The Gift of Water

84. And remember We took your covenant (to this effect): Shed no blood amongst you, nor turn out your own people from your homes: and this ye solemnly ratified, and to this ye can bear witness.

85. After this it is ye, the same people, who slay among yourselves, and banish a party of you from their homes; assist (Their enemies) against them, in guilt and rancour; and if they come to you as captives, ye ransom them, though it was not lawful for you to banish them.

Here we are. These are words ignored by Islamic Extremists who kidnap and kill in the name of God. May they be stripped of the adjective "Islamic" for failing to heed their own beliefs.

94. Say: "If the last Home, with Allah, be for you specially, and not for anyone else, then seek ye for death, if ye are sincere."

95. But they will never seek for death, on account of the (sins) which their hands have sent on before them. and Allah is well-acquainted with the wrong-doers.

A lord in the desert offers you a glass of water. You drink only half and spill the rest on the ground. Then you approach the lord and say, "I have drank all my water, may I now have the wine?" Do you think he will give you wine?

I think I'd rather drink the water and find I am unable to finish the cup. And when the lord comes for me, I will say, "I'm sorry, I tried to finish but my stomach was filled and you gave me more than I could ever possibly finish."

And I believe the lord will say, "That was the point. We are in a desert."

Is it that whenever there comes to you an apostle with what ye yourselves desire not, ye are puffed up with pride?- Some ye called impostors, and others ye slay!

And there is my own spiritual quandary. I dance on the edge of calling Paul an impostor. What if one claiming to be an apostle says one thing, and another claiming to be an apostle claims the opposite? Who truly speaks for the Lord? If both, then we will always reject the Lord's word no matter what we do. I'm afraid I will die without coming to an end of this logical loop.

This is how my cup is more than I could ever drink. This is why I will never be so arrogant that I believe I have come to the end of my spiritual path and can empty the Gift of Life onto the ground in favor of the Lord's company. We will never be worthy, we are dependent on His forgiveness completely.

Be humble.