Church of God News

James and Ellen White

COGwriter

Are there different prophetic views between the SDAs (Seventh-day Adventists) and the COGs (Churches of God)?

Certainly.

The following gives an idea of what the late SDA Ellen White taught about the two-horned beast of Revelation 13:

Prophecy Speaks
_____And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. 12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him . . . He causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” (Verses 11, 12, 15-17).
++++It is well known, particularly in Adventists circles, that this two-horned non-royalist power represents our blessed country, the United States of America.2 No doubt you’re also familiar with the reasons. Unlike the other beasts of Daniel 7 and Revelation 13, this two-horned beast comes up out the earth, the new World3–the domain away from the “sea”–the old world.4 The two crownless horns show two non-royalist rulers, while their lamb-like appearance forecasts youthful innocency–Christian–in profession pure, gentle, and harmless, established upon the principles of peace and liberty, but later one speaks as a dragon. Then, the face that he has the power to dictate who should buy and who should not, shows that he represents a nation that leads in controlling the world’s wealth and industry.
++++Having only two horns, not ten, the beast therefore depicts a local, not a universal government. Nevertheless, he will influence all Christendom to “make an image to the beast, while had the wound by a sword, and did live.” That is, he will engineer a worldwide government set-up, re-enthroning the principles of the church-state rule of Ecclesiastical Rome; a system now characterized by Catholicism, apostate Protestantism, and Capitalism. “The prediction that it will speak ‘as a dragon,'” wrote Inspiration, “and exercise ‘all the power of the first beast,’ plainly foretells the development of the spirit of intolerance and persecution that was manifested by the nations represented by the dragon and the leopard-like beast.”5
++++Put still another way, it means that America will urge the world to reestablish an apostate religious-political system after the model of Western society, with principles, imagining those of the Dark Ages. (Verse 12). Note that it did not say that the Two-horned beast urged the world to worship the “head”–the Papacy, (more about this another time) but the “beast”–the system–Catholicism, apostate Protestantism, and Capitalism, topped off with Spiritualism! This is when, “Protestantism shall stretch her hand across the gulf to grasp the hand of the Roman power, when she shall reach over the abyss to clasp hands with spiritualism, when, under the influence of this threefold union, our country shall repudiate every principle of its Constitution as a Protestant and republican government…”6…

2. Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, pp. 440-442
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid.
6. Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 5, p.451

(As cited in Vance MP. The Future of Democracy. Plain View, Jan-Mar 2005, pp.5-6).

The following is from one of Ellen White’s most popular books (note the prophet she is referring to is the Apostle John):

Says, the prophet, “I beheld another beast coming out of the earth and he had two horns like a lamb.” Revelation 13:11…One nation, and only one. meets the specifications of this prophecy; it points unmistakably to the United States of America…

“And he had two horns like a lamb.” The lamb-like horns indicate youth, innocence, and gentleness, fitly representing the character of the United States when presented to the prophet as “coming up” in 1798…But the beast with lamb-like horns “spake as a dragon…”…

But what is the “image to the beast”? and how is it to be formed? The image is made by the two-horned beast, and is an image to the first beast. It is also called the image of the beast. Then to learn what the image is like, and how it is to be formed, we must study the characteristics of the beast itself,–the papacy…

“The beast”…is the first…beast of Revelation 13,–the papacy (White E.G. Will America Survive? 1888; Reprint, 1988 by Inspiration Books East, Jemison (AL), pp. 420-423,425).

This view is not only held by Ellen G. White and the Plain View, SDA minister A. Jan Marcussen, in his book, National Sunday Law, also states the United States is the two-horned beast that comes from the earth (pp. 2-3) and cites Ellen G. White’s Cosmic Conflict, p.388.

I should add, however, that A. Jan Marcussen does consider that a Pope is the 666 of Revelation 13:18 (pp. 21-22, 27) and other SDAs may as well–and the context of Revelation 13 suggests that the two-horned beast is involved with the one whose number is 666. But we in the Churches of God do not believe that the Bible teaches that the first beast represents the papacy.

The Church of God Position on the Two-Horned Beast

The position held by many in the COGs differs completely from those held by the Seventh Day Adventists and its leaders. The following are taken from a booklet written in 1960 by Herbert W. Armstrong, titled Who is the Beast?:

The “Two-horned Beast”

Satan has his civil government on earth. He gave it “his power, and his seat, and great authority.”
_____He also has an ecclesiastical organization — a CHURCH —as his instrumentality in deceiving the world. In 2 Corinthians 11:14, we find Satan is transformed into an “ANGEL OF LIGHT.” According to Revelation 12:9 and 20:3, he has DECEIVED the whole world. How?
_____Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 11:13-15, Satan has HIS ministers who pretend to be the ministers of righteousness, but are actually false apostles, deceitful workers, calling themselves the ministers of Christ! Therefore they claim to be CHRISTIAN ministers. They are the MANY, not the few, because all prophecies say it is the MANY, not the few, who have been DECEIVED. Satan’s main labor for six thousand years has been the deceiving of the world. Now turn to the 13th chapter of Revelation, beginning with verse 11:
_____“And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a LAMB, and he spoke as a DRAGON.”
_____ Who — what — is this “beast”?
_____ Some say it will be the United States aligned with the papacy. Some believe it is a federation of Protestant churches. Others declared it the Pan-American Union. MOST church organizations ignore this very vital subject completely, or say frankly, “WE DO NOT KNOW!”
_____ Why this ignorance, when the answer is so plain? Yes, why indeed?

The Bible Interpretation

Remember, first, THE BIBLE INTERPRETS ITS OWN SYMBOLS! When men put their OWN interpretation on Bible symbols, their conclusions are always false!
_____Notice, after John saw one BEAST, which we have proved to be the ROMAN EMPIRE, he now sees ANOTHER — a different — beast rise up. We have learned that “BEAST” is a symbol for a kingdom, or government (Dan. 7:17, 23), and the term represents either the kingdom or its leader, as the case may be (Dan. 7:17, 23).
_____So this other beast with the two horns is the prophecy of another kingdom or government. In these prophecies, God pictures to us the earthly Gentile governments as the wild beasts whose characteristics describe them. This two-horned beast appeared as a Lamb. But actually it spoke as a DRAGON— its true characteristic — for “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Matt. 12:34).
_____What does the word “Lamb” symbolize, in the Bible? The answer is, CHRIST (John 1:29; Rev. 17:14). And “DRAGON” is a symbol of the DEVIL (Rev. 12:9, 20:2).
_____So here is some kingdom or government masquerading as that of CHRIST, or the KINGDOM OF GOD, but actually being a government of SATAN!
_____Christ did not set up a government (kingdom), at His first appearing on earth. After His resurrection the disciples asked Him if He would at that time restore the KINGDOM (Acts1:6); but He did not. The Church is not the Kingdom. Because some thought it was, Jesus spoke the parable of Luke 19:11-27 to show that He first must ascend to His Father’s throne in heaven to receive the royal power to become King of kings, to set up the world-ruling Kingdom of God.
_____But Satan is a deceiver, and he has deceived the world into supposing his (Satan’s) CHURCH, and system of churches, is the Kingdom of God.
_____Now notice carefully (Revelation 13) verse12:
_____“And he exerciseth ALL the power of the first beast before him.”The first beast is the Roman Empire. Here is ANOTHER government, also controlled by Satan, pretending to be CHRIST’S government, the Kingdom of God, taking, exercising, using, employing, ALL the power of the first kingdom, the Roman Empire.
_____Now when? “He exerciseth ALL the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to WORSHIP the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed” (verse 12). So, it was AFTER the deadly wound (of A.D. 476) was healed. It was healed when Justinian brought about the restoration of the Empire in the West in A.D. 554. Consequently this RELIGIOUS government took over, exercised, by ruling, all the power of the Roman Empire AFTER A.D. 554 when it was called the Holy Empire and, later, the Holy Roman Empire.

Did a Church Government Rule Rome?

So here we have pictured a government — a RELIGIOUS government — appearing as CHRIST’S government, masquerading as the KINGDOM OF GOD, actually ruling the civil Roman Empire, AFTER A.D. 554. Was there such a government? Indeed there was! And only ONE!
_____Prior to 554, Justinian had written a letter to the pope, acknowledging his supremacy in the West. And when he restored the empire in the West in 554, the popes dominated the Western Empire from Rome. The Roman Empire, thus restored to continue until 1814 (1260 years), became known later as “The HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE.” We read in history that the popes were accepted as the “Vicars of Christ,” which means “IN PLACE OF Christ.” The teaching was that the Second Coming of Christ had occurred — Christ had returned to earth, as KING of kings and as LORD of lords, in the person of the popes. The millennium had begun.
_____For the entire 1260 years, the emperors accepted the popes as such, ruling the nations with a “rod of iron” as Christ is to do WHEN He really comes. Consequently they acknowledged the supreme religious power of the popes. The Church was organized as a GOVERNMENT — as a dual, two-fold government (symbolized by its TWO horns or kingdoms — for “horns” symbolize kingdoms also — see Dan. 7:24). It embodied CHURCH government, and it also was a STATE, or civil government, always occupying a certain amount of territory over which it, alone, ruled as an independent sovereign state— in addition to actually ruling over the vast civil kingdom called the Holy Roman Empire. Even today, it is a separate, independent, sovereign STATE. Most nations send ambassadors to the Vatican, just as they do to the United States, or to Italy, Britain, or the USSR.
_____Notice, this second beast was to wield power over ALL THE EARTH, because it was to CAUSE the earth, and them that dwell therein, to WORSHIP this first beast “whose deadly wound was healed” after 554. In most any encyclopedia, under article “MILLENNIUM,” you will read the history of this very event — of how the “Holy Roman Empire” was called the “Kingdom of God upon earth.” They claimed the MILLENNIUM had arrived!
_____Notice verse 14: “And DECEIVETH them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast.” Verse 13 says “he doeth great wonders.”
_____So notice these three points:
_____(1) This beast performs miracles.
_____(2) He performed them “in the sight of” the Holy Roman Empire, or the first beast.
_____(3) With them he DECEIVED all nations.

All Nations Deceived

Where else, in the Bible prophecies, do we find these same identical facts?
_____First, note Rev. 17. Here is pictured a woman. In II Cor. 11:2, Eph. 5:22-27, and elsewhere, we learn that “woman” is a symbol for CHURCH…

_____Now notice the last battle of “the great day of God Almighty.” It is in Rev. 19:19-20. Here is pictured the beast —“and WITH him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, WITH WHICH HE DECEIVED them that had received the MARK of the beast, and them that had worshipped HIS IMAGE.
_____”Note it! Compare with the two-horned beast of Rev.13:11-17.
_____(1) BOTH perform miracles.
_____(2) BOTH perform them before, or in the sight of, the beast.
_____(3) WITH them, BOTH the false prophet and two-horned beast DECEIVE them that have the MARK of the beast — cause them to receive that mark (Rev. 13:16).
_____Certainly, then, this two-horned beast, the false prophet, …and the woman that rode the beast are all one and the same thing — the {final revised} ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH with its pope, its other bishops, its priests and deacons, comprising the hierarchy of order!
_____Now did the two-horned beast deceive the very ones who have the MARK of the beast? He did! Continue in Rev. 13:
_____“And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth” — HOW?“…saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an IMAGE to the beast, which had the wound by the sword and did live. And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and CAUSE as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. AND HE CAUSETH ALL, BOTH SMALL AND GREAT, RICH AND POOR, FREE AND BOND, to receive a MARK in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell [trade, earn a living, hold a job], save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name” (verses 14-17).
_____So, notice: This two-horned beast not only CAUSED people to receive the MARK of the beast (compare Rev. 19:20), but also perpetrated the forming of an image that caused the martyrdom of saints. As many as would not worship this image were caused to he killed. This false church did not kill them — she CAUSED them to be killed. History shows that the civil government of the Roman Empire martyred millions who were declared “anathema from Christ,” or “heretics” by the church.
_____Compare with the WOMAN who rode the Beast in Rev. 17: “And I saw the woman DRUNKEN WITH THE BLOOD OF THE SAINTS, AND WITH THE MARTYRS OF JESUS’ (verse 6).
Certainly these are one and the same!

The IMAGE of the Beast

Now this great church, which is a twofold government, deceived the people by SAYING THEY SHOULD MAKE AN IMAGE OF THE BEAST. Note it (Rev. 13:14) — that is HOW this church deceived people. What is an IMAGE? The dictionary says a “likeness,” a “copy, representation, model, semblance, counterpart.” So here is a great CHURCH saying, “Let us make a MODEL, or counterpart, of the civil Roman GOVERNMENT” — for that is what the BEAST is — a PAGAN GOVERNMENT. (Armstrong HW. Who is the Beast?)

Or to put it more succinctly, the COG teaches that the two-horned beast represents the false prophet who leads the final (and revised) large church claiming the papacy, while the other beast is the leader of the revived Roman Empire (which we normally believe is the one going to arise out of the current European Union).

Why the Basic Position of HWA is Right

Although I feel that Herbert W. Armstrong adequately explained the COG position, the reason that it is right is because the Bible itself is to be the source of doctrine (II Timothy 3:16).

When I first read the first SDA article quoted (which was 1/29/05), I was wondering what part of the Bible they were quoting. And while I knew it had to be from the Book of Revelation, I was a little unsure of the chapter (the article stated neither). I thought that was peculiar, and then I considered it misleading.

Why?

Because in order to not expose the fallacy of the SDA position, I believe the author of that initial article (M.P. Vance) may have intentionally left out several verses (though to his credit, A. Jan Marcussen did mention them in his booklet).

Here is the entire passage that should have been quoted,

11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.
16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six” (Revelation 13:11-18, KJV).

I intentionally left the verse numbers in there to demonstrate that the initial SDA article by M.P. Vance:

1) Left out 1/2 of verse 12 of Revelation chapter 13, even though the article suggests they quoted it
2) Left out verse 15, even though the article suggests they quoted it
3) May have intentionally left out verses 13-15 as it would show some of the fallacy of the SDA position
4) May have intentionally left out verse 18 as it would show some of the fallacy of the author’s position
5) Did not mention the book (Revelation) nor the chapter (13) that these verses were in, thus making it much more difficult for the casual reader to see if these things were so.

HWA explained adequately about verses 13-15, so I will not repeat that here.

While we in the Continuing Church of God observe the seventh-day Sabbath, we have many differences with the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Basically, we do not accept that Ellen White was a prophetess. Hence, we do not accept her interpretations as being above scripture. Nor do we believe that the USA is the two-horned beast of Revelation 13.

Those who accept her views on this will not understand what is happening in the USA until it is too late.

Church History

Last week, I found the following in a paper from Andrews University (an SDA university). It started off with a question from Greco-Roman apologists along with their understanding:

“Where was your church before the Reformation? Show us a people who before Calvin and Luther had the same beliefs as you. . . . Let us see the uninterrupted link which binds you to the Church of the first centuries and through her to the apostles and to Jesus Christ. This conjunction should exist. But it is impossible for you to point to such a link. You are introducing a new movement; you have a beginning. It is possible to assign to your movement a precise date; and this simple fact condemns you.” (Dumoulin, op. cit., I, 28, 29; Rébelliau, op. cit., p. 345; Jean- Baptiste Dantecourt, Remarques sur le livre d’un potestant, intitulé Considerations sur les lettres circulaires de l’assemblke du clergk de France, de l’annke 1682 . . . Paris, 1683: as cited in Walther D. WERE THE ALBIGENSES AND WALDENSES FORERUNNERS OF THE REFORMATION? Andrews University Seminary Studies. 1986 (2), 5, p. 199)

It is true that the Protestant movement and the SDA church both had a post-New Testament date. Plus, they also cannot find their beliefs in the first couple of centuries of the Christian church era.

More on that can be found in the free online book Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God differs from Protestantism .

But what about the Continuing Church of God?

We do not consider Protestant Reformers such as Martin Luther and John Calvin to be Christians, but SDAs do.

While some point to a declaration date in the 21st century to try to callously dismiss our continuity in the CCOG, consider:

• We do not hold to the unbiblical views of Luther or Calvin.
• Various early Christian leaders, including those called Apostolic Fathers, documented our beliefs in the first centuries of Christianity.
• We can trace our leaders into the first centuries.

For more on history, check out the free online book: Continuing History of the Church of God.

It should also be pointed out that most end time Christians have serious prophetic misunderstandings. Here is an article that lays some of them out: Do You Hold to Any of These Laodicean Prophetic Errors? and here is a link to a related video: 50+ Laodicean Prophetic Errors.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

SDA/CCOG Differences: Two Horned Beast of Revelation and 666 The genuine Church of God is NOT part of the Seventh-day Adventists. This article explains two prophetic differences, the trinity, differences in approaching doctrine, including Ellen White. Did Ellen White make prophetic errors? Did Ellen White make false prophecies? Here is a version in the Spanish language: SDA/COG Diferencias: La bestia de dos cuernos de Apocalipsis y 666. Here are links to two sermons in the English language: CCOG and SDA differences and similarities and Seventh Day Baptists/Adventists/Messianics: Protestant or COG?
Seventh-day Adventist President Ted Wilson’s Comments on the Remnant Church Ted N. C. Wilson spoke on the SDAs striving to be the “remnant church”, but what do the related scriptures actually teach?
Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God Differs from Protestantism The CCOG is NOT Protestant. This free online book explains how the real Church of God differs from mainstream/traditional Protestants. Several sermons related to the free book are also available: Protestant, Baptist, and CCOG History; The First Protestant, God’s Command, Grace, & Character; The New Testament, Martin Luther, and the Canon; Eucharist, Passover, and Easter; Views of Jews, Lost Tribes, Warfare, & Baptism; Scripture vs. Tradition, Sabbath vs. Sunday; Church Services, Sunday, Heaven, and God’s Plan; Seventh Day Baptists/Adventists/Messianics: Protestant or COG?; Millennial Kingdom of God and God’s Plan of Salvation; Crosses, Trees, Tithes, and Unclean Meats; The Godhead and the Trinity; Fleeing or Rapture?; and Ecumenism, Rome, and CCOG Differences.
Who Was Herbert W. Armstrong? How is He Viewed Today? Includes quotes from the 1973 edition of The Autobiography of Herbert W. Armstrong and explains who he was and how he should be viewed today.
What is Armstrongism? Did Herbert W. Armstrong raise a new faith or promote the original Christian faith? Here is a link to a related video: What is Armstrongism? Are Some Dismissive of Original Christianity?
Does the CCOG have the confirmed signs of Acts 2:17-18? Does any church have the confirmed dream and prophetic signs of Acts 2:17-18? Should one? Here is a link in the Spanish language: ¿Tiene la CCOG confirmadas las señales de Hechos 2: 17-18? Here is a link in the French language: Est-ce que l’Église Continue de Dieu confirme les signes d’Actes 2:17-18?
Church of God Leaders on Prophets Have there been prophets throughout the church age? Are any supposed to be around in the last days? What have COG leaders stated or written about prophets? Here is a link to a related sermon: Church of God Leaders on Prophets.
Why Be Concerned About False and Heretical Leaders? There have been many false leaders–here is some of why you should be concerned about them. Here is a related article in the Spanish language ¿Por qué estar preocupado acerca de falsos y heréticos líderes?
How To Determine If Someone is a True Prophet of God There are many false prophets. How can Christians determine who is a true prophet? There is also a sermon-length video titled How to determine if someone is a true prophet of God. Here is a related link in Spanish/español: ¿Cómo determinar si alguien es un verdadero profeta de Dios?
The Sardis Church Era was predominant circa 1600 A.D. to circa 1933 A.D. Discusses early history of the Seventh Day Baptists, Seventh-day Adventists, and COG-7th Day.
The Philadelphia Church Era was predominant circa 1933 A.D. to 1986 A.D. The old Radio Church of God and old Worldwide Church of God, now the remnant of that era is basically the most faithful in the Church of God, like who hold to the beliefs and practices of the Continuing Church of God.
USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses Can you point to scriptures, like Daniel 11:39, that point to the USA in the 21st century? This article does. Two related sermon are available: Identifying the USA and its Destruction in Prophecy and Do these 7 prophesies point to the end of the USA?
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.
Who is the Man of Sin of 2 Thessalonians 2? Is this the King of the North, the ten-horned beast of Revelation 13:1-11, or the two-horned Beast of Revelation 13:12-16? Some rely on traditions, but what does the Bible teach? Here is a related link in Spanish/español: ¿Quién es el Hombre de Pecado de 2 Tesalonicenses 2? Here is a version in Mandarin: N;ÿ Œ
f/’Y’jNº’ÿ Here is a link to a related English sermon video titled: The Man of Sin will deceive most ‘Christians’.
Some Doctrines of Antichrist Are there any doctrines taught outside the Churches of God which can be considered as doctrines of antichrist? This article suggests at least three. It also provides information on 666 and the identity of “the false prophet.” Plus it shows that several Catholic writers seem to warn about an ecumenical antipope that will support heresy. You can also watch a video titled What Does the Bible teach about the Antichrist?
Do You Hold to Any of These Laodicean Prophetic Errors? Most real Christians in the last days are Laodicean and hold to prophetic errors which, unless they repent, will prevent them from being protected from the coming Great Tribulation. Here is a link to a related video: 50+ Laodicean Prophetic Errors.

Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia belong, in due time, to the European Union.

Last week, we presented our opinions to support ?????? in their aspirations to join the EU.

EU countries will discuss the next steps during the #EUCO starting today. pic.twitter.com/RWANAmSyTr

— European Commission ?? (@EU_Commission) June 23, 2022

COGwriter

Expansion of the European Union is in the minds of many countries and many leaders:

Unequivocal & strong position by @Europarl_EN:
Today #EUCO should grant candidate status to ?? & ?? and same path for ??.

This will show leadership, resolve & vision in context of Russia’s war against #Ukraine.

?? remains a reliable partner & credible geopolitical actor.

— Roberta Metsola (@EP_President) June 23, 2022

EU Parliament backs Ukraine, Moldova as leaders meet in Brussels

23 June 2022

The European Parliament has voted in favor of granting Ukraine and Moldova EU candidate status while leaders are meeting in Brussels to discuss the issue on Thursday.

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola said the vote had been “unequivocal” and that the European Council “should grant candidate status today” to the two countries.

Ireland: ‘Ukraine belongs in the European family’ …

The EU’s 27 nations have been united in backing Ukraine since Russia invaded on February 24, adopting unprecedented economic sanctions against Moscow. https://www.dw.com/en/eu-parliament-backs-ukraine-moldova-as-leaders-meet-in-brussels/a-62230770

Notice also

Western Balkans determined on membership after EU talks

23 June 2022

Western Balkan and European Union leaders met on Thursday as the leaders for talks on EU enlargement.

The leaders of Albania and Serbia attended the summit after they had briefly considered not going amid disappointment over the lack of progress on milestones to becoming EU members.

“We will keep going and working even harder to make Albania a nice EU member,” Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama wrote on Twitter after the meeting in Brussels.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic wroter on Twitter after the talks that his country would “fight” for a European future for Serbia.

Speaking to reporters after the summit North Macedonia’s Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski said: “The Russian aggression on Ukraine is a threat to all countries in the region, and in this context, [the] European Union enlargement to the Western Balkan should be seen as a a necessity but also an investment in the security of the European Union.”   …

Ukraine’s widely expected fast-track route to official candidate status is seen as increasing the Western Balkans’ feeling of being sidelined. But some see it as a good sign.

“From my point of view, it’s good for the countries of the Western Balkans because it shows that the geostrategic importance of EU enlargement is still there and that there is movement in the enlargement process,” Manuel Sarrazin, Germany’s special representative for the Western Balkans, told DW.  https://www.dw.com/en/western-balkans-determined-on-membership-after-eu-talks/a-62228210

As reported here before, the EU wants the Balkans, not only because they are part of Europe but, because they do not want Serbia to remain an ally of Russia. The Serbs fought against the Axis powers (which included Germany, Bulgaria, and Italy) in WWII. The Germans would prefer to have some control over Serbia and do not want to fight the Serbs in the future.

So what does the Bible show?

The Bible prophecy teaches that the European Beast power will expand to the south and the east.

Notice that, in Daniel 8, the Bible prophesied that a little horn would mainly expand South and East:

9 And out of one of them came a little horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Glorious Land. 10 And it grew up to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and some of the stars to the ground, and trampled them. 11 He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host; and by him the daily sacrifices were taken away, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down. 12 Because of transgression, an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily sacrifices; and he cast truth down to the ground. He did all this and prospered. (Daniel 8:9-12).

And while the above has had a past fulfillment, this prophecy seems to be dual (compare with Daniel 11:27-39). The European Union has mainly expanded south and east of the Benelux nations (Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg)–which is where it initially formed.

The Balkans, Ukraine, and Moldova are south and east of the Benelux nations.

Currently, approximately 450 million people are now under a new, single (though not completely united) government, called the European Union, headquartered in Brussels.

Those groups (such as PCG and LCG) that tend to insist that the final European Beast power will only have ten or eleven nations may be caught unexpectedly (cf. Luke 21:34) if the final Beast power has more (the European Union currently has dozens of members. See also Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations?)

In the old Radio Church of God, the late evangelist Dr. Hoeh taught that this little horn of Daniel 8 was the power that would become the final King of the North:

Turn in your Bible to verse 9: “And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land.” …

The King of the North

The little horn in Daniel 8 is none other than the LAST KING of one of the four divisions of Alexander’s Empire. He is, in fact, the final “King of the North” described in Daniel 11. (Hoeh H. The 2300 Days. Plain Truth, August 1965)

Consider also the following:

27 Behold, the name of the Lord comes from afar,
Burning with His anger,
And His burden is heavy;
His lips are full of indignation,
And His tongue like a devouring fire.
28 His breath is like an overflowing stream,
Which reaches up to the neck,
To sift the nations … (Isaiah 30:27-28)

From a prophetic perspective, we appear to be seeing some sifting/separation between some of the peoples that live within the borders of Ukraine as well as Georgia and Moldova. According to Bible prophecy, those that appear to have descended from the ancient Medes will mainly ultimately align with Russia as well as some of Elam (perhaps including Serbia and some others in the Balkans).

This does not mean that some or all of Ukraine, Moldova, Serbia, etc. will not be part of the European Union, at least for a time.

The European Union has demonstrated a history and willingness to enlarge and is having many meetings about it. The EU is interested in the Balkans, Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia. The U.S.A. keeps encouraging all of this, but this will not end well for the U.S.A. (cf. Daniel 11:39; Isaiah 10:5-11).

Of course, even now, not all in the Balkans, Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia want to be part of the European Union, some prefer to be in Russia’s upcoming Eurasian Union (though this is likely diminishing because of Russia’s ‘special military operation’ into Ukraine).

That being said, those that become disillusioned/disappointed by the EU may ultimately back out of it. See also: Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Europa, the Beast, and the Book of Revelation discusses the largest church since the second/third century, which in a real sense is the eighth church mentioned in the Book of Revelation (it also endorses “eighth day” worship). What church would support the Beast? Here is a link to a video titled: Europe and the ‘Holy Roman Empire’.
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here are links to two related videos: The King of the North is Alive: What to Look Out For and The Future King of the North.
The Great Monarch: Biblical and Greco-Roman Catholic Prophecies Is the ‘Great Monarch’ of Greco-Roman Catholic prophecies endorsed or condemned by the Bible? Two sermons of related interest are also available: Great Monarch: Messiah or False Christ? and Great Monarch in 50+ Beast Prophecies.
Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? There is also a video sermon available: Russia in the Bible and in Prophecy as are two video sermonettes Russia, Ukraine, Babylonian Europe, and Prophecy and Ukraine in Prophecy?
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
Ezekiel 38: For Russia & Iran in Our Day? Is Ezekiel 38 about to be fulfilled? Are we close to the battle with Gog and Magog? Four related videos are available: Ezekiel 38 Gog and Magog War: Is it Soon?, Ezekiel 38: For Russia, Ukraine, & Iran Now?, Russia, Iran, Syria, & the Bible (Code), and Gog, Magog, Vladimir Putin, and Ezekiel 38?
The Eurasian Union, the Kings of the East, and Bible Prophecy Is there a Eurasian union that will be formed? Is one being formed right now? Are any leaders working on that in the 21st century? Does the Bible teach that there will be a Eurasian union? If some type of Eurasian union is formed, who might it benefit and who will it destroy? A related video would be Is The Eurasian Union Rising?
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2029 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
The Times of the Gentiles Has there been more than one time of the Gentiles? Are we in it now or in the time of Anglo-America? What will the final time of the Gentiles be like? A related sermon is available and is titled: The Times of the Gentiles.
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2022, 2023, or 2024? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: Great Tribulation: 2026 or 2027? A shorter video is: Can the Great Tribulation start in 2022 or 2023? Here is a video in the Spanish language: Es El 2021 el año de La Gran Tribulación o el Grande Reseteo Financiero.

The 14th #BRICS Summit will be held in virtual format on June 23. During the past five years, BRICS countries have been reinforcing their cohesion within the mechanism, and the outcomes help to build a shared future for humankind.pic.twitter.com/Cp8KXnGOuj

— Zhang Meifang张美芳 (@CGMeifangZhang) June 23, 2022

COGwriter

Are Western sanctions pushing all other nations against Russia?

No.

And then there is BRICS. Business Insider reported the following:

Putin is meeting leaders of China, Brazil, and India, showing Russia still has powerful allies despite the Ukraine invasion

June 23, 2022

• Putin is meeting leaders of the Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) alliance this week.
• Putin said Russian trade with BRICS nations rose 38% between January and March despite Western sanctions.
• The meeting shows Putin still has friends despite the backlash to his Ukraine invasion. …

The BRICS meeting is a stark reminder that Russia still has extremely powerful friends in China, India, Brazil, and South Africa, despite being ostracized and financially punished by the West. …

In his speech before the BRICS meeting on Thursday, Xi reiterated his long-held view that the West was “weaponizing” the global economy by using sanctions to punish nations, including Russia. https://www.businessinsider.com/putin-china-india-brics-summit-shows-russia-allies-despite-ukraine-2022-6

Yes, Russia still has powerful allies around the world.

As far as BRICS and its goals go, here are some of the official statements from the November 2019 BRICS summit:

BRASILIA DECLARATION

11th BRICS Summit

Preamble

1. We, the Leaders of the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Russian Federation, the Republic of India, the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of South Africa met on 14 November 2019 in Brasilia, Brazil, at the Eleventh BRICS Summit, which was held under the theme “BRICS: economic growth for an innovative future”.

2. As leaders of vibrant nations, we reaffirm our fundamental commitment to the principle of sovereignty, mutual respect and equality and to the shared goal of building a peaceful, stable and prosperous world. …

3. We are pleased with the outcomes of the 2019 BRICS Chairship. We recall the more than one hundred meetings held this year. …

4. We welcome, among other achievements, the establishment of the Innovation BRICS Network (iBRICS); …

Strengthening and reforming the multilateral system

5. We remain committed to multilateralism, cooperation of sovereign States to maintain peace and security, advance sustainable development and ensure the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all and build a brighter shared future for the international community. We reaffirm our commitment to helping overcome the significant challenges currently facing multilateralism, as well as upholding the central role of the UN in international affairs and respecting international law, including the Charter of the United Nations, its purposes and principles.

6. We reiterate the urgent need to strengthen and reform the multilateral system, including the UN, the WTO, the IMF and other international organizations, which we will continue working to make more inclusive, democratic and representative, including through greater participation of emerging markets and developing countries in international decision-making. We reiterate our commitment to shaping a more fair, just, equitable and representative multipolar international order. We also underline the imperative that international organizations be fully driven by Member States and promote the interests of all. http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-11/15/c_138555948.htm

A “multipolar international order” means a new world order.

Will one come?

Yes.

How so?

Notice something from the Washington Post:

A new world order will likely arise only from calamity

Trump’s “America First” approach to foreign policy — which has surfaced and amplified long-percolating economic and demographic anxieties among a significant segment of the American public — articulates a sharp critique of the order’s alleged strategic benefits to the United States, its leading architect. Across the pond, meanwhile, increasingly powerful populist forces from a broad ideological spectrum are contesting the legitimacy of the European project. …

The modernization of the world order would ideally result from farsighted diplomacy. It is more likely, though, that policymakers will do little more than push for incremental improvements to an inadequate system, thereby enabling the aforementioned forces — ranging from external challenges to populist uprisings — to continue testing its foundations. The potential result of indefinite erosion — a vacuum in order, without a coherent alternative to replace it — is unpalatable. In a nuclear age, though, it is terrifying to consider what might have to occur for a new order to emerge. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/theworldpost/wp/2018/07/24/new-world-order/?utm_term=.92b9c923e5af

Yes, “calamity” will be a factor in the coming “new world order.”

Since around 1800, the world order has been dominated by the British and the Americans. In the 21st century, part of the objective of the European Union, BRICS, EAEU, SCO, and China’s Silk Road arrangements is to establish a new world order (SCO, EAEU, and BRICS defining a ‘new world order’?)–an order no longer dominated by the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies, like the UK.

HG Wells put out a book, originally published in January 1940, where he expressed the idea that a ‘new world order’ to be formed to unite the nations of the world in order to bring peace and end war.

A new world order is being put together. But it will not end as HG Wells or BRICS hopes it will.

Now the idea of a new order is not unique to HG Wells or BRICS.

Part of the reason that the European Union (EU) was formed was to reduce US hegemony and to establish a more European world order.

Since its formation, the EU has said it would like to cooperate more with the Eurasian Economic Union. So, a coordination of Gentile powers against the Anglo-Americans is occurring. With Brexit also being a factor.

What many people do not understand is that the BRICS group of nations was formed in order to push aside US dominance in financial and other matters. This was publicly confirmed by former Brazilian President Lula back in 2019:

BRICS was created as a tool of attack: Lula

In a wide-ranging, two-hour-plus, exclusive interview from a prison room in Curitiba in southern Brazil, former Brazilian president Luis Inacio Lula da Silva re-emerged for the first time, after more than 500 days in jail, and sent a clear message to the world. …

My first question to Lula was about BRICS and the current geopolitical chessboard, with the US facing a Russia-China strategic partnership. As president, from 2003 to 2010, Lula was instrumental in formatting and expanding the influence of BRICS … He emphasized: “BRICS was not created to be an instrument of defense, but to be an instrument of attack. So we could create our own currency to become independent from the US dollar in our trade relations; to create a development bank, which we did – but it is still too timid – to create something strong capable of helping the development of the poorest parts of the world.”

Lula made an explicit reference to the United States’ fears about a new currency: “This was the logic behind BRICS, to do something different and not copy anybody. The US was very much afraid when I discussed a new currency and Obama called me, telling me, ‘Are you trying to create a new currency, a new euro?’ I said, ‘No, I’m just trying to get rid of the US dollar. I’m just trying not to be dependent.’” 08/28/19 https://www.asiatimes.com/2019/08/article/brics-was-created-as-a-tool-of-attack-lula/

Note: Former President Lula seems to have been referring to the start of the BRIC group, which later became BRICS.

While they were still called BRIC, instead of BRICS (which is what the named changed to after South Africa joined in 2010), I posted:

One of the goal’s of the BRIC nations is to eliminate the US dollar as the global currency, even though they realize it may cost them financially. People in the USA often have little idea how much other countries want to see the end of the USA’s economic (and other) dominance in the world. (Thiel B. Russian, Chinese, Indian, and Brazilian Leaders Meet for BRIC 2. COGwriter, April 15, 2010)

I warned back in 2011 that the BRICS nations wanted to reduce US dollar dominance and other US influence. Notice:

The BRICS are trying to unify against the US dollar and its influence … The BRICS nations are pushing for a financial order that is not dominated by the US dollar. And while they have legitimate economic reasons for this, they also seem to be pushing for this for political reasons. The BRICS want much more influence in the world’s monetary system. (Thiel B. BRICS Target US Dollar: Final Time of Gentiles Approaching. COGwriter, April 14, 2011)

I have reported about BRICS plans to push aside the dollar on a regular basis (see, for example, the March 2, 2019 post: ‘BRICS Pay’ and the Coming End of US Dollar Hegemony). In 2020, I posted:

BRICS have been working to dodge the US dollar and have had some success doing so.

The US economy will be badly hurt when its dollar is no longer seen as the instrument for international trade payments.

It should be noted that the BRICS nations are also part of other organizations and projects that extend their reach well beyond the five member nations.  (Thiel B. ‘Is BRICS Dodging US Dollar?’ EAEU wooing India? COGwriter, January 19, 2020)

Now, you might be thinking that they, BRICS, have had the pushing aside of the US dollar for a long time and have not done it yet.

And that is true.

Yet they, and the Europeans, have been taking steps they hope will one day push aside the US dollar.

The dollar is still king. But it is a king over a kingdom looking to rebel. US weaponizing of its dollar is accelerating the moves of many away from it.

US-led sanctions against Russia is harming the USA dollar.

Yes, to use an American expression, the USA “has been shooting its own foot.”

Although US President Biden said he planned to turn the Russian ruble into rubble, the ruble has been the best performing currency this year (see AP: Russia slams sanctions, seeks to blame West for food crisis; CBS: Russia’s ruble is the strongest currency in the world this year).

There are many unintended consequences to sanctions.

The time of Gentile domination is prophesied (Ezekiel 7:24, 30:1-3, 34:25-30; Jeremiah 10:25; Luke 21:23-24; Revelation 11:2), and although BRICS will not lead that, actions by BRICS nations will assist in pushing aside the US dollar.

A new world order is developing. Many in the world are working against the hegemony of the USA, and to a lessor degree its Anglo-Saxon descended allies.

Major decline of the USA is occurring. It will not end well for the USA (Daniel 11:39; Habakkuk 2:6-8) nor its Anglo-Saxon descended allies (Isaiah 17:3; Daniel 8:24-25).

BTW, after the coming “new world order” is destroyed (Revelation 11:15), the millennial Kingdom of God will be established. That will be good news.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

The End of US Dollar Dominance Is the USA losing its economic status? What about the petro-gold-yuan? A related video is also available: US Dollar being challenged by Gold-Petro-Yuan.
USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses Can you point to scriptures, like Daniel 11:39, that point to the USA in the 21st century? This article does. A related sermon is titled: Do these 7 prophesies point to the end of the USA?
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.
Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? There is also a video sermon available: Russia in the Bible and in Prophecy as are two video sermonettes Russia, Ukraine, Babylonian Europe, and Prophecy and Ukraine in Prophecy?
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
The New World Order Is Leaving the US Behind Bloomberg reported that the New World Order is leaving the USA behind. Other secular news sources are also reporting the rise of a new world order and decline of the influence of the USA. What about NAFTA, the Paris Accords, TPP, TWO, and NATO? Russia, China, and Europe are all working towards reducing dominance of the USA. Is this consistent with biblical prophecy? When did the time of Anglo-American dominance begin? Will the coming world order be dominated by a European Babylonian power? What will happen to the USA, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand after military actions by the coming order and the Great Tribulation? Are there any ties to Armageddon? Dr. Thiel addresses and more from the Bible.
Is China paving roads to Armageddon? China is working on something known as the ‘Silk Road’ project or the “One Belt, One Road” initiative. NBC reports that China intends to spend one trillion dollars to build roads, bridges, railroads, and maritime facilities to reach from China to Europe and China to the Middle East. Over 60 nations, including Russia, are involved with this. Could this Silk Road project possibly produce thoroughfares that could be used by troops that will amass at Armageddon? Dr. Thiel discusses this project and some of its potential prophetic ramifications in this video.
Armageddon Who is involved and when will this gathering happen? Here is also a video from Dr. Thiel, from Tel Megiddo in Israel: Armageddon.
Asia in Prophecy What is Ahead for Asia? Who are the “Kings of the East”? What will happen to nearly all the Chinese, Russians, Indians, and others of Asia? China in prophecy, where? Who has the 200,000,000 man army related to Armageddon? A YouTube video of interest may be Is China THE Threat to the United States of America?
The Eurasian Union, the Kings of the East, and Bible Prophecy Is there a Eurasian union that will be formed? Is one being formed right now? Are any leaders working on that in the 21st century? Does the Bible teach that there will be a Eurasian union? If some type of Eurasian union is formed, who might it benefit and who will it destroy? A related video would be Is The Eurasian Union Rising?
Post Brexit Prophecy On June 23, 2016, the voters of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK) chose to leave the European Union. Now with this BRitish EXIT (Brexit) vote, what is prophesied to happen to the UK? Will the UK do well or be taken over and made slaves? Dr. Thiel explains from biblical prophecies what is ahead for the UK, Europe, and even the USA, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?
Spiritual Samaritans: Old and New Who were the Samaritans? Do the represent true Christianity or something else? Here is a link to a related sermon: USA in Prophecy: Samaria.Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here is a link to a video titled: The Future King of the North.
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first? Here is a link to the Spanish version of this article: Anglo-América & las Tribus Perdidas de Israel. Information is also in the YouTube sermons titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter? and British are the Covenant People. A short YouTube of prophetic interest may be: Are Chinese threats against Australia for real?
Will the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas?
British are the Covenant People What do ‘British’ and ‘Britain’ mean in Hebrew? Are the descendants of the Anglo-Saxons people of the covenant? Does the British royal family connect to the throne of David? What does the Bible teach? What does history show us? Is there any DNA evidence related to British-Israelism? When did Christianity make it to the British Isles? Could Jeremiah have made it to the British Isles? What type of Christians made it to the British Isles? Did the last King of England believe in British Israelism?
Canada in Prophecy: What Does Bible Prophecy, Catholic Prophecy, and other Predictions Suggest About the Future of Canada? There are prophecies that suggest involvement with Canada. And many are not positive about its future. A sermon of related interest is also available: Canada in Prophecy.
Australia and New Zealand in Prophecy Do biblical prophecies help explain the wealth blessings for Australia and New Zealand? Might cursings from disobedience come in the 21st century? Here is a link to a related sermon: Australia and New Zealand: Origins and Prophecy.
Donald Trump in Prophecy Prophecy, Donald Trump? Are there prophecies that Donald Trump may fulfill? Are there any prophecies that he has already helped fulfill? Is a Donald Trump presidency proving to be apocalyptic? Two related videos are available: Donald: ‘Trump of God’ or Apocalyptic? and Donald Trump’s Prophetic Presidency.
Trump Presidency Magic 8 Ball or Bible Prophecy? BBC reported that one might as well use a ‘Magic Eight-Ball’ to try to predict what will happen in the remaining time of Donald Trump’s presidency. What is a ‘Magic Eight-Ball’? Dr. Thiel not only explains that, but also briefly goes over 10 biblically-based warnings he wrote would happen if Donald Trump were elected that have already began to come to pass. He also goes over something he wrote back in 2008 that the Trump presidency is also helping lead to fulfillment. Should you trust Bible prophecy or not? Dr. Thiel says that Bible prophecy can be trusted, despite the view of skeptics and others that either overlook or despise the Bible. This is a video.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to three related sermons: The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
Did The Early Church Teach Millenarianism? Was the millennium (sometimes called chiliasm) taught by early Christians? Who condemned it? Will Jesus literally reign for 1000 years on the earth? Is this time near? Two related sermons are available Millennial Utopia and The Millennium.
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 209 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
The Times of the Gentiles Has there been more than one time of the Gentiles? Are we in it now or in the time of Anglo-America? What will the final time of the Gentiles be like? A related sermon is available and is titled: The Times of the Gentiles.
Armageddon Who is involved and when will this gathering happen? Here is also a video from Dr. Thiel, from Tel Megiddo in Israel: Armageddon. Other videos include: Armageddon Will it come on Trump’s watch?, Iraq, Armageddon, & Prophecy, Freemasonry, Armageddon, and Rome, Is China paving roads to Armageddon?, and Jordan, Petra, and Armageddon.

The Ten Commandments

COGwriter

CBS put out a report a while back about what one author believes are the top six scams that affect people in the USA:

Overall, the nation’s most prevalent scam remains a fake check con, which involves “overpaying” for a product or service and asking the recipient to refund the difference. By the time the victim realizes that the check used for payment was bogus, the con artist has walked away with the consumer’s money…

The top six scams in order:

1. Fake checks
2. Bad Internet sales – products never delivered or misrepresented
3. Sweepstakes/prize/free gift cons that request payment to get your winnings.
4. Advance fee cons that promise a loan or line of credit, if you pay them first.
5. Phishing scams that attempt to get personal information to get access to your accounts, your tax refund or to open credit cards in your name.
6. Recovery/refund cons that promise past victims a recovery of swindled funds in exchange for a fee. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/top-6-us-scams/

Of course, there are also other scams.

As far as these six go, a while back someone tried the fake check scam for a business I own. I did not fall for it. The only one in the list that someone has not directly tried to involve me in is number 4 (although I may not have read every loan offer enough to see if that was the case). Otherwise, numbers 3, 5, and 6 are very commonly pushed to me. But other than number 2 (I have made some purchases over the internet that were misrepresented, so I took action), I have not fallen for any of the scams.

Sadly, many people are greedy and do not care how they harm others. Scams are based upon lies, theft, and deception. Scammers are, according to what Jesus said, a type of destroyer and murderer:

44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. (John 8:44)

10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. (John 10:10)

The Bible teaches “love truth” (Zechariah 8:19) and that those who do not have the “love of the truth” will perish (2 Thessalonians 2:10).

Lying is prohibited by the Ten Commandments:

16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. (Exodus 20:16)

20 ‘You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. (Deuteronomy 5:20)

Notice what Jesus taught:

33 Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord. 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all (Mathew 5:33-34).

19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts…false witness…20 These are the things which defile a man (Matthew 15:19-20).

18 You shall not bear false witness (Matthew 19:18).

19 Do not bear false witness (Mark 10:19).

20 You know the commandments:…Do not bear false witness (Luke 18:20).

2 And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars (Revelation 2:2).

Notice what Paul taught:

9 You shall not bear false witness (Romans 13:9).

19 I do not lie (Galatians 1:19).

25 Therefore, putting away lying, ‘Let each of you speak truth with his neighbor’ (Ephesians 4:25).

9 Do not lie to one another (Colossians 3:9).

9…the lawless and insubordinate…10 liars…perjurers (1 Timothy 1:9,10).

1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy (1 Timothy 4:1-2).

1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be…3 slanderers (2 Timothy 3:1,3).

2 God, who cannot lie (Titus 1:2).

18…it is impossible for God to lie (Hebrews 6:18).

Those who scam defile themselves.

Those of us who believe the Bible, have read the Bible, and believe in keeping the Ten Commandments have long realized that telling the truth contributes to happiness. Notice the following:

18 Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; But happy is he who keeps the law. (Proverbs 29:18)

14 Happy is the man who is always reverent (Proverbs 28:14).

And since lying is a violation of the law, logic dictates that those who lie are less happier than those who do not.

Protestant pastor Andy Stanley has come out against the Ten Commandments on various occasions. Here is one:

Mega-pastor Andy Stanley is at it again – running down the Ten Commandments.

In a new article in Relevant Magazine, he tells Christians God’s words from Mount Sinai don’t apply to them any more.

• You shall have no other gods before Me.
• Don’t take the name of the Lord your God in vain. …
• Honor your mother and father.
• Don’t murder.
• Don’t commit adultery.
• Don’t steal.
• Don’t bear false witness against your neighbor.

It’s all apparently irrelevant today, he says.

“Participants in the new covenant (that’s Christians) are not required to obey any of the commandments found in the first part of their Bibles,” Stanley wrote.

“Participants in the new covenant are expected to obey the single command Jesus issued as part of his new covenant: as I have loved you, so you must love one another.”

Is that what Jesus said? Did He ever suggest the Ten Commandments were irrelevant, outdated and replaced by a single new one?

You won’t find that suggestion anywhere in the words of Jesus, the Gospels or the rest of the New Testament no matter how hard you search for it.

Instead, here’s what you will find:

• Matthew 5:17-18: “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.”
• Matthew 5:19: “Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
• Matthew 19:17: “And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.”
• 2 Timothy 4:3-4: “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.”

Jesus did say in John 13:34-35 that He had a new commandment to give His disciples – that they love one another as He loved them. Remember how He loved them. He gave His life for them so that they might receive eternal life as His children. That’s how He expected them to love each other. It was a higher calling, not a lower one. 01/12/19 https://www.wnd.com/2019/01/mega-pastor-to-christians-10-commandments-dont-apply-to-you/#tYv8WK3LKMXSuIdt.99

Popular megachurch pastor Andy Stanley of North Point Ministries (NPM) says Christians need to stop erecting monuments to the Ten Commandments because they apparently no longer apply to Christians, which is completely false. …

“[I]f we’re going to create a monument to stand as a testament to our faith, shouldn’t it at least be a monument of something that actually applies to us?” Stanley openly pontificated. “Participants in the new covenant (that’s Christians) are not required to obey any of the commandments found in the first part of their Bibles. Participants in the new covenant are expected to obey the single command Jesus issued as part of his new covenant: as I have loved you, so you must love one another.”

He continued, “But how many times have you seen Christians trying to post the text of the sermon on the mount in a public place? Or the all-encompassing commandment Jesus gave us?”

Stanley goes on to say that this commandment from Christ is “a replacement for everything in the existing list. Including the big ten.”

“Just as his new covenant replaced the old covenant, Jesus’ new commandment replaced all the old commandments,” Stanley contended.

… The concept that the Old Testament no longer applies to Christians is actually a heresy known as Marcionism going all the way back to the 2nd Century. 01/10/19 https://www.dailywire.com/news/42048/popular-megachurch-pastor-says-10-commandments-no-paul-bois

As far as Marcionism goes, we have an article and a sermon about that:

Marcion: The First Protestant? Considered to have been an organized heretic, he taught against the Old Testament, the law, and the Sabbath. Some have considered him to be the first Protestant reformer. But was he? Here is a link to a related sermon: Marcion: The first Protestant reformer?

Marcion was condemned by early Church of God Christians such as Polycarp of Smyrna and Melito of Sardis.

Andy Stanley has apparently failed to realize that the early Christians did strive to observe the Ten Commandments (see also The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast).

Like most who profess Christ today, Andy Stanley does not understand enough about early church history. But you can (and so could he) by reading the book: Continuing History of the Church of God.

Andy Stanley also wrote a book in which he calls the Old Testament obsolete. and repeatedly cited scriptures in the Old Testament to teach about Jesus.

Nor does he understand the New Testament related to obedience.

Notice that salvation itself is tied in with obedience:

9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, (Hebrews 5:9)

Jesus kept the commandments and was perfected–and those who wish to be saved need to obey Him!

Who gets the Holy Spirit? The Acts 5:32 says God gives the Holy Spirit “to those who obey Him.”

Andy Stanley does not understand that.

In a podcast, I heard Andy Stanley say:

“I’m convinced that we make a better case for Jesus if we leave the Old Testament or the old covenant out of the argument … you don’t need ancient prophs when somebody rises from the dead” (Jonathan Merritt interview of Andy Stanley. Seekers & Speakers, podcast. August 9, 2018).

By “prophs” he meant biblical prophecies from the Old Testament. That position is contrary to what Christians did.

The reality is that Jesus, the Gospel writers, and the Apostles frequently referred to the Old Testament to demonstrate that Jesus was the Christ. While there are too many references in the New Testament to list directly in this post, some may wish to read our free online book: Proof Jesus is the Messiah.

Furthermore, notice what the Book of Revelation states:

10 … Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. (Revelation 19:10)

To learn more about Andy Stanley’s improper teachings as well as what the Bible teaches on these matters, the Continuing Church of God (CCOG) put together the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

16:58

Did mega-Protestant Pastor Andy Stanley really say you should not use Old Testament prophecies to support Jesus’ Messiahship? Did he also claim that there was no Bible until the fourth century? Did he also teach against the Ten Commandments? Did Jesus, Peter, Paul, Apollos, and Philip use Old Testament prophecies to prove that Jesus was the Messiah? Did it really take until the fourth century to have a Bible? Did early Christians teach the observance of the Ten Commandments? Dr. Thiel, who listened to Andy Stanley in a podcast, plus who has studied the Bible and church history, answers these questions from a Christian perspective.

Here is a link to our video: Andy Stanley opposes prophesies of Jesus?

The New Testament warned:

13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived (2 Timothy 3:13, KJV).

Andy Stanley is both deceived and a deceiver.

After Paul stated, “the truth of Christ is in me (2 Corinthians 11:10), he warned that there are,

…false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works” (11:13-15).

Thus Paul is saying that certain professing ministers look like they are doing the right thing, but are really deceptive. Thus one reason to be separate is not to be deceived by Satan’s ministers, because they can look like they are righteous when they are not.

Paul also warned that false teachers, “by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple” (Romans 16:18).

The real biggest scam in the USA is how its theologians and political leaders do not truly understand and teach the Bible. Many modern Protestant leaders, for example, do not seem to realize that basically all early professing Christians (other than those associated with apostates like Simon Magus or Marcion) believed that Christians needed to keep the Ten Commandments.

If political and theological leaders would better understand and teach the Bible, we would see a massive increase in wealth and a decrease of scams here. But this is not expected to occur until after the return of Jesus Christ and the establishment of His millennial kingdom.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Lies Where did they originate? What was really the first lie? What happens for lies?
The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast This is a free book explaining the what the Ten Commandments are, where they came from, how early professors of Christ viewed them, and how various ones, including the Beast of Revelation, will oppose them. A related sermon is titled: The Ten Commandments and the Beast of Revelation.
The Ten Commandments Reflect Love, Breaking them is Evil Some feel that the ten commandments are a burden. Is that what Jesus, Paul, Peter, James, and John taught?
Was the Commandment to Love the Only Command? Some have stated that John’s writings teach this, but is that what the Bible really says?
The Ten Commandments and the Early Church Did Jesus and the Early Church keep the ten commandments? What order were they in? Here are quotes from the Bible and early writings.
Simon Magus, What Did He Teach? Sometimes called “the father early heretics” or the “father of heresies”, do you know what early writers claimed that Simon Magus taught? Sadly, most who profess Christ still hold to versions of his teachings. Here is a link to a related sermon: Simon Magus and ‘Christianity’?
Cerinthus: An early heretic What did he teach? What did the Apostle John do about him?
Marcion: The First Protestant? Considered to have been an organized heretic, he taught against the Old Testament, the law, and the Sabbath. Some have considered him to be the first Protestant reformer. But was he? Here is a link to a related sermon: Marcion: The first Protestant reformer?
Living as a Christian: How and Why? In what ways do Christians live differently than others. What about praying, fasting, tithing, holy days, and the world? There is also a YouTube video related to that also called: Living as a Christian: How and Why?
What is the Meaning of Life? Who does God say is happy? What is your ultimate destiny? Do you really know? Does God actually have a plan for YOU personally? There is also a video titled What is the meaning of your life?
COGwriter Position on Other Churches and Religions What is the fate of those who do not know Christ? What about those who profess Christ outside the Church of God?
Where is the True Christian Church Today? This free online pdf booklet answers that question and includes 18 proofs, clues, and signs to identify the true vs. false Christian church. Plus 7 proofs, clues, and signs to help identify Laodicean churches. A related sermon is also available: Where is the True Christian Church? Here is a link to the booklet in the Spanish language: ¿Dónde está la verdadera Iglesia cristiana de hoy?
Continuing History of the Church of God This pdf booklet is a historical overview of the true Church of God and some of its main opponents from Acts 2 to the 21st century. Related sermon links include Continuing History of the Church of God: c. 31 to c. 300 A.D. and Continuing History of the Church of God: 4th-16th Centuries and Continuing History of the Church of God: 17th-20th Centuries. The booklet is available in Spanish: Continuación de la Historia de la Iglesia de Dios, German: Kontinuierliche Geschichte der Kirche Gottes, French: L’Histoire Continue de l’Église de Dieu and Ekegusii Omogano Bw’ekanisa Ya Nyasae Egendererete.
Proof Jesus is the Messiah This free book has over 200 Hebrew prophecies were fulfilled by Jesus. Plus, His arrival was consistent with specific prophecies and even Jewish interpretations of prophecy. Here are links to seven related sermons: Proof Jesus is the Messiah, Prophecies of Jesus’ birth, timing, and death, Jesus’ prophesied divinity, 200+ OT prophecies Jesus filled; Plus prophecies He made, Why Don’t Jews Accept Jesus?, Daniel 9, Jews, and Jesus, and Facts and Atheists’ Delusions About Jesus. Plus the links to two sermonettes: Luke’s census: Any historical evidence? and Muslims believe Jesus is the Messiah, but … These videos cover nearly all of the book, plus have some information not in the book.
Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God Differs from Protestantism The CCOG is NOT Protestant. This free online book explains how the real Church of God differs from mainstream/traditional Protestants. Several sermons related to the free book are also available: Protestant, Baptist, and CCOG History; The First Protestant, God’s Command, Grace, & Character; The New Testament, Martin Luther, and the Canon; Eucharist, Passover, and Easter; Views of Jews, Lost Tribes, Warfare, & Baptism; Scripture vs. Tradition, Sabbath vs. Sunday; Church Services, Sunday, Heaven, and God’s Plan; Seventh Day Baptists/Adventists/Messianics: Protestant or COG?; Millennial Kingdom of God and God’s Plan of Salvation; Crosses, Trees, Tithes, and Unclean Meats; The Godhead and the Trinity; Fleeing or Rapture?; and Ecumenism, Rome, and CCOG Differences.

A Baltic country has warned that Russia are ‘simulating missile strikes against NATO territory as Europe prepares for war #WWIII #Europe #Russia .@NATO – https://t.co/t67Zg85pFt pic.twitter.com/hyQkpwACCs

— LondonLovesBusiness (@LondonLovesBiz) June 22, 2022

COGwriter

New Statesman reported the following:

A new age of global war

Europe believed it had banished war for good.

June 22, 2022

“You may not be interested in war,” Trotsky said, “but war is interested in you.” We in the more fortunate parts of the world are learning that hard lesson again as we watch the fighting in Ukraine.  …

The Third World War, a possibility that few people outside military and strategic think tanks have taken seriously since the end of the Cold War, is now the subject of anxious discussion among more and more of us. The nuclear arsenals of today are terrifying, with warheads many times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. …

Governments and their voters will have to make difficult and unpalatable choices about raising taxes, redirecting expenditures, and ensuring that industry can produce the materials their military forces need. We are going to have to think, more seriously than we have done, about how to shore up the international order. Remember, war is interested in you. https://www.newstatesman.com/international-politics/ideas-international-politics/2022/06/the-new-age-of-global-war-margaret-macmillan

Yes, governments in many lands are now looking to increase military spending–particularly in Europe.

Related to that, we put together the following related video:

18:27

Is the European Beast Growing Horns?

Does the conflict between Russia and Ukraine have prophetic ramifications? What about Ezekiel 38? Are we seeing a ‘historic shift’ in Europe to move towards more unity? What about non-EU nations like Sweden and Switzerland? Is Germany’s announcement to double its military spending to 100 million euros a big deal? Does the Bible tell of changes coming to Europe for it to rise up as a Babylonian unity successful military power? What about the United States of America and its British-descended allies? Could USA sanctions against Russia, including SWIFT restrictions, decrease international demand for USA dollars and cause inflation? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more in this video.

Here is a link to our video: Is the European Beast Growing Horns?

This arming by the Europeans will lead to WWIII!

Michael Snyder posted the following:

You May Not Want To Hear This, But More War Is Coming

There are dark clouds on the horizon, and those that choose to ignore them do so to their own peril. When World War I started, nobody thought that it would be the most horrifying war that Europe had ever witnessed. The “war to end all wars” resulted in approximately 20 million deaths, but of course it didn’t actually end all wars. World War II erupted in 1939, and it resulted in at least 40 million deaths. After witnessing such immense death and destruction, you would think that humanity would be absolutely determined to avoid a global war in the future. Unfortunately, World War III has now begun, and by the time it is over the number of dead will far exceed the combined totals from World War I and World War II. …

Right now, the war in Ukraine is the largest land war that we have witnessed in Europe since World War II. …

Israel has always warned that Iran would never be allowed to get to a point where it could produce a nuclear bomb.  Sadly, the IAEA recently announced that Iran now “possesses enough fissile material to construct a nuclear bomb”…

Israel and Iran are rapidly approaching an inflection point over Tehran’s nuclear program, and what was the atomic equivalent of a controlled clash between the two countries is now devolving into an unconstrained chain reaction. In late May, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nations agency tasked with globally overseeing nuclear technology and use, reported that Iran possesses enough fissile material to construct a nuclear bomb. Jerusalem’s long-feared specter of Tehran becoming an existential threat to Israel is now very real and imminent.

There is going to be a war between Israel and Iran. 06/20/22 http://endoftheamericandream.com/you-may-not-want-to-hear-this-but-more-war-is-coming/

Yes, there will be some type of war between Iran and Israel (cf. Isaiah 22:6-8). Yes, more war is coming. But, no, what we are now seeing is NOT WWIII–though we are seeing preparatory steps.

What could be labeled WWIII will result in the end of the USA and its British-descended allies consistent with Daniel 11:39 (cf. 8:24-25).

Though Europe will triumph for a time (Revelation 13:3-4; Daniel 11:39-43), prophecies also show matters will not end well for Europe itself (cf. Daniel 11:44-45; Revelation 17:14)–and Russia will be involved (watch also Russia, Ukraine, Babylonian Europe, and Prophecy).

The old Worldwide Church of God published the following about the fate of a coming European power:

This European power will eventually establish its capital and religious headquarters at Jerusalem (Dan. 11 :45) Daniel says that this European conqueror will become troubled by “tidings out of the east and out of the north” (11 :44) . There can be little doubt about the source of the beast‘s trouble. East and north of Palestine are Russia, China and other nations of the vast Asian con-continent. (Why Russia Will Not Attack the United States. WCG booklet)

Although there is not about to be a massive nuclear war between Russia on the USA, Europe one day, is prophesied to be destroyed by a Russian-led force:

8 “Move from the midst of Babylon,
Go out of the land of the Chaldeans;
And be like the rams before the flocks.

9 For behold, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon
An assembly of great nations from the north country,
And they shall array themselves against her;
From there she shall be captured.
Their arrows shall be like those of an expert warrior;
None shall return in vain. (Jeremiah 50:8-9)

Regarding some of this, notice something we put up prior to Russia’s ‘special military operation” into Ukraine:

21:20

Russia, Ukraine, Babylonian Europe, and Prophecy

The situation between Russia and Ukraine has again heated up, although it has been tense since the Euromaiden protests and Russia’s annexation of Crimea. There was later a separation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church from the Russian Orthodox Church. Is war prophesied for Russia and Ukraine? Are prophecies in the Bible associated with the ‘kings of the Medes’ and a power from the “north country” related to any in Russia and Ukraine? Is a confederation of powers from the north, east, and central Asia prophesied to destroy the coming end time European Babylon? Will the destruction be reminiscent of what happened to Sodom and Gomorrah? How is the King of the North and who will destroy him? Do those in Russia and Ukraine have a hope of salvation? Will Russia and powers of the east be involved in the gathering in Armageddon as prophesied in Revelation 16? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues.

Here is a link to our video: Russia, Ukraine, Babylonian Europe, and Prophecy.

Since 2013, I have been posting that the situation in Ukraine would change and that at least part of that territory would end up supporting Russia. That happened with Crimea in 2014 and has happened with the two republics in the Donbas.

Jesus said:

36 Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man. (Luke 21:36)

He also said to pray for God’s Kingdom to come.

Remember to regularly do so.

The reality is that steps are in progress for world war:

3 When He opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come and see.” 4 Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword. (Revelation 6:3-4)

To a degree not seen since WWII, peace has been taken from the earth. But things will get much, much worse.

People are not as safe as most seem to think that they are. WWIII is not yet here, but steps are in progress.

Those without a COG background, as well as some of those with one, may find the following from the late Dr. Herman Hoeh of interest:

IF WORLD WAR III COMES – There Is a Way of Escape

You need to be prepared. …

Jesus’ Amazing Prophecy

Let’s notice Jesus’ prophecy of the “times of the Gentiles” in Luke 21:24.

When speaking of the Jews, Jesus told His disciples that “they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations, and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.”

This prophecy is not speaking of a period of peace, but of war. It is a message for our day — a time when the Gentiles are conquering and destroying, when they are ruling themselves contrary to the way of God who is Creator and RULER. …

Remember what Jesus said in Luke 21:24? That Jerusalem would be trodden down of the Gentiles until the very completion of the times of the Gentiles!

Since Zechariah 14:1-3 shows that Jesus Christ will return in order to deliver Jerusalem from the Gentiles, it is plain that THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST WILL PUT AN END TO THE TIMES OF PUNISHMENT ON THE GENTILE BABYLONISH SYSTEM! (Isaiah 27:13; I Cor. 15:52.) Then God will send His Son to rule the world!

As Christ said, of the second coming, “But of that day and hour, knoweth no man!” But … world-occurrences warn us that … it is very near! …

Way of Escape

But in this end-time of turmoil there is a place of safety-if you heed-until Christ does bring us peace.

It’s a vital part of the gospel of the soon-coming Kingdom of God! Jesus said, ” … except those days were SHORTENED, there should no flesh be saved!” (Mat. 24:22.) But He went on to say that God would supernaturally cut short the days, for the sake of the ELECT!

That is our only real hope for survival!

The intervention of God! Jesus Christ promised protection to His own elect! He PROMISED they would survive the prophesied holocaust to strike this unsuspecting world!

WHO are the Elect?

He said, “FEAR NOT, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12: 32).

He promised that somewhere on this earth, right now, there would be His own WORK! That work would be faith· fully performed, He promised, by His own true followers, who KNOW HIS VOICE, who would be preaching…”the Gospel of the Kingdom” as a WITNESS TO the WHOLE WORLD!

They would be preaching it, chapter- by-chapter, verse-by-verse, word-by-word, just exactly as it really IS, not as they might interpret it to be, or any man, woman, or organization of men or women would like to have it preached!

You NEED TO FIND WHERE THAT WORK IS BEING CARRIED ON! Why? Because it is ONLY THOSE who have an absolute guarantee of safety! The very elect are those who are the called and chosen, who have truly RE-PENTED of their own carnal ways, and have accepted the Holy ways of God! They are the ones who have been made members of the very BODY of Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 12:13) performing HIS WORK! Jesus speaks of these faithful ones, in the Book of Revelation.

“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia [the prophesied end-time Church of God, doing the work of God) write: … ‘I know thy works , behold, I have set before thee an open door II (Rev, 3:7-8).

The Apostle Paul spoke of a door flung open before him to PREACH THE GOSPEL (II Cor. 2:12). Remember, Jesus promised, “This Gospel of the Kingdom SHALL be preached in all the world . .. ” (Mat. 24:14), and promised to make a way for that message of hope and good news to go-by flinging open the massive DOORS of radio, the printing press, television, and personal evangelism. He promised those doors would remain , …. and no man can shut it, for thou has a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name” (Rev, 3:8), Yes, the very elect would NEVER become corrupted by false doctrines, or be muzzled by boards of men-it would not deny the name of Jesus Christ, or His true doctrine! (Hoeh H. If World War III Comes–There is a Way of Escape. Plain Truth, June 1963)

Let me interject here that the Continuing Church of God is now getting that gospel out over the printing press, radio, online ‘television’ videos, personal evangelism, and the internet. We represent the remnant of the Philadelphia portion of the Church of God that Dr. Hoeh mentions below:

Later, Jesus gave the exhilarating GOOD NEWS to those faithful ones who put the WORK of God far above their own personal considerations. He said “Because thou hast KEPT the word of my patience, I ALSO WILL KEEP THEE FROM THE HOUR OF TEMPTATION [TRIBULATION) WHICH SHALL COME UPON ALL THE WORLD, TO TRY THEM THAT DWELL ON THE EARTH!” (Rev. 3:10) . Yes , Jesus promised SAFETY. He promises supernatural PROTECTION to His own elect.

On the Wings of an Eagle

God brought the ancient Israelites out of Egypt on symbolic “eagles’ wings.” This symbolizes the loving care and protection of God for His own children. Notice, now, an amazing prophecy. It is about the same Church of God addressed in the promise of protection we have just read in Revelation 3.

“And to the woman [the Church) were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time from the face of the serpent” (Rev. 12:14), In this end-time prophecy, John writes of the last, end-time REMNANT Church which is to ESCAPE the terrible WAR and tribulation that will soon strike our heedless people, They are, just as the ancient Israelites, carried to a place of SAFETY … in the wilderness by the supernatural power of Almighty God, their Banner, their Shield, their Protector!

Where Will They GO?

Now notice another amazing prophecy. Daniel was inspired to write of this impending nuclear war, and its immediate aftermath. He describes the rising BEAST power in Europe, a coming resurrection of the ancient ROMAN EMPIRE, symbolized as the “King of the North.” But the European power crushes and occupies these poorly equipped up-start countries.

“And at the time of the end [NOT back during the days of the Seleucidae of Syria)… the king of the north shall come… like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships, and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.

“He shall enter also into the glorious land [Palestine], and many countries shall be overthrown, but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edam and Moab and the chief of the children of Ammon” (Dan. 11:40-41).

Why are these areas spared?

For a very special reason!

A PLACE of Protection

God promises His people will be flourished, provided for, in the “wilderness”! He will supernaturally protect them, carrying them safely there on symbolic “eagles’ wings. ” They may be taken by air, sea or land-the Bible doesn’t sayBut where is this “wilderness” place God is readying?

Many Bible statements indicate it is in the areas anciently occupied by the Edomites, Moabites, and Ammonites, southeast of Jerusalem, in the rugged, barren mountains beyond the Dead Sea — the modern country of Transjordan (Dan. 11:41 and Isaiah 16:4-5).

Regardless of WHERE the “place” is that God’s Church is nourished and protected during these perilous times described in so many dozens of prophecies — the way to make sure you are going there is clear!

To those who will truly repent of wanting their own way, and who will come to God through Jesus Christ and His sacrifice, He promises spiritual, supernatural, MIRACULOUS shelter!

Does this sound fantastic? Does it sound incredible? Have we strayed so far from our RULER and our SAVIOUR that we think Him UNABLE to save us? Is it ridiculous to most today to really believe in God above and His supernatural protection — His divine INTERVENTION in our own personal lives?

Of course not!

He is our Fortress! He is our Rock! He is our GOD! He will supernaturally bring His people to a place of safety! (Hoeh H. If World War III Comes–There is a Way of Escape. Plain Truth, June 1963)

More on this place of protection can be found in the article There is a Place of Safety for the Philadelphians. Why it May Be Petra; there is also a video on the subject: Might Petra be the Place of Safety? Here is something related in the Spanish language: Hay un lugar de seguridad para los Filadelfinos. ¿Puede ser Petra?

Because of the proximity to the end of 6000 years for humanity to rule itself mainly cut off from God (see Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End?), we are to expect wars, rumors of wars, and various sorrows (Matthew 24:4-8). And then the end of the nations of USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies once the time of Jacob’s trouble (Jeremiah 30:7), the great tribulation (Matthew 24:21) begins–that could be considered WWIII–and preparations for it are in progress.

Ultimately of course, there is good news as ultimately, Jesus will return, God’s kingdom will come, and those issues will be gone (Revelation 7:16).

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

There is a Place of Safety for the Philadelphians. Why it May Be Near Petra This article discusses a biblical ‘place of safety,’ Zephaniah 2 to ‘gather together,’ and includes quotes from the Bible and Herbert W. Armstrong on fleeing to a place–thus, there is a biblically supported alternative to the rapture theory. Two sermon-length videos of related interest are available Physical Protection During the Great Tribulation and Might Petra be the Place of Safety? Here is something related in the Spanish language: Hay un lugar de seguridad para los Filadelfinos. ¿Puede ser Petra?
Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Christian Repentance Do you know what repentance is? Is it really necessary for salvation? Two related sermons about this are also available: Real Repentance and Real Christian Repentance.
Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? There is also a video sermon available: Russia in the Bible and in Prophecy as are two video sermonettes Russia, Ukraine, Babylonian Europe, and Prophecy and Ukraine in Prophecy?
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
Ezekiel 38: For Russia & Iran in Our Day? Is Ezekiel 38 about to be fulfilled? Are we close to the battle with Gog and Magog? Three related videos are available: Ezekiel 38 Gog and Magog War: Is it Soon?, Ezekiel 38: For Russia, Ukraine, & Iran Now?, and Russia, Iran, Syria, & the Bible (Code).Protestant and Church of God views of the United States in Bible Prophecy Is the USA mentioned in Bible prophecy? Some Protestants say yes, while others say no. What does the Bible really teach? Learn the truth about this. There is also a video available: Is The United States Mentioned In Bible Prophecy?
World War III: Steps in Progress Are there surprising actions going on now that are leading to WWIII? Might a nuclear attack be expected? Does the Bible promise protection to all or only some Christians? How can you be part of those that will be protected? A related video would be Is World War III About to Begin? Can You Escape?
The Eurasian Union, the Kings of the East, and Bible Prophecy Is there a Eurasian union that will be formed? Is one being formed right now? Are any leaders working on that in the 21st century? Does the Bible teach that there will be a Eurasian union? If some type of Eurasian union is formed, who might it benefit and who will it destroy? A related video would be Is The Eurasian Union Rising?
Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?
European Technology and the Beast of Revelation Will the coming European Beast power would use and develop technology that will result in the taking over of the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies? Is this possible? What does the Bible teach? Here is a related YouTube video: Military Technology and the Beast of Revelation.
Germany’s Assyrian Roots Throughout History Are the Germanic peoples descended from Asshur of the Bible? Have there been real Christians in Germanic history? What about the “Holy Roman Empire”? There is also a You-Tube video sermon on this titled Germany’s Biblical Origins.
Germany in Biblical and Catholic Prophecy Does Assyria in the Bible equate to an end time power inhabiting the area of the old Roman Empire? What does prophecy say Germany will do and what does it say will happen to most of the German people? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: Alemania en la profecía bíblic. Here are links to two English language sermon videos Germany in Bible Prophecy and The Rise of the Germanic Beast Power of Prophecy.
Spiritual Samaritans: Old and New Who were the Samaritans? Do the represent true Christianity or something else? Here is a link to a related sermon: USA in Prophecy: Samaria.Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here is a link to a video titled: The Future King of the North.
USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses Can you point to scriptures, like Daniel 11:39, that point to the USA in the 21st century? This article does. Two related sermon are available: Identifying the USA and its Destruction in Prophecy and Do these 7 prophesies point to the end of the USA?
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here are links to two related videos: The King of the North is Alive: What to Look Out For and The Future King of the North.
The Times of the Gentiles Has there been more than one time of the Gentiles? Are we in it now or in the time of Anglo-America? What will the final time of the Gentiles be like? A related sermon is available and is titled: The Times of the Gentiles.
Armageddon Who is involved and when will this gathering happen? Here is also a video from Dr. Thiel, from Tel Megiddo in Israel: Armageddon. Other videos include: Armageddon Will it come on Trump’s watch?, Iraq, Armageddon, & Prophecy, Freemasonry, Armageddon, and Rome, Is China paving roads to Armageddon?, and Jordan, Petra, and Armageddon.
Might the U.S.A. Be Gone by 2028? Are there prophetic reasons to believe that the USA will not last two complete presidential terms? Yes. There is a tradition attributed to the Hebrew prophet Elijah that humanity had 6,000 years to live before being replaced by God’s Kingdom. There are scriptures, writings in the Talmud, early Christian teachings that support this. Also, even certain Hindu writings support it. Here is a link to a related video: Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028? In Spanish: Seran los Estados Unidos Destruidos en el 2028?
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to four related sermons: The Fantastic Gospel of the Kingdom of God!, The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God was the Emphasis of Jesus and the Early Church Did you know that? D

Wheat (Wikipedia photo)

COGwriter

NewsMax reported the following:

Russia: West Is Spreading Lies About Causes of World’s Food Crisis

June 22, 2022

Russia on Wednesday said the West was spreading lies about the causes of the global food crisis which Moscow said was being stoked by the sanctions imposed on Russia by the United States and European Union due to the invasion of Ukraine. …

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters in Moscow she was dismayed by repeated Western statements that Russia was to blame for the global food crisis.”It is a lie – such accusations are complete lies,” Zakharova said. “So the West can supply all these arms to Ukraine but for some reason nothing can be taken out of Ukraine?”

Both play a big role on the barley, maize and rapeseed markets while Russia is one of the world’s top fertilizer exporters. Russia and Ukraine are two of the most important producers of agricultural commodities in the world. Russia is the world’s largest wheat exporter after the European Union while Ukraine is the world’s top sunflower seed exporter. https://www.newsmax.com/world/globaltalk/russia-west-food-crisis-ukraine/2022/06/22/id/1075504/

Michael Snyder posted the following:

Disaster In The Heartland: Wheat Crops In Kansas Are Failing On A Massive Scale

June 21, 0222

Did you know that Kansas is known as “the Wheat State”?  In 2021, it produced nearly one-fourth of all wheat that was harvested in the United States.  … wheat crops in much of the state are failing on a massive scale…

This time of year, the wheat growing in this part of western Kansas should be thigh-high and lush green.

But as a months-long drought continues to parch the region, many fields tell a different story.

“There’s nothing out there. It’s dead,” farmer Vance Ehmke said, surveying a wheat field near his land in Lane County. “It’s just ankle-high straw.”

At this point, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is telling us that 41 percent of all wheat in Kansas is in “poor” or “very poor” condition.

The situation is particularly dire in the western portion of the state.  It is being reported that many fields of wheat in western Kansas now resemble “barren wastelands”…

Of all the years for drought to hit western Kansas wheat farmers, it couldn’t have come at a worse time.

That is really bad news, but the truth is that things are even worse in Colorado and Texas…

To the west in Colorado, projections say nearly one-third of wheat fields won’t produce enough to bother harvesting. In Texas, around three-quarters of the crop will likely be abandoned.

Please read that again.

This is enormous news, and it is going to deeply affect all of us in the months ahead.

At the worst possible time, wheat crops are failing on a massive scale all over the western half of the nation. …

The western half of North America is in the midst of the worst multi-year drought that it has experienced in 1,200 years, and experts are telling us that it isn’t going to end any time soon.

Meanwhile, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed is warning us that the planet is potentially facing “a food crisis of global proportions” in 2023…

First, time is short to prevent a food crisis of global proportions next year. We must stabilize global markets, reduce volatility and tackle the uncertainty of commodity prices. There can be no effective solution to the global food crisis without reintegrating Ukraine’s food production, as well as the food and fertilizer produced by the Russian Federation into world markets — despite the war. To avert a food availability crisis in 2023, we must restore fertilizer availability, especially for smallholder farmers now.

Global food production is going to be way below expectations all over the world this year, and we really are heading into a nightmarish worldwide food crisis.

I hope that you are preparing accordingly. http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/disaster-in-the-heartland-wheat-crops-in-kansas-are-failing-on-a-massive-scale/

There are several items to point out related to the above. As long-term readers are aware, I have repeatedly pointed out drought issues at this COGwriter Church of God News page (e.g. ‘California is rationing water amid its worst drought in 1,200 years’ & ‘Indian heatwaves threaten maternal and baby health’). As far as weather hitting the USA, here is a link to a post made here yesterday: ‘Scorching Weather Kills Hundreds Living on the Streets’.

As far as physical preparations go, here is a link to an article:  Physical Preparation Scriptures for Christians (here is a version in the Spanish language Escrituras sobre Preparación física para los Cristianos and here is a link to a related sermon in English: Physical preparedness for Christians).

As long-term readers of this COGwriter Church of God News page are also aware, I have warned for years that there were costs and unintended consequences related to sanctions. It is interesting that UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed is basically saying that the world needs to drop sanctions on Russia to at least assist with world fertilizer production. That would tie in with Russia’s official position related to grain and other food shortages.

Notice also something out of Europe:

21 June 2022

Josep Borrell, warned of the risk of famine, particularly in Africa, should Ukraine’s efforts to export wheat be further thwarted. …

“Millions of people will not be able to eat this wheat. The war will have dramatic consequences for the world.” …

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russia would allow wheat exports from Ukrainian ports. Ukraine, meanwhile, accuses Russia of stealing wheat from regions where fighting is taking place and areas that are occupied — and shipping it to Russia. Turkey, which borders the Black Sea and, under maritime law, guarantees free passage from there to the Mediterranean Sea, has offered to mediate. …

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told DW in Luxembourg. “Of course the challenges are huge, but they are in such a brutal area: They are insanely difficult in all areas,” she said. “That’s why it’s important to look at all options.”

Baerbock said Germany would hosting an international conference on food security and grain exports from Ukraine in Berlin on Friday. https://www.dw.com/en/eu-tries-to-get-grain-from-ukraine-as-russias-war-drags-on/a-62206745

Nearly 2000 years ago, Jesus warned:

7…And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. (Matthew 24:7-8)

We seem to be in the time Jesus called “the beginning of sorrows.”

Notice a message related to the third horseman of Revelation and the price of wheat:

5 When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come and see.” So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine.” (Revelation 6:5-6)

Wheat prices are prophesied to go even higher in the future. Ukraine itself is a major producer of wheat, barley, and cooking oil. Hence it looks to have at least some ties to Revelation 6:5-6.

Related to this, the Continuing Church of God put together the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

16:00

Russia, Ukraine, Food, & the Ride of the 3rd Horseman of the Apocalypse

Did you know that the sanctioned lands of Russia and Belarus are dominant suppliers of ingredients used in modern fertilizers? Are you aware that the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that 33% of the farmland in Ukraine may not be planted and/or harvested because of Russia’s ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine? Are parts of the world like Sudan, Lebanon, and the USA experiencing food price inflation? What about impact on the Palestinians in Gaza? Could any of this help lead to the rise of the King of the South? What are some factors that look to increase rice prices? Did Jesus warn of wars and troubles? What are three foods that Ukraine exports that are associated with the shortages and food price inflation of the ride of the third horseman of the Apocalypse? What does Jesus say His followers should do? Dr. Thiel addresses these matters in this video.

Here is a link to the video: Russia, Ukraine, Food, & the Ride of the 3rd Horseman of the Apocalypse.

Will high wheat prices cause people to turn to God? Or will they be determined to continue to turn further away from biblical morality?

We are getting to the end of the 6,000 years that God has allowed humans to rule themselves, which will soon be followed by the 1,000-year reign of Christ. Pray for Jesus to return and God’s Kingdom to come (Matthew 6:10).

But prior to Jesus’ return, “there will be great tribulation” as Jesus foretold (Matthew 24:21).

The sorrows and troubles are just beginning and will get much worse.

Hopefully, more people will wake up.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Christian Repentance Do you know what repentance is? Is it really necessary for salvation? Two related sermons about this are also available: Real Repentance and Real Christian Repentance.
Physical Preparation Scriptures for Christians. We all know the Bible prophecies famines. Should we do something? Here is a version in the Spanish language Escrituras sobre Preparación física para los Cristianos. Here is a link to a related sermon: Physical preparedness for Christians.
Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse What do each of the four horseman of the Apocalypse represent? Have they began their ride? Did Jesus discuss the any of this? Might their rides coincide with the “beginning of sorrows? Do they start their ride prior to the Great Tribulation? Did Nostradamus or any other ‘private prophets’ write predictions that may mislead people so that they may not understand the truth of one or more of the four horseman? There is also a related YouTube video titled Sorrows and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.
Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse What is the pale horse of death and pestilences? What will it bring and when? Here is a link to a related sermon: Fourth Horseman, COVID, and the Rise of the Beast of Revelation. Some shorter related videos may include Amphibian Apocalypse: Threat to Humans? and Zombie Deer Disease is Here! Are the 10 Plagues on Egypt Coming? Here is a version of the article in Spanish: El cuarto jinete de Apocalipsis, el caballo pálido de muerte y pestilencia.
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2029 or or 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2022, 2023, or 2024? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: Great Tribulation: 2026 or 2027? A shorter video is: Can the Great Tribulation start in 2022 or 2023? Here is a video in the Spanish language: Es El 2021 el año de La Gran Tribulación o el Grande Reseteo Financiero.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to three related sermons: The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New an

(Pixabay photo)

COGwriter

June 22 through 29 has been designated as Religious Freedom Week.

Most in the USA say they support freedom of religion, yet a proposed law would not respect that constitutional right:

Poll: Overwhelming Majority of Americans Support Religious Freedom

A new national poll … shows that 82% of Americans say freedom of religion is important to a healthy American society … Results showed that support for freedom of religion stretches across the political spectrum, with 86% of Republicans, 79% of Democrats and 83% of Independents agreeing that religious liberty is “very important or somewhat important.”

The poll also revealed strong bipartisan agreement that churches and faith-based charities should not be required by law to hire people who oppose their religious beliefs. Only 20% of those surveyed suggested religious entities should be required to hire employees who disagree with their core beliefs.

“This research affirms that the American people overwhelmingly support the continued protection of the Constitutional right of freedom of religion, and oppose policies requiring churches and faith-based charities and organizations to compromise their deeply held religious beliefs,” said Dr. Jeff Myers of Summit.org. “Yet, leaders in Washington, D.C., are aggressively pushing forward on legislative measures such as the mislabeled Equality Act, which specifically strips away religious freedom protections. In an era of hyper-partisanship, freedom of religion retains broad, bipartisan support among Democrats, Republicans and Independents.” 06/24/21 https://harbingersdaily.com/poll-overwhelming-majority-of-americans-support-religious-freedom/

While many in the USA claim to support religious freedom, government actions and proposals have limited it and many believe, correctly, that the proposed ‘Equality Act’ is a real threat to religious rights.

Here something from a Roman Catholic bishop’s website:

Religious Freedom Week 2022: Life and Dignity for All

Religious freedom allows the Church, and all religious communities, to live out their faith in public and to serve the good of all.

Here is something from the Protestant Franklin Graham:

The message to the church from certain influential, high-level people in government is loud and clear: Fully embrace the sexual revolution and redefine marriage and gender—or else! The Equality Act is moving our nation in a direction that elevates government above God. They want to make the moral decisions, usurping His authority.

Under its broad reach, the Equality Act will:

• Force schools, churches, and hospitals to accept the government’s beliefs and mandates about sexual orientation and gender identity. It could threaten everyday speech, and people can be fined or lose their jobs for using the wrong name or pronouns.
• Allow boys in girls’ sports, boys in girls’ locker rooms, men in women’s shelters, and men in women’s prisons. It will force teachers and students to publicly pretend that a biological male is a female, making biological sex (and science) a relic of the past.
• Strip Christian and other religious ministries of their right to hire people of shared faith to pursue a shared mission. Can you imagine a Christian organization being forced to hire people hostile to its deeply held beliefs?
• Force many doctors and medical professionals to violate their conscience and engage in gender transition treatments such as hormone blocking.
• Threaten accreditation to religious colleges and universities if they do not apply sexual orientation and gender identity to dorms, sports, places of privacy, and even teachings.

This legislation would massively change our moral landscape and silence people of faith who do not agree with the secular values of the Left. But more than muzzling us, they want to force us to pivot—to change direction—instead of trusting God and standing on His Word. If we begin compromising on basic Biblical truths, it will lead to the end of Christianity in this country. 03/24/21 https://billygraham.org/story/franklin-graham-do-not-surrender-and-do-not-pivot/

Despite hopes and views of many, the end of religious freedom will hit the USA.

World Net Daily (WND) posted comments from a Jewish group who believes that the so-called Equality Act will essentially result in a banning of the Bible:

Holy Bible blasted as ‘bigoted document’: Equality Act ‘explicitly targets’ Scripture

… warns Yaakov Menken, the managing director of the Coalition for Jewish Values. … the bill classifies virtually all venues, from restaurants to catering halls and funeral homes as “public accommodations,” subjecting them to a mandatory ban on division by sex.

“This directly forbids traditional Jewish practice in any such location,” he said.

“Lest you imagine that such a Jewish event would be protected by its religious nature, the act goes out of its way — for the first time in history — to prohibit recourse to the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). That law was specifically to shield religious practice from ‘laws ‘neutral’ toward religion [which] may burden religious exercise as surely as laws intended to interfere with religious exercise,'” Menken said.

“Stripping this protection from religious practice cannot be described as incidental. The Equality Act claims the notion that marriage is between a man and a woman is merely a ‘sex stereotype,’ and that opposition to same-sex marriage is inherently discriminatory. Any ‘discrimination’ on the basis of ‘gender identity’ is likewise prohibited, even in the private sector,” said Menken.

“Thus, the Equality Act explicitly targets the Bible, calling it a bigoted document filled with discriminatory stereotypes. These include the idea that male and female sexes are biological, not psychological (Genesis 1:27), created with procreation in mind (1:28), and that marriage is the unique, holy contract between man and woman forming the environment in which that procreation is intended to take place (2:24). And one cannot forget that which the Bible proscribes as an ‘abomination’ in Leviticus 18:22. …” 03/22/21 https://www.wnd.com/2021/03/holy-bible-blasted-bigoted-document-equality-act-explicitly-targets-scripture/

I have repeatedly warned about the Equality Act.

Here are some more comments from Yaakov Menken:

The Equality Act explicitly targets the Bible, calling it a bigoted document filled with discriminatory stereotypes. It would also ban observant Jews from religious ceremonies.

The Founding Fathers recognized freedom of expression and religious liberty as core elements of diversity and tolerance. Now, nearly 250 years later, Congress is acting to stamp them out, ushering in a new era of government-sanctioned anti-religious bigotry. …

With the Equality Act, Congress is waging a legislative effort to prohibit the next Siyum, scheduled to take place in June 2027, and other such “discriminatory” violations of human rights. Under the Act, observant Jews will no longer be legally permitted to gather to celebrate religious education, or any other occasion, in accordance with their beliefs.

The reason is simple: not only prayer services, but family lifecycle events of all kinds — from circumcisions to bar mitzvahs to weddings to funerals — are commonly divided by biological sex in traditional Orthodox Judaism. This is true whether or not ceremonies are held in synagogues. …

The Siyum held on New Year’s Day 2020 brought a level of decorum unheard of in a sports stadium: an absence of fights, drunkenness, and disorderly conduct. Police, who maintained a high level of security, said they never felt such appreciation from the public as they did then. Combined with its educational focus, the celebration exhibited values that America has long cherished.

Congress, to the contrary, would now grant antisemites a powerful legal tool with which to prevent such public displays in the future. Yet President Biden has committed to putting his name to it. If bigots were bent on eliminating Orthodox Judaism from American soil, it is difficult to imagine a more ruthlessly efficient tool than the Equality Act. https://thefederalist.com/2021/03/23/the-equality-act-would-legalize-religious-bigotry/

The Equality Act is anti-Christian, anti-Jewish, and anti-Bible.

Here is something from my book Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction:

Here is what the Biden-Harris Administration’s top priority is:

The Equality Act is the best vehicle for ensuring equal rights under the law for LGBTQ+ Americans, and will guarantee that LGBTQ+ individuals are protected under existing civil rights laws. Biden will make enactment of the Equality Act during his first 100 days as President a top legislative priority. Biden will also direct his Cabinet to ensure immediate and full enforcement of the Equality Act across all federal departments and agencies. … End the misuse of broad exemptions to discriminate. Religious freedom is a fundamental American value. But states have inappropriately used broad exemptions to allow businesses, medical providers, social service agencies, state and local government officials, and others to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people. Guaranteeing transgender students have access to facilities based on their gender identity… Biden will reverse Trump’s policies misusing these broad exemptions and fight so that no one is turned away from a business or refused service by a government official just because of who they are or who they love. ( The Biden Plan to Advance LGBTQ+ Equality in America and Around the World. JoeBiden.com accessed 10/16/20)

The above is a concern to many people who believe that they will be discriminated against if they hold to various religious and/or biblical beliefs on sexuality. Claiming religious freedom is “a fundamental American value” (which is clearly stated in the U.S. Constitution) while at the same time saying it must be not allowed for certain matters is wrong, insincere, and hypocritical.

The Bible, KJV translation, predicts the end of “an hypocritical nation” (Isaiah 10:5-11).

Furthermore, because the Bible teaches that homosexuality is an abomination (Leviticus 18:23; 20:13) and that homosexuals can change (1 Corinthians 6:9-11), and the current LGBTQ+ propaganda does not want that to be considered, about three years ago a bill was introduced in California that, if taken to its logical conclusion, would ban the Bible.

We also made a video that discusses it and put that on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

12:15

Banning the Bible?

Could we see a ban of the Holy Bible in North America? Have there been partial bans proposed and enforced by government officials in Canada? Do any USA politicians consider any biblical teachings as fraudulent and hence banning them is NOT a violation of the 1st amendment to the Constitution of the USA? Are there risks associated with AB 2943? Have politicians like Hillary Clinton and California Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi called for long-held religious beliefs to change and “evolve with the times”? What about Jude 1:3 and 2 Timothy 3:14? Are there biblical prophecies about not being able to hear the word of God? Might we see more restrictions on explaining teachings of the Bible on the Internet and other forms of media? What are some of the verses that various government people do not want made public? Dr. Thiel provides facts on these issues and more.

Here is a link: Banning the Bible?

While the USA likes to act like it is the bastion of free speech and freedom of religion, more and more restrictions keep getting proposed. And, in our case, our most recently uploaded video to YouTube was censored and removed (details are here: YouTube censors and removes BNP video: Disney’s abominable promotions!).

Additionally, it should be pointed out that Canada has a de facto ban on parts of the Bible.

Related to that, the Continuing Church of God put out the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

15:57

Canadian censoring of the Bible

The Bible warns against the rise of despisers of good in the last days:

1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come:

2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good,

4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,

5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!

6 For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts,

7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. (2 Timothy 3:1-7)

Those of us who hold to the idea that sexual relationships are only to be between a man married to a woman are considered to have “ugly narrow-mindedness” by supporters of the LGBTQ movement.

Furthermore, the LGBTQ supporting crowd does not want people to believe the following:

9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites,

10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.

11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)

The Equality Act is another step towards eliminating religious freedom in the USA.

The Bible not only warns that homosexuality, lesbianism, and cross-dressing are wrong, it also condemns those who condone all forms of sexual immorality:

5 A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the Lord your God. (Deuteronomy 22:5)

24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves,

25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature.

27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting;

29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers,

30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful;

32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them. (Romans 1:24-32)

In Canada, quoting parts of Romans 1 in certain ways is essentially banned (watch Canadian censoring of the Bible).

The Bible warns that more censorship is coming:

11 “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord God,
“That I will send a famine on the land,
Not a famine of bread,
Nor a thirst for water,
But of hearing the words of the Lord.
12 They shall wander from sea to sea,
And from north to east;
They shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the Lord,
But shall not find it. (Amos 8:11-12)

As many realize, in order to protect the rights of the citizens of the USA nation to speak even against the government, the Bill of Rights came into effect as Constitutional Amendments on December 15, 1791. Here is the first amendment:

• First amendment — Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

But now we see laws that do respect secular religion as well as those against freedom of speech and even religious speech (e.g. watch: Biden-Harris & Hate Speech).

The Bible is not a book that should be censored.

It teaches:

1 Cry aloud, spare not;
Lift up your voice like a trumpet;
Tell My people their transgression,
And the house of Jacob their sins. (Isaiah 58:1)

The work of God needs to be done now as Jesus said:

4 I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. (John 9:4)

The time to do the work is now, while we still can do it! We are seeing more and more signs that “the night is coming when no one can work.”

That is part of why we in the Continuing Church of God are preparing for the ‘short work’ (Romans 9:28) and the coming ‘famine of the word.’

A famine of the word is coming–and we are seeing Big Tech and governments already implementing restrictions.

Yet while we can, Philadelphian Christians will strive to go through the doors that Christ opens to proclaim the Kingdom of God (2 Corinthians 2:12; 1 Corinthians 16:8-9; Colossians 4:2-4) and do the work.

Philadelphia means “love of the brethren.” It is LOVE to properly teach what the Bible teaches, even if some group calls that “ugly narrow-mindedness.”

We in the Continuing Church of God will teach and stand up for the truth (watch also the short introduction to our YouTube channel: ContinuingCOG Channel), despite realizing that the ‘famine of the word’ that the prophet Amos referred to is coming. We must do the work and persevere to the end–despite government restrictions and others who do not truly respect the Bible.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Ukraine says #Russia is heavily shelling the eastern industrial city of #Lysychansk in the #Donbas region which has been the center of intense fighting for weeks between Kyiv’s army and Moscow’s troops.https://t.co/EWnxKTkcFz

— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) June 21, 2022

COGwriter

Russia is dominating Eastern Ukraine. Here are a couple of reports from Voice of America:

Ukraine Reports Heavy Fighting in Sievierodonetsk

June 21, 2022

Ukraine reported heavy strikes Tuesday in the Sievierodonetsk region as Russian forces push to gain full control of the eastern city.

A spokesman for the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said at a daily briefing that fighting in Sievierodonetsk was fierce, with Russia conducting both airstrikes and shelling on Ukrainian positions.

Luhansk Governor Serhiy Haidai reported heavy fighting at the Azot chemical plant in Sievierodonetsk, where Ukrainian fighters and about 500 civilians are taking shelter.

Haidai also said Russian forces had brought “catastrophic destruction” to the city of Lysychansk, located just across a river from Sievierodonetsk.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged difficulties trying to defend the country’s eastern region …

He said Ukraine is holding “complex, multilevel negotiations” to try to end Russia’s blockade of Ukrainian ports.

“But there is no progress yet. … That is why the global food crisis will continue as long as this colonial war continues,” he said.

Russia denies it is deliberately blocking wheat exports from Ukraine and blames sanctions imposed by Western nations for rising global food prices. https://www.voanews.com/a/ukraine-reports-heavy-fighting-in-sievierodonetsk-/6626230.html

Despite Western Arms, Ukraine is Outgunned in the East

Despite the heavy influx of weapons from the West, Ukrainian forces are outgunned by the Russians in the battle for the eastern Donbas region, where the fighting is largely being carried out by way of artillery exchanges.

While the Russians can keep up heavy, continuous fire for hours at a time, the defenders can’t match the enemy in either weapons or ammunition and must use their ammo more judiciously.

At the outpost in eastern Ukraine, dozens and dozens of mortar shells are stacked up. But the troops’ commander, Mykhailo Strebizh, who goes by the nom de guerre Gaiduk, lamented that if his fighters were to come under an intense artillery barrage, their cache would, at best, amount to only about four hours’ worth of return fire.

Ukrainian authorities say the West’s much-ballyhooed support for the country is not sufficient and is not arriving on the battlefield fast enough for this grinding and highly lethal phase of the war. 06/20/22 https://www.voanews.com/a/despite-western-arms-ukraine-is-outgunned-in-the-east-/6625955.html

The result of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is having prophetic ramifications.

We are seeing loss of peace (2nd horseman of the Apocalypse) and food price inflation (3rd horseman of the Apocalypse). Related to that, we put together the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

24:08

These Signs of the 4 Horsemen Have Begun

Are we at the time of the ride of at least some of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse? If so, are many prophecy watchers missing signs associated with them? History shows that authoritarian, totalitarian regimes tend to arise after famines and/or pestilences. Those are events associated with three of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse. Could the beginning of sorrows, and the associated ride of the first horseman of false ecumenical religion, have started in the Fall of 2009? What is the significance of this rider having a bow? Is Satan the prince of the power of the air? Did Dr. Thiel warn of a prophetic threat of a “novel” coronavirus back in 2013? Could COVID-19 been related to the taking away the peace from the earth that is associated with the ride of the red horse, the second horsemen of war? What are some of the ramifications of the Russia-Ukraine military conflict and the opening of the second seal? Was Amos inspired to write that God does nothing without revealing it to his servants the prophets? Who warned of these matters? The ride of the third horse, the black horse of famine and food price inflation–specifically wheat, barley, edible oils, and wine. Since Ukraine is a major exporter of the first three, could this, as well as fertilizer shortages, have anything to do with the ride of that horseman? The pale horse of the fourth seal mentions one-quarter of humankind being subject to being killed by the sword, hunger, and pestilence–will this be a factor in the rise of the Beast of Revelation 13? Is persecution associated with the start of the Great tribulation and the rise of the Beast? Why is the Beast going to be in charge of a European-based empire? Will the opening of the first four seals and the starts of the rides of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse get Europe to reorganize such as is prophesied in Revelation 17:12-13? What does Jesus say you should do? Dr. Thiel addresses these matters and more in this video.

Here is a link to our video: These Signs of the 4 Horsemen Have Begun.

There are other prophetic ramifications of what is happening as well.

German Foreign Policy reported the following in German (https://www.german-foreign-policy.com/news/detail/8953), which was machine-translated into English:

War Divides

21 June 2022

BERLIN/ROME(Own report) – A Europe-wide think tank headquartered in Berlin is warning of a permanent split in the EU as a result of the Ukraine war. As the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) states in the evaluation of a survey it conducted in ten European countries, two clearly differentiated spectrums of opinion in the population can already be identified today. While one demands that defeat be inflicted on Russia at all costs, the other urges that peace be concluded quickly, even if this presupposes concessions from Ukraine. This is due to fears that the war will have negative consequences for the standard of living throughout Europe and also threaten to escalate into a nuclear war. ECFR judges Ukraine war to continue then the balance could shift in favor of the advocates of peace; the unity of the EU might even be in danger. Declining approval for arms deliveries to Ukraine was already recorded in Germany in May. In Italy, even public protests against it are increasing. …

As the ECFR writes, two large spectra can be distinguished from one another. One – the think tank calls it “justice” – focuses on the striving to inflict defeat on Russia and advocates prioritizing rearmament even if this means sensitive cuts in spending, for example on health and education required. It is most firmly anchored in Poland, but comprises only 22 percent of the population in the ten European countries in which the survey was conducted [1]. He is faced with a spectrum which the ECFR labels with the term “peace”; it also clearly ascribes the blame for the Ukraine war to Moscow and the majority advocates an economic separation from Russia, but calls for quick peace – even if Ukraine has to make concessions in return.[2] The ECFR assigns an average of 35 percent of the population to this spectrum. It is most present in Italy.

Increasing pressure

In addition to these two spectrums, ECFR identifies a third in its survey results, which it calls “swing voters”; it comes to 20 percent of the population. His attitude toward Russia is often marked by even more vehement disapproval than that of the “justice” spectrum; however, it does not share its “moral indignation” and its “escalation goals”.[3] Instead, it fears that a protracted war will cost Europe and its people dearly; on the question of how intensively Ukraine is supplied with arms and how much Europe should rearm overall, it is close to the “peace” spectrum. With their fears, the “swing voters” represent around three fifths of the population: 61 percent are afraid that the war could escalate into a nuclear war; 61 percent are also worried the cost of living, especially energy prices, would continue to rise.

Though many in Europe want to stay aloof from military matters, fear is a powerful motivator.

Some fear Russia and hope to weaken it. Others fear Russia and have concluded that the best way to handle the current situation is to accept that Russia will not give up territory that it captured and that it is a waste of resources and human lives to continue to supply arms to Ukraine.

The Bible tells of the rise of a power in Europe that is partly strong and partly weak, and also does not stick together well:

41 Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. 42 And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. 43 As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay. (Daniel 2:41-43)

Despite that, the Bible also shows that Europe will end up as a military (Revelation 13:1-10) and economic power (cf. Revelation 18).

The Bible, in Revelation 13, tells of the Beast power having seven heads and ten horns:

1 Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name. 2 Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority. (Revelation 13:1-2)

The sea that this is referring to is the Mediterranean sea as passages in the Old Testament demonstrate (Daniel 7:2-3; Numbers 34:6-7; Joshua 1:4; 9:1; 23:4; Ezekiel 47:13-16; watch also Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?).

The Beast power to come will be European.

While we are NOT to the point of the prophesied European reorganization yet, notice something else from Revelation 13:

3 And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast. 4 So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?” (Revelation 13:3-4)

So, we see that a power presumed dead, Europe, will rise up and be so successful militarily that the world will marvel.

After a time of crises, which would be after that start of the ride of fourth horseman of the Apocalypse, Europe is prophesied to reorganize and turn power over to a dictator, the Bible calls the beast:

12 The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. 13 These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. (Revelation 17:12-13)

The Europeans want a new world order, with them running it.

And the Bible shows that the Babylonian system the Europeans are working on will happen (cf. Revelation 17 & 18).

Although Europe will appear to many to work for a time (Revelation 13 and 17), destruction will be the result (1 Thessalonians 5:3, Daniel 2:44, Revelation 17:14, 18:1-23).

Building up its military, combined with Babylonian unity, will not save Europe.

The Bible shows that the solution for whole planet is the return of Jesus and the Kingdom of God.

Related to Europe and its response to the Russian-Ukraine battles, we out together the following related video:

18:27

Is the European Beast Growing Horns?

Does the conflict between Russia and Ukraine have prophetic ramifications? What about Ezekiel 38? Are we seeing a ‘historic shift’ in Europe to move towards more unity? What about non-EU nations like Sweden and Switzerland? Is Germany’s announcement to double its military spending to 100 million euros a big deal? Does the Bible tell of changes coming to Europe for it to rise up as a Babylonian unity successful military power? What about the United States of America and its British-descended allies? Could USA sanctions against Russia, including SWIFT restrictions, decrease international demand for USA dollars and cause inflation? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more in this video.

Here is a link to our video: Is the European Beast Growing Horns?

As far as when the Beast will rise up, the Continuing Church of God is put out the following sermon on our ContinuingCOG channel:

1:16:57

Fourth Horseman, COVID, and the Rise of the Beast of Revelation

The 6th chapter of the Book of Revelation tells of the ride of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. What do each represent? Is the novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, part of the fourth horseman? Does the Bible point to around 2 billion people dying from hunger, war, and the beasts of the earth? Was the ancient Roman Empire impacted by pestilences? What about the black death, also known as the Bubonic plague? Are disease epidemics part of the beginning of sorrow and troubles that Jesus spoke about in Matthew 24 and Mark 13? Does the pale green horseman represent Islam? Could genetically modified organisms (GMOs) or synthetic biology cause or contribute to coming pandemics? Is chemical and biological warfare (CBW) a real threat to humanity? What about a doomsday bug or antibiotic resistant superbugs? Is fear a contagion that will help people move away from democracy? Will scientists be able to stop what is coming? Is the good news that the Kingdom of God will? Could COVID-19 be setting the stage for the rise of the ‘prince,’ who will become the totalitarian Beast of the Sea (also known as 666 and the King of the North)? Is this leader similar to the Great Monarch of Greco-Roman Catholic prophecies? When is the Great Monarch supposed to arise according to the Eastern Orthodox? Why might Europe be less affected by the ride of the third horseman that the US, Canada, and the UK? Are governments taking steps now, consistent with the words of Adolf Hitler? What seal represents the start of the Great Tribulation? Which Christians did Jesus promise to protect from the coming “hour of trial”?

Some items of related interest may include:

Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?
European Technology and the Beast of Revelation Will the coming European Beast power would use and develop technology that will result in the taking over of the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies? Is this possible? What does the Bible teach? Here is a related YouTube video: Military Technology and the Beast of Revelation.
Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations? Some claim that these passages refer to a gathering of 10 currently existing nations together, while one group teaches that this is referring to 11 nations getting together. Is that what Revelation 17:12-13 refers to? The ramifications of misunderstanding this are enormous. A related sermon is titled Ten Kings of Revelation and the Great Tribulation.
Might German Baron Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg become the King of the North? Is the former German Defense Minister (who is also the former German Minister for Economics and Technology) one to watch? What do Catholic, Byzantine, and biblical prophecies suggest? A video of related interest would be: Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg and Europe’s Future.
Germany’s Assyrian Roots Throughout History Are the Germanic peoples descended from Asshur of the Bible? Have there been real Christians in Germanic history? What about the “Holy Roman Empire”? There is also a You-Tube video sermon on this titled Germany’s Biblical Origins.
Germany in Biblical Prophecy Does Assyria in the Bible equate to an end time power inhabiting the area of the old Roman Empire? What does prophecy say Germany will do and what does it say will happen to most of the German people? Here are links to two sermon videos Germany in Bible Prophecy and The Rise of the Germanic Beast Power of Prophecy.
Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? There is also a video sermon available: Russia in the Bible and in Prophecy as are two video sermonettes Russia, Ukraine, Babylonian Europe, and Prophecy and Ukraine in Prophecy?
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
Ezekiel 38: For Russia & Iran in Our Day? Is Ezekiel 38 about to be fulfilled? Are we close to the battle with Gog and Magog? Four related videos are available: Ezekiel 38 Gog and Magog War: Is it Soon?, Ezekiel 38: For Russia, Ukraine, & Iran Now?, Russia, Iran, Syria, & the Bible (Code), and Gog, Magog, Vladimir Putin, and Ezekiel 38?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2022, 2023, or 2024? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: Great Tribulation: 2026 or 2027? A shorter video is: Can the Great Tribulation start in 2022 or 2023? Here is a video in the Spanish language: Es El 2021 el año de La Gran Tribulación o el Grande Reseteo Financiero.
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here are links to two related videos: The King of the North is Alive: What to Look Out For and The Future King of the North.
The Great Monarch: Biblical and Greco-Roman Catholic Prophecies Is the ‘Great Monarch’ of Greco-Roman Catholic prophecies endorsed or condemned by the Bible? Two sermons of related interest are also available: Great Monarch: Messiah or False Christ? and Great Monarch in 50+ Beast Prophecies.
Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Christian Repentance Do you know what repentance is? Is it really necessary for salvation? Two related sermons about this are also available: Real Repentance and Real Christian Repentance.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to four related sermons: The Fantastic Gospel of the Kingdom of God!, The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution

Summer officially began this morning, and for many in the Midwest and South it will feel like it today.

Forecast: https://t.co/BIcw2AFDfk pic.twitter.com/YcBFyujK70

— The Weather Channel (@weatherchannel) June 21, 2022

COGwriter

High temperatures have already been a problem in Europe and the USA:

Heat waves shattered records on 2 continents before summer began

June 21, 2022

Two extraordinary heat waves sent temperatures soaring into uncharted territory in Europe and the U.S. prior to the summer solstice, setting new benchmarks for the month of June in several European countries. …

Heat waves are deceptively deadly, with heat illnesses striking the most vulnerable among us, from the homeless to the elderly, along with poorer residents who cannot afford air conditioning. …

• In Europe, the heat wave began weeks ago as hot air built up over north Africa. This air mass eventually made its way northward into Spain. Aided by a highly amplified jet stream setup, the heat then surged into France and on to Central Europe.
• A persistent area of low pressure centered west of Portugal helped draw the hot air northward through its counterclockwise airflow.
• Across the U.S., the jet stream has been contorted aloft like a snake, with the heat dome currently centered in the middle of the country. Temperatures across the Midwest are forecast to reach the triple-digits Tuesday. …

The heat in Europe and the U.S. has not been your typical summertime hot weather … The heat wave has helped elevate water temperatures in the Mediterranean to 9°F above average, depriving coastal areas of southern Europe of heat relief and potentially harming marine life. … the Midwest and South will see temperatures climb to dangerously hot levels this week, before the extreme heat slides westward along the Gulf Coast to Texas. The National Weather Service describes Tuesday’s conditions as “stifling heat and humidity” with temperatures 15-25°F above average in some areas. https://www.axios.com/2022/06/21/heat-wave-records-europe-north-america-summer

Scorching Weather Kills Hundreds Living on the Streets

A sweltering tent city of hundreds offers little relief in downtown Phoenix, where thousands of homeless people struggle to stay alive as triple-digit summer temperatures arrive in the nation’s most blistering big city.

According to The Associated Press, pandemic-era evictions and rising rents have pushed hundreds more people out on the scorching streets, which become unnaturally quiet when temperatures hit their highest point in the midafternoon.

During a heat wave earlier this month, temperatures rose to 114 degrees, while highs last year reached 118 degrees, the news outlet reports. … more weather-related deaths are caused by excessive heat in the U.S. than flooding, hurricanes and tornadoes combined, and heat contributes to about 1,500 deaths every year across the country.

In Phoenix, 339 people died from heat-related causes last year, including at least 130 homeless people. https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/heat-homeless-people-phoenix-death/2022/06/20/id/1075268/

The Bible is clear that God controls the weather and various calamities, but wants people to heed His prophets:

6… If there is calamity in a city, will not the Lord have done it?

7 Surely the Lord God does nothing, Unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets. (Amos 3:6-7)

The Bible tells of weather-related blessings for obedience and weather-related curses for disobedience. Weather is not as random as many people seem to want to believe.

As regular readers of this page are aware, I have repeatedly warned of weather problems coming. Back in 2009, in my book, 2012 and the Rise of the Secret Sect, I wrote that the following was about to happen:

Odd weather patterns result in food shortages and natural disasters.

Matthew 24:7

The world is actually in a berserk transition, as the real age of peace is not yet here. It may be a period of chaos. It is the beginning of sorrows.

Matthew 24:8

Since that was published, we have had record smashing heat and odd weather problems. These severe weather issues should serve as a wake-up call.

Secular sources are saying we are seeing a lot of extreme, not typical, weather.

Notice also the following related to the USA:

June 21, 2022

A great majority of Americans have been affected by extreme weather in recent years, and many suffer long-term financial problems as a result, according to a new nationwide survey conducted by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

More than three-quarters of adults in the United States say they have experienced extreme weather in the last five years, including hurricanes, wildfires, floods and heat waves, the survey found. … as the hottest part of the year gets underway, and people across the country gird themselves for another year of severe hurricanes, floods, fires and heat waves. …

Heat waves affected the most people by far. More than half of the survey respondents say they personally experienced extreme heat. Just last week, a heat wave tied or broke temperature records in dozens of U.S. cities.

Extreme weather is also hurting people’s health. Nearly one-quarter of those who experienced extreme weather in the last five years said someone in their household had a serious health problem as a result. Wildfires were particularly dangerous: 38% of households affected by wildfires had someone with a serious health problem, most often from smoke exposure. https://www.npr.org/2022/06/21/1102389274/climate-change-costs-extreme-weather

The Bible warns that God uses weather to send a message, but most seem to not respond properly:

7 “I also withheld rain from you,
When there were still three months to the harvest.
I made it rain on one city,
I withheld rain from another city.
One part was rained upon,
And where it did not rain the part withered.
8 So two or three cities wandered to another city to drink water,
But they were not satisfied;
Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.

9 “I blasted you with blight and mildew.
When your gardens increased,
Your vineyards,
Your fig trees,
And your olive trees,
The locust devoured them;
Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord. (Amos 4:7-9)

While many humans often seem to think otherwise, God is in charge and controls the weather.

7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
You great sea creatures and all the depths;
8 Fire and hail, snow and clouds;
Stormy wind, fulfilling His word; (Psalms 148:7-8)

26 “Behold, God is great, and we do not know Him; Nor can the number of His years be discovered. 27 For He draws up drops of water, Which distill as rain from the mist, 28 Which the clouds drop down And pour abundantly on man. 29 Indeed, can anyone understand the spreading of clouds, The thunder from His canopy? 30 Look, He scatters His light upon it, And covers the depths of the sea. 31 For by these He judges the peoples; He gives food in abundance. 32 He covers His hands with lightning, And commands it to strike. 33 His thunder declares it, The cattle also, concerning the rising storm. (Job 36:26-33)

25 For He commands and raises the stormy wind, Which lifts up the waves of the sea. 26 They mount up to the heavens, They go down again to the depths; Their soul melts because of trouble. 27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits’ end. 28 Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, And He brings them out of their distresses. 29 He calms the storm, So that its waves are still. 30 Then they are glad because they are quiet; So He guides them to their desired haven. 31 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! 32 Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, And praise Him in the company of the elders. 33 He turns rivers into a wilderness, And the watersprings into dry ground; 34 A fruitful land into barrenness, For the wickedness of those who dwell in it. 35 He turns a wilderness into pools of water, And dry land into watersprings. 36 There He makes the hungry dwell, That they may establish a city for a dwelling place, 37 And sow fields and plant vineyards, That they may yield a fruitful harvest. 38 He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly; And He does not let their cattle decrease. (Psalms 107:25-38)

17 He casts out His hail like morsels;
Who can stand before His cold?
18 He sends out His word and melts them;
He causes His wind to blow, and the waters flow. (Psalms 147:17-18)

3 He sends it forth under the whole heaven, His lightning to the ends of the earth. 4 After it a voice roars; He thunders with His majestic voice, And He does not restrain them when His voice is heard. 5 God thunders marvelously with His voice; He does great things which we cannot comprehend. 6 For He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth’; Likewise to the gentle rain and the heavy rain of His strength. 7 He seals the hand of every man, That all men may know His work. 8 The beasts go into dens, And remain in their lairs. 9 From the chamber of the south comes the whirlwind, And cold from the scattering winds of the north. 10 By the breath of God ice is given, And the broad waters are frozen. 11 Also with moisture He saturates the thick clouds; He scatters His bright clouds. 12 And they swirl about, being turned by His guidance, That they may do whatever He commands them On the face of the whole earth. 13 He causes it to come, Whether for correction, Or for His land, Or for mercy. (Job 37:3-13)

God controls the weather. As the Book of Job records above, weather is sometimes used by God for correction.

What about high heat?

The Bible shows that it will get much worse later:

8 Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and power was given to him to scorch men with fire. 9 And men were scorched with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God who has power over these plagues; and they did not repent and give Him glory. (Revelation 16:8-9)

But, the above prophecy is for several years into the future–we are not too near that yet. But I believe that this will happen in the 21st century.

The Bible shows:

30 God … commands all men everywhere to repent (Acts 17:30)

And weather problems are one tool that God uses to urge people to repent (cf. Haggai 2:17; Amos 4:7-12). But most will not. Nor will most Christians as they should (cf. Revelation 3:14-18; see also The Laodicean Church Era).

Most will ignore weather changes and simply believe that weather changes all the time and the changes do not have to do with God or disobeying His laws.

Yet, the Bible shows that weird, severe, and odd weather patterns are part of the warning messages that God gives.

Are you paying attention to those messages?

And weather-food problems are a way that God uses to urge people to repent (cf. Haggai 2:17).

Now, does this mean that those most affected by weather are necessarily worse sinners than those less affected?

The biblical answer is no.

Notice the words of Jesus:

45…He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. (Matthew 5:45)

4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. (Luke 13:4-5)

That being said, there is a cost to sin and we are seeing some results of that.

We should take extreme weather to heart.

Furthermore, weather changes show us that our own personal situations can change–quickly and unexpectedly.

The Bible shows that weird, severe, and odd weather patterns are part of the warning messages that God gives.

Are you paying attention to those messages?

Some items of interest may include the following:

Weather Blessings and Sorrows Are weather problems a warning? What should be done? What does the Bible teach about weather? What about floods, droughts, heat, earthquakes, tornadoes, and solar storms? Here is a related YouTube video Does God Use Weather? A related item in the Spanish language would be Bendiciones y maldiciones del clima.
Hurricanes and Prophecy Hurricane Harvey dropped the greatest amount of rainfall in any USA storm. Hurricane Irma was the strongest hurricane ever in the Atlantic. Hurricane Irma wiped out most of the island of Barbuda, caused a million to lose power in Puerto Rico, devastated St. Martin’s, hit Cuba, and hit Florida. A news headline stated ” ‘Nature’s gone crazy’: Winds, fire, floods and quakes plague North America.” Is there any tie to prophecy? Are heavy winds and rains discussed in the Bible? Any ties to homosexuality and other forms of immorality? What about Donald Trump and Jennifer Lawrence? Does God control the weather? What does God want people to do? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more. This is a video.
The Bible, Christians, and the Environment How should Christians view the environment? Does the Bible give any clues? What are some of the effects of air, water, and land pollution? Is environmental pollution a factor in autism and death? Do pollutants seem to double the autism risk? What will Jesus do? Here is a link to a related sermon: Christians and the Environment (there is also YouTube video available titled Air Pollution, Autism, and Prophecy and one titled Will Pollution lead to the End?).
The ‘Unpardonable Sin’ and ‘Climate Change’? On September 7, 2016, Olav Fykse Tveit, Church of Norway Pastor, and the General Secretary of the World Council of Churches, essentially declared that those who ignore ‘climate change’ are committing the ‘unpardonable sin’ against the Holy Spirit. Are those two even related? In this video, Dr. Thiel answers that and explains from the Bible what the ‘unpardonable sin’ is and how you can avoid it. He also discusses aspects of Christianity and the environment.
The Bible, Christians, and the Environment How should Christians view the environment? Does the Bible give any clues? What are some of the effects of air, water, and land pollution? Is environmental pollution a factor in autism and death? Do pollutants seem to double the autism risk? What will Jesus do? Here is a link to a related sermon: Christians and the Environment (there is also a YouTube video available titled Air Pollution, Autism, and Prophecy and one titled Will Pollution lead to the End?).
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2029 or or 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2022, 2023, or 2024? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: Great Tribulation: 2026 or 2027? A shorter video is: Can the Great Tribulation start in 2022 or 2023? Here is a video in the Spanish language: Es El 2021 el año de La Gran Tribulación o el Grande Reseteo Financiero.
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first? Here is a link to the Spanish version of this article: Anglo-América & las Tribus Perdidas de Israel. Information is also in the YouTube sermons titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter? and British are the Covenant People. A short YouTube of prophetic interest may be: Are Chinese threats against Australia for real?
Will the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas?
British are the Covenant People What do ‘British’ and ‘Britain’ mean in Hebrew? Are the descendants of the Anglo-Saxons people of the covenant? Does the British royal family connect to the throne of David? What does the Bible teach? What does history show us? Is there any DNA evidence related to British-Israelism? When did Christianity make it to the British Isles? Could Jeremiah have made it to the British Isles? What type of Christians made it to the British Isles? Did the last King of England believe in British Israelism?
Canada in Prophecy: What Does Bible Prophecy, Catholic Prophecy, and other Predictions Suggest About the Future of Canada? There are prophecies that suggest involvement with Canada. And many are not positive about its future. A sermon of related interest is also available: Canada in Prophecy.
Australia and New Zealand in Prophecy Do biblical prophecies help explain the wealth blessings for Australia and New Zealand? Might cursings from disobedience come in the 21st century? Here is a link to a related sermon: Australia and New Zealand: Origins and Prophecy.
Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Christian Repentance Do you know what repentance is? Is it really necessary for salvation? Two related sermons about this are also available: Real Repentance and Real Christian Repentance.

COGwriter

Some may wonder why relatively little is reported here about David Hulme’s COGaIC. Basically, since it had a split several years ago, there has not been much to report about that group as they have had less impact, and written less about church history.

Currently it’s magazine, Vision, tends to be a collection of short articles on societal matters with scriptures (I just looked at a few).

However there is something related to church history to cover. Many years back, David Hulme of COGaIC interviewed John Garr about church history. Here is how that interview began:

Reexamining the roots of Christianity has become a major endeavor among New Testament scholars. In an attempt to better understand and relate to Judaism in the wake of the Holocaust/Shoah, their studies have yielded some surprising admissions and necessary corrections to the way Jesus of Nazareth, Paul of Tarsus and the early Church are regarded. A general conclusion is that first-century Christianity was far more Jewish or Hebraic in its beliefs and practices than has been accepted for almost 2,000 years.

One scholar who has pondered the implications of these rediscovered roots is John Garr, president of Restoration Foundation, which specializes in making known the Hebrew heritage of what came to be called Christianity. Vision publisher David Hulme interviewed him…

DH You have written: “In the middle of the second century, the Hebrew foundations of Christian faith were attacked by the first great heresy that challenged the church.” You also note that “some of the ideas of this heresy so permeated the church’s corporate psyche that it has not yet fully recovered its spiritual and scriptural equilibrium.” What was the heresy and what has been its specific effect?

JG The heresy was called Marcionism after Marcion, a very wealthy man who was strongly influenced by Hellenic culture, the ideas of Plato, and much of Gnosticism. Marcion wanted to separate Christianity from any connection with Judaism and the law. He said that the Old Testament was a record of a failed religion that should be destroyed, and actually had been destroyed by Jesus Himself. He even went so far as to rewrite Matthew 5:17, where Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Think not that I have come to destroy the Law or the Prophets: I have not come to destroy them but to fulfill them.” Marcion turned it around and said that Jesus’ actual words were “Think not that I have come to fulfill the Law or the Prophets: I have not come to fulfill them but to destroy them.” Further, he took some of Paul’s epistles and some sections of the book of Luke and edited them to eliminate any connection with Judaism or the Old Testament. As a result of his actions, church leaders finally branded him a heretic and excommunicated him.

With this background one would think Marcion would have faded into history, but the residue of his influence has continued to permeate the Christian church even to the present time. It is probably best characterized as antinomianism—the position of being against the law—which is very much a part of many denominations. Many antinomians would say that they are preaching the gospel of the grace of God, and that grace and law are violently opposed to each other and cannot exist in one another’s presence. So the idea that the law has been completely abrogated, that the Old Testament is no more of any effect, that Jesus came to destroy the law, and that believers today are only under the grace of God, is fundamentally neo-Marcionism…Von Harnack’s thinking in this regard was really a pure form of neo-Marcionism. He went so far as to say that if the church had had the courage to do so, it would have recognized that Marcion was right, that Judaism had been abolished and the law destroyed. He was very adamant about that view.

The above interview did not go into much more detail about Marcion and his heresies, but there is an article at the COGwriter.com website that does: Marcion: The First Protestant?

Irenaeus in the second century noted that the faithful Polycarp opposed Marcion:

But Polycarp also was not only instructed by apostles, and conversed with many who had seen Christ, but was also, by apostles in Asia, appointed bishop of the Church in Smyrna, whom I also saw in my early youth, for he tarried [on earth] a very long time, and, when a very old man, gloriously and most nobly suffering martyrdom, departed this life, having always taught the things which he had learned from the apostles, and which the Church has handed down, and which alone are true. To these things all the Asiatic Churches testify, as do also those men who have succeeded Polycarp down to the present time — a man who was of much greater weight, and a more stedfast witness of truth, than Valentinus, and Marcion, and the rest of the heretics. He it was who, coming to Rome in the time of Anicetus caused many to turn away from the aforesaid heretics to the Church of God, proclaiming that he had received this one and sole truth from the apostles — that, namely, which is handed down by the Church. There are also those who heard from him that John, the disciple of the Lord, going to bathe at Ephesus, and perceiving Cerinthus within, rushed out of the bath-house without bathing, exclaiming, “Let us fly, lest even the bath-house fall down, because Cerinthus, the enemy of the truth, is within.” And Polycarp himself replied to Marcion, who met him on one occasion, and said, “Dost thou know me?” “I do know thee, the first-born of Satan.”(Irenaeus. Adversus Haereses. Book III, Chapter 3, Verse 4. Excerpted from Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1. Edited by Alexander Roberts & James Donaldson. American Edition, 1885. Online Edition Copyright © 2004 by K. Knight).

Polycarp, and other true early Christian writers, kept all the ten commandments that were first mentioned in the Old Testament (an article of related interest may be The Ten Commandments and the Early Church). This is how Polycarp (and others) differed from many of the early heretics like Marcion.

Another to specifically oppose Marcion was Theophilus of Antioch (late 2nd century). The Syriatic version of Eusebius’ Church History notes:

BUT as to Theophilus, concerning whom we have said that he was Bishop of Antioch, there are three treatises by him against Antolycus, and another which is inscribed “Against the heresy of Hermogenes,” in which he uses testimonies from the Revelation of John; and there are other books by him which are suitable for teaching. But those, who pertained to heretical doctrine, even at that time like tares were corrupting the pure seed of the doctrine of the Apostles; but the Pastors which were in the churches in every country, were driving them like beasts of the wilderness away from the flock of Christ; at one time by teaching and exhortation to the Brethren, but at another time openly before their faces they contended with them in discussion, and put them to shame; and again, also, by writing treatises they diligently refuted and exposed their opinions. But Theophilus, together with others, contended against them; and he is celebrated for one treatise, which was ably composed by him against Marcion, which, together with the others that I have already mentioned, is still preserved. And after him Maximinus received the Bishoprick of the Church of Antioch, who was the seventh after the Apostles.

But Philip, respecting whom we have learned from the words of Dionysius, Bishop of Corinth,2 that he was Bishop of the church of the city of Gortyna, he also composed with accuracy a treatise against Marcion (Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History, Syriac version, Book 4 (Extract), Chapter 24. Spicilegium Syriacum (1855). This text was transcribed by Roger Pearse, Ipswich, UK, 2003. Greek text is rendered using the Scholars Press SPIonic font/Polytonic Greek).

This is of interest because it shows that both Philip and Theophilus also wrote against the heretic Marcion (though the document, while apparently available to Eusebius, is currently unavailable).

Notice what the Protestant historian Kenneth Latourette stated:

Marcion insisted that the Church had obscured the Gospel by seeking to combine it with Judaism (Latourette KS. A History of Christianity, Volume 1: to A.D. 1500. HarperCollins, San Francisco, 1975, p. 126).

In other words, the original true Church of God truly did combine faith in Christ with practices that Marcion considered to be too Jewish. And Marcion was denounced by leaders from Asia Minor for rejecting the true faith.

Most know very little about early church history or where their doctrines came from–and what many think they know is clouded by misinformation and misconceptions.

But those willing to be called and led by God can find the truth in the Bible and the scattered records of early church history (e.g. the free booklet Continuing History of the Church of God).

COGaIC used to post more related to its understandings of early Church History in a blog called “First Followers.” However, after 2011, this reduced to only one or two posts per year there, and since the departure of Peter Nathan from COGaIC, that blog seems to have been removed.

Those interested in early Christianity may wish to read the following documented articles to learn more:

Marcion: The First Protestant? Considered to have been an organized heretic, he taught against the Old Testament, the law, and the Sabbath. Some have considered him to be the first Protestant reformer. But was he? Here is a link to a related sermon: Marcion: The first Protestant reformer?
Where is the True Christian Church Today? This free online pdf booklet answers that question and includes 18 proofs, clues, and signs to identify the true vs. false Christian church. Plus 7 proofs, clues, and signs to help identify Laodicean churches. A related sermon is also available: Where is the True Christian Church? Here is a link to the booklet in the Spanish language: ¿Dónde está la verdadera Iglesia cristiana de hoy? Here is a link in the German language: WO IST DIE WAHRE CHRISTLICHE KIRCHE HEUTE? Here is a link in the French language: Où est la vraie Église Chrétienne aujourd’hui? Here is a link to a short animation: Which Church would Jesus Choose?
Continuing History of the Church of God This pdf booklet is a historical overview of the true Church of God and some of its main opponents from Acts 2 to the 21st century. Related sermon links include Continuing History of the Church of God: c. 31 to c. 300 A.D. and Continuing History of the Church of God: 4th-16th Centuries and Continuing History of the Church of God: 17th-20th Centuries. The booklet is available in Spanish: Continuación de la Historia de la Iglesia de Dios, German: Kontinuierliche Geschichte der Kirche Gottes, French: L Histoire Continue de l Église de Dieu and Ekegusii Omogano Bw’ekanisa Ya Nyasae Egendererete.
Do You Practice Mithraism? Many practices and doctrines that mainstream so-called Christian groups have are the same or similar to those of the sun-god Mithras. December 25th was celebrated as his birthday. Do you follow Mithraism combined with the Bible or original Christianity?
Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God Differs from Protestantism The CCOG is NOT Protestant. This free online book explains how the real Church of God differs from mainstream/traditional Protestants. Several sermons related to the free book are also available: Protestant, Baptist, and CCOG History; The First Protestant, God’s Command, Grace, & Character; The New Testament, Martin Luther, and the Canon; Eucharist, Passover, and Easter; Views of Jews, Lost Tribes, Warfare, & Baptism; Scripture vs. Tradition, Sabbath vs. Sunday; Church Services, Sunday, Heaven, and God’s Plan; Seventh Day Baptists/Adventists/Messianics: Protestant or COG?; Millennial Kingdom of God and God’s Plan of Salvation; Crosses, Trees, Tithes, and Unclean Meats; The Godhead and the Trinity; Fleeing or Rapture?; and Ecumenism, Rome, and CCOG Differences.
The Similarities and Dissimilarities between Martin Luther and Herbert W. Armstrong This article clearly shows some of the doctrinal differences between in the two. At this time of doctrinal variety and a tendency by many to accept certain aspects of Protestantism, the article should help clarify why the genuine Church of God is NOT Protestant. Do you really know what the Protestant Reformer Martin Luther taught and should you follow his doctrinal example? Here is a related sermon video: Martin Luther and Herbert Armstrong: Reformers with Differences.
The History of Early Christianity Are you aware that what most people believe is not what truly happened to the true Christian church? Do you know where the early church was based? Do you know what were the doctrines of the early church? Is your faith really based upon the truth or compromise?
Polycarp of Smyrna: The Heretic Fighter Polycarp was the successor of the Apostle John and a major leader in Asia Minor. Do you know much about what he taught? A YouTube video or related interesy may be: Polycarp of Smyrna: Why Christians should know more about him.
Nazarene Christianity: Were the Original Christians Nazarenes? Who were the Nazarene Christians? What did they believe? Should 21st century Christians be modern Nazarenes? Is there a group that exists now that traces its history through the Nazarenes and holds the same beliefs today? Here is a link to a related video sermon Nazarene Christians: Were the early Christians “Nazarenes”?
Location of the Early Church: Another Look at Ephesus, Smyrna, and Rome What actually happened to the primitive Church? And did the Bible tell about this in advance?
Church of God, an International Community (COG aic) This is the group led by David Hulme. It seems to minimize parts of biblical prophecy.