A MESSAGE TO WORLD LEADERS
The
Gospel of Jesus
Christ can become lost
in a world
saturated with information. Here
is a message you cannot
afford to ignore or loose.
Two thousand years ago, John the Baptist, a
prophet of God, delivered this message to the people of Israel: "Repent,
for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!" (Mat.3:2). He was followed by Jesus
Christ who told them that the Kingdom of God was already in their midst,
meaning that He, Jesus Christ, represented that Kingdom (Luke 17:21, margin).
Those who have repented and accepted this message,
have received God’s unshakable promise that they will inherit eternal life and
become priests and kings in the Kingdom of God.
Rev 1:4 John, to the seven churches which are
in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come,
and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,
Rev 1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful
witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the
earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,
Rev 1:6 and has made us kings and priests to
His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Rev 5:9 And they sang a new song, saying:
"You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were
slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue
and people and nation,
Rev 5:10 And have made us kings and priests to
our God; And we shall reign on the earth."
Rev 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat on
them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those
who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who
had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark
on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for
a thousand years.
Rev 20:5 But the rest of the dead did not live
again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first
resurrection.
Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is he who has
part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but
they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand
years.
1Co 15:50
Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the
kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption.
1Co 15:51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall
not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—
1Co 15:52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an
eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be
raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on
incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
1Co 15:54 So when this corruptible has put on
incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to
pass the saying that is written: "Death Is Swallowed Up In Victory."
1Co 15:55 "O Death, Where Is Your Sting? O
Hades, Where Is Your Victory?"
1Co 15:56 The sting of death is sin, and
the strength of sin is the law.
1Co 15:57 But thanks be to God, who gives
us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
1Co 15:58
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always
abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in
the Lord.
1Th 4:13 But I do not want you to be ignorant,
brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others
who have no hope.
1Th 4:14
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring
with Him those who sleep in Jesus.
1Th 4:15 For this we say to you by the word of
the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord
will by no means precede those who are asleep.
1Th 4:16 For the Lord Himself will descend from
heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of
God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
1Th 4:17 Then we who are alive and
remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in
the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
These passages, cited in their entirety for your convenience,
express the basic message that Jesus Christ brought to this world: human beings
have been placed on this planet for a transcendental purpose – eternal life in
the Kingdom of God.
A call to repentance is a call to a life of
righteousness. Those who respond to this
call have God's unshakable promise that they will receive eternal life in His
Kingdom at the resurrection of the dead.
This promise will be fulfilled shortly. The world is in the throes of the greatest
revolutionary change ever: a change of leadership in every nation of the
world. New kings and priests will take
over and install a rulership according to the law of God. The current world difficulties and realignments
are a prelude to that event.
This message concerns that change! It is a call to repentance to every leader in
the world. God will not change the
leadership of any nation before He gives them a chance to repent. Jesus Christ is telling everyone that it is
not too late to respond to His call. He
is giving you the chance to receive an inheritance far greater than the one you
currently possess. He said:
Mat 20:16 So the last will be first, and the
first last. For many are called, but few chosen."
“The last” meaning that you are among the last
people to be called to repentance in this age, and “the first” that you will be
among the leaders in His eternal Kingdom.
Make sure therefore that you are not only called, but also chosen.
This work is not being done in the name of any
existing church or religion, but in the name of God and Jesus Christ. Since all preach sectarian messages, which
have torn the world apart for millennia, it was necessary to raise an
independent work that carried the divine message unadulterated by current doctrines
and ideologies.
We expect no credit and no recompense for our
work. We do not do this for profit, but because the Almighty has laid this
burden upon us and shown us that this message must go out to the world while
conditions still permit it. The
Scriptures are telling us that those who preach the true Gospel to the nations
at this particular junction in world history will pay a high price for their
efforts. An unbelieving world brought up
on a diet of cynicism and deception cannot bear to hear sound knowledge and
will avenge itself on those who preach it. Be that as it may, we are privileged
that the Almighty has called us to fulfill His purpose.
The fact that we have no affiliation with any
existing church or religion, that we rely solely on the Bible and the Holy
Spirit for guidance, that we impose no burden on anyone, should give you an
indication that this kind of work is not possible outside the guidelines of the
Holy Spirit.
When talking about His servants, Jesus Christ
said, "You will know them by their fruits" (Mat.7:16). We say: know us by our fruits!
Your repentance and conversion are between you and
God; we are merely the facilitators of this process. We keep no personal
records and no files aside from our mailing lists and such as are required for
legal purposes. Those who wish to have
their names removed from our mailing list, we will sadly oblige.
Having made our work and ourselves known to you,
it is now up to you. We declare, on the
revelation of God Almighty, that there is no other work on earth that preaches
the true Gospel of the Kingdom of God in this end of the age. It is not hard to
find out if our claim is true. All you
need is open up your Bible and check that what we preach is according to the
Scriptures. Do the same with all who
claim to be God’s ministers.
It will cost you nothing if you take up this
challenge, but it could cost you your inheritance if you ignore this call from
Jesus Christ.
May God Almighty be your guide and help you take
the right decision, for it is not only your salvation that is at stake, but
that of your people too.
……………………….
Ecc 4:13 Better
a poor and wise youth Than an old and foolish king who will be admonished no
more.
………………………
Are You In The Right Religion?
Few things in the world are more important than being in the right
religion. The quality of your life and
your future are determined by the answer to this question. But how would you know if you are in the
right religion? And is one with no
religion better off as so many people carelessly believe
and foolishly proclaim
these days?
There are many ways of determining which is the
right religion and which is not, some more reliable then
others, but there is one simple test that is sure to always give you the right
answer. If you go through life and fail
to see a higher purpose to it, and if the thought of death terrifies you, then
you are not in the right religion.
Recently, a priest and a nun of a certain
denomination were confessing in a televised interview that they refused to even
contemplate death because, "death is a such a
dreadful thing." The priest, a former high prelate in his church, now in
retirement, went on to say how lonely he felt at times and how terrified he was
that when his time came there may be no one to hold his hand. He served in one of those religions that
forbid their priests to have a family.
As I was watching and listening to them, I was
struck by the emptiness in their lives.
After spending their lives at the altar, there was nothing positive that
they could say about life, nothing that they could look forward to in the
end. Death hang
as a foreboding calamity over their heads, something they would have avoided at
all costs if they could.
Now if these people who served in a supposedly
Christian denomination, who were spiritual beacons to others, ended up with
such a depressing view of life and death, what condition must their followers
be in?
Religion is supposed to give people a
transcendental purpose in life that cannot be grasped by the normal physical
senses. A purpose that becomes apparent
only through the exercise of one’s innermost thoughts and meditation on the
Word of God. It is like a window being
opened in your mind by the arrival of the Holy Spirit.
It is the thoughts that determine the quality of
one’s life and the possibility of one’s salvation. That is why the founders of Christianity
placed so much emphasis on the need to purify and control one’s thoughts and
set them on the right path.
2Co 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do
not war according to the flesh.
2Co 10:4 For the weapons of our warfare are
not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,
2Co 10:5 casting down arguments and every high thing
that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into
captivity to the obedience of Christ,
2Co 10:6 and being ready to punish all
disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.
Mat 15:17 Do you not yet understand that whatever
enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated?
Mat 15:18 But those things which proceed out of
the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man.
Mat 15:19 For out of the heart proceed evil
thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness,
blasphemies.
Mat 15:20 These are the things which
defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."
What these passages are telling us is that the
feelings of our heart determine the quality of our thoughts and the manner of
our speech. They make us holy or they
defile us; they set us on the road to salvation or on the road to
perdition. Apostle Paul amplified on
these thoughts when he said:
Php 4:8 Finally, brethren,
whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are
just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely,
whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if
there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
Php 4:9 The
things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and
the God of peace will be with you.
In comparing the lives of Jesus Christ, of His
Apostles, and other holy men down through the centuries, who have given their
lives for the goal set before them, with the lives of the priest and nun who
were terrified at the thought of death, one wonders what did they ever learn
during their life in the convent? What
did they meditate upon in their solitude, in their prayer, when they walked in
their garden that they ended up with such an uncertain state of mind?
What is even more puzzling is that their religion
has turned death into an extraordinarily complicated and expensive affair, with
almost bankrupting expenses for the survivors. Luxuriously polished coffins, expensive
pomp and ceremonies, meals, drinks and other paraphernalia, which the dead may
never have seen in their life, are lavishly expended in the name of the
dead. They spend more on dressing up and
fare welling a corpse than they do on the living; nothing of the simplicity of
the burial of Jesus Christ, in whose name they supposedly do these things. And then they end up being terrified of even
the thought of death. Where is the logic
in all of this? Is this not hypocrisy?
Compare that with the example of Jesus Christ. As
He hung up on the cross, knowing that His time had come, He laid His soul into
the hand of God and said: “"It is finished!" And bowing His head, He
gave up His spirit” (John 19:30). Luke
added another little detail to this scenario:
““And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, "Father,
'into Your hands I commit My spirit.' " Having said this, He breathed His last.” (Luke
23:46).
These are not the words of a desperate person who
feared death. He did not lament the loss of His life, and was not terrified to
lay His soul in the hand of God. He
behaved and spoke as One who knew what He was
doing.
Joh 10:17 "Therefore
My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again.
Joh 10:18 No
one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down,
and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My
Father."
Apostle Paul had a refreshing attitude towards
death too and did not panic when his end approached.
Php 1:21 For
to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
Php 1:22 But
if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my
labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell.
Php 1:23 For
I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with
Christ, which is far better.
Php 1:24
Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for
you.
Php 1:25 And
being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all
for your progress and joy of faith,
Php 1:26 that
your rejoicing for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ by my coming to you
again.
Php 1:27 Only let your conduct be
worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am
absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one
mind striving together for the faith of the gospel,
Php 1:28 and not in any way
terrified by your adversaries, which is to them a proof of perdition, but to
you of salvation, and that from God.
Php 1:29 For to you it has been
granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for
His sake,
Php 1:30 having
the same conflict which you saw in me and now hear is in me.
Php 2:1
Therefore if there is any
consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit,
if any affection and mercy,
Php 2:2 fulfill
my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord,
of one mind.
Php 2:3 Let
nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of
mind let each esteem others better than himself.
Php 2:4 Let
each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests
of others.
Php 2:5 Let
this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
Php 2:6 who,
being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,
Php 2:7 but
made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and
coming in the likeness of men.
Php 2:8 And
being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the
point of death, even the death of the cross.
Php 2:9
Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name
which is above every name,
Php 2:10 that
at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on
earth, and of those under the earth,
Php 2:11 and
that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to
the glory of God the Father.
Php 2:12 Therefore, my beloved, as
you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my
absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;
Php 2:13 for
it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
Php 2:14 Do
all things without complaining and disputing,
Php 2:15 that
you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the
midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in
the world,
Php 2:16 holding fast the word of
life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or
labored in vain.
Php 2:17 Yes,
and if I am being poured out as a drink offering on the sacrifice and
service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all.
Php 2:18 For
the same reason you also be glad and rejoice with me.
We could have quoted only the first few verses to
prove our point, but as you can see, the entire passage makes a powerful case
that this life has a higher purpose, and that there is nothing to fear about
death if one has the right relationship with God. Read this passage again and
ponder on the wonderful message that it conveys and the great promises that lay
in store for those who believe. For as you can see, the
Apostles were not terrified of death either. They saw it as a necessary step towards a
more fulfilling life in the eternal Kingdom of God. And if that was true of Jesus Christ and His
Apostles, it is true of their followers, and it is true of you and me if we
believe.
1Th 4:13 But I do not want you to be ignorant,
brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who
have no hope.
1Th 4:14
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring
with Him those who sleep in Jesus.
1Th 4:15 For this we say to you by the word of
the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord
will by no means precede those who are asleep.
1Th 4:16 For the Lord Himself will descend from
heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of
God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
1Th 4:17 Then we who are alive and
remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in
the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
Now can you see the difference between the right
religion and the wrong one? One offers
hope and release from the fear of death; the other brings sorrow and terrors of
death. Jesus Christ made this unshakable
promise to those who believe.
Joh 11:25 Jesus
said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.
Joh 11:26 And
whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?"
Well, do you believe it? You should, for it is true! It is all a matter of belief! When you die, your body perishes, but your
soul retains your mind and your beliefs, and it is these that determine your
destiny at the time of God’s judgment. The Almighty holds your soul in store
until the day of resurrection (Rev. 6:9-11), then you
are given a new body - a spiritual one – that shall never die, if, and only if,
you believe. Belief of course implies
obedience to God’s laws, repentance of your sins, baptism, laying on of hands,
and receiving of the Holy Spirit.
That is why you need to be in the right religion –
one that implants the right thoughts in your mind, the right feelings in your
heart, preaches the right path of salvation, and gives you the power to change
your life through the Holy Spirit. That is the religion of Jesus Christ, the
Man who said that if you believe in Him, even though you die, you shall be
raised and live forever. Not like the
religions that leave their practitioners terrified of death, not knowing what
life is all about?
The wisest man who lived
before Jesus Christ, said this about life and death.
Ecc 7:1 A
good name is better than precious ointment, And the day of death than
the day of one's birth;
Ecc 7:2 Better
to go to the house of mourning Than to go to the house of feasting, For that is
the end of all men; And the living will take it to heart.
Ecc 7:3 Sorrow
is better than laughter, For by a sad countenance the heart is made
better.
Ecc 7:4 The
heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, But the heart of fools is
in the house of mirth.
As you grow old you don’t need to be held in bondage
by fear of the last act of your life. Look upon that event with joy, as the
pinnacle of your life, when the crown of real and eternal life is being placed
on your head. But for that you need to
be in the right religion!
……………………
Ecc 7:5 It
is better to hear the rebuke of the wise Than for a man to hear the song of
fools.
Ecc 7:6 For
like the crackling of thorns under a pot, So is the laughter of the
fool. This also is vanity.
…………………….
The Importance Of
Choosing The Right Leader
How do you know if you have chosen the right
person as your leader? The world has
turned up side down the values and qualities that
make a great leader, but the followers of Jesus Christ are expected to know how
to choose their leaders. At a time when
the world is wallowing in deception, following the wrong person could cost you
your salvation. Here is what you need to
know about those whom you choose as your leaders.
Would you choose as your leader one who supported
those who killed Christians; who admitted having difficulty in controlling the
impulses of his human nature; who converted to Christianity, reached the
leadership of the church, and then caused havoc by introducing doctrines that
no one has heard of before?
Or would you vote for this man: a non-conformist,
in conflict with the leaders, associating with prostitutes and the lower
classes, gaining a following for himself then teaching
a religion that was in conflict with traditional beliefs?
Would you approve of any of these people as your
leader? Can you imagine the media headlines and the furor among the people if
persons with such records run for the presidency of the USA? The people described above are, of course,
Apostle Paul and Jesus Christ, respectively.
Journalists and those who work for the media, are
accustomed to looking for matters that can be sensationalized, commercialized,
and trivialized, and more often than not that can be taken out of context to
suit their purpose – as we did to prove our point – instead of the substance
and intent of the matter that give meaning and purpose to life.
Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, and Apostle Paul,
a king under Him in the Kingdom of God, could not attain the standards required
of those who aspire to the presidency of the USA these days. Which proves that it is
easier and safer to become a king in the Kingdom of God than a leader in an
earthly republic or kingdom.
If you aspire to become a leader in the Kingdom of
God, and announce your candidacy, God the Father and Jesus Christ take note of
your intention, and no journalist will hound you and scurry to search your past
for misdemeanors that can be publicized.
In the United States of America they don’t just
choose anyone to lead them – they want angels over there. That is why that country is led so well and
things are coming out so perfectly, isn’t it?
Recently, a number of unauthorized biographical
books were published in the USA about the former President Ronald Reagan and
his wife Nancy Reagan. They compete in
revealing not important state matters of public interest, but the most unsavory
aspects of their personal lives. The
books became instant bestsellers, brought millions of dollars to their authors
and created sensational headlines in the media across the country. They became the topic of discussion in many
television and radio programs.
This phenomenon tells us more about the American
media and the conditioning of the American public than about the former
President's family life. A classic
example of irresponsible, sensationalist journalism, that
characterizes this paragon of spiritual and moral decay that the United States
has become.
The American constitution guarantees individual
freedoms, but it cannot guarantee a sense of responsibility. Thus, the freedom of religion becomes the
freedom to commit sin and blasphemy, and to worship Satan and other pagan
deities, while the freedom of speech becomes the freedom to meddle in other
peoples' lives and defile their memory.
President Reagan and his family had no power to
redress this gross violation of their private lives except to say that their
friends would not buy such books. Of course, a good friend would not want to
pry into your past life. The authors, no
doubt, embellished and misinterpreted some facts in order to make the books
'spicier' and more titillating to the common taste. That is a general characteristic of those who
write this kind of material.
None of us were angels when we grew up (some never
grow up), and many of us are repulsed by the foolish things we undertook in the
search for thrills and entertainment.
But as we mature we should remember the words of King Solomon of Israel,
the wisest man who ever lived before Jesus Christ came into the world
(lKin.3:12; Ecl.1:16. Luke 11:31), who said:
Ecc 11:9 Rejoice, O young man, in
your youth, And let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; Walk in the
ways of your heart, And in the sight of your eyes; But know that for all these
God will bring you into judgment.
Ecc 11:10 Therefore
remove sorrow from your heart, And put away evil from your flesh, For childhood
and youth are vanity.
Ecc 12:1
Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, Before the
difficult days come, And the years draw near when you say, "I have no pleasure
in them".
When we repent, God wipes clean our past
errors. And if God forgives and erases
our past, should not human beings do likewise?
Any human being who does not respect this divine principle reproaches
his Maker and commits blasphemy.
Christians do not delve into other people's lives
in order to expose their unsavory aspects.
We believe in repentance; we practice it in our
lives; we respect it in other peoples' lives; and expect them to respect it in
us. Our Lord Jesus Christ said that we
must forgive other people’s sins not seven times, but seventy times seven
(Mat.18:22). In other words, we must forgive others as many times as they
request it, as long as they are genuine about it.
It makes no difference what they did in their past
life. If they show remorse and ask for
forgiveness, we must grant it. Refusal
to grant forgiveness is as un-Christian as exposing their sins to the world. When people say that they are sorry for what
they did, the matter stops there. No one
has the right to meddle any further.
True Christians certainly do not do such things.
We know that a person cannot become a 'saint’
overnight. The process of repentance and full spiritual attainment is long and
painful. It is a difficult struggle to
extricate oneself from past sins and errors, and no
one has the right to make it more difficult by meddling and exposing to the
world what the world has no business in knowing. Even when people relent and go back to their
sinful life, it is not for us to judge them and start exposing their sins,
unless it has a bearing on other people’s salvation.
The Apostles of Jesus Christ gave us an example
that we ought to follow. Whenever they
spoke of people's personal sins they never revealed their names publicly (See
Romans 1 and 2). They mentioned people's
names only when questions of doctrine and personal behavior arose that posed a
danger to the Church, but even then they did not delve into their private lives
anymore than they needed to (See 1Tim.1:20; 2Tim.2:17; 3John 1:9). It is God Almighty and Jesus Christ who deal
with such matters, who judge people, not we who are in the bonds of human
nature too. For as
sure as day follows night, if you expose other peoples sins unnecessarily, you
will fall into the same errors before long.
1Jn 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we
deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful
and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
1Jn 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we
make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
Ecc 7:20 For
there is not a just man on earth who does good And does not sin.
Mat 7:1 "Judge not, that you be not judged.
Mat 7:2 For with what judgment you judge, you
will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.
Mat 7:3 And why do you look at the speck in
your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?
Mat 7:4 Or how can you say to your brother,
'Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your
own eye?
Mat 7:5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from
your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your
brother's eye.
When we pray to God, we say, “Father, forgive us our
sins, as we forgive those who sin against us” (Mat 6:12). If you then expose
other peoples' sins, is that forgiveness?
For if people have repented and been forgiven by God, and you expose
their sins, they could stumble and fall back, and that becomes an unpardonable
sin for you. Beware, therefore, of
meddling into other people's lives.
Never forget these words of Jesus Christ:
Mar 9:42
"But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to
stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck,
and he were thrown into the sea.”
More often than not, sinful people have few qualms
about their sins for they keep repeating them without remorse.
Pro 30:20 This is the way of an
adulterous woman: She eats and wipes her mouth, And says, "I have done no
wickedness."
Exposing their sins means nothing to them. But it is a different story with those who
have abhorred their past and embarked on a life of repentance and
righteousness. For them, such an act
would be devastating.
God annuls people's sins upon repentance and
although they still remember their sins (as they should), they have the
knowledge and conviction that God has forgiven them and wiped their slate
clean. Without that kind of conviction
and hope some people are as good as dead.
Those who do not believe in God, in His love, forgiveness and power of
salvation, who have lost their hope and faith, easily reach the point in which
they can no longer live with themselves and commit suicide. That is Satan’s way of solving problems not
God's.
When you are in deepest need, when you see no
other way out of your problems, turn to God and give Him a chance, for He says
that His strength is made perfect in our weakness. Only then are you truly
beginning to live a worthwhile life.
2Co 12:9 And He said to me, "My grace is
sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness."
Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of
Christ may rest upon me.
Recently, there has also been a spate of
publications about the leaders of the Churches of God. They seem to have had no other purpose than
to reveal their sins. Indeed, they offer
disturbing reading. The problem is that
the authors do not deal only with their doctrinal errors but get right down
into the gutter, revealing things that no one should want to read about other
people's lives any more than he would want to read about his own. That is a satanic ploy designed to destroy
the Churches of God and to cause the faithful to stumble and loose their faith.
Once again we feel compelled to remind them of the words of Jesus
Christ.
Mat 7:3 And why do you look at the speck in
your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?
Mat 7:4 Or how can you say to your brother,
'Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your
own eye?
Mat 7:5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from
your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your
brother's eye.
In the same chapter Jesus Christ gave His
followers this warning.
Mat 7:15 "Beware of false prophets, who
come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
Mat 7:16 You will know them by their fruits. Do
men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from
thistles?
If you have something to say about those who lead
the Churches of God, if you feel that
they are leading the people astray, expose their doctrinal errors, but leave
their past sins and private lives alone.
The Churches of God represent the body of Christ and if that body has an
ill-fitting member, it is for Him to heal or discard that member not for you.
Jesus Christ knows His body better than anyone
else. He knows whom He appoints to lead
His Churches and for what reason. If you
knew the Scriptures, you would know that there is a purpose in everything He
does. There is a reason why He allows
hypocrites to lead His Churches. Did He
not call the religious leaders of His day hypocrites yet He told His disciples
to obey them because they sat in Moses' seat? (Mat.23:1-36).
The trials that the Churches of God are
experiencing these days are from above and are designed to test the spiritual
strength of their members. God does
allow such trials to occur from time to time, but woe to those who allow
themselves to become Satan's instruments in these trials. It would have been
better for them if they were never born.
The members who have taken an easy ride throughout
their lives, who have not prayed and worshipped the Almighty in the manner that
He expected of them, who have relied on others to spoon feed them on spiritual
matters, who have not done their homework and studied the Scriptures, "to
show themselves approved before God" (2Tim. 2:15), will not have the strength
to resist the wiles of the Devil (Eph.6:11) and will find it hard to stand on
their own feet at the moment of their trial. They are likely to become the
victim of deception and lose their salvation.
The Kingdom of God is for those of strong
character, who are able to discern right from wrong, true from false, good from
evil, and holy from unholy. Apostle
Peter wrote:
1Pe 4:12 Beloved, do not think it strange
concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing
happened to you;
1Pe 4:13 but rejoice to the extent that you
partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also
be glad with exceeding joy.
1Pe 4:14 If you are reproached for the name of
Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon
you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.
1Pe 4:15 But let none of you suffer as a
murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people's matters.
1Pe 4:16 Yet if anyone suffers as a
Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter.
1Pe 4:17 For the time has come for
judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first,
what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?
1Pe 4:18 Now "IF THE RIGHTEOUS ONE IS
SCARCELY SAVED, WHERE WILL THE UNGODLY AND THE SINNER APPEAR?"
1Pe 4:19 Therefore let those who suffer
according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as
to a faithful Creator.
If you believe that you are a member of one of the
seven Churches of God listed in the Book of Revelation (Rev. 2 and 3), you
should rejoice in your heart regardless of which Church Jesus Christ has called
you to be a member of. Every Church has
good and bad within its ranks and Laodicea is no different from the other
Churches. Some false preachers have been
twisting the Scriptures by using the command that Jesus Christ gave to His
people to come out of Babylon (Rev.18:4), as meaning that they must come out of
the Laodicean Church.
Jesus Christ has never told anyone to come out of
His Churches. To the members of the
Laodicea Church who say that they are 'rich and become wealthy' and are neither
hot nor cold, He told to, 'buy gold refined in fire' to become rich spiritually,
and 'white garments' to cover their nakedness.
He did not tell them to come out of the Church! For whichever way the Laodicea Church may be,
it is still the Church of God. If Jesus
Christ has brought you into one of His Churches, you cannot join another one,
and neither should you want or try to.
If you remain close to God, if you do not depart
from His ways, you have nothing to fear about.
Neither should you worry if you are being disfellowshipped from a church
for no fault of your own, or for doing the right thing. A minister or a priest can put you out of his
congregation, but no man can put you out of the Church of God. Only Jesus Christ can do that, and you, yourself,
if you falter and fall away.
You don't need to belong to any group of people to
be in the Church of God. Once you have
been baptized, received the Holy Spirit and started on the right track, you are
on your own. Your salvation depends
purely and entirely on yourself. If you
can fellowship with like-minded people, so much the better, but if you cannot
there is nothing to worry about.
Study the Bible (Is.34:16; 55:1-3), and meditate
on the law of God all the time (Jos.1:8; Ps.119:97).
1Ti 4:15 Meditate on these things; give
yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all.
1Ti 4:16 Take heed to yourself and to the
doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and
those who hear you.
Fellowship with Jesus Christ and with His Holy
Spirit, for so have the prophets, the Apostles, and all true Christians down
through the ages. Beware of the
deception, for many false prophets have come into the world, especially now
that we live in the last time. Look to
no man as your leader, but to Jesus Christ for He alone is a True Shepherd and
He will always guide you in the right direction.
Joh 10:9 I
am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved,
and will go in and out and find pasture.
Joh 10:14 I
am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.
So do you know Jesus Christ, and does He know
you? That is the only thing that
matters.
1Jn 2:3 Now by this we know that we know Him,
if we keep His commandments.
1Jn 2:4 He who says, "I know Him,"
and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
1Jn 2:5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the
love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.
Joh 14:6 Jesus
said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through Me.
Heb 13:20 Now may the God of peace who brought
up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the
blood of the everlasting covenant,
Heb 13:21 make you complete in every good work to do
His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus
Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.”
SIGNS OF THE TIMES
While the world leaders talk of a new era
of peace, progress and prosperity, the signs of the times point to a different
reality. You need to be informed and
take the right decisions if
you are to
survive the trying
times ahead.
When we began the work of witnessing the Gospel of
the Kingdom of God to all nations a little while ago, we received a flood of
revelations about biblical mysteries and prophecies, some of which have
remained closed for thousands of years.
At the same time, we discovered that the forces of darkness were more
prevalent, powerful and determined to prevent this work from achieving its goal
than we imagined. On the one hand, we
were blessed with spiritual gifts and insights beyond our imagination, while on
the other we experienced extreme difficulties and trials. We lost one person!
We did not expect that a pioneering work of this
nature would draw in such a swift and savage reaction from the ungodly forces
of this world. But now we realize that
this is not a work for the fainthearted.
We are no different from those who have come in the name of Jesus Christ
before us.
The work of God has never been welcomed by this
world, yet rather than discourage us it has given us confidence that we are on
the right path. Indeed, we are happy to
join the ranks of those who have suffered persecution for the Word of God and
the witness of Jesus Christ. After all,
the prophets of old, our Lord, the Apostles, and many of their followers, have
suffered severe persecutions and death, yet none lost their faith or
heart. As Jesus Christ said:
Joh 15:20
Remember the word that I said to you, 'A servant is not greater
than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will
also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will
keep yours also.
Throughout history, this has been the fate of all
true Christians. Those who preach that Christianity is a religion of the privileged
preach a false gospel. The judgment of God is about to fall upon the world and
upon those who have misrepresented His Gospel. Our role is to warn the world
that the great Day of the Lord is at hand.
Isa 13:6 Wail, for the day of the LORD is
at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty.
Isa 13:7 Therefore all hands will be limp,
Every man's heart will melt,
Isa 13:8 And they will be afraid. Pangs and
sorrows will take hold of them; They will be in
pain as a woman in childbirth; They will be amazed at one another; Their faces will
be like flames.
Isa 13:9 Behold, the day of the LORD comes,
Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, To lay the land desolate; And He will
destroy its sinners from it.
Isa 13:10 For the stars of heaven and their
constellations Will not give their light; The sun will be darkened in its going
forth, And the moon will not cause its light to shine.
Isa 13:11 "I will punish the world for its
evil, And the wicked for their iniquity; I will halt the arrogance of the
proud, And will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
Isa 13:12 I will make a mortal more rare than
fine gold, A man more than the golden wedge of Ophir.
Isa 13:13 Therefore I will shake the heavens,
And the earth will move out of her place, In the wrath of the LORD of hosts And
in the day of His fierce anger.
A need for change in world leadership is both
required and unavoidable. Leaders of
nations have failed to bring peace and prosperity to this world, while leaders
of religions have failed to provide moral leadership and spiritual
enlightenment. That is why after the day
of the Lord, after the Great Tribulation, there will be a change in both
kingship and priesthood.
Rev 5:8
Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the
twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden
bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Rev 5:9 And they sang a new song, saying:
"You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were
slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue
and people and nation,
Rev 5:10 And have made us kings and priests to
our God; And we shall reign on the earth."
The rewards for those who abandon their life of
indulgence and dissipation for one of righteousness and holiness are such that
cannot be compared with anything that we know at present.
1Co 2:9 But as it is written: "Eye Has
Not Seen, Nor Ear Heard, Nor Have Entered Into The Heart Of Man The Things
Which God Has Prepared For Those Who Love Him."
Since the beginning of the world God has allowed
human beings to experiment with every form of government, social organization
and economic system that they could think of.
Now, as this age is drawing to a close, it is clear that this has been a
lesson in disappointment and failure.
The world has learned that its ways lead to death and that only
governments and social systems based on the laws of God can maintain proper
living conditions and a dignified way of life for all people.
Humanity is now at the crossroads. Since it cannot continue the way it has so
far, it must choose between the way of God or the way
of destruction. The warning delivered by
God to ancient Israel is now more urgent than ever and valid for the whole
world:
Deu 30:19 I
call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set
before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that
both you and your descendants may live;
The lesson the world leaders should have learned,
but which they seem incapable of learning, is that no matter how hard they try,
without God they cannot achieve a harmonious, peaceful and prosperous
society. Much has been said about the so
called “new world order” and its promise of peace, progress and prosperity, but
its proponents have never mentioned God in their deliberations. That is why you can be sure that this
experiment will have the same ignominious end as all the previous ones.
The prevailing anti-God philosophy and attitude in
the world are fast bringing this world to the edge of the abyss. The current world difficulties and
realignments are a prelude to the most awesome event this world has ever
witnessed – a world conflagration of such intensity that the survival of life
on earth will be at stake.
Mat 24:21 For then there will be great
tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this
time, no, nor ever shall be.
Mat 24:22 And unless those days were shortened, no
flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened.
A certain journalist wrote recently: "Terms
like turmoil and chaos... lose effect through repetition. And in a world beset with problems, there is
a school, taking advantage of weariness with Armageddon forecasts, that argues
along the lines of, 'let them sort out their own muddle, it won't affect
us'. But even setting aside issues like
nuclear safety and common humanity, a plunge into the abyss in a part of
Eurasia [or other parts of the world] could engulf us all." (A. Clark, “A Eurasian Breakdown Could Engulf Us All”, The Sun-Herald,
Dec. 29, 1991).
The world cannot enter the new age in its present
condition. Man's rule on earth will give way to the rule of God at the conclusion
of six thousand years and the advent of the Millennial Kingdom. God's overall plan for mankind is paralleled
by the days of the week. The first six
days, representing six thousand years, are for man to work and rule, but the
last day, the Sabbath, represents a sabbatical rest for the earth. After the destruction and pollution that is
has endured since man was placed on it, the earth certainly needs such a
rest.
The countdown to the Millennial Kingdom has
already started. A famous theologian named
Usher, who lived some three centuries ago, calculated that the creation of the
world took place in the year 4004 B.C.. Many biblical
scholars believe that he was correct in his calculations. Prophetic fulfillments that match those
predicted for the end of this age attest to this fact too. This means that in a few short years we will
have the end of six thousand years and the dawn of a new civilization.
It is not a mere coincidence that at this
particular juncture in world history, life is being threatened from several
directions. People who know little about
biblical prophecies talk about the precarious condition of life on this
planet. This correlates well with the
prophecies of Jesus Christ who, two thousand years ago, foresaw a calamitous
end for this world. Are we not living in
those days now? How much worse must
things get before humanity realizes that it is heading towards catastrophe?
The world has reached the saturation point as far
as population is concerned. The
environment simply can no longer support the ever-increasing population. It has been estimated that within a
generation the world population will double, then in less than a century it
will double again. It will then continue to double within an ever-reducing
cycle.
One scientist remarked that if the world survives
to reach that level, life conditions would become so miserable that death would
be preferable to life. Well, for
millions of people even now merciful death would be preferable to a hellish
life. For those dying of starvation and
disease in Africa and elsewhere, the question of survival is no longer an
option, but dying with dignity is. A
quicker death would be preferable to the slow, agonizing wasting they experience, all while watching their loved ones go through
the same process.
About a decade ago, when images of starvation
emerged from Africa, the world moved quickly to provide humanitarian aid. Now many more millions are starving on a far
wider scale, but few want to hear of it anymore. Images of starvation on television screens
draw only cursory looks these days. Some
television stations will not even broadcast such programs anymore. They have become unpopular, they have lost
their shocking value, and they no longer pull audiences.
What would it be like when every country and every
city in the world has doubled in size?
The environment is already dying.
Can the world support such an increase when many resources are already
in short supply? Can the world afford
not to turn to God while He may still be found?
Perhaps it is already too late.
What were considered alarmist predictions a few
decades ago, not only have been fulfilled, but exceeded many times over. We are now
learning about world problems that only a few years ago were unheard of. A decade ago no one knew of AIDS. Half a decade ago there was no talk of the
thinning of the ozone layer. These
problems alone pose catastrophic dangers.
AIDS is threatening to destroy the regenerating power of many
nations. The thinning of the ozone layer
is posing a threat to the vegetation and the microscopic marine organisms, the
very support of life on earth, in addition to whatever harm they may do
directly to human beings.
In February this year scientists raised the alarm
when they discovered that the depletion of the ozone layer is much worse than
previously thought:
"New finding of ozone
depletion were so alarming, the scientists said, they decided to release them
before completion of the data analysis in late March. "Everybody
should be alarmed about this," said Michael Kurylo,
a research manager at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA). "We're seeing conditions
primed for ozone destruction. It's in a
far worse way than we thought." (SMH, Feb. 5,
1992).
Apocalyptic times are well and truly upon us, yet
people do not repent so that God may spare the world of these cataclysms. Can you see now why the sun is scorching the
earth, and human beings suffer as a result?
Rev 16:9 And men were scorched with great heat,
and they blasphemed the name of God who has power over these plagues; and they
did not repent and give Him glory.
Governments are unable to address these problems
because they require painful solutions.
The people that elect them are more concerned with the pain of hunger
than with restoring the ecological balance.
Difficult problems are often postponed and left for the next government
to solve with the result that little is achieved. Often they prefer not to raise such concerns
in public at all. Out of sight is out of
mind. No one realizes that these
problems will get much worse and will not be solved unless and until people
turn to God.
How many people remember the events of 1991? Aside from the Gulf War and the ecological
and social disasters that it created, how many know that in terms of natural
disasters 1991 broke almost every record since record keeping began more than a
century ago?
The US Congress allocates an annual percentage of
its budget every year for emergency situations, to help those nations that suffer
calamities and natural disasters. By May 1991, the sum allocated for the entire
year was already exhausted.
There were droughts, famine, floods, earthquakes,
volcanoes, tornadoes, mudslides, etc., too many to be listed. Who remembers, for example, when
approximately a third of China and nearly three quarters of Bangladesh were
covered by floods? Or the repeated
volcanic eruptions in Japan and the Philippines that caused damage over huge
areas? Or the torrential rains in the
heights of South America, where it seldom rains, that caused mudslides that
covered entire communities?
How many
people know that large tracks of the USA and Australia, the breadbaskets of the
world, suffered the worst droughts on record?
Preoccupation with the Gulf War and events in the
former Soviet Union meant that most of these disasters passed unnoticed. As Jesus Christ said: "For as in the
days before the flood [of Noah] . . . when they did not know until the flood
came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be"
(Mat.24:38,39).
To compound the misery caused by natural
disasters, were those caused by human folly.
The year began with the madness of the Gulf War, and finished with the
collapse of that bastion of atheism, the Soviet Union.
People believe that communism failed. Communism never failed, atheism did! Communism never failed because it has never
been tried. What they practiced in the
Soviet Union and its satellite nations was not communism but a parody of it. It
is a satanic ploy to undermine every good idea that comes from the Bible. True communism will work in the Kingdom of
God.
Soviet communism failed, but so has American
capitalism. Such is the vulgarity of
capitalism that at a time when a company like General Motors is closing down
dozens of factories and laying off thousands of people, it grants its retiring
Chairman an annual pension of $US1.2 million.
The Chairman of Chrysler, who has an allocated salary of $4.5 millions,
went to Japan with President Bush to lecture the Japanese on work ethics. When it was pointed out to him that the
Chairman of Toyota, a much more successful company, earns a fifth of his
salary, he stormed out of the meeting and left Japan indignant.
No social conscience on the part of those who
clamber their way to the top. No
Christian concern for one's fellow human beings from the leading citizens of
the, supposedly, number one Christian nation on earth. Has no one ever told these people that
"it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a
rich man to enter the Kingdom of God" (Mat.19:24). Even at the retiring
age they still do not think of the purpose of life and what lies beyond this
temporary existence.
Where are the spiritual leaders of that
nation? What have they achieved? Why are they silent in the face of such
blatant greed and exploitation? Or are
they part of the same mentality?
The country wonders why its economy is faltering
so badly. Unfettered capitalism is just
as unchristian as totalitarian communism.
Soviet communism has collapsed; now watch for the collapse of
capitalism. Those who believe that the
USA will once again dominate the world as it used to, or that Great Britain
will rule the waves as during the height of its empire, have some surprises
coming their way.
This author grew up behind the “Iron Curtain”
where a great part of his education involved indoctrination about the “glorious
future the Soviet Union was leading the world into”. It was a trial by fire that few people have
known. The communists justified
destroying everything and everyone who opposed their march towards a God-less
“utopia”, but instead of paradise, it became a Devil’s nightmare.
Out of that atheistic nightmare, God had to bring
someone at enormous personal sacrifice to preach His Gospel to the world,
because those who had it all the time made a mockery of it by turning it into
money making venture.
The Soviet Union collapsed into ashes leaving a
cauldron of ethnic tensions and unfulfilled dreams that threaten to draw the
world into the end-time catastrophic conflict.
The chaos left behind by that collapse is only now becoming
apparent. God alone knows what three
hundred million people will do with their nuclear weapons when wide scale
starvation takes place. There are
repeated warnings in the Bible that He will "bring disaster from the north
and great destruction" (see our next article).
At a time when the world is facing the test of
survival, few people understand that there is a connection between current
problems and the spiritual decline of the world. Even the Churches of God, who once prided
themselves in their ability to understand the prophecies of God, have fallen
silent. At a time that their input is
needed more than ever, they are engaged in an internecine war that is sapping
their strength from within.
Once again, as it has happened throughout history,
God has raised people from the lowest levels of society to do His work. The message that John the Baptist delivered
to ancient Israel, prior to the coming of Jesus Christ, is now being delivered
to the whole world, just in time for His glorious return to this earth.
Mat 3:1 In those days John the Baptist came
preaching in the wilderness of Judea,
Mat 3:2 and saying, "Repent, for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand!"
Mat 17:9 Now as they came down from the
mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, "Tell the vision to no one until
the Son of Man is risen from the dead."
Mat 17:10 And His disciples asked Him, saying,
"Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?"
Mat 17:11 Jesus answered and said to them,
"Indeed, Elijah is coming first and will restore all things.
So repent, for the
Kingdom of God is truly at hand. Things
are being restored before your very eyes.
………………
Pro 29:1 He who is often rebuked, and
hardens his neck, Will suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.
……………..
Daniel’s End Time Ten-Nation ‘Beast-Power’
Revealed For The First Time
Few prophecies have been trumpeted with more vigor
than those of Daniel about a ten-nation ‘beast-power’ that is supposed to rise
up in the end-time in central Europe under the leadership of Germany, and
trample the world under its feet, particularly the Anglo-Saxon people of Great
Britain and the USA.
This is the main tenet of what is perhaps the most
widely publicized booklet of Herbert W. Armstrong, The
United States and Britain in Prophecy. The founder of the Worldwide Church
of God linked this prophecy with his “discovery” that the Anglo-Saxon people
were none other than the birthright inheritors of ancient Israel, now widely
referred to as the lost Ten Tribes of Israel.
The booklet was written when the European Common
Market, the backbone of the rising ‘beast-power’, comprised only of the
original seven members, but the author was certain that in a short time it
would expand to ten nations.
Surprisingly, the booklet is still being advertised and distributed,
“free of charge”, not by the Worldwide Church of God, which is reportedly on
its last legs, but by a number of daughter churches, particularly the
Philadelphia Church of God, even though the Common Market, now renamed the
European Union, has long since passed the magic number of ten.
Now although I knew little about biblical
prophecies when I joined that church in the early 1970s, I had reasonably good
knowledge of world politics, and in my calculations I just could not see how
Britain and the USA could be devastated by a nuclear attack from a union of ten
Central European nations. What puzzled
me more was the fact that the Soviet Union - a force to be reckoned with in
those days - did not deserve even so much as a mention in this end-time nuclear
cataclysm.
After much consideration, I concluded that the
author and his church must be wrong and I sent them a letter explaining them
why. But my opinion was, as one might
have expected, ignored, and the church continued to publish that booklet right
up to the death of Herbert W. Armstrong and beyond, only that this
‘beast-power’ would now rise within the European Union, but still grouped
around Germany.
Now it is a well-known fact that Church of God
evangelists treat with contempt anyone who disagrees with them, and more so if
they happen to be members of their own church.
I was disappointed that my attempt at communication with them did not
warrant even so much as a rebuttal let alone a reasoned correspondence, but I
soon discovered that "all things work together for good to those who love
God" (Rom.8:28). It forced me to
reassess my association with that church and end my isolation from the world
and family and friends, and the ruinous regime of mandatory tithes and
offerings that they imposed on all their members.
I was attracted to that church mostly because they
made appeal to reason and intellect, and condemned mainstream Christianity’s
reliance on tradition and emotion. But I
soon discovered that these are the very things that they deny their members
once they become hooked on their religion.
The one good thing about that church though
was that it made more use of the Scriptures than any other church that I knew
of. It was through them that I became
interested in the Bible. However it soon
became obvious that although their ministers make extensive use of the
Scriptures, they don’t practice what they preach. They seem to use the Scriptures more to
justify their preconceived ideas and erroneous practices, than to discover the
right Way and the correct teachings of Jesus Christ and His Apostles. As I was to discover later, many of their
doctrinal teachings and practices are exactly the opposite of what the
Scriptures say they should be. To give
you two examples: Apostle Paul said that under the New Testament there are no
longer any dietary laws or restrictions on marriages based on nationality or
race.
1Ti 4:1
Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from
the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons,
1Ti 4:2 speaking lies in hypocrisy, having
their own conscience seared with a hot iron,
1Ti 4:3 forbidding to marry, and commanding
to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by
those who believe and know the truth.
1Ti 4:4 For every creature of God is
good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving;
1Ti 4:5 for it is sanctified by the word of
God and prayer.
1Ti 4:6 If you instruct the brethren in these
things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith
and of the good doctrine which you have carefully followed.
Not only are there no such restrictions in the New
Testament, but those who preach such things are inspired by demons. Yet so deeply rooted are those false
doctrines in that church and in its siblings, that even though its ministers
have read those passages hundreds of times they are unable to extricate
themselves from them. They go to extraordinary lengths to justify themselves,
even to the point of twisting the Scriptures.
They have made a virtue out of enforcing these “doctrines of demons”
even more rigorously than the Jews.
Of all the fundamentalist churches that we know
of, we know of none that do not preach these “doctrines of demons”, or which do
not enforce the tithing doctrines that were anathema to the Apostles.
Mainstream churches have dietary restrictions –
meat-less days, Easter lent, etc. – and interracial marriage restrictions
too. Any wonder that they are all angry
with us and reject our preaching.
It is not for noting that of all the religious
people in the world, God Almighty has chosen people of no connection with any
existing religions, who grew up in an atheistic world, who were not trained to
become ministers or priests, were given the task of preaching His Gospel as a
witness to all nations before the end comes.
We take the Scriptures at their face value, without giving them our own
interpretation or justifying preconceived ideas. We have no ulterior motive, and no interest
in turning the Scriptures into a moneymaking venture. We simply follow the examples of Jesus Christ
and His Apostles who preached the Gospel of the Kingdom of God free of
charge.
When I
joined the Worldwide Church of God, I had a hunger in my heart for knowledge
and was eager to learn about God and the Bible as much as possible. I had recently escaped from the atheistic
communist world in which attendance at church services was regarded as a
rebellious act – enough to ruin one’s career or even land him in jail.
I went along with what the WCG ministers required
of me, all the while studying the Bible and getting myself
acquainted with their doctrines and teachings.
It was a slow process as my English was rudimentary, yet within about
three years I knew fairly well not only what they preached and what their
church stood for, but also I began to notice cracks in their edifice. But it was unacceptable for a church member
to claim that he saw things better than the ministers, and especially than the
two great luminaries of the church – Herbert W Armstrong and his son Garner
Ted. So for a long time I pondered on my
discoveries and kept them in my heart until they burned me from inside like
fire. I truly believed that the WCG was the “one and only true Church of God in
the world”, and was greatly disturbed that I saw things differently. I had no desire to end up in conflict with
the leaders, of whom I truly believed to be true ministers of Jesus Christ, if
perhaps a bit misguided in some minor points.
But these were no minor points, but serious doctrinal errors that had a
disastrous effect upon their followers.
I had no way of knowing then that the Almighty was laying the groundwork
for the end-time work of restoring “all things” about the Gospel of the Kingdom
of God, and then of preaching that Gospel to all nations “as a witness before
the end comes”. Eventually we parted
company and ended up being not only different but also entirely opposed to each
other.
Now coming back to their contentious preaching
about the end-time perils of Britain and the USA at the hands of Germany and
its allies, they had the whole scenario neatly set up for 1975. It was all explained in a freely available
and widely distributed booklet entitled “1975 in Prophecy”.
It was my misfortune to have joined that church
five years before that anticipated dreadful end, in the midst of hushed but
feverish preparations for the relocation of the church to a place of safety,
widely believed to be a deserted ancient town called Petra in the Jordanian
desert. I do not know whether the King
of Jordan was aware of the droves of Christian guests that were to descend upon
his impoverished nation in order to take refuge from the Great Tribulation, but
I do not think he would have minded for that was a fabulously wealthy church. It had to be because its “fortunate elect
membership” gave everything to that church, as much because of the duty imposed
on them as for the fact that their salvation was near and they would not need
anything anymore anyway.
In those days, Herbert W. Armstrong spent most of
the time flying around the world in his own jet aircraft, visiting as many
leaders as would receive him, always with expensive gifts fit for a king. The area of the greatest interest to him was
of course the Middle East, in particular Israel, Jordan, and Egypt. Israel, because that’s where the survivors of
Britain and the USA would be relocated after the Great Tribulation, Jordan
because that was the place of safety for the church, and Egypt because together
Israel and Assyria (modern Germany) would form the three pivotal nations in the
Kingdom of God. This is where he got
that idea:
Isa 19:23
In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the
Assyrian will come into Egypt and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians
will serve with the Assyrians.
Isa 19:24 In that day Israel will be one of
three with Egypt and Assyria—a blessing in the midst of the land,
Isa 19:25 whom the LORD of hosts shall bless,
saying, "Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria the work of My
hands, and Israel My inheritance."
Decades have passed since, and neither the refuge
to the place of safety, nor the Great Tribulation eventuated as expected. The only people that have been scattered
everywhere are the survivors of Armstrong’s empire after it collapsed and split
into countless little clones.
Now all of these churches still hold on to the
notion that a ten-nation European colossus would rise in central Europe, and
destroy Britain and the USA, a belief that became even more firmly entrenched
after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990.
That put us in an invidious position, since we have maintained all along
that it would not be Germany but Russia that would lead the end-time ten-nation
military power.
Since the European Union expanded beyond the magic
number of ten, and shows little inclination of turning against Britain and the
USA, and Russia is now a basket case economically, it would seem that both
their prophetic understanding and my political instincts were wrong. What then of Daniel’s prophecies, for they
clearly speak of a ten-nation colossal power that will trigger the Great
Tribulation and cause much devastation to the world? (Dan.2:31-45).
Where is that power coming from? Is it still the European Union, the
Commonwealth of Independent States, or some other force that is yet to be
identified? We shall let the Bible speak
for itself and show you how easy it is to locate where this power is going to
come from.
Herbert W. Armstrong knew that this power would
rise up in the north, the reference point being Israel, but concluded that the
countries of Europe, grouped around Germany, are located north of Israel. Now in longitudinal terms you can say that
Canada is north of Israel too, but that is certainly not what the prophet had
in mind.
If you look at a globe and go north from Israel,
the only European countries that you will find there are those of Ukraine and
Russia. So we don't need to guess which
countries these prophecies are referring to, because the Bible tells us exactly
where to look for them. Now just because
they do not fit our prejudices and preconceived ideas, it does not mean that
they would not fulfill their prophetic destinies. American evangelists seem to be obsessed with
Germany, ascribing to that nation just about every evil that has befallen this
world. They seem to be impervious to the
changes that World War Two brought upon this world and the new geopolitical
realities that ensued from that war.
In the course of history many nations have moved
about and changed their names, yet it is surprising how accurately the Bible
still identifies those countries that are named in its prophecies. Notice:
Jer 4:6 Set
up the standard toward Zion. Take refuge! Do not delay! For I will bring disaster
from the north, And great destruction."
First of all notice that it is God who brings
disaster upon sinful people. He also
determines where that disaster comes from, not human beings,
therefore you can be certain that this prophecy will not fail. The geographical location in the north is
reinforced in several other places.
Jer 6:1 "O
you children of Benjamin, Gather yourselves to flee from the midst of
Jerusalem! Blow the trumpet in Tekoa, And set up a signal-fire in Beth Haccerem;
For disaster appears out of the north, And great destruction.
Now how do we know that these prophecies do not
refer to Turkey, Lebanon, Syria or even Iraq, as some American evangelists have
suggested recently, for these countries are also located north of Israel. Here is the answer:
Jer 6:22 Thus
says the LORD: "Behold, a people comes from the north country, And a great
nation will be raised from the farthest parts of the earth.
Jer 6:23 They will lay hold on bow
and spear; They are cruel and have no mercy; Their voice roars like the
sea; And they ride on horses, As men of war set in array against you, O
daughter of Zion."
The nation in the furthest parts of the earth,
north of Israel, is Russia. But how do
we know that these prophecies refer to our time and not to the ancient time
when Israel was conquered and taken into captivity in far
away lands? Here again is the
biblical answer:
Jer 30:4 Now
these are the words that the Lord spoke concerning Israel and Judah.
Jer 30:5 "For
thus says the LORD: 'We have heard a voice of trembling, Of fear, and not of
peace.
Jer 30:6 Ask
now, and see, Whether a man is ever in labor with child? So why do I see every
man with his hands on his loins Like a woman in
labor, And all faces turned pale?
Jer 30:7 Alas!
For that day is great, So that none is
like it; And it is the time of Jacob's trouble, But he shall be saved
out of it.
Jer 30:8 'For
it shall come to pass in that day,' Says the LORD of hosts, 'That I will
break his yoke from your neck, And will burst your bonds; Foreigners shall no
more enslave them.
Jer 30:9 But
they shall serve the LORD their God, And David their king, Whom I will raise up
for them.
The day of the Lord and the time of Jacob’s
trouble are coming at the end of this age, therefore these prophecies are for
the time just ahead of us. This passage
also identifies the nations that shall be victims of this power from the north. Three names are mentioned: Israel, Judah and
Jacob, in other words all the nations that have
descended from the Twelve Tribes of Israel.
When Jeremiah wrote this prophecy, there was no
longer a nation called Israel in the Middle East. The Ten Tribes that retained the name Israel
(and Samaria) when the kingdom split in two, had been taken into captivity by
Assyria more than a hundred years earlier and vanished from history. Judah itself was being
surrounded by Babylonian forces, and ended up in captivity shortly afterwards. After the fall of the Babylonian empire many
Jews (people of the tribe of Judah) returned to their land, but none of the
tribes of Israel or Samaria came back with them.
The two nations, Israel and Judah, were taken into
captivity by two different empires: Assyrian and Babylonian respectively. When the Babylonian empire rose, the Assyrian
empire, which had occupied the area to the north and west of them,
transmigrated in a northwesterly direction, taking along its captive nations,
and settled in Europe. Now while H.W.
Armstrong popularized this view of history in the beginning, there are now many
books on the marked that identify those nations as descending from the Ten
Tribes of Israel. Great Britain and the USA are said to descend from Ephraim
and Manasseh, the two tribes that inherited the birthright bestowed upon them
by the patriarch Joseph. Since these
countries have dominated the world in the last three centuries or so, and right
now find themselves in competition with the countries of the ten-nation power
from the north, it adds credence to the notion and the prophecy that Jacob’s
trouble would come at the end of this age.
It is not mere coincidences that during two World
Wars these countries have prevented the world from sliding into chaos and
tyranny. During the Second World War the
democracies of Europe and Asia had already fallen under the heel of
dictatorships. If Britain and the USA
had lost that war, we would all be living under one form of tyranny or another.
It is not a mere coincidence either that most of the
Bibles in the world, including those in many foreign languages, have come out
of these two countries. But the irony is
that while they provided hope and spiritual guidance to others, they themselves
seem to have fallen into a deep moral and spiritual morass. That is why they will no longer have the
strength to withstand the disaster that comes their way from the north. God however says that He will save them in
the end.
These peoples together with their sister nations
of Europe have maintained a civilized balance in the world for millennia. But now, right at the end, they too fall
victims to the insidious power that has deceived and undermined the world from
the very beginning. It is Satan's
influence that has been behind the great empires of the world, particularly the
last atheistic one out of which will rise the great
“beast”. Notice what Satan told Jesus
Christ, and He did not contradict it:
Luk 4:5 Then
the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the
world in a moment of time.
Luk 4:6 And
the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their
glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I
wish.
The disaster coming from the north will fall upon
all Israel. That includes modern Israel,
Britain, the USA, and the other European nations that have sprang from the ten
tribes. It will, in fact, engulf the
entire world.
The great day of the Lord, known in the Bible as
the Great Tribulation (Mat. 24:21), will occur at the confluence between this
age and the Millennial Kingdom.
Immediately after those days, David will be resurrected (as will be a
lot of other people) to become king of Israel once again, only that this time
he will be king forever. That is how we
know that this prophecy is still ahead of us for that event has not occurred
yet.
There are yet more proofs in the Bible that shows
that Jacob's trouble does not come from the European Community, but from an
alliance led by Russia.
Eze 38:1 Now
the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
Eze 38:2 "Son
of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog,
the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him,
Eze 38:3 and
say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the
prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal.
Eze 38:4 I
will turn you around, put hooks into your jaws, and lead you out, with all your
army, horses, and horsemen, all splendidly clothed, a great company with
bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords.
Eze 38:5 Persia,
Ethiopia, and Libya are with them, all of them with shield and helmet;
Eze 38:6 Gomer and all its troops; the house of Togarmah from the far north and all its troops—many
people are with you.
Eze 38:7 "Prepare
yourself and be ready, you and all your companies that are gathered about you;
and be a guard for them.
Eze 38:8 After
many days you will be visited. In the latter years you will come into the land
of those brought back from the sword and gathered from many people on
the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate; they were brought out of
the nations, and now all of them dwell safely.
Eze 38:9 You
will ascend, coming like a storm, covering the land like a cloud, you and all
your troops and many peoples with you."
Eze 38:15 Then you will come from
your place out of the far north, you and many peoples
with you, all of them riding on horses, a great company and a mighty army.
Eze 38:16 You
will come up against My people Israel like a cloud, to cover the land. It will
be in the latter days that I will bring you against My
land, so that the nations may know Me, when I am hallowed in you, O Gog, before
their eyes."
Eze 39:8 Surely
it is coming, and it shall be done," says the Lord GOD. "This is
the day of which I have spoken.
Eze 39:22 So
the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that
day forward.
From that day forward not only Israel, but also
all nations shall know that the Lord is God, the God of the whole world. Now notice how God says that He will put
hooks into the jaws of Gog and Magog, the prince of
Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and bring them against His land whether they like it
or not. So it is not an option but a
necessity that the Great Tribulation will ensue from the north, from the land
of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal.
It must be pointed out that at the end of the
Millennium there will be another tribulation, but not of the same magnitude as
the one at the beginning of it (Rev.20:7-9).
We know this from the words of Jesus Christ (Mat.24:21-22), who said
that during the Great Tribulation God would intervene to shorten the days so
that a remnant may survive. Life must
continue for another thousand years, and that is why a remnant must be saved. But at the end of the Millennium this whole
world will come to an end and a new world and a new heaven will be
established. Life as we know it will
come to an end and a new life, eternal and based entirely on the laws of God, will begin for those who are found worthy to be part of
the Kingdom of God.
Daniel's prophecy therefore must be fulfilled at
the end of this age. When that happens,
and its time is truly at hand, you should be at peace with your God for that is
the only way by which you can escape the wrath of God. Refuge in mountains or deserted places can
neither save you from the devastation of the Great Tribulation, nor guaranty
your salvation in the world to come.
……………….
Pro 25:2 It is the glory of God
to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.
……………….
Will There Be A New
Temple In Jerusalem
Before
The Return Of Jesus Christ?
How important is it that a new Temple is built in
Jerusalem before the return of Jesus Christ? Fundamentalist Christians are convinced
that not only will the Jews build such a Temple, but that this must be profaned
by the “abomination of desolation” before Jesus Christ can return to this
earth. But is their understanding of the
Scriptures correct? Unless you
understand what is behind this claim, you could fall victim to one of the most
odious deceptions of our time.
For years, the Worldwide Church of God evangelists
have visited the Jewish leaders with one question in mind: when were they going
to build the new Temple? One evangelist,
who was become famous for his prophetic misses, wrote in bold headlines a few
months ago that a Temple would be built by the end of 1992. At least he believes in miracles, for no
technology in the world can build in a few months what the nation of Israel
built in seven years (1 Kings 6:38). He
and a host of like-minded evangelists believe that animal sacrifices must take
place in that Temple in order that certain prophecies are fulfilled before
Jesus Christ can return to this earth.
Now we do not know what the Jewish leaders thought
of this phenomenon, but we can imagine their bewilderment at being asked by, of
all people, Christian evangelists when they are going to build a Temple to a
God and a Messiah in whom they do not believe.
What is even more puzzling is that these same evangelists will tell you
that the Great Tribulation is imminent and that both the Temple and Jerusalem
will be destroyed at that time. They believe that God will allow a Temple to be
built in His name only to have it destroyed almost immediately. That is how
these people think that God operates - putting His servants to great work and
sacrifices only to have them watch their work go up in
smoke as soon as it is finished.
So what is the truth? Will there be a new Temple in Jerusalem soon,
and if so what purposes will it serve? It is very important to understand what
the Bible says on this matter because misunderstanding this prophecy could
affect the salvation of many people and lead to enormous expenses being wasted
on projects that are simply not needed at this time.
There is no difficulty in finding out the answer
to this question. All you need to do is
let the Bible speak for itself. But to
do that, you need to have a fairly good knowledge of the Scriptures, and being an
evangelist or a Church leader these days is no guarantee of that.
Let us first examine the Scriptures that are often
quoted as proof that a new Temple must be built in Jerusalem soon:
2Th 2:1 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of
our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you,
2Th 2:2
not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word
or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.
2Th 2:3
Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come
unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of
perdition,
2Th 2:4 who opposes and exalts himself above
all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the
temple of God, showing himself that he is God.
There are a number of unjustified assumptions
about these verses that must be addressed.
- First,
they do not say that a Temple must be built in Jerusalem, only that the man of
sin sits in the Temple of God.
- Second,
they do not say that he will be sitting in the Temple of God sometime in the
future, but that he was already sitting in that Temple at the time Apostle Paul
was writing this epistle.
- Third,
they do not say that the Temple of God must be in Jerusalem.
When the Jewish people rejected Jesus Christ, God
rejected them as His chosen people and with that He rejected Jerusalem as the
place for His Temple. That is why the
Jews were scattered abroad, and Jerusalem and its Temple ended up a heap of
ruins.
The Christians became His chosen people therefore
the Temple of God must be sought among Christians. That is why Jerusalem has been anything but
the place for God's Temple for the last two thousand years. What will happen in the future after Jesus
Christ returns is another matter. The
truth is that until the Jews repent and become God's people once more, they are
in no position to build a Holy Temple to God in Jerusalem or anywhere else.
Now we know that the Jews will repent eventually
and become God's people once more, but not before the return of Jesus Christ:
Zec 12:10 "And
I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the
Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced.
Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and
grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.
They will "look upon" Jesus Christ
"whom they have pierced" after He comes back. It is then that God will grant them
repentance and they will mourn and grieve for Him as for a firstborn son. Until then the Jews cannot built a Holy
Temple for God.
Other Scriptures often used to justify the idea of
a Temple in Jerusalem are found in the writings of Daniel.
Dan 8:23 "And in the latter time of their
kingdom, When the transgressors have reached their fullness, A king shall
arise, Having fierce features, Who understands sinister schemes.
Dan 8:11 He even exalted himself as high
as the Prince of the host; and by him the daily sacrifices were taken
away, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down.
The usual questions asked in relation to this
verse are: "How could a sanctuary be cast down
unless it first exists? How could daily sacrifices be taken away unless they
are being performed?"
The problem is that those who ask such questions
play a trick on their readers. They
quote Daniel 8:23 first then Daniel 8:11.
In other words, they put the cart before the horse. They reverse the order of events and make it
look as if they are yet to happen when in fact they have occurred long
ago. The 'sanctuary' has been cast down
and the 'daily sacrifices' have been taken away long ago, as we shall prove.
A major problem with those people is that they do
not know history. They always imagine that the events they do not know about must happen in the
future. It is a convenient way of
masking one's ignorance of the Bible and of history. Hence, we have the situation in which those
'seers' claim that ninety per cent of all the Bible prophecies are yet to occur
in the remaining years before the end of this age. According to them nearly six thousand years
of human history have passed and only a small percentage of biblical prophecy
have been fulfilled while the remaining few years will see an avalanche of them. This comes from people who have built an
opulent lifestyle on their professed ability to understand and preach the Word
of God.
Their presumption of course is not true, for the
vast majority of biblical prophecies have been fulfilled, as have, in large
measure, been the prophecies they connect with the Temple in Jerusalem.
Let us analyze the Scriptures they quoted as
'proof' that a Temple must be built in Jerusalem soon and debunk this myth once
and for all.
The king that Daniel said would arise in the
latter time (8:23) has nothing to do with the Temple in Jerusalem. It is just a careless use of the Scriptures
to justify a point that is not there.
The evangelist who used Daniel’s writings to
'prove’ the need for a Temple in Jerusalem wrote:
“Here again, referring to
these last days (Dan.9:26) we see that there must be in existence [a Temple],
which shall be destroyed by the evil Beast, and sacrifices which must be
performed daily in order to be stopped."
This is a classic example of people reading into
the Scriptures what is not there. This
is what Daniel 9:26 actually says:
"And after the sixty-two
weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And
the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the
sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And
till the end of the war desolations are determined.”
Can you imagine a 'Christian' evangelist saying
that these things must happen again when the whole world knows that the Messiah
was cut off nearly two thousand years ago and that the city and the sanctuary
were destroyed shortly afterwards by the people who cut Him off? Talk about deception and people masquerading
as ministers of Christ! But let us go on
for there is more to come.
"Next, in that epochal
book, I referred to
Again let us go to the Bible and see whether
Daniel 11:31says what this man says it does.
"And forces shall be
mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall
take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation.”
No mention of the Temple or of the 'holy of
holies' here. But what about the words
‘sanctuary fortress’ and 'daily
sacrifices', what do they mean? You will
shortly see that they do not mean what this evangelist says they do. His
misunderstanding comes from the words, "they shall take away the daily
sacrifices.” What are these daily
sacrifices and when were they taken away?
Let us go to the book of Hebrews to unravel this mystery:
Heb 9:24
For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are
copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of
God for us;
Heb 9:25
not that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the
Most Holy Place every year with blood of another—
Heb 9:26 He then would have had to suffer often
since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has
appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.
Heb 9:27 And as it is appointed for men to die
once, but after this the judgment,
Heb 9:28 so Christ was offered once to bear the
sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time,
apart from sin, for salvation.
Heb 10:1 For the law, having a shadow of the
good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never
with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make
those who approach perfect.
Heb 10:2 For then would they not have ceased to
be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more
consciousness of sins.
Heb 10:3 But in those sacrifices there is
a reminder of sins every year.
Heb 10:4 For it is not possible that the
blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.
Heb 10:5
Therefore, when He came into the world,
He said: "Sacrifice And Offering You Did Not Desire, But A Body You Have
Prepared For Me.
Heb 10:6 In Burnt Offerings And Sacrifices For
Sin You Had No Pleasure.
Heb 10:9 then He said, "Behold, I Have
Come To Do Your Will, O God." He takes away the first that He may
establish the second.
Heb 10:10 By that will we have been sanctified
through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
If Jesus Christ put an end to daily sacrifices once
and for all through the sacrifice of His own body, how dare those deceivers
tell Christians that they must look to Jerusalem for more sacrifices? This is what Daniel meant when he spoke of
daily sacrifices being taken away. Jesus
Christ was taken away by this "Beast" and with that His daily prayers
and worship of God came to an end. No need for a new Temple and no need for
animal sacrifices before Jesus Christ returns to this
earth.
Moreover, both the Old and the New Testaments say
that God does not desire animal sacrifices, but obedience, worship and prayer
to Him, something Jesus Christ amply did on a daily basis.
Psa 40:6
Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; My ears You have
opened. Burnt offering and sin offering You did not
require.
Psa 40:7 Then
I said, "Behold, I come; In the scroll of the book it is written of
me.
Psa 40:8 I
delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my
heart."
Heb 10:5 Therefore, when He came into the
world, He said: "Sacrifice And Offering You Did Not Desire, But A Body You
Have Prepared For Me.
Heb 10:6 In Burnt Offerings And Sacrifices For
Sin You Had No Pleasure.
Heb 10:7
Then I Said, 'Behold, I Have Come— In The Volume Of The Book It Is
Written Of Me— To Do Your Will, O God.' "
A new Temple will be built in Jerusalem during the
Millennium, not according to the design of the old Temple, but according to a
new design given by God to the prophet Ezekiel (Chapters 40 to 48). Since Ezekiel received that vision, no such
Temple has been built anywhere, and the only time it could be built and the
sacrifices mentioned there performed again, is during the Millennium.
As they have done with virtually every doctrine
and teaching of the Bible these false preachers have also misrepresented what
the Millennium Kingdom will be like. They have failed to see the difference
between the Millennial Kingdom and the Kingdom of God. The Millennial Kingdom will be on this earth,
but the Kingdom of God will be on a new earth and a new heaven. This is the Millennial Kingdom:
Rev 20:2 He laid hold of the dragon, that
serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand
years;
Rev 20:3 and he cast him into the bottomless
pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the
nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things
he must be released for a little while.
Rev 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat on
them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who
had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had
not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on
their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a
thousand years.
Rev 20:5 But the rest of the dead did not live
again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first
resurrection.
Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is he who has
part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but
they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand
years.
And this is the Kingdom of God.
Rev 20:15 And anyone not found written in the
Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
Rev 21:1 Now I saw a new heaven and a new
earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was
no more sea.
Rev 21:2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New
Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for
her husband.
Rev 21:3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven
saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will
dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and
be their God.
Rev 21:4 And God will wipe away every tear from
their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall
be no more pain, for the former things have passed away."
Now there is another question that has not been
answered – the one about the 'abomination of desolation’.
Where then will it be placed? Let us go to
"Therefore when you see
the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in
the holy place" (whoever reads, let him understand).”
Jesus Christ said that this 'abomination of
desolation' will be standing not sitting, in the holy place, not on the throne
of God. What difference does this
make? All the difference in the world!
The question is, since there will be no Temple of
God in Jerusalem prior to the return of Jesus Christ where could this holy
place be? We know of no one who has ever
tried to explain what Jesus Christ meant by the words, "whoever reads let
him understand." What is there to
be understood? If He was referring to
the Temple of God, He would simply have said, ‘standing in the Holy Temple',
but He knew that this holy place was not the 'holy of holies' in the Temple of
God. Where is this place then?
There is a popular proverb which says that people
can’t see the woods for the trees.
Sometimes we fail to see things because they are too obvious. So it is in this case. Everybody in the world knows that the term
“Holy Land” refers to the nation of Israel, the place on which Jesus Christ
walked when He was in this world.
For a long time we thought that it referred only
to the place on which He was crucified – the place on which He shed His blood,
but now we realize that we were too restrictive in our definition. The whole land of Israel is Holy Land. And since the Scriptures say that the man
responsible for the crucifixion of Jesus Christ is the “abomination of
desolation”, that is, the religious figure in authority over those who
crucified Jesus Christ (Pontifex Maximus), it means that when he steps foot on
that land he profanes it. Daniel
The Importance Of Choosing The Right Leader
How do you know if you have chosen the right
person as your leader? The world has
turned up side down the values and qualities that
make a great leader, but the followers of Jesus Christ are expected to know how
to choose their leaders. At a time when
the world is wallowing in deception, following the wrong person could cost you
your salvation. Here is what you need to
know about those whom you choose as your leaders.
Would you choose as your leader one who supported
those who killed Christians; who admitted having difficulty in controlling the
impulses of his human nature; who converted to Christianity, reached the
leadership of the church, and then caused havoc by introducing doctrines that
no one has heard of before?
Or would you vote for this man: a non-conformist,
in conflict with the leaders, associating with prostitutes and the lower
classes, gaining a following for himself then teaching
a religion that was in conflict with traditional beliefs?
Would you approve of any of these people as your
leader? Can you imagine the media headlines and the furor among the people if
persons with such records run for the presidency of the USA? The people described above are, of course,
Apostle Paul and Jesus Christ, respectively.
Journalists and those who work for the media, are
accustomed to looking for matters that can be sensationalized, commercialized,
and trivialized, and more often than not that can be taken out of context to
suit their purpose – as we did to prove our point – instead of the substance
and intent of the matter that give meaning and purpose to life.
Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, and Apostle Paul,
a king under Him in the Kingdom of God, could not attain the standards required
of those who aspire to the presidency of the USA these days. Which proves that it is
easier and safer to become a king in the Kingdom of God than a leader in an
earthly republic or kingdom.
If you aspire to become a leader in the Kingdom of
God, and announce your candidacy, God the Father and Jesus Christ take note of
your intention, and no journalist will hound you and scurry to search your past
for misdemeanors that can be publicized.
In the United States of America they don’t just
choose anyone to lead them – they want angels over there. That is why that country is led so well and
things are coming out so perfectly, isn’t it?
Recently, a number of unauthorized biographical
books were published in the USA about the former President Ronald Reagan and
his wife Nancy Reagan. They compete in
revealing not important state matters of public interest, but the most unsavory
aspects of their personal lives. The
books became instant bestsellers, brought millions of dollars to their authors
and created sensational headlines in the media across the country. They became the topic of discussion in many
television and radio programs.
This phenomenon tells us more about the American
media and the conditioning of the American public than about the former
President's family life. A classic
example of irresponsible, sensationalist journalism, that
characterizes this paragon of spiritual and moral decay that the United States
has become.
The American constitution guarantees individual
freedoms, but it cannot guarantee a sense of responsibility. Thus, the freedom of religion becomes the
freedom to commit sin and blasphemy, and to worship Satan and other pagan
deities, while the freedom of speech becomes the freedom to meddle in other
peoples' lives and defile their memory.
President Reagan and his family had no power to
redress this gross violation of their private lives except to say that their
friends would not buy such books. Of course, a good friend would not want to
pry into your past life. The authors, no
doubt, embellished and misinterpreted some facts in order to make the books
'spicier' and more titillating to the common taste. That is a general characteristic of those who
write this kind of material.
None of us were angels when we grew up (some never
grow up), and many of us are repulsed by the foolish things we undertook in the
search for thrills and entertainment.
But as we mature we should remember the words of King Solomon of Israel,
the wisest man who ever lived before Jesus Christ came into the world
(lKin.3:12; Ecl.1:16. Luke 11:31), who said:
Ecc 11:9 Rejoice, O young man, in
your youth, And let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; Walk in the
ways of your heart, And in the sight of your eyes; But know that for all these
God will bring you into judgment.
Ecc 11:10
Therefore remove sorrow from your heart, And put away evil from
your flesh, For childhood and youth are vanity.
Ecc 12:1
Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, Before the
difficult days come, And the years draw near when you say, "I have no
pleasure in them":
When we repent, God wipes clean our past
errors. And if God forgives and erases
our past, should not human beings do likewise?
Any human being who does not respect this divine principle reproaches
his Maker and commits blasphemy.
Christians do not delve into other people's lives
in order to expose their unsavory aspects.
We believe in repentance; we practice it in our
lives; we respect it in other peoples' lives; and expect them to respect it in
us. Our Lord Jesus Christ said that we
must forgive other people’s sins not seven times, but seventy times seven
(Mat.18:22). In other words, we must forgive others as many times as they
request it, as long as they are genuine about it.
It makes no difference what they did in their past
life. If they show remorse and ask for
forgiveness, we must grant it. Refusal
to grant forgiveness is as un-Christian as exposing their sins to the
world. When people say that they are
sorry for what they did, the matter stops there. No one has the right to meddle any further. True Christians certainly do not do such
things.
We know that a person cannot become a 'saint’
overnight. The process of repentance and full spiritual attainment is long and
painful. It is a difficult struggle to
extricate oneself from past sins and errors, and no
one has the right to make it more difficult by meddling and exposing to the
world what the world has no business in knowing. Even when people relent and go back to their
sinful life, it is not for us to judge them and start exposing their sins,
unless it has a bearing on other people’s salvation.
The Apostles of Jesus Christ gave us an example
that we ought to follow. Whenever they
spoke of people's personal sins they never revealed their names publicly (See
Romans 1 and 2). They mentioned people's
names only when questions of doctrine and personal behavior arose that posed a
danger to the Church, but even then they did not delve into their private lives
anymore than they needed to (See 1Tim.1:20; 2Tim.2:17; 3John 1:9). It is God Almighty and Jesus Christ who deal
with such matters, who judge people, not we who are in the bonds of human
nature too. For as
sure as day follows night, if you expose other peoples sins unnecessarily, you
will fall into the same errors before long.
1Jn 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we
deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful
and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
1Jn 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we
make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
Ecc 7:20 For
there is not a just man on earth who does good And does not sin.
Mat 7:1 "Judge not, that you be not judged.
Mat 7:2 For with what judgment you judge, you
will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.
Mat 7:3 And why do you look at the speck in
your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?
Mat 7:4 Or how can you say to your brother,
'Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your
own eye?
Mat 7:5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from
your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your
brother's eye.
When we pray to God, we say, “Father, forgive us
our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us” (Mat 6:12). If you then
expose other peoples' sins, is that forgiveness? For if people have repented and been forgiven
by God, and you expose their sins, they could stumble and fall back, and that
becomes an unpardonable sin for you.
Beware, therefore, of meddling into other people's lives. Never forget these words of Jesus Christ:
Mar 9:42
"But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to
stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck,
and he were thrown into the sea.
More often than not, sinful people have few qualms
about their sins for they keep repeating them without remorse.
Pro 30:20 This is the way of an
adulterous woman: She eats and wipes her mouth, And says, "I have done no
wickedness."
Exposing their sins means nothing to them. But it is a different story with those who
have abhorred their past and embarked on a life of repentance and
righteousness. For them, such an act
would be devastating.
God annuls people's sins upon repentance and
although they still remember their sins (as they should), they have the
knowledge and conviction that God has forgiven them and wiped their slate
clean. Without that kind of conviction
and hope some people are as good as dead.
Those who do not believe in God, in His love, forgiveness and power of
salvation, who have lost their hope and faith, easily reach the point in which
they can no longer live with themselves and commit suicide. That is Satan’s way of solving problems not
God's.
When you are in deepest need, when you see no
other way out of your problems, turn to God and give Him a chance, for He says
that His strength is made perfect in our weakness. Only then are you truly
beginning to live a worthwhile life.
2Co 12:9 And He said to me, "My grace is
sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness."
Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of
Christ may rest upon me.
Recently, there has also been a spate of publications
about the leaders of the Churches of God.
They seem to have had no other purpose than to reveal their sins. Indeed, they offer disturbing reading. The problem is that the authors do not deal
only with their doctrinal errors but get right down into the gutter, revealing
things that no one should want to read about other people's lives any more than
he would want to read about his own.
That is a satanic ploy designed to destroy the Churches of God and to
cause the faithful to stumble and loose their
faith. Once again we feel compelled to
remind them of the words of Jesus Christ.
Mat 7:3 And why do you look at the speck in
your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?
Mat 7:4 Or how can you say to your brother,
'Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your
own eye?
Mat 7:5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from
your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your
brother's eye.
In the same chapter Jesus Christ gave His followers
this warning.
Mat 7:15 "Beware of false prophets, who
come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
Mat 7:16 You will know them by their fruits. Do
men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from
thistles?
If you have something to say about those who lead
the Churches of God, if you feel that
they are leading the people astray, expose their doctrinal errors, but leave
their past sins and private lives alone.
The Churches of God represent the body of Christ and if that body has an
ill-fitting member, it is for Him to heal or discard that member not for you.
Jesus Christ knows His body better than anyone
else. He knows whom He appoints to lead
His Churches and for what reason. If you
knew the Scriptures, you would know that there is a purpose in everything He
does. There is a reason why He allows
hypocrites to lead His Churches. Did He
not call the religious leaders of His day hypocrites yet He told His disciples
to obey them because they sat in Moses' seat? (Mat.23:1-36).
The trials that the Churches of God are
experiencing these days are from above and are designed to test the spiritual
strength of their members. God does
allow such trials to occur from time to time, but woe to those who allow
themselves to become Satan's instruments in these trials. It would have been
better for them if they were never born.
The members who have taken an easy ride throughout
their lives, who have not prayed and worshipped the Almighty in the manner that
He expected of them, who have relied on others to spoon feed them on spiritual
matters, who have not done their homework and studied the Scriptures, "to
show themselves approved before God" (2Tim. 2:15), will not have the
strength to resist the wiles of the Devil (Eph.6:11) and will find it hard to
stand on their own feet at the moment of their trial. They are likely to become
the victim of deception and lose their salvation.
The Kingdom of God is for those of strong character,
who are able to discern right from wrong, true from false, good from evil, and
holy from unholy. Apostle Peter wrote:
1Pe 4:12 Beloved, do not think it strange
concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing
happened to you;
1Pe 4:13 but rejoice to the extent that you
partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also
be glad with exceeding joy.
1Pe 4:14 If you are reproached for the name of
Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon
you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.
1Pe 4:15 But let none of you suffer as a
murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people's matters.
1Pe 4:16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian,
let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter.
1Pe 4:17 For the time has come for
judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first,
what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?
1Pe 4:18 Now "If The Righteous One Is
Scarcely Saved, Where Will The Ungodly And The Sinner Appear?"
1Pe 4:19 Therefore let those who suffer
according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as
to a faithful Creator.
If you believe that you are a member of one of the
seven Churches of God listed in the Book of Revelation (Rev. 2 and 3), you
should rejoice in your heart regardless of which Church Jesus Christ has called
you to be a member of. Every Church has
good and bad within its ranks and Laodicea is no different from the other
Churches. Some false preachers have been
twisting the Scriptures by using the command that Jesus Christ gave to His
people to come out of Babylon (Rev.18:4), as meaning that they must come out of
the Laodicean Church.
Jesus Christ has never told anyone to come out of
His Churches. To the members of the
Laodicea Church who say that they are 'rich and become wealthy' and are neither
hot nor cold, He told to, 'buy gold refined in fire' to become rich
spiritually, and 'white garments' to cover their nakedness. He did not tell them to come out of the
Church! For whichever way the Laodicea
Church may be, it is still the Church of God.
If Jesus Christ has brought you into one of His Churches, you cannot
join another one, and neither should you want or try to.
If you remain close to God, if you do not depart
from His ways, you have nothing to fear about.
Neither should you worry if you are being disfellowshipped from a church
for no fault of your own, or for doing the right thing. A minister or a priest can put you out of his
congregation, but no man can put you out of the Church of God. Only Jesus Christ can do that, and you,
yourself, if you falter and fall away.
You don't need to belong to any group of people to
be in the Church of God. Once you have
been baptized, received the Holy Spirit and started on the right track, you are
on your own. Your salvation depends
purely and entirely on yourself. If you
can fellowship with like-minded people, so much the better, but if you cannot
there is nothing to worry about.
Study the Bible (Is.34:16; 55:1-3), and meditate
on the law of God all the time (Jos.1:8; Ps.119:97).
1Ti 4:15 Meditate on these things; give
yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all.
1Ti 4:16 Take heed to yourself and to the
doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and
those who hear you.
Fellowship with Jesus Christ and with His Holy
Spirit, for so have the prophets, the Apostles, and all true Christians down
through the ages. Beware of the
deception, for many false prophets have come into the world, especially now
that we live in the last time. Look to no
man as your leader, but to Jesus Christ for He alone is a True Shepherd and He
will always guide you in the right direction.
Joh 10:9 I
am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved,
and will go in and out and find pasture.
Joh 10:14 I
am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.
So do you know Jesus Christ, and does He know
you? That is the only thing that
matters.
1Jn 2:3 Now by this we know that we know Him,
if we keep His commandments.
1Jn 2:4 He who says, "I know Him,"
and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
1Jn 2:5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the
love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.
Joh 14:6 Jesus
said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through Me.
Heb 13:20 Now may the God of peace who brought
up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the
blood of the everlasting covenant,
Heb 13:21
make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what
is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory
forever and ever. Amen.
………………………….
"Better a poor and wise youth
Than an old and foolish king
who will be admonished no more” (Eccl-4:13).