NO. 633 LIVING WATERS

“Whosoever will let him take of the water of life freely.” (Rev. 22:17)

Ezekiel 47:1-12 ─ “Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house: and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar.

“Then brought he me out of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out waters on the right side.

“And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the waters were to the ankles.

“Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the knees. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were to the loins.

“Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over.

“And he said unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen this? Then he brought me, and caused me to return to the brink of the river.

“Now when I had returned, behold, at the bank of the river were very many trees on the one side and on the other.

“Then said he unto me, These waters issue out toward the east country, and go down into the desert, and go into the sea; which being brought forth into the sea, the waters shall be healed.

“And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live: and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed; and every thing shall live whither the river cometh.

“And it shall come to pass, that the fishers shall stand upon it from En-gedi even unto En-egla-im; they shall be a place to spread forth nets; their fish shall be according to their kinds, as the fish of the great sea, exceeding many.

“But the miry places thereof and the marshes thereof shall not be healed; they shall be given to salt.

“And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.”

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Ezekiel’s prophecy is full of symbolism, and has appropriately been termed the apocalypse of the Old Testament. It was written in Babylonia in the Chaldaic language.

Many of the particulars connected with this vision described by Ezekiel are so circumstantial to the land of Israel as to give considerable ground for belief that it will have a literal fulfillment in the future; and in connection with the vision is shown a new division of the land of Canaan amongst the twelve tribes. But whatever literal fulfillment the vision may have, we may be positive that it is to have a grand fulfillment as a symbol, for the life-giving river here brought to our attention is undoubtedly the same one described six hundred years later, by John the Revelator, and referred to in our text.

Ezekiel was one of the captives of Judah taken to Babylonia by King Nebuchadnezzar on the occasion of his first invasion, when he placed Zedekiah on the throne, eleven years before his later invasion when the city was destroyed. The captives taken at that time included many of the chief men of the Jewish nation, princes and nobles, the brightest and the best. His object in taking these seems to have been to strengthen his own empire, for the captives were not treated as slaves, but were granted great liberty, some of them, as in the case of Daniel, rising to positions of very high honor in the kingdom. Ezekiel had great liberty, and his prophesying was done for the Jews of the Babylonian captivity ─ exiles. The Lord’s testimony through this prophet was undoubtedly intended to cheer and comfort those of his people who were Israelites indeed, and to fan the spark of faith which still remained in their hearts ─ to lead them, as in the case of Daniel, to hope for the return of God’s favor and the end of their captivity with the end of the appointed seventy years’ desolation of the land.

The matter as heard by the Jews in exile undoubtedly was pictured as referring to earthly Jerusalem, and the blessings as appertaining to the Jews as a nation. The restoration of Jerusalem and the Temple are clearly and explicitly foretold, and no doubt the hearts of the captives leaped with joy as they thought of the future blessings, and no doubt, also their faith and hope were encouraged. But so surely as Ezekiel’s prophecy was the Word of the Lord, so surely the prophecy did not relate to blessings to be conferred upon that people at the time of their restoration from the land of Babylon, for the predictions of Ezekiel’s prophecy were never fulfilled. Just so surely they belong to the future. Spiritual Israelites may realize that the prophecy not only related to natural Israel but also to spiritual Israel, not only to a deliverance from literal Babylon but also a deliverance from mystic Babylon, “Babylon the great, the mother of harlots” (Rev. 17:5), whose power is soon to be completely overthrown as precedent to a full deliverance of all who are Israelites indeed and the establishment of the Kingdom (Rev. 18).

River of Life: Our lesson deals with one of Ezekiel’s visions, which predicted the springing into existence of a wonderful river whose waters would bring to the land of Israel and to the Dead Sea verdure and life instead of drought, desolation and death. The ordinary interpretation of this lesson is that the Gospel is represented in this river, which now for a considerable time has been flowing onward and bringing life. We cannot accept this interpretation, for several reasons: First, the description is in such close agreement with the Millennial Age blessing of Revelation 21 and 22 as to leave no doubt that the same thing is referred to. In Revelation we see that the Church is the Bride, and the Church glorified is symbolized by the heavenly Jerusalem and the river of the water of life, and whose leaves of the trees are for the healing of the nations and whose fruit is for their sustenance and whose water is the water of life, living water. There can be no doubt that the two rivers are identical.

A Refreshing Picture: Thus seen God has rich blessings in store for mankind in general in the day when His Kingdom shall be established amongst men, in Immanuel’s day. The restitution of that time is pictured in the leaves of the trees; the abundance of instruction and nourishment, mental, moral and physical, is represented in the fruit of the trees. More than this, wherever the water of this river went life resulted, until finally it emptied itself into the Dead Sea with the effect that the waters of the latter were healed. Fishes thrive well in sea water, but the water of the Dead Sea is about nine times as strongly pregnated with salts, and as a consequence fish taken from the Mediterranean and put into the Dead Sea die in a few minutes ─ hence the name, Dead Sea.

There is no outlet to the Dead Sea, and its low level and warm climate have tended to make this sea the saltiest water on earth. Its main supply of water comes from the Jordan River, which empties into it an average of 6,000,000 gallons of water every 24 hours. The sea is about 47 miles long. It reaches about 1,300 feet depth, so that its own surface

level is almost exactly half way between its bottom and the level of the ocean. Like the Jordan River, this sea is also one of the most remarkable bodies of water on earth. No other is known to occupy so deep a hollow on the surface of the globe.

It would not at all surprise us if in the beginning of the Millennial Age, not only the nation of Israel would receive the blessing of the Lord lost at the beginning of this Gospel Age and become His representative people in the world ─ the Church having been taken from the world, glorified spirit-beings ─ but neither would it surprise us if, in the Lord’s providence, some miracle were wrought by which the Dead Sea would become connected with the Mediterranean, possibly refreshed also by some such river as is here described by Ezekiel, a picture of the symbolical river of life flowing from the New Jerusalem. But however interested we might be in the thought of such a literal fulfilment of this prophecy, our interest is still greater in the fulfilment of it as a symbol in accord with the river of Revelation. From this symbolical standpoint the Dead Sea represents the dead world, and the coming of life-giving waters would represent the resurrection power of the Lord and the Church exercised amongst men during the Millennial Age. As the apostle expressed it, it would mean, for the Gentiles, life from the dead.

Returning to the Prophet’s vision, we note that the waters flowed out from the House of the Lord, from the Temple, and that wherever they went they brought vitality and refreshment, healing, restitution, life ─ even to the Dead Sea. This to our understanding is a picture of the grace of God during the Millennial Age, when from the Church, the House of God, the Temple, “the habitation of God through the Spirit” (Eph. 2:22), the stream of the water of life, healing, restoring, rejuvenating, shall flow to all the families of the earth, whose condition is represented by the wilderness eastward of Jerusalem. The result will be the blessing and restitution of all the living families of the earth willing to receive the blessing. And it means more: for the Dead Sea fitly represents the vast multitude of mankind which has gone into the tomb, and the water of life shall reach even these, and bring to them also awakening from death, opportunities of restitution.

Jerusalem being twice sea-level height above the Dead Sea’s surface represents that Jesus and the Church as God’s Kingdom are not simply one nature, i.e., spiritual or angelic nature, higher than human nature, but are two natures higher than it, i.e., are of the Divine nature. It will be recalled (Rev. 22:1-3) that out of God’s and Christ’s Throne and out of Christ and the Church as God’s Temple and Altar the stream of Millennial Truth will come and will flow into the symbolic Dead Sea, the Adamic death state, bringing forth from the grave all the Adamically dead, and restoring to human perfection all of them, except those who will not reform (Isa. 65:20; Ezek. 47:11), who are represented by the Dead Sea’s miry and marshy places, and who will die again, the Second Death.

Turning to the description of the same symbolic river furnished us in the Book of Revelation (chapter 22), we find abundant evidence that it does not refer to the present time, but to the Millennial Age. For instance, it is symbolically pictured as having trees of life on either side, whose leaves are for the healing of the nations ─ not for the healing of the Church, which at this time is the glorified temple from which this river proceeds ─ and the healing of the nations signifies, as plainly as a symbolic picture could indicate it, restitution, the healing of the woes of the groaning creation, its sin and sickness and imperfection.

We notice also that the proclamation which will then be made will not be restricted, as at the present time, to “even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” (Acts 2:39) It will not be to an “elect” class; it will no longer be said, “No man can come unto me, except the Father draw him.” The call at that time will be general ─ to every creature ─ “Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” We notice further that that broad invitation is extended by God through the Holy Spirit and the glorified Church, as it is written, “The spirit and the bride say, Come!” We notice further that this expression, “the bride,” unquestionably places the call in the future, because, although the elect Church of the Gospel Age is called out from the world to become the Bride of Christ, she does not become such, does not enter that exalted station, until in the end of the Age she is perfected in glory and in the likeness of her Lord. Then will come “the marriage of the Lamb”; and not until after the marriage will there be a Bride; and not until after the Bride has thus been accepted as such can “the spirit and the bride say, Come!” to the nations.

In other words, there is a measure of selection or election as respects the class invited to constitute “the bride, the Lamb’s wife.” “No man taketh this honor unto himself, but he that is called.”

But with the end of the Age will come the end of the elective process; then the Divine message will be free grace, an offering and opportunity to every creature of Adam’s race. All blind eyes will be opened that all may see; all deaf ears will be unstopped that all may hear; and the knowledge of the glory of God shall fill the whole earth; none will need to say to his neighbor, “Know the Lord, for all shall know him from the least unto the greatest of them." (Jer. 31:34)

Here is that glorious city (government), prepared as a bride adorned for her husband (Rev. 21:2), and early in the dawn of the Millennium the nations will begin to walk in the light of it (v. 24). These may bring their glory and honor into it, but “there shall in no wise enter into it [or become a part of it] anything that defileth,” etc (v. 27). Here, from the midst of the throne proceeds a pure river of water of life (truth unmixed with error), and the Spirit and Bride say, Come and take it freely (Rev. 22:17). Here begins the worlds probation, the world’s great judgment day ─ a thousand years.

This same glorious city (kingdom), the glorified New Jerusalem, the Church and the river of the water of life gushing forth there from, are brought to our attention in Psalms 46: “There is a river, the rivulets of which shall spring from the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved. God shall help her early in the morning.” The connections here also show that these rivulets are not to be expected to flow out as a river until the Millennial morning, and the context refers particularly to the Time of Trouble with which the present age shall end and the Millennial morning shall be introduced.

The Outflowing Stream: “Out of the body shall flow a stream of living waters.” (John 7:38) This verse was not fulfilled at Pentecost, where the Lord’s followers merely began to drink of the spiritual truths, and by them to be united into one body of many members, of which Jesus is the head. It is from this one body that ultimately the stream of the water of life shall flow during the Millennial Age for the blessing of the whole world. Our Lord referred to this saying “My word shall judge you in the last day” (John 12:48) ─ in the great day, the Millennial Day; the world shall be judged by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. The water of life represents the truth, and the amount of the water of life or truth that shall proceed from the mouth of the Lord, from the mouth of the glorified Church, shall be such a stream, such a flow, as will reach to every part of the earth. “The knowledge of the glory of God shall fill the whole earth.” (Hab. 2:14)

A river of water of life is seen and trees of life whose fruit sustains life, and whose foliage heals the people. How this calls our minds back to the paradise from whence Adam was driven on account of sin, and to the tree of life in the midst of Eden, from which he was debarred, and from the lack of whose fruit Adam and his race died.

Oh, what a picture of the “restitution of all things which God hath spoken” ─ the healing of all the curse, the blotting out of sin, and with it misery, pain, and death, because a ransom has been paid and He who ransomed is the one who gloriously restores.

The water of life which will there flow from the throne is a picture of the future; for not yet has the throne been established on the earth. We still pray “Thy kingdom come,” and not until that prayer is answered, can that river of water of life flow. The water of life is knowledge ─ truth ─ for which mankind famishes now. It will flow out bountifully when the tabernacle of God is with men (Rev. 21:3). Then thirsty humanity, groaning in painful bondage to sin and death, will be refreshed and restored.

This river of the water of life represents the blessed influence that will proceed to humanity from the glorified Christ, Head and Body ─ from the Kingdom of God’s dear Son. When the blessed opportunities of that time are thoroughly open to the world, when the Sun of righteousness shall have scattered all the darkness of ignorance and sin, when Satan shall have been bound (Rev. 20:2), when the river of the water of life shall flow freely, then the invitation that will go forth will no longer be a call of the elect, but an invitation to every creature, every member of the human race, to partake of the blessings and privileges which God has provided in Christ, that they may have the everlasting life and everlasting joy which is to be the portion of those who love righteousness and hate iniquity, and who avail themselves of the gracious provisions in Christ.

It should not be overlooked that the healing and refreshment mentioned in this symbolization does not pertain to the “little flock,” the Church, but to the world, the nations. The Little Flock will have been glorified, perfected in the First Resurrection, before this offer of healing and restitution of the world is made. Israel will be the first to be blessed, but subsequently all the families of the earth, as God’s Oath-bound Covenant has promised.

“And there shall be no more curse” (Rev. 22:3) ─ the curse will be gradually removed and man gradually released under the blessing of that glorious Age.

ANOTHER PICTURE

Realizing their deliverance from bondage, and the Divine Power exercised in their behalf in the overthrow of the Egyptian army, the Israelites were joyful. The journey toward the land of promise began. At length, fatigued and thirsty, they came to a fertile spot, where there was an abundance of water, but alas, it was bitter, or brackish! The disappointment was great. The song of reverence was forgotten; the mighty Power of Jehovah in bringing them through the Red Sea was forgotten; even the taskmasters of Egypt were forgotten. The people murmured against Moses for bringing them away from the fertile fields of Egypt and its abundance of good water. They declared that it would have been better if they had remained in Egypt or even if they had died there. They declared that Moses and Aaron had misled them into leaving the land of plenty, and had brought them into the wilderness, to die there of hunger and thirst (Ex. 16:2,3).

As we consider God’s dealings with Israel, and the instructions given them in the wilderness, we see that these were evidently intended to prepare a nation for self-government ─ a nation which for nearly two hundred years had been in bondage, almost slavery. The first of this series of wilderness lessons may be designated a lesson of trust; and as we note Israel’s experiences and the Lord's guidance of their affairs, doubtless we will all find lessons that will be helpful to us.

Three routes led from Egypt toward Canaan, and the Lord chose for His people the most roundabout way of the three. He had in view from the first their need of training. Their long bondage had made them servile and weak, lacking in self-reliance in the new way and fearful that their leader, in whom they trusted remarkably, might yet prove incompetent for their deliverance. What a resemblance to all this we find in ourselves when first leaving the world and its rudiments ─ although trusting in Christ, our fully accepted Leader, how apt we are to feel fearful of our ability, even under His guidance, to gain the promised glorious deliverance from sin and its slavery!

The first disappointment in the journey was when the supply of water which they were carrying became exhausted and they had reached the waters of Marah (bitter) and found them brackish and unfit to drink; their disappointment was intense and they murmured against Moses. He in turn cried unto the Lord for help, and in response was shown a tree which being cast into the waters purified them. This was the first lesson of trust, and the Lord impressed it upon them as such (Ex. 15:25,26).

HEALING THE BRACKISH WATERS

Moses, the mediator of the Law Covenant,

typified the Christ (Head and Body), the Mediator of the New Covenant, and the tree that Moses cast into the waters for their sweetening represented another tree ─ the one referred to in the statement, “Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree.” (Gal. 3:13) The tree represented the cross of Christ, the agency through which the water of truth and Divine Law become waters of grace and blessing for the world of mankind in general when, in the Mi11ennia1 Age, they shall be delivered from the bondage of Satan and sin, represented by the slavery of Egypt. As the Apostle points out, it will not be possible for God to make a new law under which to bless mankind for the Law given to Israel was good, was perfect, as the Law of God must always be. The Divine promises represented by the water were poisoned by sin ─ by Adam’s disobedience ─ and hence were unsuitable and could not give the desired blessing. The cross of Christ, by canceling Adamic sin, canceled also the condemnation of the Divine Law against mankind, and eventually will permit the great antitypica1 Mediator to make the gracious promises of God good, refreshing, applicable to all who seek to walk in the ways of the Lord. The New Covenant between God and Israel, in which all the families of the earth are to share the benefit, will shortly be sealed with the precious blood ─ be confirmed, made operative.

But the Lord’s wisdom guided Moses to a certain kind of tree, which, put into the water, made it sweet and palatable. Moses explained to the people that in murmuring against him they were really murmuring against God, for he was merely God’s agent in the matter. A further journey for a season, and they were far from the bitter waters ─ at Elim, a delightful spot, where they rested and were refreshed.

STILL ANOTHER PICTURE

A certain stream carried brackish water through an otherwise favored district. Elisha took a handful of salt, went to the head of the brook and poured it there, commanding in the name of the Lord that it should henceforth be pure water. Looking for a typical significance of this in the Millennium, we remember that a stream of water represents a stream of truth, and that brackish water would represent impure doctrines. A purification of the stream at its foundation would well represent what the Lord has promised through the Prophet respecting Messiah’s day. “Then will I turn unto the people a pure message that they may call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent.” (Zeph. 3:9)

The salt cast into the spring reminds us of the Master’s words respecting His true followers, “Ye are the salt of the earth.” (Matt. 5:13) It will be in and through the glorified salt of the earth that the blessing will come, the streams of truth for human refreshment for a thousand years. The light of the knowledge of the glory of God will be made to fill the whole earth, as the waters cover the great deep (Isa. 11:9; Hab. 2:14).  (Reprint 484, May 1997)

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THE TEL AVIV CLUSTER

Jews are a famously accomplished group. They make up 0.2 percent of the world population, but 54 percent of the world chess champions, 27 percent of the Nobel physics laureates and 31 percent of the medicine laureates.

Jews make up 2 percent of the U.S. population, but 21 percent of the Ivy League student bodies, 26 percent of the Kennedy Center honorees, 37 percent of the Academy Award-winning directors, 38 percent of those on a recent Business Week list of leading philanthropists, 51 percent of the Pulitzer Prize winners for nonfiction.

In his book, “The Golden Age of Jewish Achievement,” Steven L. Pease lists some of the explanations people have given for this record of achievement. The Jewish faith encourages a belief in progress and personal accountability. It is learning-based, not rite-based.

Most Jews gave up or were forced to give up farming in the Middle Ages; their descendants have been living off of their wits ever since. They have often migrated, with a migrant’s ambition and drive. They have congregated around global crossroads and have benefited from the creative tension endemic in such places.

No single explanation can account for the record of Jewish achievement. The odd thing is that Israel has not traditionally been strongest where the Jews in the Diaspora were strongest. Instead of research and commerce, Israelis were forced to devote their energies to fighting and politics.

Milton Friedman used to joke that Israel disproved every Jewish stereotype. People used to think Jews were good cooks, good economic managers and bad soldiers; Israel proved them wrong.

But that has changed. Benjamin Netanyahu’s economic reforms, the arrival of a million Russian immigrants and the stagnation of the peace process have produced a historic shift. The most resourceful Israelis are going into technology and commerce, not politics. This has had a desultory effect on the nation’s public life, but an invigorating one on its economy.

Tel Aviv has become one of the world’s foremost entrepreneurial hot spots. Israel has more high-tech start-ups per capita than any other nation on earth, by far. It leads the world in civilian research-and-development spending per capita. It ranks second behind the U.S. in the number of companies listed on the Nasdaq. Israel, with seven million people, attracts as much venture capital as France and Germany combined.

As Dan Senor and Saul Singer write in “Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel’s Economic Miracle,” Israel now has a classic innovation cluster, a place where tech obsessives work in close proximity and feed off each other’s ideas.

Because of the strength of the economy, Israel has weathered the global recession reasonably well. The government did not have to bail out its banks or set off an explosion in short-term spending. Instead, it used the crisis to solidify the economy’s long-term future by investing in research and development and infrastructure, raising some consumption taxes, promising to cut other taxes in the medium to long term. Analysts at Barclays write that Israel is “the strongest recovery story” in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Israel’s technological success is the fruition of the Zionist dream. The country was not founded so stray settlers could sit among thousands of angry Palestinians in Hebron. It was founded so Jews would have a safe place to come together and create things for the world.

This shift in the Israeli identity has long-term implications. Netanyahu preaches the optimistic view: that Israel will become the Hong Kong of the Middle East, with economic benefits spilling over into the Arab world. And, in fact, there are strands of evidence to support that view in places like the West Bank and Jordan.

But it’s more likely that Israel’s economic leap forward will widen the gap between it and its neighbors. All the countries in the region talk about encouraging innovation. Some oil-rich states spend billions trying to build science centers. But places like Silicon Valley and Tel Aviv are created by a confluence of cultural forces, not money. The surrounding nations do not have the tradition of free intellectual exchange and technical creativity.

For example, between 1980 and 2000, Egyptians registered 77 patents in the U.S. Saudis registered 171. Israelis registered 7,652.

The tech boom also creates a new vulnerability. As Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic has argued, these innovators are the most mobile people on earth. To destroy Israel’s economy, Iran doesn’t actually have to lob a nuclear weapon into the country. It just has to foment enough instability so the entrepreneurs decide they had better move to Palo Alto, where many of them already have contacts and homes. American Jews used to keep a foothold in Israel in case things got bad here. Now Israelis keep a foothold in the U.S.

During a decade of grim foreboding, Israel has become an astonishing success story, but also a highly mobile one. (By David Brooks, Published: January 11, 2010)

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LETTERS OF GENERAL INTEREST

Dear Sister Marjorie and all the class at Epiphany Bible Students:                                                         

       Once more we find ourselves preserved alive (Psa. 80:18,19), “Keep us in life, and we will give praise to your name,” in what has become more and more a world of dense darkness and mostly full of sorrows and all manner of problems and ill’s. How clearly we see that the human race is in that condition foretold (2 Tim. 3:1-4). It was well attested to in the latest newsletters Nos.629/630, gratefully received. It caused me to consider as to whether because of the now common place reporting in all the various mediums, TV-papers-radio-magazines ect. Am I? becoming deadened to the impact! through the constant viewing of these matters! forgetting somewhat that these sorrows are befalling the “Heavenly Fathers” children en mass through out the earth.

Hopefully we can all give some reflection in our deliberations and petitions when before “Him” assuring that we are not untouched, unmoved by all the sufferings of our fellow brothers earth wide. Just as we know for a certainty “He” cares beyond measure, and if we seek “His” image in all things, our spirit of thought and action will be in like measure, for the “Heavenly” gave “His only begotten” to ultimately put asunder these terrible afflictions pervading the race of men. Clearly we see the only true refuge is “THE KINGDOM.”

The “little green” letters you so timely send out are most lovingly received with all heartfelt gratitude, and never fail to spark a response in some manner, they are “Manna” in due season. Thank you all so much for the written blessing on page 8 of No. 629.

 Christian love and fond wishes to you all. In “His service, Brother Rick                 (LONDON)

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Dear Marjorie,

Thank you for your letter of August. Sorry to be slow to answer, but the Fall was an extremely busy one with guests coming for my Bed and Breakfast rooms. It was good to see more tourists in Israel as Spring had been slower I think mostly due to the economic situation. I had some guests over the holidays, but January and February are usually slower months.

The 15th of November I went to the States for the first time without Lev – a new step for me! The main reason for my trip was to see my only sister in Colorado. She is 86 years old now and in a nursing home.

I flew straight to California, a long 15 hour flight, and spent some days with dear Elva Lanowick. She is doing well on her own and we had a wonderful time of sharing and fellowship. Then also saw other family and friends in California, Oregon, Washington and Vancouver, Canada in the month there. It was a blessed trip with good health, good weather, good travels and many good visits. However I did come back with a super case of jet lag. It always seems worse coming this way!

Thankfully I came back to a rainy Israel! We have had wonderful “early rains” this year, which we so much need to refill the Sea of Galilee! So we pray for a rainy Winter here!

I am glad that the things I wrote a year ago about the war in Gaza blessed some there. It seemed so out of date, but then the whole Goldstone Report made it again a current issue against Israel! So it never seems to be over for Israel to get the negative hits.

Thank you for your end of the year points on the world and Israel which I just received, and look forward to reading.

What can I say about Israel for the year ahead? God has all in His hands as we see Iran going forward with their agenda. How long can Israel wait for a solution?

Then the pressures on Netanyahu are tremendous, and I think even more behind the scenes. He is trying to stand, but it does not look too hopeful these days. We just pray that he will not be willing to give more away of the Land! Also that the Arabs will not accept any offer Israel makes.

The bright spot here is the economy of Israel, which is doing well. That does not mean there are no problems, BUT if we can keep the rest of the west from putting sanctions on Israel it will be OK. God knows the timing of all things.

Hope you and all there are well. Please give my greetings from Israel.

                                                                                     Shalom and love, Hava Bausch       (ISRAEL)

NO. 632 THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD

“I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings,” says Hosea 6:6. This subject of knowledge, especially so with the “knowledge of God,” has been bandied about by all classes from the least unto the greatest; and a little reflection readily makes evident that it must be embellished with copious qualifications if it is to be retained in proper balance. Almost every virtue becomes a vice when overdone; therefore, almost every virtue requires a companion virtue if it is to be maintained in good perspective. This is certainly true of knowledge, because St. Paul says, “knowledge puffeth up, but love buildeth up.” The great Apostle is not here putting a slur on knowledge, because no one can have too much knowledge if that knowledge is given proper balance by the grace of love.

“The spirit of a sound mind” implies that such a person has all four of the Divine attributes in reasonable proportion ─ each companion to the other three prorated to its correct position. Knowledge is acquaintance with fact, clear perception of truth: and wisdom is the correct application of knowledge. Thus, a man who is gifted chiefly with knowledge may be said to be an intellectual man; one with knowledge and power, an austere man; one with knowledge, power and justice, a righteous man; and one with knowledge (wisdom), power, justice and love is a “good man.” And to one possessing these four the promise is sure and certain that his “steps are ordered of the Lord.”

We often hear the remark that “knowledge is not the essential thing”; but this statement is only a half truth, and ─ “Half truths are more misleading than whole errors.” St.   Paul does indeed say that love is the principal thing ─ that “love is the bond of perfectness.” (Col. 3:14) And none with that “bond of perfectness” will ever be rejected by the Lord; will never fall from the Class in which he finds himself. No Saint ever lost his crown so long as he retained that “bond” and no Youthful Worthy will ever fall from his Class if he has and retains that bond. As Brother Johnson has so well stated, it is not required of Youthfuls that they develop Agape love; but they should certainly do so if they have the capacity. Some may not be able to do this; but it should be readily evident that if they can and do acquire it, then they have also the “bond of perfectness,” which none can give nor take away ─ the possessor of that “bond” can never encounter shipwreck in his walk by faith.

Above we quoted St. Paul’s statement that love is the principal thing, but here also qualification is necessary, because no one ever developed Agape love without patience, and none can retain it without that adorning grace. It is of such importance that St. Paul mentions it last in Titus 2:2 in his admonition to be “sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience.” Jesus had perfect love, but this He retained only through His perfection in patience ─ “He steadfastly [in full patience] set His face to go to Jerusalem.” (Luke 9:51) But we must go beyond patience in our qualification of Agape love. Before patience must come faith; and before faith must come knowledge ─ “the knowledge of God.” This is emphasized in Romans 10:14-17: “How shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard [received sufficient knowledge to enable them to believe]? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach except they be sent... So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

Clearly, then, in the primary sense the “knowledge of God” is the principal thing; without that knowledge there could be no faith; without faith “it is impossible to please God,” and without faith none could possibly gain that principal thing ─ Agape love. It has been our observation that those who would discount the virtue of knowledge ─ “not the essential thing” ─ are those who possess very little of it; and their contention is simply a lame alibi for their glaring incapacity ─ “My people perish for lack of knowledge.” (Hosea 4:6) We are instructed to “study to show thyself approved unto God”; and we are to account those elders “worthy of double honor... who labor in word and doctrine [the knowledge of God].” (1 Tim. 5:17)

And with such servants abides the assurance of faith, they know that they know, nor need such assurance “puff up” if that knowledge is moderated by Agapè love. If such knowledge is not moderated by Agapè love, such people will lose it as prophesied in 2 Thes. 2:10,11― and God will send them “strong delusion that they should believe a lie [errors and false doctrine].” A proverb of Omar Khayyam was: “He who knows, but knows not that he knows, is timid, encourage him. He who knows not, and knows that he knows not, is ignorant, teach him. He who knows not, and knows not that he knows not, is a fool, shun him. But he who knows, and knows that he knows, is wise, follow him.” Surely, the last two Principal Men knew, and knew that they knew. The Scriptures speci­fically state of one of them that he was “wise”; and our trust was well placed as we followed them. Also, it was prophetically writ­ten of the Epiphany Solomon (1 Kings 3:12): “I have given thee a wise and an under­standing heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.” Therefore, those who recognize Brother Johnson as the good Epiphany Solomon will proceed most cau­tiously before attempting to dispute any of his faithful Scriptural teach­ings. Neither of the Laodicean “stars” deemed it essential to be “as the actors,” to use the tricks of oratory, or the flummery of the stage, much of which is simply humbug. A pleasant anecdote is related of Charles Darwin, the famous naturalist: Some neighborhood boys attempted a prank upon him by catching a grasshopper, tearing off its wings and long hind legs, then substi­tuting the wings of a wasp and parts of several other bugs. They then showed him their artifice, asking him if he could tell them what kind of a bug it was. “Did it make a humming noise when you first caught it out in the field?” he asked. “Oh, yes; it made a very loud humming noise when we first grabbed it.” “Then,” replied Mr. Darwin, “it’s a 'hum'-bug.”

Such is much the case with a large part of our present-day estimation of the “knowledge of God.” A very prominent Evangelist recently said to his audience, “Coming to Christ is not dependent on understanding. I don't under­stand the digestive system, but I eat.” The superficiality of this statement is readily apparent. The Evangelist himself may not understand his digestive system; but other human beings do understand it, and this enables him to go on living. Had the human race not learned early in history that some of our vegetation is deadly poison that would destroy the digestive system, none would have survived unto this day. The Evangelist’s physician understands the digestive system, and he hires that physician to keep his digestive system in proper condition. And by the same rule of measure the preacher should understand what he is feeding the flock, and should feed them the true “knowledge of God,” if he would save them from spiritual indigestion. Presumably, they are paying him to do just that, just as the Evangelist pays his doctor to keep him physically well.

In our courts of law it is a fundamental rule of interpretation that “Ignorance of the law excuses no one”; and it requires no great insight to realize that if this were not true bedlam would prevail in all quarters. However, the rigidity of human law is not always operative in God’s law under present undone conditions. We are specifically told in Acts 17:30 that “this ignorance God winked at”; that is, He made due allowance for the inherited and acquired frailties of the human race, who through ignorance knew not God. But this should not be seized upon as an overall excuse for violation of the Divine order of affairs. Brother Russell has stressed that we are held accountable for what we have opportunity to know; howbeit, of him that hath little shall little be required.

In Parousia Volume Six there are two chapters devoted to Order and Discipline in the New Creation and The Law of the New Creation, which are there for a purpose. They are pungent with the “knowledge of God,” provided by God during this Harvest time for the guidance of His people and binding upon all of us who claim to be in “Present Truth” ─ regardless of the laxities practiced by those about us. Of the Jews it was written (Zech. 7:12): “They made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law... therefore came a great wrath from the Lord of hosts,” the same being a shadow before of the conduct of spiritual Israel during this Gospel Age, and especially so in the end of the Age. “He that hath an ear to hear – let him hear.”

Of course, the tendency of the times is to discount the “knowledge of God” ─ it doesn’t matter what you believe, so long as you are headed in the right direction. Therefore, take no exceptions to your neighbor’s beliefs; they are just as good as yours. We know this to be a direct contradiction to St. Paul’s teaching that there is but “one faith.” In E-9-512 (bottom) there is this: “The Lord does not despise knowledge and talent, as some mistakenly think, but, if sanctified, uses them advan­tage­ously for His cause, yet He certainly does not put the main emphasis on them, which main emphasis He lays upon characteristics of the heart.” Yet St. Paul so often remarks, “I would not have you ignorant, brethren.” (1 Cor. 12:1) Also, “By His knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many.” (Isa. 53:11) It was by His knowledge that He explained the types and shadows of the Old Testament and “brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel.” (2 Tim. 1:10) And at the very time He was doing this the critical statement was given to the Jews, “Israel hath a zeal, but not according to knowledge.” (Rom. 10:2)

Knowledge of things past often helps us accurately to diagnose present events, and to arrive at proper interpretations of difficult Scriptures. Many have been the attempts of critics to condemn the Bible because of its statement, “Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated [loved less]” (Rom. 9:13); but, knowledge of the custom then prevailing that the elder son must fast while the younger feasted upon the birthday of a prominent ancestor offers a clear and reasonable explanation of the matter. “The law of the Lord is perfect... making wise the simple.” (Ps. 19:7)

In Detroit at present there is a reciprocal understanding among many of the ministers of the different sects regarding “mixed” marriages to this effect: If, say, a Lutheran comes to his minister to be married to a Methodist, the Lutheran minister performs the service; then advises them to determine both to attend the same church. If the bride doesn't like the minister who has just joined her in wedlock, or if she cannot accept the Lutheran faith, then the minister advises his own member to follow his bride to the Methodist Church, or vice versa. Thus, in the overall figures, all is balanced up and everyone is happy. This means there is no longer con­troversy over what is the “knowledge of God.” If there be any conflict, it is now chiefly over personalities ─ “there is no live coal to warm them,” no living doctrinal Truth in its purity to stir their icy spiritual blood (Isa. 47:14). “They are shepherds that cannot understand; they all look to their own way, everyone for his gain, from his quarter.” (Isa. 56:11) Don't expose my ignorance, and I won't expose yours, they say; and each of us will prosper in our own bailiwick. (See Berean Comments on Isa. 56:11)

But, if we would be better used of the Lord, it is essential that we have a certain amount of knowledge, although some with limited knowledge and inherent wisdom (the proper application of knowledge) often accomplish more than others with great knowledge but endowed with less wisdom. Therefore, Solomon says, “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.” (Prov. 4:7) Companion thoughts are excellently expressed by both Star Members in the May 14 Manna Comments:

“What is it to grow in grace? It is to grow in favor with the Lord through an intimate personal acquaintance and fellowship of spirit with Him... To grow thus in grace and not grow in knowledge is impossible... If, therefore, we love and obey the Lord and desire to grow in His favor, His written Word is our daily meditation and study; and thus we grow in knowledge.”

Errorists and superficial teachers offer just the reverse of the foregoing to their devotees. When the Church of Rome was in its heyday it is well stated that its motto was: Reading is doubt; doubt is heresy; and heresy is Hell. That is, any who endeavored to inform themselves doubted the infallibility of their leaders; and such must certainly be only the course of the heretic. This was indeed the “doctrine of Balaam... the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate.” (Rev. 2:6,14-15) Such are the antitypical Baal worshipers, who endeavor by sleight-of-hand and great oratorical shouting to overawe the “unstable and the unlearned.” It should be noted that Baal was the Sun God ─ Lord of the Day ─ a fitting type of power-graspers and clericalists. At night the Heavens are filled with millions of stars, many of them much larger than our sun; yet they are all completely obscured during the daytime. They are still in their respective places, of course, but they are not visible to the human eye because of the daytime splendor of the sun. And such is much the condition of Gospel Age power-graspers. They have outshone the true Star Members, have “cast their brethren out” and built up Great and Little Babylon. Yet the promise is sure to all the fully faithful ─ “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the Kingdom of their father.” (Matt. 13:43) And this exaltation will be one without end!

In this connection, be it noted that the orbit of the sun is from the East to the South to the West. But those who follow Baal cannot ever receive any exaltation from the true God. Therefore, it is written, “Promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south” (Psa. 75:6) ─ that is, no promotion from God to those who follow the course of Baal. In 1 Kings 18 is recorded the experience of Elijah with Jezebel’s prophets of Baal ─ one against 450. There had been a long drought in the land; the country was blistering under the unrelenting rays of the burning sun. Therefore, Elijah gave those prophets of Baal every possible advantage when he told them to try their hand first ─ to kill their bullock, put it on the altar, and call upon Baal, their Sun God, at high noon to ignite the wood under their sacrifice. Well did they realize the mockery that would come upon them if they failed under such advantageous circumstances, which prompted them to callout, “O Baal, hear us... And it came to pass at noon that Elijah mocked them... And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their manner with knives.” (vs. 27, 28) Then, when they were forced to admit failure, about three o'clock in the afternoon (v, 29), “the evening sacrifice,” Elijah then instructed that twelve barrels of water be poured upon his offering, after which fire came from Heaven and consumed his sacrifice. “Elijah took twelve stones, accord­ing to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob... and built an altar in the name of the Lord,” (v. 31) which altar was typical of the Fully Faithful of the Gospel Age spiritual Elijah, twelve being a Little Flock number ─ just as was true of the altar constructed by Joshua (Josh. 4:5,9).

While the Gospel Age Elijah has always had the assurance that “Thou hearest me always” (John 11:42), fortified as they have been by the knowledge of God, which gave them a “mouth and wisdom which none of their adversaries were able to gainsay nor resist” (Luke 21:15), they seldom were given the spectacular outward approval which came to the Prophet Elijah in his encounter with the Prophets of Baal that fateful day. In fact, in many instances during this Gospel Age the Baal worshipers (power-graspers) have gained the ascendancy as instance, the victory of Calvin over Michael Servetus, etc.; yet the fully faithful have striven with the strength of Samson and the skill of the warrior David in their use of the knowledge of God. It should not be expected, of course, that all would demonstrate the ability of the Star Members in the use of this knowledge ─ although many have assumed they could do so. We recall the occasion when a gainsayer gave us the argument that Christ died and rose again “according to the Scriptures” ─ that this proved it was not actually true, but was only “according to the Scriptures,” which were unreliable in their records.

It has been contended by some in our midst that the Truth has always come first, then followed by error. This is only a half-truth, and half-truths are more misleading than whole errors. In the broad sense, the Bible, which is the Truth, has been first, of course; but Micah 5:5 clearly states that “when the Assyrian (the errorists) shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise up against him seven shepherds and eight principal men.” This is in keeping with Prov. 24:16 ─ “A Just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again.” The “just man” of this Gospel Age has been the fully faithful justified Christ Company, which fell into obscurity as much error sprang up about them after the death of each Star Member. We need only look at the Lutheran Church, the Methodist Church, the Adventists and others to note the force of this contention. If Martin Luther, Miller, et aI, came back they would be unable to find their teachings in those organizations that now claim to be their followers. In our time we have the instance of Brother Russell, and with what speed the falling occurred after he died. Jehovah’s Witnesses bear no more resemblance to the truths he espoused and the organization he set up than does a vulture to a swan. The measurably faithful made quick havoc of his good work ─ just as uncleansed Levites are doing all about us ─ some more, some less. And, as we observe this state of affairs, it behooves us all the more to equip ourselves with “the knowledge of God” to the extent of our natural and acquired providential circumstances. The world in general, of course, “knows not God”; and the great mass of Christian believers quite evidently have very little of the “knowledge of God.” There is the constant and irrepressible conflict, the battle of darkness against light, and the darkness hateth the light because it is reproved by it (John 3:20).

But the “knowledge of God” is for “the children of light,” who zealously try to pass it on to others, although with very limited success against the opposition of the “god of this world.” Therefore, it confers its greatest blessing upon its possessor; hence, the words of Solomon, “Buy the Truth [the knowledge of God], and sell it not.” (Prov. 23:23) To such, and to such alone, applies the promise of Psa. 91:10 ─ "Neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.” Such are the members of that “one Church, which in its entirety is the steward and administrator of the Truth [the knowledge of God], to preserve and defend it from error and to administer it for the benefit of the responsive.” (E-8-253) And such will be in full agreement with the slogan on Brother Johnson’s letterhead as respects the Knowledge of God ─ “The noblest science; the best instruction.” To which we would add, “that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3), and “He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness.” (Isa. 57:2)

(Brother John J. Hoefle, Reprint No. 506, June 1999)

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KNOW OF THE DOCTRINE

“If any man willeth to do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.” (John 7:17)

We are living in a day when the very word doctrine seems to be offensive to the majority of Christian people. Each denom­ination realizes that its own system of doctrines is imperfect, un­satisfactory, and indefensible. And the same is believed in respect to all other doctrines. Hence by mutual consent Christian people seem disposed to henceforth and forever ignore doctrines; for they believe that, if after nineteen centuries they are thus confused the matter never was clear and never will be clear to anybody

All this is a great mistake; the doctrine of Christ, as presented by the Great Teacher and his apostles, was a great message, of which none of them were ashamed. The difficulty with the Lord’s people today is that we gradually fell away from those doctrines, we little by little put darkness for light and light for darkness, and thus step-by-step got into the spirit of Babylon, and into the spirit of bondage to human traditions and creeds. Instead of shunning doctrines, we should realize that they are the very things needed to cause the scattering of our darkness and superstitions, and to draw all of God’s people nearer together.

The doctrines of Christ and the apostles is what we need to inspire us to break down all our creed fences, which so long have separated us as God’s people, the one from the other, in various denominational folds, all of which are contrary to the Divine arrangement; for God has but the one fold for all his “sheep” of this age, as he will have another fold for the restitution “sheep” of the next age – the Messianic Kingdom Age.

“ONE LORD, ONE FAITH, ONE BAPTISM”

Can we doubt that if as God’s people we put away sectarianism and the creed spectacles of our forefathers, and if we go with pure, sincere hearts to the Lord and his Word, we will there find again the “one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father over all, and one Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” and “one church of the first-born, whose names are written in heaven”? (Eph. 4:5,6; Heb. 12:23) Let us hearken to the words: “Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward,” “But remember the former days, in which ye endured a great fight of afflictions; partly whilst ye were made a gazing stock both by reproaches and by afflictions; and partly whilst ye became companions of them that were so used.” “For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.” (Heb. 10:35,32,33,36)

The time seems long to all of us, even though we remember that “a day with the Lord is as a thousand years.” When we think of the fact that it is thirty-nine hundred years since God’s promise to Abraham, that his seed should bless all the families of the earth, when we think of the fact that Israel did not receive that great privilege of being the spiritual seed from which primarily that blessing should go forth, and that the “elect” are receiving it; when we think of the fact that God has been nearly nineteen centuries in selecting the “elect” from Israel and from all nations, it is enough to stagger our faith unless we hold firmly to the Divine promise and remember that God confirmed it with an Oath. By these two immutable, unchangeable things, the Divine Word and the Divine Oath, we know that the seed of Abraham is to be developed, and that eventually it is to bless all the families of the earth. It is the Divine will that we allow our faith in this great promise of God to be “an anchor to our souls, sure and steadfast, entering into that within the veil.” (Heb. 6:19)

THE DOCTRINES OF CHRIST

What we all need as God’s people is to put away human theories and other gospels and take hold afresh on the Gospel of Christ. These other gospels are other messages of hope, aside from the one, which the Bible presents. For instance, Theosophy is one of these; Evolution is another; New Theology is another. These all hold out a different gospel from that which Jesus and the Apostles presented; the one that was given to use for our sanctification, and through the holding fast of which, and the obedience to The Faith, we are to be saved and given a share with Messiah in his glorious empire of the world.

The doctrines of Christ mean those doctrines presented in the Bible by Jesus and His mouthpieces, the Apostles. These doctrines relate to the Church and to the world, and God’s blessing for each; these doctrines relate to sin and its forgiveness; the terms of that forgiveness, the basis of that forgiveness ─ the death of Jesus ─ and the hope of that for­giveness, release from Divine condemnation, fellowship with God, and everlasting life obtained through resurrection of the dead. See Hebrews 6:1-3.

A PREREQUISITE TO KNOWLEDGE

But some one will inquire. Why is it so difficult to understand the doctrines of Christ? Why are there six hundred different denomi­nations of Christians? Why do they all so misunderstand the matter ─ that these different denominations have resulted from the differences of theory respecting the teachings of the Bible? The simple explanation is that, shortly after the death of the Apostles when the Church began to be in a measure of prosperity, the adversary came in and sowed the seeds of false doctrines, using human lips and human pens in his service, through pride and ambition. The darkness became so great that, looking back today; we speak of the period as the “dark ages.”

The various denominations of Christendom are evidences of honesty, perseverance and love of the Truth, because our forefathers, who made these creeds, were each trying to get more and more out of the dark and back to the “True Light.” They all made the mistake, however, of holding too much to the creeds and theories of the past. Let us not make the same mistake; let us cut loose entirely from every authority outside the Word of God. Whoever can help us understand God’s Word, we should be glad to have his assistance; but we cannot acknowledge as inspired or authoritative the teachings of the “Fathers” of the early times, however conscien­tious they may have been, because we cannot recognize that there were any such authorized successors to the apostles.

God, who foretold through the prophets this long period of darkness, and who has blessed and guided his saintly children through­out it, without removing all of their blindness, has promised that with the end of this age will come a great blessing and enlightenment upon his people, when the “wise virgins” will find their lamps burning brightly, and be able to understand and appreciate the deep things of God: “The wise shall understand, but none of the wicked shall understand.” In the end of this age the curtain was to be drawn, and the “true light” was to shine forth, scattering all the darkness. We are in the dawning of this new age today, and therefore may see much more clearly than did our forefathers, the Divine character and plan for human salvation.

WILLETH TO DO HIS WILL

This is a message from the Master’s own lips. He gives his plan and us the key to a clear knowledge of his doctrines, namely, that the student must be fully consecrated to God and fully desirous of knowing his will. In order to see light in God’s light ─ to see the truth, from the Divine standpoint of the Divine revelation, we must draw near to God in the spirit of our minds, consecrated in our heart. We must will to do his will.

But what does this mean? What is it to will to do his will? God’s will represents actual perfection of thought and word and deed, toward God, toward our fellows in the body of Christ, and toward all mankind. This is the Divine standard set up, but we are no more able to fulfill its demands than were the Jews. As St. Paul declares, “We cannot do the things that we would.” Weakness of the flesh, frailty and im­perfection, we all have with the world; the best that we can do is to will to do right, and to the best of our ability carry out that covenant with the Lord to do his will. At the very best all will come short of perfection.

But for those who have come into harmony with God, through Christ ─ for those who have made a covenant with him by sacrifice ─ for those who have Jesus for their Advocate, a provision has been made, whereby the willing, all desiring to do the Divine will, and manifesting endeavors so to do, are counted as righteous ─ as though they did the Divine will perfectly. This class, in the Scriptures, is known as the “saints”; they are the prospective members of the body of Christ. It is to these that the promises of our text apply, that they shall know to do the Divine will, shall know whether Jesus merely made up these teachings of himself, or whether he was the active agent of Jehovah in what he did and in what he taught.

At the close of the year, and on the threshold of another, shall we not determine to give our hearts, our wills, fully to the Lord ─ determine in our wills to do God’s will? If so, following the instructions of the Word of God during the coming year, we shall doubtless be blessed and enabled fully to know, to appreciate, to understand, the doctrines of Christ ─ the deep things of God, which are revealed to this class by the Spirit of God. Blessed are all who put their trust in him!

(Pastor Russell Reprints 5136-5137, November 15, 1912)

NO. 631 SOME THOUGHTS FOR THE MEMORIAL

The annual observance of our Lord’s death occurs this year after six p.m., March 28. We will observe this service at 7:00 p.m., 2501 Morn­ingside Drive, Mount Dora, FL. We invite all of “like mind” to join with us. This date is exactly 3625 years since the typical Passover was kept in Egypt; and we would stress that the annual observance of that event is simply a memorial for that awesome occurrence. There was only one real Passover; and the Jews were instructed: “Ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and thy sons forever.” (Ex. 12:24) And this the orthodox Jews have scrupulously done every year since that time.

But we are told, “Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.” (1 Cor. 5:7) However, instead of using the lamb and unleavened bread, we use the symbols that Jesus Himself instituted the night before He died ─ the unleavened bread and the wine, being substi­tuted for the lamb and bread. Some may object to this course, but there is no record at all that the early Christians ever again used the lamb and bread; it was always the bread and wine!

But the date should be the same for the Jewish Passover and our Memorial of Christ our Passover. The reason this is not done is because the Jews often allow the condition of the moon to govern their date; whereas, the Bible is very positive that the date should be Nisan 14, regardless of the condition of the moon on that date. And we use Jerusalem time because the Bible was written in that district. America was not known to the civilized world when the original and its subsequent memorial of the death of Jesus were kept in harmony with that truth; and it would be a mistake for us to depart from that established fact. Julius Caesar did not invade England until 55 B.C. However, the errancy of Jews, or any others, on the date should not be regarded as sacrilege on their part. All during this Gospel Age the majority of Christians usually used the wrong date for this service.

As we keep the Lord’s Supper as the antitype of the Great Passover, it is well that we keep in mind that we commemorate the greatest event of all history, the sacrificial death of the Savior of the world. And, while there is extensive and elaborate observance of Passover and Easter, few people engaging in that memorial appreciate the real significance of the ceremony. Could their minds be thoroughly awakened to its true significance, there would undoubtedly be a religious revival such as the world has ever yet known. But, as St. Paul has written, “The god of this world has blinded the minds” (2 Cor. 4:4) of many; and even with some who are partially awakened, St. Peter says they are “blind and cannot see afar off.” (2 Peter 1:9) They do not fully appreciate things related to this ceremony, which has been observed now in type and antitype for more than three thousand years.

The Israelites were commanded to celebrate the Passover as the first feature of the Law and as one of their greatest memorials as a nation. And this has been scrupulously done by Jews in all parts of the world, even by renegades and agnostics. Respect for this ancient service is in their very blood, so it is one feature of the Law that has not been violated.

And they were told to keep this memorial joyfully. And thus they concluded that nothing could cheer them better than wine. Conse­quently, four cups of wine were used during the evening, the first before any food was eaten, and the last after the meal had been completed. So seriously was this followed at the time Jesus ate the last Passover with His disciples that poor Jews were provided wine from the public coffer if they could not afford it, because it was not only to be just wine, but good wine, the best there was to be had.

Of course, in the original Passover there is no record that wine was used. If any was used at all, we may be sure it was not done to the same degree that subsequent memorials did. That night was a very solemn night, no rejoicing, but a sober readiness for departure from Egypt the next morning. But God had specifically said that they eat the lamb, and with bitter herbs and unleavened bread, with their loins girded, their sandals on their feet, and “ye shall eat it in haste; it is the Lord’s Passover." (Ex. 12:11)

With a reasonable God, all His instruc­tions must be reasonable; and, while many do not now understand the reasonableness of the various features of the Passover, in “due time” they will be taught to all the people in a clear and understandable manner. The Jews do now realize that some features of their Law carried great significance. As instance, their Sabbath day every seventh day was a foregleam of a rest from the labor of sin and death. They were told that those who kept the Law would live in it. The Jews did not want to die any more than the heathen, so they speedily answered, “All these things wi1l we do, and live!”

FIRST-FRUITS AND AFTER-FRUITS

Blessed are those whose eyes can see that Jesus was indeed “the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29); that the cancellation of the world’s sin is to be effected by the payment of man’s penalty, by the application of Jesus’ sacrificial merit in due time for the sins of all mankind. Only faithful believers have as yet received of the merit of Jesus’ death. Greatly favored are those who can see that as the whole world lost Divine favor and came under Divine sentence of death, with its concomitant of sorrow and pain, so it was necessary that a satisfaction of justice should be made before this sentence, or curse, could be removed; and that therefore, as the Apostle declares, “Christ died for our sins” ─ “the just for the unjust.” (1 Peter 3:18) Thus He opened up a new and living way ─ a way of life everlasting, not only for us, but for the whole world of mankind in that glorious Kingdom.

The Scriptures call the Church of Christ “the Church of the firstborn,” “a kind of first-fruits of his creatures,” “the first-fruits unto God and the Lamb.” (Heb. 12:23; James 1:18; Rev. 14:4) These expressions imply that ultimately there will be others of God’s family ─ later born; they imply after-fruits. Christian people in general seem to have overlooked these Scriptures, so far as making application of them is concerned, and have generally come to believe that only those who are ever to be saved are designated in the Bible as the first-fruits ─ that there will be no after-fruits.

But the Passover type indicates that it was God’s purpose to save all Israelites; and that as a nation they represented all of man­kind that will ever come into harmony with God and be granted everlasting life in the Land of Promise. Let us note that there was more than one passing over ─ the one in which only the first-born were passed over; and another greater one at the Red Sea, when by Divine power the whole nation of Israel was miraculously delivered and led across the channel of the Sea ─ especially prepared for them by the accentuation of winds and tides. These passed over dry-shod and were saved; while the hosts of Pharaoh, representing all who will eventually go into annihilation, were overwhelmed in the Sea. The passing over at the Red Sea pictures the ultimate deliverance from the power of sin and death of every creature of Adam’s race who desires to come into accord with the Lord and to render Him worship, all who will ever become a part of Israel; for not one Israelite was left behind in Egyptian bondage.

But this secondary passing over is not the one we are about to celebrate. We shall celebrate the antitype of the passing over of the first-born of Israel by the angel of death that night in Egypt. Only the first-born ones of Israel were in danger that night, though the deliverance of the entire nation depended upon the salvation, the passing over, of those first-born. And of the first-born there is no record that anyone of them died that night; they were safe so long as they remained “under the blood.” Thus the firstborn of the human family, the true Christians, were to be passed over during this night of the Gospel Age; only these would be in danger of the destroying angel ─ but would be safe so long as they remained “under the blood” of Jesus ─ they were all under the sprinkled blood.

In harmony with all the Scriptures, we see “the first-fruits unto God of his creatures,” “the church of the firstborn,” alone would be spared, passed over, during the present age. But the remainder of mankind who may desire to follow the great antitypical Moses in the age to follow this one shall be led forth from the bondage of sin and death, typified by the bondage of the Jews while they were in Egypt. As the Jews were told to remain under the blood that night, or they too would suffer death, so the first-born of this age are now also told to remain “under the blood of Jesus,” or they will suffer death. Some of them have gone out from under the blood, and have suffered extinction as, for instance, Judas. “It were better for that man if he had never been born.” (Mark 14:21) Divine mercy no longer applies to them.

In “due time” the night of sin and death will merge into the Millennial morning. Then the Christ, the antitypical Moses, will lead forth, will deliver, all the people of God – all who, when they shall come to know, will be glad to reverence, honor and obey the will of God. That “day” of deliverance will be the entire Millennial Age, at the close of which all evil and evil-doers, symbolized by the hosts of Egypt, will be utterly cut off in the Second Death – annihilation. “They shall be as though they had not been” (Obad. 1:16) – cut off in the antitypical Red Sea.

The Apostle Paul clearly and positively identifies the Passover Lamb with our Lord Jesus, saying, “Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us; therefore, let us keep the feast.” (1 Cor. 5:7,8) He informs us that we all need the blood of sprinkling, not upon our houses, but upon our hearts. We are to partake of the Lamb; we must also eat of the unleaven­ed bread of truth, if we would be strong and prepared for the deliverance in the morning of the new dispensation. Thus “we put on” Christ – not merely by faith, but more and more we put on His character and are transformed into His glorious image in our hearts and lives.

We feed on Christ as the Jew fed on the literal lamb. Instead of bitter herbs, which aided and whetted their appetites, we have bitter experiences and trials which the Lord prepares for us, and which help to wean our affections from earthly things and give us increased appetites to feed upon the Lamb and the unleavened Bread of Truth. We, too, are to remember that “we have here no continuing city” (Heb. 13:14); but as pilgrims, strangers, staff in hand, we are to gird ourselves for our journey to the Kingdom.

Our Lord Jesus also fully identified Himself with the Passover Lamb. On the same night of His betrayal, just preceding His crucifixion, He gathered His apostles in the upper room, saying, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” (Luke 22:15, Dia.) It was necessary that as Jews they should celebrate the Passover Supper on that night – the night of the anniversary of the slaying of the Passover lamb of Egypt, of the saving of the typical first-born from the typical “prince of this world” – Pharaoh – the same date on which the real Passover Lamb was to be slain. But as soon as the requirements of the type had been fulfilled, our Lord Jesus instituted a new Memorial upon the old foundation, saying, “This do in remembrance of me.” (Luke 22:19) It is here properly in order to emphasize that in both Passover episodes not one first-born Jew in Egypt died that night, and not one first-born Egyptian escaped death. The same in the Red Sea; not one Jew died; and not one Egyptian remained alive. And in the Kingdom only Israelites will live, as all who refuse the Kingdom blessings will die. Little wonder that Moses and Miriam sang their songs of victory after that phenomenal performance! (Ex. 15:1-21)

PRIMARY SIGNIFICANCE OF THE BREAD AND THE CUP

We recall the circumstances of the first Memorial – the blessing of the bread and of the cup, the fruit of the vine: and our Lord’s declaration that these represented His broken body and shed blood, and that all His fol­lowers should participate, not only feeding upon Him but being broken with Him; not only partaking of the merit of His blood, His sacrifice, but also laying down their lives in His service, in cooperating with Him in every and any manner, that they might later share His honor and glory in the Kingdom. How precious are these thoughts to those who are rightly in tune with our Lord!

In presenting to the disciples the unleav­en­ed bread as a memorial, Jesus said, “Take, eat: this is my body.” (Matt. 26:26) The evident meaning of His words is: This sym­bolized or represents my body: for in no sense had His body yet been broken. In no sense would it then have been possible for them to have partaken of Him actually or antitypically, the sacrifice not being as yet finished. But the picture is complete when we recognize that the unleavened (pure, unfermented) bread repre­sent­ed our Lord’s sinless flesh – leaven being a symbol of sin under the Law, and especially commanded to be put away at the Passover season. On another occasion Jesus gave a lesson, which interprets to us this symbol. He said, “the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.” “I am the bread of life.” “I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread which came down from heaven, he shall live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” (John 6:33,35,51)

In order to appreciate how we are to eat, or appropriate, this living bread, it is neces­sary for us to understand just what the bread signifies. According to our Lord’s explanation of the matter, it was His flesh, which He sacrificed for us. It was not His prehuman existence as a spirit being that was laid down and its glory laid aside, in order that He might take our human nature. It was the fact that our Lord Jesus was “holy, harmless, undefiled and separate from sinners” (Heb. 7:26) – without any contamination from Father Adam, and hence free from sin – that enabled Him to become the Redeemer of Adam and his race, that permitted Him to give His life “a ransom for all to be testified in due time.” (1 Tim. 2:3-6)

When we see that it was the pure, spotless human nature of our Lord Jesus that was laid down on behalf of sinners, we see what it is that we are privileged to appropriate. The very thing He laid down for us we are to “eat,” appropriate to ourselves: that is to say, His perfect Human life was given to redeem all the human race from condemnation to death, to enable them to return to human perfection and everlasting life, if they would: and we are to realize this and accept Him as our savior from death. The Scriptures show us, however, that if God would consider all past sins canceled, and should recognize us as having a right to human perfection, this still would not make us per­fect, nor give us the right to eternal life.

In order that any of the race of Adam might profit by the sacrifice of Jesus, it was necessary that He should rise from the tomb on the Divine plane of life, that He should ascend to the Father and deposit the sacrificial merit of His death in the hands of justice, and receive from the Father “all power in heaven and in earth.” (Matt. 28:18) As relates to the world it was necessary also that in the Father’s due time Jesus should come again to earth, invisibly, a glorious Divine Being, then to be to the whole world a Mediator, Prophet, Priest and King, to assist back to perfection and to harmony with God all who will avail them­selves of the wonderful privilege then to be offered.

It is this same blessing that the Gospel Church of this Age receives by faith in their Redeemer – namely, justification by faith – not justification to a spirit nature, which we never had and never lost, and which Christ did not redeem; but justification to human nature, which Father Adam possessed and lost, and which Christ redeemed by giving His own sinless flesh, His perfect human life, as our ransom sacrifice. The partaking of the un­leavened bread at the Memorial season then means to us primarily the appropriation to ourselves, by faith, of justification to human life-right – a right to human life – with all its privileges, which our Lord at His own cost prepared for us. Likewise the fruit of the vine symbolized primarily our Savior’s life given for us, His human life, His human being, His soul, poured out unto death on our behalf (Isa. 53:12); and the appropriation of this by us also signifies, primarily our acceptance of resti­tution rights and privileges secured by our Lord’s sacrifice of these.

DEEPER SIGNIFICANCE OF THE LOAF AND THE CUP

Now let us note that God’s object in justifying the Church by faith during this Gospel Age, in advance of the justification of the world by works of obedience in the Millennial Age, is for the very purpose of per­mitting this class who now see and hear, who now appropriate the great sacrifice which love had made on man’s behalf, to present their bodies a living sacrifice, and thus to have a part with the Lord Jesus in His sacrifice ─ as members of His body. This deeper meaning of the Memorial He did not refer to directly. It was doubtless one of the things to which He referred when He said “I have many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now; howbeit, when it, the Spirit of Truth, shall come it will guide you into all truth, and will show you things to come.” (John 16:12,13)

This Spirit of Truth, the power and influ­ence of The Father bestowed through Christ and speaking through the Apostle Paul, clearly explains the very high import of the Memorial; for St. Paul says, writing to the true Church, “The cup of blessing for which we give thanks, is it not the participation of the blood of Christ? The loaf which we break, is it not the participation of the Body of Christ? For we being many are one loaf and one body.” (1 Cor. 10:16,17)

Both views of this impressive ordinance are very important. It is essential; first of all that we should see our justification is through our Lord’s sacrifice. It is proper then that we should realize that the entire Christ, the entire anointed company, is from the Divine stand­point, a composite body of many members, of which Jesus is the Head (1 Cor. 12:12,13), and that this Body, this Church, as a whole must be broken, that each member of it must become a copy of the Lord Jesus and must walk in the footsteps of His sacrifice. They do this by laying down their lives for the brethren, as Jesus laid down His life, directly for His Jew­ish brethren, but really for the whole world, according to the Father’s purpose.

It is not their spiritual life that they lay down, even as it was not Jesus’ spiritual life that He laid down. As He sacrificed His actual, perfect being, His humanity, so they are to sacrifice their justified selves, reckoned per­fect through Jesus’ merit, but not actually so. Likewise the loaf and the cup represent suffering. Each grain must be crushed and ground before it can become bread for man; they cannot retain their life and individuality as grains. The same with the grapes; they must be crushed to extract their juice, thus losing their identity as grapes.

Our Lord distinctly declares that the cup, the fruit of the vine, represents blood; that is, life – not life retained, but life shed, given, yielded up. He tells us that this life poured out was for the remission of sins; and that all who would be His must drink it, must accept His sacrifice and appropriate it by faith. They must receive life from this source. It will not do to declare that life is the result of obedience to the Law. It will not do that faith in some great teacher and obedience to his instruction will amount to the same thing and bring eternal life. There is no way to attain eternal life other than through the blood once shed as the ransom price for the whole world! “There is none other name given under heaven or amongst men whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)

THE CELEBRATION IN THE KINGDOM

On the occasion of institution of the Memorial Supper, our Lord, as usual, had something to say about the Kingdom, the theme of almost all of His discourses. “Jesus went about preaching the gospel of the king­dom.” (Matt. 4:23) Those to whom He had promised a share in the Kingdom, if faithful, He told again that He would go away to receive a Kingdom and would come again and would receive them to Himself to share in it. He now adds that this Memorial which He was instituting would find its fulfillment in the Kingdom, that He would no more drink of the fruit of the vine until He should drink it anew with them in the Father’s Kingdom.

Just what He meant by this statement might be difficult to determine positively, but it seems not inconsistent to understand Him to mean that as a result of the trials and suffering symbolized in His cup, there will be jubilation in the Kingdom. “He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied.” (Isa. 53:11) He will look back over the trials and difficulties endured in faithful obedience to the Father’s will, and will rejoice in these as He sees the grand outcome ─ the blessings that will come to all mankind. This justification will be shared by all His disciples who have drunk of this cup, in justification and sacrifice with Him. These have His promise that they shall reign with Him; and when the reign shall have begun, when the Kingdom is eventually established, looking back they shall praise the way that God has led them day by day, even to the end of their earthly course, even though it has been a “narrow way.”

Our Master’s faith stood the test of all these trying hours, which He knew to be so near the time of His apprehension and death. The fact that He rendered thanks to the Father for the bread and the cup is indicative of a joyful acquiescence in all the sufferings that the breaking of the bread and the crushing of the grapes implied. Already He was satisfied with the Father’s arrangement. In line with this spirit was the singing of a hymn (Psalm ─ part of the Hallel) as they parted, a hymn of praise, thanksgiving to the Father that His course on earth was so nearly finished, and that He had found thus far grace sufficient for His need.

In considering the events of those solemn hours which followed the Memorial Supper, let us follow the Redeemer to Gethsemane, and behold Him with “strong crying and tears” praying “unto him who was able to save him out of death” (Heb. 5:7) ─ expressive of our Master’s fear of death lest in some particular He might have failed to follow out the Father’s plan, and therefore be thought unworthy of a resurrection. We note that our Lord was in some way comforted with the assurance that He had faithfully kept His vows, and that He would surely have a resurrection as promised.

We behold how calm He was thereafter, when before the high priest and Pilate, and Herod and Pilate again. “As a lamb before his shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.” (Acts 8:32) We see Him faithful, courageous to the very last; and we have His assurance that He could have asked of the Father and could have had more than twelve legions of angels for His protection. But instead of petitioning for aid to escape His sacrifice, He petitioned for help to endure it faithfully. What a lesson is here for all His faithful followers!

On the other hand, we recall that even amongst His loyal disciples the most cour­ageous forsook the Master and fled; and that one of them, in his timidity, even denied his Lord! What an occasion is this for examining our own hearts as respects the degree of our own faith, our own courage and our willing­ness to suffer with Him who redeemed us! What an opportunity is thus afforded for us to buttress the mind with the resolution that we will not deny our Master under any circum­stances or conditions; that we will confess Him not only with our lips, but also by our conduct.

Some of this article was taken from That Wise and Faithful Servant who had charge of the Gospel-Age Harvest of the saints: “Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.” (Psa. 50:5) We believe, with the help of faithful brethren, that work was completed during the ministry of That Servant. However, That Servant taught a second Harvest to gather an unbegotten class “between the ages.” (Reprint 5761, September 1, 1915) We call that class Youthful Worthies; and they will be rewarded in honor and in service with the Ancient Worthies of Hebrews, Chapter 11, in the Kingdom (Acts 17:31). Such consecrators have the faith of Abraham and will be made “princes in all the earth” (Psa. 45:16) ─ the visible rulers in the Kingdom.

Do Youthful Worthies partake of the Lord's Supper? Most certainly they do! They are thankful and appreciative of what our Savior has done for them. They do not “suffer with Christ,” nor will they “reign with Christ,”  therefore they partake of the wine and bread, symbolizing our Lord’s death as the Lamb of God and symbolizing their tentative justifica­tion. Their trial is for faith and obedience and not for life as was the Saints trial, although they make the same kind of consecration as did the spirit-begotten: “Ye shall have one manner of law, as well for the stranger [the unbegotten], as for one of your own country [spirit-begotten].” (Lev. 24:22)

As has been our custom, we shall keep the feast in quietness and confidence, decently, orderly, quietly, without much form or cere­mony, even as did Jesus and His disciples that last night.

It is our prayer that this year’s remem­brance may be profitable to all who partake in sincerity and in Truth. We suggest the Passover chapter in Volume Six; and we pray a rich blessing upon all who partake. We are living in wonderful times, and we know not what a day may bring; but we have the strong assurance that faith can firmly trust Him who “left us an example, that we should follow in His steps.” (1 Peter 2:21)  (Reprint 493, March 1998)

THE NEW MIND VS. THE MIND OF THE FLESH

“To be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” (Rom. 8:6)

There is a distinction between the new mind and the new will that we all must recog­nize. The new will is the determination of the new mind. There must be some mind there in order to have a will, in order to reach a determination, and there must be knowledge upon which a will can be intelligently exercised. We are “born in sin, and shapen in iniquity” (Psa. 51:5); to begin with we have this natural tendency. Our minds, at first conformed to earthly things; generally take the earthly view of matters, the selfish view. Then the Lord, through His providences, brings certain propositions to our attention and sets before us that there is another way, “a more excellent way”; that God is now holding out a special prize to those who will live contrary to the flesh and according to His will.

When this proposition reaches the indivi­dual, our Lord says that he should “sit down and count the cost.” He should not rashly say, “Yes, yes”; but he should deliberate as to what this means – the cost in self-denials and the giving up of earthly preferences. After having counted the cost, and after having made the consecration, his will or determination should be so set as not to allow it either to favor the flesh or to be guided by the flesh. He should resolve that henceforth whatever is God’s will shall be his will, whether he understand all about that will or not. He must, however, see the outlines of the Divine will and something of the advantages accruing, before he can form the decision. This is the class, which the Father accepts and begets of His Holy Spirit.

False reasoning of the flesh may sometimes mislead the new mind. Our natural minds have their preferences, ambitions, aims and desires and they sometimes argue about certain things, and say, “God never intended that should be given up; God would not expect you to do anything so unreasonable as that!” And so, perhaps, the New Creature is deceived, and allows the flesh to have its way; but just so surely as it is a New Mind it has not intelligently nor willfully assented to a wrong course; but, as the Apostle says, “Sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me.” (Rom. 7:11) So there is a continual battle on the part of the new will, the New Creature, after being begotten of the Holy Spirit, and he must watch lest the adversary try to make him think that which is wrong to be right, and that which is right to be wrong. These, then, are snares that the adversary places for the feet of the New Creature, and he uses the flesh in connection with its ensnarement; but the New Creature in his will, his intention, must remain loyal to the Lord and to righteousness. If he yield his will to unrighteousness or ignore God’s will, then he has ceased to be a New Creature. The new things are passed away, and all things become old again. This is a condition, we understand, from which he can never be recovered (Heb. 6:4-6).

In this connection, the Apostle James, in speaking of saving a soul from death, is evidently referring to one who is going into that careless condition where the new mind has become, as it were, stupefied, where the old mind has gotten the ascendancy over it. If we see one of the Lord’s people getting into such a condition, we should seek to restore him, “considering ourselves, lest we also be tempted” (Gal. 6:1); and those who do recover such an one “save a soul from death.” (James 5:20) Thus, brotherly kindness and assistance are specially commended of the Lord. A special blessing comes to all those who have an earnest desire thus to save an erring brother; a great reward is suggested for those who are successful in such an attempt.

HOW MAY WE KNOW WHEN WE ARE IN DANGER?

It might be asked how one could know when he was traveling toward that point of danger, so that he might arrest his progress. To one not blinded by the adversary, the point of deflection from harmony with God’s will would be as easily detected as would the border line between two States. The only ground upon which we were granted our present standing was our renouncement of sin and consecration to the Lord – giving up of our wills and complete surrender to Him. Thus we came into the position of having the imputation of Christ’s merit. If we should go back again and our will for righteousness become dead, this, of course, would imply that another will is there. We must have a will of some kind. If our will is no longer a righteous will, then it has gone across the borderline and, according to the great Apostle; such never retrace their steps. “Christ dieth no more.” (Rom 6:9) There can be no more imputa­tion of Christ’s merit to such. They have had their blessing and if they, as the Apostle says, “return like a dog to his vomit,” the step must prove fatal. (2 Peter 2:21,22)

True, the new mind at first is weak, undeveloped; and so the Scriptures represent the New Creature as being merely “a babe in Christ,” a babe in knowledge and a babe in the development of grace. But the Scriptures tell us that just as we care for a babe, specially handle it, specially feed it, specially deal with it, and do not treat it as we would treat an adult; so the Lord proposes that He will deal with all those who are babes in Christ. “He will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with every temptation will provide a way of escape.” (1 Cor. 10:13) The temptations will be permitted only in proportion to their feeble strength. He will supply for them the milk of the Word, that they may grow thereby, and gives them the assurance that all things shall work together for good to them (Rom. 8:28).

The trials at the beginning, therefore, are commensurate with the weakness of the New Creatures. It is true in some instances, however, that the New Creature seems to have a great deal of courage and strength at the beginning ─ perhaps more than is ever exhibited afterward. This, of course, is not a satisfactory condition of things. We ought to go from grace to grace, from knowledge to knowledge; after a time, we ought to be teachers, as the Apostle says, and not need to be taught again the first principles of the doctrines of Christ. God deals with us now as New Creatures under the direction of the Head. He supervises all the interests of each member of the Body. All things, if properly accepted, are overruled of the Lord for good to us individually.

This is one of the great lessons of faith that the Lord’s people need to learn, even after they have been in the way a good while. There are some Christian people who seem to have the impression, or at least give it to others, that they did this and that or saw so and so by their own wisdom. True, we all should use all the wisdom and strength we have; but the Christian who is relying upon himself is in a very dangerous position and quite likely the Lord will find it necessary to give him a lesson. For a while it is his duty to rule his life so as to walk in the right paths, yet he needs continually to exercise faith in God and in the Lord’s oversight and direction of his affairs, for “the steps of a righteous man are ordered of the Lord.” If, in the Father’s providence, some of the circumstances con­nected with our earthly affairs turn in this or that direction, our hearts should look to the Lord for the lesson to be drawn therefrom, and thus be able to glorify God thereby. The Christian should never view any experience as being lucky or unlucky, but should remember that all things connected with him, if he be living close to the Lord are ordered and directed by the Lord (Psa. 37:23) Pastor Russell, Rept. 4628, June 1, 1910)

Comment: The above article was written to the Saints; however we think it has information that will be helpful for the Youthful Worthies. They make the same kind of consecration unto death that the Saints made even though they do not die with Christ and are not on trial for life. They are on trial for faith and obedience. Spirit begetting ceased with the High Calling. The Youthful Worthies have a new will, a holy disposition and the Holy Sprit, but do not have the Holy Spirit of begettal.

NO. 630 RETROSPECT AND PROSPECT - PART TWO

JEWS

In the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates. (Gen. 15:18)

And this became the land of Israel; all the land from the Nile River through what is now Jordan, some of Saudi Arabia, parts of Syria and a sliver of Iraq. Just think they would own a good part of the world’s oil. But in those days oil was of very little use and for the most part it just spoiled the water. There was no Palestine.

When the Jews migrated into Egypt in a time of severe drought they eventually were taken prisoner and made slaves. God commissioned Moses to bring them out of there back into the Land of “Promise.” In coming years they became a great nation under Kings David and Solomon.  There was no Palestine.

There were the Philistines from the Aegean, sailors, artists, traders and warriors. Towards the end of the thirteenth century, B.C., this immigrant people arrived in the eastern Mediterranean and occupied the southern coast of Israel incorporating the area now known as Gaza. They certainly were not Palestinians.

Evidence from archaeological excavations suggests that these people were an advanced culture beyond the Israelites. Philistine arti-facts, such as elaborately decorated pottery, indicate that these people maintained contact with other civilizations and suggest that the Philistines were involved in trade. Excavations of Philistine sites show settlements that reflect large, well-planned, fortified cities and cult centers, and it is even surmised that the Philistines had knowledge of iron working. They were a thorn in Israel’s side. They were better fighters as a rule with advanced weap-ons over the Jews. They were finally con-quered and subdued by King David. Still there was no Palestine.

When the Roman Empire finally gave up on trying to keep the Israelites under control, they destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple. This was about the middle of the 1st Century AD. They circled the city with crosses on which hung crucified Jews and they dispersed most of the rest of them all over the world. They renamed Jerusalem “Aelia Capitolina” and changed the name of Israel to “Philestina.” Jerusalem’s new name never took and Philistina gradually became Palestine. There were still more Jews in the land than any other people after the dispersal, but lower class Arabs anxious to avoid the persecution of their Arab masters rushed onto the land and the trouble began. Ishmael, father of the Arabs, was called a “wild man.” Only the Jews are the true Palestinians.

Ishmael was father of the Arabs. About him Gen. 16:12 says, “And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man’s hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.”

“U.S. FAILS TO RESTART MIDDLE EAST TALKS: President Obama’s Middle East envoy ended his most intensive round of shuttle diplomacy without an agreement on one of the top foreign policy goals, restarting Israeli-Palestinian talks as a step toward a regional peace.

“U.S. officials had hoped to coax enough concessions to help Obama announce a region-al peace initiative. The timing is sensitive because a fresh round of talks on Palestinian statehood could bolster the United States in a looming showdown with Iran over its nuclear ambitions.

“But the American envoy, George Mitchell, left the region after six days of talks failed to bridge gaps over several issues, notably Israel’s expansion of settlements on land claimed by the Palestinians for a future state.

“U.S. officials said mediation would continue even if they do not realize the hope of a meeting next week among Obama, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

 “Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the administration is ‘very deter-mined’ to push for a peace accord but cannot impose a solution.

“‘We are going to do all we can to persuade, cajole, encourage the parties them-selves to make that agreement,’ she said Friday.” (Excerpts of Richard Boudreaux and Paul Richter, Tribune Newspapers, September 19, 2009)   

“NUCLEAR REBUKE: VIENNA ─ Over Western objections, a global nuclear confer-ence on Friday passed a resolution criticizing Israel and its atomic program. Of delegations present at the international Atomic Energy Agency, 49 voted for the resolution, 45 against and 16 abstained.”

(Associated Press, September 19, 2009)

“HAMAS OFFERING ISRAEL THE PEACE OF THE GRAVE: WASHINGTON ─ The Times interviewed Hamas leader Khaled Meshal at his Damascus headquarters. Mirabile dictu, he offered a peace plan with a two-state solution, except the offer is not peace but a truce that expires after 10 years. Meaning that after Israel has fatally weakened itself by settling millions of hostile Arab refugees in its midst, and after a decade of Hamas arming itself within a Palestinian state that narrows Israel to eight miles wide ─ Hamas restarts the war against a country it remains pledged to eradicate. There is a phrase for such a peace: the peace of the grave.

“Hamas knows what to do. Yasser Arafat wrote the playbook. With the 1993 Oslo accords, he showed what can be achieved with a fake peace treaty with Israel ─ universal diplomatic recognition, billions of dollars of aid, and control of Gaza and the West Bank, which Arafat turned into an armed camp.

“In return for a signature, he created in the Palestinian territories the capacity to carry on the war against Israel that the Arab states had begun in 1948 but had given up after the bloody hell of the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

“Meshal sees the opportunity. Not only is the Obama administration reaching out to its erstwhile enemies in the region, but it begins its term by wagging an angry finger at Israel over the Netanyahu government’s ostensible refusal to accept a two-state solution.

“Of all the phony fights to pick with Israel. No Israeli government would turn down a two-state solution in which the Palestinians accepted territorial compromise and genuine peace with a Jewish state. Netanyahu’s own defense minister, Ehud Barak, offered precisely such a deal in 2000.

“The Palestinian response (for those who have forgotten) was: No. Nine weeks later Arafat unleashed a savage terror war that killed 1,000 Israelis.

“Netanyahu is reluctant to agree to a Palestinian state before he knows what kind of state it will be. That prudence should be shared by anyone who’s been sentient the last three years.

“The Palestinians already have a state, an independent territory with not an Israeli settler or soldier living on it. It’s called Gaza ─a terror base, Islamist in nature, Iranian-allied, militant and aggressive, that has fired more than 10,000 rockets and mortars at Israeli civilians.

“If this is what a West Bank state is going to be, it would be madness for Israel or America or Jordan or Egypt or any other moderate Arab country to accept such a two-state solution.

“Which is why Netanyahu insists that the Palestinian Authority first build institutions to anchor a state that could actually carry out its responsibilities to keep the peace.

“Meshal’s gambit to dress up perpetual war as a two-state peace is yet another iteration of the Palestinian rejectionist tragedy. In its previous incarnation, Arafat lulled Israel and the Clinton administration with talk of peace while he methodically prepared his people for war.

“Arafat waited seven years to tear up his phony peace. Meshal’s innovation? Ten ─ then blood.”

(By Charles Krauthammer, Orlando Sentinel, May 10, 2009)

“CALL TO REEXAMINE TWO-STATE SOLUTION: An American plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict within two years may lead to the establishment of ‘Hamastan in the West Bank [Judea and Samaria],’ Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Yaalon said during an event at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. The peace process may take up to five years, Yaalon said, adding that ‘instant peace’ will fail because of realities on the ground. The minister called for a reexamination of some basic assumptions underlying the peace process, including the two-state vision ostensibly being the only viable solution, and the perception that Israel’s ‘occupation’ and settlement activity constitute major obstacles for peace.

“‘These assumptions stood behind the Oslo process, and its failure indicates that they deserve to be reexamined,’ Yaalon said. ‘Such examination will reveal that, whereas the Israelis were really ready for this kind of a solution, including myself, the Palestinians do not accept that ‘the two-state solution’ refers to two states for two peoples. In their view, one state should be the Palestinian state and the national identity of the other state should remain undefined, so that in the future, it can become a Palestinian state as well,’ he said.

“Israel wishes to keep ‘all options’ open in respect to the character of the future Palestinian entity, he said, adding that just like the Americans, Israel believes in honesty between friends. Yaalon also proposed a different ‘Road Map’ en route to separation from the Palestinians that would not threaten Israel, focusing on reforms in five key areas: Palestinian education, economy, politics, law and order, and security.

“‘We believe that an almost exclusively top-down approach that characterized the way the Palestinian issue was handled under the Oslo and Annapolis processes should be replaced by a determined performance-based, bottom-up approach that characterized the Road Map,’ he said, adding that such approach ‘would focus first on building the necessary infrastructure for peace. We have spoken much over the past few years about dismantling the infrastructure of terror. Let us begin to talk about building an infrastructure for peace.’” (Excerpts from an article by Yitzhak Benhorin, Ynetnews.com, August 2009) 

“THE UNITED NATIONS ‘TOWER OF BABBLE’: On September 8, 2001, Durban I voted to label Zionism as racism. The United States and Israel walked out. Those nations who had their delegates remain, in one way or another, gave their approval to declaring Israel the only racist nation on earth. That such an indictment was possible under the covering of a United Nations sanctioned event makes the organizing body appear to be out of touch, biased, and manipulated ─ out of touch with the reality in the world today and biased towards the single goal of stigmatizing the name and reputation of Israel.

“Now it is 2009, and Durban II gathered in an attempt to confirm the finding of 2001. Durban II chose to meet in the same week Israel observed Holocaust Memorial Day (April 21). Some might see that to be timely programming. Others would have reason to consider the timing to be insensitive and obscene.

“Durban II, launched by the UN in August 2008, established a committee to process a two-year plan, which culminated in the Durban Review Conference held in Geneva. Leading the conference prep commit-tee were Libya as chair, Cuba as rapporteur (reporter), and Iran as vice-chair. This chosen terror trio would signal warning to anyone with a normal IQ. When leaders from terror states are elevated to executive status in a project commissioned to establish democratic standards and individual rights, one can merely ponder the viability, common-sense, or value of the umbrella organization which host them.”

(By Ron Ross, Dispatch From Jerusalem, June 2009)

“EJC: GREEK COURT REVERSAL STUNS: “‘Outrage’ and ‘miscarriage of justice’ summarize the European Jewish Congress’s reactions to a Greek court which recently overturned a 2007 conviction of Holocaust-denying author Costas Plevris for his book The Jews ─ The Whole Truth. Under a Greek anti-racist statute ─ incitement to hatred and racial violence ─ Plevris had been convicted and sentenced to 14 months imprisonment plus three years probation.

“The Holocaust-denier had also been charged with ‘racial insult’ for comments such as calling Jews ‘sub-human’ and faulting ‘the civilized world that tolerated the international parasites that are called Jews.’”

(Dateline World Jewry, July-August 2009)

“KILLING BREAST CANCER IN THE DARK: An Israeli-American research team has stumbled onto a new and interesting find ─ a non-radiation-based therapy that may provide relief for an aggressive and hard to treat breast cancer cell known as HER2+, but which could also have wider applications for treating all kinds of cancer.

“Professor Zeev Gross, from the Technion [Israel Institute of Technology] has played no small role in the new research paper that shows positive results for the new therapy based on the chemical compound gallium corroles. Using a new-to-science organic chemical called a corrole, Gross was able to develop a powerful method that synthesizes these chemicals for practical use in medicine. The beauty of the new chemical compound is that it not only works in diagnostics, lighting up and showing doctors where the cancer cells are; it kills the cancer at the same time.

“Gross tells ISRAEL21c, ‘They are highly florescent. We found at the cellular level [gallium corroles were] useful for imaging, but also found it could kill cancer with high specificity and could be an alternative to chemotherapy. We were surprised. It could be used for slective killing of cancer cells… In most cases, if people want to get a closer look at a drug in vivo, they have to attach a fluorescent probe to it ─ and that turns it into a different molecule. But in our case, the active molecule we’re tracking does the fluorescing. We get to tract the original, unmodified molecule and are hence able to follow its distribution among different organs in live animals.’

“In the new study, the international team combined a gallium corrole with a protein carrier, so that the corrole would show an affinity to cancer cells. They report fewer side effects compared to other breast treatments. The Israel-US team was able to shrink breast cancer tumors at doses five times lower than standard chemo treatments (based on a drug called doxorubicin). Also, the corroles could be injected straight into the bloodstream and not into the tumor, making the treatment, if developed clinically, easier to administer.”

(Excerpt from an aricle by Karin Kloosterman, www.israel21c.org, August 2009) 

“ISRAEL’S ECONOMY SINKING: The Israeli economy officially in recession. ─ The world economic crisis has caught up with Israel, and the next few months will tell whether [Israel Prime Minister] Benjamin Netanyahu’s new government has the ability to deal with it. In May, the government approved an economic ‘package deal’ hammered out in concert with the trade unions and employers’ representatives that commentators described as a 180-degree reversal of Netanyahu’s econom-ic promises during the election.

“According to data published by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics, the economy slumped at a rate of 3.6% in the first quarter of 2009. The Bank of Israel forecasts that the Gross Domestic Product growth will shrink to 1.5% this year, creating the worst recession since the state was founded in 1948. Foreign investment is down by 30%, exports have fallen 46%, and imports are down 63%.

“Unemployment is also set to rise. High-tech companies are shedding jobs and Israeli start-ups acquired by U.S. giants are closing. ‘Over the past year, 13,000 industrial workers have lost their jobs, and 8,000 more employees will be fired from industrial factories by the end of 2009 unless global demand recovers,’ reported the chairman of the economics committee of the Manufacturers’ Association. The employers predict that unemployment in Israel will hit 8.7% by the end of the year, with 250,000 people out of work.

“The government’s economic ‘package deal’ is designed to soften the blow by pouring new investment into tourism and infrastructure projects to attract foreign cash and build the basis for future economic growth.”

(The Media Line, August 2009)   

“IT’S DÉJÀ VU ALL OVER AGAIN: So now the veil is well and truly ripped off. All the warning signs have been there for months: Foreign Secretary David Miliband’s boiler-plate leftist agitprop about Operation Cast Lead in Gaza; Britain’s pressure on the EU to renege on the agreements it made with Israel and boycott produce from the settlements; Miliband’s statement that Jerusalem should be the capital of ‘Palestine’ as well as of Israel. Now there has been a step-change. Haaretz reports that the British government has revoked a number of arms export licenses to Israel following the Gaza war. Five export licenses have been revoked over spare parts for ships’ guns. The decision apparently resulted from heavy pressure by both members of Parliament and human rights organizations.

“The unhinged malevolence over Cast Lead can no longer be brushed off as the foamings of the far-left and its acolytes in the media, NGOs and fashionable society. This is the British government now acting to punish Israel for defending itself against relentless rocket attack by an enemy bent on its destruction.

(By Melanie Phillips, Outpost, July/August 2009) 

“ARCHAEOLOGY AS FARCE: The World Archaeological Congress chose Ramallah ─ of all places ─ for its recent international conference. The Israel Antiq-uities Authority’s deputy director Dr. Uzi Dahari accused the organization of excluding Israelis, not informing the IAA of the event and turning the proceedings into ‘little more than a political demonstration [against Israel].’

Further, Dahari noted that although it was unethical and unprofessional to visit active archaeological sites without informing the archaeologists charged with the excavation, the Congress had visited the Temple Mount and City of David Archaeological Park in Jerusalem without any such coordination, indeed with a politico-archaeological tour guide who, in the words of City of David spokesman Doron Spielman, engaged in ‘a political diatribe’ designed to ‘use archae-ology as a guise to enforce an extreme political agenda to weaken Israel’s sovereignty in Jerusalem.’

“Spielman observes that it is particularly ironic to hold an archaeological conference in Ramallah, seat of the Palestinian Authority, when the Palestinian Authority-controlled Wakf carried out in 1999 what is likely the largest archaeological devastation in recent history, when they bulldozed and dumped 13,000 tons of archaeological earth from the Temple Mount.”

(Outpost, September 2009)   

“The following letter was sent by Menachem Begin to Ronald Reagan in September 1982:

“What some call the 'West Bank,' Mr. President, is Judea and Samaria, and this simple historic truth will never change. There are cynics who deride history. They may continue their derision as they wish, but I will stand by the truth. And the truth is that millennia ago there was a Jewish Kingdom of Judea and Samaria where our kings knelt to God, where our prophets brought forth the vision of eternal peace, where we developed a rather rich civilization which we took with us in our hearts and in our minds, on our long global trek for over 18 centuries; and, with it, we came back home. By aggressive war, by invasion, King Abdullah conquered parts of Judea and Samaria in 1948; and in a war of most legitimate self-defense in 1967, after being attacked by King Hussein, we liberated, with God’s help, that portion of our homeland.

“Geography and history have ordained that Judea and Samaria be mountainous country and that two-thirds of our population dwell in the coastal plain dominated by those mountains. From them you can hit every city, every town, each township and village and, last but not least, our principal airport in the plain below.

“Mr. President, you and I chose for the last two years to call our countries 'friends and allies.' Such being the case, a friend does not weaken a friend, an ally does not put his ally in jeopardy. This would be the inevitable consequence were the 'positions' [Begin refers here to the Reagan Plan which called on Israel to withdraw to the 1967 lines] transmitted to me on August 31,1982, to become reality. I believe they won’t. ‘For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest.’ (Isaiah 62)” (Outpost, July/August 2009)

“IRAN’S BOMB: Iran is going into its familiar routine of playing the West like a fiddle (it’s opening up one of its reactors to IAEA inspection in an effort to obtain yet more time to get its nuclear weapons program up and running). Just prior to this phony ‘breakthrough’ the Konrad Adenauer founda-tion had organized a conference of Iran experts (including diplomats who had served in Teheran, former senior Iranian military offi-cers and defense and intelligence officials). British journalist Con Coughlin (no friend of Israel) reports that the consensus at the conference was that unless Iran could be prevailed on to rein in its nuclear ambitions (which they considered highly unlikely, especially given Obama’s appeasement of the mullahs) the world is heading toward calamity. With the political will to stop Iran diminishing in the West, conference participants concluded the most likely outcome was for leading Arab states, such as Saudi Arabia, Syria and Egypt, to seek to acquire their own nuclear arsenals. And alas, as Coughlin writes ‘the doctrine of mutually assured destruction, which could be relied upon during the Cold War to prevent a nuclear holocaust, cannot be applied to a region in which national pride and personal honor often take precedence over the more basic human instinct for self-preservation.’” (Outpost, July/August 2009)

“MACABRE HUMOR: Human Rights Watch, which ranks with Amnesty Interna-tional in deserving a Nobel Prize in hypocrisy, has sent a delegation to raise money from that bastion of human rights Saudi Arabia. Its pitch is that it has earned the support of Saudi royals by its battles with ‘pro-Israel pressure groups in the U.S., the European Union and the United Nations.’ (Even the Saudis must wonder how Human Rights Watch could find such groups to battle in the latter two.)

“Law Professor David Bernstein says the point ‘is not that Human Rights Watch is pro-Saudi, but that it is maniacally anti-Israel. The most recent manifestation [of that hostility] is that its officers see nothing unseemly about raising funds among the elite of one of the most totalitarian nations on earth ... without the felt need to discuss any of the Saudis’ manifold human rights violations, and without apparent concern that becoming dependent on funds emanating from a brutal dictatorship leaves you vulnerable to that brutal dictatorship later cutting off the flow of funds, if you don’t ‘behave.’

“What Bernstein overlooks is that when it comes to off-the-wall attacks on Israel, Human Rights Watch can feel sure there is no danger the organization will fail to live up to donor expectations.”

(Outpost, July/August 2009)

“THE PAPER OF RECORD: The New York Times merits its famous title as the paper of record ─ only now it’s the record for obfuscation. Reporting on the Fatah Party elections on August 12, it spun the event as ‘ushering in a younger generation,’ ‘more pragmatic’ than its elders, in a better position to negotiate with Israel.

“Nary a mention that this ‘more pragmatic’ leadership endorsed the terrorist-gangster Aksa Martyrs Brigades as Fatah’s official armed wing and proclaimed that the ‘right to return’ was sacred. Nary a mention that the Fatah General Assembly decreed that Palestinian control over the entire city of Jerusalem, East and West, was a non-negotiable ‘red line.’

“The U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem does not seem to differ from Fatah on the last score. Melanie Phillips notes that its website never mentions Israel. Writes Phillips: ‘As far as the U.S. Consulate is concerned, Israel’s capital city is Arab. It’s as if Israel and its Jewish identity have been airbrushed from history altogether.’”

(Outpost, July/August 2009)

“PREPARING THE WAY FOR THE MAHDI: One of the many things that religious Jews and Bible-believing Christians have held in common throughout their shared history is the fact that they are each what might be called a ‘waiting people.’ And even the least religious among Jews and Gentiles alike have been aware of just what it is both communities are waiting for ─ the Messiah.

“Only in the past decade or so, however, has knowledge of another ‘waiting people’ emerged, a third hat thrown in the messianic ring. Muslims, it seems have a messiah, too, called the Mahdi. Many in the United States and around the world who became students of Islam after the terrorist attacks on America on September 11, 2001 were shocked to discover that Muslims were expecting the Mahdi at any moment. Even more alarming was the revelation that Islamic fundamentalists saw terrorism as a legitimate means through which his arrival could be hastened.

“Any act that defies the spirit of the current age and its immoral, repressive, and materialistic lifestyle will help to hasten the coming of the Mahdi. Beginning now to inculcate the thinking of men with the ideas of moral purity and self-sacrifice as taught by the Koran will help to create the environment into which the Mahdi will emerge. Therefore, acts of defiance against Western nations that are seen as the architects of evil are viewed not only as positive but necessary. The acquisition of nuclear weapons, the elimination of Israel, the destruction of Western democracies, and an end to the United States as a superpower are all preconditions to the arrival of the Islamic savior.

“Many who ascribe to Ahmadinejad’s brand of messianism quote hadith that refer to the state of the world into which the Mahdi will come: one of ruin, spiritual darkness, and catastrophe. Even the faithful will fall away, and there will be worldwide war and chaos.

“On June 12, 2009, Ahmadinejad won a landslide victory over his opponent, Mir Hossein Mousavi, even though some Iranian watchers had thought that he might not be victorious this time. Some Iranian clerics had expressed disillusionment with the president, stating that he was much too open about such issues as the nuclear ambitions of the nation and its intention to wipe Israel off the map.

“A horrified international community had watched helplessly as people were murdered in the streets of Tehran. Politicians and reporters spoke of a sincere public outcry for political reform. World leaders expressed their deep concern and hope that there would be a recount of the votes, that order would be restored, and the Iranian people’s demands for change considered.

“The alarming truth may well be that Ahmadinejad and his supporters saw the riots as the fulfillment of prophecy and the rioters as the apostates spurred on by the most evil of the religious. Rather than a sincere public outcry for political reform, the reaction to Ahmadinejad’s reelection could be seen by those in power as positive proof that the president has been right all along ─ the Mahdi is about to return and Ahmadinejad is his current representative on earth. A recount would have been meaningless, since it was the Mahdi’s will that achieved his victory.”

(Excerpts by Cheryl Hauer, Dispatch from Jerusalem, October 2009)

“NATANYAHU: Rules Out More Evictions ─ ‘My government will not participate in increasing the number of evacuees ...’  The nation ‘will never make the same mistake [of evacuating citizen as it did from the Gaza Strip in 2005] again ... The withdrawal from the Gaza Strip brought us neither peace nor security. The territory has become a base for the pro-Iranian Hamas movement,’ announced before his cabinet on August 9, 2009.

“Rejects Unilateral Withdrawals ─ ‘Peace will go back to being based on reciprocity, not unilateralism.’ The Israeli leader then proceeded to outline necessary conditions for a peace deal, including Palestinians recognizing Israel ‘as the national state of the Jewish people.’

Netanyahu said the necessary conditions for a peace deal, which also include demilitarization of a future Palestinian state and resettling Palestinian refugees outside of Israel’s borders, were ‘not pre-conditions for the start of a peace process but the basic conditions for establishing a lasting and stable peace. Palestinian moderates should internalize this.’

“‘Whoever sets preconditions for opening negotiation delay the peace process.’ He also reaffirmed that Israel would continue to improve the economic life for the Palestinians ‘by dismantling barriers to traffic, business and tourism ... Whoever will be with us in peace ─ will prosper’  speaking on the fourth anniversary of the 2005 Gaza Strip Disengagement.”

(Dispatch from Jerusalem, October 2009)

NO. 629 RETROSPECT AND PROSPECT - PART ONE

“Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalms 46:10)

The year 2009 began with realization that the US had just elected the first mulatto (mixed black and white) president and by one of the largest margins in recent presidential elections. This was partially because of his charm, charisma and eloquence on the stump. But also, his campaign, for the first time, took real advantage of the pervasiveness of the Internet and obviously, the opposition party was in almost complete disarray.

The new president seems to be a very nice young man with good intentions, but the world is in such turmoil with growing unrest, economic woes, wars, revolutions, and anarchy, he or any other leader of the fallen human race has little chance of making a great deal of positive difference.

NATURAL DISASTERS: Earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, floods, and diseases all strike anywhere on earth, often without warning. Tornadoes have been reported in Great Britain, India, Argentina, and other countries, but most tornadoes occur in the United States. All of these “natural” disasters seem to be proliferating along with indications of climate warming.

WORLD EVENTS

“They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Isa, 11:9)

Between 1990 and 2004, lions attacked 815 people in Tanzania, killing 563. Some of the victims were pulled out of bed during the night after lions forced their way inside huts. Between January 2000 and March 2004, crocodiles in Namibia attacked 35 people, killing 23. In the 34 months from January 2005 to October 2007, leopards in the Indian state of Kashmir attacked 18 people, killing 16. In the Sundarban swamps of Bangladesh, tigers killed at least 20 people last year. There also have been deaths from attacks by bears, cougars, sharks and a number of other wild beasts.

In September a man was attacked by a large black bear in his Aspen, Colorado home. He was on the first floor of his home checking on his three barking dogs when the bear struck him in the head. The man suffered no life threatening injuries and was treated at a local hospital. It is unknown how the bear entered his home.

Recorded deaths from bear attacks for the

21st century through October 2009 in the US including Alaska and Canada is 31 men, women and children. Also there have been a number of non-fatal injures. In most cases, these attacks were unprovoked and a number of them took place in the homes, cabins or tents of the victims.

Comment: In the first account of the lower animals furnished in the Scriptures there is nothing to imply that they were wild, vicious and at enmity with mankind; on the contrary the implication is that they were all thoroughly in subjection to the perfect man. Adam was crowned with dignity and honor as the lord and master of earth, with dominion over the beasts of the field, the fowl of the heavens and the fishes of the sea, in likeness of his Creator, the Lord and Ruler over all things. Dominion over the animals is one of the things that Adam lost when he sinned and will be restored when mankind is perfected in the Millennial Kingdom.

“ONE BILLION PEOPLE HUNGRY: World hunger, rising faster than population, hits grim milestone. ROME ─ The global financial meltdown has pushed the ranks of the worlds’ hungry to a record one billion; a dire figure that poses a threat to peace and security, U.N. food officials said Friday.

“Because of war, drought, political instability, high food prices and poverty, hunger now affects one in six people, by the U.N. estimate.

“The financial meltdown has compounded the crisis in what the head of the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization called a ‘devastating combination for the world’s most vulnerable.’

“Compared with last year, 100 million more people are hungry, meaning they consume fewer than 1,800 calories a day, the agency said.

“‘No part of the world is immune,’ FAO’s Director-General Jacques Diouf said. ‘All world regions have been affected by the rise of food insecurity.’

(Excerpts by Alessandra Rizzo, Associated Press, June 20, 2009)

“SEVEN KILLED AT TRAILER PARK: BRUNSWICK, GEORGIA ─ Seven people were found slain and two critically injured Saturday at a mobile home park built on the grounds of a historic plantation in southeastern Georgia, police said.

“Glynn County Police Chief Matt Doering called it the worst mass slaying in his 25 years of police work in this costal Georgia County. He wouldn’t say how the victims died.

“‘This is a record for us. We’ve never had such an incident with so many victims,’ Doering told reporters. ‘It’s not a scene that I would want anybody to see.’

At an afternoon news conference, Doering declined to say whether police believe the killer was among the dead or remained at large. (Orlando Sentinel, August 30, 2009)

“A MOTHER AND HER FIVE CHIL-DREN WERE KILLED BY HER HUSBAND AND FATHER OF THE CHILDREN: A Naples, Florida man admitted to reporters that he killed his wife and five children, adding that he wants to be executed ‘right away’ so he can be buried with them on Saturday.

“The father, Mesac Damas spoke with reporters in Haiti, saying a ‘spirit’ drove him to kill his wife and children.

“Mesac Damas, 32, said he wanted to take his own life, but did not have the courage to go through with it, ‘because if you kill yourself, you're not going to heaven.’

“Damas made the statements to a Naples Daily News reporter as he was being led into a Haitian police vehicle in Port-au-Prince. Damas was returned to the United States late Tuesday following his capture in Haiti.

“Damas left the US for Haiti before the murders were discovered. He faces six counts of premeditated first-degree murder in the deaths of his wife, Guerline Damas, 32; and the couple's five children - Michzach, 9; Marven, 6; Maven, 5; Megan, 3; and Morgan, 11 months, police have said. The six bodies were found September 17 in the family's North Naples, Florida, home after relatives called police saying they had not heard from them. Apparently their throats had been slit on September 15.

“Asked by the reporter in Haiti why he killed his family, Damas responded, ‘Only God knows.’ Questioned further, he blamed the crime on his mother-in-law. ‘Her mom pretty much made me do it ─ the devil, her spirit, whatever she worships,’ he said.

 “Damas added, ‘When I did it, [my] eyes [were] closed but right now my eyes are open.’ He repeatedly asked the reporter, ‘Do you believe in Jesus Christ,’ and stated, ‘The devil exists.’” (Naples Daily News, September 22, 2009 and various Web. Reports)

Comment: It is difficult to accept the fact that man has fallen to such a degree. Those who can plan murder, and who are full of malice and hatred, will not hesitate to support their evil way by fraud, deception, lying. Those who yield to evil influences may subsequently learn valuable lessons there from, and that we may entertain hope for their recovery to righteousness. This is a part of our hope respecting the world in the coming Millennial Age ─ that present experiences with sin, envy, hatred and strife will prove valuable to them by and by, when they shall have experienced some of the retributions and have learned a more excellent way, under the judgments of that time.

“GUNS TURN OFF TRAVEL GURU: PHOENIX, ARIZONA ─ Travel icon Arthur Frommer says he won’t be spending his tourism dollars at the Grand Canyon, or anywhere else  in Arizona, because the state’s laws allow people he described as ‘thugs’ and ‘extremists’ to openly carry firearms.

“The author of budget-travel guides said on his blog Wednesday that he was ‘shocked beyond measure’ by reports that protesters openly carried guns outside a Phoenix site where President Barack Obama spoke Monday.

“Frommer says he won’t travel in a state where civilians carry loaded weapons as a means of political protest. Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon said he invited Frommer to visit the city to clear up any misconceptions about safety.” (Orlando Sentinel, August 22, 2009)

Comment: Every year, almost one million people die from suicide; a “global” mortality rate of 16 per 100,000, or one death every 40 seconds.

In the last 45 years suicide rates have increased by 60% worldwide. Suicide is among the three leading causes of death among those aged 15-44 years in some countries, and the second leading cause of death in the 10-24 years age group; these figures do not include suicide attempts which are up to 20 times more frequent than completed suicide. This is indication of the continuing devolution of man in this present world.

“AS MUSLIMS MARK RAMADAN, OBAMA RENEWS CALL FOR ‘NEW BEGINNING’: INDONESIA ─ Muslim women pray during the beginning of Ramadan in Jakarta. In a video marking the occasion, President Barack Obama cast U.S. military efforts in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan as part of his drive to forge a new relationship between America and the Muslim world. ‘At this time of renewal, I want to reiterate my commitment to a new beginning between America and Muslims around the world.’” (Orlando, Sentinel, August 22, 2009)

“PRO-WEST LEADER TO BE PM: BEIRUT, LEBANON ─ Western-backed billionaire Saad Hariri pledged Saturday to work for a national unity government that includes his Hezbollah rivals shortly after he was appointed by the president to become the country’s next prime minister.

“An alliance led by the 39-year-old, son of slain former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, fended off a serious challenge from the Iran-backed Hezbollah and its allies in parliamentary elections earlier this month.

“Hariri’s nomination ─ and his conciliatory statements ─ signal more willingness on the majority’s part to placate Hezbollah and its allies, who had serious misgivings about the previous Prime Minister, Fuad Saniora.”  (Orlando Sentinel, June 28, 2009)

“COURT TOSSES $5M VERDICT AGAINST FUNERAL PROTESTERS: RICHMOND, VA. ─ A federal appeals court tossed out a $5 million verdict against protesters who carried sign with inflammatory messages like ‘Thank God for dead soldiers’ outside the Maryland funeral of a U.S, Marine killed in Iraq.

“A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S, Circuit Court of Appeals last week said the signs contained ‘imaginative and hyperbolic rhetoric’ protected by the First Amendment. Such messages are intended to spark debate and cannot be reasonable read as factual assertions, the court said.

“A jury in Baltimore had awarded Albert Snyder damages for emotional distress and invasion of privacy. The 2006 funeral of Snyder’s son, Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder in Westminster, Md., was among many military funerals that have been picketed by members of the fundamentalist Westboro Baptist Church in Kansas. Albert Snyder’s attorney, Sean Summers, said he would appeal.” (Associated Press, September 27, 2009)

IN FINANCE

Last year we wrote 2008 was some year. Clearly the U.S. economy was on the ropes. 2009 has brought more joblessness and large banks have been merged. Wachovia, one of the largest, was merged with Wells Fargo and Merrill Lynch with Bank of America. Two great names over 100 years old are gone.

The government’s stimulus package has tried to save companies like General Motors and Chrysler. In the 1930's, 40's and 50's the words “millionaire,” “billionaire” and “trillionaire” were words not used in the average person’s vocabulary.

Unemployment is the highest since the great depression of the 1930's. Economists have predicted the economy will get better in late 2010 but unemployment will still be high. But if unemployment is still high, how can the economy get any better?

Economists are predicting the GDP will have moderate gains, the Prime rate will increase and inflation should be 2%. Oil will average $70-$80 a barrel and holiday retail sales will be flat. The world is in an uproar and the U.S. is tagging right along. Congress is working very hard to get the economy in better shape but so far they are not making much headway.

Companies are getting away with paying large bonuses and some are cheating the public. For example:

Bernard Lawrence "Bernie" Madoff (born April 29, 1938) is the former Chairman of the NASDAC stock exchange and the admitted operator of the Ponzi scheme that might be the largest investment fraud in Wall Street history.

In March 2009, Madoff pleaded guilty to 11felonies and admitted to turning his wealth management business into a massive Ponzi scheme that defrauded thousands of investors of billions of dollars. Though Madoff said he began the Ponzi scheme in the early 1990’, Federal investigators believe the fraud began as early as the 1980’s, and may never have been legitimate. The amount missing from client accounts, including fabricated gains, was almost $65 billion. On June 29, 2009 he was sentenced to 150 years in prison, the maximum allowed.

A number of major victims are said to have objected to the court's acceptance of the guilty plea and wanted a full-blown public trial. This could not be allowed because discovery of all the wrong doing of much of Wall Street, including banks, would be so destructive it would turn the world’s financial systems into further chaos.

Since we are in the Time of Trouble and it is difficult to predict the future, our advice is “Seek ye the Lord, all the meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness; it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger.” (Zeph. 2:3)

IN RELIGION

“BIBLE TO BE REVISED: COLORADO ─ The top-selling Bible in North America will undergo its first revision in 25 years, modernizing the language in some sections and promising to reopen a contentious debate about changing gender terms in the sacred text.

“The New International Version, the Bible of choice for conservative evangelicals, will be revised to reflect changes in English usage and advances in Biblical scholarship, it was announced Tuesday. The revision is scheduled to be completed late next year and published in 2011.

“‘We want to reach English speakers across the globe with a Bible that is accurate, accessible and that speaks to its readers in a language they can understand,’ said Keith Danby, global president and CEO of Biblica, a Colorado Springs, Colorado-based Christian ministry that holds the NIV copyright.” (Orlando Sentinel, September, 2, 2009)

Comment: Some rumors have it that the chief reason for the revision is to eliminate all the “liberal” bias. Besides, the NIV of the Bible is seldom the version of choice for English speaking people who seek truth. The KJV has plenty of mistranslations and alterations of its own, but it has the beautiful language that makes it a pure pleasure to study and to rightly divide the Word of Truth, “here a little there a little.” (See Isa. 28:10)

“BONES   IN ST. PAUL’S TOMB ANALYZED: Pope says carbon dating tests seem to confirm that the remains really are the apostle’s. ROME ─ The first-ever scientific tests on what are believed to be the remains of the Apostle Paul ‘seem to conclude’ that they do belong to the Roman Catholic saint, Pope Benedict XVI said Sunday. 

“Archaeologists recently unearthed and opened the white marble sarcophagus under the Basilica of St. Paul’s Outside the Walls in Rome, which for some 2,000 years has been believed by the faithful to be the tomb of St. Paul.

“Benedict said scientists had conducted carbon dating tests on bone fragments inside the sarcophagus and confirmed that they date from the first or second century.

“‘This seems to confirm the unanimous and uncontested tradition that they are the mortal remains of the Apostle Paul,’ Benedict said, announcing the findings at a service in the basilica to mark the end of the Vatican’s Paoline year, in honor of the apostle.

“Paul and Peter are the two main figures known for spreading the Christian faith after the death of Christ.

“According to tradition, St. Paul was beheaded in Rome in the first century during the persecution of early Christians by Roman emperors. Popular belief holds that bone fragments from his head are in another Rome basilica, St. John Lateran, with his other remains inside the sarcophagus.

“The pope said that when archaeologists opened the sarcophagus, they discovered alongside the bone fragments some grains of incense, a ‘precious’ piece of purple linen with gold sequins and a blue fabric with linen filaments.

“Vatican archaeologists in 2002 began excavating the 8-foot-Iong coffin, which dates from at least AD. 390 and was buried under the basilica’s main altar. The decision to unearth it was made after pilgrims who came to Rome during the Roman Catholic Church’s 2000 Jubilee year expressed disappointment at finding that the saint’s tomb ─ buried under layers of plaster and further hidden by an iron grate ─ could not be visited or touched.

“The top of the coffin has small openings ─ subsequently covered with mortar ─ because in ancient times Christians would insert offerings or try to touch the remains.

“Today is the feast of Saints Peter and Paul during which the pope will bestow a woolen pallium, or scarf, on all the new archbishops he has recently named.”

(By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press, June 29, 2009) 

“VATICAN MAKES ANGLICANS OFFER: Return to the Catholic church. ─ The Vatican has opened an express lane to traditional Anglicans ─ who are unhappy with their own church’s moves toward accepting female and gay bishops ─ to reunite with the Roman Catholic Church their forebears left nearly 500 years ago.

“In a surprise announcement from Rome, Pope Benedict XVI approved a provision that will allow Anglicans to join the Catholic Church in a format similar to Greek, Ukrainian or Eastern Rite Catholics, keeping their liturgy and married priests, but not married bishops.

“The announcement Tuesday stunned many in the 77-milIion worldwide Anglican Communion, particularly the Church of England, where the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, has wrestled for years with factions who oppose female bishops.

“Williams, in a joint news conference in Rome with Cardinal William Levada, the Vatican’s chief doctrinal official, said the provision ‘would have no negative impact’ on interfaith relations.

“Catholic officials say they’re not poaching converts; rather, Levada says, they are easing the way for people to be reunited with the Catholic Church. The 2-million-member Episcopal Church is led by a woman, Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, and already permits gay bishops.

“Archbishop Robert Duncan, head of the breakaway traditionalist Anglican Church in North America, called the move ‘a momentous offer’ and blessed those who choose that path.

“But Duncan made clear he didn't think most of the new church’s members would be interested, citing ‘our historic differences over church governance, dogmas regarding the Blessed Virgin Mary’ and the nature of the priesthood.” (By Cathy Lynn Grossman, USA Today, October 21, 2009) 

“PROTESTANTS AT CROSSROADS: Several denominations facing showdown on gays’ role in church. ─ The nation's Protestant denominations have quarreled for years over the role of gays and lesbians in church life, but those debates promise to grow even more intense and acrimonious this summer. The conflicts could influence whether some denominations remain intact or splinter into factions.

“California's Supreme Court is expected to rule Tuesday on that state’s ban on same-sex marriage. For the faithful in a number of churches, the hard-fought legal battles over civil marriage for gay and lesbian couples run parallel to similar religious struggles.

“One of the most visible denominational skirmishes will occur in July, when leaders of the 2.2 million-member Episcopal Church consider proposals at their national convention to sanction a religious rite for blessing same-sex unions and ease restrictions on the ordination of gay and lesbian bishops.

“If approved, the steps could further alienate theological conservatives, giving them new reasons to join four Episcopal dioceses and hundreds of parishes that split away last year to form a separate church.

“In August, the country’s largest Lutheran denomination is scheduled to consider a statement on human sexuality that says that Christian tradition recognizes marriage as a covenant between a man and a woman.

“Even as they acknowledge deep divisions over homosexuality, members of the 4.7-million member Evangelical Lutheran Church in America will decide at their meeting in Minneapolis whether they should enable local congregations to recognize same-sex unions and allow ‘practicing homosexuals’ in committed relationships to serve in the ministry.

“Other Protestant groups are embroiled in similar struggles, including the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the United Methodist Church.

“But scholars are especially watching the Episcopalians and Evangelical Lutherans.

“‘What has been emerging for the last several years is becoming even clearer now: We're on a trajectory toward the blessing of same-sex unions and the ordination of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people,’ said Rev. Jay Johnson, a professor of theology at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, Calif., and director of academic research at its Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry.

“But Johnson added: ‘It may mean when there are breakthroughs in these churches, we see more breakaways.’

“Few denominations have been as torn as the Episcopal Church, the U.S. branch of the 77million-member Anglican Communion.

“The conflict between liberals and conservatives escalated in 2003 with the consecration of an openly gay priest, V. Gene Robinson, as bishop of New Hampshire.

(By Duke Helfand, Tribune Newspapers, May 26, 2009)

“THE FUTURE: ‘ROCK OF AGES’ OR ROCK BAND??: Many tradition-bound churches are struggling to attract new members and pay their bills, while a smaller group of churches has discovered prosperity by embracing change and attracting younger members.

“‘The old way of doing things doesn’t work for many groups,’ said David A. Roozen, professor of religion and society at Hartford Seminary in Connecticut, which conducted the survey.

“In the past 5 years: 64% of churches that added contemporary elements grew; 41% of those that stayed with traditional elements grew; 60% with fewer than 10% of members older than 65 grew; 31% where at least half of members were older than 65 grew.

“The survey found that less than 20 percent of the churches said they were in good financial health in 2008 ─ down from 31 percent in 2000. Just 48 percent of the churches reported even modest growth in 2008, compared with 58 percent in 2005.

“The Faith Communities Today 2008 survey of primarily Christian congregations found the decline was universal: mainstream Protestant, evangelical Protestant and Catholic. The study concludes that the picture of American churches is a story of persistent and broad-based decline, but also the story of pockets of vitality.

“A church, founded in 1879, has undergone tremendous change in recent years. Its membership has increased from 1,300 a decade ago to more than 4,000 today. It added a contemporary worship service with a rock band replacing the choir about four years ago that attracts a younger-than-50 crowd. Recently, for the first time, the contemporary service out-drew the traditional service.

“The Pastor was promoting his Facebook site and next week’s ‘Bring a Friend Sunday’ in which he vowed not to preach about tithing or anything else that might scare the newcomers away. Afterward, there will be T-shirts and pizza.

“‘You bring a guest, you get a T-shirt, they get a T-shirt, we eat some pizza and I get to meet them,’ said the pastor, the church’s pastor for 16 years.”

(Excerpts from Orlando Sentinel, by Jeff Kunerth, September 15, 2009)

“A CHURCH DIVIDED: After vote this week gives gays more rights, Episcopalians face a widening split. ANAHEIM, CALIF. ─ The resolution that lifted a de facto ban on gay bishops passed by a nearly 3-to1 margin Tuesday, despite warnings that it would threaten unity with sister churches in the wider Anglican Communion.

“But the resolution’s overwhelming margin of victory served clear notice that liberal Episcopalians are gaining more ground, particularly since four dioceses and dozens of parishes seceded in recent years to form a conservative alternative to the Episcopal Church.

“Another sign from this week’s convention: Episcopal bishops approved a resolution, 104-30, that allows flexibility in devising blessing ceremonies for same-sex couples. It moves to lay and clergy delegates in the House of Deputies, where it must be approved before becoming church law.

“‘The changing circumstances in the United States and in other nations’ in legalizing gay marriage, civil unions and domestic partnerships ‘call forth a renewed pastoral response from this Church,’ the resolution reads.

“Eleven conservative parishes ─ including two large historic churches ─ have seceded and joined the rival Anglican Church in North America. Like the Episcopal Church at large, the diocese has tilted to the left after the defections, according to some members.”

(Excerpts by Daniel Burke, Religion News Service July 16, 2009) 

“A RIVAL DENOMINATION: Conser-vatives alienated from the Episcopal Church announced in December they were founding their own rival denomination.

“In previous years, before the formation of this American Anglican alternative, some Episcopalians who wanted to leave the church but remain in the Anglican Communion put themselves under the authority of bishops in Africa and Latin America.

“The Anglican Communion, the world’s third-largest Christian body, is made up of 38 provinces around the world that trace their roots to the Church of England and its spiritual leader, the archbishop of Canterbury.

“Though individual churches and even dioceses have been leaving the Episcopal Church for years, it’s the only official branch of the Anglican Communion in the United States. It wants to stay that way, resisting challenges from conservatives who want to leave and take church property with them.”

(By Tim Funk, Charlotte Observer, July 16, 2009, Edited to fit)

 “TELEVANGELIST BUILDS $4 MILLION HOME WHILE EMPLOYEES LOSE JOBS: Senator Charles Grassley, the crotchety, plain-speaking Republican from Iowa, has been trying for a couple of years to pry open the books of televangelists he suspects of living decidedly unhumble lives on the donations they receive. He questions whether they deserve the tax exemption they enjoy. A recent report that Inspiration Network’s CEO David Cerullo spent around $4 million on his new mansion could provide more fuel for this smoldering investigation.

“Cerullo’s new 9,000 square-foot home and 2,000 square-foot porch overlook Lake Keowee. Meanwhile, Inspiration and its subsidiaries have laid off a number of workers, frozen wages, stopped 401K contributions, and turned the thermostat in its headquarters down to 65 degrees last winter.

“According to the Charlotte Observer, Cerullo’s network will bring in close to $100 million this year, much of it donations. Over the past few years it has also received up to $26 million in incentives from the state of South Carolina. These were given to lure the network from its former home in Charlotte. Cerullo receives over $1.5 million a year in salary.

“Grassley launched an investigation of six noted televangelists in 2007, challenging them to defend their expenditures and justify their tax exemptions. Included were the ministries of Paula White, Joyce Meyer, Creflo Dollar, Eddie Long, Kenneth Copeland and Benny Hinn. Several have cooperated fully, a couple partially. Creflo Dollar continues to hold out. Kenneth Copeland Ministries pulled a clever dodge, offering to cooperate with the IRS should it choose to investigate the ministry. IRS investigations are not made public.

“Grassley points to the tax code language prohibiting not-for-profit organizations from paying unreasonable compensation to the executives. What is reasonable, he asks? In this case, I think the people to answer that question are those who donated to the Inspiration Network. Are you content that some of your money went for a $4 million home for Cerullo?”

(By Tom Barlow, AOL.com, July 7, 2009)

“The Mormon church’s vigorous, well-heeled support for Proposition 8, which banned gay marriage in California last year, has turned the Utah-based faith into a lightning rod for gay rights activism, including a nationwide ‘kiss-in’ Saturday.

The event came after gay couples in Salt Lake City, San Antonio and El   Paso, Texas, were arrested, cited for trespassing or harassed by police for publicly kissing. In Utah, the July 9 trespassing incident occurred after security guards observed a couple on a downtown park-like plaza owned by the 13 million-member Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The court case was dismissed, but the kiss sparked a community backlash and criticism of the church.”

(Associated Press, August 16, 2009)

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Our heartfelt thanks and appreciation for the many beautiful Christmas cards received expressing love and prayers. Be assured that our warm Christian love and prayers are ever with you. We wish for all our readers that they will grow in Grace and Knowledge of the Lord for a blessed New Year as “The path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.” (Proverbs 4:18)

ANNOUNCEMENT: The date of our Memorial is