The Eden Conspiracy

by Clayton Carlson

This time as the Jake reaches its maddening crescendo, Adam up shifts rather than braking. The truck quickly picks up speed again, as the Jake brake reaches its frantic pitch. Several more cycles of these up shift patterns and the semi has started to vibrate with freeway speed as the wind whistled through the window seal cracks.

  Isaac started to look less contemplative and more worried as he stares wide eyed through the windshield as the highway drops below them, down the hill for as far as he could see. He glances at Adam who is unconcernedly making his last up shift into top gear. The Jake brake was beginning its slow advance into the realm of overwhelmingly loud.

  “She certainly can run,” Adam yells over the noise with a growing smile. “Wind resistance can hold her back now. When we get to the bottom we’ll almost be able to coast into Kelowna.”

  With growing alarm, Isaac asks, “Should we be going this fast down such a steep hill?”

  “Maybe not, depends who you ask. All sorts of things, could, happen, but not much is likely to. I think it’s called risk management. We'll know for sure when, or if, we get to the bottom,” Adam's weak attempt at reassurance was a complete failure. Isaac nervously watched in the side mirror as the air turbulence from the speeding semi, buffeted the young saplings growing in the ditch.

  “I would like to start out on a happy note. With a subject that is not so sad,” Ting explained. “Who is Santa Claus and how does he fit into the birth of Jesus at Christmas?” Tang light-heartedly asks Isaac his first question.

  Glad for the distraction from his present mode of transportation, Isaac thought how best to answer Ting's question.

  “He doesn't really have anything to do with the birth of Jesus,” Isaac began. “The real life Santa Claus is believed to have been a monk named St. Nicholas from Patara, in modern-day Turkey. He was born sometime around 280 A.D. He was known for his kindness and generosity. He is believed to have given presents out to the children at Christmas. That is why it is St. Nicholas who distributes toys to children around the world at Christmas.

  We know that it isn't the original St. Nicholas giving out the presents, but those who do give presents out to others could be said to be doing it in the spirit, or tradition of St. Nicholas.”

  “Oh. I didn't know that,” Said Ting with surprise. “There is such a fuss about Santa that I thought he was there when Jesus was born.”

  “No, he came into the picture later on. In fact a lot of the traditions surrounding Christian holidays don't come from the bible at all. Many come from the pagan world that the early Christians encountered when they were spreading out from Jerusalem during the first century,” Isaac explained.

  “The early Christians would try to make the concepts of Jesus and God relevant to the new converts by using symbols they were already accustomed to. The apostle Paul did this in Corinth by introducing the people there to God the creator by telling them he was the god they already had a shrine to, as the unknown god. Paul used something they could relate to, to introduce them to Jesus. Early Christians often found, having a cultural reference point to start with helped them introduce Jesus to those who had no concept of the true God.

  Familiar symbols like the yule log, a decorated tree, coloured eggs and even the symbol of the cross, all can be traced back to pre-Christian times. These were the symbols the early Christians used as conversation starting points that the new converts would recognize. Christians gave new interpretations to these familiar symbols to introduce the pagan world to Jesus.

  And I hate to be the one to break the news to you, but not everyone in Canada are Christian. North America may be thought of as, Christian, but most people who live there are not living their lives in an effort to follow the example of Jesus. Christian holidays have been commercialized in an effort to sell more merchandise. Christian ideals are being replaced with marketing,” Isaac frowns as he explains to Ting.

  “Oh, I think I understand,” Replied Ting. “So Christian traditions were made up by Christians themselves? I thought those traditions represented truth about God, but they are really just made up stories. I’ve always wondered how Jesus could have been born of a virgin. What you are telling me now explains a lot,” Adam nods his head and has a look of awakened understanding on his face.

  “No, no,” Isaac quickly says trying to correct the misunderstanding. “Not everything is made up, only some of the traditions. For example, December the 25 may not be the actual day Jesus was born on, we don't know the real day. So we picked a day that was already celebrated as the return of the sun, using that day to introduce the coming of God's son to the world.

  All of the truths about the birth of Jesus come from the Bible. In fact the Bible is the only source of all Godly truth. Jesus was born to a virgin as the Bible tells us. Traditions were made by man, but truth comes from God and can be verified through studying the Bible.”

  Isaac thinks of another example, “Take the wise men for instance. The Bible doesn't tell us how many there were, but it's a Christian tradition that there were three because the Bible tells us they brought three different kinds of gifts, gold, frankincense and myrrh, one for each wise man. There could have been ten wise men with these gifts, Christians just made it a tradition there was only three.

  In a similar way, Christians have the tradition that the wise men came to see Jesus in the manger. The Bible tells us that they came to a house, and refers to Jesus as a child, not a baby. More evidence that Jesus was older, is that Herod had all boys from two years old and younger killed.

  These Bible facts are left out of Christian, traditional Christmas celebrations. To get all the facts you need to study the Bible. Christmas is a joyous holiday where Christians celebrate the coming of Jesus to the world. Without his coming mankind would still be doomed and mired in their sins. The celebrations give us a fun way to proclaim Jesus to those around us.”

  “Oh, you Christians make it hard to know what is true and what is tradition. Why not just stick to the facts?” Ting asks in frustration.

  “Yes, Christian denominations do vary in what they believe, but they all want to follow Jesus. They just understand the Bible teachings a bit different from each other. Some seem to hold tighter to their traditions than they do to the Bible though,” Isaac agreed. “I can see how it might be difficult to sort out.”

  “That is why I wanted to talk to you, I would like to get a real Bible answer,” Said Ting. Adam lightly pressed on the brake in an effort to control the speed of the semi, still rapidly descending the hill.

  “I want to know where my family is. My mom, dad and brothers, where are they now? When and where do I get to be with them? I miss them,” A tear slowly runs down Adam's cheek as Ting croaks out his words.

  “Some Christians who helped me in China told me that I had to believe and accept Jesus in order to have eternal life with him and God. They said there was no other way, except to be saved through Jesus. Is that true?”

  “Yes. That is absolutely true,” Confirmed Isaac “There is only one way to have our sins forgiven and dwell with God forever and that is if we let Jesus wash our sins away by the blood of his sacrifice. Only those who believe in Jesus can have eternal life. Salvation comes through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. We know this to be true, Jesus is our example to follow. He was dead but is now alive with God in heaven, if you want to have eternal life with your heavenly Father, then you must accept Jesus as you saviour. No one can make it on their own.”

  “Yes I do want that eternal life,” Ting replied enthusiastically. “But I am not asking for myself, I am asking about my family. Where are they? They went through so many hardships and died, so that I could live free and have a better life. Where are they? I am not as concerned about myself, as I am concerned for them. What does your God and Jesus have for them?” Ting asks bluntly, as Adam looked directly into Isaac's eyes.

  “Well, I don't know that I can give you much good news for them. The Bible clearly tells us that the only path to salvation is through Jesu
s. Only those who follow and accept him will gain eternal life. Unfortunately, those who don't have their sins cleansed by Jesus will be in the fires of Hell, where they will be tortured for the rest of eternity,” Isaac pauses for a moment of thought.

  “Your twin brother could be spared from Hell though, as he may have been too young to be responsible for his sins. God is merciful and won't punish those who aren't emotionally responsible for their sins. Infants and young children would fall into that category, so it is a possibility that your twin brother is already waiting in Heaven for you. Don't you want to get to be with him there when you die?” Isaac's voice sounds excited with the possibility of Ting's Heavenly future.

  “Yes, of course I would like to be with my twin brother, but also with the rest of my family,” Ting protests. “You say that your God is merciful to those who are not emotionally responsible for their sins because of their age. What about those who never herd the message about Jesus and sin forgiveness? Why isn't your God merciful towards them? No one in my family knew about Jesus, salvation, or eternal life.

  They tried to be the best people they could be. Their selfless acts during my life prove that to me. They might not have been chronological infants when they died, but concerning the knowledge of Jesus, they were newborns.”

  “I'm sure they were good people and did their best, but that isn't what brings salvation. Salvation is found only in Jesus,” Isaac reiterated forcefully.

  “No matter how good we are, our righteousness is like filthy rags compared to God's standard of good. Jesus lived a life free of sin so that he could pay the death penalty for all of humanity. His one perfect sacrifice redeems all those who accept it. We must willingly take Jesus to be our saviour and follow him, otherwise we are lost.”

  “But my family would have accepted Jesus if only they had heard about him and his salvation,” Ting reasoned. “They never got a chance to hear about him in North Korea. How were they to learn about him there?

  It's easy for you to say they have no chance, your family have all heard about Jesus. They probably grew up knowing about him. We knew nothing about him; it's not fair to send my family to Hell to be punished for the rest of eternity without the opportunity to repent.”

  “I am sorry Ting,” Isaac said sympathetically. “I can see how much you love your family, but I can't change what the Bible teaches me. There is no salvation without Jesus.”

  Ting goes silent as Adam keeps the truck barreling down the hill. Stepping slightly on the throttle Adam turns off the Jake brake. The truck cab goes quiet with the exception of the wind whistling around the windows. This calming reprieve takes Isaac by surprise. Looking forward out of the windshield he sees that they are finally at the bottom of the hill. Before he has time to comment on their progress they are bouncing over the Trepanier Creek bridge.

  “See going fast wasn't a problem after all,” Adam said with a smile. “We aren't going over the speed limit by much. I like to let the truck run out the last bit of the hills. You worry too much about things you don't know anything about. We would still be up there on that hill for another half hour if you were in charge.”

  Steering side to side for a better viewing angle, Adam checks out the trailer the best he can through the big side mirrors. As far as he could tell, all looked well.

  Briefly looking at Isaac, Adam asks. “So how is showing the love of Jesus to Ting going? Is it the positive life affirming gospel you were describing, or does it include the subject of death?”

  “Showing the love of Jesus to others is more than just telling them about Jesus. It also includes meeting the physical needs they have. Ting will see the love of Jesus through my act of teaching him English. Love is useful and informative,” Isaac insists.

  “Yes, it can be both of those,” Adam agreed. “But Ting is in need of some emotional healing. So far you have only seemed to make him feel bad for his family and mad with your unfair God. Is that the good news of Jesus you were talking about? If it is, Ting isn't feeling the love.”

  “That's because he wants his family to be safe in heaven,” retorted Isaac. “They can't be in heaven if they don't accept Jesus. Jesus is the only way for salvation and they must personally accept him. You know that.”

  “Yes I agree with you, we can only be saved from our sins through Jesus,” Adam said nodding his head. “But you give no possibility for those who had never heard about Jesus. Your lack of understanding of human mortality and the plan of God is limiting the potential for Ting's family. You are only bringing good news for him and bad news for his family.”

  Isaac sits silently pondering Adam's words as the semi rapidly climbs the last hill of the connector before they merge onto highway 97 heading into West bank.

  “Hey,” Ting breaks into the void of conversation. “How can my family be alive in the agonizing torments of Hell for the rest of eternity?

  Adam turns his head and looks at Isaac.

  “You said the only way to have eternal life is to accept Jesus. No ifs ands or buts. Since they didn't get the chance to accept Jesus they can't be alive. They must be dead. And they won't live in Hell forever, as that would mean they have eternal life. Is this more of your made up Christian tradition stuff like Christmas? I want to know what the bible truly teaches. I have no patience for fables,” Ting was struggling to keep his emotions in check and be polite, as he forcefully talked to his honoured guest.

  Isaac was taken aback by the stinging charges. “Yes, we do need Jesus, to receive eternal life,” Isaac stammers. “And the wicked will be punished forever in Hell.”

  “How?” asks Ting. “My English needs improving, not my reasoning. If I need Jesus to gain eternal life, I can't have eternal life without him. So those who reject Jesus, end up in Hell, without eternal life. It only stands to reason.

  Without eternal life you can't be tormented forever. Your teaching doesn’t add up, are you sure that your doctrine didn't come from those pagans the early Christians were trying to convert? Like the Christmas tree?” Ting added sarcastically.

  Ting continues angrily. “How can I trust Christian tradition when their most celebrated times and holidays were made up by themselves? I would be no better off than some of the religious people I met on my way here. Hindus and Buddhists who worship statues and gods of their own making, their beliefs seem to all be based on stories and ancient legends. To me, you sound just like them, sure that what you are teaching is right, but have no proof, except some hollow fables of man.”

  “Now I take exception to that,” Isaac protested. “Yes some of the Christian traditions were made up by Christians themselves, but the basic truths come from the word of God, found in the Bible. I can find the scriptures for you if you would like.”

  “Oh, I am sure you have some Bible verse that you believe proves your point, but would all Christians agree with you?” Ting questioned.

  “There seems to be no end to the variety of Christian denominations and their beliefs, how do I know which one is right? They all say they follow the Bible, yet they all can't agree on what is true, even though I have been told, the Bible will not contradict itself. All I want to know for sure is, where is my family and when do I get to be with them.

  If what you have told me is true and my family has nothing to look forward to, other than to be tormented in hell for the rest of eternity, simply because they never had the chance to hear about Jesus, then I don't want to become a Christian. I would never forsake my loved ones to be in hell by themselves. I would rather join them there in torment. We could at least be together in suffering. I don't want to be with a God in paradise, who would condemn uninformed people to eternal torment without giving them a chance to learn. It feels so wrong!” Ting's voice was defiant, as Adam's face started to twist in rage.

  “The ways of God are mysterious to us mortals,” Chirped Isaac.

  Ting interrupted, cutting Isaac's words short before he could continue with more platitudes.

  “Yes, you see, you just said
it yourself. Us mortals,” Ting said in a flurry, clearly agitated. “We don't have an eternal life. The evolutionists are right. When we die, we are dead; we become dust, just like what is said at Christian funerals. ‘Ashes to ashes, dust to dust’. Man is mortal. So my family is not in hell now, they are just dead. Dead, like Jesus was dead after being crucified.

  I was told by the Chinese Christians I met, all Christians believe Jesus came back to life after being dead and buried for three days in the grave. Apparently, that was the only sign he gave to prove he was the Messiah. Then God would bring him back to life after three days. If Jesus truly died to save me, why isn't my family just dead and waiting for God to bring them back to life, same as he did for Jesus? Why do you say that my family is alive now, being tormented in Hell.

  You are saying, they have immortality without believing in Jesus, yet you also say, we must accept Jesus to have eternal life and gain immortality. Your words are not consistent with your stated beliefs. How can I trust you? You just aren’t credible,” Adam monumentally lets go of the steering wheel throwing his hands in the air, while Ting makes a huffing, scoffing sound with his breath.

  “I don't mean to upset you,” Isaac reassured. “I want to show you how much Jesus loves you. I am here to help you because I want to demonstrate the love of Jesus to you and let you hear the good news of how you can have your sins forgiven and gain eternal life with God,” Isaac talked earnestly, trying to make a fresh start in the conversation. Ting was having none of it, as the safety of his family was his biggest concern.

  “You need to consider your eternal salvation. By rejecting Jesus, you will be no help to your family. You will only be hurting yourself. We all must make our own choices as they are presented to us. You can't help your family choose now, they are in God's hands,” Isaac continued.

  “Yes we must make the best choice we can with the options we are given,” Ting agreed. “But how can I accept and worship a God who condemns people to a horrible fate without giving them the opportunity to accept his free gift of salvation? I find that so unfair, I don't want to worship a God like that, let alone have to spend eternity with him. I don't think I could last that long without getting mad at him for imprisoning my family, as well as all the others that share in their fate.

  I could never love this God of yours as you describe him. I had been led to believe the Christian God was our heavenly father, a father who loves his children and wants the best for them, not one who destroys the uneducated rather than teaching them.”

  Isaac is silent while his mind raced through the rehearsed scenarios he had practiced in school. Adam was busy negotiating the increased traffic through Westbank. They had to stop for a couple red lights and Adam was complaining about the other road users having no idea about the limitations trucks have when it comes to stopping quickly.

  “They should teach beginner drivers about how hard it is for trucks to stop,” Adam complained loudly after a car pulled tight in front of him and then stopped for the changing traffic light. “This guy is lucky we have no load. If we did, he would have become a bumper ornament. When a car is involved in a crash with a truck, the truck driver is only hurt ten percent of the time. Probably trips getting out of the truck to help the car driver! If people remembered that statistic, they might give trucks a bit more room to stop, it would be in their best interest.”

  Isaac remains oblivious to what is going on around him as he tries to think of answers for Ting.

  “Ting,” Isaac called over to Adam. “This is your time to accept Jesus. God wants you to be his son. If you don't accept Jesus, you will lose your soul in the fires of Hell. God doesn't want that to happen, he loves you so much that he sent his only begotten son to die for you, paying for your sins, so that you should not die, but have everlasting life.

  You can be redeemed of your sins through Jesus and live forever in heaven with God. Your penalty has been paid in full through the love of Jesus. He doesn't want you to die. He wants you to live with him forever.”

  “That sounds very nice,” said Ting. “Most people would want to live forever in paradise. But I don't think you have thought through your terminology, or your doctrine.”

  “What do you mean by that?” Isaac asked with a mixture of shock and annoyance in his tone of voice. “I have been telling you the Bible truth through our entire conversation.”

  “Well could you please give me your definition of life and death?” Ting asked with exasperation. “It seems to me you use them to mean the same thing. If I accept Jesus, I have eternal life in heaven, but if I reject Jesus, I have eternal life in hell. Yet I can only gain, eternal life, if I accept Jesus, so by not accepting Jesus, I should die.

  What is death and what is life? You seem to be making them both the same thing. The only difference is, one is pleasant and one is nasty. You just told me that God doesn't want me to die, but wants me to live. Then you tell me I must choose, that I can be in bliss forever in heaven, or be tormented in hell for the rest of eternity. What is it, because it can't be both? I'm either dead, or alive.”

  “You focus too much on death,” Scolded Isaac. “Jesus wants to give you, life eternal. All you have to do is accept him and you can have true life.”

  “Of course I'm focused on death. My family are all dead. Where are they, what's happening to them, that's what I want to know about?” Ting exclaimed. “That's what I have been asking you about. Their outcome is what I want to know, not mine. Don't you first world people think of others, or is your only concern for yourself?” Ting's voice was loud and accusational. Adam was talking so forcefully that he was beginning to spray small amounts of saliva onto the windshield.

  “Well of course you die,” Isaac said slowly and purposefully as if he was talking to someone who didn't have all of their mental faculties. “We all die physically, but your soul lives on. That's why you need to choose Jesus now while you can. Once you die it will be too late to save your soul from the fires of hell, ‘For it is appointed unto men once to die, then comes the judgement’.”

  “Am I not a man, made the same as Jesus?” Ting asked inquisitively. “I was told he was fully man and fully God. Jesus was supposed to have died for my sins providing me access to salvation and eternal life. Wasn't he dead for three days and then came back to life? Wasn't that the proof of his messiah-ship?”

  “Yes he did die physically. But the Bible tells us that he preached to the spirits in bondage when he was in the grave. Here I'll read it to you,” Isaac explained. Then he read out loud from the lap top.

  “1 Peter 3:18-20 KJV

  18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:

  19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;

  20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.

  There, do you see? That confirms it. Jesus preached to the imprisoned spirits after he died and was in the grave,” Isaac said confidently. “His body died like ours will, but his soul lived on to preach to others. Our souls are immortal, when we die they go on to be with Jesus in heaven, or they go to be punished in hell. That's what the bible tells us.”

  Adam runs his fingers through his hair and shakes his head as Ting replies to Isaac. “You just said we could only have eternal life if we accepted Jesus. Now you say we have a soul that has eternal life, without the sacrifice of Jesus. What you should be saying, is that Jesus is only needed to get to heaven and avoid hell.

  Your also saying that Jesus didn't really die to forgive my sins; he was just extremely physically handicapped. Dead people have none of the aspects of life. You can't be dead, if you are alive and conscience outside of your body. That would only make you physically challenged.

  If what you say now is true, then what you told me were the basic truths o
f Christianity are false. Like I said earlier it appears as though you don't know your terminology and you haven't thought through your doctrine. Alive is alive, dead is the opposite. You can't be both at the same time. Your beliefs make the Bible very contradictory.”

  “No, no, no,” Isaac retorted in a huff. “You only die physically. Your essence, you soul, your spirit if you will, lives on. Your body and you soul are separate entities but go together to make up who you are. The body dies but the spirit lives on.”

  “Then I don't need Jesus to receive the gift of eternal life. In fact it's not much of a gift from God if I already possess it, I have had it since birth,” Ting reasoned. “The eastern religions are right; they believe I only need to become a better person in this life to have a good afterlife. My karma will determine my destiny, good or bad. At least they offer hope to everyone, dead or alive and not just to those who have heard about Jesus and have accepted him.”

  Chapter 20

  New Ideas