We are constantly put to the test. If we have chosen to live this Way of Life, that is, a life pleasing to God based on what He commands, then we face many challenges and our inner strength will also be put to the test. To conquer our weaknesses is the challenge. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Here was Paul, an apostle of God, admitting that he had weaknesses and only through his weaknesses could he become strong. The weakness he had didn’t make him strong, but overcoming it gave him that strength. He knew of course that only through God’s help could he attain that strength. God gave him His strength, because without it, he could do nothing, but with it, he could do everything. This is very relevant for us today since we all have weaknesses that we must fight to overcome. It is nothing that is easily overcome, but only through faith, prayer, and repentance. If we didn’t have any weaknesses, then we would be perfect, and we know that that is not the case, since none of us are perfect.

Every person in the Bible had a weakness, even some of the greatest, who were men of God. They too had to struggle continuously to overcome their weaknesses and they also had to experience punishment by God to make them stronger. Many of them went through trials that seemed impossible to get through, but strength was on their side.

Job had many trials. He lost everything – his family and his possessions, and his health was also affected, but even after all that, he wasn’t angry towards God. However, he did have a weakness and that was his self-righteousness, which he did eventually overcome by acknowledging God’s power, and as a result, received back more than he had before his trials.

Samson had an incredible gift from God, which he took for granted. His weakness was women. They were more important to him than God, and every time he got into trouble, he never looked to God for help, but decided to fight his own battles instead. As a result, he lost his life. But before he died, he realized what his sin was and repented of it. He had finally overcome his weakness.

Moses had a weakness, that of anger. It is very easy to get angry and anger could be very difficult to control. Do you consider yourself easily tempered? Do we sometimes make others angry by what we may say or do? Have we noticed that it is more work to be happy than to be angry? Why is that? Because we are living in Satan’s world, and he is just the opposite of peace and tranquility. Have we noticed how much more of an effort it is to maintain peace? When something goes wrong, what is our initial reaction? Do we have thoughts of doubt, worry and discouragement during tough times? It’s all about how we control ourselves. What would Christ do in this situation?

“For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: ‘Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth’; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously… Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing. For ‘[h]e who would love life And see good days, Let him refrain his tongue from evil, And his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and do good; Let him seek peace and pursue it’” (1 Peter 2:21-23; 3:8-11).

Unfortunately, there were some who were not strong enough, and as a result, they just gave up completely, like that which happened to King Saul. We have to make sure that we don’t fall into that category. Judas had a weakness that he did not overcome, and that was money. He betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver (Matthew 26:14-15). He was greedy for money, and that was very dangerous because riches had the better of him—just like the one individual who asked Christ in Matthew 19 what he could do to inherit eternal life and when Christ told him to sell everything he had and give it to the poor, he didn’t want to do it because money was more important to him.

Sometimes, we may feel that when times are really tough, we aren’t being blessed, but think of it as more of a test that we need to overcome. And remember, we DO have help from God (compare Romans 8:26-27). Each one of us is unique. We all have various strengths and weaknesses. Each one of us is aware what they are and we all know what it is that we must work on. If there is a certain weakness we have trouble with, we should make it a priority to overcome it. Satan is very intelligent, let us not forget that. He will attack us on the very things where we are most vulnerable.

We are called out of this world for a reason and Satan knows it, which is why we need to be vigilant at ALL times. But he can only do what God allows. Think of what happened to Job. God allowed Job’s trials to teach him a lesson! Yes, we are all going through trials, and yes, there are reasons for them. Again, we are the few that God has chosen and Satan knows that too, and the trials that we go through are different than those outside the Church of God because when we have been called to the Truth, we are in a separate category and we are not controlled by time and chance. God is aware of everything we go through, every trial, for our benefit. “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). We still need to overcome our weaknesses and replace them with righteousness. And once we do that, God will be pleased, and so will we.

Children are good at coming up with excuses for not doing what they are told to do or for not carrying out a task by following precise instructions. However, adults are not that much different. We have a few impressive examples of this in the Bible which also show the consequences for such behavior.

The first is the example of King Saul. He was instructed by God to attack wicked and cruel Amalek and kill man, woman, children plus the animals, as we read in 1 Samuel 15:3:  “‘Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them. But kill both man and woman, infant and nursing child, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’”

What did he do? Verse 9 tells us: “But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed.”

What was his excuse for his disobedience?

“And Saul said, ‘They have brought them [the sheep and oxen] from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and the oxen, to sacrifice to the LORD your God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed’” (1 Samuel 15:15).

He blamed it on the people and took no responsibility for what happened. What was the consequence? Samuel told him in 1 Samuel 15:23: “‘For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He also has rejected you from being king.’”

Being replaced as king was the price for his refusal to carry out God’s orders. His weak excuse was to blame the people but as the King, he was ultimately responsible.

It is important to do what God asks and requires of us.

Let us assume that an owner of a business tells an employee to paint the floor in the shop. Later he checks on how the task is progressing. The employee tells him that he painted the walls and the doors, repaired some of the lights and replaced a window. “What’s your excuse for not painting the floor?”,  the employer asks. The man answers he thought the other things were more important and that the employer would be impressed by what he had done. The  owner replies: “That’s nice that you did all that but you did not paint the floor as I ordered you to do, so you are fired.”

Sometimes people get all caught up in what they think is a priority and ignore clear instructions which they had received.

Let us look at what may seem to be a strange statement by Christ to a group of individuals.

Matthew 7:21 records  Christ’s words:  “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’”

They thought they were followers of Christ, pointing out the “good deeds” they had performed, but what was Christ’s response? “‘And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’” (Matthew 7:23).

This may seem like a pretty harsh response, but why do you suppose He said this? In what respect did they fail?

Matthew 24:14 tells us: “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.”

This is where their focus should have been. Their excuse was that they felt other things were more important, but that was not acceptable to Christ, and as a consequence, He told them to depart from Him.

Our individual responsibility is to support the preaching of the gospel of the Kingdom of God among all nations as a witness, and if we fail in this task, we fail completely. None of the excuses we may present for not doing what Christ has clearly told us to do will be acceptable.

Let us put the excuses aside and remain focused on the job at hand so that we will be in a position to receive our crown at Christ’s return.

December 5, 2018, was declared a national day of mourning for the United States of America, because former President George H. W. Bush had died the previous day. Many governmental agencies were shut down in response to this day of mourning for a past president.

When I heard about this, there were a couple of observations that ran through my mind. The first was that, while yes, banks were closed, the stock market was closed and post offices were closed, there didn’t seem to be an outpouring of sorrow. No one was of a sad countenance. Life kept going on. Most people went to their jobs and lived their lives.  Secondly, I wondered what it would be like if this day of mourning was actually in response to people’s realization that they have been living the wrong way of life and they were ready to turn to God.

In reading through the Bible, we find many stories about how people were living the wrong way of life and had issues and problems that came to a head. Then, they would call out and ask God for help and He would save them. Many times, the Israelites had to face serious problems and captivity in order to repent and return to God. The city of Nineveh, while not an Israelite city, was warned about the captivity and destruction that WOULD come upon them unless they repented. They did, and the city was spared at that time.

The problem is that very often, humans have to learn the hard way. God doesn’t desire people to die. In Ezekiel 18:21-32; 33:11-20, God keeps asking why people would not turn from sin and live. The whole reason God has given man about 6,000 years to try living his own way is to recognize how bad a job he has done. And indeed, we are coming up to the times when issues and problems are becoming more and more prevalent. We are destroying the earth we live on, and we are in the process of destroying all life. In fact, Christ warns in Matthew 24:21-22 that if God were not to cut short the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord, no flesh would survive. We would wipe each other out. That’s how far man would take it. When we review the history of the past two world wars and the atrocities and the inhuman treatment, it is not hard to imagine that man would be willing to do much worse, especially under the inspiration of the god of this world, Satan the Devil.

As Christians, we also have the duty to sigh and cry about the atrocities that we see (Ezekiel 9:4), as well as continue our warning cry to the nations, as we are told to do by God (Ezekiel 33:1-10). Unfortunately, many refuse to hear the warning. They claim to know God and yet their hearts are not in line with God’s ways (Ezekiel 33:30-33). The warning to mourn and to turn to God is plainly there. Will we be the ones who are willing to do so? Or will we have to go through the Great Tribulation?

Our choice is of the utmost importance at this moment in time. James 4:8-10 tells us: “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.”

Yes, we should be weeping. We should be, individually and collectively, appalled, disgusted, shocked and grieved in the depths of our hearts over our sins, just as the people were in Acts 2:37: “Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart…”

We are not only addressing the prideful, lying, stealing, and lusting sins but also sins of the tongue, sins of anxiousness, sins of bitterness, sins of partiality, sins of complacency, sins of jealousy, sins of impatience, sins of arrogance, sins of hate, sins of backbiting and sins of cowardliness, and the list could go on and on. We should grieve over all of them because every sin separates us from God.

The time for mourning and returning to God is NOW! In Matthew 5, the beatitudes show that the actions of those who want to be known by God are in line with turning to Him. They are doing what is required of them. One of these actions is mourning, while being mindful of sin in our lives and actively turning from it. True Godly sorrow and repentance produce the change that is needed. 2 Corinthians 7:9-11 says: “Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: What diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter.”

Again, the choice is ours. What will our choice be?

Having eight grandsons, my wife and I are regularly noting how much the boys are growing as the weeks, months and years go by. This is especially apparent when we view their older photos. Human growth is a miraculous occurrence. From conception forward, there is an astonishing and wondrous development of life culminating in birth. Likewise, the young grow into maturity—all a process of God’s creative power!

There is a parallel in spiritual growth.

We are called by God to become His sons and daughters (2 Corinthians 6:18). That begins with our spiritual begettal when God gives us His Holy Spirit and culminates when we are changed from flesh to spirit. While many Scriptures describe this (compare 1 Corinthians 15:51-53; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; 1 John 3:1-3), note that the Bible also reveals this change takes place after a period of time.

Very specifically, the Church and ministry are established to help in our spiritual growth, “till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13; compare also, 2 Peter 3:18). We know that Jesus Christ is the example to apply in order to measure our spiritual growth (1 Peter 2:21). He did not sin (Hebrews 4:15; 1 John 3:5); He conquered His own human nature (Romans 8:3-4); He overcame the world (John 16:33); and He defeated Satan (Matthew 4:10; John 12:31; 14:30).

How are we doing by His standard? Are we, more and more, “bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5)? Can we say that “we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16; Philippians 2:5)? Is our constant goal to become perfect just like God is perfect (Matthew 5:48)? Can we say that we are a stronger Christian now than when God first called us?

Jesus gives us a powerful key for spiritual growth, and it is for us to focus on overcoming those things which are contrary to God’s Will. This is His message to the churches in Revelation 2 and 3.

The Apostle Peter wrote, saying, “…brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure” (2 Peter 1:10), and in verses 5-9, he noted how Christians are to do this:

“But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

If we grow spiritually, then we have this incomparable promise: “For so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:11).

When reading about biblical prophecy, one of the direst warnings involves deception. The frailty of mankind will fall prey to believing lies because they seem to be so compelling. Lies will masquerade as Truth, and people will believe them! The cares of the world will simply pull people away from God and His Truth. It is sobering to consider this because we are all human, and therefore we are all inherently vulnerable to the trap of deception.

In Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians, the source of vulnerability is exposed: “And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (2 Thessalonians 2:11-12). We can see plainly that the belief in Truth stands directly opposed to unrighteousness. When there is pleasure in living a way of life that is inconsistent with the plain Truth of the Bible, the result is a vulnerability to believing deception instead. Clearly, when a love for man’s way of life begins to take root, there leaves less and less room for God’s Way of Life to protect one from deception.

Being deceived is not the end in itself though. The most frightening part is the ultimate result. The deception that turns people away from God by convincing them that their unrighteous ways are apparently righteous leads to condemnation – that is, death. When deception bears its fruit, the victim dies a death with an eternal duration. The pleasure in a life of unrighteousness has a dreadful finality.

Therefore, if we want to avoid this grim end in our lives, it is vitally important that we make sure to guard ourselves against deception. Nurturing our love for the Truth (2 Thessalonians 2:10), and all that naturally follows from such love, is the only way that we can defend ourselves from the subtle and cunning onslaught of deception. By building up our love for the Truth, we strengthen our ability to reject the imposters that threaten to take away our crown of righteousness. When we become intimately familiar with the Truth, we become strangers to the lies of deception.

Becoming familiar with the Truth and nurturing our love for it sounds great, but how do we do it? We can draw inspiration from the Psalms. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever” (Psalm 111:10). If we want to increase our understanding of the Truth, which is necessary in order to love the Truth, we have to put the Truth into action. By actually doing the commandments of God, we increase our familiarity with them, and we receive their benefits. By building obedience to God into every corner of our lives and taking the time to appreciate the inherent goodness, we build up our defenses against the dreadfulness of death. Our best protection against deception is to build up our love for the Truth by living by it.

Our weekly Updates are filled with important information in an effort to teach, educate, encourage, warn and prepare our readership regarding the soon-coming Kingdom of God. This edition is no exception. The Q&A by Pastor Michael Link addresses America’s Thanksgiving Day and answers the question as to what attitude true Christians should have towards this festival and thanksgiving in general. The Current Events contain numerous news articles showing developments towards the sure fulfillment of biblical prophecy in our time.

Some may not want to read these news articles and our comments as they portray many times an evil world cut off from God and ruled by Satan. They don’t want to hear about “bad news,” not realizing that these prophetic events on which we focus in our Updates are necessary to occur so that Jesus Christ can come back. He clearly showed us that a great tribulation or a global war will happen which will threaten the very survival of mankind. This mass destruction will be inspired by Satan and caused by the unconscionable and irresponsible use of man’s terrible nuclear, biological and chemical weapons. Not many people will survive World War III. That is the bad news.

The good news is that Christ will return to shorten these unique days in man’s history so that some will survive. He also told us that faithful members of His Church will be protected during that time. And He made clear that when He returns, He will banish and imprison Satan, replace all human governments and kingdoms, and rule Himself as “King of kings and Lord of lords.” You and I have the potential of becoming those immortal “kings” and “lords,” assisting Christ to rule this world under Him with righteousness and fair judgment (Psalm 9:7-8).

We are told to pray daily: “Your Kingdom Come.” We are to have a deep longing for that wonderful time which will end all pain and suffering. But we also know that before this can occur, unspeakable suffering will engulf this planet. People will become more and more violent, corrupt, ungodly, haters who are being hated (Matthew 24:10; Titus 3:3), deceivers who are being deceived (2 Timothy 3:13), murderers who will be murdered (1 John 3:15; Matthew 26:52; Revelation 13:10). And because the transgression of God’s Law will increase, the love of God will grow cold in many. Demons will have a field day, and while they are determined to destroy the entire world and all of mankind, God’s people will be their main focus.

How are we, as God’s children, to pray? What attitude are we to have regarding the future? We are told to watch and pray always… so wanting to ignore what is going on is certainly not the right approach towards watching (Luke 21:28-31). It is also not the right approach towards praying. We are to sigh and cry over all the abominations which are happening in our country and around the world (Ezekiel 9:4)… this we can only do if we know what is happening. We are to have a great desire for Christ’s return, but we are warned not to desire the plagues which will occur on the “woeful” Day of the Lord (Amos 5:18; Jeremiah 17:16). We are admonished to be thankful for everything, as this week’s Q&A brings out, but how can we be thankful for the evil that is prophesied to happen? And how can we be thankful for evil rulers and lying politicians who will bring havoc on this earth?

Although Satan rules this world, he can do nothing without God’s permission. God has shown us what He is going to do. He will use a future German or Austrian “king of Assyria” (Isaiah 10:5-6) to invade and conquer the modern descendants of the ancient houses of Israel and Judah (including the USA, the UK, Canada, other English-speaking nations and the state of Israel). Even though we read that Satan will give this evil “king of the North” or the “beast” his power (Revelation 13:4), God allows it to fulfill His purpose… in this context, to punish the modern descendants of the ancient Israelites for their pride and many sins. We can be thankful to God that He is in control.

God allows us to live in this rotten society to test us to see how we act and react. We are sent into this world, but we are not to be of this world. Will we maintain a godly attitude at all times, allowing God to fight our battles, or are we too quick to take matters into our own hands, drawing our “sword” against our persecutors (whether using a literal weapon or spewing out piercing and accusatory words) to pay them back in kind? Are we willing to revenge ourselves, or are we thankful that God allows such opportunities in our lives so that we can react in righteousness, thereby growing toward perfection?

We most certainly are not to pray for the well-being and continuation of this evil world and we are not to love the things in this world. We are not to love the evil deeds of the sinners, but we are to hope and pray that they may accept the gift of repentance which God may offer them. We are not to long for our enemy’s destruction, but we must also realize that God is just and fair, and that He will deal with His enemies if they do not change.

We are to remember that the sinners have to pay–their sins will find them out (Numbers 32:23) and they will reap what they have sown (Galatians 6:7). And for this we can be truly thankful as well—that the evil rule and the deceitful influence of evil sinners will cease (Psalm 104:35). At the same time, we must make certain that we will not fall into the same trap of deception and lose focus, while being more concerned with the world and its sinners than with the preparation of the establishment of God’s Kingdom. Many want to do “good works” in missionary endeavors, but they completely ignore the signs of the times (Matthew 16:2-3). Rather than getting involved in the most important Work on earth—the preaching of the gospel of the Kingdom as a witness to all nations (Matthew 24:14)—they concentrate on “helping the poor” by volunteering their time and effort, especially on Thanksgiving, Christmas and on other occasions, while neglecting the weightier matters of God’s Word. Christ made a very important point when He said to someone who did not want to do what He expected of him: “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead” (Matthew 8:22).

Following Christ means for us, having His mind (Philippians 2:5) and doing what He said (Luke 6:46). He was filled with the desire to finish the Work—the task which God had given to Him as a human being (John 4:34). We must have the same desire and mindset—to finish our Work of preaching the gospel in these perilous times. Knowing this, we can be truly thankful to God, because without the fulfillment of that all-important prophecy, stating that the gospel must first be published among all nations (Mark 13:10, Authorized Version), Christ could not and would not come back and God’s Kingdom would not be restored.

So how thankful are we? How anxious are we for God’s Kingdom to come? How involved are we in His Work? How diligent are we in doing what we must? Are we praying daily for the blessing and success of God’s Work and for God’s ministry and all those who are participating in the momentous task of fulfilling biblical prophecy to be carried out by His Church (Matthew 28:19-20)? Are we watchful of world events which should motivate us to become more conscious of our duties towards God, including our need for prayer, Bible Study, meditation and occasional fasting, our responsibility of giving God His tithe and offerings, and of God’s command to love Him with all our heart and our neighbor as ourselves? If we do this, we fulfill God’s Law and we will not stumble into lawlessness; otherwise, we will be in danger of neglecting “so great a salvation” which has been offered to us (Hebrews 2:3).

We read in 1 Corinthians 13:13 where the apostle Paul stated that there are three important things in life, faith, hope and love. Of course, as he said, the greatest of these is love.

Of the three, hope is mentioned in God’s Word significantly less often than either faith or love. So how important is hope?

Hope is not wishful thinking, like hoping a rich relative will die and leave us a fortune. That is more correctly termed inappropriate desire rather than godly hope. But real hope is mentioned in Hebrews 11:1 in this way: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” And this hope is extremely important to us.

In the book of Job, while he was suffering great affliction, Job felt he was without hope. He believed that God was destroying him for no reason. Yet even in his time of great despair, he realised that after his death, God would call him and he would answer, that God would desire the work of His hands (Job 14:14-15). This shows that even while he felt hopeless in his physical life, he knew there was hope for him in the resurrection.

In the book of Psalms, there are many mentions of hope by David and other writers—hope in God, in His mercy and judgements, in His Word and salvation. Their lives were based around that hope.

In the 37th chapter of Ezekiel, God states that the bones, representing the whole house of Israel, figuratively say, “Our bones are dry, our hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off.” And yet, God shows there was hope for them as He will open their graves and they will live, and He will also put His Spirit in them. He would also bring them into the land of Israel (Verses 11-14). Their hope was not lost even though that was their belief.

There are many other prophecies where God gives hope to the houses of Israel and Judah, to bring them back from their captivity to their former homeland. One specifically to the house of Judah during their time in captivity in Babylon is in Jeremiah 29:11-14. God thought to give the house of Judah a future and a hope and to bring them back to their own land.

The apostle Paul is an outstanding New Testament example of hope. At the beginning of his calling, God explained what his commission would be, but He also showed him, “how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake” (Acts 9:15-16). At the very beginning of his calling, Paul (he was then known as Saul) was made aware his life was not going to be easy.

Here are some instances of the trials and the reason Paul endured them. When he was standing before the council after declaring that he was going to preach to the Gentiles, his defence was, “concerning the hope and resurrection of the dead I am being judged!” (Acts 23:6). Again, in Acts 24:15, Paul’s hope was in the resurrection of the dead.

In many of his epistles, he taught the resurrection of Christians to glory, the glory of God (Romans 5:2). He also taught that, “we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:7). See also Titus 1:2.

Paul gives a long discussion of the resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15. Some were saying there is no resurrection. If this was true, then all who have died in Christ have perished. They have no hope. He goes on to say, “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable” (Verse 19). Also he says, “If the dead do not rise, ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!’” (Verse 32).

He points out earlier in this chapter, if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not risen. But since there had been hundreds of witnesses to Christ’s life after His resurrection, including Paul himself, then he knew the resurrection was indeed a fact.

This hope was what enabled Paul to be willing to go through all the sufferings he experienced. 2 Corinthians 11:23-28 gives a listing of some of the things he suffered, finally leading up to his death as a faithful witness.

In what many believe to be his final epistle (his second letter to Timothy), he sums up his life in God’s service.  He mentions many who had left the church (2 Timothy 1:15), and that, in the future, others would be turned aside to fables (2 Timothy 4:3-4).

Because he knew he was soon to be put to death, he stated, “The time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8).

This was his belief, that his faith in God and Christ gave him his personal hope of eternal life. And this hope enabled him to carry out his part in the Work of God, no matter what trials and sufferings he experienced. He saw the wonderful reward that was awaiting him and others who also believed.

There are a number of other prophecies in God’s Word of many being offended and falling away from God’s Truth, especially at the end times. Because of this, we should follow the apostle Paul’s example of having unwavering hope that will enable us to continue to do our part in God’s Work, finish our race and achieve salvation and eternal life.

Hope is extremely important for us, for without it we could easily give up. But with it we can indeed endure to the end and receive our glorious resurrection.

Driving into my neighborhood recently, I noticed the glow of strung-up lights on several houses.  I thought these were early for Christmas but the colors and décor were instead designed to celebrate Halloween.  Decorations like these are a growing trend that undoubtedly will result in the same fervor as Christmas receives today.

Spending on this holiday is increasing with a disturbing pace.  In a recent article on CNN they state the following numbers: “More than 175 million Americans will celebrate Halloween this year, with seven out of ten consumers planning to hand out candy. Total spending in 2018 will reach $9 billion, with the average consumer planning to spend $86.79 on decorations, candy, costumes and more” (cnn.com, October 18, 2018).

What is truly alarming, and revealing of the direction our country is heading, are the number of professing Christians embracing this festival.  One local church in my neighborhood has annual trick or treat gatherings in our common area.  And their church is by no means alone.  That same CNN article gives a brief history of this festival stating, “Halloween comes from an ancient pagan festival celebrated by Celtic people over 2,000 years ago called Samhain.”

Carnally based traditions have been the bane of God’s people since we were created.  A few Christian-professing friends reminisced recently about their childhood Halloween experiences and how much joy their children find in it today.  And yet they ignore the very words of Christ concerning man-made traditions.  “He answered and said to them, ‘Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition?’” (Matthew 15:3).  Man is being cheated out of an everlasting future in lieu of shiny bobbles that Satan so cleverly hands out. Paul faced this same attitude during his ministry: “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ” (Colossians 2:8).

The true devastation being heaped up on mankind is with the adulteration of children.  The Devil knows exactly how to draw man away from God.  Satan starts young and builds a lasting foundation.  Is it coincidence that the major Satanic holidays like Easter, Christmas and Halloween are directed towards children?  God told His servants, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).  Failure to follow this simple advice, especially with our young, is what necessitates the impending judgement on this world.

Having a child-like attitude is required by Christ.  “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3). The snares of the Devil are plentiful and enticing.  But they grow dim and meaningless to a child-like heart humbled by God’s Spirit.

One evening, on television some time ago, I saw a brief discussion about the scent detecting cells in dogs and cats. As a dog lover it has always amused me to see the amount of sniffing a dog does when it is taken for a walk.

Dogs can possess up to 300 million olfactory receptors in their noses (depending on their size and breed), compared to about six million in us. And the part of a dog’s brain that is devoted to analyzing smells is, proportionally speaking, 40 times greater than ours.

On the website dummies, it states under the heading “Your dog’s unique nose” the following: “Your dog’s nose has a pattern of ridges and dimples that, in combination with the outline of its nostril openings, make up a nose print believed to be as individual and unique as a human being’s fingerprints. Companies even register nose prints as a way of identifying and helping to locate lost or stolen dogs, a system that is now being used by kennel clubs around the world.”

To think that the small nose of even a small dog can have well over 100 million scent-detecting receptors is a fact that is hard to take in. Whenever I see such amazing facts, I reflect on how stupid and ridiculous the theory of evolution is.

On the website livescience, we read: “Life on Earth first bloomed around 3.7 billion years ago, when chemical compounds in a ‘primordial soup’ somehow sparked into life, scientists suspect. But what turned sterile molecules into living, changing organisms? That’s the ultimate mystery. By studying the evolution of not just life, but life’s building blocks as well, researchers hope to come closer to the answer.”

Did you catch the words “somehow” and “scientists suspect” and “researchers hope to come closer to the answer”? Hardly a definitive response! In respect to the dog’s nose, how do they expect intelligent and rational human beings to believe that a primordial soup (without any direction or intelligence) managed to educate or transform itself from organisms over some 3.7 million years into having the ability to produce a dog with hundreds of thousands of scent detecting receptors in its nose? If you believe that, you are capable of believing that the moon is made of green cheese with a pig flying over it!

You really do have to be kidding! And yet, there are multiple millions of adherents to this nonsense and, by comparison, very few who understand and believe the biblical truth. If anyone had any doubt about the wiles, cunning and ability of Satan the devil, then this should help them to re-evaluate their position.

Over the years, the Church of God has produced many booklets and articles about the nonsensical theory of evilution (that’s how it should really be spelled if it is to reflect precisely what it is) to countless millions of people. Please remember that, not that long ago, we had a magazine that, at its zenith, had a monthly print run of over 8 million copies. How many millions, or even hundreds of millions will have read articles about this nonsensical concept? We have a booklet “The Theory of Evolution – A Fairy Tale for Adults?,” which is an excellent exposition on this subject.

A dog’s nose is yet another example (and there are so many others) of the existence of a superior Being who created all things – and not through any primordial soup or any evolutionary theoretical stupidity.

Remember the dog’s nose!

Have we ever been late to an event by not getting there on time and were not able to get in due to their “door closing” policy at a specific time?  How did that make us feel? Especially when we thought we had prepared ourselves, giving ourselves enough time? Perhaps we were careless with our time, and something along the way became a distraction, causing us to get there “late” and were then prohibited to get inside.  It’s a frustrating feeling and thoughts of what we should have done differently may enter our minds, even though we were aware of the rules stating that we must plan and prepare accordingly and those who were not “on time” would be unable to enter.

Christ spoke about ten virgins, but only the five wise virgins were allowed to enter the wedding. The five foolish virgins were not prepared and ready. And when they finally arrived, the doors were closed.

Or, did we ever experience a situation when we were invited to a special occasion and refused to attend, even though we should have been there, or when we attended, only to find out that we were not prepared for the same? Christ delivered a similar message in Matthew 22 in a parable of the wedding feast where several who were invited to the wedding by the king were unwilling to come. And so the king sent out servants again to remind those who were invited: “‘See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding.’ But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business (verse 4).”

These were guests who were “called” to the wedding. They had some knowledge of the Truth and God’s Way of Life and they had a choice to make, to be at the wedding. The king tried two times to invite them to the wedding and since they didn’t want to come, he stated in verse 8 that “those who were invited were not worthy.” The servants went out and invited others to come to the wedding and they responded.

But one person came for an improper purpose and with dishonest motives, even though he knew better. We read in verse 11, “But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”

Here was someone who didn’t respond in the way that God expected but rather was untruthful and rebellious. God dealt with this person severely. There are many examples in the Bible of people who were rebellious to God’s Law, who knew His Law at first but then decided to take matters into their own hands, thereby forgetting about God (1 Samuel 15:23; Romans 13:2; Isaiah 1:19-20).

The Bible contains many warnings for TRUE Christians today.  If we have been called out of this world, responded and made the commitment to live God’s Way of Life FOREVER by CHOOSING to become baptized, then we must understand the absolute importance and responsibility that we have to live righteously or we will lose our crown to eternal life (Revelation 3:11).

The time will come when many will proclaim to Christ that they “knew” Him, “knew” about God’s Way of Life, yet they deceived themselves or they weren’t dedicated enough to LIVE that Way and DO what He commanded on a CONTINUOUS basis.  And Christ will respond, “I never knew you, depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matthew 7:23). It is for LIFE and we say it over and over again: Be Prepared NOW before it’s too late!