The Shema is the Jewish confession of faith composed of three scriptural texts (Deuteronomy 6:4–9, 11:13–21; Numbers 15:37–41). Chapter six of Deuteronomy is SO crucial that Jesus quoted parts of it twice in his temptation defense against Satan. The most important declaration in the Old Testament, if not the Bible, is in verse four. "Hear, oh Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is One." With this sentence in view, Jews today will not believe in the Trinity nor Jesus as their Messiah. So, how do we Christians support the doctrine of the Trinity? We recognize that the above statement is true. However, we also understand, through various other scriptures, the other members of the Trinity are mentioned. In the beginning, we see God present and the Holy Spirit hovering over the creation. We then go to the New Testament and see several texts that show that Jesus was there in the beginning and was the Creator (John 1:3; 1Cor 8:6; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:2). Because of these references and others, we understand that the three persons of the Trinity were involved. The God of the Jews is our God. He manifested himself as Jesus Christ in the New Testament in John 14:8-14. So, Hear oh Christian, the LORD our God is one Lord!
Residing in Michigan for over half my life, I had heard about Paradise. Because Paradise is a small town in the Upper Peninsula, you may have never visited there in your life, but you knew it existed. It was WAY up there next to Tahquamenon Falls and nothing else. Where's Tahquamenon Falls? Next to Paradise and nothing else. It's a long way from home. Why all of the talk about Paradise? Because Paul talks about it in 2 Corinthians 12. There was this guy who had been caught up to Paradise. Not in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, but into the REAL Paradise. While there, he'd heard things that he was unable to repeat. What on earth was this? Who was this guy? Here's what was going on. Paul defended his position of Apostleship in chapter eleven and gave the Corinthians an idea of what Apostleship looked like in chapter twelve. It came with great wonders, like seeing or instead hearing unimaginable things. But, too, that position came with a terrible cost. God gave Paul a &q
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