On December 4, 2010, Robb Harris will give the sermon, titled, “Truth.”

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org (12:30 pm Pacific Time; 1:30 pm Mountain Time; 2:30 pm Central Time; 3:30 pm Eastern Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

Being “fickle” is defined by “thefreedictionary.com” as follows: “… characterized by erratic changeableness or instability, especially with regard to affections or attachments; capricious (of whim or erratic).” Wictionary has another interesting definition: “… quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance; insincere; not loyal or reliable.” The more this word is investigated, the greater the number of definitions. Further synonyms are “faithlessness,” “infidelity” or “unreliability”.
 
That is quite a list of descriptions for just one word, but how revealing it all is. On the CBSNews.com website, it stated the following on November 4th: “The 2010 midterm elections were not just big news for all Americans. The rest of the world took notice too. For some, it was yet another sad step down for President Barack Obama, who took office with near rock star-like popularity internationally.”
 
This was the President who was greeted in victory in near messiah-like proportions not that long ago–someone who was going to really change the USA, and it would all work out well for the nation. Two years later, the nation was “quick to change one’s opinion or allegiance; not loyal or reliable,” as fickleness was defined above. It could be argued, of course, that this sort of “fickleness” was necessary in order to change things, which may not be considered right.
 
On a mundane and much less important level, consider the many sports supporters who are watching their team being soundly and heavily beaten by a much better side. Many may leave the stadium early, not wanting to support their team if they’re losing.  They are fair-weather friends and fickle supporters, rather than appreciating the ability and class of the opposition.
 
Let us consider fickleness when it comes to our faith. We would shudder if we were accused of it and would roundly deny that this was part of our Christian way of life. However, the Bible does include many warnings for us in this regard.
 
Proverbs 24:21 instructs us as follows: “My son, fear the LORD and the king; Do not associate with those given to change.”

Gill’s Exposition on the Whole Bible explains that in religious things, we are to avoid those who “make innovations in doctrine and practice, always love to hear or say some new thing; turn with every wind, and shift as that does; are tossed about with every wind of doctrine, fickle and inconstant, carried about like meteors in the air, with ‘divers and strange doctrines’…”
 
Ephesians 4:14 tells us that “we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine….” Hebrews 13:9 instructs us along the same lines, and in James 1:6 we read: “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.”
 
In addition, the attitude of fickleness is clearly revealed in Hosea 6:4: “O Ephraim (the British people), what shall I do to you?  O Judah (modern Jews), what shall I do to you? For your faithfulness is like a morning cloud, And like the early dew it goes away.” In the book of Hosea, Ephraim is mentioned over 30 times, and their “faithfulness” is described as fickle and fleeting.
 
It could be said that the opposite of “fickle” is “constant,” which is the position that the true Christian must maintain throughout his life. We must never waver, whatever happens! Fickleness is a way in which many in the world may behave, but it must not be an accurate accusation that could ever be levelled at us. It simply must never apply to our calling, as we keep and “contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3), and as we trust in the supreme God–at all times!

We begin with an incredible and unprecedented breach of US security through the release of highly classified documents, and the resulting melt-down for the USA around the world is devastating. The reports picture the USA as a weak and irresponsible power, and whatever trust its allies might have had seems to have all but vanished (notwithstanding some political and unbelievable lip services to the contrary ). It should be obvious that the God of the Bible–the God and Father of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ–has turned His back on His people, as His people–from head to foot–have turned their back on Him.
 
A related article pictures the US citizens’ gradual loss of liberties and freedoms, referring to the fact that tax exemption can be denied for organizations which are not in accord with “established public policy principles”–as this vague term is conveniently defined.
 
The Bible prophesied these regrettable and devastating developments thousands of years ago. The warnings have always been there, but especially the USA and Great Britain have been refusing to heed them. We are beginning to reap the consequences. We pray that the reader will meditate on the following articles and recognize the signs of the time. The handwriting is on the wall. It is MUCH later than many would wish to think.
 
We also report on China and Russia–two superpowers which, like the proverbial leopards, do not change their spots–and we discuss at length the future of the EU and the euro. There is much confusion as to what the future holds for continental Europe, but the Bible has reported it in advance thousands of years ago.

USA — a Weak Superpower

Der Spiegel wrote on November 28:

“251,000 State Department documents, many of them secret embassy reports from around the world, show how the US seeks to safeguard its influence around the world. It is nothing short of a political meltdown for US foreign policy…

“Never before in history has a superpower lost control of such vast amounts of such sensitive information… Never before has the trust America’s partners have in the country been as badly shaken…

“In the major crisis regions, an image emerges of a superpower that can no longer truly be certain of its allies — like in Pakistan, where the Americans are consumed by fear that the unstable nuclear power could become precisely the place where terrorists obtain dangerous nuclear material.

“There are similar fears in Yemen, where the US, against its better judgement, allows itself to be instrumentalized by an unscrupulous leader… Even after the fall of Saddam Hussein, it still remained a challenge for the victorious power to assert its will on Iraq. In Baghdad… it is now up to Vice President Joe Biden to make repeated visits to allied Iraqi politicians in an effort to get them to finally establish a respectable democracy. But the embassy cables make it very clear that Obama’s deputy has made little headway.

“Instead, the Americans are forced to endure the endless tirades of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarek, who claims to have always known that the Iraq war was the ‘biggest mistake ever committed’ and who advised the Americans to ‘forget about democracy in Iraq.’ Once the US forces depart, Mubarak said, the best way to ensure a peaceful transition is for there to be a military coup. They are statements that add insult to injury.

“On the whole, the cables from the Middle East expose the superpower’s weaknesses… And it is drawn into the animosities between Arabs and Israelis, Shiites and Sunnis, between Islamists and secularists, between despots and kings. Often enough, the lesson of the documents that have now been obtained, is that the Arab leaders use their friends in Washington to expand their own positions of power.”

USA Diplomats Deride World Leaders

BBC News reported on November 29:
 
“European countries have reacted with irritation to the release by whistle-blowing website Wikileaks of secret memos written by US diplomats. The messages describe… Russia’s Vladimir Putin as an ‘alpha dog’… President Nicolas Sarkozy is compared to an ’emperor with no clothes’…

“Among the comments released by Wikileaks is a reported conversation in which a senior advisor to the French president branded Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez ‘crazy’ and Iran a ‘fascist state’. Mr Sarkozy himself was described in cables penned by US diplomatic officials as ‘thin-skinned’ and ‘authoritarian’… the leaks… include descriptions of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi as ‘feckless’ and ‘vain’… Mr Erdogan had ‘little understanding of politics beyond Ankara’.”

Tensions Increase in Middle East

Deutsche Welle wrote on November 29:
 
“Tensions in the Middle East are increasing as the fallout from the latest WikiLeaks revelations continues to spread. Previously reticent Arab states have been exposed as having discussed strikes on Iran with the US… Among the most inflammatory [documents] were those between Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah, US Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker and General David Petraeus in which the Saudi monarch urged the US to stop Iran’s nuclear program by any means necessary… King Abdullah called on the United States ‘to cut off the head of the snake’…

“The documents show the level of concern within the Middle East of Iran’s nuclear ambitions and, contrary to the public declarations of a number of Arab states, the apparent willingness to deal with the threat militarily. While Israel’s favoring of air strikes is well-known and documented, no Arab nations have gone on record as saying they would support US action or take their own to stop Tehran. A particular danger to stability now lies in the perception that Arab states named in the documents are on the same page as the US and Israel in regard to policy toward Iran.

“… while Iran may not be shocked into action by the revelations, factions within Saudi Arabia may be. There is an escalating unease in the kingdom itself over its allegiance to the United States, and its willingness to support the US and even join in with any military action it mounts against Iran…”

“Crisis For German-American Relations”

The Local wrote on November 29:
 
“In a message attributed to a US diplomat in Berlin dated March 24, 2009, the State Department is told that Merkel is ‘risk averse and rarely creative’… The Americans argue that the chancellor views international diplomacy above all from the perspective of how she can profit from it domestically…

“Merkel’s vice-chancellor and foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle comes in for harsher criticism in the secret documents and is described as incompetent, vain and critical of America… An embassy cable from Berlin from September 22, 2009, days before the general election that put him in office, describes Westerwelle as having an ‘exuberant personality’ but little foreign policy experience…

“Meanwhile Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, Germany’s most popular politician, is quoted as telling the US ambassador to Germany, Philip Murphy, in February 2010 that Westerwelle was the real barrier to a US request for an increase in the number of German troops in Afghanistan. Guttenberg also disparages his boss, saying that Merkel has trouble implementing her own economic policies.

“And Horst Seehofer, the head of the Christian Social Union, the Bavarian sister party to Merkel’s Christian Democrats, is shown as unaware that half of 40,000 US troops in Germany are based in his state, which he also governs…

“A German diplomatic source said that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had called Westerwelle on Friday to ‘express her regret about the impending publication of internal US documents.’ Meanwhile US Ambassador Murphy said Monday that there is no reason to apologise to either Westerwelle or Merkel for the information contained in the leaked documents…

“Former US ambassador to Germany John Kornblum, who served in Berlin from 1997 to 2001, told broadcaster ZDF on Monday that the leaks were a crisis for German-American relations. ‘Diplomacy…must function on the basis of trust, and when that trust if broken, as is the case now, then one must begin at almost zero again,’ he said.

“… government spokesman Steffen Seibert told a regular press briefing that Berlin’s ties with Washington would weather the diplomatic storm. ‘The German-American relationship is mature, it has grown so robust over the decades, it is such a deep friendship based on shared values that it will not be seriously damaged by this publication,’ he said.”
 
Whom is he kidding?

German Papers Not Amused

In a related article, The Local wrote on November 29:

“As Washington scrambled on Monday to explain leaked diplomatic communiqués disparaging leaders in Berlin, newspapers in The Local’s media roundup tried to assess the damage to German-American relations… there’s little doubt the leaked communiqués will do little to improve transatlantic ties…

“The left-wing Berliner Zeitung said much damage had been done to US foreign policy by the leak… The paper said the incident will ‘sow mistrust’ and ‘destroy human and political ties,’ which will in turn weaken US diplomacy around the world.

“The Düsseldorf-based Rheinische Post called the episode a disaster for America that would ‘cool Angela Merkel’s already troubled relationship with Barack Obama’…”

Der Spiegel Online wrote on November 30:

“The dust is still settling after Sunday’s revelations about the contents of 250,000 confidential US diplomatic cables, but it’s already clear that the WikiLeaks disclosure is hugely damaging for the American government… While it remains to be seen what the lasting impact of the explosive leaks will be, it is already clear that the revelations are a huge embarrassment for Washington and a massive setback for US diplomacy. American representatives abroad may find it difficult in the future to find informants who are as willing to talk openly as they might have been in the past, now that reams of supposedly confidential conversations have been made public…

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘… The damage to the US as a result of the documents’ publication is immense… The diplomatic facade has crumbled, revealing just how calculating the business of international politics really is… America’s reserve of trust is empty. … The US has already been struggling for decades to maintain its credibility on the global stage. WikiLeaks has now acted like a weapon of mass destruction on the last traces of trust.’

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes: ‘…Washington now looks like one giant leak. Who would now trust the Americans to keep confidential conversations confidential? Mistrust will spread, and not only among minor informants. Leaders of the US’s allies have been embarrassed in public, with unpredictable consequences for the relationship between their countries and the states and politicians that they talked about…'”

Nuclear Weapons Hosted in Europe

The EUObserver reported on November 29:

“The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Turkey have US nuclear weapons situated on their soil, the WikiLeaks whistleblower files have revealed. The four countries, along with Italy, had long been suspected of being home to a collection of American nuclear armaments, but neither the states nor Nato had ever officially confirmed or denied their presence…

“According to estimates found in a 2007 report using a variety of different sources to catalogue deployment of US nuclear weapons in Europe from the Natural Resources Defence Council, an American environmental protection NGO, the continent is home to 480 such weapons.

“The report estimated that… Belgium… housed 20 nuclear weapons. The same document reckoned that another 20 are housed… in… the Netherlands. Nuclear weapons are thought to have been stored there since the 1960s and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Some 20 nuclear weapons are believed to be stored in [Germany]… Last October, the country’s foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle, came close to admitting their existence when he called ‘for a country free of nuclear weapons’…

“Italy is also thought to host a total of 90 such arms… Turkey… is believed to store 90 such weapons… Beyond the undeclared European nuclear states, the UK, an admitted member of the nuclear club, is home to 110 US nuclear weapons…”

Should Hillary Clinton Resign?

Politics Daily wrote on November 30:

“Should Hillary Clinton resign as secretary of state due to the WikiLeaks revelations?… Clinton, like predecessor Condoleezza Rice, signed orders instructing U.S. foreign service officers to spy on the diplomats of other nations. Cables went out under her name telling State Department officials overseas to collect the fingerprints, facial images, DNA, and iris scans of African leaders, to obtain passwords, credit card numbers, and frequent flyer accounts used by foreign diplomats, and to gather private information on United Nations officials, including Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

“Of the many WikiLeaks revelations that have emerged in the past few days — and more are to come in the next few months, as the renegade website continues to release batches of the 251,287 State Department cables it has obtained — the news that U.S. diplomats have been turned into part-time spies certainly warrants thorough investigation. Obama administration officials, of course, have tried to make the leak itself the paramount issue. Attorney General Eric Holder has promised prosecutions if ‘we can find anybody involved in breaking American law.’ Clinton has called the leak ‘an attack on America’s foreign policy interests,’ claiming it has endangered ‘innocent people.’ Republican Rep. Peter King urged Clinton to determine if WikiLeaks can be designated a terrorist organization. Sen. Joe Lieberman has called on the United States and other governments to shut down WikiLeaks. Sarah Palin, naturally, blamed President Barack Obama’s ‘incompetence’ for the leaks…

“Yet there have not been such passionate calls for investigating the transformation of U.S. diplomats into undercover snoops. The administration’s strategy — as is to be expected — is to focus on the easy-to-demonize messenger, not the hard-to-explain message…
 
“In many other nations, news such as this would indeed prompt resignations of high officials. The United States does not have this noble tradition. Here, government officials hold on for dear life when trouble erupts. (How many U.S. officials resigned when it turned out the Bush-Cheney administration was wrong about WMDs in Iraq? None.) So one can expect Clinton to dig in her heels, as the administration decries the leaker and ignores the leaks…”

IRS targets Pro-Israel Groups

Politico reported on November 24:
 
“A Pennsylvania Jewish group that has claimed the Internal Revenue Service is targeting pro-Israel groups introduced in federal court today a letter from an IRS agent to [an] unnamed organization that tax experts said was likely outside the usual or appropriate scope of an IRS inquiry.

“‘Does your organization support the existence of the land of Israel?’ [an] IRS agent… wrote the organization… as part of its consideration of the organization’s application for tax exempt status. ‘Describe your organization’s religious belief system toward the land of Israel.’…

“The IRS can deny tax exempt status to groups that work against ‘established public policy,’ a precedent established in its denial of a tax exemption to Bob Jones University over racial discrimination.”

There are many more or less independent and/or unsupervised powerful institutions within the US government which are perceived to threaten our individual and collective freedoms and liberties.

China Has Not Changed…

CNN reported on November 26:
 
“Having just enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner, the American soldiers were told they would be home by Christmas as they launched their final offensive. In fact, they were driving into the greatest ambush in modern history. Twelve miles to their north, 380,000 brilliantly camouflaged enemy fighters lay in wait. In the days that followed, the U.S. Army would suffer its most harrowing ordeal of the past half-century. Two American regiments were massacred at a pass called Kunu-ri; another was annihilated beside a frozen lake called Chosin. The time was 60 years ago; the battlefield was North Korea; the enemy was China’s People’s Liberation Army.

“Despite wide-ranging global changes — the fall of European communism, the end of the Cold War, China-U.S. rapprochement, the rise of China as economic superpower — there has been no indication that Beijing has altered its stance toward maintaining the isolated regime in the peninsula’s north since it routed U.S.-led United Nations forces in Korea in the winter of 1950.

“‘China does not want to lose North Korea as a buffer zone vis-a-vis a pro-U.S. country — South Korea,’ said Kim Won-ho, dean of the Graduate School of International Studies at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. ‘The last thing China wants to see is U.S.-style democracy in North Korea,’ added congresswoman Song Sun-young, who sits on the South Korean National Assembly’s Defense Committee. ‘Even if they apply open-door policies to their markets, China wants North Korea to follow the Chinese style’…

“North Korea, in addition to its strategic position on China’s doorstep, is a rare voice of support buttressing China’s historical role at the heart of Asia… Meanwhile, South Korea’s relationship with China is conflicted… Six decades after China crossed the Yalu River to fight in Korea, the competing alliances borne of that conflict — the world’s last remaining Cold War battlefront — remain firmly in place.”

Beware of Russia

Der Spiegel Online wrote on November 26:

“Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin wants the EU and Russia to forge a massive free trade zone. German commentators are wary of the wily politician’s true intentions and urge Europe’s politicians to read the small print…

“The reaction to Putin’s piece was mixed from the German side. German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle welcomed Putin’s suggestion… Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg described it as an ‘interesting proposal,’ but added the caveat that ‘there are certainly a few things that need to be done first.’ Merkel was more reserved in her response, saying on Thursday that recent steps by Russia did ‘not exactly point in the right direction’…

“The business daily Handelsblatt writes: ‘Without political reform in the direction of greater democracy and a freer market, without Russia’s accession to the World Trade Organization, and without the release of [political prisoners], proposals like those regarding the free-trade zone will remain nothing but a smokescreen that Putin is creating in a bid to polish his tarnished image in Europe.’

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘… Has the great chameleon Russia now decided to change its color once again?… The global economic crisis may have caused great damage to many countries, but it left Russia in ruins. The country will not be able to head into the future relying on its oil, gas and metals any more. The model of a great power based on raw materials is a thing of the past, and Moscow can no longer depend on energy prices as it once did. Russia must open itself up… In the long term, the country has more to gain than to lose…’

“The Financial Times Deutschland writes: ‘… He wants Russian companies to have access to Western European know-how and capital — but under Russian conditions. The Russian prime minister may have recognized the problem, but he has reached the wrong conclusions… The country’s potential can only be tapped when companies are given freedom and legal security… Freedom, however, is an idea that Putin still finds it hard to get to grips with.'”

The Future of the Euro

Bloomberg wrote on November 25:
 
“The European banking system would be ‘nearly bust’ if the euro were to be abandoned which means the 16-member currency ‘cannot and should not go,’ Evolution Securities Ltd. said. ‘If the euro is abandoned, and we go back to the peseta, lira, escudo, drachma etc., devaluations would follow immediately,’ said Arturo de Frias, head of bank research at Evolution in a note to investors today, adding the industry is a ‘great buying opportunity.’ Devaluations mean write-offs ‘of a size that would render the whole European banking system completely insolvent.’

“Contagion from Europe’s sovereign debt crisis is spreading to Spain, sparking concern that the European rescue fund set up in May isn’t large enough. French, German and U.K. banks could lose 360 billion euros ($479 billion) if the euro collapsed, assuming a 30 percent devaluation in the wake of the restoration of national currencies, said de Frias.

“The damage caused by the abandonment of the euro would be such that such an outcome is impossible and the ‘only way forward’ for Europe is fiscal union, he said. ‘It is simply too late,’ he wrote. ‘There are too many cross-border investments in Europe to go back to national currencies.’

“If Spain, Italy, Greece, Portugal and Ireland devalue by 30 percent on the way to readopting national currencies, total losses for German banks alone would be 120 billion euros, said de Frias. That’s almost half the total equity of German lenders, he said… In such a scenario, losses at U.K. banks would reach 80 billion euros, equivalent to nearly half the equity of Barclays Plc, Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc and Lloyds Banking Group Plc., he said.

“’And this is only the banks. What would happen with the investments of the large European multinationals’ like Siemens AG, Tesco Plc and others…”

Did Britain Do It Right?

The Daily Express wrote on November 25:
 
“From this day forth our energies will be directed to furthering the cause of those who believe Britain is better off out… After far too many years as the victims of Brussels larceny, bullying, over-regulation and all-round interference, the time has come for the British people to win back their country and restore legitimacy and accountability to their political process….
 
“This newspaper has always been hostile to the dilution of national sovereignty that EU membership entailed, but it has also always acknowledged that economic arguments were key. So long as there was a case to be made that leaving the EU would risk jobs and investment in Britain there was a powerful brake on thoughts of leaving altogether… We were told that staying out of the eurozone would be a financial disaster, yet it is now clear beyond doubt that the opposite was true… “
 
Just merely based on monetary considerations, this view point might sound correct in the short term, but the Bible shows that in the longer term, continental EU and the euro will be dominating and all-powerful factors to be reckoned with. In fact, the EU will fight and win not only a monetary, but also a military war against Great Britain. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America.”

Practical Impossibility to Leave the Euro-Zone

BBC News reported on November 24:

“Much has been written about the theoretical attractions for financially troubled countries in exiting the euro-zone. But the question of how a country would go about it is less well explored. And the more closely you examine the question of ‘how’ – as opposed to ‘why’ – a country might leave the euro, the clearer it becomes that the practical difficulties are huge.

“To establish a new currency a country would have to convert all existing euro-denominated savings at a fixed rate on a given date. But savers and businesses would not wait passively for that date to arrive… The first practical problem, then, is that if it becomes clear that a country is seriously thinking of leaving the euro a huge amount of money will leave the country. This is sometimes referred to as ‘capital flight’. The overall effect would be to trigger huge transfers of deposits out of the country and wreck the banking system…

“But if a prolonged national debate about leaving the euro creates a risk of capital flight, would the alternative be to prepare in secret and announce it suddenly?… the idea that huge numbers of new bank notes could be prepared and distributed in secret… is absurd…

“However, suppose for a moment that these practical problems could be overcome, where would the country leaving the euro stand financially? It would have a large national debt denominated in euros…

“The euro came into circulation without too many hitches, albeit with many years of preparation. East Germany’s Ostmarks were converted into Deutschmarks. But the key difference is that in these cases the currency into which savings were being switched was perceived to be stable. The incentive for capital flight did not exist.

“… if the fundamental problem is substituting a weak currency for a strong one, the most practical solution would be for the strongest members of the euro-zone to leave the currency union. It means that… Germany could leave the euro while weaker countries could not… it seems massively unlikely that a German government would initiate the break-up of the euro. The euro was not designed with any possibility of break-up in mind… the point of a currency union is that it is supposed to be unbreakable.”

The EU was destined to unite, and the euro is one of the means of such unification. Please also read the next article, which proves as well that the notion that the euro could be exchanged for national currencies is just ridiculous. To believe such speculation would be tantamount to questioning biblical prophecy. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord.”

Comeback of National Currencies Would be a Disaster for EU and Germany

Der Spiegel wrote on November 29:

“Europe is discussing the horror scenario of a break-up of the euro zone. At present, that still seems unlikely, but experts are alarmed. A comeback of national currencies would be fatal — especially for Germany… what would really happen if the euro collapsed? Would it really herald a return to the good, old days, to a Germany that uses the much-revered deutsche mark? Or could it actually be a harbinger of chaos and economic depression?…

“Germany has reaped all sorts of benefits from the euro. A collapse of the common currency would have dramatic effects. Here is a list of possible consequences:

“… the high transaction costs alone would cause massive damage to the national economy. For example, huge amounts of new bank notes would have to be printed, and mountains of coins would have to be minted… Merchants and restaurant owners, for example, would have to re-adjust all their prices…
 
“… leading German economist Peter Bofinger said: ‘Many Germans’ eyes would start to glisten with emotion if the deutsche mark were to come back.’ But he also warned that ‘the economic consequences would be disastrous’… [It] would make German goods dramatically more expensive abroad, which would result in a serious competitive disadvantage, especially since roughly 40 percent of German exports go to other euro-zone countries.
 
“Last summer, Gerhard Cromme, chairman of the supervisory board of German engineering giant Siemens, described the consequences in drastic terms: ‘Prices would shoot up so high that those of us in the industrial sector would no longer be able to sell anything out there in the world.’ …

“Experts calculate that there would be severe job cuts in Germany if this were to happen… German companies would also have to assume billions in additional costs. For example, without the euro, they would have to hedge themselves against major currency fluctuations. Thanks to the common currency, this has not been necessary when exporting to countries within the euro zone.

“What’s more, a collapse of the euro… would throw financial markets into chaos. At the moment, all the big German banks have euro-denominated government bonds issued by other EU countries on their books. Were the common currency to disappear, these countries would be forced to repurchase these bonds in… whatever currency they assumed. But this would present the banks with a serious problem… German banks would be threatened with enormous loan losses…

“A defeat of the euro would be a victory for the dollar, which would continue on for the time being as the unrivalled currency for all major international transactions. At the same time, a breakup of the euro zone would also cause damage at the political level. As Andreas Scheuerle, an economist with DekaBank, said last summer: ‘Europe would suffer a massive decline in importance vis-à-vis the United States and China.’…
 
“The political consequences would be downright devastating… an end to the euro zone could lead to significant tension between EU member states. In the end… the entire European Union would be threatened.”
 
The Bible predicts that this will not happen–at least not until sometime AFTER the beginning of the Great Tribulation.

USA vs. Germany?

Reuters reported on December 1:

“The United States would be ready to support the extension of the European Financial Stability Facility via an extra commitment of money from the International Monetary Fund, a U.S. official told Reuters on Wednesday… U.S. Treasurys’ [sic] prices fell and the euro strengthened against the dollar on Wednesday after the news that the United States would be prepared to support an enlarged EFSF.

“Germany, whose leaders have expressed frustration at the market backlash against their plans to solve the euro zone’s debt problems, does not want to make the stability fund larger.”

Germany Not Liked Too Much in Europe

Der Spiegel Online wrote on November 26:
 
“Everyone is talking about German Chancellor Angela Merkel these days — and most of what they have to say isn’t complimentary. Her plan to create a bankruptcy mechanism for euro-zone countries, they say, has worsened the debt crisis in Ireland and elsewhere. Merkel’s name, once widely respected, is now mud…
 
“Ever since the sovereign debt crisis began shaking the euro zone, Germany has been the target of criticism more frequently than it has in a long time. And the image of the chancellor has been badly blemished…
 
“In the middle of Europe’s crisis, the former image of the ugly German — all-powerful and arrogant — has returned. Groaning under the weight of the euro crisis, Ireland sees itself as a victim of German conceit. The Irish press writes of ‘neo-colonialism.’ One of the largest newspapers in the country, the Irish Independent, quotes Fine Gael politician Michael Noonan, saying: ‘Can I ask whether this is what the men of 1916 died for: a bailout from the German chancellor with a few shillings of sympathy from the British chancellor on the side?’…

“The president of the Euro Group, Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, has hinted at his own concern about Germany’s European policies… ‘That in Germany federal and local authorities are slowly losing sight of European public good, that does worry me,’ he told the newspaper Rheinischer Merkur…

“The influential Spanish daily El País wrote about ‘the clumsiness of Europe’s leaders.’ The article claimed that German unintentionally made things much worse for Ireland by demanding that private investors be held partially liable for losses… Many German taxpayers have been wondering why they should have to foot the entire bill for a mess in which the banks were also heavily involved… Experts in the financial industry are not very impressed with the Germans at the moment…”

However, the time will come–and soon–when Europe will grudgingly ask Germany to lead them–and they will even surrender their power and authority to a charismatic German or Austrian leader. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Is That in the Bible?–The Mystery of the Book of Revelation.”

Verse 14 summarizes the Parable of the Wedding Feast spoken by Jesus Christ in which He teaches about the Kingdom of God and about the accountability that people have when God offers them salvation—that is, eternal life (compare Matthew 24:1-14).

Contrary to what many teach and who say that parables were used by Christ to make His teaching more clear, just the opposite is true. The Bible addresses this:

“All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: ‘I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world’” (Matthew 13:34-35).

In a previous account, His disciples directly asked Jesus why He taught the people with parables. The answer is revealing:

“He answered and said to them, ‘Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: “Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, And seeing you will see and not perceive; For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, And their eyes they have closed, Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.” But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it’” (Matthew 13:11-17).

Jesus asked His disciples, “‘…Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?’” (Matthew 16:13). They responded with various answers, and Jesus then asked His disciples, “‘…But who do you say that I am?’” (verse 15).

Peter’s response was this: “‘…You are the Christ, the Son of the living God’” (verse 16).

Jesus then makes this profoundly important statement—showing that understanding of this kind came through God’s revelation:

“Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven’” (verse 17).

We should also note what Jesus further instructed these disciples concerning His own identity and the revelation that was given to them at that time (that would change once Jesus Christ had died and then was resurrected by God the Father):

“Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that he was Jesus the Christ” (verse 20).

As the record of the New Testament shows, Jesus had specifically chosen twelve disciples—along with others—to preach the gospel of the Kingdom of God (compare Luke 6:12-16; 9:1-6). Through the teaching and the many miraculous things done by both Jesus and His disciples, many people both heard and saw; yet, it was only the few who continued with Jesus:

“From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more. Then Jesus said to the twelve, ‘Do you also want to go away?’ But Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God’” (John 6:66-69).

Others had the opportunity to follow Christ, but they, like the many, rejected it. Such an example of a person “called” is found in Matthew 19:16-22:

“Now behold, one came and said to Him, ‘Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?’ So He said to him, ‘Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.’ He said to Him, ‘Which ones?’ Jesus said, ‘”You shall not murder,” “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not bear false witness,” “Honor your father and your mother,” and, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”’ The young man said to Him, ‘All these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack?’ Jesus said to him, ‘If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.’ But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”

In the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-9; 18-23), Jesus speaks of those who hear “the word of the kingdom” (verse 19). He then explains this parable to His disciples showing how some hear and don’t understand; some readily understand but fade away when trials arise; some understand but then choose what this world offers; some (the few) hear, understand and—like Christ—bear “fruit” (compare Galatians 5:22-23).

As the Parable of the Sower reveals, being “called” is a first step in gaining entrance into the Kingdom of God. We should understand that God alone does this. Being a Christian has its beginning point with God’s calling—something that Jesus Christ emphatically taught:

“‘No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day’” (John 6:44); “And He said, ‘Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father’” (John 6:65).

However, as we explain in our booklet, “Are You Predestined to Be Saved?,” in the box, “Many Are Called, But Few Are Chosen,” on pages 52-54, the first three types of people in the Parable of the Sower were not really “called” to salvation:

“In the parable with the sower, in Matthew 13:18–23, four types of people are mentioned who all hear the Word of God. But only one person accepts the Word and produces fruit (verse 23), while the other three give up and fall away. Does this mean that all of them were truly called by God to salvation? And—that God was caught by surprise when the first three fell away, although He had predestined them to be called in this day and age? Hardly! God very well knew that only the fourth person would respond and continue in His calling, as God knows the hearts and minds of people. Only the fourth person was predestined to be called and chosen in this life.”

Paul teaches, “that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory” (1 Thessalonians 2:12). Again, Paul reminds us, “God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Corinthians 1:9).

Being called into knowledge of the Truth of God is not the only thing that must occur—we must then bear the fruit of righteousness in order to be among those who are the “chosen!” In this process, as we continue in our calling to follow Jesus Christ, we have this assurance—as written by Paul:

“[B]eing confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6).

We find this additional confirmation:

“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. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified” (Romans 8:28-30).

As an example of this promise being fulfilled, let us consider the apostles of Jesus Christ—note what Jesus taught them:

“‘You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you’” (John 15:16); Also, “‘If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you’” (John 15:19).

Judas failed in his calling as an apostle and was replaced by Matthias to become among those specially chosen to rule over the twelve Tribes of Israel once Jesus Christ returns to establish the Kingdom of God on this earth (compare Matthew 19:28; Revelation 21:14).

Paul fulfilled his calling, and he knew he was chosen to receive eternal life in God’s Kingdom:

“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 4:7-8).

While the many heard Jesus preach and saw His works, most are the ones who fulfilled His parable found in Matthew 22—invited guests, but they refused to actually fully participate in God’s calling. For a thorough explanation of this parable, please read the entire above-mentioned box in our free booklet, “Are You Predestined to Be Saved?”

This parable has much broader application than just the many who rejected or the few who followed Jesus during His ministry. The Work of God and Jesus Christ, as Head of the Body, the Church (compare Ephesians 1:22-23), has continued—and so it does in our time and will into the future of this age!

The opportunity that God is now presenting is a calling to be among the firstfruits of salvation—called “a better resurrection” in Hebrews 11:35 (compare John 5:24).

When Jesus returns to the earth to powerfully remove the rule of Satan and his many demonic followers, He will establish the government of God—God’s glorious and everlasting Kingdom! When He does this, He will not be alone; there will be a precious few with Him:

“‘These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are CALLED, CHOSEN, and FAITHFUL’” (Revelation 17:14).

Lead Writer: Dave Harris

A new member letter was written and will be sent out early next week.

Our new booklet, “Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians,” has entered the final review cycle.

A new StandingWatch program was posted on the Web, titled, “Will the Euro Survive?” Some predict that the euro-zone will disintegrate and that the euro is finished. But what would be the practical consequences, if the euro-zone countries were to abandon the euro and replace it with national currencies? Why do some feel that such a scenario is “massively unlikely” and “unrealistic”? Why do they conclude that the euro will remain one of the “world’s most important currencies”?

Norbert Link’s recent video-recorded sermon, “The New Covenant,” was posted on the Web.

A new German sermon was posted on the Web, titled, “Die Welt der Engel, Teil 1” (“The world of Angels, Part 1”).

by Cali Harris
 
Lately I’ve been thinking about how to live more joyfully. In one of his sonnets, William Shakespeare wrote, “Joy delights in joy.” When I read it, I had to think about it carefully. What does that line of poetry really mean?

To me, it means that joy self-perpetuates. It has its own internal momentum, so that when I share joy with someone else, the joy spreads. It has a rippling, reverberating effect.
 
As I think about how to live more joyfully, I’ve realized it’s not only the grand plans or gestures that make life more joyful. Instead, I’m beginning to see how the smallest of gestures can have the most joyful impact. I’m focusing on smiling—and really meaning it—when I say “thank you” to a shop clerk or restaurant server. I’m slowing down while driving and waving people to go ahead of me. I’ve been sending more postcards and greeting cards with notes of “Thanks!” or “Hello!” or “Thinking of you!”. And because so much of my work is related to technology and the web, I’m taking time to send quick text messages or emails to friends, family and clients.
 
Although they may seem insignificant, it’s these actions that bring joy not only to those around me—but help me live more joyfully, too. And this, I believe, is how “joy delights in joy.”

On November 27, 2010, Norbert Link will give the sermon, titled, “The New Covenant.”

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org (12:30 pm Pacific Time; 1:30 pm Mountain Time; 2:30 pm Central Time; 3:30 pm Eastern time.) Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

NOTE: We would like to wish all of our American readers a meaningful “Thanksgiving Day” season.

In Galatians 5:7, Paul challenged the Christians in Galatia, when asking this pointed question: “You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth?” Paul’s words are perhaps even more puzzling today for the overwhelming majority of Christians and non-Christians alike. Obeying the truth? Christ maintained before Pilate that He came into the world “to bear witness to the truth” (John 18:37). Pilate’s answer, as recorded in the next verse, was symptomatic of how many felt then–and how many feel today. He said to Jesus: “What is truth?”

When it comes to the truth, people are confused. Paul explains that the ancient Greek philosophers “exchanged the truth of God for the lie” (Romans 1:25). Since our present-day culture, at least in the Western world, as well as many orthodox Christian concepts, are to a large extent influenced by Greek philosophy, it is no wonder that even many Christians today believe in ideas which are not in accordance with godly truth.

We must come to know what the truth is. Pilate did not know; and he did not want to know. But we can know, if we are willing to open our minds.

David declared in Psalm 119:160: “The entirety of Your word is truth.” He also said: “And all Your commandments are truth” (verse 151). He added: “Your law is truth” (verse 142). Finally, he exclaimed: “For all Your commandments are righteousness” (Psalm 119:172).

Jesus did not come to abolish God’s truth–His righteousness, His commandments, His law and His Word. Rather, He said: “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets… Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:17, 19).

At one time, Jesus remarked that many of those who were listening to Him did not believe the truth, because they were willing to pursue the desires of Satan the devil, and there is no truth in him (John 8:44). But Jesus was not just talking to His audience then. Satan is still the god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4), and he is still deceiving the whole world into believing lies (Revelation 12:9).

Paul is also referring to the same correlation between sinful conduct and the inability or unwillingness to believe the truth. He speaks of the condemnation of those who do not believe the truth, but have pleasure in unrighteousness (2 Thessalonians 2:12). He also speaks of sinful people who are “always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Timothy 3:6-7). Without doubt, there is a connection between living in sin and unrighteousness, and failing to recognize and believe the truth.

Christ warned those who thought that they were Christ’s followers: “… depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matthew 7:23). When we continue to practice the way of sin, which is defined as lawlessness (1 John 3:4), we are not really Christ’s disciples. We are not really believing and obeying the truth. Unless we change our way of thinking and acting, Christ will tell us to depart from Him. He will spew us out of His mouth (Revelation 3:16).

We find a startling prophecy for our times in the ancient book of Hosea: “For they shall eat, but not have enough; they shall commit harlotry, but not increase; Because they have ceased obeying the LORD” (Hosea 4:10).

In times of physical need and dependency, we are to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and God promises us that He will take care of us (Matthew 6:33). We seek the Kingdom, when we seek and stand up for the truth–when we obey God rather than man in times of conflict (Acts 5:29). In living by “every word which proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4), we live by and obey the truth, since the entirety of God’s Word is truth.

When we continue to run well, without allowing anyone or anything to hinder us from obeying the truth, then an awesome promise awaits us. We will become kings and priests in the Kingdom of God, ruling on this earth with and under Christ, “being ready to punish all disobedience when [our] obedience is fulfilled” (2 Corinthians 10:6).

We begin with the rising danger of war between North and South Korea, and the dilemma which this situation poses for President Obama. While China and Russia renounce the U.S. dollar, Israelis and Palestinians utter their disappointment with the lack of American leadership in the Middle East.

We continue with a report on Ireland’s inevitable decision to be bailed out by Europe, showing that a “deep divide of two almost irreconcilable camps” exists in Europe. While we can safely predict that the euro will survive, the “two camps” might give way to the prophesied emergence of a core Europe, consisting of ten nations or groups of nations.

Newspapers write about Germany’s “astounding growth,” but at the same time, reports of possible terror attacks in Germany are causing fear and concern; and such reactions might have undesirable consequences for the country in the long(er) run.

The pope’s confusing statements about condoms have raised unrealistic hopes of a change in Roman Catholicism; the pope’s new comments about Pius XII have angered Jewish leaders; and the pope’s recent letter to Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad raises questions as to the Vatican’s ambitions in the Middle East.

“A Problem Like Korea”

As the following articles show, the USA is manifesting itself more and more as a completely helpless giant, unable to solve any problems in national and international matters. The pride of US power is surely gone.

Deutsche Welle reported on November 24:

“The divided Korean Peninsula has provided every sitting US president with a dilemma ever since Dwight Eisenhower brokered an armistice in the Korean War, an act that paused but did not officially end a conflict which had raged for almost three years and which cost some 36,000 American lives. Due to the fact that no official peace deal was agreed 58 years ago, the two Koreas have been living under the shadow of a potential return to war ever since Eisenhower’s intervention.

“America’s involvement in the war that divided Korea along the 38th parallel also continues to this day due to the commitment of the US to protect South Korea from any aggression by its communist neighbors in the North. Around 29,000 US troops remain deployed in South Korea.

“Presidents Johnson, Ford and Carter all had run-ins with North Korea during their times in office while more contemporary administrations of Bill Clinton, and both Bush presidencies have had to deal with the North’s growing nuclear ambitions.

“While skirmishes in the seas around the Korean Peninsula and small scale attacks on land gave the immediate post-war presidents a real headache, the last three US leaders have found that the increasingly unpredictable North, with its now indisputable yet crude nuclear weapons, has become a completely different problem. But while the nature of its threat has changed, the question as to how best to deal with North Korea endures…

“While the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island by the North and the responding fire from the South on Tuesday was the most serious exchange between the two Koreas in over a year – the disputed sinking of the South’s corvette ‘Cheonan’ in March aside – this incident is just the latest in a long line of skirmishes. However, the bombing of Yeonpyeong comes just a week after the North revealed a nuclear enrichment facility to a group of American scientists so advanced that it shocked the US…

“President Obama is honour-bound to protect South Korea, as his predecessors have been, and as such has strongly affirmed his commitment to defend it as part of the alliance which stretches back to the Korean War. The nuclear-powered USS Washington aircraft carrier was deployed to the Yellow Sea off the coast of South Korea on Wednesday. But with North Korea’s nuclear capability more advanced than first thought, the US president is unwilling to provoke any escalation and has chosen not to reposition any of the 29,000 US troops in the South closer to the de-militarized zone…

“Experts believe that Obama’s options are limited. Many consider it highly unlikely that the US will engage in any military action against the North, partly because of its nuclear capability and partly because it has a huge army of 9.45 million troops. If the US commitment to South Korea’s defense is to be invoked, it will most likely come in the form of support, not direct intervention…

“The US is also unlikely to want to anger China, North Korea’s only international and economic supporter. While China has called for restraint on the Korean Peninsula, Beijing has refused to issue an outright condemnation of the bombing of Yeonpyeong, even as veiled calls to do so from the United States and Japan began to circulate…

“But with the US unlikely to take military action against North Korea, some experts believe that its commitment toward its allies in Asia may be seen by some countries as wavering. The knock-on effect on regional stability could be just as damaging in the long term as an air strike.”

Obama Disappoints Israelis and Palestinians

Newsmax reported on November 22:

“It’s not just people in the U.S. who are upset with President Barack Obama. Israelis and Palestinians, who agree on very little, are in accord that the president is to blame for their political stalemate, Politico reports. To be sure, both sides in the Middle East dispute have never been willing to acknowledge that their own hard-line stances don’t exactly create an environment for peace to suddenly flourish. Nonetheless, they expected much from the new American leader and feel they have received little.”

America’s role as the world’s leader is clearly no longer reality. The Bible prophesied that this would happen.

China and Russia Renounce US Dollar

China News reported on November 24:

“China and Russia have decided to renounce the US dollar and resort to using their own currencies for bilateral trade, Premier Wen Jiabao and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin announced late on Tuesday. Chinese experts said the move reflected closer relations between Beijing and Moscow and is not aimed at challenging the dollar, but to protect their domestic economies.”

The Bible predicts the downfall of the U.S. dollar, as well as a close alliance between Russia, China and other countries in the Far East.

Irish Democracy Under EU “Protectorship”

The EUObserver reported on November 22:

“The Irish government has applied for an EU-IMF bail-out of up to €90 billion to save its banking sector from collapse and reduce its borrowing costs, a move that in effect places Irish democracy, like that of Greece, under the protectorship of experts from Brussels and Washington…

“EU economic affairs commissioner Olli Rehn conceded that the emergency action was taken essentially to protect the eurozone from further contagion: ‘Providing assistance to Ireland is warranted to safeguard the financial stability in Europe’…”

That Ireland would ask for European bailouts was predictable. The EU will not allow the euro to die, as also one of the following articles points out. But we also see how certain individual member states will become more and more dependent on European “protectorship,” and, as the next article shows, the possibility of a two-speed Europe, with one core Europe dominating the rest, is becoming more and more a distinct possibility.

A Two-Speed Europe?

On November 22, 2010, Der Siegel Online reported:

“Yesterday it was Greece, and now it’s the sorry state of Irish banks that poses a threat to the common currency. Each new report fuels the suspicion that the problems may be so pervasive that they can no longer be solved with CONVENTIONAL methods and by taking on more and more debt…

“A deep divide between two almost irreconcilable camps runs through Europe. German Chancellor Angela Merkel heads one camp, consisting of the northern European countries. Merkel sees herself as the defender of a culture of stability of the sort that Germany has maintained since the days of the deutschmark. Her goal is to prevent the monetary union from becoming a kind of transfer union, with Germany as paymaster.

“The second camp consists of the so-called PIIGS states, which have accumulated too much debt in the past and are now hoping for help: Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain. They want the thing that Merkel wants to prevent: a union in which the strong pay for the weak. Europe’s institutions are now maneuvering between these two camps…

“Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker supports the idea of issuing euro bonds. These are government bonds whose repayment is not guaranteed by the issuing country but by the entire monetary union. The southern euro-zone countries think this is an excellent idea. The Germans and the Austrians are against it. This sort of project would penalize those ‘who are dutifully sorting out their national finances’ and benefits those ‘who haven’t done their homework,’ says Austrian Finance Minister Josef Pröll.”

The existence of two camps in Europe may signal the beginning of a development, which has long ago been prophesied in Scripture; that is, that a core Europe of ten nations or groups of nations will arise, which will then give all their power and authority to a charismatic, but ruthless political and military European leader.

Merkel’s Strong Stance on Europe In Spite of Opposition

Der Spiegel Online wrote on November 23:

“For the second time in just a few months, Angela Merkel will have to explain to voters why Germany must bail out a fellow euro-zone member state. Skepticism is growing — amongst voters, in the media and within her party…

“Now that Ireland has become the second country in the euro zone to ask for a bailout from the European Union, and given that Portugal may not be far behind, politicians in Germany have a problem… As the strongest economy in Europe, Germany will once again be called upon to step up to the plate…

“The German chancellor recently issued a sober warning about the need to support the common currency. ‘The way we address the issue of a stable euro will determine the health of the economic and monetary union, the future of the European Union as a whole and therefore also our future here in Germany,’ she said.

“… Merkel and her strategists have been concerned about the possibility that a euroskeptic party in Germany could at some point profit from the general mood of discontent regarding the EU… The mood in the German media landscape is not exactly sympathetic to Merkel’s position. ‘Euro Alarm — What the Bankrupt Irish Will Cost Us,’ read a recent headline in the influential tabloid Bild. During the Greek crisis, the newspaper caused an international furor with its provocative headlines. Now the Irish are worried they will be next in the German media’s pillory…

“But Merkel is determined to stand firm on the issue… In order to secure popular acceptance for a bailout, Merkel and her colleagues want to put pressure on Dublin to implement a tough reform program…

“Merkel also needs to keep an eye on the opposition. Sigmar Gabriel, the leader of the center-left Social Democrats, is looking to make political capital out of the euro’s latest woes, just as he did during Greece’s debt crisis. He accuses Merkel of concealing the truth from voters and damaging Europe. ‘Those countries that have benefited most from the common currency — such as Germany, the world’s second largest exporter — must ensure that the poorer countries in the euro zone are helped,’ Gabriel recently said.

“The emergency funds for Ireland do not need to be approved by the German parliament, the Bundestag. The parliament already passed the euro rescue fund at the height of the Greek debt crisis, effectively clearing the way for help for Ireland too. This time around, the German government only needs to inform the parliament’s budget committee of its plans.”

A German Eurozone?

Deutsche Welle reported on November 23:

“This Irish rescue package agreed this week – along with the Greek bailout earlier in the year – has found the eurozone countries hopelessly divided over the question of how to save the common currency in the long term. They have good reason to be concerned: The bond markets aren’t showing a healthy interest in Portugal, another likely bailout candidate. Nor are they particularly impressed with Spain, an even bigger economy with a similarly troubling debt load, a high unemployment rate and a stagnating economy. Should these countries also seek relief, the future of the euro could be on the line.

“The alarm bells are ringing in Berlin. The German government could end up paying 17 billion euros or more of the expected 90-billion-euro Irish rescue package… In addition to being promised that the euro would be as stable as the deutschmark, Germans were told prior to the deutschmark-euro conversion that there would be a ‘no bailout clause’ that would prevent Europe’s richer countries from having to rescue the indigent.

“With every new day of uncertainty, fears are mounting that the ongoing crisis in Europe could lead to the default of individual countries and ultimately the collapse of the eurozone…

“Some experts question, though, how big a role Germany, Europe’s largest economy, should play in stabilizing the eurozone. Turning the eurozone into a larger Germany, says Philip Whyte with the Centre for European Reform in London, could have adverse consequences – not only for the country itself but also for Europe and even the rest of the world… Expert Heinemann is confident the common currency will survive. ‘I don’t see the euro breaking apart,’ he said…”

The Euro Will Survive

Der Spiegel Online wrote on November 24:

“Europe is gripped by a sense of alarm, now that Ireland has become the second euro-zone country to ask for a bailout. Pessimists claim that the crisis means the euro is finished. But that scenario is unrealistic — in reality, there is little to suggest that the common currency is about to disintegrate…

“A serious threat to the euro would only emerge if the financial markets lost faith in major debtor countries like Spain and Italy. But there is little evidence of that happening right now. Firstly, that is because these countries have all passed austerity measures, and secondly because there is enough money available on the market.

“European governments are serious about austerity, while in the US there is no sign of how President Barack Obama plans to get his country’s trillion-dollar deficit under control. Close to 9 percent of all US public spending this year was financed on credit, a considerably greater amount than in the euro zone. And whereas the European Central Bank has at least kept the inflation rate in mind with its currency policies, the US Federal Reserve keeps pumping billions of new dollars into the economy. It is unclear what the outcome of this gigantic wager will be.

“The situation doesn’t look much better in Japan. For a long time, the country was the world’s second-largest economy after the United States. But the Japanese economy has experienced a lasting recession over the past 20 years, and this year it is likely to be overtaken by China. By comparison, Europe looks as dynamic as an emerging economy. The public debt in Japan is at about 200 percent of GDP, around 2.5 times as high as the euro-zone average.

“And the much-celebrated emerging economies themselves are still packed with risks when it comes to investment possibilities. No one knows exactly how long the growth of the Chinese economy will continue. It will take a recession to truly determine the true condition of the country’s economy.

“Nor is it foreseeable at the moment that the yuan will become a serious global alternative to the euro and the dollar in the near future. The currency isn’t even freely tradable in international markets. So far, that situation has suited the Chinese government just fine…

“Europe’s debt problems are without a doubt considerable. But compared to the United States and Japan, the euro-zone states can already point to initial successes in sorting out their finances. In addition, their economies are in better shape. That will help to ensure that the euro remains one of the world’s most important, and thus attractive, currencies.”

Germany’s Astounding Growth

Site Selection’s monthly edition for November reported the following:

“While much of the world slowly emerges from the crisis, Germany is setting records for economic growth and new corporate facility projects… Rob Denman, CEO of London-based Pathfinder Business, believes Germany set itself up for success a decade ago… Denman says the Germans have developed and used core FDI strategies around incentives and clusters and developed world-renowned centers of excellence. ‘They have also developed a globally recognized position as leaders in growth sectors…’

“‘Germany has also developed well-recognized excellence in innovation, and has created the best environment for R&D,’ he says. ‘For example, German brands such as Siemens have been taking the lead and innovating certain aspects of the cleantech sector… It is this innovation that will keep attracting other companies to want to come and be close to the best organizations and, importantly, to give them access to the best talent that will keep Germany at the center of Europe.’

“Not even the biggest global economic slowdown since World War II could tame Germany’s astounding growth…”

Germany’s growth is not astonishing, but it was and is inevitable, based on biblical prophecies.

Terror Attacks in Germany?

Israel National News reported on November 20:

“A terror alert has been issued in Germany. According to Der Spiegel, terrorist groups are planning an attack on the nation’s parliament building, the Reichstag. Al-Qaeda and similar groups planned to take hostages in the building, the paper said. The attack is to take place early next year…

“German officials raised security at airports and train stations last week. Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere announced that there was ‘concrete’ evidence that terrorists were plotting attacks to take place in November…”

The Daily Mail added on November 22:

“The world famous glass dome atop the Berlin Reichstag has been closed to all visitors as fears mount of an impending terrorist attack in the capital… Numerous holy warriors raised in Germany have been filtering back into the country in recent months following spells in training camps in Pakistan.”

Germany in Fear

Der Spiegel Online wrote on November 22:

“German Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière put the entire country in a state of fright on Wednesday…  Wherever they have cause for doing so, the authorities are secretly monitoring communications, conducting surveillance operations and launching undercover investigations… Berlin Senator for the Interior Ehrhart Körting… has already even gone so far as to call on the inhabitants of the German capital city to report suspicious-looking individuals of Arab origin to the police…

“This November will drastically alter de Maizière’s understanding of his role in office. If he tries to return things to their previous state of calm, he’s going to have a very tough time. In fact, it’s much more likely that he will be a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT interior minister…

“Germany is in a state of emergency. Other countries, such as the United States, employ a system of official warning levels based on color codes that change — from yellow to orange, for example — when the danger level is thought to increase. But, in Germany, the interior minister is the barometer: He consults with experts — and then it is he who must call the shots…”

Germany’s state of fear is not a good sign for democracy and freedom. Considering the country’s history, such a situation has always led to regrettable developments with undesirable consequences. And if terrorists are really foolish enough to launch attacks inside Germany, the German reaction against Islamists and Muslims in general will be swift and strong. But perhaps this is the kind of external and internal threat which will force Europe to unite and to create a powerful European army.

Pope Approves of Condoms–in Rare Exceptions

The Associated Press wrote on November 20:

“Pope Benedict XVI says in a new book that the use of condoms can be justified in some cases, such as for male prostitutes seeking to prevent the spread of HIV. The pontiff made the comments in a book-length interview with a German journalist, ‘Light of the World: The Pope, the Church and the Signs of the Times.'”

The Wall Street Journal wrote on November 21:

“The Vatican on Sunday rushed to clarify a recent interview by Pope Benedict XVI, in which the pontiff states for the first time that there may be some cases in which the Roman Catholic Church’s ban on condoms isn’t absolute… The Vatican, however, played down the potential impact the remarks might have on church teaching. ‘The pope’s thinking certainly can’t be defined as a revolutionary shift,’ said Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi…”

On November 22, The Telegraph added the following regarding the “confusion” created by the pope’s statements:

” The Pope faced calls to clarify his stance on condoms as confusion reigned over exactly what he meant… The Vatican insisted yesterday that the use of condoms was only permissible in ‘exceptional’ cases but did little to clarify the apparent volte-face. ‘The pope considered an exceptional situation in which the exercise of sexuality is a real danger to the life of another,’ said Father Federico Lombardi, his official spokesman.”

The Roman Catholic church’s position on the use or, more correctly, non-use of condoms and contraceptives to prevent pregnancies is simply irresponsible and totally unbiblical. The legitimate prevention of conceptions and pregnancies is absolutely justified. What is not justified and unbiblical are abortions–that is, the killing of an unborn child, having been conceived in the mother’s womb.

Jewish Leaders Upset With Pope

Reuters wrote on November 21:

“Jewish leaders reacted with dismay Sunday to comments in Pope Benedict’s new book that his wartime predecessor Pius was a ‘great, righteous’ man who ‘saved more Jews than anyone else.’

“Many Jews accuse Pius, who reigned from 1939 to 1958, of having turned a blind eye to the Holocaust. The Vatican says he worked quietly behind the scenes because speaking out would have prompted Nazi reprisals against Catholics and Jews in Europe…

“‘Pope Benedict’s comments fill us with pain and sadness and cast a menacing shadow on Vatican-Jewish relations,’ said Elan Steinberg, vice president of the American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors and their Descendants.

“‘The assertion that Pius saved more Jews than anyone else during the Holocaust is categorically contradicted by the known historical record. As survivors of the Holocaust we have a solemn obligation to the memory of those murdered to defend the truth of the tragedy till our last breath,’ he said… Pius, including the possibility that the Vatican may one day make him a saint, is one of the main points of contention in relations between Jews and the Vatican. The pope’s latest comments raised new tensions.”

The Pope Contacts Iran

Newsmax reported on November 12:

“Pope Benedict XVI has shared his thoughts with Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on how to achieve world peace, and at the same time appealed for greater religious freedom in the Middle East… The Pope’s letter… is both courteous and positive without being overtly critical…

“In the pontiff’s letter, Benedict XVI took the opportunity to defend Iran’s 10,000 or so Catholics. Although they are allowed to worship in Iran, Iranian Muslims cannot freely convert to the Catholic faith and the country’s bishops conference does not have official status… He also stressed the positive contribution Catholics play in Iranian society as peace builders… And he argued for a bilateral commission that would be especially helpful in addressing questions of common concern, including that of the juridical status of the Catholic Church in the country. The Pope closed by expressing his hope that the cordial relations between Iran and the Holy See continue.

“The Islamic Republic and the Holy See–both theocratic states–have long had friendly diplomatic ties: Since it established formal relations with the Holy See in 1953, Iran has supported the church on some life issues. However, the Holy See hasn’t held back from criticizing Iran when necessary, especially over Holocaust denial and the country’s nuclear ambitions. Neither of these was explicitly mentioned in the letter…”

The short answer is, no — the Holy Spirit is neither God nor a Person. Rather, the Holy Spirit is God’s POWER emanating from God the Father AND from God the Son.

The Trinitarian concept of Greek Orthodox Christianity is that God is one Person who manifests Himself in three “modes of being” — the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. They basically teach that God is only one BEING — but that He can represent himself in three different ways — as a person can be functioning in his capacity as a bank executive, as a father and as a husband. However, as we have seen in previous Q&As, (Who Was Jesus When On Earth?, What Was Jesus Before His Birth as a Man?, Is Jesus God? and How Can There Be Two Gods?) this concept is biblically incorrect. God is not just one Being, but God is a Family, consisting of TWO Beings — the Father and the Son. God is not schizophrenic, nor is He suffering from a bipolar personality, speaking to Himself in His “capacity” as Father to His “capacity” as Son, and vice versa.

The Trinitarian concept of Roman Catholic Christianity, which has been almost universally adopted by Protestant churches, is that God is “one Person in three Persons.” This is an utterly confusing and illogical idea, which makes no sense at all. How can one person consist of three persons? God is not one Being, but a FAMILY, consisting of TWO persons–not three–and the Holy Spirit is NOT a Person.

Also, the Roman Catholic church teaches that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are all equal in authority. This is biblically incorrect, as we saw in the previous, above-quoted Q&As (and we will again address this point herein). The Father is the HIGHEST in the Godhead.

We discuss the erroneous Trinitarian concepts of the Roman Catholic church and most Protestant churches in our free booklet, “Is God a Trinity?”. We show that even Roman Catholic and Protestant theologians admit that the Trinity is nowhere taught in the Bible:

“The Swiss Protestant theologian Karl Barth… wrote in, ‘Doctrine of the Word of God,’ p. 437: ‘The Bible lacks the express declaration that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are of equal essence and therefore in an equal sense God Himself. And the other express declaration is also lacking that God is God thus and only thus, i.e., as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. These two express declarations which go beyond the witness of the Bible are the twofold content of the church doctrine of the Trinity.’…

“Dr. William Newton Clarke, who wrote a book entitled, ‘An Outline of Christian Theology’… states… on page 167, when discussing the first few verses of the first chapter of the book of John: ‘There is no Trinity in [John’s prologue]; but there is a distinction in the Godhead, a duality in God… ground for the divineness of the Spirit is nowhere shown. Thought in the New Testament is never directed to that end’…

“German theologian Karl Rahner… [said] in a book called, ‘The Trinity,’ on page 22: ‘…in reality the Scriptures do not explicitly present a doctrine of the “imminent” Trinity (even John’s prologue is no such doctrine).’

“… the New Catholic Encyclopedia supports Professor Rahner’s and Prof. Barth’s statements. In an article entitled, ‘Trinity,’… [it admits:] ‘The [Old Testament] clearly does not envisage God’s spirit as a person, neither in the strictly philosophical sense, nor in the Semitic sense. God’s spirit is simply God’s power… The majority of [New Testament] texts reveal God’s spirit as something, not someone; this is especially seen in the parallelism between the spirit and the power of God…'”

After explaining in our booklet that the Roman Catholic church adopted the concept of the Trinity from pagan Greek philosophers, such as Plato and Aristotle, we point out that none of the New Testament writers include the Holy Spirit, when passing on greetings from God. They ONLY refer in that context to the Father and the Son. This would have been quite an insult, if the Holy Spirit were also God.

We continue quoting from our free booklet, “Is God a Trinity?”:

“Another Biblical proof against the Trinity is that the Holy Spirit is nowhere identified as God. No one is recorded in Scripture as having prayed to the Holy Spirit.”

As we pointed out in the previous, above-quoted Q&As, we are generally to pray to the Father, as He is the Highest in the God-Family. But we do this in the name of Jesus Christ (John 15:16), who is our only Mediator (1 Timothy 2:5-6). In addition, there are a few recorded incidents when Christians prayed to Christ (compare Acts 7:59-60). But there is no record in the Bible that anyone ever prayed to the Holy Spirit.

Let us focus on another important proof that the Holy Spirit CANNOT be God or a person. We quote again from our booklet, “Is God a Trinity?”:

“Notice in Matthew 1:18: ‘Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.’

“God’s inspired Word tells us clearly that the Holy Spirit made Mary pregnant. Notice the words of an angel to Joseph, as recorded in Matthew 1:20: ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived… in her is of the Holy Spirit.’’

“Turn now to Luke 1:32 and 35, where we find more of the inspired words of the angel to Mary: ‘He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David… The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.’ These Scriptures in Matthew and Luke tell us that, IF the Holy Spirit were a person and God, then Christ would have been the SON of the Holy Spirit, and NOT of the Father.

“However, John 1:14 says that it was the Father who begot Christ: ‘And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth’… we see that GOD the FATHER begot Christ through the power of His Spirit. This proves that the Holy Spirit cannot be a person—otherwise, we would have a contradiction here, with Christ having two fathers—the ‘Father’ and the ‘Holy Spirit’—and with the ‘person’ and third member of the ‘Trinity,’ the Holy Spirit, being Christ’s ‘main’ Father.

“Remember, too, that the angel told Mary in the book of Luke that Christ would be called the Son of the Highest. If the Holy Spirit were a person, then the Holy Spirit by which Mary was impregnated would be the HIGHEST in the Godhead. This, of course, is absurd! No one who believes in the Trinity has EVER stated that the Holy Spirit is the highest! Quite to the contrary, they claim that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are all EQUAL. That none is HIGHER than the other. “

Another proof that the Holy Spirit cannot be a person is the fact that the Holy Spirit, which dwells in converted Christians, is not only the Holy Spirit of the Father (compare John 14:16-17), but also of Jesus Christ (Galatians 4:6; Philippians 1;19). Quoting from our booklet, “Is God a Trinity?”:

“That the Spirit of the Father and of Christ dwells in us becomes very clear when reading Romans 8:9: ‘But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit if indeed the Spirit of GOD dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of CHRIST, he is not His.’ Here we read that the Spirit of God dwells in us, and when we do not have the Spirit of Christ dwelling in us, we are not even Christians…

“Notice Christ’s words in John 14:23: ‘If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.’ Both the Father and Jesus Christ live in us. John 14:16-18 confirms too that not only the Father, but also Jesus Christ live in us… through the Holy Spirit…”

Remember this: The Spirit of the Father and of the Son lives in us. If the Holy Spirit were a person, then two persons would live in us (the Holy Spirit of the Father and the Holy Spirit of the Son). In that case, the Godhead would not consist of only three persons, but of four — God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit of the Father, and God the Holy Spirit of the Son. But no one teaches, to our knowledge, that God consists of four persons.

In passing, it is true that the Bible speaks of “one” Spirit, as it speaks of the fact that the Father and Jesus Christ are “one.” We explain the concept of “oneness” in our booklet, “Is God a Trinity?”:

“When we read that there is one Spirit, then the reference is to the oneness or harmony between God the Father and Jesus Christ. It is exactly the same when Christ said, ‘I and the Father are one’ (John 10:30). Christ did not mean, the Father and He were ‘one’ being—but that they were ‘one’ in purpose and goal and mindset and character. When Christ spoke these words, He was clearly a separate person from God the Father. Christ said in John 17:11, that we all should be one, as the Father and Christ are one in spirit—not in the sense that we all would become one being, but rather, that we all be of the same spirit. God the Father and Christ are one in spirit, and so are we to become one in spirit.”

When the Bible speaks of “one” Spirit, it cannot and does not mean that the Holy Spirit is one God being. Rather, the Holy Spirit is “one” in that it is God’s power, emanating from both God the Father and Jesus Christ, and the Father and Christ are “one” — totally unified.

Another biblical proof that the Holy Spirit CANNOT be a person can be found in John 7:37-39. It reads, in the Authorized Version: “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirsts, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive; for the Holy Ghost [better: Spirit] was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)”

Note that the word “given” is in italics—this means, it is not in the original Greek; it was added by the translator. Other translators recognize this fact and render the passage in quite a different way. The New Revised Standard Version states: “…for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” The New American Bible says: “There was, of course, no Spirit yet…” The New Jerusalem Bible reads: “…for there was no Spirit as yet…” The Moffat translation says: “…as yet there was no Spirit…”

When we check this in the Interlinear translation from the Greek, we find the following phrase, “…for not yet was Spirit Holy, because Jesus not yet was glorified.”

German translations are all fairly consistent in their renderings. The revised Luther Bible, the Elberfelder Bible and the Menge Bible all state, “The Spirit was not yet there…” The Zuercher Bible even states, “…the Holy Spirit did not exist yet…” They point out in the Appendix: “Some have translated, ‘the Holy Spirit was not yet given,’ because they were offended by the literal original text.”

But how could this be?

We explain this, as follows, in our free booklet, “Is God a Trinity?”:

“.. only a glorified God being can give His Holy Spirit to others. When Christ spoke those words, the Holy Spirit of the Father was clearly there and dwelling in Him — but Christ was referring here to Himself. He said, ‘Let him who thirsts come to ME.’ And Christ was a man when He said that, and as a man, having given up His glory, He could not give the Holy Spirit, emanating from Him as a glorified God being, to others. Remember, it was the Holy Spirit of the FATHER (as distinguished from the Holy Spirit of Christ) that dwelled in Christ, and through which Christ did the marvelous works (cp. Acts 10:38-39).

“For Christ to bestow His Holy Spirit on others, He needed to be glorified first… As long as Christ was not glorified, He had no Holy Spirit of His own to bestow on others. That’s why the Holy Spirit of the glorified Christ was not there yet — ONLY the Holy Spirit of the Father was there.

“But then, after Christ’s resurrection and glorification, both the Father and the Son dwell in us through their Spirit — the Holy Spirit — which emanates or proceeds from both the Father and the Son.”

In our free booklet, “Is God a Trinity?,” we are also discussing several passages which are sometimes used to “prove” the Trinitarian concept. But aside from the fact that Catholic and Protestant theologians admit that the Bible nowhere teaches this concept, we show in our booklet why those passages do not support such a teaching.

For instance, we discuss a spurious uninspired text, to be found in the first letter of John in some older Bible renditions. That passage was added by deceived copyists to “prove” the concept of the Trinity. We also debunk the erroneous and quite silly argument that the Holy Spirit must be a person, since it is referred to as “He” in the New King James Bible. This rendering is just a matter of an arbitrary choice by some modern English translators (The Authorized Version does refer to the Holy Spirit as “it,” not “He.”).

It is important that we understand that God is NOT a Trinity. This false concept does not only convey a totally wrong picture of God — it also hides the purpose of man’s existence. Most don’t understand and believe that it is man’s destiny to become God.

God is a Family — presently consisting of the Father and the Son. Through the power of His Holy Spirit, we can become a part of God’s Family. Rather than being a closed Trinity since and for all eternity, God is enlarging His Family by reproducing Himself in man. The concept of the Trinity that teaches that God is — and that He has always been — Father, Son and Holy Spirit, hides and obscures the fact that God is a GROWING Family.

In the beginning, there were two God beings, God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son. But Christ is also referred to as the FIRSTBORN among MANY brethren. It is the potential of man to become members of the God-Family — sons and daughters of God the Father, and brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ.

We will discuss this awesome truth in a subsequent Q&A.

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

A new StandingWatch program was posted on the Web, titled, “666–Number of the Beast’s Name.”

A new German sermon was posted on the Web, titled “Bund und Gesetz, Teil 3 (Der Neue Bund)” (“Covenant and Law, Part 3 (The New Covenant).”