Metamorphosis—Iu Believim Samting Iu Lukim?
FROM MAN WEA RAET FOR WEKAP! LONG CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
DISFALA kastom man hem dae. But planti wea hipap aotsaed haos bilong hem tingsay hem change nomoa. Bikos long semtaem wea man hia hem dae, olketa lukim wanfala bigfala snek hem goaot from haos bilong disfala man! Long samfala, diswan hem samting wea happen nomoa. But long narafala, diswan hem pruvim disfala kastom man change for kamap wanfala bigfala snek—hem kasem metamorphosis!
Long planti ples long Africa, disfala idea hao man savvy change for kamap wanfala animal hem strong tumas. Pipol believe olketa kastom man garem paoa for change olsem leopard and bigfala snek. Samfala pipol fraet and say olketa kastom man savvy changim narafala pipol for kamap olsem animal. Long west Africa pipol believe olketa kastom man savvy sendem go spirit bilong olketa man thru long bird and narafala animal for spoelem pipol. Long central Africa samfala fraet for killim wanfala elephant or snek, from nogud wanfala relative wea dae finis hem change and kamap disfala animal.
Long samfala maet diswan hem krangge belief, but planti pipol from Africa believim olketa change olsem hem really happen from pipol lukim. Olketa say planti story wea different pipol talem mas showimaot olketa samting hia really happen.
Planti kantri long world tu garem diskaen belief. Long Japan, olketa believim spirit bilong fox, dog, and badger savvy go insaed long man. Pipol long Europe tu garem kastom story abaotem olketa man wea change long naet and kamap wild dog wea killim man dae. Long narafala part long world, samfala story say olketa tiger, wild pigpig, crocodile, and puskat savvy change for kamap man.
Waswe, Bible Supportim?
Samfala say Bible tu supportim way for change wea kamap withim paoa wea no bilong man. Olketa savvy say pruf stap long fofala story insaed Bible. Long first wan, Jesus aotem demon from tufala man, and bihaen olketa kamaot, olketa demon go insaed olketa pigpig. (Matthew 8:28-33) Long mek-tu, wea stap long Numbers 22:26-35, donkey bilong Balaam hem tok long Balaam. Long mek-three, maet story wea planti pipol savvy abaotem, wanfala snek hem tok long Eve long gaden bilong Eden.—Genesis 3:1-5.
But, way for lukluk gud long olketa story hia pruvim olketa barava nating showimaot example bilong way for change. Tingim olketa pigpig wea demon go insaed long olketa. Bible no say olketa hia pipol wea change and kamap olketa pigpig. Nomoa, story long Bible talem hao bifor olketa demon go insaed long olketa, “staka pigpig go ahed for kaikai.” (Matthew 8:30) Olketa demon bilong Satan and no spirit bilong man nao go insaed olketa pigpig.
Waswe long donkey bilong Balaam and snek long Eden? Abaotem donkey bilong Balaam, Bible say “Jehovah openem mouth bilong disfala donkey” mekem hem savvy toktok. (Numbers 22:28) Hem no wanfala man wea kasem change. And disfala snek long Eden, Bible storyim disfala badfala spirit wea nem bilong hem Satan disfala Devil olsem “snek bilong firstaem.” (Revelation 12:9) Satan nao tok thru long disfala snek and “giamanim Eve long trik bilong hem.” (2 Corinthians 11:3) Tru nao, donkey bilong Balaam and disfala snek tufala stap olsem animal—bifor, long taem tufala toktok, and bihaen.
Mek-foa story hem abaotem praodfala king bilong Babylon Nebuchadnezzar. Bible say God mekem Nebuchadnezzar kamap humble. “Heart bilong hem kamap olsem bilong wanfala animal, and hem stap withim olketa wild donkey. Olketa givim hem gras for kaikaim olsem bulumakao, and wata bilong naet from heven mekem body bilong hem tuwet, go kasem taem hem luksavvy Most Hae God hem Ruler insaed kingdom bilong olketa man.” (Daniel 5:21) Insaed long sevenfala year wea hem krangge, lukluk and fasin bilong Nebuchadnezzar hem olsem wanfala animal. Olsem Daniel 4:33 talem, “hair bilong hem grow olsem feather bilong eagle and nail bilong hem olsem finger bilong bird.” Nomata olsem, king no garem really feather or finger bilong bird. Hem stap olsem man!
Tingting abaotem way for change wea kamap withim paoa wea no bilong man hem againstim teaching from Bible. First samting, bikos Bible showim hao man no garem separate soul wea savvy stap long animal. But, man seleva hem wanfala living soul”! (Genesis 2:7) Way for change hem againstim tu wanem Jehovah God workim. Hem workim olketa animal mekem olketa savvy bornim moa pikinini “followim laen bilong olketa.” (Genesis 1:24, 25) Bikos long way wea God workim animal, olketa animal wea bilong different laen no savvy join tugeta and bornim pikinini. And diswan barava moa hard withim animal and man, wea God workim long ‘image bilong hem.’ (Genesis 1:26) Tru nao, God bae no mek funny long olketa law bilong hem and givim paoa long man for change and kamap olsem animal wea no garem tingting.
Hem tru, iumi savvy lukim way for change long creation. Olketa caterpillar kamap butterfly, and tadpole kamap frog. But, taem iumi lukluk gud, way wea olketa change hia kamap hem no meanim change kamap long “laen” but hem olketa step nomoa for grow long disfala sem “laen.” Taem olketa kamap full grown, bae olketa bornim samfala moa “followim laen bilong olketa.”
No Believim Evritaem Samting Iu Lukim
Sapos olsem, waswe long pipol wea say olketa lukim change wea kamap withim paoa wea no bilong man? Hem klia, diswan hem kamaot from “work bilong Satan withim olketa strongfala work and olketa giaman saen and warning and withim evri fasin wea no raeteous for olketa wea bae dae evribit.”—2 Thessalonians 2:9, 10.
Olsem planti raf pipol, olketa demon wantem pipol for believim hao olketa garem moa paoa winim wanem olketa really garem. Olketa duim ‘planti saen’ wea semsem olsem trik bilong olketa man for steal and conman.
Diswan mekem iumi tingim olketa man wea iusim card for giamanim pipol wea stap long planti maketples long Africa. Olketa sweetim samfala haoswaef wea lusim selen bilong olketa long diskaen play wea no honest. Bae olketa showim woman hia threefala card—tufala red and wanfala blak—and talem hem hao hem savvy kasem moa selen sapos hem choosim blak card. Woman hia hold back for play—but then hem lukim narafala man hem win and luk olsem play hem easy. But woman hia no savvy hao man wea win hem insaed disfala giaman grup. Woman hia play and hem lukluk long disfala blak card taem datfala man mixim olketa card. But woman hia shame and barava sek taem card wea hem choosim hem red. Hem spendem selen for kaikai bilong famili bilong hem—hem suffer from greedy fasin bilong hemseleva and kleva trik bilong datfala nogud man! Hem tu late nao, hem savvy hao man mas no believim evritaem samting wea hem lukim.
Long sem way, Satan and olketa demon bilong hem hapi for giamanim pipol for tingsay man savvy change and kamap animal. Satan hem savvy tumas for giaman. From hem nao talem firstfala liar, taem hem say long Eve: “Bae iu nating dae. . . . Iu bae kamap olsem God.” (Genesis 3:4, 5) Disfala liar bringim kam olketa different teaching wea mekem pipol fraet, olsem way wea soul kanduit dae, hellfire, and way for change. Dastawe, long Africa pipol willing for peim bigfala selen for “kastom medicine” bikos olketa tingsay diswan bae protectim olketa for no kamap animal. But really samting, olketa kamap olsem slave long “teaching bilong olketa demon” and diswan stopem olketa for duim will bilong God.—1 Timothy 4:1; James 4:7.
Trufala Way for Change
Maet for longfala taem iu believim or fraetem way for change. Sapos olsem, obeyim toktok bilong Bible long Romans 12:2. Long there, insaed langwis bilong Greek bifor hem iusim disfala toktok me·ta·mor·phoʹo. Iumi read: “Kamap different evribit [me·ta·mor·phouʹsthe] long way for changim mind bilong iufala.” Diswan meanim wankaen change savvy happen—change evribit long fasin!
Olketa wea want for mekem God hapi mas duim diskaen change, from Bible encouragim iumi: “Tekaotem oldfala fasin withim olketa way bilong hem, and wearim niufala fasin, wea thru long stretfala savvy hem go ahed for kamap niu fitim image bilong dat Wan wea create-im.”—Colossians 3:9, 10.
Hao nao iu savvy change? Long way for kasem stretfala savvy from Bible. Datfala savvy maet mekem iu for lusim samfala idea and tingting wea iu tinghae long olketa. But olsem Jesus say, “iufala bae savvy long truth, and truth bae mekem iufala free.” (John 8:32) Yes, iu savvy kamap free from liar teaching and way for fraetem way for change.
[Piksa long page 17]
No evri samting wea eye bilong iumi “lukim” hem tru samting
[Credit Line long page 15]
Witch doctor: Courtesy Africana Museum, Johannesburg