The following short verse has ignited a firestorm of global controversy:

If it is true that the heaven and the earth were created by God, then we, and all of the rest of creation, are subject to Him. If, as many hope, this is not true, then He cannot claim us as His own and we would not be subject to His dominion and control.

In order to reject Him as the Creator, we must also reject Yahweh and His Word:

He formed the earth to be inhabited by those that are called by His name for His glory:

He created all things for His pleasure:

All of the heavens are to praise Him:

He created them. Therefore, they are to praise His name:

Likewise all of the earth is to praise His name, which is the only one that is excellent:

Praises are the freewill offerings of our mouths. As such, they are offered from love and not from obligation:

He wants us to love Him from the depths of our hearts, with everything that is within us:

That is also how He wants us to praise Him:

How can we, however, know if we are blessing Him with praises from the depths of all that is within us unless we know that we love Him with all of our hearts? David asked Yahweh to search his heart and his thoughts to find out if there was any "wicked way" in him:

Yahweh uses trials to reveal the contents of our hearts. He created Satan, whose name means "Adversary," and allows him to tempt and try us. Our response to Satan’s devices helps us to see more clearly our need for repentance.

The Adversary began his work disguised as a beguiling serpent in the Garden of Eden, where he tested the hearts of Adam and Eve. They failed the test. However, instead of accepting responsibility for their sin and coming to repentance, each of them sought to cover it up, to hide from Yahweh’s presence, and even to shift the blame onto someone else:

Therefore, Yahweh sent them away from His presence, away from the "Tree of Life:"

Sadly, through the unrepented sin of Adam, and his wife, Eve, we all became sinners. Without access to the "Tree of Life," we were not only destined for physical death, but also for spiritual death, as well, through our eternal separation from our Creator, Yahweh. Paul explains:

Therefore, we are born as children of the flesh, in the sin that we inherited from Adam. When we try to convince ourselves of our sinlessness, we fail to recognize the truth that we are all sinners:

Job is a good example of someone that struggled because he was unable to see that which was in his heart. Unknown to him was a seed of prideful self-righteousness, which he believed he had attained because of his goodness. Therefore, he seemed to be sharing in the glory that only belonged to Yahweh. To help Job to refocus his life, Yahweh allowed Satan to put him through many trials and afflictions:

The trials that Yahweh allowed Satan to put Job through were successful! After his afflictions, Job saw more clearly the glory of Yahweh and repented of his own self-righteousness:

Likewise, David often found himself overcome with pride. Therefore, Yahweh allowed Satan to put many temptations before him. In one example of a trial of his pride, Satan tempted David to number Israel:

In another account of the same event, we realize that it was Yahweh that had allowed Satan to tempt David:

David failed the test and numbered Israel. Once he yielded to the temptation of Satan and sinned, he could more clearly see his prideful heart. David was tested many times and he failed many of those tests. Each time, however, he was able to see more clearly his sinful heart, for which he repented.

We are certainly no better than Job or David. The sin of Adam is part of our nature. Our condition is so pitiful that Isaiah describes us as an "unclean thing." Our righteousness is as nothing, even being called "as filthy rags:"

Regardless of what some may teach, we are unable to remove our own sins. Even the Jewish scribes and Pharisees recognized that only God can forgive sins:

Our only hope is for God to miraculously intervene to save us from our sins. Therefore, Yahweh declares that He is our Savior!

For this cause, He offered a miraculous sign, revealing that He would come as "Immanuel," meaning "God with us:"

He was born as a child by the Spirit of God through the flesh of man. Therefore, He was both the Son of God and the Son of Man. He came as Yahweh the Savior (Yahshua, which has been traditionally translated as Jesus) in the form of a man to save us from our sins:

As we believe that He paid for our sins with His blood, He who created all things also forgives us of our sins:

Through Him, we have regained access to the "Tree of Life" and now have the promise of eternal life!

John declares Him to be "the Savior of the world:"

As His creation, we give Him glory. Praise you Yah!