Church of God News

Protesters in Caracas, Venezuela

COGwriter

Problems continue in Venezuela:

Venezuela’s Maduro Admits Socialist Model Has Failed

August 2, 2018

Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro admitted that his socialist economic model has “failed” amid food and medicine shortages as well as a failing infrastructure highlighted by Tuesday’s power failure to 80% of Caracas.

Compounding matters is the IMF’s Weimar-topping hyperinflation forecast of 1,000,000% by year end, and a GDP set to plummet 18% this year, as the government continues to simply print money to in hopes of filling the void of what was once the country’s economy.

“The production models we’ve tried so far have failed and the responsibility is ours, mine and yours,” Maduro told his ruling PSUV party congress. “Enough with the whining… we need to produce with or without (outside) aggression, with or without blockades, we need to make Venezuela an economic power.”

“No more whining, I want solutions comrades!”

No word on whether he took a bite of an empanada during his speech while his country starves on the “Maduro diet” – a phrase coined after Venezuela’s notorious food shortages gave rise to mass starvation across the country. Not even the donkeys are safe.  …

Venezuela’s industrial sector is operating at just 30% capacity, as illustrated by the farming sector, which now provides just a quarter of national consumption, after providing 75% just a few years ago according to the National Farmers Federation.

This should all make for some interesting debate questions during the next US elections, as Democratic Socialists have become the “new face” of the left. Just don’t ask any questions about economics or logistics… https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-08-01/venezuelas-maduro-admits-socialism-has-failed

Maduro said he will no longer blame the U.S. for his country’s problems.

“Enough of whining,” Maduro said. “You will not see me whining to myself. I do not blame them anymore. You do not see me whining in front of imperialism. Let them attacks us. It is up to us whether to act with aggression or without aggression.”

Venezuela’s economic decline began under former President Hugo Chavez. A country that was once overflowing with revenue from its state-run oil production saw those revenues sharply decline in the past decade as U.S. production increased and global prices fell.

Under Maduro, the crisis worsened. His government has nationalized cement and steel production and taken over operation of private businesses such as supermarket chains and others that provide basic services to its citizens.

But oil revenues still account for 96 percent of the country’s revenues, so as government fails to collect an adequate amount of money from its oil business, it has failed to provide an adequate amount of services for its citizens.

Due to hyperinflation — the International Monetary Fund estimates Venezuela’s inflation rate will reach 1 million percent this year — food shortages and high prices, 93 percent of the population does not earn enough to buy food, according to a 2017 study conducted in Venezuela. Venezuelans have lost, on average, 20 pounds since the country’s humanitarian crisis began in 2015.

Almost 1 million Venezuelans have fled hunger and repression by migrating to neighboring Colombia over the past two years. Another roughly 50,000 sought asylum in the United States. Roughly 800 Venezuelan refugees cross the border into Brazil every day. https://www.westernjournal.com/ct/venezuelan-president-finally-admits-that-socialism-is-broken-economy-is-destroyed/

Venezuela’s inflation rate is the highest ever recorded–it even exceeded that of pre-WWII Germany.

Yet, in the USA, we have seen a rise in people called “Democratic socialists.”

The problems in Venezuela have been known for some time:

Venezuela is a woeful reminder that no country is so rich that it can’t be driven into the ground by revolutionary socialism.

People are now literally starving — about three-quarters of the population lost weight last year — in what once was the fourth-richest country in the world on a per-capita basis. A country that has more oil reserves than Saudi Arabia is suffering shortages of basic supplies. Venezuela now totters on the brink of bankruptcy and civil war, in the national catastrophe known as the Bolivarian Revolution. …

Runaway spending, price controls, nationalization of companies, corruption and the end of the rule of law — it’s been a master class in how to destroy an economy.

The result is a sharp, yearslong recession, runaway inflation and unsustainable debt. The suffering of ordinary people is staggering, while the thieves and killers who are Chavista officials have made off with hundreds of billions of dollars. At this rate — The Economist calls the country’s economic decline “the steepest in modern Latin American history” — there will be nothing left to steal.

Any government in a democratic country that failed this spectacularly would have been relegated to the dustbin of history long ago. Maduro is getting around this problem by ending Venezuela’s democracy. …

The goal of Maduro’s alleged constitutional reforms is to no longer have a constitution worthy of the name. Immediately after the vote, his forces arrested two leading opposition figures in the dead of night. Video shows one of them, Antonio Ledezma, being taken away in his pajamas and another, Leopoldo López, bundled into the back of a car.

It looks like what it truly was — a pair of kidnappings.

Denied the ordinary means of dissent via the press and elections, the opposition has taken to the streets. Already more than 100 people have been killed in clashes over the past several months.

Worse is yet to come. 08/01/17 http://nypost.com/2017/08/01/venezuela-a-nation-devoured-by-socialism/

Venezuela is crumbling and with it, the left’s idea of a perfect socialist system. Yet … Nicolás Maduro, refuses to realize this obvious fact and instead, has resorted to political violence to silence his opposition. As the economy crumbles, the future of the oil industry Venezuela once relied on has been called into question. The devastation in Venezuela has grown from a political crisis to both an economic and humanitarian one.

During a vote last month, the Venezuelan people were asked to select, from a trusted list of allies in the governing party, a group to rewrite the nation’s constitution and maintain power in Venezuela until their work is finished. This would give Maduro and his ruling party the authority to dissolve branches of government such as the legislature, which is currently controlled by Maduro’s opposition party.

Voters were not given the ability to reject the plan, simply decide who they wanted on the council. The list was so corrupt it included Maduro’s own wife. While Maduro boosted high voter turnout, the election results have already been called into question.

Opposition spokesman Vicente Bello, criticized the lack of voter protection practices, such as the fact that voters were not asked to give proper identification. Voters were only allowed to cast ballots in any of three different locations.

Even a software company involved in setting up voting systems announced the turnout figure had been altered by at least one million votes.

While Venezuela is clearly operating under an illegitimate democracy, the situation only gets worse as Maduro responds to opposition with force.

Following the election, two opposition leaders under house arrest, Antonio Ledezma and Leopoldo López, posted videos to YouTube urging Venezuelans to protest the election results and called the newly formed council a fraud. Within days, both individuals were imprisoned for making political statements.

The Trump administration has quickly imposed additional sanctions on President Maduro as a result. Trump hopes this encourages the release of all political prisoners held there.

But these two are not the only Venezuelans suffering.

James Kirchick explained in the LA Times that, “Socialist economic policies — price controls, factory nationalizations, government takeovers of food distribution and the like — have real human costs. Eighty percent of Venezuelan bakeries don’t have flour. Eleven percent of children under 5 are malnourished, infant mortality has increased by 30 percent and maternal mortality is up 66 percent. More than 100 people have died in anti-government demonstrations and thousands have been arrested.”

Economically, Venezuela cannot support its own people. Years of big government socialist policies have led to media crack downs, over printing of money, and a war on capitalism that the country can simply not win. 08/03/17 http://www.hngnews.com/sun_prairie_star/opinion/columns/article_008196f4-7850-11e7-8613-8b6c41f5a0bd.html

Venezuela has continued to fall apart, and this has become more and more noticeable to many this year.

Venezuela’s oil wealth and geographic location had the potential for it to be one of the most prosperous countries in Latin America. Despite the drop in oil prices, it still should be.

However, various government policies have not served the people well.

And now, government leaders are taking desperate measures to keep power.

Eventually, Venezuela will one day align with the Beast power that will arise in Europe. That, too, will not be good.

Venezuela, and the rest of the world, needs the Kingdom of God for the coming utopia (watch also Millennial Utopia).

Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. (Revelation 20:14)

COGwriter

Pope Francis just changed a long standing Catholic position. Instead of supporting the use of the death penalty, he has decided that it is inadmissible:

August 2, 2018

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis has changed Catholic Church teaching about the death penalty, saying in a new policy published Thursday that it is always “inadmissible” because it “attacks” the inherent dignity of all humans.

The Vatican said Francis had approved a change to the Catechism of the Catholic Church — the compilation of official Catholic teaching. Previously, the catechism said the church didn’t exclude recourse to capital punishment “if this is the only possible way of effectively defending human lives against the unjust aggressor.”

The new teaching, contained in Catechism No. 2267, says the previous policy is outdated, that there are other ways to protect the common good, and that the church should instead commit itself to working to end capital punishment.

“The church teaches, in the light of the Gospel, that the death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person and she works with determination for its abolition worldwide,” reads the new text, which was approved in May but only published Thursday. …

He announced his intention to change church teaching on capital punishment last October, when he marked the 25th anniversary of the publication of the catechism by announcing his intention to update it. The catechism, first promulgated by St. John Paul II, gives Catholics an easy, go-to guide for church teaching on everything from the sacraments to sex.

At that 2017 ceremony, Francis said the death penalty violates the Gospel and amounts to the voluntary killing of a human life, which “is always sacred in the eyes of the creator.”

He acknowledged that in the past even the Papal States had allowed this “extreme and inhuman recourse.” But he said the Holy See had erred in allowing a mentality that was “more legalistic than Christian” and now knew better. https://www.apnews.com/b1cf76995c8646118184fc5b009b129c/Pope-changes-death-penalty-teaching,-now-‘inadmissible’

Here is what the Catechism of the Catholic Church used to teach:

2267 Assuming that the guilty party’s identity and responsibility have been fully determined, the traditional teaching of the Church does not exclude recourse to the death penalty, if this is the only possible way of effectively defending human lives against the unjust aggressor. 

If, however, non-lethal means are sufficient to defend and protect people’s safety from the aggressor, authority will limit itself to such means, as these are more in keeping with the concrete conditions of the common good and more in conformity to the dignity of the human person.

Today, in fact, as a consequence of the possibilities which the state has for effectively preventing crime, by rendering one who has committed an offense incapable of doing harm – without definitely taking away from him the possibility of redeeming himself – the cases in which the execution of the offender is an absolute necessity “are very rare, if not practically nonexistent. http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s2c2a5.htm accessed 08/02/18

And, I copied the above from the Vatican’s website today. So, they have not updated that yet.

So, here is the new teaching for the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

2267. Recourse to the death penalty on the part of legitimate authority, following a fair trial, was long considered an appropriate response to the gravity of certain crimes and an acceptable, albeit extreme, means of safeguarding the common good.

Today, however, there is an increasing awareness that the dignity of the person is not lost even after the commission of very serious crimes. In addition, a new understanding has emerged of the significance of penal sanctions imposed by the state. Lastly, more effective systems of detention have been developed, which ensure the due protection of citizens but, at the same time, do not definitively deprive the guilty of the possibility of redemption.

Consequently, the Church teaches, in the light of the Gospel, that “the death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person”,^[1] and she works with determination for its abolition worldwide. 08/02/18 https://zenit.org/articles/pope-francis-decides-to-update-church-catechism-to-assert-church-teaching-against-use-of-death-penalty/

So, was the Pope infallible when the previous Catechism of the Catholic Church came out in roughly 1993 or now?

Of course, neither. But beyond internal Vatican contradictions (as well as its long history of supporting death of those that opposed it in times like The Spanish Inquisition), this also shows a lack of understanding of scripture.

The Old Testament repeatedly and clearly authorized the death penalty for various crimes (e.g. Exodus 21:12,15,16,17).

God also has humans die physically because of sin:

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)

People get wages for their works. Human works result in death.

So we see that all deserve death, but that eternal life can be an option.

As far as when eternal life will be granted, notice the following:

27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, 28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation. (Hebrews 9:27-28)

God’s plan includes offering everyone, either in this age or the age to come, salvation (see Universal Offer of Salvation: There Are Hundreds of Verses in the Bible Supporting the Doctrine of True Apocatastasis).

But not all will accept the offer of salvation.

The wicked who will not repent will be totally destroyed:

1 Do not fret because of evildoers, Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. 2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb. … 9 For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the Lord, They shall inherit the earth. 10 For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; Indeed, you will look carefully for his place, But it shall be no more. … 20 But the wicked shall perish; And the enemies of the Lord, Like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke they shall vanish away. … 28 For the Lord loves justice, And does not forsake His saints They are preserved forever, But the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off. … 38 But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; The future of the wicked shall be cut off. (Psalm 37:1-2,9-10,20,28,38)

2 As smoke is driven away,
So drive them away;
As wax melts before the fire,
So let the wicked perish at the presence of God. (Psalm 68:2)

1 “For behold, the day is coming,
Burning like an oven,
And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble.
And the day which is coming shall burn them up,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“That will leave them neither root nor branch.
2 But to you who fear My name
The Sun of Righteousness shall arise
With healing in His wings;
And you shall go out
And grow fat like stall-fed calves.
3 You shall trample the wicked,
For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet
On the day that I do this,”
Says the Lord of hosts. (Malachi 4:1-3)

God’s plan for the unrepentant, the incorrigibly wicked, is not eternal life. It is total destruction. It is the second death.

7 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.”‘ … 11 … He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death. (Revelation 2:7,11)

6 Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years. (Revelation 20:6)

11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:11-15)

8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. (Revelation 21:8)

Thus, it is a type of death, but permanent. It is not eternal torturing like many claim. It is the ultimate death penalty. Jesus came so we would not have to PERISH THAT WAY, but have eternal life (John 3:16).

The late Herbert W. Armstrong wrote that Obadiah 1:16 applied to those who experience the second death”… and they shall be as though they had not been” (Armstrong HW. Worldwide Church of God. Life After Death? 1978).

Here is that scripture:

16 For as you drank on My holy mountain,
So shall all the nations drink continually;
Yes, they shall drink, and swallow,
And they shall be as though they had never been. (Obadiah 16)

Those subject to the second death will no longer exist.

Notice the plan for those who were converted as well as for those who will refuse to convert:

6 And He said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. 7 He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. 8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:6-8)

Those souls that refuse to repent after the second resurrection will die and be no more.

If that were not the case, the following would not be possible:

3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. 4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

5 Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” (Revelation 21:3-5)

There still could be crying and pain if the incorrigible were not destroyed.

The second death will eliminate the wicked–body, soul, and spirit.

The second death penalty is something that God considers more than admissible. It is a merciful way to eliminate those who would otherwise cause misery for themselves and others.

The Continuing Church of God also has this sermon from its ContinuingCOG channel:

1:10:08

COGwriter

Back in 1997, HBO (Home Box Office) once had a film called the Second Civil War.

Could such a thing hit the USA?

National Review ran the following:

The Origins of Our Second Civil War

How, when, and why has the United States now arrived at the brink of a veritable civil war?

Almost every cultural and social institution — universities, the public schools, the NFL, the Oscars, the Tonys, the Grammys, late-night television, public restaurants, coffee shops, movies, TV, stand-up comedy — has been not just politicized but also weaponized.

Donald Trump’s election was not so much a catalyst for the divide as a manifestation and amplification of the existing schism.

We are now nearing a point comparable to 1860, and perhaps past 1968. Left–Right factionalism is increasingly fueled by geography — always history’s force multiplier of civil strife. Red and blue states ensure that locale magnifies differences that were mostly manageable during the administrations of Ford, Carter, Reagan, the Bushes, and Clinton.

What has caused the United States to split apart so rapidly? …

Globalization had an unfortunate effect of undermining national unity. It created new iconic billionaires in high tech and finance, and their subsidiaries of coastal elites, while hollowing out the muscular jobs largely in the American interior. …

Higher education surely helped split the country in two. …

We forget especially the role of Barack Obama. He ran as a Biden Democrat renouncing gay marriage, saying, “I believe marriage is between a man and a woman. I am not in favor of gay marriage.” Then he “evolved” on the question and created a climate in which to agree with this position could get one fired. He promised to close the border and reduce illegal immigration: “We will try to do more to speed the deportation of illegal aliens who are arrested for crimes, to better identify illegal aliens in the workplace. We are a nation of immigrants. But we are also a nation of laws.” Then he institutionalized the idea that to agree with that now-abandoned agenda was a career-ender.

Obama vowed to “work across the aisle” and was elected on the impression that he was a “bridge builder” who would heal racial animosity, restore U.S. prestige abroad, and reignite the economy after the September 2008 meltdown. Instead, he weaponized the IRS, the FBI, the NSC, the CIA, and the State Department and redefined the deep state as if it were the Congress, but with the ability to make and enforce laws all at once. “Hope and Change” became “You didn’t build that!”

President Obama, especially in his second term, soon renounced much of what he had run on. He raised taxes, stagnated what would have been a natural recovery, weighed in on hot-button racialized criminal cases, advanced a radical social agenda, and polarized the country along lines of difference.

Again, Obama most unfortunately redefined race as a white-versus-nonwhite binary, in an attempt to build a new coalition of progressives, on the unspoken assumption that the clingers were destined to slow irrelevance and with them their retrograde and obstructionist ideas. …

Religious and spiritual reawakening is crucial. …

Whether we all take a deep breath, and understand our present dangerous trajectory, will determine whether 2019 becomes 1861. 07/31/18 https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/07/origins-of-second-civil-war-globalism-tech-boom-immigration-campus-radicalism/

I would add that less cultural and media respect for the Bible, and the media’s fanning the flames and more partisan approach, are significant factors.

There are also groups on the left (Antifa comes to mind; see also Antifa hopes to remove Donald Trump with massive November 4, 2017 protests) and the right that are looking for conflict.

While the mainstream media seems determined to stir the flames to remove US President Trump, apparently there is another group of anti-deep state Trump supporters called ‘Q’. Here is something I am adding to this article a few hours after initially posting it:

August 2, 2018

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Amid the “Trump 2020” placards, the “Women for Trump” signs and the “CNN SUCKS” T-shirts, the most inscrutable message that came out of Donald Trump’s Tampa rally on Tuesday evening was a letter.

Q.

People wore T-shirts with the letter emblazoned on the front. Others carried signs containing the letter: “Q WWG1WGA Trump 2020 Keep America Great! MSM is the enemy.” Another held a dog-eared and slightly crumpled piece of paper in the air. It said, simply, “We are Q.”

Q who?

The entire, loose movement has been called everything from “a deranged conspiracy cult” (The Washington Post) to a grassroots movement “about the covert battles being waged between the deep state and President Trump” (according to Tyler, a guy at the Tampa rally who held a metal coin emblazoned with the letter and showed it to WPLG, a TV station from Miami).

Here’s a look at the trend that’s sweeping certain dark corners of the Internet:

WHO IS Q?

In late October 2017, an anonymous user posted on 4chan, a shadowy site known for, among other things, cruel hoaxes and political extremism. Under the title “The Calm Before the Storm,” the poster claimed to have a high-level government security clearance — Q clearance to be exact — and referred to Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, George Soros, political parties and former President Barack Obama.

Q gives readers “breadcrumbs” so they can ferret out details on their own. There’s other lingo as well. Bakers are amateur sleuths who follow the crumbs. Anyone who tries to debunk Q is “a clown.” (This includes CIA agents, shadowy operatives and most likely reporters, although there’s separate terminology for them).

Like Tyler, the man at the Tuesday rally in Tampa, many believe the mainstream media is lying to them.

Other 4chan users have pointed out that “Q″ uses the plural “we.”

Keep in mind, users can, and often do, post anonymously on 4chan. …

A YouTube video posted by “prayingmedic” on July 28, titled, “Something Big is About to Drop,” has 275,000 views. It is an hour and eight minutes long. …

Uscinski, who has studied Q over the last month, says the user’s posts are often about the “deep state” battling Donald Trump, using bureaucratic inertia. Which isn’t that farfetched, he said, given that many in federal government didn’t likely vote for Trump.

Q and the QAnon supporters refer to “The Storm” often, which is a reference to an October 2017 meeting between Trump and military leaders during which Trump said, “the calm before the storm.” https://www.apnews.com/2fc692db3b2c47008a87d7bdd564ab2b/Who-is-Q?-Behind-conspiracy-theory-erupting-at-Trump-rallies

And there’s no White House chaos at all; in fact, despite legal scandals and special counsel investigations and bile-laden tweets, everything, absolutely everything, is going just as Donald Trump intended it.

Welcome to QAnon, sometimes referred to as “the Storm.” It’s a conspiracy theory that’s swept social media and is starting to break into the mainstream, with Trump rally attendees in Florida on July 31 holding signs and wearing T-shirts emblazoned with “We are Q” and the conspiracy theory’s main catchphrase, “Where we go one, we go all.”

Roseanne Barr, formerly the star of the No. 1 show on network television, is just one of Q’s biggest supporters. And the conspiracy theory is being pushed by some of the far right’s biggest voices, including Alex Jones and Sean Hannity. Still others are winking and nodding at it, retweeting #QAnon references while pretending to be none the wiser. …

So if the first year and a half of the Trump administration has been enmeshed in confusion and chaos, QAnon is the conspiratorial response: Everything is fine. As a popular saying among Q adherents proclaims, believers must only “trust the plan.” …

Most people have never heard of QAnon, or Q — and that includes most of Donald Trump’s supporters. But there are those who do believe in QAnon — that Trump and Mueller are actually working together to arrest Democrats and Obama officials (who are all also pedophiles and cannibals), that everything is actually under control.

QAnon provides a soothing balm, telling believers that the only people who really know what’s going on are the believers — and the president. https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/8/1/17253444/qanon-trump-conspiracy-theory-reddit

Q may just be an outlet for people to blow off steam and/or get comfort for their views. On the other hand, could Q be threatening something like unrest with talking about the “Storm”?

Perhaps, as that somewhat reminds me of Antifa (an anti-Trump group):

August 2, 2018

A new undercover video by James O’Keefe’s Project Veritas shows trainers teaching radical antifa activists how to violently incapacitate their foes.

Broken ribs, gouged eyes and more. …

In it, antifa “fight instructors” are training activists for encounters with police, or Trump supporters, or anyone else who opposes their will.

“If you get a good liver or kidney shot, it’s pretty much crippling them. They’re going to be doubled over and in a lot of pain. If you break one of the floating ribs, which are small and right down here. Those are also very painful. It’s hard to move after that, to catch a breath,” says one.

“So one good body shot could potentially give you all the time in the world to run away while they’re doubled over in pain, or really put a beating on them after that if you really want to make it personal.”

There are chuckles among the activists after that comment. https://www.wnd.com/2018/08/okeefe-catches-antifa-teaching-activists-to-inflict-pain/#0TcdgiH644kmE46a.99

The Apostle Paul warned:

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! … 13 But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. (2 Timothy 3:1-5, 13)

1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. (2 Timothy 3:1-5, KJV)

28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality…30…violent, proud, boasters,…31…unmerciful; 32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them. (Romans 1:28-32)

As the above gets more and more fulfilled, expect that we will ultimately see more serious social unrest in the USA. And yes, perhaps a civil war.

Consider also the following from a few weeks ago:

July 11, 2018

This week, its President chose a new Supreme Court judge … Brett Kavanaugh …

Trump is replacing America’s rapidly collapsing political system with a house of marked-cards managed by a man whose power resides in a colourful cape and a bank vault full of kryptonite.

Where to now?

Enough members of enough fiefdoms could turn on him before the current uncivil roar becomes a real, new civil war—for example by blocking Kavanaugh from joining the Court—but even if they do, it’s hard to see how the elites can stop this unravelling of America.

Enough voters may elect enough Democrats to Congress in November to shore up the system against the raging bull, but it’s unlikely they’ll have a united front of radical ideas good enough to win the White House come 2020.

Or the civil war, with riots, burning, looting, assassinations, gun battles and so on might quickly flare up and out of anyone’s control. https://dailyreview.com.au/americas-great-spiritual-quest-superman/76313/

The same day Trump nominated Judge Brett Kavanaugh to be the next high-court justice, the deputy chairman of the Democratic National Committee was asked an interesting question: “Is there any possibility that the legislative branch would remove a Supreme Court justice?”

U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., who also serves as the DNC’s second-in-charge, paused for a moment, then responded, “You’d have to find some evidence of like, corruption, or something like that.”

Some comments about Ellison’s remarks posted on YouTube include:

• “Translation: ‘When we regain power, we will arrest you, then look, and search, and deep-dive into everything imaginable until we find something of which you’re guilty!’”

• “Not a good idea for a Supreme Court justice … but OK for a president.”

• “So couldn’t we theoretically impeach all the radical Obama judges under their new rules of governing? Leftists aren’t going to like the new rules.”

• “These people are begging for a civil war.”

http://www.wnd.com/2018/07/dnc-boss-wont-rule-out-impeaching-kavanaugh/#qkqH70Mp8EhgiK0D.99

So, we recently saw talk of civil war related to a Supreme Court nominee.

While Donald Trump selected Catholic Brett Kavanaugh, most of the mainstream media and many political operatives would have had similar problems with anyone that Donald Trump was likely to have nominated instead.

Now, is civil unrest and/or civil war going to hit the USA?

Yes.

Notice a comment and scripture in my book Donald Trump and America’s Apocalypse:

Donald Trump has been a polarizing figure and has offended many … Expect civil unrest and rioting. The Bible prophesies “There shall be terror within” (Deuteronomy 32:25).

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Donald Trump in Prophecy Prophecy, Donald Trump? Are there prophecies that Donald Trump may fulfill? Are there any prophecies that he has already helped fulfill? Could a Donald Trump presidency be apocalyptic? A related video is titled: Donald: ‘Trump of God’ or Apocalyptic?
Trump Presidency Magic 8 Ball or Bible Prophecy? BBC reported that one might as well use a ‘Magic Eight-Ball’ to try to predict what will happen in the remaining time of Donald Trump’s presidency. What is a ‘Magic Eight-Ball’? Dr. Thiel not only explains that, but also briefly goes over 10 biblically-based warnings he wrote would happen if Donald Trump were elected that have already began to come to pass. He also goes over something he wrote back in 2008 that the Trump presidency is also helping lead to fulfillment. Should you trust Bible prophecy or not? Dr. Thiel says that Bible prophecy can be trusted, despite the view of skeptics and others that either overlook or despise the Bible. This is a video.
Donald Trump and America’s Apocalypse This 188 page book is for people truly interested in prophecies related to Donald Trump and the United States, including learning about several that have already been fulfilled and those that will be fulfilled in the future. The physical book can be purchased at Amazon for $12.99 from the following link: Donald Trump and America’s Apocalypse.
Donald Trump and America’s Apocalypse-Kindle Edition This electronic version of the 188 page print 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 Donald Trump and America’s Apocalypse-Kindle Edition.
Abortion, the Bible, and a Woman’s Right to Choose Do you know what the Bible teaches on this? Has the Roman Catholic Church allowed abortions? What about the real Church of God? Some may also, or instead, wish to view the YouTube video Abortion, the Bible, and US Debt.
Will the Anglo-Saxon 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?
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?
The Bible Condemns Homosexuality “Same-sex marriage” for “gays” and lesbians is becoming more acceptable to many. What does the Bible teach about homosexuality and the LGBTQ agenda? Can homosexuals change? A related video sermon is titled: What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality?
Pornography: A scourge on society Is pornography harmless fun? Does the Bible teach anything about it? What are the views of some involved with it? A related sermons is titled: Pornography, False Comfort, and False Religion. Here a shorter YouTube video Pornography: Harmless Fun or a Scourge on Society?
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West?
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?
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2027 or 20xx? There is also a video titled The 6000 Year Plan: Is the end of humanity’s reign almost up?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2018, 2019, or 2020? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede comenzar la Gran Tribulación en 2018 o 2019? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? You can also see the English language sermon videos: The Great Tribulation from the Mount of Olives and Can the Great Tribulation begin before 2020? A shorter video is: Can the Great Tribulation begin in 2018?
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?
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? Here is a link to a video titled: The Future King of the North.

COGwriter

The following are excerpts from Mike Gendron’s August 2018 PTG newsletter, which arrived via email today:

The Most Terrifying Words You Could Ever Hear

The most terrifying words a professing Christian could ever hear would be Jesus saying, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness” (Matt. 7:21-23). The Lord Jesus will declare those horrifying words to many, not a few, who will boast in the many works they did in His Name. They called Him Lord but did not obey His first command to “Repent and believe the Gospel” (Mark 1:15).

Who are the “many” who will be turned away on Judgment Day? …

The Lord Jesus … referred to the “many” when He spoke of the two paths to eternity. Many will travel the broad road to destruction instead of the narrow road to eternal life (Matt. 7:13-14). Rather than striving to enter the narrow gate by testing every man’s teaching, they foolishly follow false teachers, who are wolves disguised in sheep’s clothing (Luke 13:24; Matt. 7:15).

It is a sobering thought to realize that 83% of Americans profess faith in Christ, but only a few of them show evidence of being … new creatures in Christ. … Part of the blame must be placed on man-centered methods of evangelism such as making a decision to “accept” Christ, or repeating a sinner’s prayer, or asking Jesus into your heart, or coming forward for salvation. None of these methods are found in the Bible. The only saving response to the Gospel of Grace is to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ (Mark 1:15; Acts 16:31). Part of the blame can also be placed on those who compromise the Gospel to make it more inclusive and less offensive (Gal. 1:6-10).

With so many false converts, the church has become a mission field. Many professors of Christ are not really possessors of Christ! They are strangers … They have never passed from death unto life. They remain condemned because they have not been justified. They remain enemies of God even though they profess to be His friends! They remain enslaved to sin because they have never been set free. They profess the Savior with their lips, but their hearts are far from Him. They deceive other people with their external righteousness, but they cannot deceive God! They are unaware of their pending peril, because they have never examined themselves to see if their faith is genuine (2 Cor. 13:5).

The best way we can prove our faith is genuine is to examine it through the lens of Scripture. The apostle John wrote his first epistle so that those who believe in the Lord Jesus may know that they have eternal life (1 John 5:13). We also see many characteristics of false converts in God’s Word. Some of them are listed below:

• You think you are a good person (Romans 3:12).
• You have a zeal for God without knowledge (Rom. 10:1-4).
• You have knowledge of God without obedience (Titus 1:16).
• You do not pursue sanctification (Heb. 12:14; 1 Thess. 4:3).
• You are self-righteous without repentance (Luke 18:9-14).
• You seek to establish your own righteousness (Rom. 10:3).
• You think you can merit or earn eternal life (Titus 3:5).
• You are unwilling to forgive others (Mat. 6:15).
• You have no desire to follow Jesus (Luke 9:23).
• You call Jesus ‘Lord’ but do not do what He says (Luke 6:46).
• You do not love other Christians (1 John 4:20-21).
• You love your sin (John 3:19).
• You have not departed from iniquity (2 Timothy 2:19).
• You condone or promote things God hates (Prov. 6:16-19).
• You are a mere hearer of the Word, not a doer (James 1:22).
• You are full of pride with no humility (James 4:6).
• You walk in darkness (1 John 1:6).
• You live according to your sinful nature (Romans 8:5).
• You do not love the truth (2 Thess. 2:10-12).
• You take Jesus as Savior but not as Lord (Romans 10:9).
• You desire Jesus as a priest to pardon sin, but not as a prophet to instruct you or a king to rule over you.

Please know the assurance that we are truly saved is not based on a past decision but on a present reality. So what if we are unsure about our faith and our salvation? We find the answer in God’s Word:

• Abide in God’s Word – then you will know the truth that will set you free from religious deception (John 8:31-32).
• Repent – with godly sorrow for your sins and cry out to God for mercy (Luke 18:13; 2 Cor. 7:10).
• Believe the Gospel – follow the Lord Jesus Christ in faith (Rom. 10:9-10).
• Love God – with all you heart, soul and mind (Mat. 22:37; 1 Cor. 16:22).

Mike Gendron is a former Roman Catholic, who is now a Protestant. I edited out certain points that were mainly his misunderstandings.

That being said, he is correct that most who profess Christ are not really Christians.

He is also correct that most who profess Christ are not willing to obey (see also The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast and Christians: Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God, Biblical instructions on living as a Christian).

He is also correct that many have a false conversion (watch the video: False Conversion).

Jesus said:

22 Then He said to His disciples, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on. 23 Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. 24 Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds? 25 And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 26 If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for the rest? 27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?

29 “And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. 30 For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. 31 But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you.

32 “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. (Luke 12:22-32)

The true Christian church is a little flock (see also Where is the True Christian Church Today?).

But those in it, who truly live as Christ wants His people to live, do not need to have fear.

As far as the rest, God does have a plan. His word (see Universal Offer of Salvation: There Are Hundreds of Verses in the Bible Supporting the Doctrine of True Apocatastasis) and His Holy Days (see Should You Keep God’s Holy Days or Demonic Holidays?) lay that out.

Several items of possibly related interest may include:

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.
Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond?
The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast This is a free draft/unedited pdf book explaining the what the Ten Commandments are, where they came from, how early professors of Christ viewed them, and how various ones, including the Beast of Revelation, will oppose them. A related sermon is titled: The Ten Commandments and the Beast of Revelation.
Christian Repentance Do you know what repentance is? Is it really necessary for salvation? A related sermon is also available titled: Real Christian Repentance.
The Two Trees: Only Two Ways of Life This is from a two-part radio broadcast from Herbert W. Armstrong.
Real Conversion Many think that they are converted Christians. But are they? Would you like to know more about conversion?
False Conversion! Have you really been converted? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote an article on this important subject–but more scriptures have been added to it. How can you tell false conversion? A related video is also available: False Conversion.
All About Water Baptism What is baptism? Would you like to know more about it. Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject. As far as early history, see also Baptism, the Early Church, and the Continuing Church.
Laying on of Hands This is an elementary principle of Hebrews 6. Have you properly had hands laid upon you? Here is a link to a related sermon: Laying on of Hands and Succession.
Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God differs from most Protestants How the real Church of God differs from mainstream/traditional Protestants, is perhaps the question I am asked most by those without a Church of God background. As far as some changes affecting Protestantism, watch the video Charismatic Kenneth Copeland and Anglican Tony Palmer: Protestants Beware! [Português: Esperança do salvação: Como a igreja do deus difere da maioria de protestantes]. A sermon is also available: How Does the Church of God Differ from Protestantism?
Which Is Faithful: The Roman Catholic Church or the Continuing Church of God? Do you know that both groups shared a lot of the earliest teachings? Do you know which church changed? Do you know which group is most faithful to the teachings of the apostolic church? Which group best represents true Christianity? This documented article answers those questions. [Português: Qual é fiel: A igreja católica romana ou a igreja do deus?]
Where is the True Christian Church Today? This free online pdf booklet answers that question and includes 18 proofs, clues, and signs to identify the true vs. false Christian church. Plus 7 proofs, clues, and signs to help identify Laodicean churches. A related sermon is also available: Where is the True Christian Church? Here is a link to the booklet in the Spanish language: ¿Dónde está la verdadera Iglesia cristiana de hoy? Here is a link in the German language: WO IST DIE WAHRE CHRISTLICHE KIRCHE HEUTE? Here is a link in the French language: Où est la vraie Église Chrétienne aujourd’hui?
The Last Great Day: Shemini ‘Azeret What is the ‘eighth day’ of the Feast? What does it help picture? A sermon on this topic is also available: Shemini Azaret: The Last Great Day.
Universal Offer of Salvation: There Are Hundreds of Verses in the Bible Supporting the Doctrine of True Apocatastasis Do you believe what the Bible actually teaches on this? Will all good things be restored? Will God call everyone? Will everyone have an opportunity for salvation? Does God’s plan of salvation take rebellion and spiritual blindness into account? Related sermon videos include Universal Offer of Salvation I: God is love  and Universal Offer of Salvation II: The Age to Come and the ‘Little Flock’ and Universal Offer of Salvation III: All Are to Know Jesus, But When? and Universal Offer of Salvation IV: Will the Guilty be Pardoned? and Universal Offer of Salvation V: All Israel Will be Saved? A version of the main article was also translated in the Spanish language: Oferta universal de salvación: Hay cientos de versículos en la Biblia que apoyan la verdadera doctrina de la Apocatastasis.
Should You Keep God’s Holy Days or Demonic Holidays? This is a free pdf booklet explaining what the Bible and history shows about God’s Holy Days and popular holidays. A related sermon is Which Spring Days should Christians observe?

Sarmat ‘Satan 2’ missile (Makeyev Rocket Design Bureau)

COGwriter

Russia Today reported the following:

‘Doomsday weapon’: How could the West respond to Russia’s nuclear underwater drone?

1 August 2018

US and British navies could counter Russia’s nuclear-powered autonomous torpedo, Poseidon, by using undersea sensors and anti-submarine aircraft, writes Covert Shores website. But is this really a viable tactic?

The development of the Poseidon unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), originally known as ‘Status-6’, was first mentioned in November 2015. Western media later dubbed the submarine drone a doomsday weapon.

On March 1, 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin officially confirmed the weapon’s existence in his annual address to the Federal Assembly.

“We have developed unmanned submersible vehicles that can move at great depths – I would say extreme depths – intercontinentally, at a speed multiple times higher than the speed of submarines, cutting-edge torpedoes and all kinds of surface vessels,” said Putin.

It is reported that the main goal of the torpedo is to deliver a thermonuclear warhead to enemy shores in order to destroy important coastal infrastructure and industrial objects, as well as ensure massive damage to the enemy’s territory by subjecting vast areas to radioactive tsunamis and other devastating consequences of a nuclear explosion.

Another potential use for the Poseidon torpedo is to strike US aircraft carrier battle groups. …

According to some reports, Poseidon can develop speeds up to 70 knots, which is faster than any US nuclear submarine or anti-ship torpedo. The operational depth of the Poseidon is more than a thousand meters, which also significantly exceeds the capabilities of US submarines. …

As for the capabilities of our hypothetical enemies to destroy the Poseidon, they are extremely limited.

“Today the MU90 Impact is the only NATO torpedo capable of reaching the depth of 1,000 meters,” Konstantin Makienko, deputy director of the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, told Gazeta.ru.

The expert emphasizes that a single torpedo of this class costs over $2 million. Also, according to other military experts, even in a high-speed mode (92 km/h), which decreases its range significantly, this torpedo is still slower than the Poseidon.

Makienko says that the Mark 54, which is the fastest US Navy torpedo, operates at 74 km/h. He believes that it is not capable of catching up with Poseidon or reaching its operational depth.

“Until we see a live experiment, any claims about the potential detection or destruction of the Poseidon are completely groundless. Thus far, all we hear is just words,” says the former Chief of Staff of the Russian Navy Viktor Kravchenko.

Currently no hypothetical adversary has a weapon capable of overtaking the Poseidon UUV at its operational depth or reaching its speeds, says Syroezhko. https://www.rt.com/op-ed/434759-drone-nuclear-poseidon-submarine/

So, it seems to be asserted that the West currently could not stop an attack from a Poseidon torpedo.

Here is something we posted about that torpedo late January:

The Doomsday Weapon

While we agonize over such life and death questions as clumsy men groping women and the crucial need for gender and racial ‘inclusion,’ let me spare a few seconds thought to something really important and scary: Russia’s doomsday nuclear torpedo.

Code-named by NATO ‘Kanyon,’ it’s reportedly something new and terrifying, a ‘third strike’ weapon designed to obliterate the US east and west coasts in a nuclear war. US intelligence seems to think this doomsday weapon is very real indeed. …

Now, the Russians appear to have responded to a new, trillion dollar US program to develop and deploy an anti-missile system that would negate their ballistic missile system: the ‘Kanyon.’ …

‘Kanyon,’ according to the right-wing Heritage Foundation, a cheerleader for military spending, is a mammoth 100-megaton nuclear device carried by an unmanned submarine. This monster weapon is designed to detonate on the US west coast, destroying the ports of San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. The device is reportedly covered with cobalt, for maximum radioactive effect.

A similar device launched from the Atlantic Ocean would devastate the US East coast, leaving it under a lethal shroud of radiation for generations. https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2018/01/28/the-doomsday-weapon.html

The Russian doomsday torpedo recently acknowledged by the Pentagon appears to be a multimegaton “third strike” weapon designed for maximum radioactive fallout. Described by the Defense Department as a “new intercontinental, nuclear-armed, undersea autonomous torpedo,” its development was first revealed in 2015 when a diagram of an ocean-going vessel leaked to the press. The “multi-purpose Status-6 system,” codenamed Kanyon by NATO, http://aviationweek.com/defense/russia-s-doomsday-torpedo-third-strike-weapon

The Status-6, also known as Kanyon, is a purported nuclear-powered and nuclear-armed unmanned underwater vehicle developed or being developed by the Russian Federation. It would supposedly be able to deliver a thermonuclear cobalt bomb of up to 100 megatonnes against enemy’s naval ports and coastal cities. “Kanyon” is the name given this drone by the Central Intelligence Agency. (Status-6 Oceanic Multipurpose System. Wikipedia, accessed 01/29/18)

Russian President Vladimir Putin boasted about another Russian missile last March as well:

March 1, 2018

Russian President Vladimir Putin boasted Thursday that his country has developed a nuclear-powered missile with an unlimited range that is also completely immune to enemy intercept.

Speaking during an annual state-of-the-nation speech in Moscow, Putin said the cruise missile is capable of penetrating any missile defense and can reach virtually any target around the world. “No defense systems will be able to withstand it,” he said.

NATO has nicknamed this missile — an RS-28 Sarmat rocket — “Satan 2.” Russian media has claimed it could entirely wipe out an area the size of Texas or France. …

Putin also unveiled what he said was Russia’s new advanced weapons technology — his two-hour address included video clips of underwater drones and intercontinental missiles — while delivering a warning to the United States over its pursuit of anti-missile defense systems. “Efforts to contain Russia have failed, face it,” he said.

“Nobody listened to us. Well, listen to us now,” Putin added, referring to accusations by Moscow that Washington has been violating non-nuclear proliferation agreements by assisting countries from Poland to Japan to establish global anti-missile systems.

It follows claims by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday that the U.S. is training armed forces in Europe on how use nuclear weapons against Russia. In his address in Moscow on Thursday, Putin said its new nuclear rocket effectively renders U.S. missile defense systems around the world meaningless.

“No one in the world has anything like (this weapon),” Putin said. “It may appear someday, but by that time we will develop something new.” https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2018/03/01/russias-putin-boasts-all-powerful-nuclear-missile/384142002/

As far as ‘Satan 2’ goes, the Continuing Church of God put together the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

13:30

Will Russia’s ‘Satan 2’ destroy Texas or France?

In late October 2016, Russia revealed its RS-28 Sarmat thermonuclear-armed ballistic missile. It has been dubbed as ‘Satan 2’ by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). It supposedly has the power to destroy an area the size of the State of Texas or the nation of France. Could it ever possibly be used to destroy either of those areas? What does the Bible say? What do Bible prophecies say about Europe, the USA, and Russia in the end times? Which power does the Bible teach will be made ‘a desolation’ by a Russian-led confederation? Could Satan 2 possibly be used? Dr. Thiel answers these questions and more.

Here is a link to our video: Will Russia’s ‘Satan 2’ destroy Texas or France?

Now, unless the Russians give/sell one of the ‘Satan 2’ missiles to the Europeans–or otherwise support European efforts–I do not believe it will ever be used to destroy Texas.

Yet, it is possible that something like this could be used one day to eliminate parts of Europe, such as France (see also The ‘Lost Tribe’ of Reuben: France in Prophecy?).

Russia has a lot of military power.

People who are trusting in Donald Trump and/or the US military, instead of looking to trust God and striving to be in His Kingdom, are deceiving themselves.

Before going further, let me state that Bible prophecy does NOT show that Russia will be the lead military power to destroy the USA–according to scripture that will be Europe (cf. Daniel 11:39; Revelation 13:1-4).

Also, let me state that contrary to the view of various Protestant prophecy commentators, the prophecies involving Russia in Ezekiel 38 are NOT for this time. Ezekiel 38 is for the distant future–and right at/after the millennium (cf. Revelation 20:7-9; see also Ezekiel 38: For Russia & Iran in Our Day?; a related video is also available titled Ezekiel 38: For Russia, Ukraine, & Iran Now?). But that does not mean that there cannot be military conflict between the USA and Russia now (and there is likely to be some).

But what about massive destruction with ties to Russia?

That will come. Europe will one day be hit. But this is at least seven years away (for some biblical reasons, see When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? ).

Could the USA be hit by ‘Satan 2,’ ‘Poseidon,’ or some similar weapon?

Yes.

It is possible that Russia would share its technology with Europe, give various weapons to the Beast of the Sea (Revelation 13:1-10), and/or launch one or more against the USA itself. Or Europe may get some ideas from the Poseidon and ‘Satan 2’ programs to prepare their own superweapons.

While WWIII will mainly be a war between Europe and the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies, Russia will likely be involved. Despite what many think about Europe and the military of the USA, the USA will lose. The following Bible prophecy shows that:

39 Thus he shall act against the strongest fortresses with a foreign god, which he shall acknowledge, and advance its glory; and he shall cause them to rule over many, and divide the land for gain (Daniel 11:39).

The strongest fortresses in the world belong to the USA and to a much lesser extent, its English-speaking allies (for a more detailed explanation of why the USA and its Anglo-allies are involved, as well as the dividing of their lands, please see Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel). Some would call this attack World War III (WWIII).

The “he” mentioned in Daniel 11 is the European King of the North, who is also the Beast of the Sea in Daniel 7 and Revelation 13.

Now, did you notice that ‘he’ divides the land for gain?

Although Russia sold Alaska to the United States in the 1800s, there have been reports that it wants it back.

Apparently, even Stalin may have wanted to regain it according to the following story:

Atlanta Journal Constitution – Aug 7, 2010 excerpt…

Nearly 60 years ago, Alexander Vitebsky was a young Soviet officer stationed in Siberia, part of a massive force assembled to try to fulfill Joseph Stalin’s dream of invading Alaska.

“It was very secretive,” said Vitebsky, who, for decades afterward, also carried a secret — he dreamed of coming to America. “We didn’t buy what we were told about America.” (http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/atlantas-public-housing-is-587310.html)

Furthermore, notice:

Offshoot of Russian Orthodox Church Thrives in Alaska

August 5, 2017

Alaska is the biggest – yet one of the least populated American states. There are just over 741,000 people living there – oil industry workers, adventurers from all over the U.S., Native Alaskans, immigrants. Within this complex cultural mosaic there is a group known as Russian Old believers. Nearly 50 years ago, they established a village called Nikolaevsk on Alaska’s Kenai peninsula. https://www.voanews.com/a/offshoot-russian-orthodox-church-thrives-in-alaska/3973089.html

A while back, a Russian Professor has forecast that Russia would end up with Alaska:

MOSCOW — For a decade, Russian academic Igor Panarin has been predicting the U.S. will fall apart…Prof. Panarin, 50 years old, is not a fringe figure. A former KGB analyst, he is dean of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s academy for future diplomats…

When the going gets tough, he says, wealthier states will withhold funds from the federal government and effectively secede from the union. Social unrest up to and including a civil war will follow. The U.S. will then split along ethnic lines, and foreign powers will move in…

“It would be reasonable for Russia to lay claim to Alaska; it was part of the Russian Empire for a long time.” A framed satellite image of the Bering Strait that separates Alaska from Russia like a thread hangs from his office wall. “It’s not there for no reason,” he says with a sly grin.

(Osborn A. As if Things Weren’t Bad Enough, Russian Professor Predicts End of U.S. Wall Street Journal, Dec 29, 2008 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123051100709638419.html).

It is certainly possible that if Russia makes a deal with the rising European Beast power that it may end up with Alaska.

Bible prophecy points to Anglo-lands that will be divided in Daniel 11:39 and other scriptures (for details see Will the Anglo-Nations be Divided?). Russia may well end up with some of all of Alaska and maybe even parts of Canada.

Russia may cooperate with the European King of the North. Notice something that the old Radio Church of God published back in 1962:

Germany, those living in Germany, even the German government, may not yet know that they are going to join in a treaty with the Russians to destroy the United States and bring it to its knees-it is not in his “heart” to think so, but on the other hand it IS in his “heart” to destroy-the very characteristic of the Assyrian, the modern German, is a harsh, cruel, iron, dedication to militarism and destruction! (Hill DJ, God’s Destiny for Germany. Plain Truth, March 1962, pp. 28-29)

I too, expect that Russia will make a deal with the Europeans. Some have been hinted at in this century (see Vladimir Putin: ‘Russia does not want to split EU’ and Greece begs Germany’s Merkel not to throw them ‘overboard,’ while it makes deals with Russia; see also Vladimir Putin allegedly helped stop a Grexit).

Partially (and only partially) because of Donald Trump, steps are aligning for Europe and Russia to cooperate more–though this will be temporary.

Russia has major military capability.

The use of something like ‘Poseidon’ could devastate the eastern and western coasts of the USA or coasts in Europe.

The Bible is clear that Russia will be a significant military power in the end and cause fear (Daniel 11:44-45; Jeremiah 50:41-43 ; see also Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future).

Its ‘Satan 2’ and ‘Poseidon’ missiles are consistent with those prophecies.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? There is also a video sermon available: Russia in the Bible and in Prophecy and a video sermonette available: Ukraine in Prophecy?
The ‘Lost Tribe’ of Reuben: France in Prophecy? What is the origin of this in France? What is prophesied to happen to them? A two-part sermon related to history and prophecy is available online: The ‘Lost Tribe’ of Reuben and France and Prophecy.
Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?
European Technology and the Beast of Revelation Will the coming European Beast power would use and develop technology that will result in the taking over of the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies? Is this possible? What does the Bible teach? Here is a related YouTube video: Military Technology and the Beast of Revelation.
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? Here is a link to a video titled: The Future King of the North.
Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European? The Book of Revelation tells of a beast power that will rise up. Some think that this must be Russia or could be Islamic, while others say that this power is European. The Book of Daniel tells of the rise of an end time King of the North that some think must be referring to a Russian leader, while others say that this power is European. How can you be sure? This YouTube video has all the scriptural proofs that you should need to prove that this power must be a European one.
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2018, 2019, or 2020? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede comenzar la Gran Tribulación en 2018 o 2019? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? You can also see the English language sermon videos: The Great Tribulation from the Mount of Olives and Can the Great Tribulation begin before 2020? A shorter video is: Can the Great Tribulation begin in 2018?
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. Another video is: watch Is China paving roads to Armageddon?
The Eurasian Union, the Kings of the East, and Bible Prophecy Is there a Eurasian union that will be formed? Is one being formed right now? Are any leaders working on that in the 21st century? Does the Bible teach that there will be a Eurasian union? If some type of Eurasian union is formed, who might it benefit and who will it destroy? A related video would be Is The Eurasian Union Rising?
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 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?
WTO/TTIP and the Babylonian Beast Will international trade agreements like WTO/TTIP/CETA lead to the fulfillment of end time prophecies concerning the Babylonian Beast power that the Book of Revelation warns against? What does the Bible teach? A related video would be WTO Trade Deal and the Rise of the European Beast Power.
Donald Trump in Prophecy Prophecy, Donald Trump? Are there prophecies that Donald Trump may fulfill? Are there any prophecies that he has already helped fulfill? Is a Donald Trump presidency proving to be apocalyptic? Two related videos are available: Donald: ‘Trump of God’ or Apocalyptic? and Donald Trump’s Prophetic Presidency.
Trump Presidency Magic 8 Ball or Bible Prophecy? BBC reported that one might as well use a ‘Magic Eight-Ball’ to try to predict what will happen in the remaining time of Donald Trump’s presidency. What is a ‘Magic Eight-Ball’? Dr. Thiel not only explains that, but also briefly goes over 10 biblically-based warnings he wrote would happen if Donald Trump were elected that have already began to come to pass. He also goes over something he wrote back in 2008 that the Trump presidency is also helping lead to fulfillment. Should you trust Bible prophecy or not? Dr. Thiel says that Bible prophecy can be trusted, despite the view of skeptics and others that either overlook or despise the Bible. This is a video.
Donald Trump and America’s Apocalypse This 188 page book is for people truly interested in prophecies related to Donald Trump and the United States, including learning about several that have already been fulfilled and those that will be fulfilled in the future. The physical book can be purchased at Amazon for $12.99 from the following link: Donald Trump and America’s Apocalypse.
Donald Trump and America’s Apocalypse-Kindle Edition This electronic version of the 188 page print 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 Donald Trump and America’s Apocalypse-Kindle Edition.
Can those in the USA/UK see the Handwriting on the Wall? Is everything fine in the USA/UK or is it like the days of Noah? Can we learn from the handwriting that appeared on a wall thousands of years ago? Here is a link to a related YouTube video Can you see the ‘Handwriting on the Wall’?
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?
World War III: Steps in Progress Are there surprising actions going on now that are leading to WWIII? Might a nuclear attack be expected? Does the Bible promise protection to all or only some Christians? How can you be part of those that will be protected? A related video would be Is World War III About to Begin? Can You Escape?

COGwriter

What is your destiny? Are you to rule the universe as a deified being with God? Might God’s plan include YOU?

A Church of God doctrine that many Protestants seem to indicate identifies a group as a “cult” is the teaching that Christians are to become deified. Or worded another way, Christians are to become God.

Although this belief is often considered to be “unorthodox” and outside of “mainstream Christianity,” it probably should be pointed out that the Eastern Orthodox Church teaches this doctrine (and there are around 200-300 million of them), so the term “unorthodox” seems not to fit (the Catholics of Rome and certain others also teach versions of it).

The reality is that both the Bible and writings of early professors of Christ demonstrate that the idea that Jesus became human so that humans could become part of the family of God is not new nor “unorthodox.” However, since most who claim to be Christian are not familiar with most of the early writings, they simply do not realize that deification is not an “unorthodox” view and it was held by many.

This brief article will attempt to provide documented proof that this deification is both biblical and historical and is the intended destiny for converted Christians (you can also watch the video titled What is Your Destiny?).

Does the Bible Teach That Humans Will Become Part of the Family of God?

Jesus taught deification:

34 Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, “You are gods” ‘? 35 If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), 36 do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? (John 10:34-36, NKJV throughout except if otherwise noted).

And this was not only referring to His deification as He quoted from Psalm 82:6 which also is in the plural:

6 I said, “You are gods, And all of you are children of the Most High…” (Psalm 82:6).

God wants godly offspring, and that is why God made humans male and female and created marriage, as the Prophet Malachi was inspired to write:

14…she is your companion And your wife by covenant. 15 But did He not make them one, Having a remnant of the Spirit? And why one? He seeks godly offspring. (Malachi 2:14-15)

Paul also taught that we are God’s offspring:

28 for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’ 29 Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. (Acts 17:28-30)

Additionally, about real Christians, the Apostle Paul specifically taught “we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16)–we do have that mind and strive to have more.

Paul wrote that Jesus was to be the firstborn of many brethren:

29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren (Romans 8:29).

Notice that there are to be MANY brethren (see also Universal Offer of Salvation: There Are Hundreds of Verses in the Bible Supporting the Doctrine of True Apocatastasis). The offer of salvation and deification are not going to be limited just to a few (Luke 3:6; though most will not receive their opportunity in this age, cf. Matthew 7:13-14).

As God is our Father, we are to be “conformed to the image of His Son,” Jesus is God, Jesus is our brother, are we not to be in the family of God and truly be deified?

Furthermore, the Bible teaches that “God is love” (1 John 4:8,16). Love is what life is all about (see also What is the Meaning of Life?).

Christians are to display the love of God towards their neighbor and strive to be perfect as God is perfect:

43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? 48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect. (Matthew 5:43-48)

Christians are to live as God wants them to and to also have the love of God (see also Living as a Christian: How and Why? and here is a YouTube video related to that, also called: Living as a Christian: How and Why?).

God is also holy and His people are to be holy as well:

15 but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:15-16)

Notice what happened to Jesus is supposed to happen to us:

20 But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 23 But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming (1 Corinthians 15:20-23).

18 Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures (James 1:18).

4 These were redeemed from among men, being firstfruits to God and to the Lamb (Revelation 14:4).

16 For if the firstfruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches (Romans 11:16).

Christians are to be firstfruits like Christ. As a firstfruit, Christ is divine.

Notice something Jesus prayed:

10 And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are. (John 17:10-11)

Since both the Father and Son are divine beings, Jesus prayed for His followers to be one as He and the Father are–which means part of the God family. Lest anyone wish to interpret the above scripture to mean something else, Jesus continued His prayer and also prayed the following:

20 “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; 21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22 And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: 23 I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me. 24 “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. 26 And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” (John 17:20-26)

Jesus prayed that His followers would become one in the same way. He and His Father are one. And they are one divine family.

Furthermore, notice that the Bible does teach that there is a whole family which is named after God the Father, and that we are to know the love of Christ so that we can truly have the fullness of God:

14 For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height — 19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:14-19).

If one is filled with “all the fullness of God” does not that suggest that they will be also God as part of the Family of God?

The Apostle Paul also taught:

16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together (Romans 8:16-17, KJV).

17 Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. (2 Corinthians 3:17-18)

18 ‘I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:18)

Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world (Philippians 2:14-15).

Notice that “the children of God” are to be “glorified together” with Christ as “joint-heirs” and are to be transformed into the same image as God. And God will be a Father to His sons and daughters.

The Apostle John taught:

12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name (John 1:12).

1 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! 2 Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God (1 John 3:1-2a).

The children of people are people, the children of cows are cows. What are the children of God?

The Apostle Peter taught deification:

3 His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:3-4).

Are not those that are “partakers of the divine nature” somehow deified? And fully partaking of this nature does not happen until after the resurrection (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:50-53).

Ruling the Universe is Part of the Your Destiny

If you respond properly to God (either in this age, or if applicable, the age to come), then ruling the creation, the universe is part of your destiny. Notice:

21…the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. (Romans 8:21-22)

As joint heirs with Christ, resurrected converted humans are to rule the universe :

2:5 For He has not put the world to come, of which we speak, in subjection to angels. 6 But one testified in a certain place, saying:

“What is man that You are mindful of him,Or the son of man that You take care of him? 7 You have made him a little lower than the angels;You have crowned him with glory and honor, And set him over the works of Your hands. 8 You have put all things in subjection under his feet.”

For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him. 9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.

10 For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. 11 For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, 12 saying:

“I will declare Your name to My brethren;In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You.”

13 And again:

“I will put My trust in Him.”

And again:

“Here am I and the children whom God has given Me.”

14 Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 16 For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham. 17 Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.

3:1 Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus, 2 who was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was faithful in all His house. 3 For this One has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as He who built the house has more honor than the house. 4 For every house is built by someone, but He who built all things is God. 5 And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward, 6 but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end. (Hebrews 2:5-3:6)

Ruling the universe is part of the destiny that God has in store for the vast bulk of humanity.

Deification and Human Destiny

The Bible makes it clear that God’s plan included making humans in the image of God and that ultimately the universe would be put under the control of deified humans. And nearly all humans who lived will ultimately be converted after they have been truly offered salvation (see Universal Offer of Salvation: There Are Hundreds of Verses in the Bible Supporting the Doctrine of True Apocatastasis). Deification and ruling the universe will be the destiny of the bulk of humanity.

But it needs to be pointed out that just as the Son is subject to the Father, Christians will not be above either the Father or the Son. The Father is greater than the Son (John 14:28) and both will always be greater than spirit-born Christians. Jesus also is King of Kings (Revelation 19:16) and High Priest (Hebrews 6:20), thus He will always be above deified humans.

Also, while God is eternal (Deuteronomy 33:27), all humans have had a beginning and thus will always have been around for a finite time. Thus, deification does not mean that Christians will be truly equal to God, but will be His true sons and daughters (without gender issues).

The Bible teaches deification from Genesis through Revelation if one will simply believe what the Bible is actually teaching. And those who professed Christ in the early centuries after His resurrection also taught that. As have certain others since.

And the Continuing Church of God teaches that today. The view that Jesus became human so that humans could be in the family of God and rule in the Kingdom of God is not a cultic view, but is a biblical and historical one.

You may be thinking, “well I have heard some of this before from some religion,” what is MY purpose? Who am I? Why me?

YOU are unique. You are one who can give love in a unique way. Ultimately God has special plans for YOU personally. YOU are not the same as everyone else–YOU can be a deified being that has unique insights and abilities.

The Bible makes it clear that we are not all the same and are not to contribute the same way, and it uses the analogy of the body in 1 Corinthians 12:12-23 to do so:

For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body–whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free–and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. For in fact the body is not one member but many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased. And if they were all one member, where would the body be? But now indeed there are many members, yet one body. And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary.

Yes, YOU, whether strong or weak, are necessary. God’s plan includes a plan for YOU! Yes, you. This point is also referred to in Ephesians by the Apostle Paul, and involves love:

15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head–Christ– 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love (Ephesians 4:15-16).

Yes, YOU have a part to do! You are important even if you are not sure what your part is–God’s word says it is!

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

What is Your Destiny? Deification? Did the Early Church Teach That Christians Would Become God? What is your ultimate destiny? What does the Bible teach? Is deification only a weird or cultic idea? What did early and later Christians teach? Are you to rule the universe? Here is a link to the video sermon What is Your Destiny?
Overcoming Sin What is sin? How are Christians suppose to overcome it? There is also a YouTube video titled How to Overcome Sin.
Is God Calling You? This is a draft booklet discussing calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond?
What is the Unpardonable Sin? What is it? Can you repent of it? Do you know what it is and how to avoid it? Here is a link to a related sermon video The Unpardonable Sin and the Prodigal Son. Here is a link to a shorter video The ‘Unpardonable Sin’ and ‘Climate Change’?
When You Sin: Do You Really Repent? This is an article by Charles F. Hunting. A related sermon is Confess to God and truly repent.
History of Auricular Confession and the ‘Sacrament of Confession’ Did early Christians confess their sins to priests?
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.
Living as a Christian: How and Why? In what ways do Christians live differently than others. What about praying, fasting, tithing, holy days, and the world? There is also a YouTube video related to that also called: Living as a Christian: How and Why?
What is the Meaning of Life? Who does God say is happy? What is your ultimate destiny? Do you really know? Does God actually have a plan for YOU personally? There is also a video titled What is the meaning of your life?
Why Were You Born? Why did God make you? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject.
Christians are to Rule Are Christians really to rule? If so, how will that turn out?
The History of Early Christianity Are you aware that what most people believe is not what truly happened to the true Christian church? Do you know where the early church was based? Do you know what were the doctrines of the early church? Is your faith really based upon the truth or compromise?