On Saturday, March 7, 2009, Dave Harris will give the sermon, titled, “Greater Works.”

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.

How do you look at life? What do you expect from life? I’m not talking about life after death–I’m talking about the “here and now.”
 
Are you just drifting along–day after day? Or are you concentrating on making each day “special” in some way? This may be a difficult challenge in times of trials, but it is not impossible to do.
 
It’s really a matter of setting right priorities. We can work ourselves to death, without realizing perhaps, that “our riches may make themselves wings and fly away,” before we know it (Proverbs 23:5). Or, we can concentrate on being content and enjoying the good things in life (Ecclesiastes 2:22-24; 3:12-13, 22; 9:7).
 
When we are confronted with the death of a loved one, we may stop to think what all we could have done for him or her, when we had opportunity, but we were just “too busy” and “occupied” with seemingly more important matters. We just waited too long and missed opportunities to “give flowers to the living.”
 
A word of kindness, fitly spoken at the right time (Proverbs 25:11), or an act of love and mercy, expressing our appreciation and concern for another dear person, will not only brighten his or her days, but ours as well (Proverbs 11:17). If misunderstandings have severed friendly relationships, we ought to try to restore them now. Don’t wait too long–until it is too late (Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, 10).
 
We can concentrate so much on comparatively smaller things, that we overlook and neglect the weightier and more important matters of God’s law (Matthew 23:2; Luke 11:42). Jesus emphasizes its greatness by stressing love for God and for our neighbor (Matthew 22:36-40). Paul encourages us to love one another by refraining from inflicting any harm on our neighbor (Romans 13:8-10). Husbands and wives are admonished to love each other (Ephesians 5:25; Titus 2:4).
 
When we really love someone, we will show him or her our appreciation. True love is much more than just saying, “I love you,” while neglecting to prove it through our conduct (1 John 3:18).
 
We must constantly manifest true Christian love to our fellow man–whenever the opportunity arises (Galatians 6:10). Never be too busy to do this–and don’t wait too long.

President Obama “revealed” his new budget proposal. It’s change, alright. But at what cost? Even an Obama-supporting newspaper like the USA Today cannot hide the fact that Mr. Obama’s new budget is a nightmare of added debts, higher taxes and incredibly small benefits for most Americans. For many, a $13.00 pay increase per salary check is proposed, but other news reports about contemplated rising energy, sales and income taxes… While the uninsured would receive health-care insurance benefits, some of the Medicare help (which is insufficiently bad enough) is supposed to be cut, according to some news reports. Also, it was reported that the permissible cap of charitable contributions for income tax purposes is supposed to be lowered. And employers would be called upon to provide even more mandatory benefits to their employees–which would undoubtedly force them to terminate MORE employees or cut their salaries.
 
In other news, Germany is being called upon–once again–to come to the financial rescue of other European nations, as it is recognized to be the MOST STABLE OF ALL European communities. But Germany is suffering too, and so it should come as no surprise that rightist extremists are dreaming of a return of the Hitler era and the establishment of the Fourth Reich.
 
While rocket attacks on Israel continue, coalition negotiations in Israel failed and it is therefore to be expected that a right-wing government will take over. What this may mean for peace in the Middle East can be seen, too, by the furor of Jewish leaders over the most recent pronouncements by Secretary of Sate Hillary Clinton.
 
An analysis on the recent collision of two strategic nuclear submarines reveals the Satanically-inspired destructiveness of the human mind. It points out that these “are high-tech weapons with an archaic mission: to exact revenge. And they are built for the day the world comes to an end…The submarines… are designed to retaliate with such force that there can be no winners in a nuclear war…” For instance, the Russian strategic nuclear submarine “Donskoy could simultaneously destroy dozens of cities like New York, or level half of Afghanistan.”
 
Finally, in a typical piece of pro-Evolution-anti-Christian propaganda by the left-liberal magazine Der Spiegel, Christians and others are attacked by illusionary scientists who claim that Darwin’s theory of evolution has been proven to be accurate. NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Theory of Evolution–a Fairy Tale for Adults.”

“This Is Change!”

USA Today reported on February 27:
 
“This is change, whether you believe in it or not. And not just pocket change. Following through on many of his campaign promises, President Obama wants to spend about $3.6 trillion next year to pull the nation out of recession and begin major new initiatives in health care, energy and education. All that and more is contained in a 134-page budget request for 2010 and beyond that is unprecedented in size, breathtaking in scope and sure to have a major impact on millions of Americans — if he can get much of it through Congress.

“It’s a budget plan that would help the young by increasing their chances of getting a college education and the poor by providing funds for health insurance. It seeks to clean the air and reduce the USA’s dependence on foreign oil. It would cut taxes on low- and middle-income Americans while raising them, starting in 2011, on couples who make at least $250,000 a year.

“All this would come at a price to be paid by in the future: annual deficits of at least $500 billion, and a federal debt that would reach $23 trillion in a decade…

“In little more than five weeks, Obama has shown he intends to think big and act quickly. He’s already agreed to spend nearly $800 billion over two years to try to jump-start the economy. He’s not only pressed Congress for the second half of a $700 billion bailout of the financial industry, he’s reserving the option for another $750 billion on top of that…”

But USA Today has to admit the incredible “risks” involved with this proposed budget. It states:

“Even groups aligned with Obama express concern that tax increases at the end of this recession could trigger another one — a situation Franklin Roosevelt faced in the 1930s. ‘The Great Depression was really two big recessions with a recovery in the middle,’ says Bill Gale of the Brookings Institution. ‘There’s potential to do real damage.'”

Mr. Obama’s Proposed Budget–The Big Gamble

Reuters added on February 27:

“President Barack Obama forecast the biggest U.S. deficit since World War Two in a budget on Thursday that urges a costly overhaul of the healthcare system and would spend billions to arrest the economy’s freefall. An eye-popping $1.75 trillion deficit for the 2009 fiscal year underlined the heavy blow the deep recession has dealt to the country’s finances as Obama unveiled his first budget. That is the highest ever in dollar terms, and amounts to a 12.3 percent share of the economy — the largest since 1945. In 2010, the deficit would dip to a still-huge $1.17 trillion, Obama predicted.

“With that backdrop, his budget represents a gamble that Americans are ready for the sort of change they embraced by electing him in November… The cost of extra borrowing to pay for the record budget deficit pushed U.S. stocks and government debt prices down on Thursday. The budget’s healthcare plans delivered a hit to shares in health insurers and drugmakers

“… some analysts questioned whether Obama’s goals were realistic at a time when the economy is still in crisis and the surging deficits threaten to burden a future recovery… While Obama is still basking in high approval ratings from the U.S. public, his stimulus package and other efforts to revitalize the economy have done little to win over Wall Street. U.S. stocks prices hit 12-year lows this week.”

Mr. Obama’s Proposed Budget–“The Great Illusion”

The Wall Street Journal wrote on February 26:

“President Obama has laid out the most ambitious and expensive domestic agenda since LBJ, and now all he has to do is figure out how to pay for it. On Tuesday, he left the impression that we need merely end ‘tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of Americans,’ and he promised that households earning less than $250,000 won’t see their taxes increased by ‘one single dime.’

“This is going to be some trick. Even the most basic inspection of the IRS income tax statistics shows that raising taxes on the salaries, dividends and capital gains of those making more than $250,000 can’t possibly raise enough revenue to fund Mr. Obama’s new spending ambitions…

“Mr. Obama is of course counting on an economic recovery. And he’s also assuming along with the new liberal economic consensus that taxes don’t matter to growth or job creation. The truth, though, is that they do. Small- and medium-sized businesses are the nation’s primary employers… The bottom line is that Mr. Obama is selling the country on a 2% illusion. Unwinding the U.S. commitment in Iraq and allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire can’t possibly pay for his agenda. Taxes on the not-so-rich will need to rise as well.

“On that point, by the way, it’s unclear why Mr. Obama thinks his climate-change scheme won’t hit all Americans with higher taxes. Selling the right to emit greenhouse gases amounts to a steep new tax on most types of energy and, therefore, on all Americans who use energy… Mr. Obama is very good at portraying his agenda as nothing more than center-left pragmatism. But pragmatists don’t ignore the data. And the reality is that the only way to pay for Mr. Obama’s ambitions is to reach ever deeper into the pockets of the American middle class.”

Germany to the Rescue

The EUObserver wrote on February 27:

“German chancellor Angela Merkel has given the strongest signal to date that her country may come to the rescue of embattled eurozone economies… Certain conditions are likely to be attached to any support plan offered by Berlin. While Ms Merkel refused to be drawn on the exact nature of financial support, she made it clear that action to tackle excessive budget deficits would be a stipulation for receiving aid.

“She indicated such action could be carried out under Article 100 of the Maastricht Treaty that allows financial assistance to be given to countries experiencing ‘difficulties caused by natural disasters or exceptional occurrences beyond its control’… German officials hinted support for Ireland could be dependent on the country increasing its low corporate tax…

“Germany [is] seen as the safest EU economy by investors…”

German Neo-Nazi’s Dream of a Fourth Reich

The Daily Mail reported on February 26:

“Neo-Nazis are on the rise in Germany and are planning to exploit the economic crisis to build a Fourth Reich, a defector from their ranks warned yesterday. Uwe Luthardt painted a chilling picture of the far-Right trying to recruit the record number of young Germans facing a bleak future as the country’s economy contracts and unemployment mounts. Experts fear that the worsening conditions are worryingly similar to those of the late 1920s and early 1930s which propelled Hitler’s Nazi regime – the Third Reich – to power…

“German unemployment has climbed by 63,000 this month to 3,552,000, or 8.5 per cent. Its economy – the world’s third largest – is predicted to shrink by 5 per cent this year.

“A sign of resurgent extreme Right came earlier this month in Dresden where nearly 7,000 neo-Nazis turned up to ‘honour German patriots’ on the anniversary of the Allied bombing in 1945 which killed 25,000 residents. It was nearly double the turnout of last year…

“Mr Luthardt described an organisation that preys on the gullible and the weak who seek, as he did, to restore some mythical glory to Germany while finding scapegoats for the economic misery. He told of weapons stores, how members greet each other with Heil Hitler! salutes, sing the banned songs of the Third Reich, relish the idea of a new Holocaust against the Jews and plot to bring hard-core Nazism back with a vengeance.

“Luthardt was in the NPD for only four months, but quickly rose to become a member of the ruling board. He told Der Spiegel magazine that old Nazis living in South America donate to the party via shell companies. Other funds come from the staging of skinhead-music concerts. He went on: ‘The simple aim is the restoration of the Reich in which a new stormtrooper organisation takes revenge on anyone who disagrees with them… The basic concept the NPD talks about is, “Let’s kick out all the foreigners, then the Germans will have jobs again.”‘”

Israel Moves to the Right

Deutsche Welle reported on February 27:

“Last ditch talks to form a broad coalition government in Israel have failed after Likud party leader Benjamin Netanyahu and Tzipi Livni from the Kadima party were unable to reach agreement. Netanyahu said a coalition with Foreign Minister Livni’s centrist Kadima party was impossible.

“This increases the possibility that Israel’s next government will be an alliance of hawks and hard-line religious parties opposed to substantial concessions for peace. After the talks in Tel Aviv, Livni said the meeting ended without agreements on some substantial issues, like support for the formation of an independent Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, which Netanyahu opposes.”

More Attacks on Israel

Haaretz reported on March 1:

“A Qassam launched from the Gaza Strip exploded off the coast of Ashkelon on Sunday, just hours after Prime Minister Ehud Olmert promised a ‘painful, uncompromising response’ to Palestinian rocket fire… Olmert’s vow came a day after ten rockets were fired at Israel from the coastal territory, bringing the number of projectiles launched from Gaza since the truce to more than 60…  Olmert said that Israel would respond to rocket fire…”

Jewish Leaders “Furious” With Hillary Clinton

On February 27, wcbstv.com and CBS wrote the following:
 
“In a swift about face from her views as New York’s senator, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is now hammering Israel over its treatment of Palestinians in Gaza… On Thursday… she [delivered] angry messages demanding Israel speed up aid to Gaza. Jewish leaders are furious…
 
“Clinton’s decision to hammer Israel comes as the Clintons and President Barack Obama are planning to give the Palestinians $900 million toward the rebuilding of Gaza in the wake of the Israeli offensive that was sparked by Hamas rocket fire…”

Nuclear War at Sea

On February 26, Der Spiegel Online wrote:

“The collision of two strategic nuclear submarines [owned by the French and the British] earlier this month shows that the Cold War is still being fought every day in the Atlantic — with the world’s most powerful weapons… It quickly became clear that a nuclear catastrophe had almost occurred out at sea — and that it could happen at any time…

“Vanguard and Le Triomphant aren’t ordinary attack submarines — they’re rare and extremely expensive ballistic missile submarines. The British have four, as do the French, the Americans have 14, the Russians 15, and the Chinese are believed to have three. The hull of the Vanguard, as tall as a four-story building and roughly 150 meters (492 feet) long, contains a nuclear reactor and 16 ballistic missiles armed with nuclear warheads with a combined power more than 300 times greater than that of the atom bomb that destroyed Hiroshima…

“Neither the British nor the French are willing to reveal when, where and exactly how it happened… Strategic submarines are high-tech weapons with an archaic mission: to exact revenge. And they are built for the day the world comes to an end…The submarines… are designed to retaliate with such force that there can be no winners in a nuclear war…

“That leaves the Russians. The 173-meter (567-foot) Dimitry Donskoy, for example, is the world’s largest strategic submarine… According to the Russian daily Komsomolskaya Pravda, the Donskoy could ‘simultaneously destroy dozens of cities like New York, or level half of Afghanistan.'”

Left-Liberal Propaganda for Darwin’s Evolution Theory

On February 25, Der Spiegel Online published the following “masterpiece” about brainwashed evolution-worshipping scientists (and other “intellectuals”):
 
“The US isn’t the only place with heated debates about Darwin’s theory of evolution: Europe has its own hardcore creationists and intelligent design backers, too… Fundamentalist Christians who believe in creationism — which holds that God created the world and humanity in the manner described in the Bible — reject the principle of evolution and are striking back. They are pushing for the use of school texts that vilify the theory of evolution as a mere ideology. They have sued to have the theory of intelligent design — a water-down version of creationism — taught in biology courses at the same time as evolution, as both an equally valid scientific theory and alternative to evolution.

“‘It would be like claiming a right to teach astrology in a physics course,’ said James Williams, a lecturer in science education at the University of Sussex…

“According to a survey conducted in 2006, the majority of British have their doubts about evolution, and 40 percent want creationism taught in biology classes.

“Scientists agree that the overwhelming mass of evidence supports the theory of evolution. ‘No serious scientist questions the theory of evolution,’ says Ralf Sommer, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Tübingen…

“The guerrilla tactics used against evolution continue to be the same: Evolution’s opponents try to discredit Darwin’s broader theory by looking for gaps and narrower scientific issues that remain answered… Scientists today also know that evolution is verifiable because you don’t have to wait millions of years to see it in action. ‘Evolution can sometimes happen very quickly,’ says Claus Wedekind, an evolutionary biologist from the University of Lausanne — so quickly, in fact, that scientists can sometimes observe it within the space of one human generation.

“Intelligent design and creationism, on the other hand, are not scientific theories because they aren’t falsifiable: They postulate the existence of a deity, a divine creation and guided evolution — all things that can never be empirically proved or disproved… This type of reasoning hasn’t stopped people from doubting the theory of evolution. In Germany, 20 percent of the population doesn’t believe in the theory; in the US, it’s closer to one-third…

“In June 2007, the Council of Europe’s Committee on Culture, Science and Education released a report entitled “The Dangers of Creationism in Education.” According to Anne Brasseur, a member of the council who collaborated on the report, its goal was to firmly anchor the theory of evolution in school curricula.

“The report was prompted by resistance to teaching Darwin’s theory in some European countries. ‘For example,’ Brasseur explains, ‘the former deputy education minister of Poland called the theory of evolution a lie.’

“She went on to list a number of other negative examples:

“In Russia, many parents are strongly opposed to the teaching of evolution in grade schools. In Italy in 2004, there was a proposed decree against the theory of evolution. In Switzerland, the ProGenesis group has a tentative project called ‘Genesis-Land’ that envisions a leisure park on the model of the Creation Museum in the US state of Kentucky… In Germany, the Ministry of Education for the state of Hesse saw no infringement of the curriculum when teachers at a number of schools were found to be teaching the Biblical theory of creation in biology class. The publishing house ‘Studiengemeinschaft Wort und Wissen’ is now publishing the sixth edition of a grade school textbook that includes the theory of intelligent design.

“The Catholic Church’s position on evolution is unclear. Pope Benedict XVI has stated that the theories of evolution and creation are not mutually exclusive and, in July 2007, that ‘there is much scientific proof in favor of evolution.’ Still, in April 2007, he wrote in a theological book published in Germany that the existence of evolution was ‘not ultimately provable.’ In 2005, Austrian Cardinal Christoph Schönborn published an opinion piece in the New York Times entitled ‘Finding Design in Evolution,’ in which he discussed a theory of creation that included the theory of a guided evolution — in short, intelligent design… At previous times in history, the Catholic Church has espoused different positions on evolution. John Paul II, for example, the predecessor of the current pope, apparently gave some recognition to Darwin’s theory when he said in 1996 that: ‘The theory of evolution is more than a hypothesis’…

“According to Brasseur, however, Pope Benedict XVI’s Vatican criticized the Council of Europe’s report — without success. The council ultimately approved the report’s recommendations, with 48 votes in favor and 25 against. As for Germany’s five representatives on the council, three voted against the report, one voted for it and one abstained.”

The “Epistle of Barnabas” is not inspired. It was clearly not written by the Apostle Barnabas. Mosheim states in his “Ecclesiastical History” that the author “must have been a very different person from the true Barnabas, who was St. Paul’s companion.”

The epistle contains numerous Scriptural errors and should therefore not be considered as inspired. It was never referred to by Jesus or any of the New Testament writers as Scripture, and it was not included in the New Testament by the apostles. As we explained in a prior Q&A, the apostles Paul, Peter and John canonized the New Testament Scriptures, but the Epistle of Barnabas was not one of those books.

The Catholic Encyclopedia explains that a reference in the Epistle of Barnabas (in chapter 4, verse 4) pertains to a command given by Adrian in A.D. 130 for the reconstruction, in honor of Jupiter, of the Temple at Jerusalem, which had been destroyed by Titus. Adrian had also forbidden the Jews to practice circumcision. The epistle must, consequently, have been written in A.D. 130-131–long after the canonization process of the New Testament writings was completed.

It is further explained that “the extremely allegorical character of the exegesis leads to the supposition that the author of the letter was an Alexandrian. His way of constantly placing himself and his readers in opposition to the Jews makes it impossible to believe that either he or the larger part of his readers were of Jewish origin. Besides, he is not always familiar with the Mosaic rites… The history of the epistle confirms its Alexandrine origin. Up to the fourth century only the Alexandrians were acquainted with it…”

Some Interesting Concepts

Even though the Epistle of Barnabas is clearly not inspired, it does contain some interesting concepts. For instance, the author speaks out against abortion. It says in chapter 19, verse 5 (We should note that some divide the epistle in different chapters than the ones given in this Q&A): “thou shalt not kill a child by abortion, neither shalt thou destroy it after it is born…”

Abortion is indeed wrong. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Are You Already Born Again?,” pages 13-15.

In addition, the author seems to refer to the belief of a 7,000 year plan–the concept that God assigned six “days” of 1,000 years each to man to rule himself, followed by the Millennium or the seventh “day” of one-thousand years, which is referred to in the book of Hebrews as a “Sabbath” rest (compare Hebrews 4:1-10):

We read in chapter 15 in the Epistle of Barnabas:

“(15:3) He speaketh, too, of the sabbath in the beginning of the creation: And God made in six days the works of his hands, and finished them on the seventh day, and rested in it and sanctified it. (15:4) Consider, my children, what signify the words, He finished them in six days. They mean this: that in six thousand years the Lord will make an end of all things, for a day is with him as a thousand years. And he himself beareth witness unto me, saying: Behold this day a day shall be as a thousand years. Therefore, my children, in six days, that is in six thousand years, shall all things be brought to an end. (15:5) And the words, He rested on the seventh day, signify this: After that his Son hath come, and hath caused to cease the time of the wicked one, and hath judged the ungodly, and changed the sun and the moon and the stars, then shall he rest well on the seventh day.”

For further information on the existence of a seven-thousand-year plan, see our Q&A.

Doctrinal Errors

However, the doctrinal errors contained in the Epistle of Barnabas are quite striking, showing that this book could not possibly be “inspired” by God. We are setting forth below some of its major errors:

Error #1:

The Epistle of Barnabas alleges that the Seventh-Day Sabbath has been replaced by the “eight day” Sunday, on which “Jesus rose from the dead.”

Quoting from the 1885 translation of the “Apostolic Fathers, Charles H. Hoole,” we read in chapter 15, verses 8 and 9:

“(15:8) And, further, he saith unto them, Your new moons and your sabbaths I cannot endure. See, now, what he meaneth. The sabbaths, that now are, are not acceptable unto me, but that which I have made is, even that in which, after that I have brought all things to an end, I shall make a beginning of the eighth day, which thing is the beginning of another world. (15:9) Wherefore we keep the eighth day as a day of gladness, on which also Jesus rose from the dead, and after he had appeared ascended unto heaven.”

Nowhere does the Bible teach that the Sabbath was replaced by Sunday; nor, that Sunday is the “eighth day”; nor, that Christ rose from the dead on Sunday. For more information, please read our free booklets, “Jesus Christ–a Great Mystery,” and “God’s Commanded Holy Days.”

Error #2:

The Epistle of Barnabas alleges that the dietary laws (as contained, for instance, in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14) were never meant to be understood literally and that they were never binding, in their literal application, on anyone, including Jews or Christians.

We read in chapter 10, verses 1-9:

“(10:1) But in that Moses said, Thou shalt not eat the swine, nor the eagle, nor the hawk, nor the crow, nor any fish that hath not scales in itself… The commandment of God is not, therefore, that they should not eat; but Moses spake in a spiritual sense. (10:3) He spake of the swine with this meaning: Thou shalt not cleave, he meaneth, unto men of this sort, who are like unto swine, for when they become wanton they forget their Lord, but when they are in want they think upon the Lord; even as the swine when it eateth knoweth not its lord, but when it is hungry it crieth, and when it hath received it is again silent. (10:4) Nor shalt thou eat of the eagle, nor of the hawk, nor of the kite, nor of the crow. Thou shalt not, he meaneth, cleave to, nor be like to men of this sort, who know not how to provide sustenance for themselves by labour and sweat, but in their iniquity seize the property of others, and, as though they walked in innocence, watch and observe whom they shall plunder, through their covetousness; even as these birds alone provide not sustenance for themselves by means of toil, but, sitting idle, seek out how they may eat the flesh of others, being destructive by reason of their wickedness.

“(10:5) And thou shalt not eat, he saith, of the lamprey, or the polypus, or the cuttle-fish. Thou shalt not, he meaneth, cleave to or become like unto men of this sort, who are impious unto the end, and have been already condemned to death, even as these accursed fish alone swim in the depth, not floating as the others do, but dwelling in the earth below the depth of the sea. (10:6) Thus, he saith, Thou shalt not eat the hare, meaning thou shalt not indulge in unnatural lusts; (10:7) nor shalt thou eat the hyaena, meaning thou shalt not be an adulterer; (10:8) nor shalt thou eat the weazel, meaning thou shalt not do uncleanness with thy mouth concerning food; (10:9) therefore Moses spake in the spirit these three doctrines. But they, according to the lusts of their flesh, received them as being about meat.”

This is utter nonsense and totally contradicted by Scripture. For more information, please read our free booklet, “And Lawlessness Will Abound.”

Error #3:

The Epistle of Barnabas alleges that the “Azazel” goat to be sent alive into the wilderness at the time of the annual Day of Atonement was a symbol of Christ, not of Satan. We read in chapter 7, beginning in verse 6:

“(7:6) How, then, did he give his commands? Attend ye. Take ye two goats, fair and like each other, and offer them up. And let the priest take one of them as a whole burnt offering for sin. (7:7) But what shall they do with the other? Let the other, he saith, be accursed. Now attend ye, how the type of Jesus is made manifest. (7:8) And do ye all spit upon it and pierce it, and put scarlet wool around its head, and so let it be cast out into the wilderness… One is brought to the altar, the other is accursed, and the accursed one is crowned, because they shall see him in that day, who had the scarlet robe about his flesh, and they shall say, Is not this he whom once we set at naught and crucified, and spat upon and pierced? Truly this was he who at that time said that he was the Son of God.”

The Azazel goat was NOT a symbol for Christ, but for SATAN. For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Sacrificial System and the Tabernacle in the Wilderness.”

Error #4

The Epistle of Barnabas alleges that the Twelve Apostles were the most unrighteous of all people prior to their conversion. It says in chapter 5, verse 9:

“But when he chose out his own Apostles, who were about to preach his gospel, they were men unrighteous beyond all sin, that he might show that he came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

Nowhere do we read anything like this in Scripture. To state that the apostles Peter, John and James, for example, were more unrighteous men than others–in fact, “beyond sin”–is utterly ridiculous.

For all the foregoing reasons, we must in no way view the Epistle of Barnabas as inspired. It is a book which contains some truth and many errors, and should not be viewed as a manual for Christian living or doctrine.

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

A new StandingWatch program was posted on StandingWatch, Google Video and YouTube. It is titled, “Too Embarrassed for God?”

In the program, Norbert Link asks the questions whether you are ashamed to uphold Christian values and seemingly unpopular teachings of the Bible? Are you too afraid to reject the theory of Evolution? Do you think that you need to apologize for the biblical truth that man can ONLY be saved through Jesus Christ?

On Saturday, February 28, 2009, Brian Gale and Rene Messier will give split sermons, titled, respectively, “Lying–an Everyday Activity,” and, “The Sabbath.”

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.

Charles Dickens, the famous 19th century English author, wrote a famous novel entitled “Great Expectations.” In this work, an orphan named Pip had a difficult early life but later enjoyed “great expectations” with the help of an unknown benefactor. 

In the recent American Presidential election, Mr. Barack Obama was elected to the office of President with “great expectations” from so many about the future of that great country. Euphoria gripped the USA perhaps as never before. However, within a matter of about three weeks, his popularity rating had plummeted by about 20%! Such are the expectations of so many today that if their leaders promises don’t immediately materialize, then criticism sets in.

Many others have “great expectations” of what they want to achieve in life for themselves and their family. Sometimes success may follow, but at other times such expectations may not be met.

But all true Christians should have “great expectations” for the future for themselves, their families and for all mankind. This is what really matters as we see the world engulfed by so many seemingly insurmountable problems. It is easy to become despondent in such a chaotic world, especially if our own situation is less than promising. But if we can grasp the vision – the big picture – of what God has in store for us and make this center stage in our lives, then we too can have “great expectations.” This is not built on what human leaders may or may not be able to achieve, but what God will do according to the promises in His Word.

Romans 8:18-19 states: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.” That’s the future for us. We should indeed have great expectations!

For the first time, the Ebola virus has been found in pigs–outside monkeys. In some cases, the virus had jumped before from monkeys to humans.

In addition to this dangerous development for humans, former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder (a close friend of Vladimir Putin) met with Iran’s President Ahmadinejad. Even though this controversial meeting was allegedly “cool and tense,” the fact THAT Schroeder even met with Ahmadinejad is remarkable in itself. Iran has reportedly produced now enough enriched uranium to create an atomic weapon.

At the same time, German anti-Semitism amongst Muslims is on the rise. This is equally remarkable, as the Bible prophesies that Edom (Jacob’s brother, and Turkey in prophecy) will collaborate with end-time Europe, against Judah. The final European revival of the ancient Roman Empire is clearly in the making, which is also underscored by new plans for a unified European army.

While Europe and the USA are facing an ever grimmer-looking economic future, Germany and most European nations will revive financially, while it is doubtful that the USA will. However, in the process, a very dangerous charismatic European personage will arrive on the scene to give “hope” to people in despair. We should not forget that Hitler came to power at a time of great economic and political upheaval. We can expect something similar to happen in Europe in the near future.

In his first speech to Congress, President Obama described America “at the crossroads,” claiming that “the Day of Reckoning has arrived.”  And finally, ongoing fighting between Israel and Palestinians belies the hope that the war in Gaza is over.

Ebola Virus Found in Pigs

Reuters reported on February 23:

“The Philippines will slaughter 6,000 pigs at a hog farm north of the capital Manila to prevent the spread of the Ebola-Reston virus, health and farm officials said on Monday… The country has more than 13 million heads of swine… The government said 6,000 pigs would be killed, burned and buried as experts sought to determine the source of Ebola-Reston in pigs as well as pig-to-pig and from pig-to-human transmission…

“It is the first time the virus has been found outside monkeys and the first time it has been found in pigs. The virus had previously jumped from monkeys to humans but this was the first case of a jump from hogs.”

Former Chancellor Schroeder Meets with President Ahmadinejad

Deutsche Welle reported on February 22:

“Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder met with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad after delivering a speech in Tehran criticizing the Iranian leader’s stance against Israel and his denial of the Holocaust.

“The meeting took place on Saturday, Feb. 21, behind closed doors in the president’s offices. A brief statement afterwards said the two had exchanged ideas about regional and international issues. Ahmadinejad also urged global cooperation to solve the world’s problems…

“In Tehran, Schroeder commented that Iran appeared to have good intentions for a new beginning in relations to the West, but developments had not gone as one had hoped…

“Eyewitnesses said the meeting took place in a tense and cool atmosphere… Schroeder, in Iran on a private visit, also met with Parliament President Ali Larijani and Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki. In contrast to the tense meeting with Ahmadinejad, Schroeder’s meeting with former Iranian president Mohammad Khatami — who plans to run against Ahmadinejad in the June elections — was congenial.

“The two politicians spoke German, which Khatami learned when he lived in Hamburg as a moderate cleric before the Islamic revolution in 1979. ‘We are good and old friends and when we were both in office, the countries had the best relations,’ Khatami told DPA news service after the meeting.

“Khatami said efforts were in gear to find a diplomatic solution in the conflict over Iran’s uranium enrichment program, which has produced more than 1,000 kilograms of low-enriched uranium… The amount, if subjected to further processing, would be enough to create an atomic weapon…

“In Germany, the general secretary of the Central Council of Jews Stephan Kramer criticized the Schroeder-Ahmadinejad meeting in an interview with the Hanover daily Neue Presse: ‘Mr. Schroeder is greatly damaging the reputation of Germany and the German government…’

“Iran’s ambassador in Berlin, Aliresa Sheikh-Attar, didn’t think Schroeder’s criticism of Ahmadinejad would damage ties between the two countries. ‘The relations between Teheran and Berlin are too important to be overshadowed by a subject such as the Holocaust,’ Attar said. During his time in office (1998-2005), Schroeder never visited Iran…”

Muslim Anti-Semitism in Germany

Netzeitung wrote on February 23:

“Germany should take anti-Semitic tendencies among its Muslim population seriously, Turkish-German Green party leader Cem Özdemir warned in an interview with daily Frankfurter Rundschau on Monday.

“‘We must unfortunately acknowledge that there are anti-Semitic mindsets not only in the right-wing or among the so-called left-wing anti-imperialists, but also in the Muslim community – particularly among male Arabic, Turkish and Kurdish youths,’ Özdemir, the country’s first leader of a major political party with Turkish roots, told the paper…

“A 2007 study by the Interior Ministry found that Muslim students were far more anti-Semitic than other students, the paper reported…”

A New Plan for a European Army

The Telegraph wrote on February 18:

“A security blueprint charting a path to a European Union army [was] agreed by Euro-MPs on Thursday. The plan, which has influential support in Germany and France, proposes to set up a ‘Synchronised Armed Forces Europe’, or Safe, as a first step towards a true European military force…

“Geoffrey Van Orden MEP, the Conservative European defence spokesman, warned that British ministers are ‘in denial’. He said: ‘They are sleepwalking towards a European army and seem to have little awareness of what is going on’…”

Dire Warning of Deutsche Bank

Netzeitung wrote on February 23:

“Germany’s gross domestic product will likely shrink by more than five percent in 2009, chief economist for Deutsche Bank Norbert Walter told daily Bild on Monday…

“Companies and politicians have sugarcoated the country’s economic situation, the head economist of Germany’s largest private bank said, adding that they are ‘ignoring the truth.'”

U.S. Economy Continues to Go Downward

On February 24, The New York Times published an article with the headline, “Fed Chief Says Recovery May Wait Until 2010 or Later.” In the article, it was pointed out:

“On Tuesday, two barometers of the housing market and consumer attitudes underscored the economy’s downward trajectory. Home prices in the United States plunged at the fastest pace on record in December… signaling that housing was likely to continue declining.

“Consumer confidence also… dropped to a new low of 25 in February, from 37.4 a month earlier, as people fretted about losing their jobs or earning less, and worsening prospects over the next six months.”

President Obama–“The Day of Reckoning Has Arrived… America at the Crossroads”

Bild Online wrote on February 25:

“Barack Obama insisted the ‘day of reckoning has arrived’ when he addressed Congress for the first time yesterday… Obama acknowledged the need for America to take charge on the issue of the global financial crisis: ‘As we stand at this crossroads of history, the eyes of all people in all nations are once again upon us – watching to see what we do with this moment, waiting for us to lead’…

“Obama promised support to the floundering American car industry, saying that the ‘nation that invented the automobile cannot walk away from it’… Leading US car manufacturers such as Chrysler and General Motors have already asked the government for billions of dollars in aid.

“Obama also offered help to the banking and finance sectors, warning that a rescue programme could cost more than expected. He stressed that the aim was to support the people not the banks…

“The US government is working on reducing the burden of financial debt that the country has found itself in, Obama insisted. He said that the budget deficit will be halved in the coming year. In order to save the money, he said he would ‘eliminate the no-bid contracts that have wasted billions in Iraq and reform our defence budget so that we’re not paying for Cold War-era weapons systems we don’t use’…

“And Obama referred to a new era in international politics: ‘… we know that America cannot meet the threats of this century alone, but the world cannot meet them without America.’”

Who Says the War in Gaza Is Over?

AFP reported on February 25:

“Israeli warplanes launched two air strikes along the Gaza Strip’s border with Egypt on Wednesday as delegates from three Palestinian factions were crossing at a nearby terminal, witnesses said. They said the two air strikes left large craters and caused damage to surrounding homes near the border, where smugglers operate a massive underground network of tunnels to supply goods to the besieged territory…

“An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed that two air strikes had been carried out in the area. Palestinian militants had earlier fired two crude homemade rockets into southern Israel without causing any casualties, according to the military.”

The book of Enoch belongs to the so-called Pseudepigrapha books and was apparently written during the first century B.C.–even though some claim that it was written before then.

The term Pseudepigrapha was given to Jewish writings, which were attributed to authors who did not actually write them, but who misappropriated the names of famous people by pretending that they were the authors of those writings. Known “Pseudepigrapha books” include “the Apocalypse of Abraham,” which was probably written in the second century A.D.; “the Apocalypse of Adam,” which was perhaps written in the first or second century A.D.; the “Fourth Book of Ezra (2 Esdras),” which was probably written between 95 and 100 A.D.; and “the Testament of Moses” (or, “Assumption of Moses”), which was written in the first century A.D.

The Pseudepigrapha books also include the Book of Enoch, which is a compendium of four or five Jewish apocalypses, all of which were composed before the destruction of the Second Temple. The book of Enoch is now usually designated as I Enoch, to distinguish it from the later II Enoch, or the “Secrets of Enoch.” The book of Enoch was written by many different writers in different time periods. The whole book is found only in an Ethiopic language, but parts of it have been discovered in Greek and in Aramaic.

In addition, the Pseudepigrapha books include the book of the Secrets of Enoch (2 Enoch or Slavonic Enoch), which is a Jewish apocalypse from the time before the destruction of the Temple. Closely connected to it is the Books of Giants, a writing allegedly associated with Enoch, relating the deeds of the giants who were born by the daughters of men (descendants of Cain) to the sons of God (descendants of Seth, compare our Q&A on Genesis 6:1-4). It is known from fragments found at Qumran and was written before 100 B.C.

In a previous Q&A, we discussed the reasons why the Apocrypha are not to be considered as inspired. Similar reasons exist for the Pseudepigrapha books, including the book of Enoch. In addition, unlike the Apocrypha which are, to an extent, considered as inspired by the Catholic Church, none of the Pseudepigrapha books are considered inspired by either Protestants or Catholics.

From the evidence provided by the Dead Sea Scrolls, we see that this religious Jewish community located at Qumran had writings that included much of the Old Testament. However, other nonbiblical books were also discovered, and this included 1 Enoch along with Tobit, Ecclesiasticus and Baruch 6.

The book of Enoch was quoted in the apocryphal book of Baruch, and in several early writings, including the “epistle of Barnabas,” as well as by Tertullian and Clement of Alexandria. Some have speculated that Jude 14-15 is a quote from the book of Enoch and concluded that Jude regarded Enoch as inspired Scripture. The following two quotes compare Jude 14-15 to the suspected passage in the book of Enoch:

Jude 14-15 reads: “… Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”

Enoch 1:9 reads: “. . . Behold he comes with ten thousands of his saints, to execute judgment upon them, and destroy the wicked, and reprove all of flesh for every thing which the sinful and ungodly have done, and committed against him.”

Even though both passages are close, they are not identical. Jude says that God will “convict” all of the ungodly, but Enoch says that they will be “destroyed.” The rest of the two passages disagree in wording in minor ways.

Therefore, it is not compelling to conclude that Jude quoted from the book of Enoch. Even if he did, he would not have been particularly careful in quoting it verbatim. But apart from the inconsistencies between the letter of Jude and the book of Enoch, and assuming that Jude had quoted from the book of Enoch, this still does not mean that he felt that the entire book had to be inspired.

For an example, Paul quoted a Cretan prophet (whom scholars have identified as Epimenides) in Titus 1:12, but that does not mean that Paul considered the writings of that prophet as godly inspired, or that we should give any additional authority to his writings. Other New Testament quotations from, or allusions to, non-Biblical works include Paul’s quotations of some Greek poets in Acts 17:28 (one of those poets has been identified as Aratus).

In fact, both the Old and the New Testament mention quite a number of books which were not preserved, but which were known to the particular biblical author at the time of his writing. It is obvious that God did not see fit to preserve those books, and they never became part of the canonized Holy Scriptures.

For instance, Numbers 21:14-15 mentions “the Book of the Wars of the Lord.” Joshua 10:13 and 2 Samuel 1:18 refer to and quote from the “Book of Jasher.” 1 Kings 11:41 refers to the “book of the acts of Solomon.” 1 Chronicles 29:29 refers to the “book of Samuel the seer,” “the book of Nathan the prophet,” and “the book of Gad the seer.” 2 Chronicles 12:15 refers to “the book of Shemaiah the prophet” and of “Iddo the seer.” The “book of Jehu the son of Hanani” is mentioned in 2 Chronicles 20:34.

We can deduce from 1 Corinthians 5:9 that Paul wrote another letter to the Corinthians which was not preserved. There is also a reference by Paul to a letter which the Corinthians wrote to him, which is likewise not preserved (compare 1 Corinthians 7:1). Paul makes reference in Colossians 4:16 to an unpreserved “epistle from Laodicea,” which he even instructed the Church at Colossae to read. Luke makes reference to “many” who wrote down events pertaining to the life of Jesus (Luke 1:1-4).

The fact that reference is made in Scripture to some other book or a statement within another book does not mean that those writings were inspired. The same is true for Jude 14. Assuming that Jude quoted from Enoch 1:9, then this still does not indicate that he thought the entire book was inspired or true. All it means is that the particular quoted verse was true.

It is more likely, however, that Jude did not even quote from the book of Enoch. No scholar believes that the book of Enoch was written by the Enoch in the Bible. But it is obvious that the words of Enoch, as quoted by Jude, were something that the true Enoch prophesied. Jude related the prophecy of Enoch, as it had been preserved orally. Notice that Jude introduces Enoch’s words as follows, in verse 14: “Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, SAYING…'” This introduction is then followed by the exact wording of Enoch’s oral prophecy, as quoted in verses 14 and 15.

Note, too, that Jude is not even referring to the book of Enoch in the context. He is just making the point that Enoch had made an oral prophecy, under godly inspiration. That one of the authors of the book of Enoch wrote down the substance of Enoch’s prophecy (even though with slight changes) does not render the book of Enoch inspired.

Consider the additional fact that Moses is quoted in Deuteronomy 33:2, using a similar statement as that of Jude: “‘…The LORD came from Sinai, And dawned on them from Seir; He shone forth from Mount Paran, And He came with ten thousands of saints; From His right hand Came a fiery law for them.'”

While this quote does not reference Enoch, it does verify the same truth of what Jude wrote about.

We can safely say, then, that the Pseudepigrapha books, including the book of Enoch, are NOT inspired writings.

As is the case with the Apocrypha, the Jews never considered any of the Pseudepigrapha books inspired. And as we have pointed out in previous Q&A’s, God entrusted the Jews with preserving the “oracles of God,” including the INSPIRED Old Testament writings. In addition, many parts of the Pseudepigrapha contain heresies condemned in the Old Testament. Especially the book of Enoch preaches falsehood and doctrinal error; for instance, that allegedly angels married humans, and that the giants became evil spirits dwelling on earth (Book of Enoch, chapter 15, verses 8-10). Compare for more information Norbert Link’s sermon, titled, “When the Sons of God Saw the Daughters of Men…”

The Pseudepigrapha books also abound in even more historical errors than the Apocrypha.

Finally, the book of Enoch was never referred to by Jesus or any of the New Testament writers as Scripture, and the book was not included in the New Testament by the apostles. As we explained in a prior Q&A, the apostles Paul, Peter and John canonized the New Testament Scriptures, but the book of Enoch was not one of those books.

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

A new StandingWatch program was posted on StandingWatch, Google Video or YouTube. It is titled, “Mr. Obama’s ‘Beginning of the End.'”

In the program, Norbert Link pointed out that without even reading it, Congress “approved” and rubber-stamped the new $800 billion stimulus package. When President Obama signed it into law, he declared that this was the “beginning of the end.” Considering that the USA is already $10 TRILLION in debt, and that the stimulus package and subsequent measures may very well DOUBLE or TRIPLE the national debt within the next few years, what exactly IS the “end” that we are beginning to see?

A new German program was recorded this week and will be posted soon on Google Video and our German Website (www.aufpostenstehen.de). The sermon discusses the three resurrections. It is titled, “Gibt es ein Leben nach dem Tode “(“Is there Life after death?”)

Our annual conference began today, Thursday, February 26, and will last until next Tuesday. Please continue to pray for successful and inspired sessions.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH for your prayers regarding a U.S. Feast site for 2009. We believe that God has provided an excellent Feast site for us, which is located in southern California. A contract with the establishment has been signed, and further announcements as to exact location and the procedure for individual hotel registrations by participants will be forthcoming.