On June 26, 2010, Norbert Link will give the sermon, titled, “To the Ephesians, Part 4.”

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.

Several years ago I asked a friend how things were going and if he had gotten a job, since I knew that he had been searching for one. In the course of our conversation he informed me that he had landed a job with a certain company. I was surprised and asked him how he had  managed to get a job there, since it was very difficult to get in.

He relayed to me that he showed up there on Monday morning at 8:00 am and asked to talk to the Personnel Manager. After an introduction and laying out his qualifications and desire to work for the company, he was told by the Manager that there were no openings at that time. On Tuesday morning, at 8:00 am, he showed up again and asked to see the Personnel Manager who was quick to ask him why he had returned. My friend told him that he wanted to get a job there. The Manager responded that he had already explained to him the previous day that there were no openings at that time.

On Wednesday, my friend showed up again at 8:00 am and asked to see the Personnel Manager.  The Manager told him once more that they had no openings. On Thursday, at 8:00 am,  my friend showed up again. The Manager took one look at him and said: “Just report for work tomorrow at 8:00 am.”

“So that’s how I got the job there,” my friend told me. “I guess, my persistence paid off.”

Indeed it had. Persistence can be described as an ongoing effort and action in spite of opposition, obstacles, set-backs, rejection or discouragement.

The concept of persistence can be found in the Bible. For instance, Christ gave the following parable of the widow and the unjust judge in Luke 18:1-8:

“And He also spoke a parable to them to teach it is always right to pray, and not to faint, saying, A certain judge was in a certain city, not fearing God, nor respecting man. And a widow was in that city. And she came to Him, saying, Avenge me of my adversary. And he would not do so for a time. But afterward he said within himself, Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me, I will avenge her, that she not wear me down in the end. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge says. And shall not God avenge His own elect who cry day and night to Him, though He has been long-suffering over them? I say to you that He will avenge them speedily. Yet when the Son of Man comes, shall He find faith on the earth?”

The admonition is clear. We are not to throw in the towel if we are rejected the first time. We need to keep seeking, asking and knocking.

Perhaps God is really testing our persistence when we ask for something and do not receive an immediate response. What should we do? We should keep asking until we obtain what we have requested or until it is clearly revealed to us, for instance through obvious circumstances, that God’s answer in a particular situation is “No.”

Paul asked God to be healed. He might have suffered from an eye problem or even from malaria, as some commentators suggest. Did he quit after his first request was not answered in the way Paul had expected? No. He asked three times–apparently being anointed three times–until God’s answer was, “My grace is sufficient for you.” Paul clearly realized, after his third request, that God would not heal him in this life, and Paul accepted and even gladly submitted to God’s Will.

Sometimes we are asked to pray for an individual who is suffering from a sickness or who has a different serious problem. Do we quit praying after a few days, or do we continue until the person is healed or his problem is solved, or particular circumstances clearly reveal that God’s Will is different than what we were praying for?

Christ gives this promise to the Philadelphia church: “Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth” (Revelation 3:10).

Paul encourages us in Ephesians 6:18-19 to pray “always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints, and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel…”

God commands us to be persistent and to persevere–just like the unjust judge who granted the widow her request and the Personnel Manager who gave my friend his job. They obtained what they desired because they would not give up.

How persistent are you?

We begin reporting on the ongoing innumerous and ever-increasing difficulties and problems which the Obama administration is facing. The quoted articles warn that the very fabric of our society is being undermined and a real fear is lurking that our democratic principles and institutions are being abandoned.

While the Arabs are deeply divided and even sporting events such as the current World Cup in South Africa do not change this, but rather intensify the hostilities, they are united in their hatred against Israel. At the same time, the relationship between Israel and Europe, especially Germany, is deteriorating, and even Israel’s announcement, bowing to international and US pressure, that they will ease the Gaza blockade, may not change Israel’s isolation. The concept, propagated by some based on their misunderstanding of Scripture, claiming that Germany would enter into a seven-year treaty with Israel, which would be broken after 3 1/2 years, must be rejected as unsupportable in the Bible.

An interesting proposal of a “two-tier” euro system is currently being discussed, which could have much more merit than the unrealistic suggestions that the euro would be abandoned. The new proposal envisions the creation of a “‘super-euro’ zone, which would initially include France, Germany, Holland, Austria, Denmark and Finland. The likes of Greece, Spain, Italy, Portugal and even Ireland would be left in a larger rump mostly Mediterranean grouping.” Of course, we can safely say, based on the Bible and history, that if such a “two-tier” euro system was to be adopted, countries like Italy and Spain would become part of the “euro-super” zone.

In addition, the relationship between the USA and Europe is constantly deteriorating.

For more information as to what is in store for Europe, please read our free booklets, “Europe in Prophecy” and “The Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord.” You might also want to read our free comprehensive commentary on the book of Revelation, titled, “Is That in the Bible?–The Mysteries of the Book of Revelation.”

We also report about the future of Poland. Last Sunday’s election was “closer than expected,” and the “July 4 runoff between the two [candidates] looks likely to be a neck-and-neck race.” German commentaries point out that nothing less than Poland’s political and economic survival is at stake.

We conclude with two articles describing the ongoing battle of the Catholic Church, questioning the willingness of the Pope and the clergy to really do anything productive about the sex scandal or regarding “aberrant” priests.

Obama’s Declarations of War

The Washington Examiner wrote on June 22:

“The Obama administration has a lot of fights on its hands. Putting aside real wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, there’s the battle against leaking oil in the Gulf, the struggle against 9.7 percent unemployment across the country, and clashes over the president’s agenda on Capitol Hill. Despite all that, the White House has found time to issue a new declaration of war, this time against an unlikely enemy: the state of Arizona.

“The Justice Department is preparing to sue Arizona over its new immigration law. The president has stiffed Gov. Jan Brewer’s call for meaningful assistance in efforts to secure the border. And the White House has accused Arizona’s junior senator, Republican Jon Kyl, of lying about an Oval Office discussion with the president over comprehensive immigration reform. Put them all together, and you have an ugly state of affairs that’s getting uglier by the day.

“First, the lawsuit. Last week, Brewer was appalled to learn the Justice Department’s intentions not from the Justice Department but from an interview done by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton with an Ecuadorian TV outlet…

“Then there is the matter of the White House’s assistance, or nonassistance, in Arizona’s border-security efforts. On June 3… Brewer told reporters Obama pledged that administration officials would come to Arizona within two weeks with details of plans to secure the border. June 17 marked two weeks, and there were no administration officials and no plans. There still aren’t…

“And now, there’s the Kyl controversy. On June 18, Kyl told a town meeting in North Phoenix that Obama personally told him the administration will not secure the U.S.-Mexico border because doing so would make it politically difficult to pass comprehensive immigration reform… After Kyl’s statement went viral on the Internet, the White House issued a sharp denial… Kyl is not backing down. ‘What I said occurred, did occur,’ he told an Arizona radio station…

“Even if it didn’t have so many other fights on its hands, it would be unusual for an administration to align itself against an American state. But that’s precisely what has happened. Soon it will be up to the courts and voters to decide whether Obama’s campaign against Arizona will succeed or fail.”

On June 23, Reuters added the following to the list of problems:

“Sales of new homes dropped a record 32.7 percent in May to the lowest level in at least four decades as the boost from a popular tax credit faded, adding to worries of a slowing economic recovery.”

The problems of the American President and his administration are mounting, and they are far too many than could be solved. Many of these problems are admittedly man-made, but we need to realize that the Bible has predicted thousands of years ago that in these end times, the power and strength of the United States of America will be broken. This is due in large part to our sinful lifestyle, which is manifested in a subsequent article. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America.”

Ongoing Oil Spill Disaster

ABC News reported on June 23:

“Oil from the BP oil spill disaster is spewing again into the Gulf of Mexico at nearly full force after a venting system connected the so-called containment cap over the blown-out wellhead was damaged in an accident with a robot sub, said Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the commander in charge of the government’s effort to control the 65-day-old spill.

“Separately, Allen said two cleanup workers have died in unrelated accidents in the Gulf, the first deaths reported since 11 people died in when Deepwater Horizon drilling rig burned and began the crisis in April…

“Up to 14 controlled fires are being conducted every day, and they’ve already burned 125,000 barrels that otherwise would have drifted toward shore. At the site of the accident, two tankers have been collecting oil siphoned up from the containment cap. And huge ocean skimmers, the largest of their kind, have been scooping up 8,000 barrels of oil per day. The current worst-case estimate of what’s spewing into the Gulf is about 2.5 million gallons a day… Anywhere from 67 million to 127 million gallons have spilled since the April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon… the oil slick has spread over much of the northern Gulf of Mexico… Oil has been reported in the wetlands of the Mississippi delta at the southern tip of Louisiana, and tarballs have been found on the beaches of southern Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida panhandle.” 

“A Political Apocalypse?”

USA Today wrote on June 23:

“Obama will need to convince Congress that more stimulus is needed and recently asked Congress for $50 billion to prop up the job market. But the severity of the economic crisis means that Obama will need to implore Americans to persevere as Reagan did 28 years ago, and they may well respond by rebuking Democrats in November as they did Reagan in 1982. Throw in the uneven government response to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the uncertainty of the military effort in Afghanistan and a rising fear about government indebtedness, and the Democrats could be facing a political apocalypse far larger than the one Reagan suffered in 1982.”

Obama Fires US General Stanley McChrystal–but Germany, NATO and Afghanistan Defend McChrystal

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 23:”US General Stanley McChrystal, who commands NATO troops in Afghanistan, [was fired] by President Barack Obama on Wednesday over disparaging comments he made to Rolling Stone magazine… Germany’s defense minister has come out in strong defense of the beleaguered American General…

“‘I have extraordinary respect for General McChrystal, we work exceedingly well together,’ German Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg told public broadcaster ARD on Wednesday, adding that McChrystal is crucial to ‘the new strategy in Afghanistan.’ Guttenberg also warned of a ‘very difficult summer,’ with a new wave of attacks feared in the run-up to Afghan elections… I personally value him tremendously’…

“At NATO headquarters in Brussels, NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen also expressed his support for McChrystal. ‘The Rolling Stone article is rather unfortunate, but it is just an article,’ a NATO statement read. ‘We are in the middle of a very real conflict, and the secretary-general has full confidence in General McChrystal as the NATO commander, and in his strategy.’

“In a statement released on Wednesday, Afghan President Hamid Karzai described McChrystal as the ‘best commander’ so far. In an hour-long video conference with Obama on Tuesday, Karzai also expressed his support for the general…

“In the Rolling Stone article, the general or those close to him sharply criticized Vice President Joe Biden and Karl Eikenberry, the US ambassador to Kabul. In addition, a close adviser to the general is also quoted as saying that McChrystal thinks very little of Obama’s Afghanistan policies.

“Most of the highly controversial quotes in the feature are made by unnamed aides to McChystal, who, for example, dismiss Obama’s national security adviser, James Jones, as a ‘clown.’ They disparagingly refer to Vice President Joe Biden as ‘Joe Bite Me.’ The profile also depicts the US special representative to Afghanistan, Richard Holbrooke, in a negative light. ‘The Boss says he’s like a wounded animal,’ a member of the general’s team told the magazine. ‘Holbrooke keeps hearing rumors that he’s going to get fired, so that makes him dangerous.’

“The president is also characterized as a clueless novice in the feature. For example, an adviser to the general describes McChrystal’s first meeting with Obama thusly: ‘It was a 10-minute photo op. Obama clearly didn’t know anything about him, who he was. Here’s the guy who’s going to run his […] war, but he didn’t seem very engaged. The Boss was pretty disappointed.'” 

Obama’s Failing Support

On June 22, the Associated Press reported the following:

“The Obama White House has accomplished more than any other on gay rights, yet has drawn sharp criticism from an unexpected constituency: the same gay activists who backed the president’s election campaign. Instead of the sweeping change gays and lesbians had sought, a piece-by-piece approach has been the administration’s favored strategy, drawing neither serious fire from conservatives nor lavish praise from activists…

“For instance, Obama signed a hate crimes bill into law, expanded benefits for partners of State Department employees and ended the ban on HIV-positive persons from visiting the United States. He referenced families with ‘two fathers’ in his Father’s Day proclamation last week and devoted 38 words of his State of the Union address to repealing ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,’ the ban on gays serving openly in the military…

“Obama’s campaign pledged to repeal ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,’ yet that goal remains years away. His Justice Department invoked incest in a legal brief defending the traditional definition of marriage, prompting some gay donors last year to boycott the Democratic National Committee. And just last week, a committee at his Health and Human Services Department recommended the nation retain its policy barring gay men from donating blood…

“Gay constituents are hardly the only member[s] of the Democratic bloc to come up disappointed with this White House. Environmental groups groan as a comprehensive climate bill has languished on the Hill. Organized labor saw its signature legislation, which would make it easier for workers to form unions, go nowhere without the White House’s backing. And women’s groups were in open revolt during the debate over the health care overhaul because of anti-abortion provisions…

“A Gallup poll last month found 70 percent of American[s] favor allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. That same poll, however, included a reminder: 53 percent opposed legalizing gay marriage.”

Nevertheless, slowly but surely, rights for homosexuals and others pursuing “alternate lifestyles,” are being established, which are undermining and destroying the fabric of our society. God calls these practices “abominations,” and no society can survive which forsakes the laws of God.

Obama’s Dismantlement of American Democracy

Investors Business Daily wrote on June 21:

“American democracy is being dismantled, piece by piece, before our very eyes by the current administration in Washington, and few people seem to be concerned about it. The president’s poll numbers are going down because increasing numbers of people disagree with particular policies of his, but the damage being done to the fundamental structure of this nation goes far beyond particular counterproductive policies.

“Just where in the Constitution of the United States does it say that a president has the authority to extract vast sums of money from a private enterprise and distribute it as he sees fit to whomever he deems worthy of compensation? Nowhere. And yet that is precisely what is happening with a $20 billion fund to be provided by BP to compensate people harmed by their oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico…

“If our laws and our institutions determine that BP ought to pay $20 billion — or $50 billion or $100 billion — then so be it. But the Constitution says that private property is not to be confiscated by the government without ‘due process of law.’

“Technically, it has not been confiscated by Barack Obama, but that is a distinction without a difference. With vastly expanded powers of government available at the discretion of politicians and bureaucrats, private individuals and organizations can be forced into accepting the imposition of powers that were never granted to the government by the Constitution. If you believe that the end justifies the means, then you don’t believe in constitutional government.

“And, without constitutional government, freedom cannot endure. There will always be a ‘crisis’ — which, as the president’s chief of staff has said, cannot be allowed to ‘go to waste’ as an opportunity to expand the government’s power. That power will of course not be confined to BP or to the particular period of crisis that gave rise to the use of that power, much less to the particular issues.

“When Franklin D. Roosevelt arbitrarily took the United States off the gold standard, he cited a law passed during the First World War to prevent trading with the country’s wartime enemies. But there was no war when FDR ended the gold standard’s restrictions on the printing of money. At about the same time, during the worldwide Great Depression, the German Reichstag passed a law ‘for the relief of the German people.’ That law gave Hitler dictatorial powers that were used for things going far beyond the relief of the German people — indeed, powers that ultimately brought a rain of destruction down on the German people and on others…

“The man appointed by President Obama to dispense BP’s money as the administration sees fit, to whomever it sees fit, is only the latest in a long line of presidentially appointed ‘czars’ controlling different parts of the economy, without even having to be confirmed by the Senate, as Cabinet members are…”

It is very true that in times of crises, democratic governments will use dictatorial means, and democratic values and institutions will suffer in the process. The Bible predicts that Europe will also develop from a more democratic to a very dictatorial power bloc.

Obama’s Healthcare Making Matters Worse

USA Today reported on June 22:

“President Obama… discuss[ed today]… [n]ew rules to stop health insurance ‘abuses’ and provide new consumer protections for health care consumers… Obama also warned insurance companies against ‘unjustified rate increases,’ and he said his administration would be watching ‘to make sure the new law is not being used as an excuse to drive up costs.’

“Congressional Republicans such as Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said the restrictions and expense of the new law can’t help but drive up costs throughout the health care system. ‘This shouldn’t be called a health care bill of rights, but a bill of goods that the American people aren’t buying,’ Hatch said. ‘Politically-motivated threats won’t lower skyrocketing health care costs…’

“Hatch cited polls showing that most Americans are worried about the impact of the law on their own health care…”

Of course, greedy insurance companies use and will continue to use the new healthcare bill as an excuse to raise premiums in astronomical and unprecedented ways. As the Associated Press reported on June 21, “People who buy their own health insurance have been hit lately with premium hikes that far exceed increases in premiums for employer-sponsored coverage… recent premium hikes requested by insurers for individual coverage averaged 20 percent.” It added in a related article: “…about 14 million purchase insurance on the individual market and have the least bargaining power when it comes to costs.”

But a 20% increase in premiums is just the average. In many cases, greedy insurance companies demand premium increases of 30% and beyond. This development was predictable, and the shortsightedness of the healthcare legislators is absolutely deplorable. The Bible says that in these last days, the United States of America would be ruled by leaders incapable of recognizing or solving the country’s problems.

ABC wrote on June 23:

“President Barack Obama and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius warned insurance companies not to impose outsize premium increases while healthcare reform is being implemented… In a call with reporters, Sebelius said she is urging state insurance commissioners to investigate suspicious premium increases and said the federal government is also monitoring such increases… On July 1, people with preexisting medical conditions who haven’t been able to obtain insurance will be eligible for a new, temporary, high-risk pool called the Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan.” 

Arabs Deeply Divided

Deutsche Welle reported on June 22:

“When Algeria faces the US on Wednesday in the FIFA World Cup in South Africa, many Arabs will be rooting for the Americans rather than for their Arab brethren. Even soccer, it seems, can’t paper over the cracks in unity.

“In Egypt, deep-seated anti-Americanism is likely to be drowned out for the duration of the match by memories of the scuffles, fires and broken glass that marked the Egyptian national team’s qualifier for the World Cup against Algeria. The violence sparked demonstrations on three continents and a fierce political row. Egypt and Algeria recalled their ambassadors and Libyan leader Col. Moammar Ghadafi was forced to intervene to prevent the dispute from escalating.

“‘Damn the so-called Arab unity, we should no longer talk about it. We should review our situations. We can no longer bear such incidents,’ fumed Egyptian sports news caster Ibrahim Hegazi in the wake of Egypt’s defeat at the feet of the Algerians.

“The fallout of the Egyptian-Algerian qualifier and the mood in coffeehouses and private homes across the Middle East as millions watch the World Cup games on television is a telling barometer of the fault lines that divide the region. Unlike Africans, who cheer their national teams in South Africa but see victory not only as success for their country but for their continent as a whole, Arabs aren’t rooting for the one Arab team that made it to the World Cup.

“In fact, in the Middle East soccer is proving to be divisive rather than unifying. The notion of sports as a bridge builder like in South Africa where rugby eased the transition into the post-apartheid era lies beyond the Middle East’s realm of the imaginable. Brazilian, German, Spanish, Italian and Argentine flags flutter from cars in Beirut where fans express passions for their World Cup favorite normally reserved for one’s own national team. In the Gulf, many have their bets on Brazil while England is often the favorite in Jordan and Israel…

“The Palestinians, a national team without a country, never made it out of the starting block. Israeli travel restrictions prevented the team from fielding 11 players in what was supposed to be their first qualifying match against Singapore. Likewise, Lebanon, a country in which spectators have been barred from soccer games since the 2005 assassination of Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, never stood a chance…

“On the pitch, Iran’s World Cup hopes were narrowly ditched by South Korea. But members of the Islamic republic’s national team had more on their minds than the World Cup. Several players took to the pitch in the first half of the game wearing green armbands in support of the Green Revolution movement that was protesting the outcome of the country’s presidential election. Supporters unfurled banners in the stadium saying ‘Free Iran.’ The government and the team’s coach were outraged forcing the players to leave their armbands in their lockers during the second half. Iranian newspapers reported that the armband-wearing players were fired after the game because of their insubordination…

“With the country tearing itself apart in a frenzy of sectarian violence and teetering on the verge of civil war, Iraq’s national team of Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish players won the 2007 Asian Cup. Its World Cup hopes were however initially dashed by Qatar, whose long-term prospects of reaching the World Cup have since probably been thwarted by FIFA’s objections to the gas-rich Gulf state’s attempts to seduce Latin American players by offering them citizenship in addition to bags full of cash.

“Like Iraq, war-ravaged Somalia, another Arab state, fields a multi-ethnic, multi-clan national team. But it operates under even more harrowing conditions than its Iraqi counterpart. The stadium in Mogadishu, the country’s only sporting facilities, often serves as a battlefield. Players disperse of bullets and bodies prior to training. Members of the team have been killed or maimed for life, others have gone into exile.

“Fans share their fate. Islamists recently stormed a home near Mogadishu where World Cup enthusiasts were watching the match between Nigeria and Argentina; two people were killed and 10 others detained, while 15 others were arrested while watching the Germany-Australia game. There is little, if any, indication that Middle Eastern rulers will recognize the opportunities offered by sports to manage the region’s fault lines any time soon…”

Even though Arab states are deeply divided, they are united in their hatred of Israel. The Bible says that for a short while, many Arab nations will unite with Germany and Turkey, to fight against Israel.

“German-Israeli Relations in a State of Crisis”

Der Spiegel wrote on June 21:

“German Development Minister Dirk Niebel was denied entry to the Gaza Strip on Sunday. Once again, it would seem, Israel has failed to strike the correct diplomatic tone. And it shows that the country cannot deal with criticism…

“The object of his Gaza Strip visit was the site of a €12 million waste water treatment plant. Israel denied permission, however, because ‘Hamas uses such visits in a manipulative fashion in order to show that its diplomatic isolation in the international arena has been broken,’ according to an Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesperson.

“But it is hard to say exactly what helps Hamas. It seems likely that Israel’s storming of the pro-Gaza fleet at the end of May helped Hamas more than Niebel ever could have done by visiting Gaza, particularly since the German politician had no plans to meet any representatives of Hamas anyway…

“Even former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, representing the Quartet on the Middle East (a diplomatic foursome made up of the United States, the UN, the EU and Russia), had to make several attempts before he got permission for a visit…

“It is also important to note that Niebel is anything but a detractor of Israel. As a young man, he was a volunteer on a kibbutz, Kfar Giladi on the border of Israel and Lebanon. He has also defended Israeli military actions more than once in the past. He is currently the vice-president of the German-Israeli Society. Niebel is a friend of Israel…

“One cannot see what happened to Niebel over the weekend in isolation. The Israelis are testy because they have noticed that, over the last few months, many good friends of their nation have begun to drift away. French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and German Chancellor Angela Merkel all belong to that group.

“German-Israeli relations are in a state of crisis. The arrogance of the administration of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to blame…”

The relationship between the state of Israel and Germany, as well as Europe, will deteriorate. Some claim, because they don’t understand and misinterpret a particular passage in the book of Daniel, that Germany will enter into an unspecified treaty or friendship pact with Israel, which will allegedly last for 3 1/2 years. This concept does not find any support in Scripture.

Israel Eases Blockade

A-7 News reported on June 21:

“United States officials praised Israel’s change in policy regarding the blockade on Hamas-run Gaza Sunday. Quartet representative Tony Blair expressed satisfaction as well, but added, ‘the test of course will be not what it said, but what is done.’

“Israel will now allow all civilian goods into Gaza through its crossings in the southern Negev, and only weapons and materials used to make weapons will be banned. Dual-purpose goods such as cement, which is also used for reinforcing bunkers and launching pads, will be allowed through for supervised projects… The policy change followed criticism from U.S. President Barack Obama, who recently called the blockade ‘unsustainable’ after a clash between Israeli commandos and terror activists on a Gaza-bound flotilla that aimed to break Israel’s naval blockade.

“The naval blockade will remain in place, Netanyahu said Sunday. Sources reported that the prime minister believes loosening the blockade on goods will increase international acceptance of the security blockade on Gaza.”

In that, Netanyahu may be woefully mistaken.

A Two-Tier Euro?

The Telegraph wrote on June 19:

“Germany and France are examining ways of creating a ‘two-tier’ euro system to separate stronger northern European countries from weaker southern states. A European official has told The Daily Telegraph the dramatic option was being examined at cabinet level. Senior politicians believe their economies need to be better protected as they could not cope with another crisis on a par [with] the one in Greece.

“The creation of a ‘super-euro’ zone would initially include France, Germany, Holland, Austria, Denmark and Finland. The likes of Greece, Spain, Italy, Portugal and even Ireland would be left in a larger rump mostly Mediterranean grouping.

“The official said French and German officials had first spent months examining how to exclude poor-performing states from the euro but decided it was not feasible. A two-tier monetary system in the 16-member euro zone is being examined as a ‘plan B’. ‘The philosophy is the stronger countries might need to move away from countries they can’t afford to bail-out,’ said the official.

 “As a way of containing the damage, they may have to do something dramatic, though obviously in the short term implementation is difficult. ‘It’s an act of desperation. They are not talking about ideal solutions but the lesser of evils. Helping Greece could be done relatively cheaply but Spain they can’t afford to let fail or bail-out. And putting more pressure on the people of France and Germany to save other countries is politically unfeasible.’

“One option, to protect the wealthier northern European countries and to help indebted southern Europeans, would be for Germany to lead a group of countries out of the existing euro into a new single currency alongside the old. The old euro would decline sharply against the new German and French dominated currency but both north and southern Europeans would be protected.”

Of course, one has to be extremely careful with “news” like this, especially when it is being reported by an anti-euro publication such as the Telegraph. We can safely say that the abandonment of the euro in lieu of another currency is not an option. However, the idea of a “two-tier” euro may have some merit.

Further Deteriorating Relationship Between Europe and the USA

The EUObserver wrote on June 22:

“The UK government announced its toughest budget in a generation on Tuesday (22 June), while the Spanish parliament approved a package of labour market reforms it says will reduce the country’s high level of unemployment. At the same time, German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday said she had spoken with US President Barack Obama, telling him that Europe would push ahead with its austerity plans, despite US concerns this could slow global growth.

“‘Yesterday, during a phone call with Barack Obama, I told him how important budgetary consolidation was,’ Ms Merkel said, an indication of the division that has opened up ahead of this weekend’s G20 leaders’ meeting in Toronto.

“Non-eurozone Britain was the latest country to jump on the European austerity bandwagon on Tuesday, with chancellor George Osborne outlining drastic cuts of 25 percent for most government departments by 2014-15. The emergency budget also raised the rate of value added tax from next January to 20 percent and imposed a £2 billion levy on banks…”

Poland’s Future

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 22:

“Poland’s presidential election last Sunday was closer than expected, with centrist candidate Bronislaw Komorowski winning only a few percentage points more than his right-wing opponent Jaroslaw Kaczynski. The July 4 runoff between the two now looks likely to be a neck-and-neck race… Komorowski, the acting president, belongs to the Civic Platform party of Prime Minister Donald Tusk and shares Tusk’s vision of steering Poland closer to the European mainstream and joining the euro single currency.

“Kaczynski is a populist firebrand who opposes joining the euro and who upset Poland’s relations with Germany, Russia and the European Union during his time as prime minister in 2006 and 2007. The president has some important powers in Poland including the right to veto laws and appoint key officials. He also has a say in foreign and security policy. Kaczynski would be expected to carry on his brother’s habit of vetoing government bills…

“German media commentators writing in Tuesday’s papers hope the Poles will choose Komorowski… They have to choose whether they want to integrate more closely with the EU or move to the periphery — whether to move forward or back.

“The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: ‘For Kaczynski, a strong state means that EU members don’t transfer any more powers to Brussels. Instead he wants a ‘Europe of fatherlands,’ an approach that France and Bavaria used to stand for and that Britain’s Conservatives still adhere to. That means he is absolutely opposed to joining the euro, contrary to Komorowski and Tusk. He would be a far more difficult partner for the other EU states than Komorowski.’

“Business daily Financial Times Deutschland writes: ‘The run-off election on July 4 in the most populous of the EU’s new members will be a decision between fear and optimism, between openness and segregation. That means it will be a signal for Europe…'”

The Bible strongly indicates that Poland will adopt the euro and become an integral part of the European Union.

The Ongoing Battle of the Catholic Church

The Local wrote on June 22:

“What is going on in the Catholic Church in Germany? Wracked by sexual abuse scandals, it has now decided to get into an ugly row with disgraced Bishop Walter Mixa…

“It’s the perfect storm at exactly the wrong time for the Catholic Church: the personal tragedy of a man who was clearly not suited to be a bishop has smashed head-on into the stone cold attitude of his fellow clerics. How devastating is it when the Archbishop of Munich decides to keep secret serious accusations against Walter Mixa ‘in his own interest,’ but allows his own spokesman to mutter the former bishop of Augsburg’s stay in a psychiatric clinic is a first step to recovery?…

“In keeping with its tradition, the Church maintained its silence about Mixa for too long. This explains the force with which the affair has now erupted… When… Walter Mixa of the small Bavarian town of Schrobenhausen was appointed bishop of Eichstätt in 1996, the people of Schrobenhausen raised their eyebrows at first. But they did not speak up, because in a good Catholic area one does not dispute the local priest.

“Similarly, when Mixa’s transfer to Augsburg was imminent in 2005, rumours of unseemly sexual behaviour emanated from the seminary of Eichstätt, but they did not trickle through to the key Church officials because the wisdom of the Vatican was not to be questioned.

“It may also be true that objections were not heeded – or were not allowed to be heeded – in the higher rungs of the clergy hierarchy, because in the last few decades the Vatican has systematically barricaded itself from all protests affecting bishop appointments. When conflicts arose, as in the case of Joachim Meisner in Cologne, the Vatican has often preferred to force through its own candidates rather than bow to the wishes of a ‘rebellious’ Church congregation.

“The balance of power within the Church also protected Mixa, since he belonged to the conservative wing of the Bishops’ Conference, which was not willing or able to accept the weakening of its position. Such reflexes have made everything much worse. They have not only damaged the reputation of a single faction, but of the entire Church.

“The massive scope of child abuse scandal at Catholic institutions has forced Church officials to end the era of leaden silence. Under John Paul II, it would have been unthinkable to see bishops question one of their own in public, destroying the ‘unity of the episcopate.’ But Pope Benedict XVI has allowed this to happen. He does not defend the indefensible; he prescribes a course of self-purification for his Church.

“But the pontiff has not offered any actual suggestions for what institutional reforms could result from this self-purification – neither for bishop appointments, dialogue with the church laity, nor priest celibacy. Benedict XVI is certainly closing one epoch, but as yet he is failing to open a new one.”

The Local added on June 23:

“Just one week ago, a defiant Mixa insisted he had been pressured to resign over claims he beat children in a Catholic orphanage in the 1970s and 1980s, and vowed to take his case to the Vatican. But on Wednesday he issued a joint statement with his former Augsburg diocese, announcing he was resigning for good. He recanted the claim he had been forced out by the head of Bavaria’s Catholic bishops, Archbishop Reinhard Marx, and the country’s top Archbishop, Robert Zollitsch…

“Last week, he claimed he had been forced to resign and vowed to have his case reviewed by the Vatican. He also moved back into his old quarters at the Augsburg bishop’s palace, apparently because he had nowhere else to stay. This was followed by media reports of a secret Church dossier that detailed Mixa’s alleged alcohol abuse and sexual assaults on young priests.

“The joint statement by Mixa and the diocese said he would leave his quarters at the bishop’s palace, and the diocese would find temporary accommodation for him… Crucially, it also stated that ‘former Bishop Mixa holds no one responsible, and reproaches no one, for the pressure which he felt in signing his resignation.'”

Sarah, the wife of Abraham, is described in Scripture as a faithful and righteous woman (Isaiah 51:1-2; Hebrews 11:11; 1 Peter 3:5-6). Still, we read that she broke the ninth commandment and lied on several occasions. There are mainly two different sets of circumstances, inducing Sarah to lie.

Sarah’s first lie is recorded in Genesis 18. God appeared with two angels to Abraham and Sarah and promised them that they would have a son within a year. Genesis 18:11-15 states:

“Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age; and Sarah had passed the age of childbearing. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, ‘After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?’ And the LORD said to Abraham, ‘Why did Sarah laugh, saying, “Shall I surely bear a child, since I am old?” Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.’ But Sarah denied it, saying, ‘I did not laugh,’ for she was afraid. And He said, ‘No, but you did laugh!'”

Sarah denied or lied against the truth because she was afraid. She did not want to admit that she had not enough faith.

Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible states:

“‘She denied, saying, I did not laugh,’ thinking nobody could contradict her: she told this lie, because she was afraid; but it was in vain to attempt concealing it from an all-seeing eye; she was told, to her shame, ‘Thou didst laugh…’ It is a shame to do amiss, but a greater shame to deny it; for thereby we add iniquity to our iniquity. Fear of a rebuke often betrays us into this snare. See Isaiah 57:11, ‘Whom hast thou feared, that thou hast lied?’ But we deceive ourselves if we think to impose upon God; he can and will bring truth to light, to our shame. ‘He that covers his sin cannot prosper,’ for the day is coming which will discover it.”

The second set of circumstances involving SARAH’S deceitful conduct is described in Genesis 20, when ABRAHAM told the lie that Sarah was his sister, denying the truth that she was his wife. As a consequence, King Abimelech took Sarah to become his wife. One might ask why Sarah did not speak up and tell Abimelech that she was Abraham’s wife. Why did she keep silent? Why did she cover up Abraham’s lie?

We read of an earlier account in Genesis 12:11-13:

“And it came to pass, when he [Abram, later called Abraham] was close to entering Egypt, that he said to Sarai [later called Sarah] his WIFE: ‘Indeed I know that you are a woman of beautiful countenance. Therefore it will happen, when the Egyptians see you, that they will say, “This is his wife”; and they will kill me, but they will let you live. Please SAY YOU ARE MY SISTER, that it may be well with you FOR YOUR SAKE, and that I may live because of you.”‘

God revealed to Pharaoh that Sarai was Abram’s wife. BOTH Abram and Sarai lied to Pharaoh about this. And later, BOTH repeated the same lie to Abimelech.

As God did in the case of Pharaoh, He revealed the truth to Abimelech–this time in a dream. We read in Genesis 20:4:

“But Abimelech had not come near her, and he said, ‘Lord, will You slay a righteous nation also? Did he not say to me, “She is my sister”? And she, even SHE HERSELF SAID, “He is my brother.” In the integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this.'”

Why did Sarah participate in Abraham’s lie? Why did she even repeat it herself?

We read in Genesis 20:10-13:

“Then Abimelech said to Abraham, ‘What did you have in view, that you have done this thing?’ And Abraham said, ‘Because I thought, surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will kill me on account of my wife. But indeed she is truly my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife. And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, “This is YOUR KINDNESS that you should do FOR ME: in every place, wherever we go, say of me, ‘He is my brother.”‘

Abraham’s and Sarah’s lies are not justified by the fact that Sarah was Abraham’s half-sister. In God’s eyes, they were husband and wife, and God calls them consistently that way in His word. Abraham and Sarah suppressed the truth that they were married, with the intent to deceive their neighbors.

Abraham had asked Sarah to lie in order to save his life, placing a guilt trip on her by suggesting that she would be unkind to him if she did not tell the lie, and she would be without the protection of her beloved husband if they killed him and let her live. Sarah obeyed her husband and broke one of God’s commandments in the process. She should have never done this. Even though we read that wives are to submit to their husbands, we are also told that this must be done “in the Lord” (Ephesians 5:22). That is, they must never violate God’s Will, and if a demand or request of their husbands would violate God’s Word, they must disobey. We are told that we must obey God, rather than man, in a conflict situation (Acts 5:29).

Of course, Abraham should have never asked Sarah to lie for him or to actively or passively participate in or condone his lie. Both showed a lack of faith. They were afraid that if they were to tell the truth, Abraham would be killed. They did not fully believe that God would be powerful enough to protect them.

But we also read that both Abraham and Sarah grew in faith, as we all must do (Romans 4:19).

Wives are not to obey their husbands when they are asked to do wrong. And husbands must not listen to the voice of their wives when they ask or suggest to them that they do or say something which would violate God’s Will.

Even before God appeared with two angels to tell Abraham and Sarah that they would have a son within a year, God had already promised descendants to Abraham (Genesis 15:1-5, 18). God had specifically said to Abraham (then called Abram) that “one who will come from your own body shall be your heir” (verse 4).

But as time progressed and Abraham and Sarah remained childless, they began to doubt in God’s promise and reasoned that they had to produce offspring through Abraham and Sarah’s maid, Hagar (Genesis 16:1-2). This episode showed a lack of faith of both Abraham and Sarah. This is perhaps another reason why Sarah later denied that she had laughed when God repeated His promise that they would have a son. She realized that she had again, for a second time, manifested a lack of faith in God’s Word and Power.

However, there were other occasions when God told Abraham to listen to the voice of his wife (Genesis 21:8-12). It is always a matter of what God’s Will is in a particular matter.

Generally, Abraham and Sarah obeyed God and kept His commandments. But they were not perfect and sinned on occasion–and every lie is a sin against God and neighbor. When they realized their sin and repented, God forgave them, and they will be in God’s Kingdom and one of God’s born-again sons and daughters, ruling under Christ in the Millennium and beyond (Hebrews 11:39-40).

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

Norbert Link’s video-recorded sermon, “To the Ephesians, Part 3,” was posted on the Web.

A new StandingWatch program was posted on the Web, titled, “Current Catastrophes and Bible Prophecy.” Are we close to Christ’s Second Coming? The Examiner, in reporting about the Gulf Oil Spill, wrote: “… we have never experienced anything like this before.” The Associated Press said: “In Revelations, it says the water will turn to blood. That’s what it looks like out here [in Florida]…” Nasa warns of a Space Storm in 2013, saying it could cause twenty times more economic damage than Hurricane Katrina. And the Independent says that the next asteroid slamming into Earth could end it all, stating that “it could happen any time.” HOW NEAR IS CHRIST’S RETURN?

The text of our new booklet, “The Authority of the Bible,” was sent for finalization to our graphic designer, Shelly Bruno.

On June 19, 2010, Dave Harris will give the sermon, titled, “The Church of God.”

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.

Last week’s Editorial asked, “Are you a GOOD Christian?” This week, let us ask, “Are we REAL Christians?” If you answered “yes,” how do you know?

Are we real Christians because we believe in God and Christ? James 2:19 says “… Even the demons believe…” Clearly, demons are NOT Christians. So just believing in the existence of God does not make us real Christians.

Does observing the weekly Sabbath and the annual Holy Days and Festivals like the Passover make us real Christians? 1 Corinthians 11:27 says it is possible to observe the Passover in the wrong way and “…be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.” So just observing God’s weekly and annual Festivals and Holy Days, even though necessary, does not make us real Christians.

What if our knowledge of God’s truth is superior to others? What if we have a better understanding of prophecy; a more perfect grasp of the mysteries of the Bible; and if we are more full of faith than others? Surely these things alone make us real Christians, right? Wrong! 1 Corinthians 13:2 says it is possible to have ALL of these things and STILL be “nothing” in the eyes of God, if something else is missing.

The truth is that neither praying (Matthew 6:5; 23:14); preaching (Psalm 50:16; 1 Corinthians 9:27); fasting (Isaiah 58:3-5; Matthew 6:16); tithing (Luke 11:42; 18:12); giving (Matthew 6:1-2); nor even giving up our life under certain circumstances (1 Corinthians 13:3); are enough, to make us real Christians in God’s eyes, which are the only eyes that count. Of course, right prayer; right fasting; right tithing; right giving, including our very lives; and right preaching by those who are commissioned by God to preach; ARE absolutely necessary; but God must see something else in us to consider us real Christians.

In this Editorial, we will be discussing three most important attributes which must be present in our lives, if we want to be real Christians.

Firstly, the Bible clearly shows that real Christians must speak the truth (Ephesians 4:15, 25); walk in truth (2 John 1:4); and worship in truth (John 4:23-24). What is more, 2 Thessalonians 2:10 shows it is not possible to be saved without a deep and genuine LOVE of the truth.

When God looks at us, does He see real Christians that love and cherish the opportunity to know His truth? Turning to and studying the verses quoted in our weekly Updates, member letters and booklets, as well as listening attentively to our weekly and annual messages in services, may be one good way to show how much we are eager to learn the truth.

Secondly, God has demonstrated immeasurable love for us. He sent His Son to die for us (John 3:16). He offered us, as a gift, eternal life (Romans 6:23); and He prepared an unending future of peace and abundance for us (Matthew 25:34; 1 Corinthians 2:9); all while we were sinners and enemies against Him (Romans 5:8, 10). He called us or picked us out (1 Corinthians 1:26); He washed us off (1 Corinthians 6:11); and He made it possible for us to be in His Family (1 John 3:1-2).

How have we responded?

Does God see an unmistakable love of Him and His ways in us; or does He see us leaning towards a love of the world and its ways? The Bible is clear that we cannot have it BOTH ways (James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-16). We must either grow in the fervent love of God and His ways (Mark 12:30; 1 John 2:5; 2 John 6; Deuteronomy 10:12-13); or we are NOT real Christians (1 John 2:4).

Thirdly, why does the Bible talk so much about love and law? Quite simply, because God IS love (1 John 4:8), and “this IS the love of God, that we keep His commandments” (1 John 5:3). Love fulfills His law–God’s love in us KEEPS it to the FULLEST (Galatians 5:14; Romans 13:8). Love is the PURPOSE or AIM of His law (1 Timothy 1:5). When we keep the law in the right way and with the right motives, we show how much we love God. And, as Matthew 22:36-40 explains, all the law and the prophets hang on the two great commandments—to love God and to love our neighbor. Love and the law are inseparable.

But it is not possible to fulfill the first great commandment to love God if we do not fulfill the second commandment to love our neighbor. 1 John 4:20-21 makes this plain: “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, HOW CAN HE love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also.”

What’s more, Christ Himself not only commands us to love our brethren (John 13:35; 1 Peter 1:22) and those who love us (Luke 6:32-33), but to demonstrate HIS gentle, heartfelt and merciful love towards ALL, including those who do not love us in return (Luke 6:27-35). Paul left us a moving example of this in 2 Corinthians 12:15: “And I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I am loved.”

The commandments to love are comprehensive and inescapable. We are commanded to bear with others in love (Ephesians 4:2); to speak the truth to others in love (Ephesians 4:15); and to let ALL that we do to everyone be done in love (1 Corinthians 16:14).

Whether it is a love of the truth; a love of God; or a love for others; we are commanded to walk in love as Christ walked (1 John 2:6; Ephesians 5:2). If God’s Spirit lives in us (Romans 8:9) and we really do and grow in these things, we not only can assure our hearts before God (1 John 3:18-19), but we can assure ourselves that we are real Christians.

We are reporting on Turkey’s ongoing dubious performance related to the tragic flotilla clash and the raising of the Turkish flag on the Temple Mount; the condemnation of Israeli politics through prominent Jews; Iran’s involvement in Gaza; and Saudi Arabia’s denial of their willingness to assist Israel in a potential strike against Iran.

In European news, warnings are being heard that even though there is no fear that the euro will disappear, there are concerns that the survival of Europe’s democracies may be in jeopardy, and that the German government might collapse.

The terrible war in Afghanistan will continue for sure and become even more violent and bloody, after vast mineral wealth has been discovered in the country.

Rumors continue that President Obama is really a Muslim; and we report on America’s incredible indebtedness to China.

Turning our attention to the ongoing oil spill, the U.S. government is contemplating action which will involve “transition costs” for the American people; and we observe a potential widening of a rift between the US and GB over the oil spill.

We publish an interesting news article, titled, “Gulf Oil Spill Disaster and Biblical Prophecy,” and quote, among others, the following statement: “.. there are global problems that tie our world together as never before – for better and for worse, and there are few simultaneous threats that compare to the financial, social and environmental issues we are facing today. We are living in a time when history cannot repeat itself, because we have never experienced anything like this before.”

While the Pope is sorry about the sex scandal in his church and among his clergy, he is absolutely opposed to any abandonment of celibacy, which is perceived as being largely responsible for the problems of the Catholic clergy. Der Spiegel discusses the incredible wealth of the Catholic Church and the largely unknown fact that the German government pays the church each year millions of euros. [Our new German AufPostenStehen program titled, “Das liebe Geld der Kirchen” (“The Dear Money of the Churches”), discusses this unique situation.]

The superstitious belief in witch doctors is high in Africa, and so is the superstitious belief in the “god of medicine” in the Western word, especially in America. But, for instance, indifferent doctors and hospitals are using far too much medical radiation for the identification of sicknesses of unsuspecting patients, thereby drastically increasing the risk of their patient’s cancer.

We conclude with articles warning about the end of the world through a space storm and large asteroids, which did damage this earth in the past. As the Independent wrote: “The next one can happen any time…”  In addition, we experienced this week several major earthquakes, including one in India (with a magnitude of 7.5), and several earthquakes and aftershocks in Southern California (including one with a magnitude of 5.7).

Incredible–Turkish Flag on Temple Mount

A-7 (Israel National News) reported on June 14:

“The Turkish flag was raised over the Temple Mount last week, following the flotilla clash while Jerusalem police banned Jews from holding the monthly march around the ancient gates of the holy site because of ‘security concerns.’ Police spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld told Israel National News that the unprecedented flag raising was legal. The pictures of the Turkish flag waving over the Temple Mount, where the First and Second Holy Temples were built and where the golden-domed Al-Aqsa mosque now stands, were published on the Turkish web site PLS48.net…

“Although there is no law against raising flags over the site, the practice has been shunned in order to prevent flaring tempers from Muslims and Jews. The Israel flag was raised over the Temple Mount for a few hours on June 6, 1967, after all of Jerusalem was restored to Israel in the Six-Day War. It was taken down under orders of then-IDF Chief of Staff Moshe Dayan…

“Jimmy Carter, who… was President of the United States [from 1978-1982], warned that Sadat would not sign a peace treaty without the raising of the Saudi flag. He suggested that a flag would be flown only over the mosque and nowhere else over the Temple Mount, but Begin retorted, ‘Not on the Temple Mount’…”

The activities surrounding the Temple Mount are bound to “explode.” This will be especially true when the Jews will begin to offer the prophesied sacrifices on the Temple Mount.

Turkey Behind Flotilla

On June 11, The Jerusalem Post wrote:

“The captain of the Mavi Marmara  tried to convince dozens of IHH activists not to engage in violent clashes with the IDF two hours prior to the commando’s boarding of the ship… The Gaza flotilla ship’s captain, Mehmet Tubal, said while being investigated in Israel that he and other members of the Mavi Marmara’s staff did all they could to prevent the activists from confronting soldiers, even throwing some of the IHH member’s metal pipes and chains overboard. Another senior member of the ship’s staff said that 40 IHH activists took control of the Mavi Marmara and dictated the rest of the passengers’ movements.

“The occurrence of violence aboard the Mavi Marmara may have been predetermined by the IHH ‘s purchase of the ship along with possible tacit approval from the Turkish government. ‘[The] IHH acquired the Mavi Marmara ship from the AKP-run municipality of Istanbul. It is not conceivable that the IHH’s Gaza operation could have been carried out absent high-level government sanction,’ wrote Svante Cornell, a Swedish security expert… A journalist on-board the Mavi Marmara, described as having good links with the heads of the Turkish government and Bulent Yildirim, head of the IHH, had stated, ‘The flotilla was organized with the support of the Turkish government and Prime Minister Erdogan gave the instructions for it to set sail. That was despite the fact that everyone knew it would never reach its destination…'”

As can be expected, the Turkish government denied any and all involvement. Turkey, biblical “Edom,” will become very hostile towards Israel in the future. The book of Obadiah speaks of the coming Day of the Lord (verse 15). It says about Edom:

“For your violence against your brother Jacob, Shame shall cover you, And you shall be cut off forever. In the day that you stood on the other side–In the day that strangers carried captive his forces, When foreigners entered his gates And cast lots for Jerusalem–Even you were as one of them. But you should not have gazed on the day of your brother In the day of his captivity; Nor should you have rejoiced over the children of Judah In the day of their destruction; Nor should you have spoken proudly In the day of distress… Nor laid hands on their substance In the day of their calamity. You should not have stood at the crossroads To cut off those among them who escaped; Nor should you have delivered up those among them who remained In the day of distress” (verse 10-14).

Is it Really?–Worldwide Condemnation of Israel Reminiscent of Hitler Era?

Is it Really?–Worldwide Condemnation of Israel Reminiscent of Hitler Era?

On June 11, Haaretz published an article by Henry Siegman, former Senior Fellow on the Middle East at the Council on Foreign Relations and, before that, national director of the American Jewish Congress from 1978 to 1994. What first appears to be a defense of the policies of the state of Israel turns into a blatant condemnation of the Israeli government and the thinking of most Jews in the state of Israel:

“Following Israel’s bloody interdiction of the Gaza Flotilla, I called a life-long friend in Israel to inquire about the mood of the country. My friend, an intellectual and a kind and generous man, has nevertheless long sided with Israeli hardliners. Still, I was entirely unprepared for his response. He told me—in a voice trembling with emotion—that the world’s outpouring of condemnation of Israel is reminiscent of the dark period of the Hitler era. He told me most everyone in Israel felt that way…

“Like me, my friend personally experienced those dark Hitler years, having lived under Nazi occupation, as did so many of Israel’s Jewish citizens. I was therefore stunned by the analogy. He went on to say that the so-called human rights activists on the Turkish ship were in fact terrorists and thugs paid to assault Israeli authorities to provoke an incident that would discredit the Jewish state…

“When I managed to get over the shock of that exchange, it struck me that the invocation of the Hitler era was actually a frighteningly apt and searing analogy, although not the one my friend intended. A million and a half civilians have been forced to live in an open-air prison in inhuman conditions for over three years now, but unlike the Hitler years, they are not Jews but Palestinians. Their jailers, incredibly, are survivors of the Holocaust, or their descendants. Of course, the inmates of Gaza are not destined for gas chambers, as the Jews were, but they have been reduced to a debased and hopeless existence.

“Fully 80% of Gaza’s population lives on the edge of malnutrition, depending on international charities for their daily nourishment. According to the UN and World Health authorities, Gaza’s children suffer from dramatically increased morbidity that will affect and shorten the lives of many of them. This obscenity is a consequence of a deliberate and carefully calculated Israeli policy aimed at de-developing Gaza by destroying not only its economy but its physical and social infrastructure while sealing it hermitically [sic] from the outside world…

“Another feature of that dark era were absurd conspiracies attributed to the Jews by otherwise intelligent and cultured Germans. Sadly, even smart Jews are not immune to that disease…

“Of course, even the most objectionable Israeli policies do not begin to compare with Hitler’s Germany. But the essential moral issues are the same. How would Jews have reacted to their tormentors had they been consigned to the kind of existence Israel has imposed on Gaza’s population?… The German White Rose activists, mostly students from the University of Munich, who dared to condemn the German persecution of the Jews (well before the concentration camp exterminations began) were also considered ‘traitors’ by their fellow Germans, who did not mourn the beheading of these activists by the Gestapo.

“So, yes, there is reason for Israelis, and for Jews generally, to think long and hard about the dark Hitler era at this particular time. For the significance of the Gaza Flotilla incident lies not in the questions raised about violations of international law on the high seas, or even about ‘who assaulted who’ first on the Turkish ship, the Mavi Marmara, but in the larger questions raised about our common human condition by Israel’s occupation policies and its devastation of Gaza’s civilian population.

“If a people who so recently experienced on its own flesh such unspeakable inhumanities cannot muster the moral imagination to understand the injustice and suffering its territorial ambitions—and even its legitimate security concerns—are inflicting on another people, what hope is there for the rest of us?…”

Zechariah 14:14 says that “Judah will fight against Jerusalem” (Revised Standard Version; New American Bible; New Jerusalem Bible; Luther Bible; Elberfelder Bible; Menge Bible; Zuercher Bible). More and more Jews, living outside the state of Israel, will become frustrated with their government’s policies and will ultimately join other nations in their fight against Jerusalem (compare Zechariah 14:2).

Iran Sends “Aid Ships” to Gaza

Reuters reported on June 14:

“Iran is sending aid ships to blockaded Gaza, state radio said on Monday — a move likely to be considered provocative by Israel which accuses Tehran of arming the Palestinian enclave’s Islamist rulers, Hamas. One ship left port on Sunday and another will depart by Friday, loaded with food, construction material and toys, the report said. The boats would be part of international efforts to break Israel’s isolation of the Gaza Strip…

“Israeli troops two weeks ago boarded a flotilla of Turkish aid ships heading to Gaza on May 31 and killed nine pro-Palestinian activists, most of them Turks. Public opinion in Muslim countries was outraged by the killings. An official of the Iranian Red Crescent Society’s youth organisation said some 100,000 Iranians had volunteered as potential crew for aid ships, Iran daily reported.

“A senior Iranian official said earlier Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards were ready to provide a military escort to aid ships heading to Gaza if Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei so commands. But the Guards’ deputy head, Hossein Salami, said there were no plans to do so… Any such military mobilisation would risk a major confrontation with Israel…”

We will have to see how far Iran is willing to go to provoke a fight with Israel.

Saudi Arabia Will Not Allow Israel to Use Their Airspace

Haaretz reported on June 12:

“Saudi Arabia would not allow Israeli bombers to pass through its airspace en route to a possible strike of Iran’s nuclear facilities, a member of the Saudi royal family said Saturday, denying an earlier Times of London report. Earlier Saturday, the Times reported that Saudi Arabia has practiced standing down its anti-aircraft systems to allow Israeli warplanes passage on their way to attack Iran’s nuclear installations, adding that the Saudis have allocated a narrow corridor of airspace in the north of the country.

“Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf, the Saudi envoy to the U.K. speaking to the London-based Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat, denied that report, saying such a move ‘would be against the policy adopted and followed by the Kingdom.’ According to Asharq al-Awsat report, bin Nawaf reiterated the Saudi Arabia’s rejection of any violation of its territories or airspace, adding that it would be ‘illogical to allow the Israeli occupying force, with whom Saudi Arabia has no relations whatsoever, to use its land and airspace’…

“Despite tensions between them, Israel and Saudi Arabia share a mutual hostility to Iran… Passing over Iraq would require at least tacit consent to the raid from the United States, whose troops are occupying the country. So far, the Obama Administration has refused this.

“On Wednesday the United Nations passed a fourth round of sanctions against Iran in an attempt to force it to stop enriching uranium. But immediately after the UN vote, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad vowed the nuclear program would continue. Israel hailed the vote – but said sanctions were not enough and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has refused to rule out a raid.”

It appears indeed doubtful that Saudi Arabia would lend a hand to Israel, as Arab nations, including Saudi-Arabia (“Ishmael”), as well as Turkey (“Edom”), will form a confederacy against Israel (Psalm 83:5-8).

Euro Here to Stay

Bloomberg reported on June 11:

” European Central Bank council member Mario Draghi said the euro cannot be undone. ‘There is no going back on the euro,’ Draghi said on the sidelines of a conference in Helsinki. ‘People have to understand the euro is to stay.'”

Euro on the Rise?

CNBC wrote on June 15:

“The euro rose against the dollar as strong demand for government debt from several European countries offset worries about the debt crisis…

“’Most of the downtrend in the euro is done,’ said Michael Cohn, chief investment strategist at Global Arena Investment Management. ‘We’ll probably have one more downdraft for the euro by August to around $1.15, but that’s it.’”

Will Europe Return to the 1930’s?

The EUObserver wrote on June 14:

“The chief of Europe’s trade union chiefs, John Monks, has warned that the austerity packages being imposed across the bloc will send the continent ‘back to the 1930s’… ‘This is extremely dangerous. This is 1931, we’re heading back to the 1930s, with the Great Depression and we ended up with militarist dictatorship,’ the general secretary of the European Trades Union Congress (ETUC) said… ‘I’m not saying we’re there yet, but it’s potentially very serious, not just economically, but politically as well.’

“Mr Monks reported that Mr Barroso has similar concerns, but based on diametrically opposed reasoning. He said the commission chief believes the austerity packages will save Europe from returning to the darkest days of the last century rather than precipitating the fall. ‘I had a discussion with Barroso last Friday about what can be done for Greece, Spain, Portugal and the rest and his message was blunt: “Look, if they do not carry out these austerity packages, these countries could virtually disappear in the way that we know them as democracies. They’ve got no choice, this is it.” He’s very, very worried. He shocked us with an apocalyptic vision of democracies in Europe collapsing because of the state of indebtedness'”…”

Germany’s Government About to Crumble?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 15:

“… many in Germany are befuddled by the apparent inability of Merkel’s coalition… to govern. And the frustration isn’t just limited to the opposition. Conflict after conflict has marked the eight months since the chancellor began her second term in office… And with party and coalition discipline crumbling, an otherwise routine vote on June 30 to replace [German President] Köhler threatens to become Merkel’s Waterloo… And revolt is in the air.

“Of particular concern for the chancellor is her seeming inability to put even a single conflict within her coalition, or even within her own party, to rest… A government minister told SPIEGEL last week that there are a handful of ministers who see little point in continuing. He said that a premature disintegration of Merkel’s coalition is a very real possibility. According to a survey conducted by pollster Infratest, 55 percent of the German public agrees…

“Which means that the approaching presidential election feels increasingly like a vote of confidence on Merkel’s leadership. Potentially even more ominous for Merkel, the opposition has come up with a highly attractive candidate: Joachim Gauck, a former anti-communist human rights activist in East Germany, who was later in charge of the administration of the Stasi secret police files after German reunification.

“Not only have the Greens and the SPD rallied behind him, but there are many within the FDP who were turned off by the heavy-handed manner in which Merkel selected her party’s presidential candidate. Some have openly thrown their support behind Gauck. Even within Merkel’s CDU, there are some who have wondered aloud whether Gauck might not be the better choice. Were the German public allowed to vote, Gauck would beat Merkel’s candidate Wulff by 40 percent to 31 percent, according to recent surveys.

“… new elections could send both parties into the opposition… Even should her government survive the summer, it appears unlikely that significant improvement will be made… Gero Neugebauer, a political science professor at Berlin’s Free University, told SPIEGEL ONLINE [:] ‘Merkel failed to come up with a unifying aim for her government. Now, her only grip on power is that there is no alternative.'”

But there will soon be an “alternative.” The Bible says that in the end, ten European “core” nations or groups of nations “will give their power and authority” to a dictator (Revelation 17:12-13). By then, democracy in Europe will have ceased. In this light, the next announcement is also quite interesting.

European Cross-Border Economic Government?

Deutsche Welle reported on June 17:

“Leaders of eurozone countries and all other EU member states are meeting in Brussels this Thursday to address the mounting problem of debt in Europe. Statements heading into the summit said efforts would be made to establish a cross-border economic government to prevent the recurrence of financial crises in the bloc.”

Now For Sure–the War in Afghanistan Will Continue

The Washington Post wrote on June 14:

“U.S. geologists have discovered vast mineral wealth in Afghanistan, possibly amounting to $1 trillion, President Hamid Karzai’s spokesman said Monday… The New York Times reported the $1 trillion figure in Monday’s edition and quoted senior American officials as saying untapped mineral deposits in Afghanistan are far beyond any previously known reserves and were enough to fundamentally alter the Afghan economy and perhaps the Afghan war itself…”

We can expect the fighting in Afghanistan to intensify as both the Allies and the Taliban want to make sure that they will be in charge of the “rich” Afghan mineral wealth. Ultimately, wars are being fought because of lust and greed, notwithstanding all the nice justifications which politicians are offering to unsuspecting or willfully ignorant or forgetful people (compare James 4:1-3).

President Obama a Muslim?

WorldNet Daily wrote on June 14:

“An Egyptian foreign-service official’s comment about President Obama is turning into a sensation among bloggers for its claim that the American leader claims to be Muslim… Obama… claimed to be a Muslim in a television interview where the interviewer corrected his ‘misstatement’ and he has referenced the Muslim heritage in America’s past several times.

“Now the heat on the issue is being turned up because of a weeks-old report in Israel Today. In the report, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit was quoted as saying during an appearance on Nile TV that ‘the American president told me in confidence that he is a Muslim.’

“The White House remained silent on the comment, declining to respond to a WND request for comment.”

For further information, please view our StandingWatch program, “Why the Fort Hood Massacre?”

China’s US Government Debt Holdings Hit 2010 High

AFP wrote on June 15:

“The cash-rich Chinese government raised its US Treasury bond holdings to 900.2 billion dollars in April, its highest level since November 2009, while posting the second consecutive monthly rise, according to a report on international capital flows. China remained far ahead as the top foreign debt holder, followed by Japan, which held 795.5 billion dollars in April, and third-placed Britain at 239.3 billion dollars, according to the figures… some analysts said Beijing was secretly buying bonds via third countries to mask its importance as a creditor — a role which had attracted considerable scrutiny…

“The data Tuesday indicated that China remains ‘a steadfast buyer’ of Treasuries, averaging 10.3 billion dollars per month in 2009 and 8.2 billion dollars per month for the first four months of 2010, he said. China, the world’s largest holder of foreign-exchange reserves, has been constantly criticizing Washington for its snowballing debt levels, fearing that Beijing’s investment in US government bonds could turn sour if a debt crisis overwhelms America.”

President Obama: “There Will Be Transition Costs”

On June 14, President Obama wrote the following public announcement, which was circulated on the Internet:

“The BP oil spill in the Gulf Coast is the worst environmental disaster of its kind in our nation’s history. I am returning to the region today to review our efforts and meet with families and business owners affected by the catastrophe. We are working to hold BP accountable for the damage to the lands and the livelihoods of the Gulf Coast, and we are taking strong precautions to make certain a spill like this never happens again…

“Today, we consume more than 20 percent of the world’s oil, but have less than two percent of the world’s oil reserves. Beyond the risks inherent in drilling four miles beneath the surface of the Earth, our dependence on oil means that we will continue to send billions of dollars of our hard-earned wealth to other countries every month — including many in dangerous and unstable regions.

“In other words, our continued dependence on fossil fuels will jeopardize our national security. It will smother our planet. And it will continue to put our economy and our environment at risk…

“The time has come, once and for all, for this nation to fully embrace a new future. That means continuing our unprecedented effort to make everything — from our homes and businesses to our cars and trucks — more energy-efficient. It means rolling back billions of dollars of tax breaks to oil companies so we can prioritize investments in clean energy research and development… There will be transition costs and a time of adjustment…”

In a time of national economic crisis, “transition costs” may be the last thing this country needs.

“Insults Across the Water”

The New York Times wrote on June 13:

“Well, now: it seems our dear ally across the pond feels that a row has broken out over the intemperance of the American president toward mighty BP. ‘Anglophobic spite,’ was the charge leveled at President Obama by a columnist for The Daily Mail, implausibly attributing the animus to Obama’s Kenyan father. London’s mayor, Boris Johnson, demanded an end to ‘anti-British rhetoric.’ He demanded it! Or else. And a leading Tory by name of Lord Tebbit branded Obama’s conduct ‘despicable.’

“All of this came just before the extraordinary events on Saturday in South Africa, when the American boys — none of whom could make the British squad, it is said — played Her Majesty’s finest to a draw in the World Cup’s opening round. ‘Brit Kneels Before America!’ was the headline on the ever-subtle Drudge Report, with a picture of the poor English goalie on his knees. The oil spill may long be forgotten in Britain before the English get over that single goal scored by the Yanks…

“American anger has little to do with the island nation and everything to do with a multinational corporation that has appeared tone deaf and negligent… The insults across the water can be explained, in part, by that old line about two nations separated by a common language…

“… my colleague Sarah Lyall explained the gap this way:

“‘We look to the future; they look to the past. We run for election; they stand for it. We noisily and proudly proclaim our Americanness; they shuffle their feet and apologize for their Britishness. We trumpet our success; they brag about their failures. When they say they are pleased to meet you, they often mean nothing of the kind'”…

“And who can forget that headline in The Daily Mirror after George W. Bush was re-elected in 2004: ‘How Can 59,054,087 People Be So Dumb?’…

“… the oil spill is death to a way of life for thousands, and a high crime against nature. The anger is real… This week, it’s only going to get worse, when BP directors consider whether to suspend their dividend, and the company’s executives are called to the White House. The president plans to ask them to set up an escrow account for those affected by the spill.

“For diversion, there is a month of glorious soccer, often called a gentleman’s game played by thugs, which is a good way to describe the politics of two democracies from the same family.”

Sadly, animosity and antagonism will increase between the “two democracies from the same family”–the family or house of Israel and of Israel’s son Joseph, with Joseph’s son Ephraim being the ancestor of modern Great Britain, and Joseph’s son Manasseh being the ancestor of modern USA. Isaiah 9:21 says: “Manasseh shall devour Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh, And they together shall be against Judah.” Only after Christ’s return, that situation will change, as Isaiah 11:13 says: “Also the envy of Ephraim shall depart, And the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off; Ephraim shall not envy Judah, And Judah shall not harass Ephraim.”

Gulf Oil Spill Disaster and Biblical Prophecy

The Examiner wrote on June 13:

“A number of websites and news organizations have begun to relate the Gulf oil spill with predictions of disaster as told in the book of Revelations in the Christian Bible…

“Revelation 8:8–11 [:] ‘The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like a great mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea became blood, a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed … A third of the waters became wormwood, and many died from the water, because it was made bitter.’
           
“… there are similarities in what we are able to see in the Gulf of Mexico now, and what was written then.

“Approximately one-third of Gulf waters are now off limits to fishing, and many images of the oil spill resemble an ominous river of red. Thousands of uncounted sea creatures have died and the numbers are still rising. Some patches of surface oil have been set on fire and BP plans to burn more.

“The Christian Bible states that the tribulations in Revelation are ‘judgements’ for the evils of humanity: Greed; hatred; bigotry and discrimination against the poor, among other social and ethical ills; all are spoken against in the Bible. Yet all are found in today’s political and social environment…

“Believers in the Christian Bible have a foundation on which to base their apocalyptic theories as it relates to the Gulf oil spill, along with other foretold events taking place in our world today. ‘Earthquakes in various places’, violence, upheaval, starvation and other natural disasters, are all referenced as signs of the apocalypse in the Books of Revelation and Daniel.

“… there are global problems that tie our world together as never before – for better and for worse, and there are few simultaneous threats that compare to the financial, social and environmental issues we are facing today. We are living in a time when history cannot repeat itself, because we have never experienced anything like this before.”

This is quite a statement. Jesus Christ warned that a devastating time would soon come upon mankind, stating in Matthew 24:21: “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.” Daniel 12:1 speaks about that same time, saying: “… And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time.”

Pope Is “Sorry” for Sex Scandal and Strongly Defends Celibacy

On June 11, USA Today wrote:

“Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Pope Benedict XVI has apologized — again — for clergy sexual abuse of minors as the global scandal continues to scorch his papacy. This time, the apology came at a Mass celebrating the conclusion of the Year of the Priest… But will this be enough? No, says BishopAccountability.Org, the first of the victim’s groups to roll out a statement.

“‘The pope’s response has been platitudes, metaphor, and rhetoric. What’s worse, with the appalled Catholic laity waiting for solutions, the Pope prescribed merely an internal, inadequate next step — better seminary screening and formation. But we all have learned in recent years that the most effective solutions lie outside the Church. To solve this massive crisis, the Pope must take specific actions himself and also endorse and facilitate certain external measures that would advance transparency and justice.'”

USA Today added on June 13:

“Pope Benedict XVI strongly defended celibacy for priests as a sign of faith in an increasingly secular world during a rally Thursday that drew some 15,000 priests from around the world to Rome.”

The Hidden Wealth of the Catholic Church

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 14:

“The Catholic Church in Germany, already struggling to cope with the sex abuse scandal, has been hit by revelations of theft, opaque accounting and extravagance… The Catholic Church is currently being shaken by a number of financial scandals…

“More than €40 million have gone missing in the Diocese of Magdeburg in eastern Germany, €5 million have disappeared in Limburg near Frankfurt, and it was recently discovered that a senior priest in the Diocese of Münster had 30 secret bank accounts…

“The unemployed, recipients of housing assistance, families, communities, businesses, the military — in the coming years, the federal government plans to deprive them all of billions of euros. But the church, of all things, is being spared, and hardly anyone questions the generous support it receives from the government.

“Financially speaking, Germany’s dioceses are in excellent shape. ‘The Catholic Church claims that it’s poor, but the truth is that it hides its wealth,’ says Carsten Frerk, a Berlin political scientist who, after years of research, is publishing ‘Violettbuch Kirchenfinanzen’ (The Violet Book of Church Finances) this fall. Frerk estimates the cash assets of the church’s legal entities at about €50 billion…

“The assets, accumulated over the centuries, are invested in many areas, including real estate, church-owned banks, academies, breweries, vineyards, media companies and hospitals. The church also derives income from stock holdings, foundations and bequests…

“Year after year, both the Catholic Church and the Protestant Church in Germany receive generous payments from the federal, state and local governments. Not as well known as the church tax (about €10 billion a year) are the annual subsidies to the church, both direct and indirect, which in 2000 amounted to an estimated €17 billion.

“The government pays substantial sums of money for the maintenance and constant renovation of cathedrals and other church buildings. It pays the salaries of religion teachers and foots the bill for the altar wine used in church services for the military. Some benefits, such as the annual firewood deliveries a few southern German towns make to their bishop, are based on 200-year-old entitlements that politicians have never reviewed.

“Despite the constitutional separation of church and state in Germany, substantial subsidies are paid for church conferences, church libraries, pastors who minister to police officers, inmates of prisons and psychiatric institutions, and the military. The government even helps to pay for the employment of conscientious objectors, and for the maintenance of offering boxes and wayside crosses.

“In return, the church is not even required to pay taxes: no property tax, no corporate tax and no capital gains tax. Everything it does as a public corporation in Germany is considered charitable, benevolent and tax-exempt. Unlike other public corporations like universities, the church is not subject to any state supervision.”

The unspeakable wealth of the Roman Catholic Church is vividly described in chapters 17 and 18 of the book of Revelation.

The Witchdoctors of African Football

Der Spiegel Online wrote on June 11:

“Aliyu Mbenkem and Julienn Aboude are absolutely convinced of their magical powers. The two faith healers live in a village called Akolinga in the West African nation of Cameroon… Can they influence the outcome of a football game? ‘That’s nothing. All I have to do is cast a few shells and contact the spirit of the playing field, then our own goal will be nailed up and the opposition’s goal will be wide open,’ the magician Mbenkem says…

“The Confederation of African Football likewise doesn’t want to hear about magic anymore and have banned witchcraft. No substances may be sprinkled over the playing fields and there can be no witch doctors on the bench with the teams…

“And then there is also the legendary story that is told about the Ivory Coast team, which won the Africa Cup of Nations final in 1992 after a penalty shoot-out 11:10. The fans credited the victory to the witch doctors who had been employed by the Ministry of Sport. The witch doctors themselves said that their services had been commissioned by the Ministry but that they had never been compensated for their services. As a result, they cursed the national team. And indeed, the Elephants, as the team is known, won nothing for years. Finally, a decade later, the country’s defense minister apologized to the aggrieved witch doctors on behalf of the nation for ‘the 1992 promise that was not fulfilled after the Africa Cup.’ The minister also offered the witchdoctors $2,000 (around €1,670) and asked them to start working for ‘the republic and the sports minister’ again.

“‘They bend the lines, bewitch the ball, befuddle the referees (and) paralyze goal keepers,’ Bartholomäus Grill, the Africa correspondent for weekly newspaper Die Zeit, wrote about the witch doctors… ‘Just as every German team has a masseur, every African team has a witchdoctor,’ says Anthony Baffoe, a Ghanaian footballer who played for years in Germany’s top league as well as for Ghana’s national team and who now works for the Ghana Football Association. German filmmaker Oliver Becker tells of watching a Tanzanian player anoint the grave of a deceased teammate with chicken blood so that he might acquire the dribbling skills of the dead man, for himself. And the Botswana Sports Magazine has even felt it necessary to inform citizens that: ‘There is no evidence that football games can be won through witchcraft alone.'”

These terrible superstitions and demonic influences will only cease after Christ has returned. He will not allow Satan and his evil angels to deceive mankind and to possess mediums, witches, sorcerers and witch doctors to carry out their abominable deeds. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Angels, Demons and the Spirit World.”

Too Much Medical Radiation

The Associated Press wrote on June 14:

“Americans get the most medical radiation in the world, even more than folks in other rich countries. The U.S. accounts for half of the most advanced procedures that use radiation, and the average American’s dose has grown sixfold over the last couple of decades.

“Too much radiation raises the risk of cancer. That risk is growing because people in everyday situations are getting imaging tests far too often. Like the New Hampshire teen who was about to get a CT scan to check for kidney stones until a radiologist, Dr. Steven Birnbaum, discovered he’d already had 14 of these powerful X-rays for previous episodes…

“Radiation is a hidden danger — you don’t feel it when you get it, and any damage usually doesn’t show up for years. Taken individually, tests that use radiation pose little risk. Over time, though, the dose accumulates. Doctors don’t keep track of radiation given their patients — they order a test, not a dose. Except for mammograms, there are no federal rules on radiation dose…

“How much radiation is risky?

“It’s hard to say. The best guess is based on the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident and studies of Japanese atomic bomb survivors who had excess cancer risk after exposures of 50 to 150 millisieverts (a measure of dose) of radiation… Since previous studies suggest that a third of all tests are unnecessary, 20 million adults and more than 1 million children are needlessly being put at risk… Mayo Clinic researchers reviewed the medical records of 251 people given heart scans in 2007 and found that only a quarter of them were clearly appropriate.”

Doctors and medicines have their place, but we must use extreme caution and balance. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Sickness and Healing–What the Bible Tells Us.”

Space Storm Coming?

The Daily Telegraph wrote on June 14:

“Britain could face widespread power blackouts and be left without critical communication signals for long periods of time, after the earth is hit by a once-in-a-generation ‘space storm’, Nasa has warned. National power grids could overheat and air travel severely disrupted while electronic items, navigation devices and major satellites could stop working after the Sun reaches its maximum power in a few years.

“Senior space agency scientists believe the Earth will be hit with unprecedented levels of magnetic energy from solar flares after the Sun wakes ‘from a deep slumber’ sometime around 2013, The Daily Telegraph can disclose. In a new warning, Nasa said the super storm would hit like ‘a bolt of lightning’ and could cause catastrophic consequences for the world’s health, emergency services and national security unless precautions are taken.

“Scientists believe it could damage everything from emergency services’ systems, hospital equipment, banking systems and air traffic control devices, through to ‘everyday’ items such as home computers, iPods and Sat Navs. Due to humans’ heavy reliance on electronic devices, which are sensitive to magnetic energy, the storm could leave a multi-billion pound damage bill and ‘potentially devastating’ problems for governments.

“’We know it is coming but we don’t know how bad it is going to be,’ Dr Richard Fisher, the director of Nasa’s Heliophysics division, said in an interview with The Daily Telegraph.”

Asteroids and the End of the World

The Independent wrote on June 14:

“What kind of catastrophe would it take to end the world? Astronomical intruders provide a potentially serious threat. Impacts can be caused by stray rubble from the Asteroid Belt and the rocky snowballs that travel in highly elliptical orbits in the comet cloud… Every century or so, a 10-meter meteor slams into the Earth with the force of a small nuclear device. Tunguska was the site of the last, in 1908, and it was pure luck that that meteor landed in the uninhabited wilderness of Siberia.

“Every few thousand years, Earth can pass through unusually thick parts of the debris trail of comets, turning the familiar light show of a meteor shower into a deadly firestorm. Roughly every 100,000 years, a projectile hundreds of meters across unleashes power equal to the world’s nuclear arsenals. The result is devastation over an area the size of England, global tidal waves (if the impact is in the ocean), and enough dust flung into the atmosphere to dim the Sun and kill off vegetation…

“Then there’s the ‘Big One’. About every 100 million years, a rock the size of a small asteroid slams into the Earth, causing global earthquakes, kilometre-high tidal waves, and immediately killing all large land animals. Creatures in the sea soon follow, as trillions of tons of vaporised rock cause drastic cooling and the destruction of the food chain based on photosynthesis. There’s good evidence that this happened 65 million years ago [when] the giant lizards were extinguished.

“A hundred million years sounds like a safe buffer, but the next one could happen at any time…”

The Bible prophesies that this earth will be hit very soon by asteroids, comets or meteorites, as happened in the past. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Theory of Evolution–a Fairy Tale for Adults.”

Let us read what this verse says: “He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name.”

Does this mean that we will be looking into the face of God for eternity or strumming on harps with no constructive work to do?

First of all, it is critical to show that work is something that is important to God. We read in Genesis 2:2 that “on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.” In John 5:17 we read: “But Jesus answered them, ‘My Father has been working until now, and I have been working.’” Luke 13:14 also tells us that Jesus said: “There are six days on which men ought to work…”

This aspect of work is a theme throughout the Word of God. This is further emphasised in 1 Thessalonians 4:11: “…that you also aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you.” In 1 Corinthians 4:12, we read: “And we labour, working with our hands…” In 2 Thessalonians 3:10. Paul writes: “For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat.” Therefore, we see that work is a principle that God promotes throughout the entirety of His Word, and we are expected to follow that important example.

We know that the Kingdom of God will be on earth and that the saints will be kings and priests (Revelation 1:6; 5:9-10). What will our job be then? There will be much work to do after the horrors of the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord. Jesus Christ will rule in supreme power from Jerusalem, assisted by those who have been made members of the Family of God in the first resurrection (compare Matthew 24:31; 1 Corinthians 15:50-53).

Towns and cities will have to be rebuilt, and the general infrastructure will have to be restored. Much work will be needed to restore the war-ravaged earth at that time. And we will be there to help those who have come through this end-time period, which Daniel 12:1 describes as follows: “There shall be a time of trouble Such as never was since there was a nation Even to that time.”

We will have to help in every way possible, and Isaiah 30:20-21 is instructive in this regard: “And though the Lord gives you The bread of adversity and the water of affliction, Yet your teachers will not be moved into a corner anymore, But your eyes shall see your teachers. Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ Whenever you turn to the right hand Or whenever you turn to the left.” We will be there, as members of the Family of God, to help and assist everyone left on earth at that time, and those born during the Millennium, and that will be our job for 1,000 years.

And the work won’t stop then. Indications are that the Great White Throne Judgment or the “second resurrection,” following the Millennium, will last for 100 years (compare Isaiah 65:20), and at that time all who have ever lived and who were never given a chance for salvation, will have their first opportunity. One hundred years to help guide and assist probably tens or maybe scores of billions of human beings in the second resurrection (Revelation 20:11-12)!

And so we see this pattern of work from the first book in the Bible to the last. It is the way of God, and He doesn’t change in that regard (Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8).

God’s government will continue to expand throughout eternity. Isaiah 9:6-7 states: “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.”

What will happen after the Millennium and the second and third resurrections (Revelation 20:13-15)?

As we point out in our free booklets, “God Is a Family” and “Angels, Demons and the Spirit World,” it is not only the potential of man to rule the earth, but also the entire universe. Right now, Christ, by His power, is upholding the universe (“all things” in Hebrews 1:2, which is translated by Moffat as “the universe”), but it is the potential of man to assist Christ in that endeavor.

We read in Revelation 22:5 that the saints will reign forever and ever, and Romans 8:19, 22 tells us that the whole creation–the entire universe–waits for the revealing of the sons of God.

In a mini-study in the Good News magazine in December 1982, the following comments were made.

“But is there really enough ‘out there’ for our estimated 200 billion spirit sons of God to rule? Astronomers estimate that there are more than 40,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 (40 sextillion) stars that are suns to other planets. This figure is virtually impossible to comprehend. If our estimate of 200 billion sons of God is accurate, that means that each member of God’s family would be responsible for maintaining and developing 200 billion stars and their attendant planets. Those stars and planets would make up a galaxy twice the estimated size of our own Milky Way galaxy. This is your awesome potential – the glorious destiny God has in store for those who seek to do His will and follow His way. Yes, you were born to rule.”

Of course, if the estimated figure of 200 billion sons of God is greatly over-estimated in this article, then a fewer number would mean an even greater workload for born-again members of the Family of God.

Ultimately, this whole earth and the universe will be set on fire, to be changed from corruption into spirit (2 Peter 3:7, 10-13). But that spirit world will be very real–in fact, more real than this physical world–with myriads of suns and planets, but all consisting of spirit. And it will be our task, as spirit beings, to rule first the physical and then the spirit world.

We don’t know how much time will transpire, after the third resurrection and before the creation of the new heaven and the new earth (Revelation 21:1)–the change from physical to spirit. The saints might rule over this physical universe for quite some time, before this physical world will be changed into a spirit world and the New Jerusalem will descend to the new earth (Revelation 21:2-27; 22:1-5, 14). (Please see our Q&A, explaining the “New Jerusalem.”)

But after that change from physical to spirit, the saints will continue to rule the spirit world, under God the Father and Jesus Christ.

And so, having established the importance and continuance of work in the physical and spiritual realm, what does Revelation 3:12 mean when it says that “I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more.”? It cannot mean, doing nothing. That is not the way of God. We must remember that we will be able to be anywhere at the speed of thought and so those restrictions that we currently have as human beings will be lifted.

Therefore, “going out no more” surely has to be in a spiritual context in the sense of a permanence in the God Family. Since the biblical reference to the temple of God can refer to the spiritual temple–the church of God–the reference in Revelation 3:12 refers to the fact that God’s saints will always be part of that temple. Once they are born again, they will never fall away; they will never “go out” or be cast out of that spiritual temple. They will always be “pillars”–necessary parts–in God’s spiritual temple, and God’s name will be on their foreheads (Revelation 22:4). As spirit beings, we will have so much work to do and will be completely dedicated to God and His way, and that for eternity. That has to be very encouraging news.

Lead Writers: Brian Gale (Great Britain) and Norbert Link

Special Music for the Feast
 
Anyone who is interested in participating in special music for the Feast may contact Phyllis Bourque at bourque@q.com, who will again be coordinating this program. Choir music will be sent out to all who request it. The Feast is fast approaching, and now is a good time to be practicing, whether for choir or for individual performance.

A new StandingWatch program was posted on the Web, titled, “Israel’s Worldwide Isolation.” Israel’s deadly attack on a flotilla heading towards Gaza was met with universal condemnation. Especially Turkey has been playing a dubious role in this affair. What can we expect to happen soon?

A new German AufPostenStehen program was posted on the Web, titled, “Das liebe Geld der Kirchen” (“The Dear Money of the Churches”). The program discusses the new German austerity measures in light of the unique (and untouched) situation that the German government is paying huge amounts of money to Protestant and Catholic priests and clerics–and that in addition to the church tax (about 9% of salary) of church members, which the German government collects for and then transfers to the churches.

A new member letter was posted on the Web and sent out this week. In the letter, Norbert Link reminds all of us why God has created man and why He revealed His truth to His disciples in this day and age.

A new German sermon was posted on the Web, titled, “Das Evangelium und Sie, Teil 4” [“The Gospel and You, Part 4.”] It is discussing the gospel of the Kingdom of God, according to Matthew, and issues like “kingdom of heaven,” “keys of kingdom of heaven” and “binding and loosing.”

by Gilbert DeVaux

I am not the healthiest man, and I have been going through many severe health trials. I have to say, though, that I have been healed time and again since my calling, when I followed the instruction to be anointed by one of God’s ministers.

I most certainly know that any healing did not happen because of any real value of myself, for God chose the base things of this world, and there I would qualify. When going through health trials, I am reminded that the Eternal knew me before this earth was founded, and He has given me hope when I had none.

I have been reminded, especially during times of trial, what a great sacrifice the Father and Jesus Christ have made for me personally; realizing that the stripes that Christ endured were for my physical healing. It might be easy for me to take things for granted, but I never must do so. I have also learned to appreciate more and more our ministry that we have in our small church, for I know that they were called and placed here by our Great Creator God.

When there is not much physical strength in me, I am learning to grow in the faith of Christ living in me, and as I can feel how my brethren are praying for my health, I will continue to pray for them, when they need prayers.