Something Quite Simple 

Atheists Not Thinking Again – How God May Have or Seems to Have Created 

A Powerful Life-Changing Distinction Regarding Science and Your Soul – What Is Truly Important? 

Continuing the What Is Important Distinction 

Chapter 9  Atheists Directly Target God’s Character 

Atheists and the Real Problem 

Atheists Appeal to Whatever Might Encourage Rejecting God 

Atheists, Agnostics, and Many Who Believe in God Struggle with Eternal Punishment 

Chapter 10  God’s Plan Perfectly Aligns with His Purpose 

God’s Plan Is Designed to Accomplish His Purpose, and God's Defined Sin Is at the Center of Your Success or Failure 

No Correlation Between God’s Plan and the Religions of the World 

Chapter 11  Religion Responds to Atheists 

Enter the Creationists 

Religion Finally Faces Up to Their History and Seeks Forgiveness 

Short Response to Atheist Calls for Evidence 

Religion Responds to Atheists – Ineffective 

Chapter 12  The Real Battleground 

Faith of a Muslim, a Catholic, a Protestant 

God Purposely Shares the Fearful Details of the End 

God Consistently Emphasizes the Seriousness of His Message 

The Effort to Justify Sin versus Accepting the Message as Delivered 

The Message from God Is Always About Your Choices 

The Seven Ones of God 

It is a fair question to ask how all these religions could be wrong 

Chapter 13  Hardened Hearts   

God’s Accuracy, Apparent Harshness, and Severity Examined 

The Apparent Harshness of God During the Time Leading to the Coming of Jesus 

God’s Word Is Accurate, And He Requires an Accurate Response to the Gospel Message 

Chapter 14  God’s Past and Future Interactions with Humankind 

There Is Always a Reason for God’s Interaction with Humankind – The Confirming Signs and Now Their Disappearance 

Mysteries Are in the Past – All Addressed 

Chapter 15 Apparent Conflicting Passages in the Scriptures 

Common Sense Understanding of the Scriptures 

Two Examples of Potential Verses in Conflict 

To Judge or Not to Judge 

Trivial Problems Are Often Ridiculous, but People Search for Anything Comforting 

Chapter 16  The Truth from God, Not Your Private Interpretation 

Private Interpretation 

The Lesson That Is Never Learned 

God Is Not Like You Might Think 

Chapter 17  Evidence from the Scriptures of God 

Substantial Evidence, God’s Promises to Fulfillment 

Understand the Genesis Promises and Better Understand God 

Adam, Eve, the Devil, And the Purpose of Life 

Evidence, God’s Way 

Chapter 18 Perfection Is Evidence 

God’s Advice for Evidence – Prove, Test – Zeal without knowledge means confusion 

Perfect Test 

Some Things Appear Less Than Perfect – They Are Not 

God’s Focus – You 

Pride 

A Love of the Truth – That They Might Be Saved 

God Is Gracious to Reveal So Much About Himself and About Us 

Something very powerful, devastating, and unexpected 

Chapter 19  God’s Wisdom Displayed for Your Benefit 

The Case of Adam and Eve 

The Disobedience of Cain 

The Test of Abraham Involving Isaac and the Choice He Made 

The Seemingly Innocent Error of Uzzah 

Achan’s Disobedience 

King Saul, Samuel, and The Amalekites 

The Lesson of Naaman Is There for Our Learning 

The Case of Aaron’s Sons, Nadab, and Abihu 

The Serious Sin of David and Yet He Is Referred to As One After God’s Own Heart 

The Lie of Ananias and Sapphira 

The Future Eternal Punishment of the Unrighteous 

The Implications of Understanding God 

So Much to Learn About God That Can Help Us to Succeed 

Consider Solomon and His Wisdom 

Chapter 20  Make the Distinction: Physical Versus Spiritual 

Where God Does NOT dwell and Where He Does 

The Spiritual Warfare 

Fellowship of the ministering to the saints 

Powerful Distinctions Related to God’s Perfection 

Time to Get Serious About Your Soul – An Important Awakening 

Chapter 21  The Huge Effort to Keep God Out of People’s Lives 

Mandatory Character of God’s Children – Those In Christ 

The Effort to Eliminate God Is Aggressive 

Humankind can justify everything as it is just a matter of inventiveness 

Sin’s Consequences During a Person’s Lifetime and Its Ultimate Consequence 

Hell, to those who understand it is a place without God 

Religion, The Great Promoter of Godlessness 

The Most Ironic Distinction of Physical versus Spiritual 

Chapter 22  Few Is Becoming Fewer

God Does Not Accommodate the Ways of Humankind

Chapter 23 Pathetic Religion

Anabaptists 

Huguenots 

Waldensians 

Catholicism Would Become the Menace of God, Turning People from the Truth 

Pause: Characteristics of Pathetic Religions 

God’s Word Is Underestimated, Not Respected 

The Impact of Changing the Word of God – A Hypothetical Example 

Nations and Savagery – Religions Were There 

Atheists, Religionists Blame Each Other for the Evil in the World 

Moral and Ethical Values in Decline 

Make the Distinction between the Church Jesus Built and the Many Built by Men and/or Women 

Make the Distinction between Sin’s Importance and its Avoidance 

God’s High Standard for Salvation 

The Body of Christ – Where You Must Be to Succeed 

Here Is Another Way the Wisdom of God Is Seen in the Local Church 

Recognize the Evil in Religion and Receive the Crown of Life 

A Comment on Pathetic Religion – for Clarity 

Chapter 24  Summary/Conclusions of God

Unconvincing Science and Understanding the Perfection of God 

Precious Truth Missing and Replaced by the Doctrines of Humankind 

The Beauty of Accurately Understanding God’s Power, Perfection 

Understanding God, Understanding Life 

X Marks the Spot Where You Stand in Relation to Success in Life. We Ask, Where Do You Stand? 

Is Heaven a Possibility for You? 

Chapter 25  Final Thought – Your Soul 

Chapter 26  Overflow and Overwhelming – Clarity 

Mini-Index for Chapter 26 

Atheism – Missing the Mark 

Atheism Is a Religious Predicament, Not a God Problem 

Pascal’s Wager 

Christians Are Selected by the LORD Upon Their Obedience 

God’s Warning, Consequences, and Authority 

The Certainty of Only a Few 

A Love of the Truth – It Is Quite Amazing to Actually Know God 

Consider Being in the Image of God 

The Destructive Power of Sin 

We Are Left With Just One Thing – The Perfect Word of God 

A World of Deceit You Need to Overcome 

Volatile Words Mislead 

God Is Incredibly Obvious 

Selfish Ambition and Pride Are Behind the Horrible Deceit in Religion 

Faith Grows to Sight 

Lying/Deceit Overwhelms Our Physical and Spiritual Lives 

Lies Everywhere 

Lying Is the Foundation of Humankind’s Religions with Cruelty, Murder, Continual Deceit, And Fear Being the Early Method and Sometimes On-Going Method for Acceptability and Loyalty 

Evil versus Truth and People Cannot See Past Their Selfishness 

Obvious Errors Everywhere in Religion and Yet Ignored 

The Correct Guide for Life: Science or the Scriptures? 

So, Where Do I Go? 

How Can So Many Get What Is So Important So Wrong? On the Other Hand, How Can One Come to the Correct Understanding of God and Life? 

The Difficulty of Being so Far from the Truth 

Intelligence and Ultimate Intelligence 

A Few Thoughts Helping to Sort Truth from Error 

Final Thought: Know God, Understand Life 

Extra: God and the Future of the World 

GOD 

Chapter 27 Religion is the Problem, and Religious truth is the Answer 

Chapter 28 The Inconceivable, Unimaginable Realization that Could Change Your Mind About God 

Bibliography by Subject 

Bible 

Atheist 

Mohammed and Islam 

Catholicism 

Protestantism 

Science and Creation 

Miscellaneous 

Preface and about the author

Any person desiring to understand God will greatly benefit from this reading. There is a good answer for atheism in terms of it being something that is reasonable and possible or unreasonable and impossible. We can all agree there is an end of life for each of us. We might even agree that it can come at any time and that events in our life seem to come and go quickly. Knowledge about God and the correct response is essential for success. Unfortunately, that knowledge has frequently been corrupted by religion. So much of religion is accepted without really understanding if it is true, although we think we know the truth. Behind the often-unscrupulous teachings of atheism and religion are the hidden motives of the teachers. Their stories can be powerfully convincing while being partially/totally fabricated. Usually, the religious deceit originated hundreds or even thousands of years ago, and the line of storytellers were also the victims of often well-conceived lies. The longevity of a doctrine and the substantial number of believers should NOT be reasons for your acceptance. The criteria must be truth versus error, and the truth is very singular.

It is doubtful, regardless of your current beliefs, that you can read this document and not be made to think, question, and even be changed. When we tear away the various facades, we can see the truth. In most cases, you will be amazed at how far you are from the truth. Associated with your belief, you will learn essential doctrines that comprise your convictions have weak foundations. In other words, the religions of the world were not constructed such that they could be trustworthy – being from humankind, not God. To a large extent, we will be able to demonstrate HOW and WHY this happened.

Religion or even atheism is in a person’s life to largely provide comfort. The atheist is comforted knowing there is no God, and they can live without anxiety as they please. The person of religion is seeking to succeed in the next existence. This document provides answers about God that will be hard to deny if you love the truth. The most disappointing thing will be how various persons of religion, particularly in the past and to this day, devised teachings to achieve some personal advantage. In some way, needs were created such that assistance from their religion is a necessity for you. Consequently, you join their organization believing they can fulfill those needs – because that is what they claim.

Note: The Basics of Your Beliefs Will Be Challenged. The truth exposes religious teachings and practices such that in good conscience, common sense, and sincerity, you may strongly consider rethinking your present beliefs.

At the risk of getting ahead of what the book will present, it is suggested that you cannot choose to join the religion of God, but via your choices, you are added by God. Shortly, this will become abundantly clear.

Certainly, in some cases, the motives of these religious people are not entirely for personal gain but to provide things that will help. However, usually in pride, they bring their private beliefs or interpretations as doctrine. In the process of substantiating their doctrine, some may claim a personal, supernatural interaction with God or someone representing God. Others pick and choose, often from the scriptures, in a way to justify their teachings. The end result is that you do not have the truth. This document is not in any way a detailed uncovering of the charlatans of religion but mentions a few and recognizes their contribution to deception. Getting to the truth (the focus of this book) exposes errors without any other discussion. In the bluntest possible way, this book is to help those who genuinely want to achieve heaven. God begins slowly building some background about His nature and then builds momentum by continually delivering the truth with powerful evidence. One of the strengths of this book is how everything fits together in defining life in relation to God. Of course, this is because God’s word fits everything perfectly together, and thus the material in this book only needs to be consistent with God’s message. In support and to clarify some topics, the reader is sent to certain internet sites containing pages or posts written by this author. There are also NOTES throughout the chapters following certain topics where it was believed that some additional clarification or support might help to understand.

About the author

Alan Gill’s professional background is science and engineering, particularly energy-related. He has held executive engineering positions for significant corporations and lectured at universities in the US and Canada. His deep interest regards finding THE TRUTH in everything, but particularly as related to our existence, and then determining how this can be expressed with clarity. Quite a long time ago, he discovered that the truth was easily achieved, but living the truth could be particularly challenging, and thus, many simply decide to change the message. The author’s attention is focused uniquely on this matter since it is eternal versus everything else is temporary. There is no animosity against those of various religions, and consequently, every person, regardless of their belief, must be respected. However, God-defined sin is exposed in the process of providing the truth, and this may be looked on as wrong when it is the single most right and loving thing for each person. Nonetheless, those bringing the message move on when requested.

About author books

The author has recently published five books, all dealing with God. The books are shown below:

NOTE ABOUT THIS BOOK: The author previously published this book under the title "God in November 2020. Now it is God – Essentials for Sharing in the Divine Nature." The book was modified to enhance clarity, add illustrations, and somewhat broaden the subject, as the new title suggests. The older version was taken out of print.

Helping You Understand God and Truth

God is the most important aspect OR the least important aspect in the life of each person. The truth about God seems to be whatever we want it to be, and that goes from atheist to agnostic to those who believe in God. Those who believe in God include two distinct categories, and those are the ones who possess the truth about God and those who do not. It turns out that by looking at the arguments for atheism, a great deal of the truth about God can be revealed by appropriately addressing their questions. Atheism is just an end-point in the study of God. In the middle are the agnostics. Agnostics are the casual, unsure, and lukewarm ones who would like to believe the right thing. One might say agnostics have a half-belief in God, which logically is no belief. Their commitment to finding the truth is nebulous or an incredibly low priority. At the other end of the spectrum are the many religions of humankind. The most significant enemy in achieving truth is religion, as there rests the true confusion and contemptible deceit. Religion in these modern times is largely responsible for the progress of atheism.

In this book, God (Essentials to share in the Divine Nature), we will present at least five things (maybe over 30) that will surprise you, that you will come to believe have been withheld from you, and that now you know are true. These are significant things in relation to understanding God and life and are important to your success in life. They will leave you in dread or joy, in hatred or in humility, in shock or in hope, and in any case, more knowledgeable. The difference in your reaction (terror or peace) to this information will depend on your love of the truth. Undoubtedly in today’s world, some will think anything discussed in a negative light means there is hatred. There is no hate, but simply the analysis to determine the validity of various religions. How else can a person get to the truth? The discussion of sin is always going to be sensitive, but no animosity is permitted toward those involved with various sins. As God is understood, you will better appreciate God’s definition and use of sin.

The target audience for this document is every person who wants the truth about God and life, or we might say, wants to succeed in life and achieve heaven. Carefully considered, the thoughts in this document can bring the readers down quite a surprising path to THE TRUTH. It is surprising because it is so different from the training people have received. Go judiciously through this material to the end, and regardless of your current beliefs or your position in the religious or non-religious world, your life, to some significant degree, will be changed. One essential thing will be your understanding of religion. It is true that religion is the problem, and for the reason stated below – they deceive and mislead. Yet there is this narrow place of truth where you can succeed. It would be so much better if the terminology of truth and error was used to describe the system we follow and not the word religion. Continually emphasizing truth would be a good thing.

Chapter 1  God, the Forever Question

A lways tell the truth – love the truth.

The age-old question of God’s existence will be answered in this document. Of course, if God’s existence is affirmed, what does that mean in terms of why we exist and our purpose? The starting point is to look at atheist arguments to assess their validity. Atheists have worked hard, albeit in a fragmented and careless fashion, to make a case for no God. Amazingly, there are solid answers to this confusing subject that pits atheists against those of religion. The answers to the questions of life are pretty simple to address, but there is considerable confusion from a history of religious deceit and the ways religions limit a person’s freedom to think outside their box. In today’s world, the easiest and quickest answer is desired because I do not have time. So as opposed to study and diligence, there are sound bites and one-liners that are often emotionally charged, defending or assailing one side or the other. Nobody wins, and there is only frustration.

One of the more significant things needed to uncover the truth is to remove a great deal of the deceit of religion. Often people will ask which religion is the truth. It would be unexpected that the answer would be they were all wrong. Many people believe they are all wrong except for the ONE they believe to be true, and a more popular belief would be that they are all right – i.e., everyone to their own belief. The truth, as presented in this book, will be powerfully convincing to those who love the truth – everything fits.

The answer to the question of the ages, the truth will be unfolded for you to accept or reject. Sounds impossible to get to the truth in this short document, not possible, yet it is possible. However, the answer is exacting and overwhelming because you must get through the history of confusion, deceit, and then your personal issues and current beliefs on the subject of God. We will strip the things that hide the answer, and there it is – THE TRUTH. All you need is a love of the truth, or we might say, how badly do you want eternal life?

Chapter 2  Indoctrination

B elieve things that are true.

You have been indoctrinated into what you believe despite thinking you made up your mind based on factual information and logical thinking. How do I know you were indoctrinated? I know because you are a human being. Can you be open to the possibility you have been indoctrinated in a manner that forbids or limits your search for anything different? If so, you might want to consider you do not necessarily possess the truth. Indoctrination, in the majority of cases, works very gradually from youth and is supplemented by a variety of things, such as additional influence from family, friends, and culture. In some cases, there are physical, economic, social, or other pressures to encourage your continued faithfulness. The indoctrination in much of the world at this time is very anti-God, as seen in the media, schools, and often from peers. Perhaps the most significant reason people are anti-God is that they like the freedom and comfort of living their lives without any rules, without any threats. This issue about God’s existence is very personal, and each person needs to determine for themselves the truth of the matter. The default position, which can be expressed in various ways such as, I do not care or I live for today with no concerns, is the same as the no-God position, and thus a choice was made. After all, God either exists or does not. If God does not exist, then most simply say at death, you go out of existence. This is consistent with existence/life resulting from a random, beyond imagination infinite number of accidents. If God does exist, then your associated actions (if this God has rules) in relation to your success or failure are arguably the most important things in your life. Of course, as mentioned, many believe that ignorance is most comfortable. The suggestion is to truly understand what you believe.

In addition to the no-God indoctrination, we are also talking about religious God exists indoctrination, and it can be overwhelming if you grew up with such training. It is relatively easy to break away from Catholicism (in the present age) but incredibly difficult to leave Islam. Each of the religions has developed powerful and often appealing techniques to maintain faithfulness, and some are physically, mentally, and/or socially intimidating.

There are some who can manage the confusion of the indoctrination of propaganda and overcome those powerful influences. They possess a characteristic called a love of the truth. It is a noble characteristic and essential to succeed in life. It is the sign of a strong and unselfish character that will accept nothing less than the truth. The love of the truth is on the good side of the equation, that is, the equation of good versus evil, or we might say truth versus error. Pride, inasmuch as we think exceptionally highly of ourselves, can keep us from rightly assessing the truth. We are talking about the power of indoctrination and how easily people can be manipulated. Those skilled in the area of apologetics know the right buttons to push to bring you to their point of view. Young people typically consider themselves independent thinkers but seem vulnerable to non-parent adults, perhaps likable, esteemed teachers. The indoctrination and associated influence over young persons can be obvious inasmuch as there is frequently a common and newly developed philosophy observed among many students. Young persons would not like to be thought of as naïve, and yet their lack of experience in the world makes them easy targets. There is a maturity that comes with experience that necessitates a wise person to consider the motives of their mentors/instructors. The most divisive indoctrination comes from the media, as people are constantly bombarded by the media's perspective. This is almost always prejudiced or slanted towards a media bias, and in the Western world, that is highly against God. This is a long way from the original media purpose of reporting, and typically, this meant reporting facts. Now media creates the news or news perspective, and at some point, people become saturated and accept the same bias, which is no longer biased but believed to be the truth. The religions of the world within their organizations provide the same indoctrination process and, in that way, continually mold their membership to their evolving doctrines.

Chapter 3  The Most Important Question

C reated or everything from nothing?

There is no more important question than does God exist or no less important question than does God exist? The true answer defines the importance. As previously mentioned, the no-God answer means you go out of existence when you die, and thus the no-God answer has little or no ultimate value. The God exists answer can be massively or mildly important depending on which God. The most profound God is the God of the Bible because He defines His purpose, your creation, your being as something beyond the physical, and your existence as continuing positively or negatively beyond your physical life.

This subject of God is filled with deceit on both the atheist side and the religious side. The largest amount of deceit easily goes to the God exists side. It seems the no-God position exists largely because of religion and the mess made by careless, selfish persons claiming to represent God. There is a massive history of religious lies that continues to this day. If you read this book, you may conclude you have been effectively influenced, and yet if well indoctrinated, you believe your conclusions, although now of more concern. This is the power of skilled indoctrination done by often-charismatic teachers. Yet the absolute best of indoctrination cannot win over one who loves the truth.

Most people have an awareness of their indoctrination or at least realize they have been moderately influenced on the subject of God. They usually underestimate the magnitude of the influence. The strength of indoctrination is obvious if you observe the number of people who continue without questioning what they are taught from an early age. On the other hand, those who have walked away from their childhood indoctrination to another belief system now own their new belief. Of course, this does not mean it is the truth, but that they found something different that they like. Good indoctrination is well-disguised, but this does not mean there is always a conspiracy. Frequently, our indoctrination comes from those (perhaps friends) who want to share the wonderful things they know. The bottom line is that there is truth, and there is error, and this requires you to make choices.

The no-God position carries with it the natural consequence that there is no ultimate truth other than, of course, there is no God. The God exists position claims there is truth, but the supposed truth varies from group/religion to group/religion. Truth, by definition, is singular, and the dramatic variation of beliefs means most or all do not have the truth. Many involved in a religion say everybody is right or that there are no ultimate truths, simply different versions of the truth. Again, truth is singular, and claiming that there are versions of truth confuses finding it and makes its search meaningless. In other words, the search would not be for truth but for something that makes sense – to you. It might seem hopeless to arrive at the answers to life, yet there is a clear path to truth. The rule for coming to the right answer requires you to understand what you believe. That is, you overcome the indoctrination and accept nothing less than the truth. I think this process could, in consideration of its importance, be called being fair to yourself.

Due to the weighty and sensitive subject of God, everyone has baggage, and quite often, it is very emotional. Religious discussions between those who believe differently might evoke anger. Frequently, there will be lines drawn in the sand that should not be crossed – they are sacred. These things might be attributable to indoctrination or various experiences. Thus, there can be an immediate dead-end to any discussion on the subject of God. However, there can be a comfortable and welcoming dialogue of God among those who believe the same or similar. The indoctrination has worked when there is a quick end to any differing discussion of God. This is not the position of one who loves the truth, much less one that has THE TRUTH. In our religious space, we have friends, family, and religious mentors who we trust and are likely fine people. They would suggest staying within the boundaries of your current beliefs. However, it is your eternal soul, and you need to understand what you believe.

This document is going to take you on an unexpected and comprehensive road of discovery about God. There is a reasonable chance, no matter what you currently believe, that you will be enticed to think differently and hopefully find or nudge you closer to the truth.

I was struck by the visual that follows because I immediately replaced the woman looking out the portals with myself. I do not know what she was thinking, but what would I think? More importantly, what would you think? Your view is important and consists of things you have formulated long before looking out the portal. Nonetheless, as you see the earth from your perch in the International Space Station, there is something overwhelming. What lies ahead? Is it non-existence, or is it an ongoing existence? Perhaps, it is the existence described in the scriptures that will either be marvelous or horrendous. Indeed, your view is important and drives your thoughts and actions in life. Knowing the essentials of Sharing in the Divine Nature is critical if you wish to succeed. There is nothing else of importance in life. In the end, your final location will be the only thing that matters.

Chapter 4  God, the Invention of Humankind?

D octrine: a communication from God or the fabrication of men/women?

Fifty thousand pages later, we would have done a reasonable job of providing the background for most of the historical gods and religions. Fortunately, we can quickly answer the question of God being the invention of humankind in a few sentences. Humankind has sought answers to why they exist, and, in the process, some have created deities to honor. Since people created these gods, there is no reason to believe they are correct – how could they know? Nonetheless, it seems that the leaders of the people, who were often the originators of these gods/religions, work to establish their gods and practices as the truth. This is the pattern for a religion that is, here is God, and here are the rules. This is the truth, and you need to believe it. Obviously, there can be various gains/honors for the leader/originators and especially including power over others – their followers. Something like this, to various degrees, is the way of all religions. However, in the midst of all this deceit, there still may be a NOT man-made God and doctrines.

The one record that stands out is the recordings known as the Bible because of the combination of its early existence, the beginning story of all things, its characters, its consistency of message, its wisdom in relation to people and situations, and its unique overall character that is not human-like. Also, we might add the Bible’s apparent weaknesses and faults allow for some potential support for a no-God conclusion. These apparent weaknesses turn out to be sophisticated, powerful, and perfect components of God’s test if the scriptures are rightly divided (see Chapter 18). Yet, there are obviously some significant reasons why so many reject the Bible as being from God. Before you complete this document, those reasons will be revealed and their validity.

Chapter 5  Atheism and Its Growth

E verything just happened .

Much of human history is not openly atheist. In fact, there was a fear of identifying with an atheist position, and so it seems many people, despite no-God beliefs, still associated with some religion. If they did not believe in God, they did not openly share their disbelieving in God’s existence. The atheism of any significance is more of a modern concept, although it has always existed. Diagoras of Melos from the fifth century may have been the first person of record who openly declared there was no God. Atheism and its acceptance are roughly nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first-century phenomena regarding its popularity. Today there are many books and a certain number of well-known atheists, who are often authors and highly desired speakers. The growth of atheism is accelerating and highly influenced by the absence of God in schools and in mainstream media. The media is particularly corrosive towards God inasmuch as they ignore GOD or use fictitious terms like Mother Nature or Mother Earth to describe things attributable to God. Mother Nature personifies the life-giving, nurturing aspects of nature by assigning the things of God’s creation as having a motherly oversight. Early use of this idea is from paganism, where Mother Nature was a goddess, although there are hundreds of nature goddesses in the mythology of various cultures. There is a real contempt for God in the media as they consistently portray religious characters as delusional, wild-eyed, and unreasonable. They have some credibility because some portion of religious persons possess those characteristics but no more so than the general population. Although God is ignored in early education, the colleges are filled with aggressive pro-atheist professors and many with strong atheist reputations and atheist authorship. Additional drivers of atheist growth are the numerous different religious beliefs, the religious history of cruelty, and the many deceitful religious practices. There is a great deal of visible corruption seen in many religious leaders who derive significant wealth by telling people what they want to hear while entertaining them. Indeed, the religious world is confusing and dishonest. Atheism grows by attacking the negative aspects of religion and by comparing faith, which they see as blind, with the claimed reason and logic of atheism. The other thing atheism needed to propel its cause was some help from science. They get that help from Darwin and from astrophysics in defining alternate possibilities to the Bible account of creation which includes life and intelligent life. Their scientific explanations may not be true or can be proven, but they can be presented as reasonable or possible, and this is essential to the modern arguments for atheism.

The Growth of Atheism in America

First, some logical arguments regarding God’s very probable existence. I mention these two articles that are actually the same article with different graphics because there is good reasoning for those who think the issue of God’s non-existence is, so matter of fact, a done issue. Over recent years I have heard a number of young people say science has proven that the existence of physical things, of living things, including intelligent living beings, required no external creator. I would hear that there no longer needed to be any discussion. There is only one word for this,