On May 12, 2007, Dave Harris will give the sermon, titled, “The Image of God.”

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org at 12:30 pm Pacific Time (which is 2:30 pm Central Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

We will soon be celebrating the Feast of Pentecost and reflect on the tremendous gift that God has bestowed on us–the priceless guarantee and down payment of eternal life–His very own Holy Spirit.

As it is true with everything in life, we are called upon to choose–even as it relates to God’s Spirit of Life. God only gives us His Spirit after we repent of our sins and believe in Christ’s sacrifice; after we choose to be baptized by one of God’s true ministers, and after the ministry lays hands upon us. Before baptism, God expects of us to show Him through the choice of our obedience that we really want to receive His priceless gift (Acts 5:32). After baptism, we must continue to choose to obey, lest we drift away and lose what has been given to us (Hebrews 2:1; 3:12-19).

Life requires of us to make choices–continuously. Every choice that we make either brings us closer to God’s Kingdom–or makes us drift farther away from it. Sometimes, it may seem difficult, if not impossible, to prioritize correctly our many challenges–especially, if a Godly choice would not harmonize with our human desires and values. We can make right and wrong choices: We can choose to seek God and His righteousness first (Matthew 6:33)–or to concentrate more on the physical things of this life (Matthew 6:19). We can choose to serve God–or “mammon” (Matthew 6:24). We can choose to love God the Father and Jesus Christ more than everything and everyone else–including our own lives–or to love our mates, children, families, friends or business associates more than God (Matthew 10:37; Luke 14:26).

But even though God allows us to choose, He does not want us to choose poorly. In fact, He commands us to choose wisely–for our own good. He tells us in Deuteronomy 30:19-20: “I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; that you may love the LORD your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days…” And God promises blessings to everyone who chooses what pleases Him (Isaiah 56:4-5).

We might think, in a given situation, that choosing against God’s instructions is the right thing to do–but God would never command us to do or not to do something, if there was a better way or even an acceptable alternative. To really believe that God knows best, and to follow His directives–no matter what–is the only sure road to lasting success. There are no shortcuts–and there are no better alternatives to God’s commandments. God instructs us to “keep His statutes and His commandments… that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days” (Deuteronomy 4:40). We also read Moses’ words to ancient Israel: “And the LORD commanded us to observe all these statutes, and to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this day. Then it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to observe all these commandments before the LORD our God, as He has commanded us” (Deuteronomy 6:24-25).

The gate and way which leads to Life is narrow and difficult, and only few find it (Matthew 7:13-14). Many actually think that good is evil, and that evil is good (Isaiah 5:20). They do not choose the fear of God (Proverbs 1:29), but that in which God does not delight (Isaiah 65:12). However, those who find the truth must also obey and practice it (Matthew 7:21-23). Jesus Christ, in the human flesh, refused the evil and chose the good (Isaiah 7:15-16). So did David (Psalm 119:30)–and so must we.

To choose the right and to reject the wrong may require temporary sacrifices and suffering. Moses chose “to suffer affliction with the people of God” (Hebrews 11:25), in order to obey God, “esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward” (same verse).

With God the Father’s and Jesus Christ’s Spirit within us, we have the guarantee that we CAN choose wisely and obey our Maker in everything (compare Philippians 4:13).

And so, we do have the choice! It has always been our choice–and it always will be. Knowing this–let us choose LIFE, so that we and our children may live–FOREVER!

Peace in Northern Ireland … But There Is No Peace

The Associated Press reported on May 8:

“Protestant firebrand Ian Paisley and IRA veteran Martin McGuinness formed a long-unthinkable alliance Tuesday as Northern Ireland power-sharing went from dream to reality–and all sides expressed hope that bloodshed over this British territory would never return. “Paisley, who spent decades refusing to cooperate with Northern Ireland’s Catholic minority, conceded he had often refused to budge in years past but was ready now. He lauded the Irish Republican Army’s moves to renounce violence and disarm, and Sinn Fein’s decision to cooperate with the province’s mostly Protestant police as genuine. ‘From the depths of my heart, I believe Northern Ireland has come to a time of peace, a time when hate will no longer rule. How good it will be to be part of a wonderful healing in this province,’ Paisley said.

“Tuesday’s speedy, trouble-free formation of a 12-member administration jointly led by Paisley and McGuinness heralded an astonishing new era for Northern Ireland following decades of violence and political stalemate that left 3,700 dead. Paisley, 81, affirmed an oath pledging to cooperate with Catholics and the government of the neighboring Republic of Ireland–moves that the fire-and-brimstone evangelist had long denounced as surrender.”

Sadly, the Bible clearly predicts that there will be no lasting peace–neither in Northern Ireland, nor anywhere else on this globe.  The only hope for worldwide peace is the return of Jesus Christ. 1 Thessalonians 5:3 says: “For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.”

Elections in France — and More Talk of Peace

The Herald Tribune wrote on May 7:

“Leaders across Europe welcomed the election of Nicolas Sarkozy as France’s next president but enthusiasm Monday was tempered with caution, particularly in Germany. While leaders hoped that Sarkozy would reform the French economy, they questioned his protectionist policies and voiced concern that his strong opposition to Turkey joining the European Union could divide the 27-member bloc.

“Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, was quick to congratulate Sarkozy on Sunday night. ‘The German-French friendship will continue to be the basis to secure lasting peace, democracy and prosperity in Europe,’ said Merkel, who like Sarkozy, belongs to the new generation of leaders born after World War II. The European Commission president, José Manuel Barroso, said he was confident that Sarkozy would play the role of ‘motor’ in helping to overhaul EU institutions…

“Russia’s reaction was muted. Sergey Karaganov, dean of international studies at the Higher School of Economics, said in a telephone interview: ‘The only change I see will be the loss of a personal relationship with Chirac. With changes in Germany, France, Italy and the United States, there is an element of unpredictability’ for Russia, he added.

“Analysts said Sarkozy’s foreign policy agenda could ultimately depend on two things: whether the Franco-German alliance can again become the driving force inside the EU; and whether Gordon Brown, who is expected to succeed Tony Blair as Britain’s prime minister, will re-engage with Europe.”

France’s Next President for EU Constitution

Der Spiegel Online reported on May 7:

“Germany, as current EU president, will [breathe] a collective sigh of relief that Sarkozy has prevailed. Unlike his rival Ségolène Royal, Sarkozy does not want to let the French vote again on the constitutional treaty. Instead he wants a slimmed-down version, with only institutional reforms for the 27-member bloc, to be ratified as soon as possible — and not by the people, but by parliament. The discussions about a more comprehensive EU constitution would then be postponed to a later date.

“This pragmatism reflects that of German Chancellor Angela Merkel who, as EU president, has already been working on a roadmap that would save the ‘substance of the constitutional treaty’ by 2009. A further indication of Sarkozy’s new pro-European stance is the fact that in March he was the only candidate in the French election to publicly support the Berlin Declaration, which marked the EU’s 50th anniversary, and which called for the revival of the constitution. It is also in Sarkozy’s own interest to clear the hurdles as soon as possible since France is due to take over the EU presidency in the second half of 2008. If everything goes according to Merkel’s roadmap, Sarkozy could end up being celebrated as the savior of the constitutional treaty…

“Other issues, however, could well lead to clashes. Sarkozy is a genuine opponent of further EU expansion. Even before the entry of Bulgaria and Romania he had called for an end to the accession of any more countries. And unlike his predecessor Jacques Chirac, he categorically rejects EU membership for Turkey. The Turkish newspaper Vatan has called him the ‘greatest opponent of Turkey in Europe.’ Sarkozy has repeatedly explained that as far as he is concerned geographically, Turkey doesn’t belong in Europe, but rather in Asia.”

France Over All

On May 7, Der Spiegel Online quoted the business daily Handelsblatt, as follows: “The new president has a dream: he wants to help France, which has lost its economic and political significance, to achieve new greatness… Sarkozy looks at Europe through a purely French lens…”

US-French Friendship?

The French News Agency AFP reported on May 7:

“World leaders were quick to congratulate Sarkozy on his victory, with US President George W. Bush telephoning him within an hour of polls closing. Sarkozy’s presidency carries hopes of a new era in US-France relations after the frostiness caused by Chirac’s opposition to the Iraq war. In his victory speech, Sarkozy said Washington can count on France’s friendship but urged it to show leadership in the struggle against global warming.”

Tony Blair Announces His Resignation

The Associated Press reported on May 10, 2007:

“Tony Blair said Thursday he would step down as prime minister on June 27, closing a decade of power in which he fostered peace in Northern Ireland and followed the United States to a war in Iraq that cost him much of his popularity. In a somber farewell, Blair made way for Treasury chief Gordon Brown to take the top post.

“Following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the United States, it was right, Blair said, to ‘stand shoulder to shoulder with our oldest ally, and I did so out of belief… I may have been wrong, but that’s your call. But believe one thing if nothing else. I did what I thought was right for our country.’

“Brown, Blair’s dour partner in reforming the Labour Party and a sometimes impatient rival in government, was expected to easily win election as the party’s new leader and become the next prime minister. Brown has never criticized Blair’s decision to go to war in Iraq and has given no indication on how he will steer Britain’s role in the conflict…

“Under the stewardship of Blair and Brown, the British economy has thrived. London rivals New York as the world’s pre-eminent financial center, GDP is up, unemployment is down and interest rates are low, though rising. However, Blair’s promised health and education reforms remain incomplete, and soaring house prices and increasing personal debt threaten to widen the divide between haves and have-nots…

“His decision to stand [shoulder]-to-shoulder with President Bush by committing troops for the invasion divided his party and the country. Blair said he was content for history to judge him, but four years on and with almost 150 British troops dead in Iraq, the war is more unpopular than ever. In Iraq, those critical of the 2003 invasion welcomed Blair’s impending departure… But in southern Basra, where British soldiers have been based since 2003, some worried the city will fall into chaos when Britain reduces its troop presence…

“Blair’s last months in office also have been overshadowed by a police investigation into claims that his party and the opposition traded political honors for cash…”

King Herod’s Tomb Found

CNN.com reported on May 7:

“An Israeli archaeologist has found the tomb of King Herod, the legendary builder of ancient Jerusalem and the Holy Land, Hebrew University said late Monday. The tomb is at a site called Herodium, a flattened hilltop in the Judean Desert, clearly visible from southern Jerusalem. Herod built a palace on the hill, and researchers discovered his burial site there, the university said…

“Herod became the ruler of the Holy Land under the Romans around 37 B.C. The wall he built around the Old City of Jerusalem still stands, and he also ordered big construction projects in Caesaria, Jericho, the hilltop fortress of Massada and other sites… Herod died in 4 B.C. in Jericho. Herodium was one of the last strong points held by Jewish rebels fighting against the Romans, and it was conquered and destroyed by Roman troops in A.D. 71, a year after they destroyed the Second Temple in Jerusalem.”

Herod was one of the most brutal and cruel leaders this world has ever known. Among other terrible crimes, his bad reputation results from his evil murder of innocent children in an attempt to kill Jesus (compare Matthew 2:16-18).

Turkey in Big Trouble

Der Spiegel Online wrote on May 7:

“Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül withdrew from the country’s presidential race on Sunday in disgust after secularists in parliament handed his Islamic-rooted party another humiliating defeat. Gül said the rift in Turkey between secularist and Islamic politicians has ‘damaged the parliament’s honor’ and may force a popular presidential vote… A defeat for Gül — who belongs to Prime Minister Recept Tayyip Erdogan’s Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party, the AKP — is, perhaps ironically, bad news for the West…

“European politicians are now more concerned about the Turkish military, which looks unwilling to keep its fingers out of politics, than any Islamic agenda. Is it possible that Turkey still hasn’t transcended its violent past, typified in previous decades by coups and rolling tanks?… An open conflict between AKP supporters and the military would be fatal for the country…

“The founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal, later known as Atatürk… made Sunday the country’s official day of rest (instead of Friday, the Muslim day of prayer). He introduced Latin writing instead of Arabic and replaced Sharia with a code composed of Swiss and Italian law. ‘Progress means taking part in this civilization,’ Atatürk preached to his people, ‘the Turks have constantly moved in one direction — we have always gone from East to West.’…”

Russian Nuclear Weapons Missing?

The Washington Times reported on May 2:

“Russian President Vladimir Putin told President Bush he could not account for all of Moscow’s nuclear weapons at the same time al Qaeda was seeking to purchase three Russian nuclear devices on the black market, former CIA Director George J. Tenet said… The comments contradict Russian government claims for the past 16 years that no nuclear arms were missing. Alexander Lebed, a former Russian national security adviser, stated in 1997 that Russia could not account for about 80 portable nuclear weapons, a claim later denied by Moscow.”

The Pope Warns Catholic Politicians

Reuters reported on May 9:

“Pope Benedict on Wednesday warned Catholic politicians they risked excommunication from the [Catholic] Church and should not receive communion if they support abortion.

“It was the first time that the Pope, speaking to reporters aboard the plane taking him on a trip to Brazil, dealt in depth with a controversial topic that has come up in many countries, including the United States, Mexico, and Italy… Under [Catholic] Church law, someone who knowingly does or backs something which the [Catholic] Church considers a grave sin, such as abortion, inflicts what is known as ‘automatic excommunication’ on themselves…

“The Pope’s comments appear to raise the stakes in the debate over whether Catholic politicians can support abortion or gay marriage and still consider themselves proper Catholics. In recent months, the Vatican has been accused of interference in Italy for telling Catholic lawmakers to oppose a draft law that would grant some rights to unwed and gay couples…

“Some Catholics say they personally would not have an abortion but feel obliged to support a woman’s right to choose. But the [Catholic] Church, which teaches that life begins at the moment of conception and that abortion is murder, says Catholics cannot have it both ways.”

Terrible Weather Conditions in the USA

The Associated Press wrote on May 9:

“Nature’s fury made life miserable Wednesday from one end of the nation to the other… And although the calendar still said spring, the first named storm of the year was whipping up surf on the beaches of the Southeast.

“… a three-week-old fire in southern Georgia had become that state’s biggest on record after charring 167 square miles of forest and swamp. Smoke and a dusting of ashes filled the air through much of Florida and southeastern Georgia. The haze over most of Florida even closed several highways and sent people with breathing problems indoors.

“… In addition to 11 tornado deaths, two drowning deaths were blamed on the storms, one each in Oklahoma and Kansas. High water had poured over the tops of at least 20 levees along the Missouri River and other streams in the state…

“On the West Coast, in view of many Los Angeles residents, a blaze had covered more than 800 acres in the city’s sprawling Griffith Park behind the iconic Griffith Observatory… In the Southeast, a wildfire in northern Florida’s Bradford County had forced the evacuation of about 250 homes… That fire had blackened 16,000 to 18,000 acres and was 20 percent contained…

“Elsewhere, a wildfire near the Canadian border in northeastern Minnesota had covered more than 34 square miles Wednesday, adding more than 8 square miles in one day, authorities said. It had destroyed 45 buildings, including multimillion-dollar homes, and firefighters said it was just 5 percent contained. More than 100 people had been removed from their homes in the path of the fire.”

State Orders Gas Prices to Be Raised

From the highly objectionable to the totally ridiculous–and because of laws, which make no sense, there is no end in sight of the rise of manipulated unreasonable gas prices.

The Associated Press reported on May 9:

“A service station that offered discounted gas to senior citizens and people supporting youth sports has been ordered by the state to raise its prices. Center City BP owner Raj Bhandari has been offering senior citizens a 2 cent per gallon price break and discount cards that let sports boosters pay 3 cents less per gallon.

“But the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection says those deals violate Wisconsin’s Unfair Sales Act, which requires stations to sell gas for about 9.2 percent more than the wholesale price. Bhandari said he received a letter from the state auditor last month saying the state would sue him if he did not raise his prices. The state could penalize him for each discounted gallon he sold, with the fine determined by a judge.

“Bhandari, who bought the station a year ago, said he worries customers will think he stopped the discounts because he wants to make more money. About 10 percent of his customers had used the discount cards.”

In the vast majority of Biblical passages, the terms “all” or “every” are all-inclusive and don’t allow for exceptions, but this is not always the case. The fact that Bible commentaries and interpreters have IGNORED this vital truth, has misled them to reach doctrinally incorrect conclusions. It is also very critical to read passages in context, and in consideration of other passages which might shed more light on a given subject. Failing to do so might lead to wrong concepts.

For example, we read in Daniel 7:27 that “ALL dominions shall serve and obey” Christ, when He establishes the Kingdom of God here on earth. This might give the impression that there won’t be any who will disobey and who will have to be dealt with, accordingly. However, this conclusion would be incorrect, as we read in Isaiah 60:12: “For the nation and kingdom which shall not serve you shall perish, And those nations shall be utterly ruined.” Compare, too, Zechariah 14:16-19, regarding nations who will at first refuse to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.

We see, then, that even though we read that “ALL dominions” will serve and obey Christ, some will NOT do so, at first. In fact, some will stubbornly REFUSE to obey at all.

However, we read that God “is the Savior of ALL men, ESPECIALLY of those who believe” (1 Timothy 4:10). At the same time, we read in 2 Thessalonians 2:12 that “they ALL may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” These passages don’t contradict each other; nor are they all-inclusive. God is the potential Savior of all men who believe now, and who will come to believe later, even though they may not believe now. And those who don’t believe when Christ returns will be “condemned” or “dealt with” at that time, but this is not to say that they will be thrown into the lake of fire because they have committed the unpardonable sin–most of them will be resurrected in the Second Resurrection to be “judged” (Revelation 20:11-12). For more information, please read our free booklets, “Do We Have an Immortal Soul?“, and “God’s Commanded Holy Days.”

Also, the concept that Christ is the Savior of ALL men does not rule out the fact that some will NOT be saved. Here, the word “ALL” is NOT used in an all-inclusive sense. Some WILL commit the unpardonable sin and be destroyed and burned up in the lake of fire (Hebrews 6:4-8; Revelation 20:13-15).

Still, we read that “ALL Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:26). As stated, this might give the impression that every last Israelite will inherit salvation. But this is not true, as there will be some who will reject salvation. For instance, Christ warned the Pharisees that they were walking on very thin ice, heading towards committing the unpardonable sin (compare Mark 3:28-30 and Matthew 9:34).

Paul continues in Romans 11:32 that God, in His dealings with Israel, “has committed them ALL to disobedience, that He might have mercy on ALL.” In both cases, the word “all” is not used to teach all-inclusiveness, without any exceptions. Not every last Israelite will repent, and not every Israelite–even at the time of Paul–was disobedient. The early Church of God consisted at first exclusively of Israelites who had become obedient to the faith.

We also read in Romans 14:11 that “EVERY tongue shall confess” to God. But again, this does not include every last person, as some will not confess to God, but instead, they will be destroyed in the lake of fire–they will die the second death–in utter rebellion to God.

There are additional examples where the words “all” or “every” are not to be understood in an all-inclusive sense.

In Luke 8:45, a woman touched Christ, in order to be healed, and when Christ asked who had touched Him, it says that “ALL denied it.” Then Peter and other disciples said to Him, “The multitudes throng and press You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?'” We then read that the woman came forward and confessed (verse 47). Therefore, when “ALL” denied that they touched Him, this apparently excluded the woman and most certainly His disciples, who admitted that they and others had “touched” Jesus, without understanding the relevance of His question.

In Matthew 23:3, Christ told the Jews to “obey ALL” (Authorized Version) what the scribes and Pharisees commanded them to do. In Ephesians 5:24, Paul says that women are to be submissive to their husbands in EVERYTHING. And Peter says in 1 Peter 2:13 that we are to submit ourselves to EVERY ordinance of man. However, these passages are not all-inclusive and allow–yes, DEMAND–an exception. This exception is found in Acts 5:27-32, where Peter makes it clear that we must obey God rather than man, and that we must DISOBEY man if we would otherwise disobey God.

We also read that the gospel of the Kingdom of God will be preached in all the world as a witness, and then the end will come (Matthew 24:14). This does not mean that every last person on earth will hear the gospel just prior to Christ’s return. There will be those alive at the beginning of the Millennium who never heard Christ’s gospel message (compare Isaiah 66:19). This is why Matthew 24:14 must be read together with Scriptures such as Mark 13:10 and Luke 24:47, stating that the gospel will be preached “among” all nations.

We read in Revelation 1:7 that “every eye” will see Christ when He returns–“even they who pierced Him.” But we know from other Scriptures that only those who are alive at the time of Christ’s return will see Him–in addition to those few (part of the firstfruits) who were alive at the time of Christ’s First Coming, originally consenting to His death, but who then came to repentance and died in the faith, and who will therefore be in the First Resurrection. The overwhelming majority of mankind will NOT see Him at the time of His return; yet, it says that “EVERY EYE” will see Him. What is meant in Revelation 1:7 is that all who are ALIVE at the time of His return will see Him–because we all are responsible for Christ’s death through our sins.

In Luke 17:26-29, Christ says that “all” were destroyed at the time of Noah, except for Noah; and that “all” were destroyed in Sodom, except for Lot. But other Scriptures tell us that Noah’s FAMILY was also spared, and so were Lot’s DAUGHTERS.

In Luke 6:30, Christ tells us that we are to give to EVERYONE who asks of us and wants to borrow from us. Again, this is not an all-inclusive command, as Paul says, for example, that we must work to make a living, and if we are unwilling to work, we should not eat (2 Thessalonians 3:10). So, Christ was not telling us that we must give to just EVERYONE who wants to eat, even though he is unwilling to work.

In Philippians 2:20-21, Paul says about Timothy that he has no one “like-minded,” who sincerely cares for others, continuing that “ALL seek their own.” But surely, Paul did not mean all the other saints who were with him, because he writes in Philippians 4:21-22: “The brethren who are with me greet you. ALL the saints greet you.”

Finally, we read in 1 Timothy 4:1-5 that “EVERY creature of God” is good for food. Some use this passage to claim that we are therefore no longer obligated to refrain from eating UNCLEAN meat. However, we also read in Genesis 9:3 that “EVERY moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you ALL things, even as the green herbs.” It goes without saying that we must not eat POISONOUS green herbs–even though “all things” were given to us for food–and we therefore must not eat meat which was not created for food (Compare again 1 Timothy 4:4, stating that those who believe and know the truth of God’s Word, as revealed in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14, understand WHICH animals God has created FOR FOOD). We see, therefore, that these passages are not all-inclusive, but must be understood in context. For more information, please read our free booklet, “And Lawlessness Will Abound...”

In conclusion, we ALWAYS need to carefully review the context in light of ALL Scriptures relevant to a certain topic, in order to reach a correct understanding.

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

The new member letter was sent out this week. In the letter, Norbert Link discusses the need to cope with problems and to resist Satan the devil–especially in the days prior to Pentecost.

On May 5, 2007, Norbert Link is scheduled to give the sermon, while visiting the brethren in Oregon. The sermon is titled, “Why the Ministry?”

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org at 12:30 pm on Pacific Time (which is 2:30 pm Central Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

Recently a Sky News report stated that “More details are emerging about Cho Seung-Hui, the student who shot dead 32 people at Virginia Tech university in America.” In a letter found in his dormitory he criticizes what he calls the rich kids on campus and goes on to say, “you caused me to do this.” It also complained about “debauchery” and “deceitful charlatans.”

In an editorial, dated September 10, 2004 (Update #160), I wrote about an attitude which often surfaces, denying personal responsibility by saying, “It’s Not My Fault.” Again, this “no fault” approach reared its very ugly head when a mass murderer blamed his innocent victims for his terrible and insane crimes.

In his letter, the mentally disturbed perpetrator of this dreadful crime complained about “debauchery” and “deceitful charlatans.” It appears very likely that he was influenced by demonic forces, if not possessed. And even though the mass murderer was the child of immigrants from South Korea, he seemed to have been fully integrated into Western society. However, the terrible and inexcusable madness of the crime prompted me to think about the issue of immigration in general.

When students from a different culture move to a new country which has different ideals, beliefs, concepts and way of life, it can be a serious problem. The same applies when immigrants pursue residency in a new country which, again, may have a totally alien way of life to that which they have been accustomed to all of their previous life. Some may integrate and accept the old premise of “when in Rome, do as the Romans do.” Others may find it hard, if not impossible, to assimilate into their new surroundings and hold on to their old way of life and its values, which are sacrosanct to them–and that is when real problems can emerge.

Debate can rage about allowing immigrants–especially those from Third World countries–into a different “Christian” country, but what example do they find when they enter the UK, USA, Canada and many other western nations? They are confronted with easily accessible pornography, licentious life styles, blasphemy and foul language as the norm, entertainment of the worst kind, loutish and threatening behavior to older and more vulnerable people (and to many others), lying, stealing and cheating – and so much more. Galatians 5:19-21 lists the works of the flesh which are evident, on a daily basis, in our towns and cities up and down the land. Those from cultures that are much more “conservative” have a hard time coming to terms with such “liberality.”

We can be very quick to jump on the accusatory bandwagon, but, without excusing any wrong behavior whatsoever, including the senseless killing of innocent people, we do nothing to assist people’s “righteous indignation” when our “Christian” nations provide a backdrop and environment with inherently wrong values in society “as the norm” in the first place.

As we have said so many times over the years–and it is certainly not over-emphasized by repetition–only the righteous rule of Jesus Christ at His return, together with the banishment of Satan, will provide the right environment for correct behavior – behavior that will ensure that the terrible demonically-inspired events at Virginia Tech University will not be repeated, nor the godless life style of liberal nations. But until that day, unfortunately, we will see more of the same.

“Ethiopia Is Now Trapped”

BBC News reported on April 28:

“The Somali capital Mogadishu has this week seen some of its worst fighting for 16 years. A fragile transitional government there has been trying to destroy groups of fighters left over from the so-called Islamic Courts group which was in control of much of the country last year… The capital has been devastated in the past two weeks by intense fighting.

“Ethiopian forces in support of the transitional government, rooted out militia loyal to the Union of Islamic Courts at the turn of the year. In the past fortnight they have unleashed a devastating artillery and rocket barrage on obdurate remnants of Islamic Court fighters in the capital. The Islamists are fighting alongside members of a powerful Somali clan, the Hawiye, who are enemies of those controlling the transitional government…

“It is a complicated and bloody struggle. In the past few days more than 300 have been killed and since the turn of the year 2,000 have died, most of them civilians caught in crossfire. Many thousands have been injured. The appalling violence has led to one of the largest mass migrations in recent times. Hundreds of thousands of people who were living in Mogadishu have grabbed what few possessions they could carry and headed for places of safety.

“Some have moved to the outskirts of the capital away from the fighting. Others have gone out into the Somali hinterland. They have travelled into an environment that cannot sustain them, into villages dotted along dusty roads in the scrubby, scruffy bush of southern and central Somalia, into communities which were hit in the past year, first by drought and then by flooding. There is little stored food, goat and cattle herds are only just recovering and the capacity to feed and care for thousands of displaced people does not exist. And in the past few days the annual rains have started.

“At the best of times Somalia poses huge problems for aid agencies. Now it is, as one aid worker put it to me, ‘a total nightmare’… Cholera is now seeping through the displaced thousands, picking off the young and the weak. In the rain and misery, hundreds have died… Just a few months ago, Mogadishu and much of Somalia were enjoying their most stable period for 16 years. Under the brief control of the Islamic Courts Union, the grip of the warlords was loosened and some of the basic expectations of an organised life were being restored. Schools were opening, police were being trained, roadblocks were removed and litter was even collected from the streets. Many Somalis were unhappy with the more extreme rules of the Islamic Courts: closing down the cinemas, banning music and insisting women [wear] veils.

“But the Islamists were able to spread their power steadily through more of Somalia and this alarmed the government in neighbouring Ethiopia who have long feared a radical Islamic group in control of the country. It worried the Americans too, who feared the Islamic Courts were harbouring al-Qaeda elements. So with tacit American approval and with other international governments looking on, Ethiopia sent troops into Somalia to support the weak transitional government.

“Ethiopia is now trapped. It wants to get out of Somalia, but cannot go until what it calls the ‘Islamist threat’ is eliminated. But every moment Ethiopian troops spend in Somalia stirs up more resentment and their presence acts as a compelling recruiting sergeant for insurgents, who say they will die trying to rid their country of the Ethiopian invaders. “

Pandemic Influenza Overdue

The Coloradoan reported on April 30:

“Larimer County officials are turning their efforts to community involvement and awareness as they try to prepare residents for a potential pandemic flu… Officials believe a pandemic flu, or an outbreak of severe disease that affects a large amount of people worldwide, could occur if H5N1, the virus that causes avian flu, mutates into a human transmissible virus. Although H5N1 isn’t the only virus that could cause a pandemic, it is highly pathogenic and has caused the largest number of detected cases of severe disease and death in humans, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“‘Pandemic influenza usually occurs about three times a century,’ said Jane Viste, spokeswoman for the health department. ‘We are overdue.’

“The flu partnership met last week to brainstorm ways to get Larimer County citizens on board with the emergency plan, believing most people would be unprepared for a pandemic. ‘I would be surprised if 5 percent of the population of Larimer County would be prepared for a severe pandemic if it were to happen,’ said Dr. Adrienne LeBailly, director of the Larimer County Department of Health and Environment.”

Virus Might Cause Disaster for American Freshwater Fish

USA Today wrote on April 29:

“A deadly Ebola-like virus is killing fish of all types in the Great Lakes, a development some scientists fear could trigger disaster for the USA’s freshwater fish.

“Because of a lack of genetic resistance to viral hemorrhagic septicemia, fish populations could be damaged in the same way the smallpox virus struck Native Americans and Dutch elm disease decimated elm trees, says Jim Winton, chief of fish health at the U.S. Geological Survey in Seattle.

“The disease has been found in Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, Lake Huron, the St. Lawrence Seaway, the Niagara River and an inland lake in New York. The aggressive virus, which causes fish to hemorrhage, was unexpectedly found in the Great Lakes in 2005. Last year, it resulted in large fish kills that struck at least 20 species. Scientists are watching to see whether the disease returns in mid-May when water in the lakes warms to temperatures at which the virus attacks.

“‘VHS is the most important and dangerous fish virus known worldwide,’ Winton says. ‘Its discovery in our fresh water is disturbing and potentially catastrophic.’ ‘What’s so disturbing is that it’s killing fish from so many species and with amazingly high mortality levels,’ says Paul Bowser, professor of aquatic animal medicine at Cornell University. The virus does not threaten humans, Bowser says. ‘If you cook the fish, heat will kill the virus,’ he says.

“How VHS got into the Great Lakes is unclear. The dumping of ocean water from an international cargo ship is a suspected cause. Also not ruled out: spawning fish swimming upstream or a bird carrying a diseased fish. Genetic tests show that the strain of VHS found in the Great Lakes probably originated in the Atlantic Ocean, near New Brunswick, Canada…

“VHS thrives in water of 40 to 59 degrees. Most water in the Great Lakes, which contain about 20% of the world’s fresh water, has not hit that temperature yet this year. ‘The best-case scenario is that the virus becomes something that lurks in the background and attacks only when conditions are ripe,’  [Gary] Whelan says [who runs the state’s hatcheries]. ‘I’m not expecting that, but I am hoping.'”

EU-Russian Relations Continue to Deteriorate

The EUObserver reported on April 30:

“German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has warned of a risk of a new east-west conflict following a sharp deterioration in relations between Moscow and western states in recent months.

“Reacting to the news that Russia wants to suspend a key arms treaty, Mr Steinmeier said this was a ’cause for concern’ and ‘goes in the wrong direction. We must prevent this. It cannot be allowed to come to a new spiral in mistrust between the west and Russia,’ he told Germany’s Bild newspaper on Sunday… ‘It is in the urgent interest of Europe to avoid an escalation,’ he said.

“His words come after Russian president Vladimir Putin during his state of the nation address last week said Moscow would suspend compliance with a treaty on conventional arms in Europe. In place since the end of the Cold War, the treaty puts limits on the number of conventional weapons and foreign troops that can be deployed in the signatory countries.

“The catalyst for the sharp rhetoric coming out of Moscow is Washington’s decision to build a new missile defence system in Poland and the Czech Republic, which it says will block threats from countries such as Iran and North Korea… Although the tone has sharpened up in the last few days, the rift in east-west relations comes in the context of more long-term problems including EU worries over energy dependency on Russia, Russian trade relations with some eastern European EU states and western criticism of Russia’s democratic standards.

“The EU trade commissioner, Peter Mandelson, last week even remarked that relations had sunk to levels not seen since the Cold War.”

Turkey Just A Few Steps Away From Chaos

The EUObserver stated on April 30:

“The European Union has warned Turkey’s military to stay out of politics and show respect for democracy, after the army indicated it could step into a political row over the country’s next president to defend secular values… The turmoil came after foreign minister Abdullah Gul announced he would continue running for president, despite having failed to win sufficient support in the first parliamentary ballot on Friday (27 April)… Hundreds of thousands of people took to the [streets] of Istanbul on Sunday (29 April) – also in support of secularism, waving pictures of the father of the Turkish Republic, Kemal Ataturk, and shouting ‘Turkey is secular and will remain secular.'”

Der Spiegel Online added on April 30:

“Turkey has plunged into a political crisis over a presidential election that has pitted the Islamist-rooted government against secular protesters… The Europe Union and the United States have called for a democratic resolution and the Council of Europe, a group of 46 countries aimed at promoting democratic values, said it was shocked at the army’s behavior and said the armed forces ‘should stay in their barracks and keep out of politics.’

“German media commentators blame the army for plunging Turkey into a crisis that has lessened the country’s chances of joining the EU. The military, commentators write, is trying to preserve its own power…

“Center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes:

“‘It seems to be a special Turkish art form to plunge itself into political crises. The country has to choose between returning to the dark ages of the distant past or moving towards a democratic future. This is about nothing less than that, and about whether Turkey will at some point be able to find its place in the EU or simply doesn’t fit into Europe.’…

“Conservative Die Welt writes:

“‘The fifth coup [of the Turkish army] is now happening. The army wants to stop the governing AKP party from making one of its leaders state president. In one way or another the army will take action if the government defies it. It may be that this course of events is the Turkish way of doing things. But it’s clear that we’re seeing a political culture here that is light years away from being brought into harmony with the European mindset in any respect. Ankara’s EU dream is over.’…

“The left-leaning Die Tageszeitung writes:

“‘Turkey is just a few steps away from violence and chaos … With the generals’ threat of a coup and mass demonstrations on the one hand and the government’s uncompromising insistence on making its candidate the president on the other, the final stage of escalation has been reached before the outbreak of violence. Anyone with political responsibility, be it the government, the opposition or the military, who does not now seek a compromise wants to see blood spilled.'”

War Report Blasts Israeli PM Ehud Olmert for “Serious Failure”

AFP reported on April 30:

“An Israeli government commission on Monday accused Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of ‘serious failure’ in the Lebanon war but he refused to step down despite the blow to his flagging leadership.

“Retired judge Eliyahu Winograd, reading from partial findings of an investigation, held Olmert, Defence Minister Amir Peretz and former army chief Dan Halutz principally responsible for the failings of last summer’s conflict. ‘If each or anyone of those would have acted better, the decisions and the results of the war would have been different or better,’ Winograd said of the war that began after Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers on July 12. ‘The prime minister made up his mind hastily, despite the fact that no detailed military plan was submitted to him and without asking for one,’ despite his lack of experience in foreign policy and military affairs. ‘He made a personal contribution to the fact that the declared goals were over-ambitious and not feasible,’ the report said, accusing Olmert of not properly considering political and professional reservations presented to him. ‘All of these add up to a serious failure in exercising judgement, responsibility and prudence,’ said the report.

“The devastating conflict, called the Second Lebanon War in Israel, lasted 34 days and killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and more than 160 Israelis, most of them soldiers, according to government figures. It failed to retrieve the two Israeli soldiers or stop Hezbollah rocket fire that sent a million Israelis fleeing from the north…

“The United States moved swiftly to bolster its closest regional ally, as a White House spokesman told reporters that US President George W. Bush views Olmert as ‘essential’ to Middle East peace efforts. But his numerous critics immediately mounted calls for his government to resign, with a mass demonstration planned in Tel Aviv on Thursday… In Lebanon, meanwhile, a senior Hezbollah official said the damning report amounted to ‘an admission of Israel’s historic defeat’.

“Weakened by the war and a string of corruption scandals implicating him and senior members of his government, Olmert’s ratings have sunk to an historic low with just two percent of Israelis trusting him, according to opinion polls.”

Further Victory of Homosexuals in Europe

Roman Catholic News Agency, Zenit, reported on April 30:

“[Roman Catholic] Church officials criticized a European Parliament resolution that condemns ‘discriminatory comments’ made by political and religious leaders against homosexuals.

“The resolution, which passed 325-124, with 150 abstentions, condemns the ‘discriminatory comments formulated by politicians and religious leaders about homosexuals, as fermenting hatred and violence — even if they were later withdrawn — and it asks that the hierarchies of the respective organizations condemn them as well.’…

“The approved resolution invites member states to propose laws ‘that overcome discriminations suffered by same sex couples’ and ‘reminds all member states that the prohibition of the Gay Pride Parade and the lack of protection offered to its participants are against the principles of the European Convention of human rights.’ The resolution also proposes that an annual ‘International Day Against Homophobia’ be held on May 17.

“Cardinal Angelo Scola of Venice and Cardinal Peter Erdo and Monsignor Aldo Giordano, president and secretary-general of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences, respectively, defended the Church against accusations that it doesn’t respect homosexual persons. ‘There is no homophobia in the Catholic Church and it is time that all this ended,’ Cardinal Scola said… Referring to the European Parliament, he said: ‘There needs to be more respect for the orientation of our people. There is no need to tell lies.’

“Paolo Bustaffa, director of the Italian bishops’ SIR news agency, told Vatican Radio last Thursday: ‘It is clear that they are suspicious of the Church’s thinking in regard to these situations, these people, for whom — the Catechism of the Catholic Church says — the Church has a great respect. Respect for people, however, cannot nullify a problematic aspect,’ he added. ‘There must be understanding but in many cases there cannot be justification.'”

President Bush Supports World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz

USA Today wrote on April 30:

 “President Bush said Monday that Paul Wolfowitz should remain as World Bank president even as the embattled official denounced a ‘smear campaign’ over his handling of a promotion and pay raise for his girlfriend. Wolfowitz, a former Pentagon official and architect of the Iraq war, appeared Monday before a special bank panel investigating the case involving his companion, Shaha Riza, a fellow bank employee…
 
“Bush, at a news conference in Washington with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, was asked whether the Wolfowitz controversy and calls for his resignation were raised in his talks with the two world leaders… Bush said the topic did not come up but added, ‘my position is that he ought to stay.’… Wolfowitz vowed to fight for his job: ‘I will not resign in the face of a plainly bogus charge of conflict of interest.'”

Even though the Bible nowhere states explicitly that the ancient house of Israel kept Sunday, it is very clear from the implicit record that they did. It is also clear that God punished them severely for this practice. We know that they abandoned the weekly Sabbath–the seventh day of the week (from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset). This was one reason why they went into slavery. We also know that they were guilty of idolatry, e.g., Baal worship. And historical records prove that Baal–the sun god–was worshipped on his day, Sunday, the first day of the week. In fact, Baal, the pagan sun god, was worshipped under many different names throughout man’s history.

For instance, we find the following comments in “Funk and Wagnall’s New Encyclopedia,” under “Baalbek,” a town in Eastern Lebanon: “The name, which means ‘City of Baal,’ is derived from the early association of the town with the worship of Baal, a local sun deity whom the ancient Greeks identified with their sun god, Helios; the Greeks and Romans called the town Heliopolis, ‘City of the Sun.'”

Pagans worshiped the sun on Sunday (Sun’s day). It was a heathen festival in honor of the sun god. Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary says that Sunday was so “called because the day was anciently dedicated to the sun or to its worship.” The North British Review, Vol. 18, p. 409, calls Sunday “the wild solar holiday of all Pagan times.” The Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia points out that Sunday–the Dies Solis of the Roman calendar–was the day of the sun because it was dedicated to the sun.

Webster writes in his book “Rest Days,” on page 270: “What began, however, as a Pagan ordinance, ended as a Christian regulation…” Schaff’s Church History states on page 375: “Not a few pagan habits crept into the church concealed by new names. This is conceded by the most earnest of the Fathers. Leo the Great speaks of Christians in Rome who worshiped the sun… In the celebration of Sunday, as it was introduced by Constantine, and still continues on the whole continent of Europe, the cultus of the old Sun god Apollo mingles with the remembrance of the resurrection of Christ.”

The Persians worshipped the sun god Baal under the name of “Mithra” or “Mithras,” and through Persian and Roman influence, nominal confessing “Christians” adopted Sunday worship in lieu of the Sabbath. They simply replaced Sunday worship of Baal or Mithra with Sunday worship of “Christ.”

Note the following excerpts from our free booklet, “Don’t Keep Christmas“:

“The German ‘P.M.’ magazine published a few years ago an article, entitled, ‘Can You Imagine to Believe on Mithras?’ It began this way: ‘An early day in the year 180 A.D. A usual Sunday in the harbor town of Ostia in front of the gates of Rome. Commotion in the different parts of town. Everywhere we see groups of men moving through the narrow village quarters… But no one takes note of them… Everyone knows where the men go to: It is Sunday, the day of the Sun – the men are going to services. Are they Christians? Do we experience here a typical scene from the early days of this religion? No – the men worship another god. Mithras is the name of that transcendent being from whom they expect salvation… Mithras was the main god of the Roman legions… It was Emperor Constantine who was pushing in the Council of Nice (which is in Turkey today) in 325 to unite his subjects under one faith… Although the emperor himself belonged to the cult of the sun worship (he was only baptized on his deathbed), he decided on Christianity as the common confession for all the Romans. In order to make the new religion acceptable for the followers of Mithras, he declared Sunday as the common day of rest for all of his empire…

“Listen to this additional explanation from Esme Wynne-Tyson’s ‘Mithras, The Fellow in the Cap,’ as stated on pp. 22 and 24: ‘From the first, Mithras was equated with the Sun and with light… In brief, he is a pagan Christ… Mithras was… the Sun-God… Sunday… was consecrated to him, and known as the Lord’s Day long before the Christian era’…

“John M. Robertson wrote in ‘Pagan Christs, Studies in Comparative Hierology,’ on pp. 305, 306, 327: ‘The first day of the week,Sunday, was apparently from time immemorial consecrated to Mithra…’

“Listen to this remarkable quote from H.G. Well’s, author of fictitious novels such as ‘The Time Machine,’ and ‘The Invisible Man.’ He also wrote, ‘The Outline of History,’ pointing out on page 543: ‘It would seem the Christians adopted Sunday as their chief day of worship instead of the… Sabbath, from the Mithraic cult.'”

Returning to the ancient house of Israel, we find that under King Jeroboam, they began to worship Baal. We read in 1 Kings 12:28 that the king “made two calves of gold,” telling the people that they were “your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt.”

Later, in 2 Kings 17:16-17, we find this revealing statement:

“So they left ALL the commandments of the LORD their God [including the Sabbath commandment and the injunction against committing idolatry], made for themselves a molded image and two calves, made a wooden image and worshipped all the host of heaven, AND SERVED BAAL. And they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, practiced witchcraft and soothsaying, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD…”

The fact that they turned to Baal worship is proof in itself that they began to observe his day–the first day of the week, i.e., Sunday. Some 200 years later, God rebuked the house of Israel through the prophet Hosea, comparing it with a fallen or unfaithful woman: “‘I will punish her For the DAYS of the Baals to which she burned incense… But Me she forgot,’ says the LORD” (Hosea 2:13).

The commentary of Jamieson, Fausset and Brown explains the expression “DAYS of BAALS” as follows: “the days consecrated to the Baals, or various images of Baal in different cities, whence the names Baal-gad, Baal-hermon, etc.” These “days” included Sunday, as well as other pagan holidays.

Returning to King Jeroboam, note what else is revealed about him in 2 Kings 17:21-23:

“Then Jeroboam drove Israel from following the LORD, and made them commit a great sin. For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they did not depart from them, until the LORD removed Israel out of His sight… So Israel was carried away from their own land to Assyria…”

It appears, therefore, that Jeroboam’s GREAT sin, as well as ALL THE SINS which he did and which were adopted by the house of Israel, included the abolishment of the Sabbath and the adoption of Sunday worship. The Bible says that they continued with that practice, until God punished them severely by carrying them away–into Assyrian slavery (compare Ezekiel 20:12-13, 18-20, 23-24).

God is the same yesterday, today and forever. As He had commanded ancient Israel to worship Him on the Sabbath, and to reject the pagan practice of worshipping false gods on Sunday, so He requires the same of us today. As we show in our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America,” the modern house of Israel can be found today in the United States of America, Great Britain and other Commonwealth countries, such as Canada and Australia. As God punished the ancient house of Israel for their sins, including the breaking of His Sabbath commandment and replacing it with Sunday worship, so He has prophesied that He will do the same in the near future to the modern house of Israel, unless they repent.

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

Our new booklet, “The Meaning of God’s Fall Holy Days,” has entered the second review cycle.

A new member letter has been written and will be sent out early next week. In the letter, Norbert Link discusses the need to cope with problems and to resist Satan the devil, who is filled with destructive rage.

This week, we sent out the following announcement regarding our 120th StandingWatch program:

“Is Russia a Threat?

“In light of Russia’s most recent brutal crack-down on opposition protests, the German and European press used strong words of condemnation. It was stated that Russia is not a democracy; that its course is miles away from Western values; that Russia cannot be a strategic partner for Europe; and that Europe should keep its energy dependence on Russia as low as possible. What do these developments mean, and why should YOU be concerned?

“View it now on Google or StandingWatch.”

by Shelly Bruno

I wish I had gotten a warning message a few weeks back. Something to indicate what was to come, prior to the fateful moment when I pushed the power button on my computer for the last time. Yes, time was up, and that was the end of my hard drive. The end of all my work, digital photos, and all the files that I had collected and created over the last year. If only I had known when my computer would crash, then I would have backed up my files and had been prepared. I even had the right tool—a backup drive I hadn’t taken out of the plastic packaging. But it was too late—I didn’t use that tool, and I had waited too long—time had run out.

This painful event got me thinking about what else I’ve been neglecting to prepare for in my life. Specifically, my spiritual life. Am I putting off tomorrow what I should be preparing for today? If I knew how much time was left, then I could make sure I’m prepared for Christ’s return. But that isn’t the way it works—I am to prepare every day.

So as I rebuild my computer system and establish a proper backup, I’m thinking about how I can improve my spiritual preparation. Do I have the tools I need to ensure that I’m prepared? I know I’ve got one great tool—my Bible. This time I’ll make sure it’s not wrapped up in plastic.

It is difficult for us to fully comprehend the loss of one life and the effects it has on the lives of those who are close to it, much less the loss of over 30 people in a wholly senseless act.

The tragedy at Virginia Tech this past week has garnered much of the attention of the American people. Many vigils have been organized, countless press conferences have been given, and the news was saturated with every possible detail.

But where is the mourning for the nearly 3,700 that were unjustifiably killed today… yesterday… the day before, and will be killed tomorrow and each and every day in America? There have been 48,000,000+ innocents in the US alone that have been murdered since the abominable judgment rendered in Roe v. Wade (1973).

Can we grasp the magnitude of these numbers? If all of these children had been allowed to live, their numbers would be larger than the entire population of over 200 countries in the world today. On average, there are considerably more unborn babies killed every day in the US than died in the World Trade Center on 9/11! Yet, there is no war on abortion!

We were devastated when we watched the buildings come down. We shake our heads in disbelief every time there is a school shooting. But the world goes on day to day without mentioning in the news that approximately 126,000 babies are being executed daily in the world. Are we as upset about this as we are about 9/11 and Virginia Tech?

As a country, we condemn others for their human rights violations, and rightly so. But have we looked at the beam in our own eye? Ours is a barbarity that may be unequaled throughout the history of man, and we are supposed to be a civilized nation.

When Christ returns, He will be looking for those that have His mark upon their forehead. It will be upon those that sigh and cry for the abominations committed around them (Ezekiel 9:4). The rest, God has prophesied will be killed without pity and unsparingly (Ezekiel 9:5). The only way to avoid the coming Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord is through repentance… a turning from the wrong way, our ways, and going God’s way.

Rachel is once again weeping for her children… are we? (compare Matthew 2:16-18).

Special Report on Russia

Why Russian Brutality

Der Spiegel Online wrote on April 23:

“Andrei Illarionov, 45, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Cato Institute and former chief economic advisor to Russian President Vladimir Putin, discusses the reasons for the Kremlin’s brutal treatment of the political opposition.”

In his interview with Der Spiegel, Illarionov pointed out:

“Those in power deliberately use violence to intimidate. They want to break the people’s will to resist and act independently, and to do so they are constantly raising the level of aggression. Unlike the mass terror under Hitler, Stalin and Mao, we in Russia are currently experiencing a campaign of terror against individuals and groups…

“Employees of the intelligence agencies… now occupy more than 70 percent of all top positions in the state machinery. The destruction of Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s Yukos oil company, the murder of journalist Anna Politkovskaya, the polonium poisoning of former agent Alexander Litvinenko — the goal in each of these cases is to keep society in a state of constant fear. That makes it easier to control the people. This is the only reason the state-controlled media are allowed to report at length on these cases. It contributes to the climate of fear…

“Russia is certainly no longer a free country. We are moving in the direction of Zimbabwe… All our democratic institutions are also being dismantled… This is why Russia is becoming more isolated diplomatically, and why economic growth is slowing. In a comparison with the 15 former Soviet republics, Russia is now third to last when it comes to economic growth.”

“Russia Cannot Be A Strategic Partner for Europe”

In a related article, Der Spiegel Online wrote on April 23:

“Russian authorities cracked down heavily on opposition protests over the weekend, arresting the anti-Putin camp’s leader, Garry Kasparov, and hundreds of other demonstrators in violent clashes. German commentators voice their concern about the oppressive path Russia is taking and ask: What is it that has Putin so scared?…

“Center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes:

“‘It’s only explicable in terms of fear, namely the fear that those in power in Moscow have themselves, and the fear that they want to spread. Russia is led by former and current intelligence agents, with the natural consequence that suspicion and the hunger for power hold sway over the state… But the reaction in the West is little more than a brief shudder. Putin’s Russia is needed as an energy supplier and is much in demand as a partner, particularly by Germany. … The demonstrators in Moscow and St. Petersburg are therefore not only a nuisance for Putin, but also for his Western friends. The puzzle is not so hard to solve after all.’

“The center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes:

“‘[Russia] cannot be a strategic partner for Europe … Europe should keep its dependence (on Russia), particularly in regard to energy security, as low as possible — and not, as is currently the case, keep increasing it.’

“The left-leaning Die Tageszeitung writes:

“‘The events (of this weekend) make it clear that people and their rights get — literally — beaten down in Russia. A regime that takes recourse in such repressive measures and persists in discrediting itself is clearly afraid… The opposition needn’t hope for support from outside. “Tell your heads of government that we live in a police state,” Kasparov shouted to foreign journalists. This call too may well trail off, unheard.’

“Conservative Die Welt writes:

“‘In Putin’s worldview, political opponents do not have any right to exist. In Russian politics, it’s not about a competition of ideas — with the possibility of a change of government — but rather about holding on to power. Any means of doing so is correct and justified — the baton, the judicial sentence, or the brochures of the Putin youth movement Nashi, in which the opposition is condemned as enemies of the people and agents of the West — just like in the time of Joseph Stalin. That doesn’t mean that we are about to witness the return of the Great Terror, like in 1937. It does mean that Russia is on a course which is miles away from Western values. …

“‘The West would do well to call a spade a spade. False considerateness — out of fear that the energy supplier might turn off the tap — is out of place. The West owes the dissidents in Putin’s empire open and honest words.'”

These developments are likely to continue. It appears that Russia will become more and more autocratic and dictatorial–so much so that Europe will finally intervene–with disastrous consequences for the entire world. Daniel 11:44 predicts that a future European leader will be greatly troubled by rumors or “news from the east and the north”–Russia and its Far Eastern allies–and he shall go out “with great fury to destroy and annihilate many.”

Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin Dies

The Associated Press reported on April 23:

“Former President Boris Yeltsin, who engineered the final collapse of the Soviet Union and pushed Russia to embrace democracy and a market economy, died Monday. He was 76… Yeltsin steadfastly defended freedom of the press, but was a master at manipulating the media. His hand-picked successor, Vladimir Putin, has proven far more popular even as he has tightened Kremlin control over both Russia’s industry and its press…

“Yeltsin… stood atop a tank to resist an attempted coup in August 1991, and spearheaded the peaceful end of the Soviet state on Dec. 25 of that year… But Yeltsin… damaged his democratic credentials by using force to solve political disputes, though he claimed his actions were necessary to keep the country together.

“He sent tanks and troops in October 1993 to flush armed, hard-line supporters out of a hostile Russian parliament after they had sparked violence in the streets of Moscow. And in December 1994, Yeltsin launched a war against separatists in the southern republic of Chechnya. Tens of thousands of people were killed in the Chechnya conflict, and a defeated and humiliated Russian army withdrew at the end of 1996. The war solved nothing–and Russian troops resumed fighting in the breakaway region in fall 1999…

“Yet Yeltsin had made a stunning debut as Russian president. He introduced many basics of democracy, guaranteeing the rights to free speech, private property and multiparty elections, and opening the borders to trade and travel… Yeltsin pushed through free-market reforms, creating a private sector and allowing foreign investment. In foreign policy, he assured independence for Russia’s Soviet-era satellites, oversaw troop and arms reductions, and developed warm relations with Western leaders… Throughout his nearly decade-long leadership, he remained Russia’s strongest bulwark against Communism…

“In the course of the Yeltsin era, per capita income fell about 75 percent, and the nation’s population fell by more than 2 million, due largely to the steep decline in public health… The economy sank into a deep recession in summer 1998, but Yeltsin rarely commented on the troubles and never offered a plan to combat them…

“Yeltsin met about once a month with Putin… He felt certain that the reforms he championed would continue under Putin…’If I had doubts that the reforms might be reversed, I would not have resigned,’ Yeltsin said.”

However, Putin’s power trip has brought Russia back to the times of much-dreaded dictatorship.

Worsening EU-Russia Relations

EUObserver wrote on April 23:

“The European Commission failed to persuade Russia to lift its 16-month old ban on Polish meat imports during high-level talks this weekend, amid worsening EU-Russia relations four weeks before the EU-Russia summit in Samara… ‘Everything remains as before,’ Polish prime minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski said in Warsaw on Sunday night… ‘We do not agree to opening discussions with Russia on a new agreement as long as this issue is not settled.’

“Poland last year vetoed launching negotiations on a new EU-Russia treaty, saying the Russian meat ban is a political ploy to sow disunity between old and new EU states and to punish Warsaw for supporting the 2004 Orange Revolution in Ukraine… The deadlock could see Samara turn into the same embarrassing flop as the EU-Russia summit in Helsinki last November, as well as derail EU efforts to conclude the new bilateral treaty before Russian presidential elections in 2008.

“If the Russian-Polish row is solved in time, EU member Lithuania is threatening to veto treaty talks unless Russia resumes oil pipeline supplies to its petrol refinery in Mazeikiu. Vilnius also accuses Moscow of political punishment for not selling the refinery to a Russian bidder…

“On top of this, UK-Russia relations have become strained over London’s refusal to extradite anti-Putin oligarch Boris Berezovsky and an ongoing probe into the notorious murder in England of anti-Kremlin activist Alexander Litvinenko last year…

“From Moscow’s point of view, the EU’s talk of democratic and market economy values is an attempt to weaken Vladimir Putin’s administration and to get its hands on Russian oil and gas assets, in the context of an ever-expanding NATO. EU trade commissioner Peter Mandelson last week spoke of ‘a level of misunderstanding or even mistrust we have not seen since the end of the Cold War…each suspects the other of double standards. Both believe the other is using the energy weapon as an instrument of politics.'”

“Most Important” Election in France

The Wall Street Journal wrote on April 23:

“In the first round of French presidential elections, goes an old saw, voters choose with their hearts. Yesterday’s favorites, of 12 candidates on the ballot, were center-right Nicolas Sarkozy and Socialist Ségolène Royal. In the runoff, held on the second Sunday after the first, the French are said to vote with their heads, coldly eliminating one.

“The two-week campaign that formally started last night between Sarko and Ségo will show which of the candidates the French dislike least. Mr. Sarkozy, an energetic and divisive former minister, must build a majority off his 30% score yesterday. Though the candidate himself has shunned personal attacks on opponents, the Sarkozy camp is bound to portray the first woman to get this far in a French election as an ingenue unfit for the Élysée Palace. The Socialists will seek to seize the momentum from their candidate’s strong 25% showing to make Mr. Sarkozy out to be an authoritarian maverick with a bad temper and dangerous ideas.

“This election is the most important in decades, bringing in a new generation to tackle the country’s deep economic and social problems. So, after flirting with alternatives in centrist François Bayrou and the far-right Jean-Marie Le Pen, voters put aside doubts about both the main contenders and went for a straight left-right fight in an election that saw record turnouts…

“In a change with previous elections, this one saw little discussion of the world beyond France. The country’s domestic problems are challenging enough. But a newly confident French leader will likely seek to reclaim the country’s role at the heart of Europe… Mr. Chirac leaves behind a presidential office weakened by corruption scandals, his own inefficacy and the Fifth Republic’s inherent flaws… The presidency, as Mr. Chirac also says, will be decided in the next 15 days. One can’t envy the winner’s task.”

The French Elections–from Russia’s Point of View

The Russian Pravda wrote on April 24:

“The result of new presidential elections in France will definitely change the political atmosphere in the country. Relations with Russia may radically change as well. Both candidates… have already criticized the Kremlin’s line… The relations with Russia were certainly not a priority issue for the French electorate; however the basic candidates for presidency touched upon it. ‘The evolution of Russia makes me uneasy,’ says Sarkozy. He says that the Russian policy in Chechnya makes him prefer the USA to Russia. Royal in her turn states that France must speak the language of truth with Russia… Judging by the above statements of the candidates who have entered the second round of the presidential election, the relations between Russia and France will grow worse at least at first.

“Let us suppose that Segolene Royal wins the elections, and left-wing forces will be the ruling power. It was always a more serious problem for Moscow to establish relations with France’s leftists than with the right-wing forces. However, the presidency of Nicolas Sarkozy may bring even more problems. Unlike Royal who openly criticizes US’s policy, the former interior minister of France [Sarkozy] is open for closer cooperation with Washington… Sarkozy did not support the US campaign in Iraq openly, but he said that democracy united France and the USA, and so he rather preferred Washington to Moscow. The Hungarian origin of Nicolas Sarkozy seems to be a real obstacle to the development of relations between Russia and France as East-European problems may interfere here.

“No matter who of the two candidates wins the presidential election, the personality of any of them is going to be a historical figure. Sarkozy is not a genuine Frenchman. His father came to France from Hungary and got the French citizenship in 1980. The father of Sarkozy’s mother was a Greek. As for Segolene Royal, she may be the first-ever woman president of France if [she] wins the race. So, in any case a new president of France is going to be a type of president not typical of France… Neither Sarkozy nor Royal witnessed the alliance formed between France and Moscow for fighting Nazism. But the political views of both were formed under the influence of the cold war which implies that their attitude to Moscow may be negative.

“A new president who is to come will have rather serious problems to solve during a presidential term. Hundreds of thousands of the French have to work abroad in Switzerland, Belgium and Canada because of the high taxes at home. Much is to be done for regulation of the labor legislation. Arab and African immigrants that are flooding France are getting a more burning problem every year. The problem of the Corsican separatists is not settled yet. Aboriginal minorities – Alsatians, Basques and Bretons – demand official recognition of their national and linguistic rights. They say that Paris must stop converting them into Frenchmen.

“As for France’s foreign policy the country is to take a really crucial decision: either to establish closer relations with the USA or resist ‘the Anglo-Saxon world order’. France is to decide either to keep teaching Russia some good sense and build more visa barriers for Russians, or to see Russia as a partner equal in rights and ease the visa regime for Russian tourists.”

U.S. World Bank President vs. Europe

AFP wrote on April 22:

“The furor surrounding World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz exposes the need for overdue reform of the six-decade-old development lender itself, according to experts… Questions about the World Bank’s relevance are being raised, including whether the post-war settlement under which the bank is led by an American and the IMF by a European is past its sell-by date…

“European governments have been pressing hardest for Wolfowitz to bow out over the controversy surrounding his Libyan-born girlfriend, Shaha Riza, who on his direction was given a generous pay deal and guaranteed promotions when she was reassigned from the bank to the US State Department in 2005…

“But for one expert close to the bank, the Europeans have only themselves to blame, after they swallowed their doubts over the US government’s nomination of the former Pentagon deputy chief to take over the bank two years ago. ‘They stood aside when he was nominated as if somehow he had completely changed,’ the expert said on condition of anonymity. ‘And over the past year all the people I knew (at the bank) were deeply unhappy — they saw the things that were happening, but they didn’t say anything.'”

“Scandal Season in Washington”

Der Spiegel Online published an article on April 24 with the headline, “Scandal Season in Washington.” The magazine pointed out:

“The seats are getting hotter for World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. Both still enjoy the support of the US president, but dismissals may be just around the corner…

“Gonzales is in a fix because of false statements on eight fired federal prosecutors. There is much to suggest the prosecutors were handed pink slips for political reasons, and that the White House was involved. Gonzales then went on to lie about his involvement in the matter. On Thursday of last week, he had a last chance to dig himself out of the hole he finds himself in. But his appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee — which he had weeks to prepare for — was a disaster. Not even the Republicans on the panel were in the mood to defend the embattled prosecutor, and Gonzales likewise did himself no favors. Not only did he try to avoid almost every question, but he also claimed memory loss no less than 64 times. This astonishing lack of recall went so far that Gonzales couldn’t even remember a decisive meeting in his office that had taken place just a few months earlier.

“The country’s top law-enforcement officer sounded ‘like the sort of person who forgets where he parked his car,’ the Washington Post scoffed. Republican Senator Tom Coburn snarled at Gonzales: ‘The best way to put this behind us is your resignation.’ The Attorney General of the United States has become a laughing stock for both friend and foe…

“The situation Paul Wolfowitz finds himself in is hardly much better… A veritable ‘civil war’ is raging within the World Bank, the Financial Times wrote recently. And Wolfowitz’s opponents in this conflict comprise the overwhelming majority of the World Bank’s 13,000 employees. A regime change seems to be in the offing, and this time it won’t be happening in Baghdad.”

Mere War Propaganda?

AFP reported on April 25:

“A pair of high-profile US army figures accused the military of spreading outright lies and manipulating their stories for a hero-starved public, during testimony before Congress Tuesday.

“One was Kevin Tillman, the brother of a US football star killed by ‘friendly fire’ in Afghanistan three years ago, who said the military lied about the circumstances of his death to avoid a public relations fiasco and to draw attention from the Abu Ghraib prison scandal.

“The other was Jessica Lynch, a female soldier who decried her inaccurate portrayal as a ‘little girl Rambo,’ firing her weapon down to the last bullet before being captured by Iraqis in early 2003, and then daringly saved by US forces nine days later. ‘It was not true … I’m still confused as to why they choose to lie and try to make me a legend,’ she told the House Government Reform Committee hearing on ‘Misleading Information from the Battlefield.'”

The article continued to quote Kevin Tillman, as follows:

“‘A terrible tragedy that might have further undermined support for the war in Iraq was transformed into an inspirational message that served instead to support the nation’s foreign policy wars in Iraq and Afghanistan… It was utter fiction,’ he said, accusing the military of ‘deliberate and careful misrepresentations.’ In the hours immediately after his brother’s death, ‘crucial evidence was destroyed — including Pat’s uniform, equipment and notebook,’ he said.”

More Terrible Weather Conditions Across the USA

The Associated Press reported on Wednesday, April 25:

“Search teams worked their way through wreckage-strewn neighborhoods in this border town [i.e., Texas-Mexican border] Wednesday after a tornado killed at least 10 people and destroyed two schools and more than 20 homes… Wednesday morning, several mobile homes from the community of about 26,000 residents were missing, officials said. More than 70 people were reported injured in Eagle Pass…

“Severe thunderstorms also battered other parts of Texas with high wind, flooding rain and hail. Streets were flooded and roofs peeled off homes in North Texas as the first thunderstorms moved through Tuesday afternoon, followed by another line of severe storms about six hours later. Television footage showed drivers and residents being rescued from flooded cars and suburban neighborhoods.

“American Airlines canceled about 200 flights in Dallas… The airline also diverted about 80 flights bound for Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport to other airports, including San Antonio.

“Elsewhere, as much as 3.5 inches of rain fell Tuesday on western and central Iowa, washing out roads, flooding basements and causing at least one landslide that buried part of Interstate 29 in Sioux City in trees and mud… More than 5 inches of rain fell at Holdrege and Kearney, Neb…

“In Colorado, six buses carrying at least 60 children were stranded when the storm dropped more than a foot of snow in about two hours… Crews used Sno-Cats to rescue dozens of motorists from snow-covered roads on the plains east of Colorado Springs… Evergreen, Colo., in the foothills west of Denver, reported 16 inches of snow… A tornado damaged several buildings near the small town of Wild Horse about 110 miles southeast of Denver… Another twister touched down in north-central Oklahoma…”

WHY Doesn’t God Fight Our Battles?

Have you wondered WHY God is not giving victory to our “Christian” armies? There are certainly many reasons for this phenomenon, one of which is without doubt our indifference toward pagan religions and demonic worship. God told ancient Israel that He would not fight for them, if they were to turn their back on Him and follow other gods instead. God has not changed. In this context, notice the following article, describing the state of affairs of our armed forces:

The Washington Times wrote on April 24:

“The Bush administration has agreed to allow Wiccan pentacles in military cemeteries in a court settlement announced yesterday by Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
   
“The settlement was filed with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin to settle a suit filed in November against the Department of Veterans Affairs on behalf of several families of Wiccan soldiers and Circle Sanctuary, a 200-acre Wiccan nature center 30 miles west of Madison, Wis. The sanctuary holds the remains of two soldiers, one who fought in Vietnam and the other in Korea.

“Until now, the U.S. government had refused to issue grave markers, headstones or memorial plaques with the Wiccan symbol to join those of 38 other religions — or those with none. In addition to the Christian cross, the Jewish six-pointed star and the Islamic crescent, atheists, Hindus, humanists, Sikhs and members of the Eckankar, Serbian Orthodox and United Moravian faiths also have symbols.
   
“The star in Wicca, a nature-based religion, symbolizes earth, wind, fire, spirit and water. Although its followers say it is not related to the occult, they meet in small groups called ‘covens’ that are usually headed by a woman called a ‘high priestess.'”

Although Wiccan followers might disagree and try to put their spin on the facts, it is generally understood and believed that Wiccan worship is connected with witchcraft in one way or another. God has expressly forbidden us to worship other gods and to engage in witchcraft, sorcery and other magical practices, including consulting mediums or horoscopes, or conducting and participating in séances, as it may open us up to contact and fellowship with the demonic world. NO WONDER that God is not fighting our battles for us these days.

“Large-Scale” Terrorist Attacks on Britain?

Times on Line wrote on April 22:

“Al Qaeda leaders in Iraq are planning the first ‘large-scale’ terrorist attacks on Britain and other western targets with the help of supporters in Iran, according to a leaked intelligence report. Spy chiefs warn that one operative had said he was planning an attack on ‘a par with Hiroshima and Nagasaki’ in an attempt to ‘shake the Roman throne’, a reference to the West…

“The report, produced earlier this month and seen by The Sunday Times, appears to provide evidence that Al-Qaeda is active in Iran and has ambitions far beyond the improvised attacks it has been waging against British and American soldiers in Iraq… It follows revelations last year that up to 150 Britons had travelled to Iraq to fight as part of Al-Qaeda’s ‘foreign legion’. A number are thought to have returned to the UK, after receiving terrorist training, to form sleeper cells.”

German Wirtschaftswunder 2007

Der Spiegel Online wrote on April 24:

“Experts in the government and academia are astonished over the strength of Germany’s economic recovery. Unemployment is declining more rapidly and the government coffers are filling more quickly than during any other economic recovery in postwar German history… stories of vibrant success can be heard all over Germany, which is experiencing the kind of surge in economic energy it hasn’t seen in a long time…

“The labor market isn’t the only area where improvement is on the horizon. Germans… can find themselves witnessing something akin to a miracle recovery. Tax revenues are growing from month to month… According to the economic research institutes, the federal budget will be balanced by next year. To put that figure into perspective, only two years ago Germany was bumping up against the 3-percent limit for new debt stipulated under the European Union pact that ensures the stability of its common currency, the euro.

“The new German dynamism under Chancellor Angela Merkel is attracting attention abroad, too. The London-based Financial Times, notoriously critical of Germany, writes admiringly of a ‘new economic miracle’ — and even suggests that less dynamic economies, such as France or Italy, might be well-advised to look to Germany as a model.”

Germany and USA at Odds Over Climate Protection

Deutsche Welle reported on April 23:

“In an interview published Monday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she did not expect Washington to adopt European goals on climate protection at an EU-US summit next week… The EU championed the Kyoto Protocol to reduce harmful emissions after it was abandoned by the United States in March 2001. But the treaty has been almost crippled by the absence of the United States, which alone accounts for about a quarter of all this pollution… Germany helped broker an agreement last month under which the 27 EU member states will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent from 1990 levels over the next 13 years.”

Toyota Soon “the World’s Largest Automaker”?

Bloomberg wrote on April 24:

“Toyota Motor Corp. sold more cars and trucks than General Motors Corp. for the first time, helped by demand for fuel-efficient models. Toyota’s global sales rose 9.2 percent to 2.35 million vehicles in the Jan.-March quarter, the company said today. GM’s sales gained 3 percent to 2.26 million vehicles during the same period. The addition of its sixth North American factory in San Antonio last year helped spur Toyota’s sales in the U.S., GM’s home market. Demand for Toyota’s Corolla and Camry sedans has surged as sales of GM’s light trucks and sport-utility vehicles have slumped on higher fuel prices… Toyota, which probably earned more than any other company in Japan last fiscal year, is forecast by some industry analysts to overtake GM to become the world’s largest automaker on an annual basis this year…”

Even though God COULD know everything, He has decided NOT to know–generally speaking–how we will act under pressure. God’s purpose is to create in us holy righteous character, which requires free moral agency and the opportunity to chose right from wrong. God tests us to see HOW we will act–that is, He tests us to get to know us better in the process of our overcoming the wrong way and accepting and living the right way. Since God knows even the secrets of our hearts (Psalm 44:21) and our thoughts (Psalm 94:11), He knows what kind of trials He can bring upon us, so that we CAN pass them, and which would not be too difficult for us to bear (1 Corinthians 10:13). [Please read pages 58-69 in our free booklet– “Teach Us To Pray!” –for a further explanation of why God tests us, and why we are to pray not to be led into temptation or very difficult trials.]

For instance, we read in Deuteronomy 8:2:

“And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you to KNOW what was in your heart, WHETHER you would keep His commandments or not…”

In addition, Deuteronomy 13:1-4 says: “If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, ‘Let us go after other gods’–which you have not known–‘and let us serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the LORD your God is testing you to KNOW WHETHER you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after the LORD your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him.”

We should take note of what God told Abraham, AFTER he proved to Him his unconditional obedience, manifested by his willingness to give up his son Isaac:

“And He said, ‘Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for NOW I KNOW that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me'” (Genesis 22:12).

God had said earlier, in Genesis 18:19, about Abraham: “For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the LORD…” Most translations use the expression, “I have chosen him…” or “I have singled him out.” God called Abraham so that he would pass on his knowledge about God’s way of life to his children. But God still had to get to know Abraham, through tests and trials, to see whether there would be any limit to his loyalty and obedience towards Him. We even read that God “knew” Jeremiah before he was born (Jeremiah 1:5)–but this only means that God had predestined to call Jeremiah in his lifetime and give him opportunity to chose His way of life. Jeremiah understood that God had to come to know him–how he would act in trials and challenges. He said in Jeremiah 12:3: “But You, O LORD, know me; You have seen me, And You have tested my heart toward You.”

In order to really get to know us, God must thoroughly examine us (Psalm 139:1). David understood this, and so he asked God to “Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23-24).

God gets to know us through trials and problems. We tell Him, through our conduct in trials, whether we love Him unconditionally–or whether we are willing to draw a line in the sand, saying, “We will go that far, but no further, in obeying God.”

Paul spoke very highly of Timothy, in Philippians 2:19-22:

“But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly… for I have no one like-minded, who will sincerely care for your state. For all seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus. But you KNOW HIS PROVEN CHARACTER, that as a son with his father he served with me in the gospel.” The Authorized Version says here: “But ye know the PROOF of him…”

On the other hand, Christ will say to those who disobeyed God, but who claimed that they did mighty miracles in the name of Jesus: “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness” (Matthew 7:23). These people were never known by God–the implication is that they were not even called by God in this day and age. The Greek word for “knew” in this passage is “ginosko,” which does not have to describe perfect or complete knowledge, but it can refer to the process of getting to know someone. Those who practice lawlessness have, in God’s eyes, not even started the process of becoming known to God, in the sense of overcoming and becoming obedient.

God “knows the hearts of man”–good and bad (Luke 16:14-15; compare also John 2:24-25; 1 Corinthians 3:20). He knows those who disobey Him (John 5:42: ” I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you”). However, the context of Matthew 7:23 is that God did not accept these people as His people, and did not know them as such, as they never began the process of overcoming their lawless way of life. On the other hand, Christ says: “I know My sheep, and am known by My own” (John 10:14; compare John 10:27-28). When we love God, we are known by Him (1 Corinthians 8:3). Paul was confident that he was known by God (1 Corinthians 13:12). God says in 2 Timothy 2:19: “The Lord knows those who are His.”

We explained this concept in our free booklet, “The Gospel of the Kingdom of God,” page 32, when discussing the parable of Luke 19: “Christ gave the servant with the ten minas [the one who had overcome the most] another mina, that is, a rulership position over an additional city. He KNEW what that servant would be able to handle. He had PROVEN this to God in this life” (emphasis added).

Since God also knows those who are NOT His and disobey Him (compare again John 5:42), the meaning in 2 Timothy 2:19 is that God approves of those who are His, who have proven to Him, through their obedience, even in trials, that they really want to be His. But Paul adds the admonition: “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity” (same verse).

Christ utters a similar statement in Luke 13:25-28 about those who claim to know Jesus: “When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’… He will answer and say to you, ‘I do not know you, where you are from… I tell you, I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’ There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see… yourselves thrust out [of the kingdom of God].”

In that passage, a different word for “know” is used in the Greek, i.e. “oida.” According to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, “ginosko [which was used, for example, in Matthew 7:23] frequently suggests inception or progress in knowledge, [while] oida suggests fullness of knowledge.” This seems to say, then, that while Christ did not know at all the people mentioned in Matthew 7:23, He “knew” the people mentioned in Luke 13:25-28 at one time–that is, they were called–but they did not really forsake their way of lawlessness or iniquity. Christ never got to know them fully–He never KNEW whether they would overcome, as they never showed Him through their conduct that they were willing to overcome. And so, they will not enter the kingdom of God, but will be thrust out.

Christ gives a similar warning message in Matthew 25:12, when addressing five wise and five foolish virgins. When the five foolish virgins, who did not have enough oil–symbolic for the Holy Spirit–and who were not ready, tried to enter the house where the bridegroom was, he answered them: “Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.” Christ continued, in verse 13: “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.”

The word for “know” in that passage (“I do not know you”) is also “oida,” suggesting fullness of knowledge. These five virgins seemed to have been known by God to an extent–after all, they were virgins (compare the use of the word “virgins” in Revelation 14:4)–but they had not shown God through their way of life that they were really willing to be ready for Christ’s return. God did not know them well enough. And so, they will not enter the kingdom of God at Christ’s return.

By contrast, Paul was convinced that he was “well known” by God, as he states in 2 Corinthians 6:9. The Greek for “well known” is “epiginosko” and means, “to know fully.” Earlier, he had said that he was “known by God” (1 Corinthians 13:12), using the word “ginosko,” which describes the process of getting to know someone. But in 2 Corinthians 6:9, Paul uses a different Greek word (“epi-ginosko”) to express his conviction that by now, he was WELL known by God.

God had come to know him fully–He knew that Paul would not fall away–he had proven this to God by the way that he lived his life. The same word is used, for example, in Matthew 11:27, where Christ says: “… no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one whom the Son wills to reveal Him.”

At the same time, we must realize that we can turn away from God, even though we have begun the process of becoming known by Him. Paul says in Galatians 4:9: “But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how it is that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage?”

In the messages to the seven churches, in the book of Revelation, Christ points out that He knew the works of each church (Revelation 2:2, 9, 13, 19; 3:1, 8, 15). In each case, He uses the word “oida,” implying perfect knowledge. He observed the way of life of the seven churches, and came to know them. But, not all the works were perfect (compare Revelation 3:2). In fact, He says to the church of the Laodiceans that “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot… because you are lukewarm… I will vomit you out of My mouth… I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent” (verses 15-16, 19).

It is striking that Jesus tells those of Laodicea that they need to repent in order to have a close fellowship with Him: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me” (Revelation 3:20). These statements by Jesus show that some in the Church are not proving to God that they are really committed in their obedience to His way! Jesus promises only to those who overcome that they will enter the Kingdom of God (compare verse 21)! The others do not allow Jesus into their lives sufficiently to be tested and proven–to be known by God!

But as long as we are focused on overcoming sin and living in righteousness, and are zealous about God’s way of life, we won’t cease to be His, even though we slip and fall and obtain forgiveness from God after repentance (1 John 1:9). God says in 1 John 3:20: “For if our heart condemns us [because we have sinned], God is greater than our heart, and knows all things [and so, He forgives us upon repentance].”

When we go through trials, we need to realize that God allows them–or even brings them upon us–to get to KNOW us and to qualify us for His kingdom. This understanding can help us to act as the early apostles did, as we read in Acts 5:41: “So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.”

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

Norbert and Johanna Link will be visiting the brethren in Oregon from May 2 to May 6.  While there, they will also inspect the remodeled facility in Florence where we will hold this year’s Feast of Tabernacles

A new StandingWatch program was placed on the Web, titled, “WHY the shooting rampage in Virginia?” A brief summary is set forth below:

The world is shocked and appalled about the shooting rampage of a mentally ill mass killer, murdering over 30 innocent students and teachers. Why do those incredible atrocities happen in our sophisticated world? Many try to give answers–some of them are in fact contributing causes for those horrible crimes–but it seems that the real reason has been overlooked.

On April 21, 2007, Dave Harris will give the sermon, titled, “Alas, Sinful Nation!”

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org at 12:30 pm Pacific Time (which is 2:30 pm Central Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

The Holy Scriptures compare God’s Spirit and Spirit beings to the wind (John 3:8). Wind is invisible to the human eye. Yet, one can feel its effect on the human body in the form of a cool breeze, or on the earth in the form of a mighty wind.

In addition, the Bible talks about not quenching the Spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:19). Here, it is compared to fire, which can be quenched  through various means. So, a person with the Holy Spirit can lose it (Hebrews 10:29; 6:4-6).

God’s Spirit has also been compared to water. We are told that in the future, God’s Spirit will be poured out–like water–upon all flesh (Acts 2:17-18). Isaiah 11:9 states: “For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea.”

Interestingly enough, water can be manifested in three forms. One is vapor which we cannot see–yet, it is present in the air and measured as relative humidity. The second form is liquid. The human body is, to about ninety percent, composed of liquid, and over seventy percent of the earth is covered with water. The third form is solid, which we know as ice. Water has also interesting qualities: It is the universal solvent–a requirement for physical survival of mankind and the animal and plant world; it seeks its own level regardless of surroundings, and it cannot be compressed; it also expands at each end of its state–frozen or very hot, just before boiling.

Like water, righteous Spirit beings can also manifest themselves in various ways. A righteous Spirit being can be invisible to the human eye; they can be visible to the human eye–yet, still able to go through physical objects like walls or buildings; and they can be manifested in a form which can be touched and felt, as Christ appeared to His followers after His resurrection. 

What is important for us, as God’s people, is to use and maintain God’s Spirit in the manner pleasing to God. We are told to walk in the Spirit; that is, to be a right and correct example to the world. We are also told to grow in grace and knowledge (2 Peter 3:18). Growing in grace is growing in the Spirit. After an orchard has been well watered, it will produce fruit for the owner in abundance. As we grow in the Spirit, we should produce the fruit of the Spirit, as mentioned in Galatians 5:21-22. This is the outward manifestation of the Spirit of God working in our lives.

As we approach Pentecost–the  Festival when the Holy Spirit was made available to the apostles and followers of Christ–let us ensure that we are manifesting the Spirit of God in our lives through the fruit of the Spirit. In doing so, we are witnessing to the world where God’s Spirit is dwelling and working in this present age–that is, in His true servants.

We can then look forward to the future, when God’s Spirit will be made available to all of mankind and when the fruit of the Spirit will be manifested on a worldwide basis–just like a well-watered orchard produces much fruit for the benefit of the owner and the pleasure of those who partake in the eating.

Deadly Shooting Rampage in Virginia, USA

The Associated Press reported on April 16:

“A gunman massacred 32 people at Virginia Tech in the deadliest shooting rampage in modern U.S. history Monday, cutting down his victims in two attacks two hours and a half-mile apart before the university could figure out what was going on and get the warning out to students. The bloodbath ended with the gunman committing suicide, bringing the death toll to 33 and stamping the campus in the picturesque Blue Ridge Mountains with tragedy, perhaps forever.”

The New York Times added on April 17:

“This morning, the gunman was identified as Seung-Hui Cho [from South Korea]… It was the deadliest shooting rampage in American history and came nearly eight years to the day after 13 people died at Columbine High School in Colorado at the hands of two disaffected students who then killed themselves.”

ABC News added on April 17:

“Seung-Hui Cho bought his first gun, a Glock 9 mm handgun, on March 13 and his second weapon, a .22 caliber handgun, within the last week, law enforcement officials tell ABCNews.com. ‘This was no spur of the moment crime. He’s been thinking about this since at least the time he bought the first gun,’ said former FBI agent Brad Garrett, an ABC News consultant. Both guns were bought in Virginia, according to the officials.
 
“Under Virginia law, state residents can only buy one handgun in any 30 day period, suggesting Cho bought his second weapon after April 13, or sometime over the weekend. ‘He clearly spent some time figuring out how he was going to take care of business once classes began on Monday morning,’ said Garrett.”

As Rootsweb.com pointed out on April 17, there was actually a worse mass murder in recent American history, involving the killing of school children: “On May 18, 1927, 45 people, mostly children, were killed and 58 were injured when disgruntled and demented school board member Andrew Kehoe dynamited the new school building in Bath, Michigan out of revenge over his foreclosed farm due in part to the taxes required to pay for the new school.”

On April 19, AFP reported that  “South Korean mass-killer Cho Seung-Hui cast himself as a martyr in a hate-filled manifesto that included photos of him brandishing the guns used to mow down at least 30 classmates and teachers on a US campus… Virginia Tech police chief Wendell Flinchum said Cho was committed to a mental health facility through a court-ordered ‘temporary detention order’ in December 2005, following a stalking incident…  Cho was released for outpatient treatment after a physician certified that while he was ‘mentally ill’ he ‘does not present an imminent danger to himself or others.’ The revelation of Cho’s hospitalization for mental illness raised additional questions as to how he was able to legally purchase the guns used in Monday’s shootings.”

It is obvious to us that the mass murderer was not only “mentally ill”–he was, in our opinion, CLEARLY DEMONICALLY INFLUENCED–IF NOT POSSESSED–when he committed his horrific crimes. The additional fact that apparently, a “personality change” occurred in him a short time prior to his murders, provides additional evidence for this conclusion.

European Press Reactions

European press reactions to this recent massacre minced no words, blaming the American fascination with guns and the relative ease to be able to acquire them for the mass murder. Der Spiegel Online pointed out on April 17: “The local authorities are not the only ones who have a lot of explaining to do [why they did not act quicker and with more competence]. The whole country should be looking at why these kinds of horrible crimes happen so often in the United States. No other country in the world experiences massacres in schools and universities so regularly. Out of 46 of these kinds of crimes that have occurred since 1996, more than half have been in the US… Perhaps the most urgent question is: Is it not finally time for tighter weapons laws? Virginia, the setting for yesterday’s catastrophe, is proud of its particularly lax gun laws. A 9 mm pistol, like the one the perpetrator used, shoots as fast as you can pull the trigger. It is as easy to buy at a private gun fair as a six-pack of beer.”

The magazine added the following in a separate article:

“Across the continent on Tuesday, European media rubber-neck at Monday’s massacre in the United States. Most seem to agree about one thing: The shooting at Virginia Tech is the result of America’s woeful lack of serious gun control laws…
“British daily The Independent writes:

”’The passionate feelings of the gun lobby may be traced to the Second Amendment of the US Constitution, enshrining “the right of the people to keep and bear arms”. Although the provision stems from the times when “well regulated militias” were deemed necessary to protect against a British attempt to regain the lost colonies, it is the default position of any argument against greater gun control here. As such, it has trumped every other consideration, not least the fact that on any given day about 80 people are killed by firearms, the vast majority by murder or suicide. Gun violence may cost $2.3 billion each year in medical expenses, but it is a price, gun supporters believe, that is worth paying to protect a fundamental freedom .’…

“French daily Le Monde writes:

“‘This new tragedy presents a new opportunity for American public opinion to interrogate itself about a society which, as one of the students who survived Columbine said at the time, is very much responsible for what has happened.’

“‘French conservative daily Le Figaro writes:

“‘It was all too easy for the elected representatives of the United States, from the White House to the Congress, to express their sadness yesterday; America’s problem with fire-arms represents a political issue for which they share responsibility. Here is a country that represents the vanguard of development and democracy while it is legal to carry a gun in 45 of 50 states, as long as the gun is not loaded’…

“Italian daily Il Corriere della Sera writes:

“‘Shocked psychologists and sociologists ask themselves how gun violence is to be explained. Some speak of the repressed violence of a country that goes back to generations of pioneers habituated to achieve justice on their own and which is forced to face the powerful tensions within a multiracial society. Others criticize the spread of violent video games (which are, however, a phenomenon that has only emerged in recent years). In any case, gun violence is becoming a common phenomenon in the United States… In the poorest neighborhoods, people are getting used to the use of fire-arms — a phenomenon that is linked to the growing tendency among many young people to resort to violence to settle even minor disputes and to the ease with which weapons can be acquired.’

“Italian daily Il Messaggero writes:

“‘America is a nation that has for some years been in danger of becoming more and more unloved in the world, especially in the poorest countries. During the period following World War II, America was seen as the guardian of democracy and was equated with the defense of liberty; today, America is a superpower that begins wars and lives with the constant necessity of having to defend itself against the enemy — whether this enemy be called Islam or whether it bears the face of the neighbor who has done you wrong.’…

“German daily Bild writes:

“‘Now we will probably begin discussing the overly lax gun laws in the United States. There, buying a machine gun is often easier than getting a driver’s license. And a new ban on violent games and killer videos will also be put back on the agenda. But in the end, nothing is likely to happen. And the next killer already lives somewhere among us. But we have little reason to point an accusing finger at the Americans. Despite strict gun legislation, we (in Germany) have experienced the school shootings in Erfurt and Emsdetten. We have to consider the problems in our society. And we have to take care of our fellow humans.'”

German Press Reactions to American Reactions

After the German and European press published several national and international press reactions to the shooting, many responses from angry American readers were received, requesting the press to stop moralizing and lecturing America, and defending the “constitutional right to bear arms.”

This in turn prompted the German press to respond.

On Wednesday, April 18, Der Spiegel Online wrote:

“Two days after the Blacksburg massacre, media commentators in Germany say that however absurd America’s lax gun laws may seem in Europe, they are a fact of life in the US and won’t change… There are all kinds of reasons that drive someone to commit mass murder. Germany, which has strict gun laws, suffered its own school massacre in the eastern city of Erfurt in 2002 in which 18 people died including the 19-year-old shooter, former pupil Robert Steinhäuser, who was armed with a pump-action shotgun and a 9mm semi-automatic Glock similar to the one used by Blacksburg killer Cho Seung- Hui.

“Center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung writes:

“‘One can’t completely deny the influence of factors such as video games and lax gun laws. Researchers at Iowa State University found that young people who like to play violent video games are more aggressive and have more criminal energy. But what no study has ever been able to prove is the sequence of causes. Do games trigger violence or are they simply poison for souls who already have a propensity to commit violence?’

“‘Of course the constant use of video games can damage a weak psyche. And it’s a perfectly logical conclusion that lax laws like those in Virginia make it far easier to get at an arsenal of weapons. But clinical disorders, the psychological and social development of the shooter and factors like a loss of self-worth or the end of a relationship also play a role in shooting rampages.’… It makes no difference whether it’s the know-it-all attitude of European television presenters or Austrialian Prime Minister John Howard who urged America on the day of the tragedy to change its laws; or the hurried defense of gun ownership rights by President George Bush and his potential successor John McCain. Such contributions are like corn plaster on plague boils. There are no simple explanations for a complex pathology like that of a mass murderer. Only intensive research into suicides can unravel the web of factors that trigger such a tragedy.’

“Conservative Die Welt writes:

“‘Mass murder is possible in seconds… Is that America’s curse? In some American states, guns are largely banned, in others they’re largely permitted. There are urgent and justified calls for legislation to limit gun ownership. In the USA, 80 people die from gun shot wounds each day, in Britain it’s around 200 a year. But the Erfurt school, was that in America? Man is a wolf to other men — the Ancients said.’

“Left-wing Die Tageszeitung writes that the right to bear arms is firmly cemented in the minds of Americans:

“‘It’s part of American postmortem ritual to first mourn what has happened and then in the very next sentence to insist on the right of every American citizen to own his own gun. That is how it is enshrined in the Constitution, says the National Rifle Association, the gun lovers’ lobby. Which means it’s set in stone… But wasn’t the nation ready after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks to do all in its power to prevent future attacks?… The Blacksburg shooting is another wake-up call to American society to finally rid itself of outdated paradigms. If it doesn’t it will have to learn to live with such massacres in future. There will always be homicidal maniacs. But one could make it more difficult for them to take action.’

“Center-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes:

“‘Supporters of a right to bear arms like to refer to the Second Amendment of the Constitution and to history. Non-Americans find it hard to understand a mythology believed in by millions of Americans and nurtured by powerful political forces. Especially after an event like Monday’s rampage it seems like immoral absurdity. But could this deed have been prevented if access to guns had been more difficult? After all, Erfurt is not in Virginia.”

“Business daily Financial Times Deutschland writes:

“‘Non-Americans might find it crazy but the fundamental right of citizens to own guns has been enshrined in the Constitution since 1791. It mirrors America’s fundamental mistrust of government but also the need for self-protection in remote areas… Two out of five US households today own a firearm. As long as the gun laws in rural states remain as lax as they are now for plausible reasons, it will be easy to circumvent the bans that have already existed in cities for a long time. Even a Democratic presidential candidate cannot afford to stir up voter opposition in the South and West with a call for new legislation. In any case, he or she wouldn’t have the power to implement such laws.'”

More British Press Reactions

Britain’s The Daily Mail wrote on April 18, 2007:

“The NRA (National Rifle Association) spends millions of dollars every year to protect the sacred rights of American citizens to own guns, quoting as its authority the Second Amendment to the Constitution (1789) which states, in part, ‘the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed’. But there is a vital preamble to this right which is always ignored, asserting that those bearing arms should be within ‘a well-regulated militia’. Not a single court in the U.S. has upheld the NRA’s claim that when the authors of the Second Amendment referred to a ‘militia’ they meant the citizenry, the ordinary people.

“Indeed, former Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger is on record as saying that the NRA’s interpretation of the Second Amendment is: ‘One of the greatest  pieces of fraud, and I repeat the word fraud, on the American people by special interest groups that I have seen in my lifetime.’

 “This notwithstanding, the gun lobby goes from strength to strength, apparently untroubled by a growing number of admittedly less well-funded pressure groups calling for Congress to take action and control the private ownership of firearms.”

More International Reactions

The Associated Press wrote on April 17:

“The Virginia Tech shootings sparked criticism of U.S. gun control laws around the world Tuesday. Editorials lashed out at the availability of weapons, and the leader of Australia—one of America’s closest allies—declared that America’s gun culture was costing lives. South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said the government hoped Monday’s shootings, … carried out by a 23-year-old South Korean native, would not ‘stir up racial prejudice or confrontation.’ “While some focused blame only on the gunman, world opinion over U.S. gun laws was almost unanimous: Access to weapons increases the probability of shootings. There was no sympathy for the view that more guns would have saved lives by enabling students to shoot the assailant.

“‘We took action to limit the availability of guns and we showed a national resolve that the gun culture that is such a negative in the United States would never become a negative in our country,’ said Australian Prime Minister John Howard, who staked his political career on promoting tough gun laws after a gunman went on one of the world’s deadliest killing sprees 11 years ago. The tragedy in a Tasmanian tourist resort left 35 people dead. Afterward, Australia’s gun laws were changed to prohibit automatic weapons and handguns and toughen licensing and storage restrictions.

“Handguns are also banned in Britain—a prohibition that forces even the country’s Olympic pistol shooting team from practicing on its own soil. In Sweden, civilians can acquire firearm permits only if they have a hunting license or are members of a shooting club and have no criminal record. In Italy, people must have a valid reason for wanting one. Firearms are forbidden for private Chinese citizens.

“Still, leaders from Britain, Germany, Mexico, China, Afghanistan and France stopped short of criticizing President Bush or U.S. gun laws when they offered sympathies to the families of Monday’s victims.

“Editorials were less diplomatic.

“‘Only the names change—And the numbers,’ read a headline in the Times of London. ‘Why, we ask, do Americans continue to tolerate gun laws and a culture that seems to condemn thousands of innocents to death every year, when presumably, tougher restrictions, such as those in force in European countries, could at least reduce the number?’…

“The Swedish daily Goteborgs-Posten said without access to weapons, the killings at Virginia Tech may have been prevented… In Mexico, radio commentators criticized the availability of firearms in the U.S. Others renewed Mexico’s complaint that most guns in Mexico are smuggled in from the United States.”

Catholic Church Tries to Re-Write History

The New York Times wrote on April 14:

“The Vatican’s ambassador to Israel has said he will skip the official Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony at a national museum here on Sunday to protest the museum’s depiction of Pope Pius XII as a largely passive bystander to the murder of Jews during World War II… [The] ambassador, Archbishop Antonio Franco, said that he would not attend the service because he believed the description of Pope Pius XII offends the Catholic Church.

“The eight-sentence caption next to two photographs of Pius XII in an exhibit says his reaction to the ‘murder of the Jews during the Holocaust is a matter of controversy,’ implying he did not do enough. ‘When Jews were deported from Rome to Auschwitz, the pope did not intervene,’ the caption reads. ‘The pope maintained his neutral position throughout the war, with the exception of appeals to the rulers of Hungary and Slovakia towards its end. His silence and the absence of guidelines obliged churchmen throughout Europe to decide on their own how to react.’… The dispute could threaten already fragile ties between the Roman Catholic Church and Israel, which established a diplomatic relationship in 1994.”

In spite of the recent attempt by some Catholic scholars to re-write history, the caption of the national museum on the Holocaust is absolutely correct. It is a historical and UNDENIABLE FACT that Pius XII did not openly oppose Nazi Germany, in order to “protect” Catholics in Germany. For more information, please read our free booklet, “Europe in Prophecy.”

Anglican Archbishop Tries to Re-Write the Bible

On April 18, Britain’s The Daily Mail wrote the following:

“The spiritual leader of the world’s 77 million Anglicans has said conservative Christians who cite the Bible to condemn homosexuality are misreading a key passage written by Saint Paul almost 2,000 years ago.
 
“Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, addressing theology students in Toronto, said an oft-quoted passage in Paul’s Epistle to the Romans meant to warn Christians not to be self-righteous when they see others fall into sin. His comments were an unusually open rebuff to conservative bishops, many of them from Africa, who have been citing the Bible to demand that pro-gay Anglican majorities in the United States and Canada be reined in or forced out of the Communion… The worldwide Anglican Communion is near breaking point over homosexuality, with conservative clerics insisting the Bible forbids gay bishops or blessings for same-sex unions. Its U.S. branch, the Episcopal Church, named a gay bishop in 2003… In the passage of Romans that Williams referred to in Monday’s speech, Paul said people who forgot God’s words fell into sin. ‘Men committed indecent acts with other men and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion,’ Paul wrote” [compare Romans 1:27].

Of course, there are many more New Testament passages where the practice of homosexuality is condemned in Scripture (e.g., 1 Corinthians 6:9-10).

Russia’s Ongoing Dictatorial Tactics

CNN reported on April 14 that several hundreds of Putin’s outspoken critics and “dissenters,” including world-famous former chess champion Garry Kasparov, were “detained” during a demonstration, questioning Putin’s dictatorial politics. We recently published excerpts from a Spiegel interview with Kasparov  in our Update #286 (“Russia–Don’t Close Your Eyes!”). The fact that Russia tried to put the usual spin on these events cannot deny the fact that Putin’s government is using increasingly autocratic and tyrannical measures to suppress any opposition.

Reuters added on April 16:

“The White House expressed deep concern on Monday over how Russian authorities broke up opposition protests over the weekend, calling it heavy-handed and part of an ’emerging pattern of use of excessive force.’… The sharp U.S. criticism marked a new chapter in already strained relations between Washington and Moscow. The Bush administration over the past year has at times accused Putin of rolling back democratic reforms… The Kremlin on Monday defended police action… Germany, currently holding presidency of the European Union, said earlier on Monday that Russia’s police crackdown on the anti-Kremlin protesters and media was ‘unacceptable’ and demanded Moscow explain its actions.”

The Imus Lynch Party

On April 13, WorldNetDaily published an outspoken editorial by Pat Buchanan pertaining to the remarks by Don Imus and his subsequent firing, titled, “The Imus Lynch Party.” In the article, it was pointed out:

“In the end, it was not about Imus. It was about us. Are we really a better country because, after he was publicly whipped for 10 days as the worst kind of racist, with whom no decent person could associate, he was thrown off the air?… when Imus called the Rutgers women’s basketball team ‘tattooed … nappy-headed hos,’ he went over the top. The women deserved an apology… But Imus did apologize, again and again and again… The hypocrisy here was too thick to cut with a chainsaw. What was the term the I-Man used? It was ‘hos,’ slang for whores, a term employed ad infinitum et ad nauseam by rap and hip-hop ‘artists.’ It is a term out of the African-American community. Yet, if any of a hundred rap singers has lost his contract or been driven from the airwaves for using it, maybe someone can tell me about it. “If the word ‘hos’ is a filthy insult to decent black women, and it is, why are hip-hop artists and rap singers who use it incessantly not pariahs in the black community? Why would black politicians hobnob with them? Why are there no boycotts of the advertisers of the radio stations that play their degrading music?…

“‘We know of no spectacle so ridiculous as the British public in one of its periodic fits of morality,’ said Lord Macaulay… Imus threw himself on the mercy of the court of elite opinion – and that court, pandering to the mob, lynched him.”

Bush Under Fire

The Independent wrote on April 15:

“President George Bush is coming under unprecedented pressure from Tony Blair and the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, to agree to tough new international measures to stop global warming accelerating out of control. The measures are contained in a strongly worded draft communiqué for June’s G8 summit in Heiligendamm, Germany… which warns that ‘tackling climate change is an imperative, not a choice’. It adds that if ‘resolute and concerted international action’ is not ‘urgently’ taken, global warming will become ‘largely unmanageable’.

“The United States and Canada are resisting key elements of the draft, but Mrs Merkel is determined not to water it down. She is backed by the Prime Minister, who is ringing Mr Bush weekly to try to persuade him to change his position. The draft warns that ‘global warming caused largely by human activities is accelerating’ and that it ‘will seriously damage our common natural environment and severely weaken [the] global economy, with implications for international security’…

“The United States is at present refusing to agree to any target for limiting global warming, and the issue will come to a head at a crucial preparatory meeting for the summit on 4 May.”

Racism in Germany

The Associated Press wrote on April 15:

“A German army instructor ordered a soldier to envision himself in New York City facing hostile blacks while firing his machine gun, a video that aired Saturday on national television showed… The Defense Ministry said the video was shot in July 2006 at barracks in the northern town of Rendsburg and that the army has been aware of it since January… The clip shows an instructor and a soldier in camouflage uniforms in a forest. The instructor tells the soldier, ‘You are in the Bronx. A black van is stopping in front of you. Three African-Americans are getting out and they are insulting your mother in the worst ways. … Act.’ The soldier fires his machine gun several times and yells an obscenity several times in English. The instructor then tells the soldier to curse even louder.

“According to [Der] Stern, the 90-second clip had been posted on a Web site used by soldiers to exchange private videos. A soldier who used the site alerted his superiors, the magazine reported.

“The video is the latest embarrassment for the German army. Eighteen army instructors are currently on trial for allegedly abusing and humiliating 163 recruits in 2004. Last year, newspapers published photos of German soldiers in Afghanistan posing with skulls — including one who exposed himself while holding a skull. ”

According to an article in Der Stern, dated April 19, the German army instructor has been dismissed. The magazine published an interview with one of the soldiers who obeyed the command, stating that he “disagreed” with the decision to dismiss the instructor, as the video had been “completely misinterpreted.”

Innocent Afghans Killed

According to an article of Der Spiegel Online, of April 15, 2007, American soldiers are accused of killing 10 innocent civilians in Afghanistan in early March, and injuring 33. The magazine quotes the Washington Post to the effect that the accused soldiers misrepresented that they were forced to defend themselves after a suicide attack by responding to “gun fire” from the innocent victims.

Would Jesus Have Looked Like the Pope?

Der Spiegel Online wrote on April 15, 2007, that Germany’s Roman Catholic Cardinal, Joachim Meissner from Cologne, wrote that if Jesus Christ had reached the age of 80, He would have looked like Pope Benedict XVI. The Pope turned 80 on Monday, and the circus surrounding his birthday celebrations “is becoming more and more scurrile,” according to the magazine.

Do Cell Phones Kill Bees?

The Independent published a rather fantastic article about the disappearance of bees, speculating that cell phones are responsible. In that seemingly bizarre publication, it was pointed out:

“It seems like the plot of a particularly far-fetched horror film. But some scientists suggest that our love of the mobile phone could cause massive food shortages, as the world’s harvests fail. “They are putting forward the theory that radiation given off by mobile phones and other hi-tech gadgets is a possible answer to one of the more bizarre mysteries ever to happen in the natural world – the abrupt disappearance of the bees that pollinate crops. Late last week, some bee-keepers claimed that the phenomenon – which started in the US, then spread to continental Europe – was beginning to hit Britain as well.

“The theory is that radiation from mobile phones interferes with bees’ navigation systems, preventing the famously homeloving species from finding their way back to their hives.”

It seems to us that a much more plausible explanation for the disappearance of bees is man’s greedy and uncontrolled desire for wealth, thereby polluting the atmosphere in the process, as we reported in last week’s Update #289 (“Do Millions of Bees Die Because of Pesticides?”)

Iraq’s Ongoing Troubles

The Associated Press reported on April 16:

“Cabinet ministers loyal to the radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr resigned on Monday to protest the prime minister’s refusal to set a timetable for an American withdrawal, raising the prospect that the Mahdi Army militia could return to the streets of Baghdad. The number of bodies found dumped in Baghdad increased sharply on Sunday to 30 — from as low as five in recent days — in a possible sign of the militia’s resurgence, even ahead of the six resignations. The bodies, most of them tortured before they were shot execution-style, are widely believed to be the victims of Shiite death squads associated with the Mahdi Army. Al-Sadr had ordered his fighters hide their weapons and stay off the streets shortly before the U.S. troop surge and security crackdown began on Feb. 14.

“The departure of the six ministers, while unlikely to topple Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s government, deals a significant blow to the U.S.-backed leader, who relied on support from the Sadrists to gain office… Al-Sadr, who has tremendous influence among Iraq’s majority Shiites, has been upset about recent arrests of his Mahdi Army fighters in the U.S.-led Baghdad security crackdown. He and his followers have also criticized al-Maliki for failing to back calls for a timetable for U.S. troops to leave the country.”

On April 18, AFP reported:

“An avalanche of car bomb attacks on Shiite districts of Baghdad slaughtered 190 people on Wednesday and delivered a savage blow to the credibility of a two-month-old US security plan. The series of blasts was the deadliest in the Iraqi capital since the launch of the massive crackdown; the single most devastating blast alone killed 140 people, mainly civilian commuters and shoppers.”

Terrible Weather Conditions in the Northeast of the USA

The Associated Press reported on April 16:

“A menacing spring storm punished the Northeast for a second straight day Monday, dumping more than 8 inches of rain on Central Park and sending refrigerators and pickup trucks floating down rivers in one of the region’s worst storms in recent memory… The nor’easter left a huge swath of devastation, from the beaches of South Carolina to the mountains of Maine. It knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of people…

“The storm was especially harsh in the Westchester County suburbs north of New York City and in New Jersey, where the state was placed under a state of emergency and more than 1,400 residents were evacuated—many by boat… Vermont got about 17 inches of snow, with flakes still falling Monday across sections of Pennsylvania, New York and Maine… New Jersey authorities called it the worst storm to hit the state in 15 years. Five homes burned down in one town after fire crews could not reach the buildings because of floodwaters.”

Germany Fails To Act

The Wall Street Journal wrote on April 17:

“Hezbollah arrived in the European Union back in the 1980s, along with refugees from the civil war in Lebanon. Despite its deadly track record and a 2005 European Parliament resolution recommending the banning of the Iranian-funded group, it is still legal on the Continent. France, Spain, Belgium and Sweden prevent the EU from jointly designating Hezbollah as a terrorist organization.

“Holding currently both the E.U. and G-8 presidencies, Berlin would be in a strong position to head the fight against an organization dedicated to the destruction of Israel and the replacement of Lebanon’s fragile democracy with a Tehran-backed Islamic state. So far, however, Germany has squandered this unique opportunity to push for a Hezbollah ban… German security services believe that about 900 Hezbollah core activists are in the country and regularly meet in 30 cultural community centers and mosques… Berlin is also aware that representatives of Hezbollah’s ‘foreign affairs office’ in Lebanon regularly travel to Germany to give orders to their followers.

“… too many Germany policymakers uncritically accept the idea that there is supposedly a political Hezbollah — an Islamist but legitimate movement independent of those Hezbollah terrorists who have murdered hundreds of people around the world. To believe that fairy tale, they even ignore Hezbollah’s own words. As Mohammed Fannish, member of the ‘political bureau’ of Hezbollah and former Lebanese energy minister put it in 2002: ‘I can state that there is no separating between Hezbollah’s military and political arms.’… In ignoring the threat from Hezbollah, the German government puts hope above experience. While it tries to spare German citizens from the wrath of Hezbollah, it plays down the danger… In the end, this approach… compromises the safety of German citizens.”

Christ knew very clearly what He was saying, and He was by no means uneducated or incorrect about His statements regarding the proverbial mustard seed.

He stated in Matthew 13:31-32:

“Another parable He put forth to them, saying: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”

The spiritual application of this parable is very clear. Christ compared the Kingdom of God with a very small seed, as it begins in a very small way. It is like a little bit of leaven, which will ultimately leaven the whole world (Matthew 13:33). Today, the gospel of the Kingdom of God is not accepted by very many, and very few–the firstfruits–respond to its message and become converted. Once they receive the Holy Spirit, they are begotten children of God and of His Kingdom–which is the Family of God that will rule on this earth, when Christ returns. Ultimately, the knowledge of God will cover the earth, as the waters cover the sea. The government of Christ will increase and will have no end (compare Isaiah 9:7). The Nelson Study Bible explains: “… the number of people who will inherit the kingdom of God will be very small at first. But though it begins like the smallest of seeds, the nucleus will enjoy growth completely out of proportion to its initial size.”

But did Christ err when He compared the steady growth of the Kingdom of God with a mustard seed? Didn’t He know that the mustard seed was not the smallest of all seeds, and that it would not become the tallest of all herbs?

For instance, the Broadman Bible Commentary points out:

“Under cultivation, the mustard plant… grew to a height of eight to ten feet [or 2.5 to 3 meters]… If pressed literally, the details of the parable do not conform to exact scientific data. The mustard seed [which was only 0.95 – 1.1 millimeters in diameter]… was not the ‘smallest of all seeds…'” Rienecker adds that certain birds, especially goldfinches, loved to live in that tree, and that the oil from the tree was also used for medical purposes.

We will address shortly whether Broadman’s comments as to the “scientific inaccuracy” of Christ’s statements are correct.

But first of all, as the Broadman Bible Commentary itself points out, “The contrast between the smallness of the mustard seed and the greatness of the plant it produced was proverbial. It is not necessary to press the matter of the actual size of either.” In addition, the commentary of JFB observes, that the reference to the “least of all seeds” must be understood “not absolutely, but popularly and proverbially, as in [Luke] 17:6, ‘If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed’… ” Likewise, the reference to the “greatest among herbs” must be understood “not absolutely, but in relation to the small size of the seed, and in warm latitudes [it is] proverbially great.” The commentary of Barnes adds the following:

“The plant here described was very different from that which is known among us. It was several years before it bore fruit and became properly a tree. Mustard, with us, is an annual plant: it is always small, and is properly an herb. The Hebrew writers speak of the mustard-tree as one on which they could ‘climb,’ as on a fig-tree. Its size was much owing to the climate. All plants of that nature grow much larger in a warm climate, like that of Palestine, than in colder regions. The seeds of this tree were remarkably small, so that they, with the great size of the plant, were an apt illustration of the progress of the church and of the nature of faith, Mat.17:20.”

However, we DO want to carefully review what Christ said, in order to show that He was ALSO very accurate from a “biological” and “scientific” standpoint.

As the translation of the New King James Bible, which is quoted above, shows, He spoke of the “least” of the seeds and the “greatest” of the herbs–not necessarily of the “smallest” and the “largest.”

When Christ said that the mustard seed was the “least” of all seeds, the Greek word for “least” is “mikros.” When using the phrase that it would become the “greatest” of all herbs, the Greek word for “greatest” is “meizon.”

Thayer defines “mikros” as follows:

“small, little: … of size… length… space… age… time… quantity [and] of rank or INFLUENCE.” Strong’s defines the Greek word “mikros” as “small (in size, quantity, number or (figuratively) dignity): – least, less, little, small.”

Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, states that the word “mikros” literally means, “small” or “little,” (in regard to age, quantity, size or space), but that it is sometimes translated as “the least” (for example, in Acts 8:10 and in Hebrews 8:11), with reference to rank and INFLUENCE.

We see, then, that the word “mikros” can be translated as “little”–it does not even HAVE to be translated as “the least.” In addition, the Greek word “mikros” does not HAVE to address size at all, but it can refer to “influence” or “dignity.”

Likewise, the Greek word for “greatest”–“meizon”–can be translated as “greater”–by comparison. It does not have to address size; it can also refer to IMPORTANCE or INFLUENCE.

Young’s defines the word “meizon” as “greater” or “larger.” The meaning is primarily one of COMPARATIVE IMPORTANCE, and not necessarily of size. In Matthew 18:1, the same Greek word “meizon” is used to describe IMPORTANCE, STATUS or RANK (“Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven…”); the same is true in Matthew 23:11 (“But he who is greatest among you…”). Paul uses the word likewise to address IMPORTANCE, in 1 Corinthians 13:13, when he says: “the greatest of these [faith, hope and love] is love.”

We might also note that there is by no means unanimity as to how to translate Matthew 13:31-32.

Here are some alternative renderings:

“… which indeed is LESSER among all the seeds; but when it is grown is GREATER than the herbs, and becometh a tree…” (The New Testament from the Greek Text, edited by Ivan Panin, Toronto, 1935).

“Though it is the smallest of all YOUR seed [Christ was addressing His audience in Judah], yet when it grows, it is the largest of GARDEN PLANTS and becomes a tree…” (NIV; similar Rotherham and Zuercher)

That Christ was not actually saying that the mustard seed was the tiniest and smallest of all seeds, and that it would become the tallest and largest of all plants, can also be seen by reviewing the parallel passage in Luke 13:18-19, where He simply stated: “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden; and it grew and became a large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches.”

All that Christ was doing was to compare the growth of the Kingdom of God–and its increasing importance and influence for man–with the growth and increasing usefulness and importance of the mustard seed, as is clear from Luke’s account. Christ knew very well what He was saying, and even though He used a PARABLE to convey a SPIRITUAL LESSON, He did in no way state something which was biologically or scientifically incorrect.

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

A new Standing Watch program was recorded and placed on the Web, including on Google Video. The program is titled, “The Don Imus Circus.”

Set forth below is a brief summary of the program:

Don Imus’ inappropriate use of language, maligning young female Basketball players, prompted an ongoing and seemingly never-ending flood of responses. The resulting Imus circus has empowered opportunists and sensationalists to promote their own agendas. But has the undue attention given to the Imus’ statements done more harm than good?

Norbert Link’s video-recorded sermon “How Do You Look at Sin?” was placed on Google Video.

Our booklet, “The Gospel of the Kingdom of God” has been translated into German and has entered the review cycle.

Our new booklet on the “Meaning of God’s Fall Holy Days” will shortly be entering the second review cycle.

We have commenced an Internet ad campaign in England, promoting one booklet, and are working on similar ad campaigns for the USA and Canada.

This week, Norbert Link sent a special update on the Work to our membership via email. We would like to state portions of the same in this Update:

“We would like to share with you some exciting news. Our income has been very sound and stable, and our current balance is very encouraging. In light of this good development, for which we thank God and all of you, we were able to buy a new computer, to be used for the transmission of our live Sabbath and Holy Day services, and a new camera, to be used, together with the new computer, for the StandingWatch programs and perhaps additional programming under discussion. In addition, we purchased another computer which will enable us to continue the production of video sermons, to be placed on DVDs and on Google Video and possibly others.
 
“When setting up the new equipment for the new format of the StandingWatch programs [to be soon implemented], we realized the need for a small recording studio. As a consequence, we have begun the task of building such a studio, and the progress already achieved is just amazing. This studio will enable me to record programs any time I want, without having to go through the sometimes laborious task of setting up and taking down the equipment, arranging and adjusting lighting, etc.”

Also, our technical team is exploring possibilities as to how to increase the effectiveness and dynamics of the StandingWatch programs, including alteration of the “extro,” by adding text, a voice over and music. The team is also looking at trying Norbert in a few different positions with a few different backgrounds. We have a couple of good ideas that look great in the mind’s eye, but will have to see how that comes out on the big screen.  We are evaluating some software packages that will accomplish these things. After we get the lighting setup in our small studio, which is being built, we will continue exploring these and other possibilities.

by John Amorelli

Recently I landed a part-time job in a chiropractor’s office. I had an experience that taught me a few good lessons. The last Thursday before Easter, all the employees in the office were given Easter baskets filled with marshmallow, chocolate bunnies and candy Easter eggs.  When I was given my basket, I didn’t want to accept it. I tried to give it away to other employees in the office but they didn’t want my basket.  I asked myself: “What do I do? Should I just leave the basket there and walk away?  Should I take it and throw it in the dumpster out in the back parking lot? Or should I just accept it and take the basket with me and enjoy the ‘sugar-coated’ tempties?”  These were the thoughts going through my head. There was one thought that didn’t go through my head, though–and that thought was, “Should I tell my employer and my co-workers that I don’t celebrate Easter?” (… even though they knew I keep God’s Holy Days.)

So I took the basket with me. As I drove home through the mountains, I had the basket next to me on the passenger seat. A chocolate one-eyed bunny slid out of the basket and was there on the passenger seat looking at me (with a smile). The temptation to devour that sweet delicacy was there.  At that moment  I was angry with myself for not telling my employer and co-workers that I don’t celebrate Easter.  I then disposed of the basket full of goodies! My voice echoed over the mountain as I yelled out in anger, “Issssshtaaaarrrrr”!!
 
When I got home, I meditated on the situation. I realized that I turned into a “basket case!” Instead of directing my anger towards that “basket,” I should have utilized God’s perfect love towards myself and others by praying for strength to be upfront with my employer and co-workers about not celebrating Easter.  The lesson I have learned is not to become a “basket case” in trials, but to stand firm in my convictions. I should not “sugar-coat” God’s Truth.