Shannon here: R. F. Whong shares the inspiration for her Action Adventure title, Fire Between Two Skies, plus a free downlaod of her nonfiction work, & chance to win 3 other titles. Comment or answer the question in any post dated Jan 15th – 31st. Deadline: Feb 7th, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s R.F.:
God’s Son—One Claim, Two Cultures
Every one of my books touches upon the Christian faith. That thread continues in my latest book, Fire Between Two Skies. Set against the fiery upheaval of the Taiping movement, the story explores a question that has long gripped me: how can the same claim—“I am the Son of God”—ignite such different responses in different cultures?
In first-century Judea, monotheism was the heartbeat of Jewish identity. For a Jew to claim to be the Son of God was to tread on sacred ground with fire. Such a claim was against the social order and also against God Himself. The consequence was predictable: rejection, and ultimately, death.
Now set that alongside nineteenth-century China. Traditional Chinese society, with its richly layered spiritual landscape, offered a different frame. When Hong Xiuquan announced he was God’s son and Jesus’ brother, his message found ready ears. The result was not isolation but the mobilization of multitudes to follow his vision.
That divergence fascinates me. Culture shapes plausibility. What sounds impossible in one context can appear inevitable in another. Yet even acknowledging that, I can’t stop thinking about Jesus’ claim and authority.
When I first read the Bible, I was stunned by how unapologetically Jesus spoke. As a Jew, He knew His words that identified Himself with the very name of God would collide head-on with the traditions of His people. Was He crazy? Only someone unhinged would insist on such things—unless, of course, His claim was true.
I’m a PhD scientist and always keep an open mind. If someone can point me to ancient texts that foretold his coming, and if that person fulfilled those prophecies—particularly through a death in accordance with those texts—then I have to take the claim seriously.
Within Isaiah are passages about Jesus from birth to death. For me, the existence of the Old Testament, centuries older than Jesus’ earthly life, adds weight to the belief that history is not random, that God speaks and then brings His word to fruition.
Fire Between Two Skies is not a theological treatise, but a story that stares at the juncture between faith and culture. Jesus’ claim was not aimed at regime change but at heart change. He refused the sword, embraced the cross, and fulfilled words spoken long before He walked the Galilean hills.
As a writer, I’m drawn to the tension between earth and heaven. As a scientist, I’m compelled by evidence that endures scrutiny. As a believer, I surrender to a story that is bigger than me, yet personal enough to answer my search.
If those themes resonate with you, I invite you to explore them with me in Fire Between Two Skies. And whether you come to the book as a skeptic, a seeker, or a fellow traveler in faith, I pray you’ll find, between the two skies of culture and conviction, a fire that illuminates more than it consumes.
Giveaway: My Journey into Writing Fiction
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Reader Question: If Jesus had been born in China, do you think his claim to be the Son of God would
have led to a different outcome?
January Book Bundle #2
My Journey in Fiction Writing by R.F. Whong, Nonfiction, Newsletter signup download
A Heart to Protect by Judith McNees, Contemporary Romance, e-book
Hidden Talent by Bettie Boswell, Romantic Suspense, ebook
Visible by Darlene Corbett, Romantic Women’s Fiction print
Author R.F.: Dr. Ruth Wuwong (PhD in biochemistry, MBA in finance) has published 120+ scientific books and papers (under her legal name) and a few Christian fiction books under R. F. Whong. She lives in the Midwest with her husband, a retired pastor. They served together at three churches from 1987 to 2020. Her grown son works in a nearby city.
She currently runs a small biotech company (www.vidasym.com) and has raised more than twenty million US dollars during the past few years for Vidasym.
In addition to her weekly newsletter and the platform (www.ruthforchrist.com), she’s active in several writers’ groups, including ACFW, Word Weavers, Facebook, and Goodreads. Through these connections, she plans newsletter/promotion swaps with others and has writers endorse her books, write forewords, and host her on guest blogs.
Ruth was chosen as a featured author by the Minnesota Anoka County Library in 2025 and by the Suffolk Virginia Authors Festival in 2026.
One of her books, Echoes over Stormy Sea, has won a few awards, including being chosen by readers as a winner in the HOLT Medallion Contest. Learn more & connect:
Ruth’s Facebook Ruth’s Twitter Ruth’s Website Ruth’s Linkedin
Ruth’s Instagram Ruth’s Goodreads Ruth’s Bookhip Ruth’s Bookbub
About the book – Fire Between Two Skies (Dual-Time Odyssey – Book 3):
Two eras. One relentless quest for truth amid desires and temptation. Across the centuries, two men are bound by parallel destinies that echo through time. Book 3 of this dual-time odyssey delves deep into the passions and struggles that connect their worlds.
In 2022 Hong Kong, Jason Guan, after losing his job as an assistant supervisor for wetland conservation, joins his uncle’s real-estate business. A chance meeting with his high school classmate, Vivian Jiang, draws him into a web of secrecy, seduction, and moral compromise. Amid the chaos, he and his wife, Debra, read an unpublished manuscript by her father, a celebrated writer, about the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (1851–1864) and a man’s futile pursuit of justice and peace on earth.
In nineteenth-century China, Zhang Xin, an orphan saved from the streets by Missionary Issachar Jacox Roberts, is swept into the fiery rebellion of the Taiping movement. Torn between the dream of a just kingdom, his forbidden love for Miao Lan, and his loyalty to his ruthless brother, Xin reckons with doubt, conscience, and the cost of faith.
When greed and exploitation eclipse justice, both men must navigate their respective perils. Will they prevail or be consumed?
Fire Between Two Skies Trailer
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God’s plan would’ve been completed no matter what.
I don’t because God work His plans anywhere at anytime.