Church of God News

Halloween Clown Mask
(Photo from Pixabay)

COGwriter

Michael Snyder posted the following:

Americans Brace For The Yearly Spike In Crime That Always Happens On Halloween

October 21, 2025

When three thugs in Halloween masks terrorized a family in northern Virginia a few days ago, it was a sign that Halloween crime season is off to an early start this year.  Once we get to the evening of October 31st, you will want to make sure that your home is both occupied and secure, because criminals love an easy target.  It is the one time during the year when criminals can wear masks and freely approach your home without causing much suspicion.  Unfortunately, many choose to use that as an opportunity to cause mayhem. …

Halloween is a festival that literally celebrates evil, and so it shouldn’t be much of a surprise that violent crime spikes on October 31st every year…

“The evening violent crime count on October 31 is about 50 percent higher than on any other date during the year, and twice the daily average,” criminologist James Alan Fox wrote for the Boston Globe, noting criminal activity peaks during trick-or-treat hours, and trails off later in the night.

“The most popular hours for gathering Snickers and Junior Mints around the neighborhood are apparently also the prime time for violent crime.”

This time of the year, Americans consume millions upon millions of hours of Halloween programming that show people in masks doing all sorts of unthinkable things, and there are always going to be sick people that want to copy what they see on their screens. …

In Seattle, two young males were arrested for “harassing two women while wearing clown masks and brandishing guns”…

A 19-year-old man and a 17-year-old boy were arrested early Monday after allegedly harassing two women while wearing clown masks and brandishing guns in the Bitter Lake neighborhood, Seattle police said.

The incident unfolded around 12:20 a.m. when officers were flagged down by two women on Aurora Avenue North.

In Indiana, a teen that was spotted “wearing a clown-like mask” went on quite a crime spree before he was finally caught…

An Evansville teen who was seen wearing a clown-like mask on security camera has been arrested and charged, according to the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office.

VCSO says a 16-year-old from Evansville was arrested and charged with multiple crimes, including attempted burglary, theft, and attempted theft.

The arrest is connected to a series of car break-ins and attempted residential burglaries in the Wellington Acres neighborhood of northeastern Vanderburgh County.

This time of the year just seems to bring out the worst in many people. …

Sadly, we don’t just see a spike in petty crimes during Halloween.

Every year, homes get invaded.

Every year, women get raped.

Every year, innocent people get murdered. https://endoftheamericandream.com/americans-brace-for-the-yearly-spike-in-crime-that-always-happens-on-halloween/

Yes, Michael Snyder is correct that Halloween is evil. Let me also add that it is pagan (see also the article: Halloween is Pagan).

Here is more on the Virginia incident from another source:

A late-night knock turned into a nightmare for a Virginia resident – and now police are hunting for the trio who wore Halloween masks and tried to break into a family’s home in what investigators say was far from a prank.

Disturbing doorbell camera footage shows three people approach the door of the Alexandria home around 10 p.m. on Tuesday, their faces hidden behind Halloween masks, as they shout threats and demand the residents come outside.

“It’s either you coming out or we coming in,” one voice can be heard saying on the video. Another yells, “Open the door!”

A woman who told WUSA9 that she was visiting her mother at the targeted home said she thought it was just a prank, at first.

“At first I thought it was just a Halloween joke, a little prank,” Shayla said. “So I said, ‘Happy Halloween.’”

But the knocking quickly escalated.

“They kept, like, knocking on the door,” she said. “The knocks would get harder and harder.”

Shayla said the group threatened to kill them and tried to get into the house even after she called 911 and told them police were on the way.

“They threatened to kill us,” she said. “It’s not even a joke gone wrong. They tried to enter into the home. My heart dropped when they said that they were gonna take a chair and break down the door. That is just too much.”

When the group couldn’t get in through the front, they moved to the back of the house, breaking part of a fence and pounding on a window, according to Shayla. 10/20/25 https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/crime/halloween-mask-trio-virginia-police-search-b2848176.html

CBS put out the following:

Here’s a spooky story. Oct. 31 lures more than just ghouls, goblins and the occasional caped crusader. Crime also makes the rounds on Halloween night as 175 million Americans hit the street to trick or treat — in masks, in various states of inebriation or just up to no good.

Year-end holidays arrive with the advent of darkened evenings and are traditionally a time when crime rises. …

One university professor believes Halloween brings out the Freddy Kruegers of the world, possibly because of its association with paranormal psychology and urban legends. “The evening violent crime count on Oct. 31 is about 50 percent higher than on any other date during the year, and about twice the daily average,” said Northeastern University professor James Alan Fox.

Even if you don’t worry about black cats or creatures that lurk in the shadows, it still makes sense to take precautions. Here are some tips from insurers on how to protect your property:

• Don’t leave your home unoccupied. If you have to go out, leave lights and the TV on, and ask neighbors to keep a watch. Never put a spare key under the mat.
• If you’re home, make sure your walkway is well-lit to prevent trips and falls by children who can’t see through their masks. Make sure to see who’s at the door before you open it.
• Keep pets indoors and under control. Dogs can become easily spooked by strangers, especially in disguises, and end up biting friends or children.
• Put away outside movable objects such as grills, lawn mowers and bicycles that could be stolen, vandalized or thrown against your home.
• Park cars in a garage, if possible, or in well-lighted areas and remove all valuables. Activate the car alarm when leaving.
• If you’re going out, remain on high alert and avoid children in dark costumes whose minds will be on candy, not safety. 10/29/18 https://www.cbsnews.com/news/higher-halloween-crime-rates-make-it-a-real-fright-night/

Yes, you may wish to take a few precautionary steps.

Anyway, people wearing identity blocking masks at night is sadly a motivation for some to commit more crimes.

But spiritually, let me add, Halloween is a pagan threat that has impacted many who profess to be Christian.

The Continuing Church of God just put out the following sermon on its ContinuingCOG channel:

 

1:17:17

Halloween: A Pagan Threat!

Is Halloween really a pagan threat? What are its origins? What about Charlie Kirk and the ‘Pagan Threat’? Do Roman Catholic Church leaders admit that October 31st was chosen as ‘All Hallows Eve’ as a compromise with paganism? Have Roman Catholic leaders condemned Halloween as a demonic holiday? Should Christians keep biblical holy days or demonic holidays? Are there risks and harms from Halloween and other pagan practices? Was ‘All Saints Day’ an original Christian observance? Did its date change? Should you pray to dead ‘saints’? What about the ‘Day of the Dead’? Do costumes, Jack-O-Lanterns, treats, and tricks have origins in Celtic pagan rituals promoted by the Druids related to the pagan god Samhain? Should women dress up as seductresses on Halloween? Are Roman Catholic feasts in continuity and fulfill the meaning of pagan ones” according to Roman Catholic sources? Are there any ties between commonly observed holidays and Mithraism? Are there ties between Halloween and Satanism? Should you ignore the ‘pagan threat’ if you think it will not affect your faith? Dr. Thiel addresses these matters and more in this sermon.

Here is a link to our video:  Halloween: A Pagan Threat!

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Halloween is Pagan Many accept that the origins are pagan. But did you know that the Church of Rome applauds that? Here is a link to a related sermon:  Halloween: A Pagan Threat!
Is Halloween Holy Time for Christians? Here are some historical and biblical insight on this question. There are many cultures that have celebrations and observances that are similar to some associated with Halloween. What did the Druids do? Is Halloween one of the most important holidays for Satanists? Do the Japanese, Indians, and Chinese have any practices that are similar to some associated with Halloween? Does the Bible endorse or condemn practices that are associated with Halloween? Here is a link to a related sermon: Let’s Get Real About Halloween. Here are links to three related sermonette length videos: Debunking 17 reasons to celebrate Halloween, Halloween: Are there 7 reasons for Christians to celebrate it?, and International ‘Halloween’ Should Christians observe Halloween?
Walpurgis Night: Witches’ Sabbath? This is observed in parts of Europe April 30th-May 1st. Though named after a Catholic saint, it tends to be like Halloween.
All Saints’ Day, the Day of the Dead, and All Souls’ Day When did “All Saints Day” and the “Day of the Dead” begin? “What about All Soul’s Day”? Here is a link to a related sermon: All Hallowed Saints’ Day of the Dead.
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.
Beliefs of the Original Catholic Church: Could a remnant group have continuing apostolic succession? Did the original “catholic church” have doctrines held by the Continuing Church of God? Did Church of God leaders uses the term “catholic church” to ever describe the church they were part of? Here are links to related sermons: Original Catholic Church of God?, Original Catholic Doctrine: Creed, Liturgy, Baptism, Passover, What Type of Catholic was Polycarp of Smyrna?, Tradition, Holy Days, Salvation, Dress, & Celibacy, Early Heresies and Heretics, Doctrines: 3 Days, Abortion, Ecumenism, Meats, Tithes, Crosses, Destiny, and more, Saturday or Sunday?, The Godhead, Apostolic Laying on of Hands Succession, Church in the Wilderness Apostolic Succession List, Holy Mother Church and Heresies, and Lying Wonders and Original Beliefs. Here is a link to that book in the Spanish language: Creencias de la iglesia Católica original.
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? A sermon video from Vatican City is titled Church of Rome, Mithras, and Isis?
Crime can be stopped…here’s how! This was a booklet that was edited with some updates by Dr. Thiel. Here is a link to a related sermon: Crime and How it Will be Stopped!

Obese females (Pixabay)

COGwriter

Many Americans are obese. But using revised standards, the percentage is higher than previously thought:

BMI alone may not be enough to measure cardiometabolic disease risk among adults, researchers find

October 20, 2025

The research, led by a team from the Border Health Research Cohort at UTHealth Houston School of Public Health, was published in JAMA Network Open and focused on the relationship between adiposity, or excess fat tissue, and cardiometabolic disease in adults.

Cardiometabolic disease is a group of health problems like heart disease and diabetes that are often caused by things like being overweight or having high blood pressure or high blood sugar.

“When you have excess adiposity, even if you’re not obese, you’re still at risk for cardiometabolic disease,” said co-principal investigator Joseph McCormick, MD, professor of epidemiology and James H. Steele, DVM, Professor at UTHealth Houston School of Public Health. “This adipose tissue is a big driver of the elements that make up what we call cardiometabolic disease.”

The research was a companion piece to a study published in JAMA Pediatrics, which focused on adiposity and obesity in children. …

Men with a waist circumference of 40.1 inches or more and women with a waist circumference of 34.6 inches or more are more likely to have excess adiposity, according to the research. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-10-bmi-cardiometabolic-disease-adults.html

Nearly 7 In 10 American Adults Meet New Definition Of Obese: Study

Researchers analyzed the U.S.-based All of Us database to determine the prevalence of obesity under the new definition.

Of the 301,026 participants aged 18–80 years included in the analysis, 128,992 individuals (42.9 percent) were deemed to be obese under the traditional BMI-based criteria. But under the new definition, 206,361 individuals, or 68.6 percent, were considered obese. Obesity was found to be more prevalent with older age.

“We already thought we had an obesity epidemic, but this is astounding,” said co-first author Lindsay Fourman, according to an Oct. 15 report by The Harvard Gazette, the official news website for Harvard University. 10/18/25 https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/nearly-7-10-american-adults-meet-new-definition-obese-study

Nearly 70% of US adults considered obese under proposed new definition, study finds

Nearly 70 per cent of American adults would be classified as having obesity under a newly proposed definition.

The traditional obesity measure, based on a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher, has long faced criticism for failing to distinguish between fat and muscle. In response, medical experts earlier this year called for an updated definition.

The new approach would label someone as being obese if they have a BMI over 40 or if they have a high BMI plus at least one sign of excess body fat, for example a large waist, high waist-to-hip ratio, or high waist-to-height ratio. People could also be classed as obese if they have two signs of excess fat even with a “normal” BMI, or if scans show they have excessive body fat. …

Applying this definition to a nationally representative sample of more than 300,000 US adults aged 18 to 80, researchers found the prevalence of obesity jumped from 43 per cent under traditional BMI criteria to 69 per cent under the new system. https://www.euronews.com/health/2025/10/17/nearly-70-of-us-adults-considered-obese-under-proposed-new-definition-study-finds

This is not good for the USA, and the Europeans (who reported the last portion above) know this.

Oddly, late last year, the City of San Francisco decided that taxpayers should pay for someone promoting obesity:

Fat-Shaming ‘Expert’ Goes To Work For San Francisco. Her Mission? Make Obesity Great Again

December 20, 2024

In the lovely cesspool of San Francisco, it’s time to Make Obesity Great Again.

Never mind the poop and dirty drug needles littering the streets; the San Francisco Department of Health seems to want fat citizens to feel comfortable in their own bodies, to feel accepted by society, to feel like they can live their truth without any fear of judgment. To do so, they apparently hired a fat-shaming expert to work as a consultant — two labels that should send chills down your spine — on “weight stigma” and “weight neutrality” — two buzz phrases as hollow as they are silly.

Virgie Tovar, a self-described “plus-size Latina” and “leading expert on weight-based discrimination,” announced Monday she will work with the city’s health department to achieve the aforementioned “weight neutrality,” which, in my estimation, entails yet another feckless waste of taxpayer dollars for some unbelievably stupid liberal theory.

“I’m UNBELIEVABLY proud to serve the city I’ve called home for almost 20 years in this way! This consultancy is an absolute dream come true, and it’s my biggest hope and belief that weight neutrality will be the future of public health,” Tovar wrote on Instagram.

With all due respect to my weight-challenged brothers and sisters in America, you have no business eating up taxpayer dollars working for the city health department to “make weight neutrality … the future of health.” On its face, it is an absurd notion. https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/fat-shaming-expert-goes-to-work-for-san-francisco-her-mission-make-obesity-great-again/ar-AA1w2W6k?ocid=up97dhp&apiversion=v2&noservercache=1&domshim=1&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1&batchservertelemetry=1&noservertelemetry=1

Morbidly obese Latinx activist Virgie Tovar, outfitted with multiple redundant chins, explains that normal-sized people are repulsed by fats stuffing their face-holes with disgusting birthday cake at office parties because they hate women and don’t want them to enjoy themselves.  …

I don’t believe I’ve ever addressed head-on the elephant in the room, as it were, which is: why the curious combining of feminism and fat activism into the Social Justice™ Frankenstein that it is today? …

People are rightfully and naturally less generous with their sympathy to people who put themselves in whatever position they find themselves in, like eating irresponsibly for years on end until they’re morbidly obese. So, by tying the #bodypositivity cause to a more socially accepted cause like women’s rights, they earn, at least in theory, greater legitimacy. 12/19/24 https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2024-12-20/bodypositivity-roundup-cake-related-fatphobic-incidents

It is difficult for most in Western nations to maintain a healthy weight, without people lying and saying being obese is fine. Obesity promoters should be ashamed.

While we should not go around making fun of people who are obese, we also should never encourage obesity.

Furthermore many anti-fat shaming voices have died prematurely with obesity being a major cause of that.

Obesity is UNHEALTHY and should not be encouraged. Pressure against smokers, helped reduce smoking in the USA, and pressuring against obesity may help improve people’s health.

That said, the Bible tells people to eat what is good:

2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good (Isaiah 55:2).

Do not overeat. Eat what is good.

Having more highly-overweight people is consistent, however, with the following prophecy for 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!  (2 Timothy 3:1-5)

Lack of self-control, while not the only factor, is a factor in obesity.

ZeroHedge reported the following related to approving of obesity;

August 8, 2022

Talk show host and comedian Bill Maher railed against the pro-obesity ‘body positivity’ movement, saying that not only is it pathetic, it’s a national security risk.

“There is a disturbing trend going on in America these days,” Maher began, adding that people are “rewriting science to fit ideology to just fit what you want reality to be.”

“We’ve gone from fat acceptance to fat celebration. That’s new. That is new,” Maher said. “To view letting yourself go as a point of pride? We used to at least try and be fit and healthy and society praised those who succeeded”

“Now the term body positivity is used to mean, ‘I’m perfect the way I am because I’m me,’” the HBO host continued, adding “It’s Orwellian how often positivity is used to describe what’s not healthy!”

“Of course, you can get away with anything bad for you when you’re young,” then said, adding “Let me ask you this: Have you ever seen a fat 90-year-old?”

Maher then noted that the military is having a harder time finding in-shape recruits, as well as how obese people have fared worse during COVID-19.

“At some point acceptance becomes enabling, and if you’re in any way participating in this joyful celebration of gluttony that goes on now, you have blood on your hands,” he said, adding “You can make believe you’re fighting some great social justice battle for a besieged minority, but what you’re really doing is enabling addicts – which I thought we decided was bad.” https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/bill-maher-slams-fat-celebration-and-body-positivity

While I have seen many people in their 90s, no, I never recall seeing any who were fat (though there probably are some). But ‘wokeness’ wants people to say bad is good.

The Bible warns:

20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes,
And prudent in their own sight!  (Isaiah 5:20-21)

It is NOT good to tell people that it is fine to be obese–that is bearing false witness–a violation of the ninth commandment.

Although some falsely teach that Jesus taught “come as you are,” He really said:

15 … Repent, and believe (Mark 1:15)

He did not say be satisfied as you are but be willing to change and believe. And, yes, this can mean physically and not just spiritually, as other scriptures show. He also said that those who would not believe He is who He said He was would die in their sins (John 8:24).

Obesity is bad for the obese and bad for society.

Notice also the following related to obesity:

The Societal Cost of Obesity

According to researchers at Ball State University in Indiana, obesity is on the rise. Estimates based on their early research show that by 2030, in the absence of any intervening actions, a third of all children between the ages of six and eleven will be considered obese or overweight.

No doubt that is a shocking statistic. …

To measure whether or not you are overweight or obese, you must account for your Body Mass Index or BMI.

For adults, BMI consists of a person’s weight divided by their height squared. …

For children, BMI is calculated using the same formula but is interpreted using the child’s age and sex. Those results are then measured amongst a percentile. This method accounts for the difference in adolescent development for those between the ages of 2 and 19.

Health risks can occur in any individual, no matter their lifestyle or level of fitness. But for those who are obese, there is a far more heightened risk of experiencing serious health conditions. The list of potential health problems and complications is extensive and includes:

• Type 2 diabetes
• High blood pressure (Hypertension)
• Risk for stroke
• Sleep apnea
• Difficulty breathing
• Coronary heart disease
• Problems regulating healthy cholesterol levels (high LDL, low HDL, high levels of triglycerides
• Certain types of cancers including breast, colon, endometrial, gallbladder, kidney, liver, ovarian, or pancreatic
• Gallbladder disease
• Osteoarthritis (deterioration of bone and cartilage in joints)
• Greater risk for mental illness including anxiety, clinical depression, and other psychiatric disorders
• Reduced quality of life (excessive pain, limited mobility, problems performing everyday tasks, such as standing, walking, or using the restroom)

In practically all instances, obesity also enhances the risk of premature death. …

Based on several estimates, the US has spent anywhere from $150 billion to upwards of $190 billion each year on obesity-related costs. Some put that range even higher. This includes diagnosis and treatment, as well as prevention-related costs.

By 2030 – a little over a decade away – those numbers could increase by as much as $66 billion a year.

Those figures, though, only take into account direct costs. They do not account for lost work (either in lost employee wages or lost employer productivity), insurance costs, or lower overall wages. According to some of the most prevalent reports, these secondary financial consequences are an even larger burden that the direct medical costs of obesity.

At its most extreme, obesity may prove to be one of humankind’s worst maladies. https://www.mbahealthcaremanagement.org/topics/the-societal-cost-of-obesity/ accessed 08/24/19

The USA is already massively in debt and future increases in health care costs and decreased productivity can be part of ‘the straw that will break the camel’s back’ metaphorically.

The Bible opposes obesity.

Here is what Moses and Jeremiah were inspired to write about obesity thousands of years ago:

15 You grew fat, you grew thick,
You are obese!
Then he forsook God who made him,
And scornfully esteemed the Rock of his salvation.
16 They provoked Him to jealousy with foreign gods;
With abominations they provoked Him to anger. (Deuteronomy 32:15-16)

11 “Because you were glad, because you rejoiced,
You destroyers of My heritage,
Because you have grown fat like a heifer threshing grain,
And you bellow like bulls,
12 Your mother shall be deeply ashamed;
She who bore you shall be ashamed.
Behold, the least of the nations shall be a wilderness,
A dry land and a desert. (Jeremiah 50:11-12)

The idea that one should not be obese is not a new one.

Furthermore, the Bible warns about gluttony:

20 Do not mix with winebibbers, Or with gluttonous eaters of meat; 21 For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty (Proverbs 23:20-21)

Many people consume too much overly-processed convenience foods, synthetic nutrients, chemical additives, and refined grains–that is NOT good (see also: ‘Ultra-Processed Foods Linked to 32 Illnesses’).

People should try to eat real, not artificial, foods. Soda consumption should be almost non-existent, essentially a very rare treat.

And while they do not like to believe this, almost all obese people also need to eat less.

Many years ag0, the Continuing Church of God put out a video about concerns about eating to much on our YouTube channel called Bible New Prophecy. Here is a link to our video: Eating Right, Eating Too Much, and Prophecy.

That said, losing weight can be very, very difficult. But real Christians should believe the following:

13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)

With prayer and proper determination, breaking away from being obese can happen.

The Bible teaches:

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.

7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Fear the Lord and depart from evil.
8 It will be health to your flesh,
And strength to your bones. (Proverbs 3:5-8)

32 Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. (Luke 12:32)

Do not let fear stop you from moving ahead.

Take proper action (cf. Galatians 6:9-10; Revelation 3:7-13; Zephaniah 2:1-3).

Interested in a spiritual ‘five second’ rule?

Tell yourself and pray:

I will act on the truth and not put it off because I do not feel like it. Jesus help me.

Most people can quietly pray that in 5 or so seconds.

And physically if it will help, you can count backwards from five or use some other technique to motivate you to do what is right–including with your diet. But then pray for God’s assistance.

You can eat less–take it one day at a time consistent Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:34, which when you are trying to lose weight may also mean one meal or snack desire at a time.

We also have a related video on changing your life. Here is a link to the video: ‘How to Change Your Life in 5 Seconds’.

Of course, some things take longer than 5 seconds. But asking Jesus to help you not overeat is something everyone can do.

While it may not help your weight much, exercising is good for you and your innate immune system. Related to exercise, the Continuing Church of God (CCOG) put out the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel: The Plain Truth About Exercise.

Related to food, we put out the following video: Let’s Talk About Food.

Related to Christian health, we put out the following video: Let’s Talk About Health.

We also have the following obesity related video:

14:55

Is Obesity OK with Scripture?

In March 2024, the BBC reported that research was pointed to over a billion people being obese worldwide. Professor Majid Ezzati, of Imperial College London, said “In many of these island nations it comes down to the availability of healthy food versus unhealthy food. In some cases there have been aggressive marketing campaigns promoting unhealthy foods, while the cost and availability of healthier food can be more problematic.” Does the Bible teach to eat what is good? While millions are dying from hunger, over a billion are obese. What are diseases that the obese are more susceptible to? Since the obese tend to die sooner than others, should obesity be accepted or encouraged? What did Bill Maher state about the ‘body positive movement’? Does the Bible condemn gluttony (overeating) and obesity? Did Jesus say to ‘come as you are’ or to ‘repent and believe’? What are some ways to help lose weight? Is losing weight very difficult? Can Jesus help? If you fail, should you give up? What about the five second method of changing? Should the obese eat less? If that does not work, what should they do? What about exercise? Steve Dupuie and Dr. Thiel address these issues.

While it is highly tempting for most people to overeat, we do want to watch that and obey the word of God.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Christian Health Matters Should Christians be concerned about their health? Does the Bible give any food and health guidelines? Here are links to three related sermons: Let’s Talk About Food, Evil is Affecting the Food Supply, and Let’s Talk About Health.
Obesity, processed foods, health risks, and the Bible Does the Bible warn about the consequences of being obese? Is overeating dangerous? Is gluttony condemned? What diseases are associated with eating too much refined foods? Two related video would be Is Obesity OK with Scripture? and Eating Right, Eating Too Much, and Prophecy.
Should Christians Exercise? What does the Bible teach? What are some of the benefits and risks of exercise? Here is a link to a related video: The Plain Truth About Exercise.
Ten Simple Rules that Lead to Health Herbert Armstrong gives his opinions on this.
The New Testament Church, History, and Unclean Meats Are foods considered to have been unclean in the Old Testament considered to be food in the New Testament? This article discusses this from the perspective of the New Testament. It also has a list of clean and unclean animals. It also answers the question, is pork healthy or is pork dangerous? There is also a sermon-length video on this: Christians and Unclean Meats; a short video is also available: Did Jesus declare all animal flesh food?
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; here is a message in Spanish: Me Está Llamando Dios Hoy? 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.
Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America? Where did those people come from? Can you totally rely on DNA? What about other peoples? Do you really know what will happen to Europe and the English-speaking peoples? What about Africa, Asia, South America, and the Islands? This free online book provides scriptural, scientific, historical references, and commentary to address those matters. Here are links to related sermons: Lost tribes, the Bible, and DNA; Lost tribes, prophecies, and identifications; 11 Tribes, 144,000, and Multitudes; Israel, Jeremiah, Tea Tephi, and British Royalty; Gentile European Beast; Royal Succession, Samaria, and Prophecies; Asia, Islands, Latin America, Africa, and Armageddon;  When Will the End of the Age Come?;  Rise of the Prophesied King of the North; Christian Persecution from the Beast; WWIII and the Coming New World Order; and Woes, WWIV, and the Good News of the Kingdom of God.

BREAKING: All living hostages have now been released by Hamas, the Israeli military say.

13 hostages have been handed to the Red Cross after seven were released earlier today.

Live updates 🔗 https://t.co/C301Bd67jE

📺 Sky 501 and YouTube pic.twitter.com/nmh78S2Gly

— Sky News (@SkyNews) October 13, 2025

COGwriter

20 living hostages were released by Hamas today:

All 20 surviving hostages freed by Hamas under Gaza peace deal

13 October 2025

Hamas released all 20 living Israeli hostages on Monday morning as part of the Gaza peace deal brokered by the Trump administration.

Why it matters: The Israeli hostages, most of them civilians, were held in captivity in Gaza for more than two years. Finally, all of the hostages who survived are now free.

• The hostage release started shortly before President Trump landed in Israel, as part of a Middle East trip aimed at cementing his Gaza peace plan.
• Their release was a key Israeli and U.S. demand for ending the war.

Driving the news: Hamas had to release all 20 of the live hostages by Monday at noon local time, according to the agreement.

• The first group of seven hostages was released shortly after 8am local time. The hostages were transferred by Hamas to the Red Cross, which delivered them to Israeli forces inside Gaza.
• The other 13 hostages were released two hours later. Before the second group was released, Hamas militants connected them to their families in video calls and asked the families to send those calls to the Israeli press. https://www.axios.com/2025/10/13/israel-gaza-peace-deal-hostages-freed-hamas

Liberation from captivity is a good thing.

Jesus came to proclaim liberty:

1 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
Because the Lord has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord,
And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn,  (Isaiah 61:1-2)

US President Donald Trump made comments about the release and his plan:

Trump hails end of ‘age of terror’ and says this is the ‘historic dawn’ of a new Middle East

Trump declares that the ceasefire agreement marks the end of Israel’s war on Gaza, as well as the end of the “age of terror and death”.

Speaking to the Knesset, the US president said:

This is not only the end of a war. This is the end of the age of terror and death and the beginning of the age of faith and hope and of God.

It’s the start of a grand concord and lasting harmony for Israel, and all the nations of what will soon be a truly magnificent region. I believe that, so strongly. This is the historic dawn of a new Middle East.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/oct/13/gaza-ceasefire-live-updates-israel-hostages-release-hamas-trump-middle-east?filterKeyEvents=false&page=with%3Ablock-68ecdf028f08f99dceddd6fa#block-68ecdf028f08f99dceddd6fa

Yes, we are to have faith in God. And in His Bible it is prophesied:

10 “Because, indeed, because they have seduced My people, saying, ‘Peace!’ when there is no peace — and one builds a wall, and they plaster it with untempered mortar — 11 say to those who plaster it with untempered mortar, that it will fall. There will be flooding rain, and you, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall tear it down. 12 Surely, when the wall has fallen, will it not be said to you, ‘Where is the mortar with which you plastered it?’” (Ezekiel 13:10-12)

Notice  also the following prophecies:

5 They have corrupted themselves; They are not His children, Because of their blemish: A perverse and crooked generation. … 25 The sword shall destroy outside; There shall be terror within (Deuteronomy 32:5,25)

12 “Cry and wail, son of man; For it will be against My people, Against all the princes of Israel. Terrors including the sword will be against My people; Therefore strike your thigh. (Ezekiel 21:12)

12 The Syrians before and the Philistines behind; And they shall devour Israel with an open mouth. (Isaiah 9:12)

Terrors looks to involve at least some Palestinians, such as those who could be involved with groups like Hamas.

There are concerns about Hamas in this deal. I do not believe that all those associated with Hamas have renounced terrorism.

Consider that if prior to the 2023 attack, the Hamas leadership in Gaza wanted to simply live in peace, the focus of the government there would have been economic prosperity, investing in things like irrigation for agriculture and tourist infrastructure. Instead, Hamas ran the place and its focus was on trying to figure out how to eliminate Jews from Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank of the Jordan river. Its extensive production of tunnels, to cite one example, shows that civic community benefits were not its focus. Preparing for its 2023 attack, however, was.

It is great that hostages have been released. It is great that there looks to be a cessation of fighting.

But, no Donald Trump, the age of terror is not over. And no, this deal is not leading permanent peace in the Middle East.

Hamas is not gone.

Do not overestimate aspects of this peace deal.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

The ‘Peace Deal’ of Daniel 9:27 This prophecy could give up to 3 1/2 years advance notice of the coming Great Tribulation. Will most ignore or misunderstand its fulfillment? Here is a link to a related sermon video Daniel 9:27 and the Start of the Great Tribulation.
How Will Middle East Peace be Brought About? Can humans bring peace to the Middle East? Here is a link to a related video: Middle East Peace? When?
Unintended Consequences and Donald Trump’s Presidency: Is Donald Trump Fulfilling Biblical, Islamic, Greco-Roman Catholic, Buddhist, and other America-Related Prophecies?  Is Donald Trump going to save the USA or are there going to be many disastrous unintended consequences of his statements and policies? What will happen. The link takes you to a book available at Amazon.com.
Unintended Consequences and Donald Trump’s Presidency: Is Donald Trump Fulfilling Biblical, Islamic, Greco-Roman Catholic, Buddhist, and other America-Related Prophecies? Kindle edition is available for only US$3.99. And you do not need an actual Kindle device to read it. Why? Amazon will allow you to download it to almost any device: Please click HERE to download one of Amazon s Free Reader Apps. After you go to for your free Kindle reader and then go to Unintended Consequences and Donald Trump’s Presidency: Is Donald Trump Fulfilling Biblical, Islamic, Greco-Roman Catholic, Buddhist, and other America-Related Prophecies?
Gaza and the Palestinians in Bible Prophecy What does the Bible teach about Gaza and the fate of the Palestinians? Here is a link to a related video: Gaza and Palestine in Prophecy.
Jerusalem: Past, Present, and Future What does the Bible say about Jerusalem and its future? Is Jerusalem going to be divided and eliminated? Is Jesus returning to the area of Jerusalem? There are also two related YouTube videos you can watch: Jerusalem To be divided and eliminated and God’s and Satan’s Plan for Jerusalem.
Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America? Where did those people come from? Can you totally rely on DNA? What about other peoples? Do you really know what will happen to Europe and the English-speaking peoples? What about Africa, Asia, South America, and the Islands? This free online book provides scriptural, scientific, historical references, and commentary to address those matters. Here are links to related sermons: Lost tribes, the Bible, and DNA; Lost tribes, prophecies, and identifications; 11 Tribes, 144,000, and Multitudes; Israel, Jeremiah, Tea Tephi, and British Royalty; Gentile European Beast; Royal Succession, Samaria, and Prophecies; Asia, Islands, Latin America, Africa, and Armageddon;  When Will the End of the Age Come?;  Rise of the Prophesied King of the North; Christian Persecution from the Beast; WWIII and the Coming New World Order; and Woes, WWIV, and the Good News of the Kingdom of God.

Portrait of a man said to be Christopher Columbus (Wikipedia)

COGwriter

Today, used to be simply called Columbus Day in the USA, but that changed in this century:

US Observes Columbus Day, Indigenous Peoples Day

The United States observes its Columbus Day holiday on Monday as well Indigenous Peoples Day.

Columbus Day has been a federal holiday since 1971 to celebrate the 1492 landing of Christopher Columbus in the Americas.

Recognition of the violence, disease and other suffering inflicted by European nations on the people already living in the Western Hemisphere has in recent years prompted a reevaluation of the holiday, including calls for its abolishment and new commemorations of indigenous populations.

U.S. President Joe Biden last week issued the first-ever presidential proclamation of Indigenous Peoples Day to be observed Monday.

“Today, we also acknowledge the painful history of wrongs and atrocities that many European explorers inflicted on tribal nations and indigenous communities,” Biden wrote. “It is a measure of our greatness as a nation that we do not seek to bury these shameful episodes of our past — that we face them honestly, we bring them to the light, and we do all we can to address them.” October 11, 2021 https://www.voanews.com/a/us-observes-columbus-day-indigenous-peoples-day/6265612.html

Joe Biden was correct to state that there were many “wrongs and atrocities that many European explorers inflicted on tribal nations and indigenous communities.”

Christopher Columbus was a flawed, and often cruel, visionary. Yet, God’s Grace is For All.

A while back, a reader sent me a link to a paper about some of Christopher Columbus’ flawed religious plans:

Americans outside the rarefied circle of Columbus scholars still know little about the man and his mission … his ultimate goal, the purpose behind the enterprise, was Jerusalem!

The 26 December 1492 entry in his journal of the first voyage, hereafter referred to as the Diario, written in the Caribbean, leaves little doubt. He says he wanted to find enough gold and the almost equally valuable spices “in such quantity that the sovereigns… will undertake and prepare to go conquer the Holy Sepulchre; for thus I urged Your Highnesses to spend all the profits of this my enterprise on the conquest of Jerusalem” (Diario 1492[1988: 291, my emphasis]). This statement implies that it was not the first time Columbus had mentioned the motivation for his undertaking, nor was it to be the last. Columbus wanted to launch a new Crusade to take back the Holy Land from the infidels (the Muslims). This desire was not merely to reclaim the land of the Bible and the place where Jesus had walked; it was part of the much larger and widespread, apocalyptic scenario in which Columbus and many of his contemporaries believed. That scenario, derived from the biblical book of Revelation, claims that the conversion of all peoples to Christianity and the re-conquest of Jerusalem are necessary preconditions for the “Second Coming” when Christ will return before the “End of Days.” Columbus felt strongly the imminence of this event; he also came to feel that he had a providential role to play in the drama. There is considerable evidence from his contemporaries and his own writings, especially in the little known Libro de las profecı´as, or Book of Prophecies, that these were longstanding beliefs of Columbus. …

The Libro is not really a book in the conventional sense, but rather a collection of passages culled from the Bible (Genesis to Revelation); numerous ancient authors such as Aristotle, Ptolemy, Seneca; church fathers such as Augustine, Jerome, Chrysostom; and medieval authors including Aquinas, d’Ailly, Joachim of Fiore, and Roger Bacon. It also includes extracts from the Qur’an and the writings of a number of Muslims such as Alfraganus and Averroes. This collection was meant to be used in the composition of a long poem to be presented to the King and Queen. The poem was never completed, but the original manuscript has, amazingly, survived, and today it is housed at the Biblioteca Columbina attached to the Cathedral in Seville.

It is believed the Libro de las profecı´as was compiled during the period between Columbus’s return from the third voyage in late October 1500 and the beginning of the fourth voyage in May 1502. However a passage referring to being in Jamaica in 1504 may indicate that he took a draft along on the final voyage in order to make additions or corrections suggested by his friend Fray Gaspar Gorricio, a Carthusian monk. …

The cover letter that Columbus inserted in the notebook begins: “Most Christian and very exalted princes, the reason which I have for the restitution of the Holy Sepulchre to the Holy Church militant is the following” (Libro 1500–1502 [Thacher 1904, vol. III: 660]). It is an urgent letter that warns them the end of the world will take place in 155 years. This date was arrived at by the common practice of using biblical genealogies to calculate the number of years from Creation, to Christ, to the current year. In this instance Columbus cites Elucidario astronomice concordie cum theological & hystorica veritate by his most crucial source—Pierre d’Ailly: “From Adam to our Lord Jesus Christ there are 5343 years and 318 days, according to the account of the King Don Alonso [sic; should be Alfonso] … adding to this 1501 incomplete years [i.e., the year he is writing], makes in all 6845” (Libro 1500–1502 [Thacher 1904, vol. III: 662]). The end point is fixed—the duration of the world is only seven millennia based on the notion that the seven days of Creation compute to seven thousand earth years. Columbus cites “St. Augustine who says that the end of this world is to come in the seventh millenary of years from its creation… [so] according to this account, there are only lacking 155 years to complete the 7000, in which year … the world must end” (op. cit). …

In late fifteenth- and early sixteenth-century Spain there was a widely circulated notion of “a last world emperor” who would fulfill what was known as the unum ovile et unun pastor prophecy of John, 10: 16: “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd” (my emphasis). This emperor would fight the Antichrist and reestablish Christian sovereignty over Jerusalem and the Holy Land. As noted, Columbus believed this ruler was to come from Spain; https://www.amherst.edu/system/files/columbus.pdf accessed 01/25/20

So, let us consider some of this and its possible ramifications.

First, yes, it was long believed that God had a seven-thousand year plan. The ‘school of Elijah’ has been credited as the source, and that would have been 8 or 9 centuries before Jesus was born on the earth.

Jews and early Christians believed this.

However, Christopher Columbus (known in Spanish as Cristóbal Colón) was in error about the timing.

Not only is the 7,000 years not up, the 6000 years God allowed humans to rule themselves is not yet up, but is quite close to being so (see Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End?).

Next, the Book of Revelation says nothing about Christians trying to take over Jerusalem prior to the second coming of Jesus.

However, Greco-Roman Catholic prophecies, which also discuss a coming human emperor (often called “the Great Monarch” who seems to have a lot in common with the biblical King of the North) do.

Notice some Catholic private prophecies/writings that support the view that this leader, like the biblical King of the North, has a major impact in Jerusalem towards the beginning of his reign:

St. Thomas a’Beckett (12th century): A knight shall come from the West. He shall capture … the three Crowns. He shall then sail … and reach Christ’s grave where he will fight. (Dupont Y. Catholic Prophecy: The Coming Chastisement. TAN Books, Rockford (IL), 1973, p.16)

Blessed Joannes Amadeus de Sylva (died 1482): Germany and Spain will unite under a great prince … After much slaughtering, the other nations will be forced to come into this union. There is no hope for the unbelievers until all of Germany is converted; then all will happen quickly … the time will be prolonged until all countries unite under the Great Ruler. After this union, mass conversions will take place … (Connor, Prophecy for Today, p. 34). Connor, p. 34).

Abbot ‘Merlin’ Joachim (died 1202) A remarkable Pope … shall recover the kingdom of Jerusalem … in order to obtain these happy results, having need of powerful assistance, this Holy Pontiff will ask the cooperation of the generous monarch of France (Great Monarch). (Connor, Edward. Prophecy for Today. Imprimatur + A.J. Willinger, Bishop of Monterey-Fresno; Reprint: Tan Books and Publishers, Rockford (IL), 1984, p. 32)

Eastern Orthodox Scholar Helen Tzima Otto (2000): Of course, Jerusalem will be invaded in WWIII and finally liberated by the Great Monarch. (Tzima Otto, H. The Great Monarch and WWIII in Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Scriptural Prophecies. Verenika Press, Rock City (SC), 2000, p. 316)

Monk Adso (10th century). “Some of our Teachers say that a King of the Franks will possess the entire Roman Empire. He will be the greatest and the last of all Monarchs. After having wisely governed his kingdom, he will go in the end to Jerusalem and will lay down his sceptre and his crown upon the Mount of Olives…” (Dupont, p.18).

It would seem that Christopher Columbus was aware of some of those Greco-Roman Catholic prophecies.

Sadly, when many people see some of what Jesus said that they should be looking for, instead of being concerned about this leader, they will apparently embrace that false one.

There are, however, some Greco-Roman Catholics (apparently a minority) who could oppose this as the following suggests:

Catholic writer Paul Thigpen warns, “Looking for the Great Monarch, then, who does not appear in Scripture, might lead to overlooking the Antichrist who does. It might even lead to–a more disturbing thought–to mistaking the Antichrist for the Great Monarch. After all, lesser antichrists of the past such as Hitler and Stalin have seduced followers with visions of grand and glorious earthly kingdoms. Surely Antichrist of the last days will do the same.” (Penn L. False dawn: the United Religions Initiative, globalism, and the quest for a one-world religion. Sophia Perennis, 2005, p. 420)

Priest Herman Kramer (20th century): The False Prophet … will persuade all infidels, apostates and apostate nations to worship and adore him … Antichrist “sitteth in the temple of God” (I Thes. II. 4) … possibly one of the churches in Jerusalem or St. Peter’s in Rome … The False Prophet will proclaim the resurrection of the Roman Empire … The word “image” is in the singular number, indicating only one statue, which he may set up in the great church, St. Peter’s (Kramer H.B. L. The Book of Destiny. Nihil Obstat: J.S. Considine, O.P., Censor Deputatus. Imprimatur: +Joseph M. Mueller, Bishop of Sioux City, Iowa, January 26, 1956. Reprint TAN Books, Rockford (IL), p. 320-323).

The King of the North, presuming he is also considered to be the Great Monarch, will be involved with Jerusalem and biblically is dangerous.

Additionally, some Greco-Roman Catholic writers clearly have understood that the two-horned beast in Revelation 13 is likely to be an antipope and that a negative power will be established in Jerusalem:

Priest E. Sylvester Berry (published 1920): The two horns denote a twofold authority – spiritual and temporal. As indicated by the resemblance to a lamb, the prophet will probably set himself up in Rome as a sort of anti-pope…Antichrist will establish himself in Jerusalem…with his ‘lying wonders’… (Berry ES. The Apocalypse of St. John, 1920. Quoted in Culleton RG. The Reign of Antichrist. Reprint 1974, TAN Books, Rockford (IL), pp. 199-200).

Much of the above teaching is consistent with certain scriptures.

Although most in the Protestant world that watch prophecy, as well as perhaps most in the Catholic world, have confused who the Antichrist is (many modern Protestants think he is the Beast of the Sea), various Catholic sources have correctly declared that the False Prophet is (or likely is) the final Antichrist. This was also the position of the Catholic saint Augustine (Augustine. City of God, Book XX, Chapter 14. Translated by Marcus Dods. From Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 2. Edited by Philip Schaff. (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1887.) Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. <http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/120120.htm>.Culleton, The Reign of Antichrist, p. 117).

Anyway, part of the point of this post is to emphasize that Christopher Columbus was highly influenced by Greco-Roman Catholic prophecy.

It was a driving factor for him. It partially led to him changing the world.

Do not think that in the 21st century that the world will not be affected by Greco-Roman Catholic and other non-biblical prophecies.

Many are part of Satan’s plan.

That being said, the local school district here stopped having Columbus Day as a holiday several years ago.

They felt that Columbus should not be honored in light of various atrocities he was involved in.

The fact remains, however, that Columbus did open up the Americas (yes, I know there is evidence that various others, like the Vikings, came to the Americas before him) to the world and that God does have a plan that is being worked out on this earth.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Satan’s Plan Does Satan have a plan? What is it? Has it already been successful? Will it be successful in the future? Here are links to a two-part sermon series: What are Some of the Parts of Satan’s Plan? and Satan’s Plan is More Dramatic than Many Realize.
The Great Tribulation: What Happens First? What events have happened? What are some events that are now happening? And what events need to happen for the Great Tribulation to start? Here is a link to a related sermon video: Counting Down to the Great Tribulation. Here is a video in the Spanish language: Contando los eventos y el inicio de la Gran Tribulación.
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.
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 Catholic Prophecies Is the ‘Great Monarch’ of 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.
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?
God’s Grace is For All Is being Jewish a hindrance to salvation? What about not being a descendant of Israel? What does the Bible really teach? Here is a link to a related sermon titled Race and Grace; Do you view race as God does? Watch also Mystery of Race.

The US Bill of Rights

COGwriter

Today is considered to be ‘Constitution Day’ and is sometimes called ‘Citizenship Day’ for the USA. Typically, this day is not actually celebrated, or even acknowledged, by most in the USA. The current Constitution was adopted on September 17, 1787.

Here are some comments about it from the Rutherford Institute back in 2021:

In an ultimate sense, the Constitution confirmed the proposition that original power resided in the people—not, however, in the people as a whole but in their capacity as people of the several states. To bring forth the requisite union, the people through the states would transfer some of their powers to the new federal government. All powers not reserved by the people in explicit state constitutional limitations remained in the state governments.

Although the Constitution was adopted on September 17, 1787, the fear of the new federal government was so strong that a “bill of rights” was demanded and became an eventuality.

Intended to protect the citizenry’s fundamental rights or “first liberties” against usurpation by the newly created federal government, the Bill of Rights—the first ten amendments of the Constitution—is essentially a list of immunities from interference by the federal government.

Unfortunately, although the Bill of Rights was adopted as a means of protecting the people against government tyranny, in America today, the government does whatever it wants, …

“We the people” have been terrorized, traumatized, and tricked into a semi-permanent state of compliance by a government that cares nothing for our lives or our liberties. …

Here is what it means to live under the Constitution, post-9/11 and in the midst of a COVID-19 pandemic.

The First Amendment is supposed to protect the freedom to speak your mind, assemble and protest nonviolently without being bridled by the government. It also protects the freedom of the media, as well as the right to worship and pray without interference. …

Despite the clear protections found in the First Amendment, the freedoms described therein are under constant assault. Increasingly, … Religious ministries are being fined for attempting to feed and house the homeless. Protesters are being tear-gassed, beaten, arrested and forced into “free speech zones.” And under the guise of “government speech,” the courts have reasoned that the government can discriminate freely against any First Amendment activity that takes place within a so-called government forum.

The Second Amendment was intended to guarantee “the right of the people to keep and bear arms.” Essentially, this amendment was intended to give the citizenry the means to resist tyrannical government. Yet while gun ownership has been recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court as an individual citizen right, Americans remain powerless to defend themselves against SWAT team raids and government agents armed to the teeth with military weapons better suited to the battlefield. As such, this amendment has been rendered nearly null and void. …

So what’s the solution? 09/13/21 https://www.rutherford.org/publications_resources/john_whiteheads_commentary/constitution_day_2021_its_time_to_make_america_free_again

The Kingdom of God is the Solution.

Let me add the Rutherford Institute has also raised MANY constitutional issues this year related to the Trump Administration.

As far as other issues with the Constitution, here are some comments about it given back in 2020:

US Attorney General William Barr on Wednesday said a nationwide coronavirus lockdown would amount to the “greatest intrusion on civil liberties” besides slavery in US history, according to a CNN report.

Barr reportedly made the remarks during a speech at Hillsdale College in celebration of Constitution Day in response to a question about the “constitutional hurdles” of banning church gatherings during the pandemic.

“You know, putting a national lockdown, stay at home orders, is like house arrest. Other than slavery, which was a different kind of restraint, this is the greatest intrusion on civil liberties in American history,” Barr said.

As health experts have championed the measures to prevent the spread of the deadly virus, Barr, a staunch defender of President Trump, has slammed stay-at-home orders as “draconian.” https://nypost.com/2020/09/17/barr-covid-19-lockdowns-worst-civil-liberties-intrusion-since-slavery/

Yes, the lockdowns, various mandates, etc. were an affront to the US Constitution.

Those who live in the USA may wish to re-read its Bill of Rights which came into effect as Constitutional Amendments on December 15, 1791.

Now here is the 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.

Let me state that when it comes to keeping the Sabbath, paying for abortion, opposing the LGBTQ agenda, speaking out on moral issues, the many of the courts in the USA have been making rules that have prohibited the free exercise of religion. The time will come when there is a famine of the word (watch also Famine of the Word?).

The COVID restrictions on churches demonstrated that many government leaders are unwilling to support what the US Constitution says in order to further their objectives.

Americans have been losing their religious rights in the USA this century. And while they SOMETIMES win in court, the fact that many have needed to go in the first place is an affront to the Constitution of the United States.

Furthermore, most politicians in Washington, D.C., seem to have little problem not complying with the intent of the US Constitution.

Notice something related to Hillary Clinton said last year:

SEPTEMBER 16, 2024

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Monday told MSNBC host Rachel Maddow that Americans “engaged” in “propaganda,” similar to the type that led to the Russians “boosting Trump” in 2016, should face criminal prosecution. …

CLINTON: … We know from what even Republicans have said, the chairs of the Intelligence Committee and the Foreign Affairs Committee and other Republicans who are currently in office have said that Republicans go to the floor of the Congress and they parrot Russian talking points.

So, I think it’s important to indict the Russians, just as Mueller indicted a lot of Russians who were engaged in direct election interference and boosting Trump back in 2016. But I also think there are Americans who are engaged in this kind of propaganda.

And whether they should be civilly or even in some cases criminally charged is something that would be a better deterrence, https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2024/09/16/hillary_clinton_americans_engaged_in_propaganda_should_be_criminally_charged_would_be_a_better_deterrence.html

So, if Hillary Clinton does not agree with certain positions, she wants to be able to threaten criminal actions. That is not what the Constitution of the USA supports–yet that type of view is getting more accepted in the USA.

People, such as Edward Snowden despite whatever flaws he may have, have pointed out some of how the USA has violated other portions of the Bill of Rights, such as the 4th-6th amendment rights. So, he has been in hiding for that. Here is what those amendments were supposed to protect (some of which have been mishandled related to him personally by the US government):

• Fourth Amendment – Protection from unreasonable search and seizure.

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

• Fifth Amendment – due process, double jeopardy, self-incrimination, eminent domain.

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

• Sixth Amendment – Trial by jury and rights of the accused; Confrontation Clause, speedy trial, public trial, right to counsel

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.

The Bush Administration got Congress to approve the so-called ‘Patriot Act’ and establish the Homeland Security Administration and other offices. The Obama Administration then added other offices as well. Donald Trump’s Administration was supportive of increased governmental surveillance and seems to be against the intent of the fourth amendment (e.g. Facts about George Orwell’s ‘nineteen eighty-four’ and now official asset forfeiture).

Back in 2017, former US Congressman Ron Paul wrote the following about this:

Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently ordered the Justice Department to increase the use of civil asset forfeiture, thus once again endorsing an unconstitutional, authoritarian, and increasingly unpopular policy.

Civil asset forfeiture, which should be called civil asset theft, is the practice of seizing property believed to be involved in a crime. The government keeps the property even if it never convicts, or even charges, the owner of the property.

Police can even use civil asset theft to steal from people whose property was used in criminal activity without the owners’ knowledge. Some have even lost their homes because a renter or houseguest was dealing drugs on the premises behind the owners’ backs.

Civil asset theft is a multi-billion dollar a year moneymaker for all levels of government. Police and prosecutors receive more than their “fair share” of the loot. According to a 2016 study by the Institute for Justice, 43 states allow police and prosecutors to keep at least half of the loot they got from civil asset theft.

Obviously, this gives police an incentive to aggressively use civil asset theft, even against those who are not even tangentially involved in a crime. http://www.ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/featured-articles/2017/august/07/jeff-sessions-endorses-theft/

Yes, what is happening is not supposed to–at least the way I and Ron Paul read the US Constitution.

Furthermore, citizens of the USA are not truly free and are spied upon all the time by its government. A movie came out about Edward Snowden which pointed that out based upon what has happened with him before (The Snowden Leaks are Leading to the Destruction of the USA).

The reality is the USA does not truly abide by its Constitution anymore. And its hypocrisy and tactics are being noticed by others (see also Isaiah 10:5-12, KJV), and the coming Beast will follow further along the espionage path that the government of the USA has been laying out (cf. Revelation 13:16-18).

There are many negative ramifications to what the USA has been doing.

Jesus warned, “because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold” (Matthew 24:12).

With that in mind, consider the following:

The America We Grew Up In Is Gone, It Isn’t Coming Back …

There are parts of America, and those portions are increasing, that to compare them to third world countries would be an insult to third world countries.

This cannot be overstated, or said too often, because too many Americans refuse to see it and acknowledge it until it is their city, their state and they are the victims. Once that happens the complaints begin, asking “why weren’t we warned?,” in a whiny little voice while those of us that have been reporting it and basically screaming warnings from the rooftops, just shake our heads in disgust.

How many new videos of drugged out “zombies” sprawled out on sidewalks, or shooting up drugs outside in public, need to be taken and published online, for Americans to wake up? …

The Constitution: Salon, a website as liberal as liberal gets headlined a piece in 2020 “The U.S. Constitution is hopelessly outdated. It’s time to re-envision it.”

The electoral crisis, the decline of trust in government, and gross income inequality in the United States may seem like separate issues. But they have a surprising, common origin: the US Constitution, or more accurately, its shortcomings. Indeed, the depth of multiple crises in our nation in 2020 — if not their existence entirely — are all rooted in our flawed Constitution and the judicial decisions that it has facilitated.

 That is a mindset we have seen with increasing frequency. Claims that all the ills of our country stem from the U.S. constitution. Mainly that is because liberals truly despise everything our country stands for. …

The America we knew growing up, the one where children could walk to the store alone, or down the street without seeing drug deals on corners, drug addicts laying on sidewalks, or sticking needles into their arms, is gone.

It isn’t coming back because the ramifications of the liberal policies are being hidden by the national media. …

The best we can hope for now is to keep this type of lawlessness out of the cities we live in by voting accordingly. 09/14/23 https://allnewspipeline.com/America_We_Grew_Up_In_Is_Gone.php

The best thing to hope for is the return of Jesus and the establishment of the millennial kingdom of God. As well as to pray for that (Matthew 6:33) and for our leaders (1 Timothy 2:1-3), while striving to live as a Philadelphian Christian.

As far as the USA goes, it needs national repentance, which at this stage, does not look likely.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

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.
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.
The Snowden Leaks are Leading to the Destruction of the USA Can what happened with the leaks of what the NSA has done help the USA to be taken over? What does the Bible teach that seems to be related to this? Here is a related YouTube video titled Are the Snowden NSA leaks leading to the destruction of the USA?
Should a Christian Vote? This article gives some of the Biblical rationale on this subject. Would Jesus vote for president/prime minister? Is voting in the Bible? This is a subject Christians need to understand. A video of related interest is available titled: Should Christians Vote? Another video is Biden, Trump, and the Bible.
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; here is a message in Spanish: Me Está Llamando Dios Hoy? 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.
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.
There is a Place of Safety for the Philadelphians. Why it May Be Petra This article discusses a biblical ‘place of safety’ and includes quotes from the Bible and Herbert W. Armstrong on this subject–thus, there is a biblically supported alternative to the rapture theory. There is also a video on the subject: Might Petra be the Place of Safety?
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. It is available in hundreds of languages at ccog.org. Here are links to four kingdom-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.

UnSplash photo

COGwriter

Charlie Kirk, who was politically assassinated last week, was a major advocate of freedom of speech and dialogue.

But since his murder, there have been calls from many government officials encouraging punishment for people who say, write, and/or post negative things about him or who have otherwise been pleased he is dead.

Many on “the right” have encouraged and applauded this, while many on “the left” are raising concerns. Here are some reports:

Pam Bondi Defends ‘Hate Speech’ Crackdown After MAGA Backlash

September 16, 2025

Attorney General Pam Bondi defended her move to crack down on “hate speech” in the United States after the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, saying threats of violence are federal crimes under the U.S. Constitution.

Bondi has faced a backlash over free speech concerns from MAGA voices online since vowing to take action, who see it as an attempt to stamp out protected speech under the First Amendment.

There has been a hunt for retribution in the aftermath of Kirk’s killing, with conservatives highlighting individuals who have celebrated his death and alerting their employers. Others have surfaced examples of individuals making threats of political violence. …

“For far too long, we’ve watched the radical left normalize threats, call for assassinations, and cheer on political violence. That era is over.”

Bondi pointed to the U.S. Constitution—specifically 18 U.S.C. § 875(c), 18 U.S.C. § 876, and 18 U.S.C. § 115—saying it directly outlaws threats of violence. …

Kirk had himself commented on the notion of “hate speech” in a May 2024 post on social media.

“Hate speech does not exist legally in America. There’s ugly speech. There’s gross speech. There’s evil speech,” Kirk wrote. “And ALL of it is protected by the First Amendment. Keep America free.” https://www.newsweek.com/bondi-charlie-kirk-hate-speech-maga-2130526

Charlie Kirk’s Assassination Has Taken Us Down a Dark, Orwellian Path

September 15, 2025 https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a66109768/charlie-kirk-assassination-thought-crimes/

Republicans celebrate Kirk as free speech champion, demand critics be fired

September 16, 2025

In the wake of the senseless murder of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, his political admirers are venerating him as a principled champion of free speech. Ironically, some of the same people are participating in an organized campaign demanding that anyone with a different view of Kirk’s political legacy be fired. This effort has been extremely successful. Dozens of people have been fired for expressing opinions about Kirk that others deem unacceptable. …

On Monday, Vice President JD Vance, who previously praised Kirk for his “willingness to speak openly and debate ideas,” encouraged Americans to “call the employer” of anyone expressing negative opinions about Kirk’s legacy.

Mobs of people, at the direction of elected officials like Vance and a constellation of right-wing influencers, are calling the employers of people who say the wrong thing about Kirk online. https://popular.info/p/republicans-celebrate-kirk-as-free

September 16, 2025

The dangers and virtues of free speech have gained new relevance after the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk. He has been praised in death by those on the right and beyond as an exemplar of free speech — debating his ideological foes on college campuses and speaking his mind on his podcast. But he has also been held up as an enemy of free speech by his critics — having set up a “watchlist” online of college professors deemed insufficiently deferential to conservatives, explicitly encouraging visitors to intimidate and report them, and having frequently denigrated the democratic value and participation of minorities, women, and his political opponents. Now, politicians, businesses, and media organizations are firing and threatening people who have criticized Kirk after his death — in other words, punishing them for their speech. https://www.vox.com/politics/461597/free-speech-charlie-kirk-death-first-amendment-incitement-misinformation

Various ones on “the left” have long called for the censorship of what they call “hate speech.” They are now in an uproar when some of their statements are considered to be “hate speech” by the current Trump Administration and various others.

And now more on “the right” are calling for what seems to be restrictions on freedom of speech.

The Bible warns that “an hypocritical nation” will be punished (Isaiah 10:6, KJV)–and yes that point to the USA (see also our free eBook: Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America?).

Both the left and the right are being a bit hypocritical here, but the reality is that encouraging people to turn against freedom of speech, and to turn others into the government and/or employer for potential punishment.

Though a bit less now on Twitter, Facebook, Google, Apple, and many other big tech firms share similar political and censorship views–and it is really about suppressing views that they do not like.

I am neither a Republican nor Democrat, but thought people may wish to be reminded me of a poem from the last century by Martin Niemöller:

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.

Yes, there are moves from the left and from the right against freedom of speech and freedom of the press.

In the USA, at least, that is not supposed to happen. Here is the first amendment to its Constitution:

• 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.

Yet, when it comes to keeping the Sabbath, paying for abortion, opposing the LGBTQ agenda, speaking out on moral issues, many of the courts in the USA have been making rules that have prohibited the free exercise of religion. During COVID, governmental restrictions on churches demonstrated that many government leaders are unwilling to support what the US Constitution says in order to further their objectives. Americans have been losing their religious rights in the USA this century. And while they SOMETIMES win in court, the fact that many have needed to go in the first place is an affront to the Constitution of the United States.

While I believe that much of the dissent against Charlie Kirk has been inappropriate and uncalled for, hassling those who do that, by the US federal government, will tend to encourage this as a precedent in the future.

The biblical fact is that more censorship and banning online will happen.

And yes, it will affect you if you live into the time of the Great Tribulation (and, at least to a degree, even if you do not).

If this can happen in the USA–a land that supposedly has freedom of speech enshrined for centuries in its Constitution, what about elsewhere?

Well, the Bible clearly shows that a European totalitarian dictator will rise up with Vatican concurrence (Revelation chapters 13 & 17) after a pandemic (watch Fourth Horseman, COVID, and the Rise of the Beast of Revelation) and a reorganization (Revelation 17:12-13)–a reorganization that will have press support. Dissent will not be tolerated (cf. Revelation 13:15-18).

Was loss of freedom of free speech and of the press prophesied?

Back in 1981, the old Worldwide Church of God correctly pointed out that it was:

THE MOST important work in the world cannot be done without freedom of the press!

What is that work?

It is the work of announcing that God will restore His Government to the whole earth! But before the Government of God is restored, it must first be announced! The good news of that announcement — the Gospel of the Kingdom of God — must be preached (Matthew 24:14) to all nations (Matthew 28:19). And the nations must choose whether they will want it or resist it.

In this day, God has made the MASS media available to accomplish His work. But reaching a mass audience with the good news of God’s soon-coming Government requires the freedom to PUBLISH. Notice Mark 13:10: “And the gospel must first be published among all nations.”

Further, God lays a special duty on his messenger and Church to publicly disseminate certain warnings to certain nations. Ezekiel 33:1-7 describes God’s charge upon the watchman. When the watchman sees “the sword” come upon the land — a prophetic symbol of military devastation — he must “blow the trumpet” or God will hold him personally responsible.

This duty requires that a message warning about some very unpleasant events be published as far and as wide as possible to the latter-day descendants of ancient nations.

Similarly, when God charged the prophet Jeremiah with a message, he also had an affirmative duty from God to spread it to as wide an audience as possible. Jeremiah was given a message so important he could hardly contain himself: “But his [God’s] word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones…” (Jeremiah 20:9).

So God’s servants really have no choice as to exercising the right to publish their message freely. Their message is not for their personal benefit — but to the whole world!

Governmental Reaction

And yet while the Bible places a duty on God’s servants, it also warns that this world — even now and in the future — will not always allow the freedom to publish.

In the past a government’s excuse for persecution was that God’s message IS TOO DISTURBING to be allowed to circulate freely.

In the Old Testament, Elijah, for example, was hauled before King Ahab for the ancient equivalent of the crime of disturbing the peace: “Ahab said unto him [Elijah], Art thou he that troubleth Israel?” (I Kings 18:17).
Elijah’s defense was that he wasn’t troubling Israel, only bringing some very distressing news from God to Ahab’s government (verse 18).

Likewise, the religious and political authorities of Amos’ day tried to subject him to “prior restraint” — from speaking his message at all — because the message he brought from God was TOO CONTROVERSIAL!

“Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words…. Also Amaziah said unto Amos… prophesy not again any more at Bethel” (Amos 7:10, 12-13). Amaziah tried to deny Amos a forum for God’s message in ancient Israel. Amos’ message was too upsetting to the political and religious establishments!

The prophet Jeremiah was even subjected to an ancient form of book burning. God commanded Jeremiah to write down “all the words that I [God] have spoken unto thee against Israel, and against Judah, and against all the nations…” (Jeremiah 36:2).

Jeremiah put the words on a roll. Eventually, however, possession of the roll came to one of the king’s top aides, who read it to the king (verse 21). After reading “three or four leaves” of the scroll, the aide, ever eager to please a now distraught king, threw the roll into the fireplace (verse 23). Afterwards, the king attempted, unsuccessfully, to seize Jeremiah for putting God’s word to writing.

Earlier, Jeremiah had already endured actual imprisonment for the content of his spoken message (Jeremiah 20:2).

In the New Testament, the authorities tried to prevent the apostles from preaching the Gospel. The apostles were forcibly brought before the council. The high priest asked them: “Did not we straightly command you that you should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine…” (Acts 5:28).

In other words, the civil and religious authorities were seeking to regulate the content of their message!

In response, the apostle Peter declared the firm rule that “we ought to obey God rather than men” (verse 29). Since Peter and company had a God-ordained duty to say what they were saying, the commands of the civil government of Jerusalem were in direct conflict with God’s.

For the future, the Bible prophecy reveals that the time will come when most of this world’s nations will be led by Satan to abolish freedom of the press — and all related freedoms. Why? To prevent any publishing of God’s message from reaching any substantial number of people!

“Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord: and they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it” (Amos 8:11-12).

Elsewhere the Bible reveals how this prophesied press clampdown will take place. Revelation 13 describes a great religious-civil power that will arise in the place of the old Roman Empire. This prophesied power will not allow free speech, a free press or the free exercise of any religion — except the official religion of the state.

Why Free Press Important

The Gospel is the good news of a government that will REPLACE the governments of this world. Yet replace is a mild word! The prophet Daniel flatly declares that the Government of God will “break in pieces and consume” the nations of this world that resist Him (Daniel 2:44).

The Gospel of the Kingdom of God proclaims that there is a higher power than human government, another and divine government to whom men, whether they know it or not, ultimately owe allegiance. For this reason early Christians were accused of doing “contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus” (Acts 17:7).

No wonder the governments of this world have historically sought to suppress the publishing of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God — for it is ultimately the news of their overthrow by Christ at His return!

Some have tried to justify the suppression of press freedom on the grounds that the free circulation of false ideas would create havoc for human government.”Lying opinions, than which no mental plague is greater,” wrote Pope Leo XIII, “and vices which corrupt the heart and moral life, should be diligently repressed by public authority, lest they insidiously work the ruin of the state.”

The key error is the failure to see the difference between the government of man and the government of God. God does not reveal the whole of His spiritual truth to society at large — only to those He calls (see Romans 8:30).

Man, cut off from God, cannot be trusted to pass judgment on whether God’s truth is, in fact, “true.” The Bible reveals that Satan has deceived “the whole world” (Revelation 12:9).

Christ said his true church would be a little flock, not a majority of the political community (Luke 12:32). Thus, no human government can ever be really certain that it can tell a “lying opinion” from a true one.

Because men’s minds are limited, men must have the truth revealed to them by God. When God doesn’t reveal it, as He doesn’t to most of society, the safest course open to humans is the greatest possible circulation of ideas. The Bible supports this idea when it declares: “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the MULTITUDE of counselors there is safety” (Proverbs 11:14).

Even if false ideas circulate under freedom of the press, at least God’s Word will also be able to go out unhindered.

Free societies pay a very high price for freedom of the press — pornography circulates freely because human courts say they can’t really tell the difference between pornography and other kinds of writing or expression. This is a very high price — but at least it does insure the free circulation of God’s truth, as well as other religious ideas.

If you grant human government the authority to censor what is printed or spoken, you allow the government to stop any message it doesn’t approve of.

Government tried to suppress Elijah, Amos and Jeremiah; it is prophesied to suppress God’s true Gospel again in the future. The power to censor bad writing easily becomes the power to suppress good writing.

There is a reason why God began, and based, his end-time work in the country on earth where freedom of the press is greatest — and why God’s Church has grown the most, as a rule, in countries where press freedom is substantial. Since the spreading of God’s Word is the most important activity on earth — the preservation of freedom of the press is one of the most awesome responsibilities God lays on human government. (Calkins J. FREE PRESS IN THE BIBLE? Was It Prophesied? Plain Truth. May 1981)

The Philadelphia portion of the Church of God did begin in the USA and its most faithful remnant (see Why is there a Philadelphian remnant of the true Christian Church of God?), the Continuing Church of God, is still based out of the USA and we are proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and other biblical truths.

Yet now, in the USA as well as out of it, we are seeing more and more calls for speech restrictions, retaliations, and censorship.

More is coming. The prophet Amos was inspired to record the following:

(Book cover)

After becoming the US Health and Human Services Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., said he would be looking into Big Pharma:

RFK Jr. takes on Big Pharma: Can the Make America Healthy Again Commission save our kids from psychiatric overmedication?

February 25, 2025

In a bold move that has sent shockwaves through the medical and pharmaceutical industries, President Donald Trump has appointed Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to chair the newly formed Make America Healthy Again Commission. Among its primary targets: the skyrocketing use of psychiatric medications in children and adolescents. The commission will scrutinize the “prevalence of and threat posed by the prescription of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, stimulants and weight-loss drugs” to young Americans.

Kennedy, a vocal critic of SSRIs and other psychiatric drugs, has long argued that these medications are overprescribed and underregulated, often causing more harm than good. His appointment has reignited a fierce debate over the role of mental health medications in modern society — and whether we are sacrificing the well-being of our youth on the altar of Big Pharma profits.

The rise of the “medicated generation”

The statistics are staggering. Between 2016 and 2022, antidepressant prescriptions for Americans aged 12 to 25 increased by 66%. Stimulants like Adderall, often prescribed for ADHD, have become a staple in classrooms across the country. Meanwhile, antipsychotics and mood stabilizers, once reserved for severe psychiatric conditions, are now routinely prescribed to children as young as six.

This trend is not without consequences. Critics argue that the overdiagnosis and overmedication of young people have created a generation of “mental patients,” where normal emotional struggles are pathologized and treated with powerful drugs. As Kennedy himself has noted, “Members of my family had a much worse time getting off of SSRIs than they have getting off of heroin.”

The mainstream medical establishment, however, has pushed back. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) insists that these medications are “very effective” and are prescribed “carefully” after other treatments, such as talk therapy, have been tried. But as the number of psychiatric diagnoses continues to climb — the APA’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) now lists over 300 mental illnesses, up from just 60 in the 1960s — many are questioning whether we are medicalizing normal human behavior.  …

At the heart of this issue lies the influence of Big Pharma. Critics argue that the pharmaceutical industry has a vested interest in expanding the market for psychiatric drugs, particularly among children and adolescents. …

Dr. Frances has warned, “Bogus mental illnesses have turned millions of healthy Americans into ‘mental patients.'” The question now is whether Kennedy and his commission can succeed in reversing this trend—or whether the medicated generation will continue to grow. https://www.naturalnews.com/2025-02-25-can-maha-save-kids-from-psychiatric-overmedication.html

The products from Big Pharma are almost always substances that are foreign to the human body. They have never been tested enough in order to understand all the possible negative side-effects that they may (and do) produce.

Big Pharma does NOT practice “first do no harm,” but basically its approach is to see how much will the harm cost, and then calculate if it is still profitable to sell each drug with its the associated harms.

It is my clinical experience that there are normally better and more natural approaches to deal with the issues that many medications, such as psych drugs, are prescribed for.

However, since Big Pharma funds a lot of political campaigns, much of the medical profession, mainstream news outlets (see Big Pharma the big television news sponsor–but do they really improve health?), etc., it has been effective in censoring a lot of scientific debate over many of its products.

But now, in the USA at least, more information about the harms of drugs is something that its government is trying to get better publicized:

Trump Orders HHS, FDA to Enforce Stricter Rules on Pharma Ads

September 11, 2025

President Donald Trump is getting directly involved in the push against direct-to-consumer prescription drug advertising, which could signal large-scale changes to one of radio’s fastest-growing ad categories, stopping just short of a total ban on the vertical.

On Tuesday, President Trump signed a memorandum directing federal agencies to tighten enforcement of drug advertising rules.

The order instructs Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary to require fuller disclosure of risks and to ensure ads are not misleading. While not a full-on ban of pharma ads, the required length of these reads would make most of the industry’s advertisements entirely unfeasible.

Around 100 cease-and-desist letters and thousands of warning notices have reportedly been issued to pharmaceutical companies and online pharmacies. The White House also plans to scrutinize influencers and social media platforms for noncompliant promotions, saying the initiative will use existing FDA authority rather than seek new legislation. https://radioink.com/2025/09/11/trump-orders-hhs-fda-to-enforce-stricter-rules-on-pharma-ads/

‘A Form of Bribery’: FDA, HHS Crack Down on Misleading Drug Ads

September 10, 2025

Pharmaceutical companies will be required to provide full safety disclosures in direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertisements of their products, according to a new policy HHS and the FDA announced Tuesday.

DTC advertisements “can mislead the public about the risks and benefits” and “encourage medications over lifestyle changes,” according to a memorandum by President Donald Trump outlining the policy.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will send nearly 100 “enforcement action letters” and thousands of warning letters to pharmaceutical companies and drug retailers who have “increasingly been promoting drugs with no mention of side effects at all,” FDA Commissioner Marty Makary said in a post on X.

Today we’re taking long-overdue action to rein in pharmaceutical ads.

For too long, misleading ads have distorted the doctor-patient relationship and driven costly, inappropriate care. Our actions will encompass online pharmacies promoting drugs with no mention of side effects,… pic.twitter.com/xIZjJIQ3dt

— Dr. Marty Makary (@DrMakaryFDA) September 9, 2025

The policy also addresses online pharmacies that promote drugs with “no mention of side effects, and paid social media influencers advertising drugs,” Makary wrote.

Administration officials told ABC News that drugmakers often market their products on social media using influencers who are not clearly identified as paid spokespeople.

Mary Holland, CEO of Children’s Health Defense, called the new policy “a major victory” that will “dramatically increase the price of pharma advertising, discourage uptake because of side effects and make Big Pharma‘s lawyers stay up at night worrying that they may not have adequately disclosed risks.”

“This will greatly contribute to making America healthy again because it will start to dismantle Pharma’s grip on Big Media,” Holland said.

‘Pharmaceutical ads hooked this country on prescription drugs’

In announcing the new policy, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said the ads have “distorted physician prescribing habits and patient decisions.”

The advertisements use positive emotional appeals to encourage people to get those medications, HHS said. …

According to HHS:

• Patients who consulted with their physician about a DTC-advertised drug were about 17 times more likely to receive a prescription than those who didn’t — the result of persuasive marketing techniques.
• 91% of direct-to-consumer drug ad claims featured social approval as a result of product use and 94% employed positive emotional appeals.
• Prescription drug use among Americans increased from 39% (1988-1994) to 49.9% (2017-2020) in the last 30 years.

Following the FDA’s loosening of its regulations in 1997, the agency’s enforcement actions also decreased. “Enforcement letters plummeted from over 130 annually in the late 1990s to just three in 2023,” according to the fact sheet.

HHS said enforcement actions will intensify, with the issuing of “dozens of enforcement letters related to false and misleading advertising, which makes the drug at issue misbranded.” https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/form-of-bribery-fda-hhs-crack-down-misleading-drug-ads/

Those in the USA use a lot of medications. The influence of pharmaceutical advertisements has not only impacted the public, but much of the mainstream media, which receives a lot of advertising revenue from Big Pharma.

The Apostle Paul warned:

10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, (1 Timothy 6:10)

Yes, the vaccine/pharmaceutical industry and the medical profession do have a love of money and yes, that, and not always real science, along with pride and arrogance, influences their positions.

The USA is highly, and unnecessarily in my view, over medicated.

As far as the prevalence of drugs in the USA, here is something from the US Centers for Disease Control’s website:

• Percent of people using at least one prescription drug in the past 30 days: 49.9% (2017-March 2020)
• Percent of people using three or more prescription drugs in the past 30 days: 24.7% (2017-March 2020)
• Percent of persons using five or more prescription drugs in the past 30 days: 13.5% (2017-March 2020) …
• Number of drugs provided or prescribed: 1.0 billion
• Percent of visits involving drug therapy: 71.9% …

Hospital emergency department visits

• Number of drugs given or prescribed: 361.3 million
• Percent of visits involving drug therapy: 76.2%

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/drug-use-therapeutic.htm accessed 02/25/25

Consider also the following:

Medicine Use

• A total of 6.3 billion prescriptions were dispensed in 2020 with growth slowing to 1.7% after adjusting for the increased use of 90-day prescriptions for chronic therapies.

Medicine Spending and growth drivers

• U.S. medicine spending increased 0.8% on a net price basis to $359 billion, which reflects an increasing gap between list or invoice prices and manufacturer net revenues.
• Real net per capita spending – adjusting for net prices, population, and economic growth – declined in 2020 to $1,085 and has increased only $56 since 2010.  • Specialty medicines now account for 53% of spending, up from 27% in 2010 and driven by growth in autoimmune and oncology therapies.   accessed 06/26/22 https://www.iqvia.com/insights/the-iqvia-institute/reports/the-use-of-medicines-in-the-us

If it seems like about half the country is on drugs, that is because it is actually true. According to a new survey from the National Center for Health Statistics, almost half of all Americans have taken a pharmaceutical drug within the past 30 days, and that officially makes us “the most medicated country in the world”. And needless to say, those dealing these drugs are becoming exceedingly wealthy at our expense. ..  antidepressants are just one part of the problem. For example, opioids are some of the most addictive drugs on the entire planet, and their overuse has destroyed countless lives all across America. 05/08/19 http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/the-most-medicated-country-in-the-world-46-of-americans-have-taken-a-pharmaceutical-drug-within-the-last-30-days

It is with deep sorrow that Buckingham Palace announces the death of Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Kent.

Her Royal Highness passed away peacefully last night at Kensington Palace, surrounded by her family.

The King and Queen and all Members of The Royal Family join The Duke… pic.twitter.com/OsCeb3pQ7d

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) September 5, 2025

COGwriter

The BBC reported the following:

The Duchess of Kent dies aged 92

5 September 2025

The Duchess of Kent has died at the age of 92, Buckingham Palace has announced with “deep sorrow”.

She “passed away peacefully last night at Kensington Palace, surrounded by her family”, a statement said on Friday, with flags on royal residences, including Buckingham Palace, now lowered to half mast.

The duchess, Katharine, was the oldest member of the Royal Family, married to Prince Edward, the Duke of Kent, a first cousin of the late Queen Elizabeth II. …

King Charles, who is in Balmoral in Scotland, was informed of her death late on Thursday, and there will be a period of royal mourning until the duchess’s funeral, with dark clothes and troops on public duties wearing black armbands.

“The King and Queen and all members of the Royal Family join the Duke of Kent, his children and grandchildren in mourning their loss and remembering fondly the duchess’s life-long devotion to all the organisations with which she was associated, her passion for music and her empathy for young people,” the palace’s statement said. …

Born as Katharine Worsley, from an aristocratic land-owning family in Yorkshire, the duchess became part of the Royal Family in 1961 when she married the Duke of Kent, a grandson of King George V.

Princess Anne was among the bridesmaids at their wedding in York Minster, with the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles in the congregation.

The duchess took on a regular round of royal duties, but throughout her life she also carved out an individual path.

She became a Catholic in 1994, the first royal to convert to Catholicism for more than 300 years, describing it as “a long-pondered personal decision”.

The duchess was received into the Catholic church by the then Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Basil Hume. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy5v4lgkqpo

I find the fact that the Duchess of Kent became Roman Catholic of interest. While the British monarchs have held the titled ‘defender of the faith,’ King Charles III modified that to be the ‘defender of the faiths.’ I do believe that the time will come when a member of the British Royal family will attempt to make some type of deal with the Vatican.

That said, a new book related to the British Royal Family is to be released next week.

Here are some comments from the BBC about it:

Valentine Low’s eminently readable, behind-the-scenes book about the royals has been making headlines, including how Queen Camilla fended off a sexual assault when she was a teenager.

Power and the Palace, published next week and written by the former royal correspondent for The Times, explores the tangled relationship between the royals and the world of politics. …

Government wanted showcase Coronation

It was the government, rather than the Palace, that wanted to make sure that the Coronation of King Charles III in 2023 was a well-funded spectacle.

While the Palace was wary of anything too ostentatious when people were struggling to pay their bills, the “very clear guidance” from government was there should be no cut-price ceremony and that there should be a “maximalist” approach.

In the end, the Coronation cost £72m, including £22m for policing costs. 09/03/25 https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78z84d3gdgo

Well, the coronation was a big spectacle.

Presumably, the British government wanted a maximalist approach to the coronation to promote the UK’s relevance on the world scene.

Here is something related to the royal family and the coronation from our free ebook Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America?::

British Royal Family

Are there other biblical connections between the British Royal Family and the line of King David?

Yes.

When the wife of King James II, Mary/Margaret, was made Queen Consort, the ceremony in the mid-15^th century tied her in with the wives of the Israeli patriarchs: Sarah (Abraham), Rebecca (Isaac), and Leah & Rachel (Jacob).[i]

In the early 17^th century, Stuart King James I claimed to be the King of Israel.[ii]

In 1860 and 1881, Frederick Glover wrote about the connection between the children of Israel and the British. Later, he shared information with Queen Victoria. This was then reported in a New Zealand newspaper in 1902:

FRA Glover … was led into an examination of the Royal pedigree, … he sent her Majesty a letter …

The Queen’s answer … acknowledged … that she was already in possession of the facts of which he had spoken to her concerning her ancestral line.  …

This communication … led him to believe that the facts were actually accepted as genuine by the Royal Family – as true and authentic.[iii]

Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone, was the last surviving granddaughter of Queen Victoria. Princess Alice was the main patron of the British-Israel-World Federation organization which formed in 1919. She attended the federation’s first Congress in July 1920, and remained a patron of the BIWF until her death in January 1981.[iv]

Furthermore, notice something that the then Duke of York, who later was King George VI of Great Britain from 11 December 1936 until his death on February 6, 1952, reportedly wrote in 1922:

… I am sure the British Israelite business is true. I have read a lot about it lately and everything no matter how large or small points to our being ‘the chosen race.’[v]

So, even a recent King of Great Britain believed in British-Israelism (though Ephraimites, per say, are not the chosen race—they are recipients of certain covenant blessings).

In ancient times, God had the prophet Samuel anoint David to be king with oil from Israel (1 Samuel 16:1,13). Notice now a part of the ceremony for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II back in 1953:

O Lord and heavenly Father, the exalter of the humble and the strength of thy chosen, who by anointing with Oil didst of old make and consecrate kings, priests, and prophets, to teach and govern thy people Israel: Bless and sanctify thy chosen servant ELIZABETH, who by our office and ministry is now to be anointed with this Oil, … And as Solomon was anointed king by Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet, so be thou anointed, blessed, and consecrated Queen over the Peoples, whom the Lord thy God hath given thee to rule and govern,[vi]

So, we see a tie in with governance, oil, Israel, David’s son Solomon and other biblical aspects. The ancient kings of Israel were anointed (1 Samuel 15:1; 1 Kings 1:34) with oil (1 Samuel 16:13). Scepters were long recognized in the Bible as a symbol for ruling (Genesis 49:10; Ezekiel 19:14) and one was given to the new Queen. Having all of these as part of a coronation ceremony may be more than a coincidence or simple imitation of what some saw in the Bible (some assert the basic ceremony originated with Bishop Dunstan of the 10^th century, but it is difficult to know what was done earlier in Scotland or Ireland and if he had access to any related information).

Here is some of what was said when King Charles III was anointed with oil as part of his coronation on May 6, 2023:

Be your head anointed with holy oil, as kings, priests, and prophets were anointed. And as Solomon was anointed king by Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet, so may you be anointed, blessed, and consecrated King over the peoples, whom the Lord your God has given you to rule and govern …[vii]

Let it be added that Jerusalem was reportedly mentioned at least three times in his coronation ceremony.[viii] And that is where Solomon would have been anointed king.

Furthermore, the olive oil mixture to be used to anoint King Charles III was consecrated on the Mount of Olives which is adjacent to Jerusalem, and according to Justin Welby (the Archbishop of Canterbury), “ancient kings through to the present day, monarchs have been anointed with oil from this sacred place.” [ix] While those “ancient kings” referred to may only go back to Crusader times, it is possible that some anointing oil was originally brought to Ireland by Jeremiah and, in time, others decided to replenish it with an olive oil mixture from Jerusalem.

Have any in the current Royal Family believed in British Israelism?

Well, as it turns out, a longtime colleague of mine (who asked not to have his name in this book because it could impact his relationship with the Royal Family),  told me on April 6, 2022, that decades ago, then Prince Charles privately told him that “he believed that the British royalty was part of the line of David, but would never say this in public or print” and that Charles seemed to know a lot about the British-Israelite matter.

Yet even if no one in the Royal Family believed in this, there are various reasons to tie the royal line to the Bible’s King David.

Now, at least one critic has cited a mistranslation of some scriptures in the 21^st chapter of Ezekiel as “proof” that the royal line died out in Judea and could not make it to the British Isles. Yet properly understood, the following supports the idea of the throne going away from Judea:

¹³ Because [it is] a trier {trial}, And what if it is even despising the scepter? It will not be, a declaration of Lord YHWH. …  ²⁶ Thus said Lord YHWH: Turn aside the turban, and carry away the crown, This—not this—make high the low, And make low the high. ²⁷ An overturn, overturn, overturn, I make it, Also this has not been until the coming of Him, Whose [is] the judgment, and I have given it. (Ezekiel 21:13,26-27, Literal Standard Version)

Notice that literally translated verse 26 says that the crown will be carried away—and it was—eventually to the British Isles.

This Davidic dynasty continued, but was overturned from Judea through Tea Tephi, whose descendants became kings of Ireland. It was overturned and transplanted again in Scotland. It was overturned again and moved to London, England, where this same dynasty continues today in the reign of King Charles III.

[i] Ashmole E. The entire ceremonies of the coronations of His Majesty King Charles II. and of her Majesty Queen Mary, Consort to James II: As published by those learned heralds Ashmole and Sandford. With the prayers at full length. To which is prefix’d, an introduction historical and critical; likewise an appendix, containing many curious particulars. MDCCLXI, pp. 33-35

[ii] Brackney, p. 61

[iii] Adams RN. The King’s Pedigree. Otaga Witness, September 24, 1902, p. 69

[iv] Stanley B. Christianity in the Twentieth Century, A World History. Princeton University Press, 2018, p. 24

[v] George, Duke of York. Letter, 1922. Facsimile printed in The Independent, April 6, 1996 as cited in Crawford H, Leo R. Scholarship, Sacrifice and Subjectivity: The Renaissance Bible Today. Taylor & Francis, 2021, p. 113

[vi] Church of England. The Form and Order of the Service that is to be Performed and the Ceremonies that are to be Observed in the Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in the Abbey Church of St. Peter Westminster on Tuesday the Second Day of June 1953. Eyre and Spottiswoode, 1953, pp. 12-13

[vii] The Coronation: King’s coronation order of service: Follow ceremony including hymns, prayers and readings. Sky News, May 6, 2023

[viii] Ibid.

[ix] Khalil h, Foster M. Holy oil to anoint King Charles III on his coronation, has been consecrated in Jerusalem. CNN, March 4, 2023

King Charles III is actually on the biblical throne of King David.

Here is something about that from our free online book Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America?:

The Throne of David Was to Continue

Let’s look at some prophecies related to the throne of David:

⁴⁵ … King Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the Lord forever. (1 Kings 2:45)

³ “I have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn to My servant David: ⁴ ‘Your seed I will establish forever, And build up your throne to all generations.’”(Psalm 89:3-4)

² … Hear the word of the Lord, O king of Judah, you who sit on the throne of David, you and your servants and your people who enter these gates! (Jeremiah 22:2)

¹⁷ “For thus says the Lord: ‘David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel; ¹⁸ nor shall the priests, the Levites, lack a man to offer burnt offerings before Me, to kindle grain offerings, and to sacrifice continually.’” (Jeremiah 33:17-18)

The above passages make clear that the throne of David was to last. Since scripture cannot be broken (John 10:35), then someone has to be on that throne now. Let me also state that there have been Levites ever since Jeremiah 33:17-18–the fact that they do not do their original biblical role for offerings does NOT change the fact that they still exist, which is all that scripture requires for them. It should also be noted that Young’s Literal Translation says “one” instead of “a man,” which literally allows for a woman to have the throne (the NET uses “successor” and the NLT uses “descendant”).

Furthermore, since God had Jeremiah write this during the life of the last king on the throne of David in Jerusalem (Zedekiah) this may also be suggesting that Jeremiah would be involved in the continuity of the Davidic throne.

Although some have improperly asserted that Jeremiah 33:17 does not mean that anyone actually has to be on the throne, only available to be on it, remember also the following:

¹⁰ The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people. (Genesis 49:10)

The Bible shows that scepter came to David of Judah when he became king (cf. Numbers 24:17; 2 Samuel 8:2). Some who do not accept that the British Royal family can be holding that scepter have said that, “Until Shiloh comes” means Jesus’ first coming. However, that is in error for three reasons.

The first is if that were the case, then where were the kings between Zedekiah (the last King of Judah) and Jesus? There were none.

And secondly, during His first coming, Jesus said His Kingdom was future (John 18:36), so He did not assume the throne then. Critics of what is known as British-Israelism do not seem to realize that and they wrongly rationalize away many scriptures. Jesus will sit on the throne of David in millennial the Kingdom of God.

And thirdly, note that Genesis 49:10 has to be a reference to the second coming of Jesus, as we did not see the obedience of the people given to Him during the first coming. Hence, biblically, there had to have been a royal succession from Judah’s line after Zedekiah until Jesus’ return.

Consider that through the prophet Nathan, God made a remarkable promise to King David:

¹² “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.  ¹³ He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. … ¹⁵ But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. ¹⁶ And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever. (2 Samuel 7:12-13, 15-16)

The throne was to be established forever—and it has been! And this is the throne Jesus will return to.

Scripture is plainly teaching that someone has had to have been on that throne since the time of the Zedekiah (a contemporary of Jeremiah), who was the last king of Judah in the Holy Land until Jesus returns to set up the millennial kingdom.

Since someone had to fill the regal role, we can see through historical records and legends that the royalty in the British Isles fits this.

Now, some have pointed to Jeremiah 22:28-30 as proof that, because God said that Coniah (also called Jeconiah) would not have son to be on the throne of David as proof that the line would not continue, that overlooks the fact that the line continued through Coniah’s brother Zedekiah (1 Chronicles 3:16).

Through the prophet Nathan, God made a remarkable promise to King David:

¹² “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.  ¹³ He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. … ¹⁵ But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. ¹⁶ And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever. (2 Samuel 7:12-13, 15-16)

The throne was to be established forever—and it has been! This is the throne Jesus will return to.

The idea that “Christ upon His return, will take over David’s throne” was believed by those who held to many Church of God doctrines in Transylvania during the late Middle Ages.[i]; see also Die Sabbatharier in Siebenburgen.[ii]

The idea that Jesus would return to the throne of David is NOT a 19^th, 20^th, or 21^st century invention.

This ‘throne of David’ doctrine is also taught in the New Testament:

³¹ … Jesus . ³² He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. (Luke 1:31-32)

²⁸ So Jesus said to them, “Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” (Matthew 19:28)

Notice that these are still future prophecies. Jesus has been appointed “heir of all things” (Hebrews 1:2). Jesus is not now on the throne of David and He will not be until the coming millennial Kingdom of God (cf. Acts 2:29-30; Revelation 11:15, 20:4).

Therefore, until Jesus returns, someone needs to be on the throne—and the British Royal Family has an occupant to this day.

The New Testament also teaches:

⁵ … Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed … (Revelation 5:5)

Note that even in the last book of the Bible, Jesus is again tied in with David and is prophesied to prevail. Jesus will gain the throne of David (Luke 1:32).

[i] Marx G. The Beliefs and Practices of the Church of God in Transylvania During the Middle Ages, 1588-1623

[ii] (The Sabbatarians in Transylvania) Ihre Geschichte, Literatur und Dogmatic (their story, literature and doctrines) ein Beitrag zur Religions und Kulturgeshichte der Juengsten Drei Jahrhunderte (a contribution to the religious and cultural history of the last three centuries) von (by) Dr. Samuel Kohn, printed in Leipzig, Germany in 1894

Brain scan images (PublicDomainPictures)

COGwriter

Some scientists believe they have found a protein that ages the brain:

Blocking This One Protein Restores Aging Brains

August 23, 2025

Researchers at UC San Francisco have uncovered a surprising culprit in brain aging: a protein called FTL1.

In aging mice, too much of this protein weakened memory and disrupted neural connections. But when scientists blocked FTL1, the mice’s brains regained youthful function, and their memory tests dramatically improved.

Aging Hits the Hippocampus Hard

Aging takes a heavy toll on the hippocampus, the part of the brain that drives learning and memory. …

Mimicking Old Age in Young Brains

Older mice showed higher levels of FTL1, fewer connections between hippocampal neurons, and weaker memory performance. When researchers artificially boosted FTL1 in young mice, their brains and behavior quickly started to resemble those of much older animals.

In cell culture experiments, neurons engineered to produce large amounts of FTL1 developed abnormally. Instead of growing complex, branching neurites, they formed only simple, single-armed extensions.

Reversing Memory Decline by Lowering FTL1

When scientists reduced FTL1 in the hippocampus of aged mice, the results flipped. Their neurons made more connections, and the animals significantly improved on memory tests.

“It is truly a reversal of impairments,” said Saul Villeda, PhD, associate director of the UCSF Bakar Aging Research Institute and senior author of the paper, which appears in Nature Aging on August 19. “It’s much more than merely delaying or preventing symptoms.” https://scitechdaily.com/blocking-this-one-protein-restores-aging-brains/

It is one thing to isolate and experiment with mice. It is another to come up with a safe procedure for humans.

That said, other research shows that there are things you can do to improve brain health.

Notice the following:

Food for thought: Researchers weigh in on the best diet for a healthy and active brain

The brain gets slower and smaller as we age.

August 20, 2025

The key to a healthy and active brain in later life? What you put on your plate.

As we age, our brains age with us. The process starts in the 30s and 40s, affecting areas responsible for learning and memory.

This can cause older adults to have a shortened attention span and difficulty remembering names or words. Brain cells also start to produce a compound that can be a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, according to Columbia University.

However, nutrients found in certain foods have been shown to slow this process, and eating one diet in particular has excellent brain benefits.

“The positive effect the Mediterranean diet has on brain health is increasingly recognized,” dietitian Nichola Ludlam-Raine told Healthline. “It’s supported by a growing body of evidence linking its nutrient profile to cognitive function and neuro-protection.” …

The Mediterranean diet is packed with anti-inflammatory foods, such as nuts, olives, and tomatoes. It emphasizes plants and healthy fats, including extra virgin olive oil.

Inflammation in healthy tissues is tied to chronic disease, and has also been linked to Alzheimer’s in multiple studies over the past decade. …

Fish is a key part of the diet with salmon and sardines rich in omega-3 fatty acids. These healthy fats have been found to reduce levels of the damaging protein linked to Alzheimer’s disease, according to Harvard Medical School. …

Berries also delay memory decline, according to a study at Harvard’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital. A high intake — about 7.5 cups of a month — is the magic number.

Eating just one serving of leafy green vegetables per day also has memory-preserving benefits, researchers from Chicago’s Rush University found. …

Overly sugary, salty, processed, and fatty foods, such as ice cream, hot dogs, and pizza can increase inflammation throughout the body. https://www.the-independent.com/life-style/health-and-families/brain-food-diet-nutrition-b2810403.html

Real foods and real food nutrients are helpful for brain health. I also had a paper published decades ago related to that– Can Cognitive Deterioration Associated with Down Syndrome be Reduced?

I also like bovine brain supplements for brain health.

That said, exercise is also good for your brain:

Exercise benefits muscles and individual neurons

November 14, 2024

MIT engineers have found that exercise not only benefits muscles but also promotes the growth of individual neurons. When muscles contract during exercise, they release myokines—biochemical signals that stimulate neurons to grow four times farther than those not exposed to these signals. Additionally, neurons respond to the physical impact of exercise, such as being stretched and pulled during movement, which also promotes growth. https://www.inceptivemind.com/blurb/exercise-benefits-muscles-individual-neurons/

When muscles work out, they help neurons to grow, a new study shows

There’s no doubt that exercise does a body good. Regular activity not only strengthens muscles but can bolster our bones, blood vessels, and immune system.

Now, MIT engineers have found that exercise can also have benefits at the level of individual neurons. …

Surprisingly, the researchers also found that neurons respond not only to the biochemical signals of exercise but also to its physical impacts. The team observed that when neurons are repeatedly pulled back and forth, similarly to how muscles contract and expand during exercise, the neurons grow just as much as when they are exposed to a muscle’s myokines. …

Now that the group has shown that exercising muscle can promote nerve growth at the cellular level, they plan to study how targeted muscle stimulation can be used to grow and heal damaged nerves, and restore mobility for people who are living with a neurodegenerative disease such as ALS.

“This is just our first step toward understanding and controlling exercise as medicine,” Raman says. https://news.mit.edu/2024/when-muscles-work-out-they-help-neurons-grow-1112

This Is Your Brain on Exercise

Our bodies, including our brains, were fine-tuned for endurance activities over millennia of stalking and chasing down prey. “We’ve engineered that out of our lives now,” says Charles Hillman, a psychology professor at Northeastern University who has spent decades studying the link between exercise and cognition. The toll our relatively new sedentary lifestyle takes on our bodies is clear: For the first time in U.S. history, younger generations are expected to live shorter, unhealthier lives than their parents.

… according to Richard Maddock, a professor of psychiatry at the University of California, Davis. “There is a very consistent finding that the brain works better after exercise,” Maddock says. … Your brain becomes much more active during exercise, “perhaps more active than at any other time,” says Maddock. One way neurons communicate is with electrical pulses, and sometimes entire networks of neurons fire in unison, like a group of soccer fans chanting together at a game. These synchronized pulses are known colloquially as brain waves. Different kinds of brain waves, characterized by the number of times they oscillate in a single second, are linked to one’s mental state and mood. Lower-frequency waves occur when we’re running on autopilot: brushing our teeth, driving, or sleeping, for example. Higher-frequency waves, known as beta waves, occur when we’re awake and mentally engaged and are associated with attention, memory, and information processing. …

During exercise, the brain becomes much more receptive to incoming information, leading to measurable changes in vision. …

The benefits of exercise to your brain may begin as soon as your heart rate begins to rise. Imagine, if you will, climbing onto your bike for a morning ride and pedaling at a tough but sustainable clip. Your breath becomes faster and heavier as your lungs struggle to meet the oxygen demands of the body in motion. Your heart rate climbs as it pumps oxygenated blood around the body and into the brain. And in much the same way that your muscles demand more energy during exercise, the brain begins gobbling up glucose or other carbohydrates when the body is in motion.

“In the past, nobody had any idea what the brain was doing with all this fuel,” says Maddock. …

A few things happen in the exerciser’s brain that make the organ appear younger. …

“Exercise is a potential prophylactic against some aspects of age-related cognitive decline,” Giesbrecht says. “When you think of the fact that we have an aging demographic and the high prevalence of depression, there might be simpler treatments out there, like exercise.” https://getpocket.com/explore/item/this-is-your-brain-on-exercise?utm_source=pocket-newtab accessed 11/19/19

One of the more unusual statements above was “For the first time in U.S. history, younger generations are expected to live shorter, unhealthier lives than their parents.”

Lack of exercise is a factor in that, as would be consumption of less natural foods, as well as environmental pollutants.

The Bible itself warns about obesity, getting fat, being physically lazy, and excessive eating.

The New Testament says that bodily exercise can help (1 Timothy 4:8), yet most Americans do not get enough physical activity.

The Continuing Church of God (CCOG) has the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

17:27

The Plain Truth About Exercise

A 2019 report shows that Americans are becoming sedentary. Since it is a physical thing, should Christians be concerned about exercise? Could not exercising possibly be a sin? What did the ‘Plain Truth’ magazine report about exercise? What is the US CDC reporting about exercise? Can exercise help prevent diabetes, heart disease, and obesity? Can exercise help sleep, endurance, and aging? Are there scriptures about exercise and health? What about laziness? What are some of the risks and benefits of exercise? Dr. Thiel addresses these subjects and more.

Here is a link to our video: The Plain Truth About Exercise.

All of us are aging, and exercise also helps us to be able to be more active and slows down certain negative aspects of aging.

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

14:18

Let’s Talk About Aging

Could you have the wrong attitude about aging and the elderly? Should your goal to be to retire and cease being productive? What did Herbert W. Armstrong say about it? What does the Bible say about aging? Is it better to listen to God when you are in your youth? What about later? Since physical life is temporary, should that motivate us to better obey God? What are some things we can do physically in order to be healthier? What about avoiding things like smoking, too much alcohol, and obesity? What about spiritual things such as prayer, Bible study, paying attention to church services, and fasting? Are there benefits from responding to God sooner than later? Who is Jesus, the author of ETERNAL SALVATION, for? Steve Dupuie and Dr. Thiel go over these matters.

Here is a link to our video: Let’s Talk About Aging.

Anyway, yes, nearly everyone can take steps to improve their physical health. Exercise and dietary factors can make a big difference.

However, remember that the Apostle Paul wrote:

7 … exercise yourself toward godliness. 8 For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.  (1 Timothy 4:7-8)

While physical exercise has value, it does not stop aging nor bring eternal life.

That said, “exercise yourself toward godliness.” Everyone can take steps to improve their spiritual health, and should be doing that every day.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Should Christians Exercise? What does the Bible teach? What are some of the benefits and risks of exercise? Here is a link to a related video: The Plain Truth About Exercise.
Christian Health Matters Should Christians be concerned about their health? Does the Bible give any food and health guidelines? Here are links to three related sermons: Let’s Talk About Food, Evil is Affecting the Food Supply, and Let’s Talk About Health
Obesity, processed foods, health risks, and the Bible Does the Bible warn about the consequences of being obese? Is overeating dangerous? Is gluttony condemned? What diseases are associated with eating too much refined foods? A related video would be Eating Right, Eating Too Much, 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; here is a message in Spanish: Me Está Llamando Dios Hoy? 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.
About Baptism Should you be baptized? Could baptism be necessary for salvation? Who should baptize and how should it be done? Here is a link to a related sermon: Let’s Talk About Baptism and Baptism, Infants, Fire, & the Second Death.  
Christians: Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God, Biblical instructions on living as a Christian This is a scripture-filled booklet for those wishing to live as a real Christian. A related sermon is also available: Christians are Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God.

EBT cards from several states (USDA photo)

COGwriter

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has wanted people to realize risks and harms associated with ultra-processed foods, plus has pointed out that the US government should not subsidize their consumption. Notice also the following:

Yuen: Can Minnesotans support RFK Jr.’s war on junk food?

August 13, 2025

Let’s start with the nice things we can say about Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

He speaks for a lot of people, no matter their political party, when he zeroes in on how to make food safer and Americans healthier. For starters, we need to reduce our exposure to environmental toxins and break our addiction to ultraprocessed foods, which Kennedy rightly says are driving the obesity epidemic and rise in childhood chronic disease.

His crusade against junk food raises the question: Can you support parts of the MAHA movement without subscribing to the wackadoodle smorgasbord of Kennedy beliefs? …

Soon we’ll learn how far Kennedy will go to Make America Healthy Again, and whether the Trump administration is willing to recommend serious policy changes that involve government regulation.

“It’s about time that the administration got real about something,” said Minnesota-based chef Andrew Zimmern, … “If MAHA wants to protect children’s health, it should stop treating junk food as a personal choice and start treating it like a public health hazard,” he said. “Kids don’t need another lecture on balance. What we need, and what kids need, is a food environment where the healthy choice is the default choice, the easy choice.” https://www.startribune.com/yuen-can-minnesotans-support-rfk-jrs-war-on-junk-food-its-a-matter-of-trust/601453151

Well, as far as the battle against junk food already being “real,” under Kennedy, the HHS department has encouraged states to ask for waivers so less of those items will not be purchased with government funds:

A dozen states win approval to restrict soda, candy for SNAP recipients

August 11, 2025

At least 12 states have received federal approval to restrict recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, from using their benefits to purchase certain foods such as soda and candy.

The states receiving waivers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture are overwhelmingly Republican. Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas and West Virginia received approval last week. The feds granted waivers to Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska and Utah earlier this year.

Missouri lawmakers have debated a similar ban for several years, but it has yet to win legislative approval.

SNAP served on average nearly 42 million people a month in fiscal 2024, with about 12% of the U.S. population receiving benefits.

The trend is part of U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s agenda to “make America healthy again” by inviting states to apply for waivers to change SNAP rules to limit what types of food recipients can buy.

Kennedy said in a statement that SNAP has used taxpayer dollars to “fuel America’s diabetes and chronic disease epidemics.”

“These waivers help put real food back at the center of the program and empower states to lead the charge in protecting public health,” the statement said.

Critics of these waivers say the policy could harm people in places such as food deserts, where healthy options are limited, and take away recipients’ power to make their own food choices.

Critics of this restriction are wrong. Governments should not intentionally subsidize unhealthy things like soda and candy.

Sadly, those items are highly consumed and are dangerous (see 50% of calories consumed by most Americans come from ultra-processed foods–plus Jeff Bezos gets lab-grown fish cells approved proved).

A huge amount, 12%, of the US population are receiving food benefits. These are supposed to be for foods. In California, EBT recipients get up to double benefits if they purchase fruits or vegetables with the EBT benefits. That helps reduce “food desserts.” And even if it does not, the government should not be subsidizing sodas or candy–no human needs those for normal sustenance.

Now, notice some other complaints about the EBT restrictions:

Dripping with righteous indignation … this woman is “dumbfounded” that she’ll no longer be able to purchase Dr. Pepper and brownies with her government-issued EBT card:

“I am so dumbfounded right now. There are people who genuinely think that people who use EBTs don’t deserve sodas, candy, or desserts. You’re gonna tell me that my daughter doesn’t deserve a popsicle? You’re gonna tell me that I don’t deserve to get brownies? You’re gonna tell me I can’t have a … Dr. Pepper with my dinner? And all I’m hearing is ‘be grateful’… Get off of your throne of entitlement* and take a look around you guys. Everyone is one bad day away from being homeless or even needing government assistance. Do you guys not see how that makes you look? Your lack of empathy and understanding is outstandingly atrocious.”

*I don’t think this lady understands what “entitlement” means, as she’s literally the beneficiary of government entitlements — ones which no rational taxpayer would believe shouldn’t come with strings attached, such as not allowing them to be used to purchase techno-slop like Dr. Pepper that is going to cause diabetes and that the taxpayer will further be on the hook for down the line via Medicaid expenses. …

So, yes, I’m afraid, taxpayers are well within their rights to insist that their money … not be spent subsidizing the reckless lifestyles of these burdens … 08/11/25 https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2025-08-11/ebt-recipient-maha-youre-gonna-tell-me-i-cant-have-fing-dr-pepper-my-dinner

The woman who complained she would not be able to buy Dr. Pepper on the EBT card she was given and did not have to pay for, brought the following to mind:

1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, … unthankful, … 3 unloving, … without self-control, … despisers of good, 4 … 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! (2 Timothy 3:1-5)

Furthermore, just because something may look good or taste good, does not mean that it is healthy.

Eve in the Garden of Eden decided to make her choice, a choice against the government of God, when it came to food:

6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. (Genesis 3:6)

Eve reasoned around God’s restriction. The fruit looked like good and desirable food to her. Sodas and candy are desirable foods to many.

I asked Grok AI to provide a list of health risks associated with soda and candy. Here is what it provided today:

Drinking soda and eating candy can pose several health risks when consumed in excess. Below is a list of potential health risks associated with these sugary products, based on scientific evidence and health guidelines:

Health Risks of Soda

1. Obesity:
   • Sugary sodas are high in calories from added sugars (e.g., high-fructose corn syrup or sucrose), contributing to weight gain. A 12-ounce can of regular soda contains about 140–160 calories and 35–40 grams of sugar.
   • Studies link regular soda consumption to increased body mass index (BMI) and obesity risk due to empty calories that don’t promote satiety.
2. Type 2 Diabetes:
   • High sugar intake from sodas can lead to insulin resistance, increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes. Research shows that drinking one or more sugary sodas daily increases diabetes risk by up to 26%.
3. Heart Disease:
   • Excessive soda consumption is associated with higher risks of cardiovascular issues, including heart attack and stroke. This is due to increased blood pressure, inflammation, and unhealthy lipid profiles linked to sugar intake.
4. Dental Problems:
   • The high sugar and acid content (e.g., phosphoric or citric acid) in sodas erodes tooth enamel, leading to cavities, tooth decay, and gum disease.
5. Liver Disease:
   • High fructose intake from sodas can contribute to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) by overwhelming the liver’s ability to process fructose, leading to fat accumulation.
6. Kidney Issues:
   • Regular consumption of sugary sodas is linked to an increased risk of kidney stones and chronic kidney disease, partly due to high phosphorus levels and dehydration effects.
7. Bone Health:
   • Phosphoric acid in some sodas (especially colas) may interfere with calcium absorption, potentially weakening bones and increasing the risk of osteoporosis over time.
8. Nutrient Deficiency:
   • Soda provides no essential nutrients, displacing healthier beverages like water or milk, which can lead to deficiencies in vitamins and minerals.
9. Increased Cancer Risk:
   • Some studies suggest a link between high sugar consumption and certain cancers (e.g., pancreatic or breast cancer), though more research is needed to confirm causality.

Health Risks of Candy

1. Obesity:
   • Candy is calorie-dense, often containing 200–300 calories per small serving, primarily from sugar and sometimes fat. Frequent consumption can lead to weight gain and obesity.
2. Type 2 Diabetes:
   • Similar to soda, candy’s high sugar content can spike blood sugar levels and contribute to insulin resistance, increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes.
3. Dental Problems:
   • Sticky and sugary candies cling to teeth, promoting bacterial growth and leading to cavities, enamel erosion, and gum disease. Hard candies can also chip or crack teeth.
4. Heart Disease:
   • Excessive candy consumption, due to high sugar and sometimes saturated fat (e.g., in chocolate-based candies), is linked to higher risks of heart disease through inflammation and elevated triglycerides.
5. Nutrient Deficiency:
   • Candy lacks essential nutrients, and overconsumption can displace nutrient-rich foods, leading to deficiencies in vitamins, minerals, and fiber.
6. Blood Sugar Spikes:
   • Candy causes rapid blood sugar spikes followed by crashes, which can lead to energy fluctuations, cravings, and, over time, metabolic issues.
7. Digestive Issues:
   • High sugar intake from candy can disrupt gut microbiota, potentially leading to digestive problems like bloating or inflammation.
8. Addictive Eating Patterns:
   • The high sugar content in candy can trigger dopamine release, potentially leading to cravings and overeating behaviors, which may mimic addiction-like patterns.

Additional Notes

• Moderation is Key: Occasional consumption of soda or candy is unlikely to cause significant harm, but regular or excessive intake increases these risks.
• Diet/Zero-Sugar Options: While diet or zero-sugar sodas and candies may reduce sugar-related risks, artificial sweeteners (e.g., aspartame, sucralose) have their own potential concerns, including digestive issues or uncertain long-term effects, though they are generally considered safe in moderation.
• Individual Factors: Health risks vary based on factors like overall diet, exercise, genetics, and pre-existing conditions.

There are also mental and other health risks that Grok missed in its list.

Anyway, while most people can handle a small amount of either, their consumption should not be paid for as “food” assistance. They are unnecessary luxury items which have real long term health risks.

Because the negative effects take time, many are wrongly persuaded by advertisements and availability to consume too much candy and sodas. Many also deceive themselves into falsely believing that they cannot cause serious problems–yet they can.

The following scripture came to mind:

11 Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. (Ecclesiastes 8:11)

What should you eat? You should eat real food and for most people, at least two or more servings of fruit and three of more servings of vegetables daily, relatively small amounts of meats, whole grains, and olive oil come to mind. Refined grains, sugars (whether natural or artificial), sodas, and GMOs should be highly limited or not consumed at all.

God’s word says:

2 … Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good (Isaiah 55:2).

People should try to eat real, not artificial, foods. And if you take vitamins and minerals, take the type whose nutrients are 100% food (which is what I personally do).

In 2022, the Continuing Church of God put out the following sermon on its ContinuingCOG channel:

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Christian Health Matters Should Christians be concerned about their health? Does the Bible give any food and health guidelines? Here are links to three related sermons: Let’s Talk About Food, Evil is Affecting the Food Supply, and Let’s Talk About Health.
American foods that gross out foreigners A study done in the Fall of 2014 found out which foods that non-USA Americans considered weird or gross that Americans eat. This video discusses those foods, ingredients in some of those foods, and warns against consuming ‘that which is not bread’ (Isaiah 55:2). Dr. Thiel also warns about synthetic vitamins and some of the issues associated with them. He also discusses something promoted by the late Seventh-day Adventist, Dr. John Harvey Kellogg.
The New Testament Church, History, and Unclean Meats Are foods considered to have been unclean in the Old Testament considered to be food in the New Testament? This article discusses this from the perspective of the New Testament. It also has a list of clean and unclean animals. It also answers the question, is pork healthy or is pork dangerous? There is also a sermon-length video on this: Christians and Unclean Meats; two short videos are also available: Did Jesus declare all animal flesh food? and COVID, Pandemics, and Unclean Meat.
Obesity, processed foods, health risks, and the Bible Does the Bible warn about the consequences of being obese? Is overeating dangerous? Is gluttony condemned? What diseases are associated with eating too much refined foods?
Eating Right, Eating Too Much, and Prophecy Are there disadvantages to being overweight? Is junk food really bad for you? Does the Bible discuss overeating and/or obesity? Is overeating having an effect on the US military? What are the ramifications of personal and national health for overeating? What should you eat? This is a sermonette-length YouTubevideo.
GMOs and Bible Prophecy What are GMOs? Since they were not in the food supply until 1994, how could they possibly relate to Bible prophecy? Do GMOs put the USA and others at risk? Here are some related videos: GMO Risks and the Bible and GMOs, Lab meat, Hydrogenation: Safe or Dangerous?
Chimeras: Has Science Crossed the Line? What are chimeras?  Has science crossed the line? Does the Bible give any clues? A video of related interest is Half human, half pig: What’s the difference?  and Human-Monkey Embryos and Death.
Ten Simple Rules that Lead to Health Herbert Armstrong gives his opinions on this.
Does God Heal Today? What does the Bible teach? Herbert Armstrong tries to explain this.
UK Study Supports Daniel Diet Daniel and his companions looked better eating more vegetables and avoiding strange meats. Has modern science confirmed this?
Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America? Where did those people come from? Can you totally rely on DNA? What about other peoples? Do you really know what will happen to Europe and the English-speaking peoples? What about Africa, Asia, South America, and the Islands? This free online book provides scriptural, scientific, historical references, and commentary to address those matters. Here are links to related sermons: Lost tribes, the Bible, and DNA; Lost tribes, prophecies, and identifications; 11 Tribes, 144,000, and Multitudes; Israel, Jeremiah, Tea Tephi, and British Royalty; Gentile European Beast; Royal Succession, Samaria, and Prophecies; Asia, Islands, Latin America, Africa, and Armageddon;  When Will the End of the Age Come?;  Rise of the Prophesied King of the North; Christian Persecution from the Beast; WWIII and the Coming New World Order; and Woes, WWIV, and the Good News of the Kingdom of God.