Archive for February, 2021

Great Reset: European conspiracy or a convergence of humanism or both?

Friday, February 5th, 2021


(Public Domain Pictures)

COGwriter

The “great reset” has been in the news a lot since the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) executive chairman Klaus Schwab brought it up last June.

Many organizations have long supported something like it. Before getting to some of them, notice that even the real estate industry is expected to be involved:

February 5, 2021

On Thursday, February 18, Brookings’s Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Center for Transformative Placemaking will host an event focused on The Great Real Estate Reset, examining the forces that pushed the industry toward this moment and the tactics to address it. Representative Dan Kildee (D-Mich.) will open the program with keynote remarks, followed by a panel of local leaders discussing practice and policies the real estate industry and the public sector must adopt to successfully meet the moment. https://www.brookings.edu/events/the-great-real-estate-reset-rethinking-how-and-what-we-build/

Anyway, the above is showing more interest in the USA for openly promoting the ‘great reset’ concept.

Now, notice the following:

‘Great Reset’ Plan Parallels Some of Pope’s Initiatives — But There’s a Crucial Difference

Like the plan’s promoters, the Holy Father also believes the global economy needs to be reshaped coming out of the pandemic …

February 4, 2021

VATICAN CITY — Since it first came to public attention in June 2020, much discussion has surrounded the “Great Reset” — a global vision pushed by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and supported by various world leaders to rebuild a society after COVID based on greater solidarity and a more sustainable economy.

Prominent backers include President Joe Biden, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Britain’s Prince Charles. Each see it as a blueprint for “resetting capitalism,” a chance to “build back better” after the global pandemic, and to set the world on a more environmentally friendly and sustainable path for which there is “no alternative.”

But many others have criticized the Great Reset’s ambitions, including Brazil’s minister of foreign affairs, Ernesto Araujo, who outright rejected it, saying that “totalitarian social control is not the remedy for any crisis,” and the progressive author Naomi Klein, who is concerned it creates an “insidious” and “false impression” that global elites are serious about tackling the issues the Global Reset raises. In the Church, Cardinal Raymond Burke has called it a manipulative attack on freedom and the family.

More generally, critics see it as a flawed and dangerous agenda that paves the way for an autocratic global future more closely resembling the communist-capitalist system of an increasingly dominant China. …

To achieve that new social contract, the Great Reset’s architects argue that the world “must act jointly and swiftly to revamp all aspects of our societies and economies, from education to social contracts and working conditions.”

Schwab himself sees the predominant Western-based economic system, heavily laden with enormous debt estimated to be $277 trillion, as “not fit anymore for the 21st century” and in need of reform. The world, he believes, is entering what he calls a “Fourth Industrial Revolution” — a new era of paradigm change driven by technological breakthroughs such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing and robotics — and needs to adapt accordingly.  …

Overlaps With Pope Francis’ Approach

The theme of a “great reset” is not exclusive to the World Economic Forum. Others have called for some form of communitarian reset of values and institutions, including Pope Francis, who sees the pandemic as exposing capitalism’s flaws.

Having overseen his own hotly debated reset of the Church over the past eight years, the Pope has begun a number of initiatives along some of the same lines as Schwab.

He has frequently expressed a wish for the world to take the opportunity to emerge better from the COVID crisis, including through his October 2020 social encyclical Fratelli Tutti (which the WEF read as proposing a reset similar to its own), his “Economy of Francesco” initiative in Assisi in November that proposed a “new economy” of “communal wealth,” his U.N.-affiliated Global Compact for Education initiative, or the Vatican’s collaboration with Mission 4.7, a U.N.-backed project that, like the Global Compact, aims to educate the world in sustainable lifestyles, gender equality and a culture of peace and nonviolence.

Also relevant to his vision for resetting the world’s socioeconomic systems is Francis’ new interview book with papal biographer Austen Ivereigh. Called Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future, an excerpt of which was published in The New York Times, Francis’ vision overlaps substantially with the Great Reset. “For me it’s clear,” Francis writes. “We must redesign the economy so that it can offer every person access to a dignified existence while protecting and regenerating the natural world.”  …

As for the notion that the Great Reset is about establishing a new world order controlled by the elites, Cardinal Turkson blamed such theories on internet sites and a conspiracy theory that “used to be attributed to the Illuminati” — a Bavarian secret society founded in 1776 and similar to the Freemasons.

Cristin also preferred not to speak of a “plot,” only a “struggle for power” to build a “new world order.” But if such a new order ever comes to fruition, “it will be a further contribution to global chaos,” he predicted. https://www.ncregister.com/news/great-reset-plan-parallels-some-of-pope-s-initiatives-but-there-s-a-crucial-difference

As it turns out, the Freemasons have pushed for many of the same items that Pope Francis has pushed for, especially in the realm of interfaith acceptance and cooperation. As have many other organizations. They do NOT believe in the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, but a humanistic solution–which is NOT a solution to the problems facing humankind.

The true “crucial difference” that the above article missed related to the Vatican and the great reset is that an ‘antipope’ (the final Antichrist) will embrace even more of the great reset agenda, push for Europe to be reorganized, and by part of the betrayal of the Church of Rome according to the Bible (see Revelation 17:12-18).

That being said, some Roman Catholic leaders do see the reality that ideas like the great reset can lead to totalitarianism:

February 4, 2021

Cardinal Müller expressed sympathy for those sounding the alarm about the Great Reset and recalled that totalitarian systems “have always denigrated any criticism as conspiracy and subversion.”

The many warnings of totalitarian rule in the 20th century “can hardly be discredited as conspiracy theories, since real political developments have proven them right,” the German cardinal said. “Blind trust in the philanthropic attitude of the leaders of the Big Foundations and Open Societies is only possible with a completely naive denial of reality.” https://www.ncregister.com/news/great-reset-plan-parallels-some-of-pope-s-initiatives-but-there-s-a-crucial-difference

That being said, many Roman Catholics, Protestants, and others are pushing for the type of ecumenical and interfaith unity that the United Nations and the WEF want.

For example, notice something that Ecumenical News reported:

February 4, 2021

The international Focolare Movement that promotes unity and universal kinship has a new president for the next six years — Margaret Karram — an Arab Catholic, born 1962 in Haifa, Israel.

Karram is an expert in interreligious dialogue and will be the third president of Focolare for a six-year term.

Focolare was founded by Italian teacher Chiara Lubich in 1943 and aims to build “a more united world in which people value and respect diversity.

“We are inspired by Jesus’ prayer to the Father, ‘May they all be one,'” (John’s gospel. 17:21), says the movement on its website. …

The election on Jan. 31 has been approved by the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life, in accordance with the Movement’s Statutes, Catholic News Service reported. …

The interim World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Ioan Sauca sent a congratulatory message to Karram on her election.

CHRISTIAN, JEWISH, MUSLIM DIALOGUE

“Your commitment to promoting the dialogue between Christians, Jews, and Muslims as well as your engagement in a sustained dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians are inspiring assets for the worldwide Movement of Focolare and beyond.

“With your vast academic, ecumenical and interreligious experience I trust that you will become a bridge-builder and an ambassador of the central message and spirituality of the Focolare.” …

While Focolare is the common moniker given to this organization, its official name when approved in 1990 as an International Association of the Faithful of Pontifical Right, was “Work of Mary”, https://www.ecumenicalnews.com/article/israeli-born-margaret-karram-elected-president-of-focolare-movement/60830.htm

So, Focolare is a Marian movement within the Roman Catholic Church to promote an ecumenical and interfaith agenda, which is also praised by the World Council of Churches (which basically represents many of the Protestant and Eastern Orthodox churches).

As far as Focolare’s Margaret Karram supposedly be inspired by Jesus’ prayer to be one, it should be pointed out that Jesus was NOT referring to the acceptance of all religions as equal. Speaking to a Samaritan woman, Jesus said:

22 You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:22-24)

Jesus also said to the Pharisees:

8 “These people draw near to Me with their mouth,
And honor Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.
9 And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ (Matthew 15:8-9)

So, no, Jesus did not consider all religions equal or one with He and the Father.

Those pushing for a great reset “did not like to retain God in their knowledge,” therefore “God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; 32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them” (Romans 1:28-32).

This is why we are seeing agendas like the ‘great reset’ and that of the LGBTQ+ crowd.

Is this a conspiracy?

Isaiah wrote:

12 Do not say, ‘A conspiracy,’
Concerning all that this people call a conspiracy,
Nor be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled. (Isaiah 8:12)

What is going on with the ‘great reset’ and interfaith movements is not so much a hidden conspiracy–as it is out in the open–but essentially the result of humanism that is influenced by Satan for those who do not truly believe the Bible.

Religious leaders do not believe the Bible?

That is sadly often the case.

If they did they would not be pushing an interfaith agenda and a humanistic one world government.

Notice something that the Apostle Paul wrote:

14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:
“I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.”
17 Therefore, “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-17)

Real Christians are NOT to support the interfaith plans.

They will lead to 666 and totalitarian control (cf. Revelation 13) and the final mystery Babylon the Great (Revelation 17).

In addition to having support from the Vatican, Freemasons, World Council of Churches, United Nations, government leaders, etc., the WEF’s great reset is also inclusive of aspects of the LGBTQ+ agenda.

Speaking of that, the LGBTQ+ crowd has also supported the interfaith agenda and vice versa. Related to some of that, the Continuing Church of God (CCOG) put out the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

15:05 
Deutsche Welle reported “LGBT conversion therapy: Religious leaders call for ban to ‘abhorrent’ practice.” 370 religious leaders around the world have declared their support for the LGBTQ+ agenda. They declare their support of the view of the World Health Organization that it is normal to not be cisgender heterosexual. They bemoan “that certain religious teachings have often, throughout the ages” (like those of the Bible) have “caused … offense to those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex.” The Global Interfaith Commission on LGBT+ Lives wants people to tell their religious leaders to sign a supportive “Global Declaration.’ Yet, this is in conflict with scripture. In this video, Dr. Thiel quotes scriptures from the Holy Bible that clearly oppose and condemn homosexuality, lesbianism, transgenderism, and male effeminacy. God is not the author of confusion. Dr. Thiel also quotes passages in the Bible where God warns what will happen to those who despise His statutes, abhors God’s judgments, so that you do not perform all His commandments. Dr. Thiel also points to the totalitarian system the interfaith agenda is moving towards.

Here is a link to the video: Interfaith movement pushing LGBTQ+ agenda.

Regarding the Freemasons, the Continuing Church of God put out the following sermon on its ContinuingCOG channel:


1:16:04

What is Freemasonry? How long has it been around? Does Freemasonry point to cataclysms, such as Armageddon in 2022? Were many US founders and presidents Freemasons? Is there a difference between the USA/UK Freemasons and those in continental Europe? Can a biblical Christian be a Freemason? Are Roman Catholics allowed to be Freemasons? Do the Freemasons have a plan that includes an ecumenical Pope? Are Rotarians Freemasons? What about the Illuminati? Are many conspiracies about the Freemasons false? Could Freemasonry play a role in the rise of Europe and the destruction of the Church of Seven Hills?

Here is a link to the sermon: Freemasonry, Armageddon, and Rome.

Satan despises God and His people.

Yes Satan has a plan (see Satan’s Plan).

He has been pushing an anti-biblical, anti-family, and anti-Kingdom of God agenda.

Satan, if you will, is the chief conspirator as he has been behind the scenes. Notice that Paul confirmed that when he wrote of “the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2).

By rejecting the truth, human organizations have endorsed and pushed Satan’s agenda.

The type of reset Satan wants is NOT the coming Kingdom of God, but the reign of the Beast and the Antichrist.

As far as the ‘great reset’ goes, the Continuing Church of God (CCOG) put out the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

20:21

Is the end coming in 2021? Jesus’ disciples specifically asked Him how to know when this would happen (Matthew 24:3)–and He responded with details (Matthew 24:4-22). Sadly, many overlook what Jesus taught, but instead try to point to other things. Is it possible for the Great Tribulation to start in 2021 or before 2024? What about the so-called Big Reset and the so-called Great Reset. The World Economic Forum has posted, “The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development sets out a 17 Global Goals (SDGs) to facilitate equal, sustainable and inclusive growth across the world, while promoting peace. … The platform seeks to form 4IR technology partnership … There is an urgent need for global stakeholders to cooperate in simultaneously managing the direct consequences of the COVID-19 crisis. To improve the state of the world, the World Economic Forum is starting The Great Reset initiative.” What are the main points of that according to Klaus Schwab? Will that happen in 2021? Did Glenn Beck warn against the Great Reset? What about property ownership changes? Will artificial intelligence and other 4IR technologies lead to the peaceful world that the United Nations is promoting for 2030 or instead to a totalitarian rule? Dr. Thiel answers these questions and more as he points to the return of Jesus and the establishment of the Kingdom of God.

Here is a link to the video: 2021: The Great Tribulation or the Great Reset?

After the coming ‘Beast reset,’ Jesus will eliminate the Beast power and establish the millennial Kingdom of God.

This will be a time of abundance and prosperity.

Pray for the Kingdom of God to come (Matthew 6:10).

Yet, expect troubles and tribulation during this decade (Mark 13:8-20)–and a world heading towards an anti-biblical reset.

UPDATE 02/07/21: We just put together the following related video:

19:51

Will there be a “Great Reset”?

The theme of the World Economic Forum’s 2021 meeting was the “great reset.” What is the great reset that Klaus Schwab wrote about in his June 2020 book, ‘COVID-19: The Great Reset’? World leaders such as Joe Biden, Justin Trudeau, Angela Merkel, Prince Charles, and Pope Francis have pushed for it. But leaders such as Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller, Vladimir Putin, and Jason Kenny have opposed it? Is it a conspiracy? Could the Freemasons, Vatican, and World Council of Churches be endorsing it? Is a great reset prophesied in the Bible? Should you support the humanitarian reset world leaders and academics are pushing? Could a major reset come after the start of the ride of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse and the sorrows that Jesus spoke of? Is this related to the rise of the Beast and the Antichrist? Will a reset last 3 1/2 years, 42 months? What did Jesus say about the Kingdom of God? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more in this video.

Here is a link to our video: Will there be a “Great Reset”?

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Will the Interfaith Movement Lead to Peace or Sudden Destruction? Is the interfaith movement going to lead to lasting peace or is it warned against? A video sermon of related interest is: Will the Interfaith Movement lead to World War III? and a video sermon is also available: Do You Know That Babylon is Forming?
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 related to China’s One Belt, One Road Initiative (Silk Road project): watch Is China paving roads to Armageddon?
Satan’s Plan Does Satan have a plan? What is it? Has it already been successful? Will it be successful in the future? Here are links to a two-part sermon series: What are Some of the Parts of Satan’s Plan? and Satan’s Plan is More Dramatic than Many Realize.
Mystery of Iniquity What is the mystery of iniquity? How did it start? How will it end? Two related sermons are also available: The Mystery of Iniquity and The Mystery of Lawlessness.
Freemasonry and the Destruction of Rome? What is Freemasonry? What about ties to the Illuminati? Could Freemasons be involved in the fulfillment of prophecy? Here is a link to a related sermon: Freemasonry, Armageddon, and Rome.
Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is a link to a related sermon: Could God be Calling You? A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Christian Repentance Do you know what repentance is? Is it really necessary for salvation? A related sermon is also available titled: Real Christian Repentance.

USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses Can you point to scriptures, like Daniel 11:39, that point to the USA in the 21st century? This article does. Two related sermon are available: Identifying the USA and its Destruction in Prophecy and Do these 7 prophesies point to the end of the USA?
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? 2028 or or 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
Might the U.S.A. Be Gone by 2028? Are there prophetic reasons to believe that the USA will not last two complete presidential terms? Yes. There is a tradition attributed to the Hebrew prophet Elijah that humanity had 6,000 years to live before being replaced by God’s Kingdom. There are scriptures, writings in the Talmud, early Christian teachings that support this. Also, even certain Hindu writings support it. Here is a link to a related video: Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028?
The Great Tribulation: What Happens First? What events have happened? What are some events that are now happening? And what events need to happen for the Great Tribulation to start? Here is a link to a related sermon video: Counting Down to the Great Tribulation.
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2021, 2022, or 2023? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: 2021: The Great Tribulation or the Great Reset?
Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?
European Technology and the Beast of Revelation Will the coming European Beast power would use and develop technology that will result in the taking over of the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies? Is this possible? What does the Bible teach? Here is a related YouTube video: Military Technology and the Beast of Revelation.
Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations? Some claim that these passages refer to a gathering of 10 currently existing nations together, while one group teaches that this is referring to 11 nations getting together. Is that what Revelation 17:12-13 refers to? The ramifications of misunderstanding this are enormous. A related sermon is titled Ten Kings of Revelation and the Great Tribulation.
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?
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here are links to two related videos: The King of the North is Alive: What to Look Out For and The Future King of the North.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to three related sermons: The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.

Kamala Harris makes tie breaking vote for $1.9 trillion more in debt; Jim Rickards warns of hyperinflation

Friday, February 5th, 2021


COGwriter

Notice the following about the daughter of Jamaican immigrants approving voting for what will be more debt:

Senate Dems Push Through $1.9TN Stimulus Blueprint As Harris Casts First Tiebreaker

February 5, 2021

Democrats moved to push through President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus plan with or without – most likely without – Republican support. Following an hours-long “vote-o-rama” (a sophisticated legislative procedure, for those who aren’t familiar), VP Kamala Harris cast her first tie-breaking vote to approve the budget plan in the Senate.

The deciding vote came early Friday morning, after about 15 hours of all-night debate, and votes on dozens of amendments. In the end, the Senate found itself in a 50-50 partisan deadlock, allowing Harris to break the tie in a 0530ET vote…

Shortly before the final vote, Democrats upped the pressure on Republicans by using amendments to reverse three earlier Trump-era votes that Republicans had won. …

Given the changes approved by the Senate, the revised bill will now be kicked back to the House, which will need to approve the changes and agree on the Senate’s language. After all that is done, there is still one last step: Democrats will come together to craft the final relief bill, and pass it under special budget rules allowing them to circumvent a Republican filibuster in the Senate. The special rule is called “reconciliation”, https://www.zerohedge.com/political/senate-dems-push-through-19tn-stimulus-harris-casts-first-tiebreaker

Joe Biden has called for more ‘stimulus’ (debt) and looks to be getting his way.

Of course, since the US Treasury is broke, this means another $1.9 trillion in debt.

Most in the media and in government act like more debt is a good thing.

However, the Bible clearly warns that an indebted people will be destroyed by people whose language that they do not understand, and that the destruction will be fairly total:

43 The alien who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower. 44 He shall lend to you, but you shall not lend to him; he shall be the head, and you shall be the tail. 45 Moreover all these curses shall come upon you and pursue and overtake you, until you are destroyed…47 “Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48 therefore you shall serve your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you. 49 The LORD will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you will not understand, 50 a nation of fierce countenance, which does not respect the elderly nor show favor to the young. 51 And they shall eat the increase of your livestock and the produce of your land, until you are destroyed; they shall not leave you grain or new wine or oil, or the increase of your cattle or the offspring of your flocks, until they have destroyed you. 52 They shall besiege you at all your gates until your high and fortified walls, in which you trust, come down throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you at all your gates throughout all your land which the LORD your God has given you (Deuteronomy 28:42-45,47-52).

7 The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender. (Proverbs 22:7)

13 And the Lord said, “Because they have forsaken My law which I set before them, and have not obeyed My voice, nor walked according to it, 14 but they have walked according to the dictates of their own hearts…16 I will scatter them also among the Gentiles, whom neither they nor their fathers have known. And I will send a sword after them until I have consumed them.” (Jeremiah 9:13,14a,16)

12 One-third of you shall die of the pestilence, and be consumed with famine in your midst; and one-third shall fall by the sword all around you; and I will scatter another third to all the winds, and I will draw out a sword after them. (Ezekiel 5:12)

Notice that getting in debt is considered to be a curse (see also the YouTube video The Debt Crisis Will Be Worse Than Most Imagine).

The debt situation of the USA, UK, and Canada are putting them at risk of hyperinflation as well being unable to recover should it be hit by weather problems, terrorist acts, war, riots, solar flares, severe earthquakes, civil unrest, devastation of their genetically-modified food supplies, food shortages, and/or various pestilences–an intensity of “sorrows” such as Jesus discussed in Matthew 24:4-8 leading up to the time of the Great Tribulation. Disasters such as pestilences, especially if there is an ElectroMagnetic Pulse (emp) attack or a severe solar flare storm, could be part of a so-called “perfect storm” of events that could set the USA, along with Canada, up for destruction.

As far as hyperinflation goes, notice the following warning from Jim Rickards:

Hyperinflation Can Happen Much Faster Than You Think

Many investors assume that the root cause of hyperinflation is governments printing money to cover deficits. Money printing does contribute to hyperinflation, but it is not a complete explanation. …

If central banks print money and that money is left in banks and not used by consumers, then actual inflation can be low.

This is the situation in the U.S. today. The Federal Reserve has expanded the base money supply by over $6 trillion since 2008, with over $3 trillion of that coming since last February alone.

But very little actual inflation has resulted, or at least very little official inflation. This is because the velocity of money has been decreasing. Banks have not been lending much, and consumers haven’t been spending much of the new money. It’s just sitting in the banks.

Money printing first turns into inflation, and then hyperinflation, when consumers and businesses lose confidence in price stability and see more inflation on the horizon. At that point, money is dumped in exchange for current consumption or hard assets, thus increasing velocity.

As inflation velocity spikes up, expectations of more inflation grow, and the process accelerates and feeds on itself. …

Hyperinflation doesn’t emerge instantaneously. It begins slowly with normal inflation and then accelerates violently at an increasing rate until it becomes hyperinflation. … The hyperinflation of Weimar Germany is a good example of this. …

If you think this can’t happen here or now, think again. …

If inflation does hit 3%, it is more likely to go to 6% or higher, rather than back down to 2%. The process will feed on itself and be difficult to stop. Sadly, there are no Volckers or Reagans on the horizon today. There are only weak political leaders and misguided central bankers.

Inflation will accelerate, as it did in the U.S. in 1980 and in Germany in 1920. Whether hyperinflation comes next remains to be seen, but it can happen more easily than most people expect. By then, the damage is already done. Your savings and pensions will mostly be gone. 02/02/21 https://dailyreckoning.com/hyperinflation-can-happen-much-faster-than-you-think/

The damage from hyperinflation will be worse than what happened to the USA in the 1980s or Germany in the 1920s.

The Biden-Harris plan is another step in that direction.

The debt situation is helping set the USA up for destruction.

Yet, although many do not want to believe, even that was expected:

6 “Don’t say such things,” the people respond. “Don’t prophesy like that. Such disasters will never come our way!” (Micah 2:6, New Living Translation)

16 … You say, ‘Do not prophesy against Israel, And do not spout against the house of Isaac.’ (Amos 7:16)

People will not want to hear! See also Preparing for the ‘Short Work’ and The Famine of the Word.

Yet, the hope that many people, companies, as well as state/provincial and local governments is to have their federal government further increase MORE of its debt and give them funds to pay off their debts and/or and keep them going.

While the USA and Canada still have more time, it is not as much as most think (watch also Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028?).

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

The End of US Dollar Dominance Is the USA losing its economic status? What about the petro-gold-yuan? A related video is also available: US Dollar being challenged by Gold-Petro-Yuan.
COVID 19 is NOT the End, but could it be TEOTWAWKI? The novel coronavirus called COVID-19 is wreaking havoc around the world. Many states of the USA as well as countries in Europe are on lockdown with shelter in place /shelter in residence requirements. In France, a form is required when you are not at your house. In Spain, drones are being used to warn people who are outside to got back to their homes–does that bring up feelings of ‘Big Brother’? Italy, France, and other areas are using police and/or military force to encourage people to stay inside. According to the Bible could this be the end? If not, what has to happen first? Have the second and third of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse started their ride? Could COVID-19 be the fourth horseman? Why or why not? Could we be seeing The End of the World as We Know It (TEOTWAWKI) like the R.E.M.’s 1987 single song discussed? Do Christians need to fear? What did Jesus teach? What did the Psalmist teach? This is a video. Here is a link to a version in the Spanish language: Corona 19 no es el final PERO es el TEOTWAWKI.
COVID-19 Leading to 666? The novel coronavirus of Wuhan, China fame, is now called COVID-19. It has also been called the ‘Coronapocalypse.’ Does COVID-19 have any prophetic ramifications? What did Jesus teach about pestilences and sorrows in the Olivet prophecy in Matthew 24? Could COVID-19 be the ride of the fourth horseman of the Apocalypse? Why was this type of disease expected according to the O. Here is a link to a version in the Spanish language: ld Testament prophecies in Deuteronomy and Leviticus? What has the US Centers for Disease Control warned about? What has the CDC reported about the flu? Were there lessons about fear and infections in the 2011 movie ‘Contagion’? Because of COVID-19, the World Health Organization (WHO), nation of Iran, and certain French locations are telling people not to use cash, but instead electronic forms of payment. The US Federal Reserve is now quarantining money repatriated from Asia to reduce the potential spread of the coronavirus on US currency bills. Is COVID-19 worse than we have been told or could this all be a ‘false flag’ event to encourage people to move towards a cashless society? If the thousands of deaths associated with COVID-19 are pushing parts of the world towards cashlessness, how much more likely will the ride of the fourth horseman and over a billion human deaths motivate people to move to making electronic payments that can be monitored? The Bible tells of a soon coming society that controls buying and selling to force allegiance to a coming European Beast power, known as 666 (Revelation 13:16-18). Does the ‘great tribulation’ begin before ride of the fourth horseman or with the opening of the fifth seal of Revelation 6? Do the words of Jesus helps us better understand the sequence of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse and the start of the Great Tribulation? Will the ride of the fourth horseman help lead to the rise of 666? Is that ride very close? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more in this video. Here is a link to a version in the Spanish language: El COVID-19 ¿Conduce al 666?

21 items to prophetically watch in 2021 Much is happening. Dr. Thiel points to 21 items to watch (cf. Mark 13:37) in this article. Here is a link to a related sermon video: 21 Items to Watch in 2021.
Spiritual Samaritans: Old and New Who were the Samaritans? Do the represent true Christianity or something else? Here is a link to a related sermon: USA in Prophecy: Samaria.Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here is a link to a video titled: The Future King of the North.
USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses Can you point to scriptures, like Daniel 11:39, that point to the USA in the 21st century? This article does. Two related sermon are available: Identifying the USA and its Destruction in Prophecy and Do these 7 prophesies point to the end of the USA?
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here are links to two related videos: The King of the North is Alive: What to Look Out For and The Future King of the North.
The Great Monarch: Biblical and Catholic Prophecies Is the ‘Great Monarch’ of Catholic prophecies endorsed or condemned by the Bible? Two sermons of related interest are also available: Great Monarch: Messiah or False Christ? and Great Monarch in 50+ Beast Prophecies.
Will the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas?
British are the Covenant People What do ‘British’ and ‘Britain’ mean in Hebrew? Are the descendants of the Anglo-Saxons people of the covenant? Does the British royal family connect to the throne of David? What does the Bible teach? What does history show us? Is there any DNA evidence related to British-Israelism? When did Christianity make it to the British Isles? Could Jeremiah have made it to the British Isles? What type of Christians made it to the British Isles? Did the last King of England believe in British Israelism?
Brexit Happened: Now What? At 11:00 pm January 31, 2020, the United Kingdom formally left the European Union. Many celebrated, while many mourned. Nigel Farage stated, “This is the greatest moment in modern British history.” What will happen to the United Kingdom? Will the UK be involved in trade deals with the United States of America and the Europeans? Will the UK regret the BRitish Exit (Brexit) from the EU?What will happen with the European Union? Is Europe prophesied to have a great army and many ships? Does the Bible prophesy a reorganization of Europe? Does it prophesy that the Europeans will become a conquering military power? Is the United Kingdom prophesied to be conquered? How does the Bible name the British-descended peoples? Was the British Empire the largest in world history? Was Brexit predicted by Church of God leaders in 1970 and the early 1990s? Will the European Union be negatively affected financially by the departure of the UK? Will this turn out well for the UK or the Europeans? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more in this video.
Canada in Prophecy: What Does Bible Prophecy, Catholic Prophecy, and other Predictions Suggest About the Future of Canada? There are prophecies that suggest involvement with Canada. And many are not positive about its future. A sermon of related interest is also available: Canada in Prophecy.
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? 2028 or or 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
Might the U.S.A. Be Gone by 2028? Are there prophetic reasons to believe that the USA will not last two complete presidential terms? Yes. There is a tradition attributed to the Hebrew prophet Elijah that humanity had 6,000 years to live before being replaced by God’s Kingdom. There are scriptures, writings in the Talmud, early Christian teachings that support this. Also, even certain Hindu writings support it. Here is a link to a related video: Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028?
The Great Tribulation: What Happens First? What events have happened? What are some events that are now happening? And what events need to happen for the Great Tribulation to start? Here is a link to a related sermon video: Counting Down to the Great Tribulation.
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2021, 2022, or 2023? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: 2021: The Great Tribulation or the Great Reset?
Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction Can the USA survive two full presidential terms? In what ways are Joe Biden and Kamala Harris apocalyptic? This book has hundreds of prophecies and scriptures to provide details.  A Kindle version is also available 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 your free Kindle reader app (or if you already have one or a Kindle),  you can go to: Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction (Kindle) to get the book in seconds.

Dr. Herman Hoeh on Petra as the Place of Safety in the Wilderness

Friday, February 5th, 2021


Treasury building in Petra

COGwriter

Back in April 1962, the old Radio Church of God published the following from the late Dr. Herman Hoeh:

Let’s open our Bibles to see why Petra has puzzled scholars and Bible students for centuries.

The true Church of God is pictured in Revelation 12. It is symbolized by a woman-the bride of Christ. But it is a persecuted woman-a Church hated by the world. According to verse 6 the Church fled the first time from her persecutors for 1260 years – during the Middle Ages. But verse 14 unveils another flight of the Church-in the very last days. This time the duration is only 3 1/2 years! “And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle”-supernatural deliverance-“that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time”–3 1/2 years.

This prophecy has never been understood by the world because the world cannot understand to whom this prophecy refers. It does not recognize who are the true Church. It sees only the false churches, described in Revelation 17.

But consider now the special time of this prophecy about protection in a mysterious wilderness. Notice exactly which period in the history of God’s Church the escape shall occur. Turn to Revelation 3:7-13. This is addressed to the Philadelphia Era of God’s Church -the Church before whom Christ opens the door to preach His gospel around the world (verse 8). Because this Church has kept Gods word, Jesus promises: “I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation”-the time of trial–“which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth’ (verse 10). Here is a world-wide terror to come upon all nations. This is not for the slow-moving past. It is a prophecy for the pulsating present the last days of human history–just before God intervenes to set up His Kingdom to bring peace at last.

Here is a prophecy for this generation- at the very time God’s Church is preaching and publishing the Gospel of the Kingdom of God world-wide. This prophecy is about us!

But how will Jesus keep us from the coming trial and persecution? We just read the answer from Revelation 12! There is a place of safety, in a wilderness, for the people of God.

But where is that wilderness?

That is the mystery that has puzzled so many for so long! God has kept it a mystery so the world would not know. He has even kept it hidden from God’s Church in the past so His people would have their minds on their work! It is only those who are having a part in the work of God-who have their minds on the Kingdom of God, not some physical place of protection–who will escape. That escape cannot be planned for in advance. It is a supernatural escape!

Remember, if the Christians in Jerusalem in apostolic days had quit their work and prematurely escaped to Pella before A.D. 69, they would have been destroyed by the Roman armies who devastated the city. It was only those who completed the work of God who reached safety in A.D. 69 after the Romans destroyed Pella!

That is why God has veiled the exact place of escape from human eyes all these years. But as the days draw closer to the time of the end, the light of prophecy shines ever more clearly! When the moment comes that we need to know where that place of safety is, Christ will make it known. Meanwhile we need to keep our eyes open and our minds yielded-drinking in the implications of prophecy for this Church today! But where does Petra fit in all this?

An Old Testament Prophecy

Turn to Isaiah 42:l0-13. Here is a prophecy for today-a time of divine intervention, verse 14. Now read verse 11 from the Jewish Publication Society translation according to the original inspired Hebrew:

“Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar doth inhabit”–the descendants of Kedar are the Bedouin Arabs who dwell throughout the Middle East in black tents. Here we have a wilderness located in the Arab world! But continue reading: “Let the inhabitants of Sela exult. Let them shout from the top of the mountains.” The inhabitants of Sela? Who are they? And where is Sela? (In the King James Version the word for Sela is translated “rock.”)

Any Bible student knows that Sela is the Hebrew name of Petra! Sela means Rock–in Hebrew; Petra means Rock in Greek! But Sela or Petra is fundamentally uninhabited today, save for a few dozen wandering Bedouin. These are not the inhabitants in this verse, for notice verse 12: “Let them’’–the inhabitants of Petra or Sela–“give glory unto the Lord”–the Bedouin do not know God, they are Mohammedan–“and declare His praise in the islands.”

Which islands? The islands which Israel inhabits–Isaiah 41:1 and 8. God is certainly not going to use a few uneducated, ignorant Mohammedan Bedouin to declare His glory in the islands and coastlands of Northwestern Europe -where Israel is today! This prophecy resurrection and the return of Christ in power and glory. Christ is going to use His servants–now immortal in the Kingdom of God–to proclaim His intervention and the establishment of His Kingdom over all the earth. He is going to use the very ones whom He is now using to proclaim His message. Then they will finally heed!

Isn’t this prophecy a clear indication that the place of safety for the people of God who are now doing the work of God–and broadcasting to the islands and coastlands of Northwestern Europe–is in an Arabian wilderness, where the Bedouin dwell and is probably at Sela, or Petra?

Supernatural Protection

Turn now to another parallel passage, this time Isaiah 33. Read especially verses 13-17. Notice the time setting. It is when the worlds ambassadors, who seek to make peace, suddenly find the world caught up in frightful destruction (verses 7-8).

Beginning with verse 13 God warns the House of Israel-the “sinners in Zion”-of their sins (verse 14). “Who will be able to live through the endtime fiery atomic and hydrogen warfare?” God asks (verse 14). Those who obey Him, declares verse 15. But where will they go?

Verses 16 and 17 answer! “He shall dwell on high: his place of defense shall be the munitions of rocks.. .” This verse is poorly translated in most versions because the translators did not understand the prophecy. The true meaning has been hidden. The place of protection shall be, not munitions of rocks, but the “strongholds of Sela!” The original, inspired Hebrew, mistranslated “munitions,” is metsad, and means a stronghold or a castle or a fort. And the word for “rock” in this verse is Sela, the name of Petra in the Hebrew language!

Petra is a dry, barren area. It hardly provides a few dozen Bedouin sufficient sustenance. How are all of the faithful people of God to be provided for? Continue with the end of verse 16: “…his bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.” Here also is supernatural provision! Remember what happened to the children of Israel in the Sinai wilderness? God supernaturally provided them food and water nearly 40 long years! God can do the same today! It is not those who heap up provisions that shall escape! It is those who obey God, who do His work, and who trust Him to provide the necessities and the divine protection when that time arrives!

Verse 17 completes the picture: “Thine eyes shall see the King in His beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off’-or “they shall behold a land stretching afar,” according to the Jewish translation. We shall see Him as He is (I John 3:2). Notice also that those in safety see “the land”-Palestine, the promised land stretching into the distance. Surely here is another indication of the high rocky crags of Petra from which one may look northwest to the promised land.

Place of Safety

Perhaps the most commonly quoted verses about Petra are found in Isaiah 16. The prophecy is found in verses 1 to 5. It is a message to Moab-modern Jordan, in whose territory Petra or Sela is presently located. Verse 1 should read: “Send ye the lambs for the Ruler of the land from Sela that is toward the wilderness, unto the mount of the daughter of Zion” (compare the KJV with the JPS translation).

The time setting of this prophecy is the return of Christ to rule the nations. He is the King of the land. The Moabites are commanded to seek Him, to send Him an offering as a token of their submission. The offering comes from Sela. But why are the Moabites found in Sela, when only Bedouin dwell there today? The succeeding verses answer: “For it shall be, that, as a wandering bird cast out of the nest, so the daughters”– and‘ descendants–“of Moab shall be at the fords of Arnon.” Other prophecies picture hordes from the east capturing the land east of the Jordan. (See Ezekiel 25:l0.) As these Communist hordes plunge toward Palestine, slaughtering as they go, a pitiful remnant–described in Jeremiah 48:1-25–escapes at the Arnon (a stream running into the Dead Sea). The Moabite refugees flee southward for protection. Why? Is it perhaps because they have known of others already there in a place of safety? Now look at verse 4. God is addressing Moab: “Let Mine outcasts dwell with thee, Moab; be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler.”

So there are others there already. “Mine outcasts,” God calls them. God’s people, who flee from the world, refugees or outcasts!

The fleeing Moabites are not to betray where they are. This makes verse 3 much clearer. The Moabites are commanded to “Give counsel, execute justice; make thy shadow as night in the midst of the noon day; hide the outcasts; betray not the fugitive” (JPS trans.). Their flight is not to reveal where God’s own outcasts are. Their movements are to be as invisible as if it were in black night!

Now compare this prophecy with Jeremiah 48:28, “O ye that dwell in Moab, leave the cities, and dwell in the rock”–Sela, in Hebrew–“and be like the dove that makes her nest in the sides of the holes mouth”! A perfecr description of Petra, with its caves!

Isaiah 16:5 then reveals the very next prophetic event to occur: “And a throne is established through mercy, and there sitteth thereon in truth, in the tent of David, One that judgeth, and seeketh justice, and is ready in righteousness” (JPS trans.). Christ is now pictured as seated on the throne of David! Surely this indicates that God‘s outcasts in Isaiah 16 are the same as those mentioned in Revelation 12 who escape to the wilderness-shortly before the return of Christ!

In the New Testament, while not all Christians are promised physical protection, the Philadelphian Christians are promised to be protected from the Great Tribulation and this place of protection is in the wilderness according to the Book of Revelation:

7 “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, ‘These things says He who is holy, He who is true, “He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens”: 8 “I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name. 9 Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie — indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you. 10 Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. (Revelation 3:7-10)

13 Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. 14 But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. 15 So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. 16 But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. (Revelation 12:13-17)

Notice that Revelation 12:17 shows that there are two groups of Christians, and only one group is protected in the wilderness.

While Petra may not be the place, it is a place to be considered.

I should probably mention that some have alleged that the idea of Petra and the ‘place of safety’ were non-biblical inventions of Loma and/or Herbert W. Armstrong. This is not the case. The idea of the biblical cave-containing area of Sela (the area currently known as Petra) being a place of protection during the tribulation predates the Armstrongs mentioning it (probably by at least a century).

It should also be understood that Catholic writers such as Irenaeus and Hippolytus also believed that there was a physical place to flee to (see Is There A Secret Rapture for the Church? When and Where is the Church Protected?). Also, later Catholic writers have confirmed this. Notice the following from a 20th century priest commenting on Revelation 12:14:

Verse 14

She is given “two wings” of a Great Eagle. This intimates a rescue by airplane. …

The “Great Eagle” may send or have present a powerful airplane to bring its citizens home … God promises that those who trust in Him shall take “wings as eagles”. The “wings” of the great eagle will enable the woman to fly into the wilderness. This wilderness is a heathen nation …

The great eagle therefore, as a nation, has never been Catholic. The word “eagle” suggests that the nation may have become great by conquest. This eagle will protect and shelter the Church during the reign of the Beast. The place of safety for the woman … will refuse to join Antichrist and will protect the Church during his domination of the world…

The time is stated in three different ways, in years, months and days to make the literal meaning unmistakably certain. Evidently it is three and a half years actual time. The time given in verse 14 is indefinite, similar to that of Daniel (XII. 7); But since in Daniel (XII. 11) it seems to mean 1290 days, so here it evidently synchronizes with the 1260 days of verse 6 and the same period in chapter eleven. (Kramer H.B. L. The Book of Destiny. Nihil Obstat: J.S. Considine, O.P., Censor Deputatus. Imprimatur: +Joseph M. Mueller, Bishop of Sioux City, Iowa, January 26, 1956. Reprint TAN Books, Rockford (IL),pp. 296-297)

Thus, the idea of a physical place of safety was not a new invention of one of the Armstrongs. Additionally, even the Rheims New Testament commentary admits that the Bible teaches that there is a place in the desert for the true church to flee:

The Church shall flee as to a desert in Antichrist’s time, but not decay or be unknown, no not for so short a time. (p. 556).

Furthermore, it is my opinion that the demons themselves know about this place (recall that even Satan quoted scripture to Christ, see Matthew 4).

Notice that the power behind the “secret society” is expected to be hidden in a cave:

Anne Catherine Emmerich (October 1820): I saw the secret society undermining the great church and near them a horrible beast … concealing itself in a cave (Emmerich AC. The Life and Revelations of Anne Catherine Emmerich, Volume 2, p.290).

I also believe that somehow demons influenced a mystic Catholic saint and prophetess named Hildegard to warn that those in a place with caves worked for the devil and were an advanced group that support the Antichrist. Notice what she wrote in the 12th century:

And fly from those who linger in caves and are cloistered supporters of the Devil. Woe to them, woe to them who remain thus! They are the Devil’s very viscera, and the advance guard of the son of perdition.

Therefore, O you My beloved children, avoid them with all devotion and with all the strength of your souls and bodies. For the ancient serpent feeds and clothes them by his arts, and they worship him as God and trust in his false deceptions…Because they are afraid of My people, they do not openly resist these institutions of Mine, but in their hearts and their deeds they hold them as nothing. By devilish illusion, they pretend to have sanctity; but they are deceived by the Devil, for if he were to show himself to them openly they would understand him and flee him. By his arts he shows them things he pretends are good and holy, and thus deludes them. O woe to those who persevere in this death!

But because the Devil knows he has only a short time for his error, he is not hastening to perfect infidelity in his members; you, you evil deceivers, who labor to subvert the Catholic faith. (Hildegard of Bingen. Scivias. Paulist Press, Mahwah (NJ), pp. 301-302).

Since I believe that the mystic was demonically-influenced, she is actually warning against supporting the true Christians who will be protected who she is claiming are the “supporters of the Devil” (probably because they will oppose the Catholic Church). Since she calls them the advanced guard “of the son of perdition,” she seems to be referring to a group of people who will be protected in caves just before Christ returns (I stated that because certain Catholic prophecies seem to refer to the returning Christ as the “antichrist”, who is also sometimes referred to as “the son of perdition”—for more on this, please read the article Do Certain Catholic Prophecies About Antichrist Warn Against Jesus?).

Hence, I believe that the above demonically-inspired vision will be used to try to persuade people to be against those that are in caves (Jeremiah 48:28), who seem religious (Revelation 14:12), and are apparently miraculously fed (Isaiah 33:15-16). Those being protected will be teaching that Jesus is about to return (who certain Catholic prophecies call Antichrist)–this would be expected to result in persecution of those with similar beliefs. Yet notice that the above vision does indicate that even the demons have known about a place of protection where some people will be miraculously fed, for quite some time.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

This is PETRA! This is a 1962 Good News article by the late Dr. Hoeh.
There is a Place of Safety for the Philadelphians. Why it May Be Petra This article discusses a biblical ‘place of safety’ and includes quotes from the Bible and Herbert W. Armstrong on this subject–thus, there is a biblically supported alternative to the rapture theory. There is also a video on the subject: Might Petra be the Place of Safety? Here is something related in the Spanish language: Hay un lugar de seguridad para los Filadelfinos. ¿Puede ser Petra?
Did The Early Church Teach Millenarianism? Was the millennium (sometimes called chiliasm) taught by early Christians? Who condemned it? Will Jesus literally reign for 1000 years on the earth? Is this time near? Two related sermons are available Millennial Utopia and The Millennium.
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2028 or or 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
The Great Tribulation: What Happens First? What events have happened? What are some events that are now happening? And what events need to happen for the Great Tribulation to start? Here is a link to a related sermon video: Counting Down to the Great Tribulation.
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2021, 2022, or 2023? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: 2021: The Great Tribulation or the Great Reset?
The Times of the Gentiles Has there been more than one time of the Gentiles? Are we in it now or in the time of Anglo-America? What will the final time of the Gentiles be like? A related sermon is available and is titled: The Times of the Gentiles.
Armageddon Who is involved and when will this gathering happen? Here is also a video from Dr. Thiel, from Tel Megiddo in Israel: Armageddon. Other videos include: Armageddon Will it come on Trump’s watch?, Iraq, Armageddon, & Prophecy, Freemasonry, Armageddon, and Rome, Is China paving roads to Armageddon?, and Jordan, Petra, and Armageddon.

Christ or Antichrist? 1961 article by David Jon Hill, originally published in the old Good News magazine.
Will You Be Deceived by Antichrist? 1964 article by David Jon Hill, originally published in the old Good News magazine.
Satan’s Plan Does Satan have a plan? What is it? Has it already been successful? Will it be successful in the future? Here are links to a two-part sermon series: What are Some of the Parts of Satan’s Plan? and Satan’s Plan is More Dramatic than Many Realize.
Do Certain Catholic Prophecies About Antichrist Warn Against Jesus? Will the final “Anti-Christ” be Jewish, insist on Saturday, be opposed to the trinity, and bring in the millennium? Certain Catholic writings indicate this, while others take a different view, but what does the Bible show? A related sermon is Will Jesus Christ be called the Antichrist?
Catholic Prophecies: Do They Mirror, Highlight, or Contradict Biblical Prophecies? People of all faiths may be surprised to see what various Roman and Orthodox Catholic prophets have been predicting as many of their predictions will be looked to in the 21st century.
The Philadelphia Church Era was predominant circa 1933 A.D. to 1986 A.D. The old Radio Church of God and old Worldwide Church of God, now the remnant of that era is basically the most faithful in the Church of God, like who hold to the beliefs and practices of the Continuing Church of God.
The Laodicean Church Era has been predominant circa 1986 A.D. to present. The Laodiceans are non-Philadelphians who mainly descended from the old WCG or its offshoots. They do not properly understand the work or biblical prophecies and will face the Great Tribulation if they do not repent. One video of related interest is 17 Laodicean Errors in Prophecy.

RCG’s David Pack about to be proven wrong again

Thursday, February 4th, 2021

COGwriter

While RCG hopes its public face is positive, it has had real problems with wrong predictions from its leader, David Pack.

David Pack is about to proven wrong again as he improperly claimed that Jesus is expected to visit his Wadsworth, Ohio facility tomorrow!

Here are some items recently posted at the News of those once affiliated with the Global Church of God page:

02/02/21 p.m. Someone posted the following related to parts of a sermon by RCG’s David Pack:

Sermon 285

  • 48:50 – In 2014, I explained about the walls of Jericho falling down, now exactly 7 years later [2021 by his count] is when the Father will return. [Unleavened Bread]
  • 49:33 – I knew nothing of this as recently as of last Friday morning…
  • 54:15 – Doubling down on a lot of crazy math. 1,335, 1,290, 11.5 days, 3.5 days, etc…it intersects with Christ’s return and now counts down, not up!
  • 57:18-1:06:47 – If Christ doesn’t come this Friday, allowing the Father to arrive at the last Day of Unleavened Bread, then it blows up the beginning of the 1290 on Trumpets! The Eighth Head then blows up the world!!!! (RCG foretells 8 heads, not 7, as in WCG) [Note: He really locked himself into this one, so when Christ isn’t here on Friday, it will blow up this new picture] 
  • 1:09:16 – More, very specific math and nonsensical time cycles. “The Millennium ends on the Last Day of Unleavened Bread, it’s impossible to argue with it, unless the sun and moon go away. You can’t argue with it! If you want to know the date the Millennium ends its April 3 3028. Dead on! [You are shocked!] I can see the blood loss in your faces, just like the ministers!
  • 1:12:07 – It’s a perfect picture…only the whole thing crashes if Christ doesn’t come this Friday.
  • 1:25:56 – How would God’s messenger [David Pack] eventually know that Jesus Christ was finally coming quickly and in haste? How would he absolutely know the series is over? Simple, a hard date was shown to him that could not be breached. We finally learn how this man knew he finished his charge. He saw a giant blinking red calendar stop sign.
  • 1:26:26 – If this whole picture is wrong I hope you will forgive me, since we will need to move on to some other near term date that I have no idea. …
  • 1:28:40 – God streamed this concluding list through my mind without notes or the Bible. I told my staff, type this message, it was tape recorded just as I speak it, (that is also known as automatic writing) “All Israel rises [will be resurrected] this Friday night! 
  • 1:46:45 – It’s a divine act [Dave’s inspiration in Part 285], if all these prophecies are at stake, would God let me mess up? He had to just stream it into me!
  • 1:49:34 – Sabat 24, is this Friday night. May we now see Christ, the kingdom, all the New Testament saints and all Israel [resurrected] in just over 4 days.

While David Pack needs to repent and then to be forgiven, no, it is not possible for Jesus to return this week. Furthermore, it is not possible for the Millennium to end as early as April 3, 3028.

The Millennium cannot start until 7 years after the deal of Daniel 9:27 has been confirmed/pushed–for details check out the article: The ‘Peace Deal’ of Daniel 9:27. Such a deal is NOT going to be done by April 3, 2021, hence David Pack’s date for the end of the Millennium is too soon.

David Pack went over the ‘deep end’ years ago and his recent rantings should make that more and more obvious to any that will look.

01/31/21 p.m. Someone posted the following related to parts of a sermon by RCG’s David Pack:

Part 283 (Jan 27th, 2021) – “It looks like we understand the end, more than ever before!”

33:09 – The end is either this winter or next!

45:30 – There is one big blast from Christ and then its all done. Everything starts with a bang! So many people have left us and said “its taking too long!” They only left because they wanted to break God’s laws, and run after their own lusts. Because God “changed,” “raised” and “sent them out,” of the church! They are pretty much the “Synagogue of Satan,” that’s what this verse is talking about. They are “briars and thorns” who are now ejected.

1:41:55 – Tomorrow is the end of the series we go into a watch for a short space and then the Father’s Kingdom starts.

1:58:50 – it looks a lot like this Friday, we are out of material, I now understand the end as I never did before. Starts doing math, somehow got to 1335. (crazy math nonsense).

2:03:00 – The KOG is “held in a mystery,” you have to adhere and wait through the hard part (all the back and forth and failed prophecies).

2:07:40 – Its all got to wrap up by Passover, its got to be winter, its the bibles biggest metric!

David Pack has repeatedly been proven wrong and will be once again. More on his church can be found in the article: RCG: Why Not the Restored Church of God? Here is an earlier version in the Spanish language: ¿Por qué no la Iglesia de Dios Restaurada?

Regarding the ‘Synagogue of Satan,’ David Pack declared myself and various others in that many years ago (see  RCG’s David Pack Says COGwriter, Dr. Meredith, COGs, etc. ‘Part of Synagogue of Satan’ and What is the Synagogue of Satan?). Now he is including all who left his improper group.

As I have been writing for years, I do not consider that David Pack is a converted Christian and, hence, do not consider him an actual COG leader.

Also, notice the following at the News of those once affiliated with the Global Church of God related to 2020:

12/31/20 a.m. RCG’s David Pack keeps making predictions about the end and Jesus’ return within a day to a year or so from now. Those predictions are wrong.

David Pack, in my view, went over the deep-end a while ago, and for years I have been convinced that he is NOT COG (though some with him may still be).

11/08/20 p.m. In a letter he sent dated 11/06/20, RCG’s David Pack had the following:

David C. Pack

P.S. Brethren, this is for you. The possibility of a longer-than-expected wait became a reality. God has tested our patience—and is testing it even further—to see who believes Christ will “come quickly!” So much is at stake for those in the “little flock” that Christ promised would go first. I just wanted you to hear from me that there are a number of additional scriptures that tell us everything is RIGHT ON TRACK! Stay the course!

No, David Pack is wrong. God is not testing patience–if He is involved with RCG here, it is to help those in RCG see the truth that David Pack is wrong and is not God’s apostle. More about RCG’s history and some of its changes can be found in the article: Why Not the Restored Church of God?

11/02/20 a.m. A reader sent me a link to the following by RCG’s David Pack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-RroXMymW8&feature=youtu.be

The link is to a video clip that is only 30 seconds long. In it, David Pack says the following about ministers who leave, “he’s signed his death warrant, he’s orphaned his children, he will not live …their going to lose an eye and an arm….”

David Pack is NOT a true COG leader. His church will implode per 2 Peter 2:1-3. He has made wrong threats to other ministers in the past that did not come to pass–his threats are irrelevant as God is not backing him.

10/15/20 a.m. There are various reports that RCG’s David Pack claimed that Jesus would return this month or next year. Here is a recent RCG report along those lines:

October 13, 2020

Prophetic Update
Greetings brethren worldwide!

What a wonderful Feast we just kept together. In light of all that we learned, this was TRULY the most unified we have ever been!

By now all or certainly most of you will have heard the last message and returned home. To say we are all excited about events soon to unfold would be an all-time understatement! The main intent of this short message is simply to say that everything is on track. …

Mr. Pack has said that if time were to go on for a little while, it would only be because the devour month starts at the Feast of Tabernacles instead of the Feast of Trumpets next year. This would of course only mean a relatively brief additional wait. But all of us who have studied the relevant scriptures don’t see any way this could happen. The verses seem open and shut. Of course, things have seemed open and shut before, but clarified with time. If a few days pass, the question presented at the Feast would re-emerge: Do we go a few days or another year?

Interesting details continue to present themselves, which leads to an exercise you may wish to test yourself with as this announcement comes to a close. …

If there were time for Mr. Pack to give another message, he would probably list these for you. But don’t look for that message, keep looking for Christ instead! It is highly unlikely we will get out of this week.

No, everything that David Pack has predicted is NOT on track. It is not possible for the end to come in 2020 or 2021 (for biblical details, check out the articles The Great Tribulation: What Happens First? and When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2020, 2021, or 2022?).

There is no way the end can come this week! RCG is wrong.

More about RCG’s history and some of its changes can be found in the article: Why Not the Restored Church of God?

07/14/20 a.m. The anti-COG site, the Banned by HWA posted the following letter that states it is from a minister in RCG:

To say that there’s a lot of confusion in the Church would be an understatement. Brethren no longer know what to believe because they simply can’t keep things straight. If you don’t know this already, talk to the brethren about prophecy. Or for that matter, talk to a fellow-minister.

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but TRY THE SPIRITS WHETHER THEY ARE OF GOD: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. … (6) We are of God: he that knows God hears us; he that is not of God doesn’t hear us. HEREBY KNOW WE THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH, AND THE SPIRIT OF ERROR” (1 John 4:1, 6).

John wrote a lot about truth and when we read the books he was inspired to write, we can know it is truth. But, we are also supposed to be able to distinguish truth from the spirit of error! If dozens of failed prophetic scenarios is not the spirit of error, then I don’t know what is! What does it matter if the spirit of error is being introduced by the top man or someone else? The spirit of error is the spirit of error!

We frequently say in the Church that we shouldn’t get hung up on prophecy being wrong. However, technically speaking, anything taught is doctrine. It’s the very definition of the word. So there is false doctrine being taught. And besides that, we often touch on foundational doctrines and change them to fit the latest prophetic narrative anyway.

For example, we recently said that the God that Moses , Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel saw was the Father (Ex. 24:9-10.) But how can we ignore plain scriptures like John 1:18? “No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he has declared [Him].” What allows us to sweep aside SUCH A SIMPLE scripture like that? When establishing doctrine, are we not to start with the simplest scriptures first?

Our understanding of who and what God is has changed dramatically in recent months. When is the last time we properly referred to God as a family? Do we really think that the most spectacular era of God’s Church, the Philadelphian era, who God said NOTHING bad about in Revelation, had the wrong understanding of who and what God is? Did our predecessors not know God in the same way that we now do? On logic alone, it’s inconceivable!

Then there are the verses that we flat out ignore. 2 Cor. 5:10says that we must ALL appear before the judgment seat of Christ. But not us? Somehow we’ve made it already? Most, if not all of you, care for more of God’s sheep than I do. When you heard Rev. 22:11explained (“He that is unjust, let him be unjust still…”), did you honestly think that everyone in your pastorate was sealed at that time? That people were done growing? That it was time to relax? What spirit influenced such a thing to be taught?

As ministers, we represent the Church. Especially the Headquarters ministry. I, for one, can’t look brethren in the eyes anymore and explain the latest prophetic scenario to them. What’s taught is plain strange at times. We always start with the belief that there’s no way Christ could come beyond the current week we’re in and then we wrest the scriptures to fit that bias. …

I don’t claim to know how the prophetic pieces of the jigsaw puzzle fit.

Let me state that it’s wonderful to be here at Headquarters. I love the home we’re in. I love living on this beautiful campus. I love you and all the friends I have here and in the wider Church. I love the job I have. I love being the minister over Pittsburgh. But at the end of the day, THE TRUTH HAS TO MATTER MORE THAN ANY OF THIS! It’s the only reason we came to the Church in the first place.

I understand that this email will likely lead to me being fired. I’m OK with that. I hope you will also stand up for the truth as ministers of God, no matter how uncomfortable that might be at times. I trust that God will sort out this mess in His time, however, I wasn’t prepared to look Christ in the eyes and explain to Him why I didn’t stand up for the truth and for His people.

In Christ’s Service,

Alex J. Groen

Whether or not the above letter is legitimate, the truth is that David Pack’s prophetic teachings are wrong in many areas. They have gotten more and more bizarre over the years. As I have posted before, I have questioned David Pack’s conversion because of his coveteous greed, bullying tactics, doctrinal errors, and other factors. See also: RCG: Why Not the Restored Church of God?

Regarding prophets and prophecies, those who wish to believe the Bible may find the following helpful:

Does the CCOG have the confirmed signs of Acts 2:17-18? Does any church have the confirmed dream and prophetic signs of Acts 2:17-18? Should one? Here is a link in the Spanish language: ¿Tiene la CCOG confirmadas las señales de Hechos 2: 17-18? Here is a link in the French language: Est-ce que l’Église Continue de Dieu confirme les signes d’Actes 2:17-18? A related sermon in the English language is also available: 17 Last Days’ Signs of the Holy Spirit.

Church of God Leaders on Prophets Have there been prophets throughout the church age? Are any supposed to be around in the last days? What have COG leaders stated or written about prophets? Here is a link to a related sermon: Church of God Leaders on Prophets.

How To Determine If Someone is a True Prophet of God There are many false prophets. How can Christians determine who is a true prophet? There is also a sermon-length video titled How to determine if someone is a true prophet of God. Here is a related link in Spanish/español: ¿Cómo determinar si alguien es un verdadero profeta de Dios?

04/29/20 p.m. Banned by HWA reported that RCG’s David Pack put out the following:

Take Comfort—Be Encouraged Monday

It is now evident God did want us to “observe” all the remaining days of Abib following Passover. He clearly does want to build His third (spiritual) temple in the same month He started the first and second physical temples—in Iyar, also called Zif! …

Brethren, it should give us great peace knowing Christ could literally return at any time. Let us continue to do our part and remain spiritually awake until the “day and hour” we all long for!

David Pack was wrong when he taught that Jesus would return a couple of weeks ago. And his comment now that Jesus could return at any time is what the Protestants who hold to the false idea of a pre-tribulation view of the ‘rapture’ hold to. David Pack has shown himself, once again, to be a false apostle and false prophet. Jesus said He does NOT return until AFTER the tribulation is over:

29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. (Matthew 24:29-31)

For more biblical information related to when Jesus would be expected to return, some of the following may be helpful:

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 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?

When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2020, 2021, or 2022? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? 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 and newer video is: Could the Great Tribulation Begin in 2020?

03/23/20 p.m. Banned by HWA reported that RCG put out the following:

One thing to consider, this Tuesday evening, going into Adar 29, is the exact day—the last day before the first day of the sacred year—we reach the 6,000-year plan of God. Could this be the “last day” we have all been looking forward to? Only time will tell but so many things line up for us to consider this possibility.

As of this moment, I have not been able to verify this is truly from RCG. But presuming it is, David Pack and RCG are very wrong. There is no way that 5999th year (or if it means it differently the 6,000th year) ends tomorrow, Tuesday, March 24, 2020. If RCG put that out, it is continuing its pattern of moving further and further away of correctly understanding biblical prophecies. Also, the new year, Abib 1, begins on March 25th at sunset (so this is another error in what RCG reportedly put out).

Anyway, there is simply not enough time for Jesus to return this week or a year from now. Jesus cannot return for at least 7 years and hence, for those who believe in a 6,000/7,000 year plan, the 6,000 years cannot end before 2027.

The old Radio Church of God taught the following about the 6,000 years:

“Has God alloted 6000 years for man’s self-rule?” is a question that has been an enigma to many.

Yes! The world does not understand what is taking place today because it does not know about the 7000-year PLAN OF GOD.

God has allotted approximately 6000 years for humanity to go its own way. These millenniums of human civilization are nearly over. God is about to intervene in world affairs by sending Jesus Christ. Not until He returns will we have 1000 years of peace. …

Peter said: “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise (of Christ’s coming)… but is longsuffering…” (II Pet. 3:9). God is patient. He has refrained from intervening in world affairs for nearly 6000 years. Why?

Because He will not intervene until humanity is forced to cry out to Him for fear of self-extermination. Recall that the day of Christ’s intervention and rule is compared to “a thousand years” (Rev. 20:4). Peter also wrote the same thing — that a day in God’s plan is as “a thousand year,” and “a thousand years” of human civilization as ONE day in His planned week of SEVEN 1000-year days (II Pet. 3:8).

Peter knew that Christ would intervene shortly before the close of 6000 years of human struggle and slavery — that God would send Jesus Christ to set up His government to rule during the seventh-thousand-year period — a millennium of peace, a sabbatical rest!

How marvelous that in our day, at the very time that 6000 years have almost elapsed, the world is threatened with extinction of life. And Jesus Himself said that when we see this taking place HE WOULD COME AGAIN! (Letter Number: 913, 1957)

The old Worldwide Church of God taught:

In God’s 7,000-year Master Plan of salvation, the first 6,000 years have been allotted to man to do as he wills. During these 6,000 years, civilizations have developed based on the way of Satan, who sits on the throne of the earth.

Christ, at His return, will end Satan’s rule, and begin 1,000 years of God’s rule, the rule of the Kingdom of God on earth. A new civilization based on God’s law will grip the earth. (Lesson 28, Amabassador College Bible Correspondence Course, c. 1986)

For some details about the 6,000 years, and about when it will end, check out the following:

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 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?

Various people once with RCG have been confused, disappointed, etc. by David Pack’s false predictions. David Pack’s wrong track record has been beyond just the ones in the past year.

For example, it has been over seven years since David Pack falsely claimed that all in the COGs would come to him.

As I repeatedly pointed out in the spring and summer of 2013, this was not going to happen.

Why?

Because David Pack simply did not trust Bible prophecy, but instead twisted it in ways it was not intended to be interpreted.

Here is some of what David Pack said and/or wrote about it in 2013 (the sermon comments were sent to me and I did not listen to that sermon myself):

Details may begin (and only begin) to come into view on the first of the month of Elul (in God’s calendar—August 7 in the Roman Calendar). A more complete picture will emerge by Elul 24 (August 30). Right now, all are urged to have in their thinking that they will be reassigned to a new nearby Feast site, and those who choose to return to the Body of Christ will attend with what becomes a much bigger organization—probably significantly bigger than the largest splinter! (Crucial Questions—Important Answers! July 19, 2013, http://rcg.org/sep/crucial-questions-important-answers)

Which three leaders are the greatest obstructionists to God’s stated purpose in Haggai—returning HIS people to doing HIS Work? (The Final Announcement. August 2, 2013, http://rcg.org/sep/the-final-announcement)

Next, the 2013 Feast of Tabernacles: This will also be among the most special and inspiring times in Church history. It will be a Feast of unity and harmony among all of God’s people. Everyone will keep this joyous occasion as members of The Restored Church of God in scores of sites across the world. At this time, we have 21 sites, but we anticipate adding many more. In some areas, former splinter brethren will attend our current sites. In other locations, we will have to quickly add new ones. In still other areas, splinter sites will simply become Restored sites. The total number of Feast sites, and where they are, will depend entirely on how many brethren answer the “stirring” of Jesus Christ to return to His Church, and in what areas they live. Details may begin (and only begin) to come into view on the first of the month of Elul (in God’s calendar—August 7 in the Roman Calendar). A more complete picture will emerge by Elul 24 (August 30). Right now, all are urged to have in their thinking that they will be reassigned to a new nearby Feast site, and those who choose to return to the Body of Christ will attend with what becomes a much bigger organization—probably significantly bigger than the largest splinter! (Crucial Questions—Important Answers! July 19, 2013, http://rcg.org/sep/crucial-questions-important-answers)

All Brethren United Soon Part 12 (Sermon)

How could so many things happen in 24 hours?

Minute 26. Three men die- Elul 24, then everyone makes a decision that day.

Minute 29. Certain things about this prophesy is very complex, others are very simple.

Minute 30. No way everything could happen in one day.

Minute 32. Do you care most how the 3 Shephard’s die? In their sleep, by fire?

Do you care who they are?

If God tells us then I want to know otherwise it doesn’t matter.

You are going to find out how they die and who they are.

Minute 33. I know their names 100% sure. Don’t want the names out yet. Now I’m certain I know.

Do you care where it happens? I don’t know where it will happen.

I know how they die and who they are. I’m certain.

Minute 34. How about when they die? They die sooner then we thought.

Do they die together or separately. I know they die together.

Two culminating events. The death of these men is the first. The central point is God is going to bring his people back together/unify his people.

In 2013, David Pack also claimed:

Saturday, August 31 will be a Sabbath unlike any other in history. It will be the first time in decades that all of God’s people around the world will be meeting together in the same locations for services. Words cannot describe the excitement and happiness that will be everywhere soon after this reunification. In many areas, much of or possibly even entire congregations might “roll over” into The Restored Church of God. Brethren will have had weeks to prepare for this and to “consider their ways” before God. Those who come will have been led to return to the Body of Christ the day before this Sabbath. Reread this last sentence.

Realize that a host of logistical details must be worked out for this to occur. God has been planning this event for thousands of years—at least 3,000—and His Church has been preparing for it for almost a year. Headquarters and our ministers will be ready to receive potentially a great many phone calls from splinter ministers and members even in the days and weeks before August 31. (Why Reunification THIS YEAR!, posted July 5, 2013 http://rcg.org/sep/why-reunification-this-year)

Of course, this simply did not happened. David Pack also claimed that God revealed to him that he was Joshua about five years ago. Yet, while the “god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4, KJV) may have done that, it certainly was not the Creator God of the Bible!

Notice what David Pack posted after it did not happen in 2013:

I will explain a week after the Feast EXACTLY what was misunderstood about the prophecy’s timing. It appears we will not be waiting a long time—not another year—for its fulfillment. (Pack D. How Long Will You Wait for God’s Prophecies? 09/06/13 http://rcg.org/sep/how-long-will-you-wait-for-gods-prophecies)

Of course, it still did not happen and will not happen. The Philadelphian remnant of the COG will not become part of RCG and certainly has not done so by the dates that David Pack pointed to. The changes required by RCG would be massive for something like that to possibly happen (David Pack would have to repent, RCG would have to change focus, RCG would have to change doctrine, etc.).

If people think that David Pack was past his dreams of delusion here, think again. In August of 2016, RCG still had at its website, something David Pack put up earlier in 2015:

A Vital Open Letter to All WCG Splinters

Identifying God’s Church, Truth and Work …

We expect to see thousands of you soon in The Restored Church of God. God has long planned to reunify what would become His scattered people at the end of the age.

The above from RCG shows that 1) RCG does not understand the message to the churches in Revelation 2 & 3 which does NOT allow for the type of reunification that David Pack is proclaiming and 2) that RCG is still clinging to the same nonsense it claimed would happen in 2013, and when it did not happen, indicated possibly would for 2014 and still is something RCG is hoping for in 2017. No matter how much David Pack insists on error, it does not change error into truth.

A related article, by David Pack, included the following:

Mr. Armstrong taught:

(1) God has one, unified, organized Church, also called the Body of Christ. …

All Will Come Here!…

History will record that The Restored Church of God gathered the flock, to be with Christ, rather than helped to scatter it—as UCG, LCG, PCG, COGwa, COGaic and so many others are doing! The distinction turns on which church has the full truth and much fruit to back up claims that God leads it, not to mention that this Church still must believe there IS only one Church.

Soon, all of God’s people will know what The Restored Church of God is. They will come to remember and recognize the Church that is the same as the one they used to know. They will return to it, or refuse and quench God’s Spirit forever. No one else is telling Christ’s brethren (YOU) this. This is in part because all other leaders have forgotten what God’s Church looks like. …

You have been duly warned.

I state emphatically, on God’s authority, that every last person—member or minister—throughout the world who is determined not to lose God’s Spirit—certainly many thousands—is coming to The Restored Church of God.

Actually, the Bible does not teach that all true Christians will be in the same corporate organization in the end. Revelation 2 & 3 show that there will be Thyatirans, Sardisians, Philadelphians, and many Laodiceans in the end, and the implication in the original Greek is that the Laodiceans will be in different organizations.

It should be stated that people will NOT lose God’s Spirit by not coming into RCG like David Pack has claimed. Actually, since RCG is led by someone I doubt is truly in the Church of God, the risk of losing God’s Spirit tends to increase for those who do support RCG.

Despite David Pack’s appeals to writings from Herbert Armstrong, Herbert Armstrong never felt that those of Sardis were prophesied to come into the same organization as the Philadelphians, he believed the opposite.

In 2017, in part 65 of his The Greatest Untold Story! series, David Pack asserted:

Now, we read and heard last week and the time before, there’s a period of 45 days from 1,335 until the 1,290 when the Man of Sin sends his system and his representatives directly into the Church, and the fire explodes in intensity on the Church, because after 45 days, there’s a group of people that didn’t buy in and there’s another group working with them. Now God allows some of them to die. We understand that some get slain. Some get killed, James said…They’re called the flock of slaughter; we know all those verses…but most, I would hope, do not.

Obviously, we’ll have 45 days to tell the splinters, “If you think it’s bad now, wait a month and a half,” and to get them ready so they have a maximum chance when tremendous pressure comes on them—tremendous miracles and power and fear—and maybe even, they see some people they know and love die—that they not collapse. Because remember, God’s overall purpose is that they pass—that they make it.

I can’t imagine going into Jerusalem and not saying things to the leaders there…“This is the wrong guy. The right one will be along shortly.” But there’ll even be another one that’s wrong called the prince of Tyre and the king of the North, and we’ll get into get into that more I hope next week. I can’t imagine not going to certain Israelite nations during this period, before Christ comes to sit on David’s throne, and telling the leaders of Israelite nations…I mean, I just can’t imagine. I had a long time to think about this…and certain things are not said to the leaders of those particular nations that things are about to change. There’s a new ruler coming…

If I’m given the authority to rule them…Think of Matthew 24 and we are, we’re not going to work with them in 400 hundred groups…I’m going to tell them, “Guess what, today you’re in one organization” and they will be looking for help. They’ll…Absolutely, they all want to be together. Not the ones who aren’t converted, who are going to follow what I call the “spiritual sleeper cells.” They were appointed to this ungodliness when they crept in unawares long ago and then they rise up to do their evil according to Acts 20, verse 30, when Christ says, “some will rise among you” and so forth. Those people are not going to agree and the people who follow them aren’t going to agree, but thousands of brethren are going to be looking for direction. Maybe with or without their own ministers, so, you know, we will be in a position to say a lot of…a lot of things that I hope will be very, very helpful.

David Pack originally stated all would be under him in 2013. He was wrong as that did not happen. He has also gone the wrong way on the man of sin (see also Who is the Man of Sin of 2 Thessalonians 2?).

He also made a claim again in a video in late July 2015 that all would come with him. RCG’s David Pack released a pompous, false, and arrogant video titled The Coming Signal to God’s People. In this seven-minute diatribe, David Pack claims that thousands in the Churches of God will be led by God’s Spirit to unite with him.

David Pack said that there will be a single event that will be impossible for those in the COGs to miss. He then gave three signals supposedly which prove this is about to happen:

  1. Based on Zechariah 11:14, David Pack claims that there will be ‘a full rupture’ between the USA and Israel and this is something to watch for.
  2. That because of its (often false) literature, websites, staff, and headquarters, that RCG is ready for the coming influx of thousands that will lead to an unbelievable work. Well, I certainly do not believe that David Pack is leading God’s end time work, so in that sense it is unbelievable. David Pack claims that Wadsworth will soon be ‘everybody’s headquarters.’ That is not true. David Pack wants people to ‘walk by sight related to his campus that he claims is so magnificent that it ‘staggers the imagination.’ Yet, the Bible says Christians are to walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7)–which is the opposite of what David Pack is essentially teaching.
  3. David Pack claims that it is so obvious that world events have sped up, that God must do something with RCG soon. He claims that the time when no man can work, John 9:4, is getting close. While it is relatively close, RCG is not doing that work (see also Preparing for the ‘Short Work’ and The Famine of the Word).

Let me add here that David Pack has misunderstood God’s work for a long time and falsely acts like the main RCG work is to draw COG members from other groups to RCG.

In the video, David Pack said that all (presumably other COG) leaders will call his message false. Well, his message is false. Yet, David Pack claims that all will realize that it is true.

David Pack then boldly stated that all COG members all say that they all want to get together, to reunify. That is NOT the case. I, for one, do NOT believe that the COGs should all reunify. The Book of Revelation is clear that there will be multiple COG groups around at the time of the end. Here are links to articles about four types of groups that Jesus indicated would be around at the end:

4. The Thyatira Church Era was predominant circa 1050 A.D. to circa 1600 A.D. The Church during the Inquisition.
5. The Sardis Church Era was predominant circa 1600 A.D. to circa 1933 A.D. Discusses early history of the Seventh Day Baptists, Seventh-day Adventists, and COG-7th Day.
6. The Philadelphia Church Era was predominant circa 1933 A.D. to 1986 A.D. The old Radio Church of God and old Worldwide Church of God, now the remnant of that era is basically the most faithful in the Church of God, like who hold to the beliefs and practices of the Continuing Church of God.
7. The Laodicean Church Era has been predominant circa 1986 A.D. to present. The Laodiceans are non-Philadelphians who mainly descended from the old WCG or its offshoots. They do not properly understand the work or biblical prophecies and will face the Great Tribulation if they do not repent.

David Pack ignores what the Bible teaches about unity. Just like Pope Francis, David Pack does not realize that unity of the faith will not happen until after Jesus returns. He and his followers need to properly study and understand Zechariah 2:6-12 and other scriptures.

Anyway, in the video, David Pack also misinterprets Habakkuk 1:5. He then claimed when God intervenes with RCG, you will see this as it will be ‘impossible to miss.’ He closed his video with the following statement:

Do not worry about missing the signal–you won’t.

Yet, the main signal to notice about David Pack is the following prophecy written by the Apostle Peter:

1 But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. 2 And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. 3 By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber. (2 Peter 2:1-3)

David Pack has long used ‘covetous words’ and is a false teacher. He is NOT God’s apostle nor the Elijah to come as he now also claims. David Pack’s prior prophesies related to reunification have been shown to be false in the past and will be so in the future. There is NO WAY that thousands of Philadelphian Christians will become part of RCG. David Pack’s “empire” will one day fall. See also the article Why Not the Restored Church of God?

David Pack is NOT a true watchman (watch also Go, Set a Watchman). David Pack will again be proven false.

Most in the COGs who hear about this ‘coming signal’ will realize that David Pack is wrong.

But David Pack, in my view, remains delusional, as do many who still support him.

On January 30, 2015, RCG posted the following from David Pack:

I am posting a new message, “The MASS HEALING of God’s People—Just Ahead!” A spectacular, divine promise has been hidden in God’s Word, lost until it was God’s time to reveal it with 29 PLAIN PROOFS. This message explains—and conclusively PROVES!—that part of God’s “restoration of all things” (Matt. 17:11) involves completely healing ALL brethren who choose to return to His Church when He reunifies it. …

His Plan is MUCH BIGGER and begins MUCH SOONER!

Do not RCG members yet realize that this is not true? David Pack does not understand important aspects of biblical prophecy and continues to make outlandish claims that are not correct. He has admitted that he is not a prophet in the past (though he now falsely claims to be the ‘Elijah‘) and he still is not a prophet of God. Cannot those in RCG see the truth?

Thousands of years ago, the Prophet Daniel was asked to interpret some handwriting that was written on a wall by only a hand that the king of Babylon personally witnessed (which is why he ultimately called Daniel to see it). The moral trend in that kingdom was not good according to Daniel (Daniel 5:22-23). After stating that, here is the interpretation that the prophet Daniel gave of that handwriting on the wall:

24 Then the fingers of the hand were sent from Him, and this writing was written.

25 “And this is the inscription that was written:

MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.

26 This is the interpretation of each word. Mene: God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it; 27 Tekel: You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting; 28 Peres: Your kingdom has been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.” (Daniel 5:24-28)

That kingdom was taken over that very night (Daniel 5:30-31).

While this was not a prophecy of David Pack, let’s look at the words on the wall and apply them to him:

  1. Mene: Your days being on the top as you view yourself are numbered. Perhaps in the next three or so years.
  2. Mene: Despite signs of your failure, will you finally publicly repent that your understanding of Haggai and Zechariah are wrong, or instead will you take steps to speed your decline up? Will you finally repent?
  3. Tekel: Your false interpretation of scripture and beliefs about yourself have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting.
  4. Peres/Upharsin: Your empire will some day be divided by those who will see more of the truth and leave and those who will accept your provably blatant falsehoods and stay. That cannot be the type of Church that God would want.

Now, a story I often like to tell people is the old story about the Emperor who had no clothes. Basically, the Emperor was very vain about his outward appearance, and some shysters persuaded him to give them a lot of money to make the finest clothes. Somewhat similarly, David Pack wanted to build a facility so fine that all the “splinters” would see it and marvel–and he has built something that he has marveled about, yet Philadelphia-remnant Christians and even most of the Laodicean Christians are not impressed by it. In the story, the Emperor agreed to do this and then hold a public parade once the clothes were ready.

The shysters persuaded the Emperor and his supporters that the clothes that they were to make would be so fine that only those unworthy of their positions in life could not see them. When the shysters pretended to supply fine clothes to the Emperor (which in reality was absolutely nothing), the Emperor and his staff commented about how fine the clothes were (the staff apparently worried about losing their jobs or influence if they told the truth out loud). The Emperor then took off his clothes and pretended to put the new “clothes” on. He then went outside and walked in a public parade. A small boy, seeing the Emperor, shouted out, “The Emperor is naked. The Emperor has no clothes!”

People tried to shut the boy up. One or more in the audience said to him, “Boy, you are not worthy of your position as you cannot see these fine clothes.” Others said, “Wait, he is only a small boy. Of course, he is worthy of his position of simply being a boy. The Emperor is naked.” Then, when the crowd realized that no one saw the non-existent clothes, they laughed and laughed. The Emperor was extremely humiliated.

People finally accepted the facts. And the facts are that David Pack has repeatedly been false.

Can those in RCG now see that David Pack is NOT GOD’S Apostle?

David Pack seems to have believed that if he had a new headquarters’ building that this would be enough to get people to come to him and that this was God’s plan. But it was never God’s plan, but rather the imagination and vanity of David Pack and many of his followers. Can they see the truth now or how many more false interpretations from David Pack will it take?

David Pack’s interpretations and predictions about what was supposed to happen remain wrong.

Will you personally admit the truth? If any of you in RCG have actual facts that disprove or further support what I am writing here, please contact me. My email remains cogwriter@aol.com. Will you believe the truth and the Bible or David Pack?

If you are in RCG, can you see that your “emperor” is prophetically naked (which is my opinion of what his improper interpretations show)? Can you see the handwriting on the RCG wall?

David Pack is wrong.

David Pack is a false apostle.

But just because he is false, that does not mean that God cannot have any prophets today. Actually, they are predicted for these last days in Acts 2:17-18 (see also Does the CCOG have the confirmed signs of Acts 2:17-18?).

Furthermore, notice some things that one-time Global Church of God board member and former WCG employee, Norman Edwards, wrote:

The words “prophet”, “prophecy”, “prophesy”, and their various forms occur in 202 verses in the New Testament …

Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good (1 Thessalonians 5:20). …

The single biggest difficulty in acquiring any truth, no matter how valuable, is overcoming our own human pride. (Edwards N. New Testament Sabbaths and Prophets. Shepherd’s Voice, Fall 2016).

There are over 40 separate passages about prophets and their prophecies in the New Testament …

1Jo 4:1-2 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God,

Note: If there were no true prophets, there would be no need to “test the spirits”—because every prophet would be a “false prophet”. But because there are both true prophets and false prophets, we need to “test the spirits”. (Edwards N. Need Prophets More than Prophecy. Shepherd’s Voice, Fall 2013)

His last note hopefully will make people pause, who doubt that God can use prophets today, while his comment about 202 verses in the New Testament should also assist people in understanding that. The Bible shows that in these end times, most Christians have a Laodicean work and need to repent (Revelation 3:14-19), but will not do so. They do not properly discern the spirits and will not accept God’s actual prophet(s) as they should.

Could the following apply to you?

15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. 17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’ — and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked — 18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. (Revelation 3:15-19)

Turning to God is the only answer–and it is not just those in RCG that need to do that.

This is something you can do.

Those following David Pack are not the only ones who are accepting error in these last days.

Do not let your own pride get in the way of believing God–as He says there will be true dreams and true prophets (see also Does the CCOG have the confirmed signs of Acts 2:17-18?).

Do not think that NOT acting on the fact there could be a true prophet in the last days is safer either (cf. Matthew 25:24-30).

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Why Not the Restored Church of God? This group, led by David Pack, claims to be the most faithful. The information in this article suggests otherwise. Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Por qué no la Iglesia de Dios Restaurada?
Why Be Concerned About False and Heretical Leaders? There have been many false leaders–here is some of why you should be concerned about them. Here is a related article in the Spanish language ¿Por qué estar preocupado acerca de falsos y heréticos líderes?
The Elijah Heresies Does the Bible teach that there will be a future Elijah? Must it be Herbert W. Armstrong? Two related sermons are available Elijah: Prophecies and Heresies and Elijah, Herbert W. Armstrong, and CCOG.
How To Determine If Someone is a True Prophet of God There are many false prophets. How can Christians determine who is a true prophet? There is also a sermon-length video titled How to determine if someone is a true prophet of God. Here is a related link in Spanish/español: ¿Cómo determinar si alguien es un verdadero profeta de Dios?
Church of God Leaders on Prophets Have there been prophets throughout the church age? Are any supposed to be around in the last days? What have COG leaders stated or written about prophets? Here is a link to a related sermon: Church of God Leaders on Prophets.
Herbert W. Armstrong, the Philadelphia Church, & the Mantle Herbert Armstrong claims God had him raise the Philadelphia up. Are there reasons to believe that the Philadelphia mantle in now within the CCOG? Here is a link to a related sermon: Herbert W. Armstrong and the Philadelphia Mantle.
Leading the Final Phase of the Work Matthew 24:14 will be fulfilled and RCG is not the group doing this. Who is leading the final phase of the work? What did Herbert Armstrong and the old WCG teach about that and about prophets? Does Bob Thiel meet the criteria that the Bible and the old WCG set? What is the proof? What has the Continuing Church of God been doing?
The Philadelphia Church Era was predominant circa 1933 A.D. to 1986 A.D. The old Radio Church of God and old Worldwide Church of God, now the remnant of that era is basically the most faithful in the Church of God, like who hold to the beliefs and practices of the Continuing Church of God.
The Laodicean Church Era has been predominant circa 1986 A.D. to present. The Laodiceans are non-Philadelphians who mainly descended from the old WCG or its offshoots.  They do not properly understand the work or biblical prophecies and will face the Great Tribulation if they do not repent. One video of related interest is 17 Laodicean Errors in Prophecy. See also Do You Hold to Any of These Laodicean Prophetic Errors?
Are the Laodiceans the Modern Sadducees and Pharisees? Discusses similarities of the Sadducees and Pharisees to various COGs in this end-time.
Does the CCOG have the confirmed signs of Acts 2:17-18? Does any church have the confirmed dream and prophetic signs of Acts 2:17-18? Should one? Here is a link in the Spanish language: ¿Tiene la CCOG confirmadas las señales de Hechos 2: 17-18? Here is a link in the French language: Est-ce que l’Église Continue de Dieu confirme les signes d’Actes 2:17-18? A related sermon in the English language is also available: 17 Last Days’ Signs of the Holy Spirit.

Church of God News in Spanish

Thursday, February 4th, 2021

COGwriter

The Continuing Church of God continues to get additional materials translated into the Spanish language.

Here are links to the latest news posts we received:

4 Signposts of American Collapse Which Also Occurred in the USSR’

‘4 señales del colapso americano que también ocurrieron en la USSR’

https://www.cdlidd.es/4-senales-del-colapso-americano-que-tambien-ocurrieronen-la-ussr/

BA: Indian Christians in “Fear and Shock” After Extremists Warn “Leave Faith or Die”

BA: Cristianos indios en “shock y temor” después de que extremistas advierten “Dejen la fe o mueran”

https://www.cdlidd.es/ba-cristianos-indios-en-shock-y-temor-despues-de-que-extremistas-advierten-dejen-la-fe-o-mueran/

Crackdown on Audio (and other) Bibles

Medidas severas sobre Biblias en audio (y otras)

https://www.cdlidd.es/medidas-severas-sobre-biblias-en-audio-y-otras/

CGOM says several things many believe are not in the Bible

CGOM dice que algunas cosas que muchos creen no están en la Biblia

https://www.cdlidd.es/cgom-dice-que-algunas-cosas-que-muchos-creen-no-estan-en-la-biblia/

I365: One World Government: A Necessary Evil for Messiah to Prevail, Mystical Rabbi Proclaims

I365: Un gobierno mundial: Un mal necesario para que el Mesías prevalezca, proclama rabino místico

https://www.cdlidd.es/i365-un-gobierno-mundial-un-mal-necesario-para-que-el-mesias-prevalezca-proclama-rabino-mistico/

EN: Biblical illiteracy ‘utmost problem’ facing global evangelicalism

EN: Analfabetismo bíblico ‘mayor problema’ que enfrenta el evangelismo global

https://www.cdlidd.es/en-analfabetismo-biblico-mayor-problema-que-enfrenta-el-evangelismo-global/

PCG: Barack Obama in Bible Prophecy; COGwriter: Barack Obama’s Administration confirmed at least 12 COGwriter predictions

PCG: Barack Obama en la profecía de la Biblia; COGwriter: La administración de Barack Obama confirmó al menos 12 predicciones de COGwriter

https://www.cdlidd.es/pcg-barack-obama-en-la-profecia-de-la-biblia-cogwriter-la-administracion-de-barack-obama-confirmo-al-menos-12-predicciones-de-cogwriter/

MS: A Biden presidency would “resurrect” hopes for a Palestinian state

MS: Una presidencia de Biden “resucitaría” las esperanzas de un Estado palestino

https://www.cdlidd.es/ms-una-presidencia-de-biden-resucitaria-las-esperanzas-de-un-estado-palestino/

PCG: Pope Francis’s New World Order; COGwriter: Vatican has long been pushing for a New World Order

PCG: Nuevo Orden Mundial del Papa Francisco; COGwriter: El Vaticano hace largo tiempo ha estado presionando por un Nuevo Orden Mundial

https://www.cdlidd.es/pcg-nuevo-orden-mundial-del-papa-francisco-cogwriter-el-vaticano-hace-largo-tiempo-ha-estado-presionando-por-un-nuevo-orden-mundial/

European Powers to Boost Asia Presence to Counter China’

‘Potencias europeas a impulsar presencia en Asia para contener a China’

https://www.cdlidd.es/potencias-europeas-a-impulsar-presencia-en-asia-para-contener-a-china/

JR: Biden COVID-19 stimulus will not stop new depression; Biden lockdown to enable reset?

JR: Estímulos de Biden por el COVID-19 no detendrán una nueva depresión; ¿Cierre de Biden para permitir el reseteo?

https://www.cdlidd.es/jr-estimulos-de-biden-por-el-covid-19-no-detendran-una-nueva-depresion-cierre-de-biden-para-permitir-el-reseteo/

Amazon forces Parler offline–loss of speech freedom denounced by the ACLU and is consistent with an old WCG warning

Amazon obliga a Parler a desconectarse — pérdida de la libertad de expresión denunciada por la ACLU y es consistente con una advertencia de la antigua WCG

https://www.cdlidd.es/amazon-obliga-a-parler-a-desconectarse-perdida-de-la-libertad-de-expresion-denunciada-por-la-aclu-y-es-consistente-con-una-advertencia-de-la-antigua-wcg/

Pope, In New Decree, Allows More Roles for Women in Church’

‘El Papa, en un nuevo decreto, permite más roles para las mujeres en la Iglesia’

WND: Genuine wickedness is openly manifesting in ‘land of the free’

WND: Genuina debilidad se está manifestando abiertamente an la ‘tierra de los libres’

https://www.cdlidd.es/wnd-genuina-debilidad-se-esta-manifestando-abiertamente-en-la-tierra-de-los-libres/

Cult: Government Is Now The New Religion?’ ‘The Agony Of Deceit’

‘Cultos: ¿Es el gobierno ahora la nueva religión?’ ‘La agonía del engaño’

https://www.cdlidd.es/cultos-es-el-gobierno-ahora-la-nueva-religion/

Would YOU Be Considered a Domestic Terrorist Under This New Bill?’

‘¿Sería USTED considerado como un terrorista doméstico bajo esta nueva ley?’

https://www.cdlidd.es/seria-usted-considerado-como-un-terrorista-domestico-bajo-esta-nueva-ley/

God’s warning through Habakkuk is serious, coming to pass, but being ignored by almost everyone–what about you?

La advertencia de Dios a través de Habacuc es seria, está próxima a ocurrir, pero está siendo ignorada por casi todos – ¿Qué hay acerca de usted?

https://www.cdlidd.es/la-advertencia-de-dios-a-traves-de-habacuc-es-seria-esta-proxima-a-ocurrir-pero-esta-siendo-ignorada-por-casi-todos-que-hay-acerca-de-usted/

BIS: 20% Of The World Could Have Digital Cash In Three Years; COGwriter: 666 will shoot for 100%

BIS: 20% del mundo podría tener una moneda ditigal en tres años; COGwriter: 666 será lanzado 100%

https://www.cdlidd.es/bis-20-del-mundo-podria-tener-una-moneda-digital-en-tres-anos-cogwriter-666-sera-lanzado-100/

COVID Steps? ‘New Mental Health Survey Shows Conservatives Were Right: Church Is Essential’

¿Pasos COVID? ‘Nueva encuesta de salud mental muestra que los conservadores estaban en lo cierto: La Iglesia es esencial’

https://www.cdlidd.es/pasos-covid-nueva-encuesta-de-salud-mental-muestra-que-los-conservadores-estaban-en-lo-cierto-la-iglesia-es-esencial/

I365: Iran may be “Weeks” away from developing Nuclear Bomb’, Sec of State Blinken Admits

I365: Irán puede estar a ‘semanas’ de desarrollar bomba nuclear, admite Srio. de Estado Blinken

https://www.cdlidd.es/i365-iran-puede-estar-a-semanas-de-desarrollar-bomba-nuclear-admite-srio-de-estado-binken/

Temple Institute: HaShem will reign to all eternity! … G-d’s ultimate goal is to …

Instituto del Templo: ¡HaShem reinará por toda la eternidad! … La meta final de D-s es …

https://www.cdlidd.es/instituto-del-templo-hashem-reinara-por-toda-la-eternidad-la-meta-final-de-d-s-es/

Saudi Media Exposes … Al Aksa Mosque isn’t on Temple Mount’ ‘Pro-Israel Activists chase away EU officials trying to stop Construction in Jerusalem’

‘Medio saudita expone … La Mezquita de Al Aksa no está en el Monte del Templo’ ‘Activistas pro-Israel echan a oficiales de la UE tratando de parar construcción en Jerusalén’

Pelosi’s 25th amendment committee: A prelude to a Harris Administration?

Comité de la 25a. Enmienda de Pelosi: ¿Un preludio a una administración Harris?

 

4 Signposts of American Collapse Which Also Occurred in the USSR’

‘4 señales del colapso americano que también ocurrieron en la USSR’

https://www.cdlidd.es/4-senales-del-colapso-americano-que-tambien-ocurrieronen-la-ussr/

BA: Indian Christians in “Fear and Shock” After Extremists Warn “Leave Faith or Die”

BA: Cristianos indios en “shock y temor” después de que extremistas advierten “Dejen la fe o mueran”

https://www.cdlidd.es/ba-cristianos-indios-en-shock-y-temor-despues-de-que-extremistas-advierten-dejen-la-fe-o-mueran/

Crackdown on Audio (and other) Bibles

Medidas severas sobre Biblias en audio (y otras)

https://www.cdlidd.es/medidas-severas-sobre-biblias-en-audio-y-otras/

CGOM says several things many believe are not in the Bible

CGOM dice que algunas cosas que muchos creen no están en la Biblia

https://www.cdlidd.es/cgom-dice-que-algunas-cosas-que-muchos-creen-no-estan-en-la-biblia/

I365: One World Government: A Necessary Evil for Messiah to Prevail, Mystical Rabbi Proclaims

I365: Un gobierno mundial: Un mal necesario para que el Mesías prevalezca, proclama rabino místico

https://www.cdlidd.es/i365-un-gobierno-mundial-un-mal-necesario-para-que-el-mesias-prevalezca-proclama-rabino-mistico/

EN: Biblical illiteracy ‘utmost problem’ facing global evangelicalism

EN: Analfabetismo bíblico ‘mayor problema’ que enfrenta el evangelismo global

https://www.cdlidd.es/en-analfabetismo-biblico-mayor-problema-que-enfrenta-el-evangelismo-global/

PCG: Barack Obama in Bible Prophecy; COGwriter: Barack Obama’s Administration confirmed at least 12 COGwriter predictions

PCG: Barack Obama en la profecía de la Biblia; COGwriter: La administración de Barack Obama confirmó al menos 12 predicciones de COGwriter

https://www.cdlidd.es/pcg-barack-obama-en-la-profecia-de-la-biblia-cogwriter-la-administracion-de-barack-obama-confirmo-al-menos-12-predicciones-de-cogwriter/

MS: A Biden presidency would “resurrect” hopes for a Palestinian state

MS: Una presidencia de Biden “resucitaría” las esperanzas de un Estado palestino

https://www.cdlidd.es/ms-una-presidencia-de-biden-resucitaria-las-esperanzas-de-un-estado-palestino/

PCG: Pope Francis’s New World Order; COGwriter: Vatican has long been pushing for a New World Order

PCG: Nuevo Orden Mundial del Papa Francisco; COGwriter: El Vaticano hace largo tiempo ha estado presionando por un Nuevo Orden Mundial

https://www.cdlidd.es/pcg-nuevo-orden-mundial-del-papa-francisco-cogwriter-el-vaticano-hace-largo-tiempo-ha-estado-presionando-por-un-nuevo-orden-mundial/

European Powers to Boost Asia Presence to Counter China’

‘Potencias europeas a impulsar presencia en Asia para contener a China’

https://www.cdlidd.es/potencias-europeas-a-impulsar-presencia-en-asia-para-contener-a-china/

JR: Biden COVID-19 stimulus will not stop new depression; Biden lockdown to enable reset?

JR: Estímulos de Biden por el COVID-19 no detendrán una nueva depresión; ¿Cierre de Biden para permitir el reseteo?

https://www.cdlidd.es/jr-estimulos-de-biden-por-el-covid-19-no-detendran-una-nueva-depresion-cierre-de-biden-para-permitir-el-reseteo/

Amazon forces Parler offline–loss of speech freedom denounced by the ACLU and is consistent with an old WCG warning

Amazon obliga a Parler a desconectarse — pérdida de la libertad de expresión denunciada por la ACLU y es consistente con una advertencia de la antigua WCG

https://www.cdlidd.es/amazon-obliga-a-parler-a-desconectarse-perdida-de-la-libertad-de-expresion-denunciada-por-la-aclu-y-es-consistente-con-una-advertencia-de-la-antigua-wcg/

Pope, In New Decree, Allows More Roles for Women in Church’

‘El Papa, en un nuevo decreto, permite más roles para las mujeres en la Iglesia’

WND: Genuine wickedness is openly manifesting in ‘land of the free’

WND: Genuina debilidad se está manifestando abiertamente an la ‘tierra de los libres’

https://www.cdlidd.es/wnd-genuina-debilidad-se-esta-manifestando-abiertamente-en-la-tierra-de-los-libres/

Cult: Government Is Now The New Religion?’ ‘The Agony Of Deceit’

‘Cultos: ¿Es el gobierno ahora la nueva religión?’ ‘La agonía del engaño’

https://www.cdlidd.es/cultos-es-el-gobierno-ahora-la-nueva-religion/

Would YOU Be Considered a Domestic Terrorist Under This New Bill?’

‘¿Sería USTED considerado como un terrorista doméstico bajo esta nueva ley?’

https://www.cdlidd.es/seria-usted-considerado-como-un-terrorista-domestico-bajo-esta-nueva-ley/

God’s warning through Habakkuk is serious, coming to pass, but being ignored by almost everyone–what about you?

La advertencia de Dios a través de Habacuc es seria, está próxima a ocurrir, pero está siendo ignorada por casi todos – ¿Qué hay acerca de usted?

https://www.cdlidd.es/la-advertencia-de-dios-a-traves-de-habacuc-es-seria-esta-proxima-a-ocurrir-pero-esta-siendo-ignorada-por-casi-todos-que-hay-acerca-de-usted/

BIS: 20% Of The World Could Have Digital Cash In Three Years; COGwriter: 666 will shoot for 100%

BIS: 20% del mundo podría tener una moneda ditigal en tres años; COGwriter: 666 será lanzado 100%

https://www.cdlidd.es/bis-20-del-mundo-podria-tener-una-moneda-digital-en-tres-anos-cogwriter-666-sera-lanzado-100/

COVID Steps? ‘New Mental Health Survey Shows Conservatives Were Right: Church Is Essential’

¿Pasos COVID? ‘Nueva encuesta de salud mental muestra que los conservadores estaban en lo cierto: La Iglesia es esencial’

https://www.cdlidd.es/pasos-covid-nueva-encuesta-de-salud-mental-muestra-que-los-conservadores-estaban-en-lo-cierto-la-iglesia-es-esencial/

I365: Iran may be “Weeks” away from developing Nuclear Bomb’, Sec of State Blinken Admits

I365: Irán puede estar a ‘semanas’ de desarrollar bomba nuclear, admite Srio. de Estado Blinken

https://www.cdlidd.es/i365-iran-puede-estar-a-semanas-de-desarrollar-bomba-nuclear-admite-srio-de-estado-binken/

Temple Institute: HaShem will reign to all eternity! … G-d’s ultimate goal is to …

Instituto del Templo: ¡HaShem reinará por toda la eternidad! … La meta final de D-s es …

https://www.cdlidd.es/instituto-del-templo-hashem-reinara-por-toda-la-eternidad-la-meta-final-de-d-s-es/

The Continuing Church of God has a separate Spanish language website http://www.cdlidd.es. The term Continuing Church of God translates into La Continuación de la Iglesia de Dios in the Spanish language, also called Castellano or Español.

We have also additional Spanish language videos on our CDLIDDSermones channel.

Our Spanish translator normally provides translated news items once or twice per month.

So, in addition to having magazines and books in the Spanish language, we also post news items in it as well.

This is another avenue we utilize to teach all that we can in accordance with Matthew 24:14, Mark 13:28-37, and Matthew 28:19-20.

The Continuing Church of God is reaching people around the world in multiple languages via the internet, printed literature, and human church leaders.

We also reach people over the radio and through videos in the English language.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Mexico, Central America, South America, Brazil, and the Caribbean in Prophecy [Español: México, América central, Suramérica, Brasil y el Caribe en la profecía] [Português: México, América Central, Ámérica do Sul, e Brasil na profecia] What will happen to those of Latin America? Will they have prosperity? Will they cooperate with Europe? Will they suffer in the future? What role might the various Caribbean nations/territories play? Two videos of related interest are available: Will Mexico Regain USA Territories? and Donald Trump and Mexico’s future. A sermon of related interest is available: Latin America in Prophecy.

CDLIDDSermones channel. This contains messages in the Spanish language.

CDLIDD.ES La Continuación de la Iglesia de Dios. This is the Spanish language website for the Continuing Church of God and has articles in español/castellano.

Continuing History of the Church of God This pdf booklet is a historical overview of the true Church of God and some of its main opponents from Acts 2 to the 21st century. Related sermon links include Continuing History of the Church of God: c. 31 to c. 300 A.D. and Continuing History of the Church of God: 4th-16th Centuries and Continuing History of the Church of God: 17th-20th Centuries. The booklet is available in Spanish: Continuación de la Historia de la Iglesia de Dios, German: Kontinuierliche Geschichte der Kirche Gottes, and Ekegusii Omogano Bw’ekanisa Ya Nyasae Egendererete.

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?

Statement of Beliefs of the Continuing Church of GodContend earnestly for the faith once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3, NKJV), “Let brotherly love (Philadelphia) continue” (Hebrews 13:1) ” & continuing stedfastly in the teaching of the apostles” (Acts 2:42 YLT). So, what does that really mean in terms of specific beliefs–the Statement gives answers? Here is a related link in Spanish/español: Declaración de las Doctrinas de la Continuación de la Iglesia de Dios. Here is a related link in Tagalog: Paglalahad ng Mga Paniniwala ng Patuloy na Iglesya ng Diyos. Here is a related link in Mandarin Chinese ~ç~íy^v„eYOv„OáNðXðf. Here is a related link in Kiswahili: KATIKA LUGHA YA KISWAHILI. Here is a related link in Dutch: Verklaring van geloofspunten van de Continuing Church of God. Here is a related link in Deutsche (German): Glaubenserklärung der Continuing Church of God. Here is a related link in Italiano: Dichiarazione del Credo della Continuing Church of God. Here is related link in the French language: Déclaration des croyances de L’Église Continue de Dieu. Here is a related link in the Chichewa language: ZIKHULUPIRIRO ZA MPINGO WA CONTINUING CHURCH OF GOD. Here is a link in Romanian: Declarația de credințe a continuării Bisericii lui Dumnezeu. Here is a link in Portuguese: Declaração de Crenças da Continuação da Igreja de Deus. Here is a link in Russian: Утверждение верований о продолжении Церкви Божьей. Here is a link to a related English-language sermon: Beliefs of the Continuing Church of God.

Faith for those God has Called and Chosen What is faith? Can faith be increased? Are you saved by faith? What about works? Do Christians need to keep the Ten Commandments? What is the ‘faith chapter’? How do the just live by faith? Is faith one of the weightier matters of the law? How does faith come? Here is a link to a pdf. booklet titled Faith for Those God has Called and Chosen. Marque aquí para ver el pdf folleto: Fe para aquellos que Dios ha llamado y escogido.Here is a link to a related sermon titled: Faith for the Called and Chosen. Here is a link to shorter version of the written article in Mandarin Chinese 一篇关于信仰的小文章

CCOG.ORG Continuing Church of God The group striving to be most faithful amongst all real Christian groups to the word of God. To see how CCOG has done so far, here are links to two sermons Continuing Church of God (CCOG) first year anniversary: What has been accomplished? and The Continuing Church of God: Two Years of Proclamation. Here is a written link to a version of that sermon in the Spanish language: Aniversario del primer año de la Continuación de la Iglesia de Dios: ¿Qué se ha cumplido?

CCOG Animations channel. The Continuing Church of God has some animations to teach aspects of Christian beliefs.

Bible News Prophecy channel. Dr. Thiel has produced many YouTube videos for the BibleNewsProphecy channel. And you can find them there.

ContinuingCOG channel. Dr. Thiel has produced YouTube video sermons for this channel. Note: Since these are sermon-length, they can take a little longer to load than other YouTube videos. Here is a link to a short intro: ContinuingCOG Channel.

CCOGAfrica channel. This has messages from African pastors in African languages such as Kalenjin, Kiswahili, Embu, and Dholuo.

BibleNewsProphecy Podcast. This has audio-visual podcasts of the Bible News Prophecy channgel. It plays on i-Phones, i-Pads, and Windows devices that can play i-Tunes.

Bible News Prophecy online radio. This is an audio version of the Bible News Prophecy videos. It is also available as a mobile app.

CCOG.ASIA We in the Continuing Church of God also have the url www.ccog.asia which has a focus on Asia and has various articles in Mandarin Chinese as well as some in English, plus some items in other Asian languages. 我们在继续神的教会也提供此网址

CCOGAFRICA.ORG This is a website targeted towards those in Africa.

CCOGCANADA.CA This is a website targeted towards those in Canada.

CCOG.IN This is a website targeted towards those of Indian heritage. It has a link to an edited Hindi translation of The Mystery of the Ages and is expected to have more non-English language materials in the future.

CCOG.EU This is a website targeted toward Europe. It has materials in more than one language (currently it has English, Dutch, and Serbian, with links also to Spanish) and it is intended to have additional language materials added.

CCOG.NZ This is a website targeted towards New Zealand and others with a British-descended background.

PNIND.PH Patuloy na Iglesya ng Diyos. This is the Philippines website Continuing Church of God. It has information in English and Tagalog.

I365: Polls show Pro-3rd Temple Politicians becoming Lawmakers

Thursday, February 4th, 2021


(Photo by Bob Thiel)

COGwriter

Israel365News (I365) reported the following:

Elections: Polls show Pro-3rd Temple Politicians becoming Lawmakers

February 4, 2021

Two separate right-wing parties in Israel, Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) and the National Union, were each expected to receive roughly two Knesset seats in Israel’s current election according to most polls. The only problem is that the minimum requirement for a party to enter Israel’s Knesset and serve as an acting lawmaker is four seats.

But after much deliberation and pressure from Israel’s right-wing camp, the two parties reached an agreement where they would unite together and run on a joint ticket. …

Otzma Yehudit chairman Itamar Ben-Gvir. In an exclusive interview, Ben-Gvir told Israel365 News that he is in favor of building the third Temple as commanded in the book of Exodus …

The news prompted Moshe Feiglin, another pro-Temple politician with a large social media following to endorse the merger saying “it put a smile on my face.” https://www.israel365news.com/186707/elections-polls-show-pro-3rd-temple-politicians-becoming-lawmakers/

Why is this relevant?

Several reasons.

Certain Jews want a ‘third temple’ as well as the right to perform daily animal sacrifices.

While an actual massive temple is not needed for sacrifices according to the Bible (Ezra 3:6) a sacrificial altar is (Ezra 3:2-3).

This has been confirmed to me personally by both the Temple Institute and the reconstituted Sanhedrin (details are in the article: Why is a Jewish Temple in Jerusalem Not Required?).

Back in December 2018, those groups were also involved in ‘dedicating’ an altar to have regular animal sacrifices. We even made the following video related to that:


6:57

Sanhedrin makes burnt offering to dedicate altar!

The Reconstituted Sanhedrin performed a ceremony on December 10, 2018 to dedicate a new altar for the use of daily sacrifices. High Priest Rabbi Baruch Kahane officiated. How does this align with Bible prophecy? Daniel wrote three times that the daily sacrifices must stop, hence they first must resume. The Great Tribulation will begin shortly after these sacrifices stop. In this video Dr. Thiel, who has also been to Israel and spoken with The Temple Institute quotes several scriptures and explains why the actions by the Sanhedrin align with prophecy and the end times.

Here is a link to our video: Sanhedrin makes burnt offering to dedicate altar!

So, since they have a ‘dedicated altar’ why haven’t the Jews begun daily sacrifices?

While, technically, Israeli courts have ruled that the Jews have the right to do so, they have also concluded that in the current political climate that they cannot yet be allowed.

But what if the political climate in Israel’s Knesset (its parliament) or elsewhere changes?

Well, that is something I posted about back in 2008:

Because Israel has a parliamentary system of governance and is normally governed by a coalition of parties, I believe that at some point in time a coalition party that insists on animal sacrifices will become part of the top governance and the sacrifices will then begin–though they may last only a very short period of time–but long enough for the King of the North to stop them per Daniel 11:31. (Thiel B. Animal Sacrifice Planned for April 6? COGwriter, April 3, 2008).

This type of situation with the Israeli parliament may develop soon related to Israel’s next election.

Which is when?

That is scheduled to be on March 23, 2021.

Now I do not believe that even if “pro-third temple” politicians get a place in the Knesset next month that sacrifices will immediately resume.

But I do believe that the time will come when Israel will allow those sacrifices and having “pro-sacrifice” politicians,  which the “pro-third temple” politicians are, will be a factor in allowing that to happen.

Since the Bible teaches that animal sacrifices will stop (Daniel 9:27, 11:31, 12:11), they must first resume. This resumption of animal sacrifices is something that the Temple Institute may well be involved in–and they mainly only need permission from Israeli authorities to do so. One person there reported to one of our sons that this could be done within hours of getting permission. Someone there also told me personally that the Temple Institute DID NOT NEED a massive Jewish temple in order to resume animal sacrifices. They basically only need Levites and an altar, and they have that.

And getting permission to resume animal sacrifices is not impossible–particularly if the Knesset gets a block of politicians that want them.

Although it may well take a war, peace deal, and/or political gridlock for that to happen, it will come to pass as the Bible teaches.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Why is a Jewish Temple in Jerusalem Not Required? Although people like Timothy LaHaye teach a third Jewish temple is required, who is ‘the temple of God” in the New Testament? Does the Bible require a rebuilt Jewish Temple? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Por qué no se requiere un templo judío en Jerusalén? Here is a link to a sermon titled The Temple, Prophecy, and the Work.
Nascent Sanhedrin structure and high priest: The plan is to start animal sacrifices this would fulfill prophecy! The reconstituted Sanhedrin wants the reimplementation of animal sacrifices. A related video is titled Sanhedrin pushing animal sacrifices.
The Red Heifer, Jewish Beliefs, and the End of the World The Temple Institute is watching a ‘red heifer.’ Why might this be important in the sequence of end time events? Here is a related link in the Spanish language Novilla roja descubierta en EE.UU. e Instituto del Templo está interesado en ella. Here are links to two related videos in English: Red Heifers and the Fate of the World and The Red Heifer and the End of the World.
Church of God on Jerusalem’s Western Hill Could this building, often referred to as the Cenacle, possibly have been the oldest actual Christian church building?
Does the ‘Cenacle’ deal have prophetic ramifications? After a 20 year negotiation, the Church of Rome has negotiated the right to have Catholic mass in the building known as the Cenacle. It is in the area where the Church of God on Jerusalem’s Western Hill once stood. This is believed to be the location of the earliest Christian church building. How does the Bible define the ‘temple of God’ in the New Testament? Could this be the area where the ‘man of sin’ will sit in the “temple of God’ that Bible prophecy discusses in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4? This is a YouTube video.
The ‘Peace Deal’ of Daniel 9:27 This prophecy could give up to 3 1/2 years advance notice of the coming Great Tribulation. Will most ignore or misunderstand its fulfillment? Here is a link to a related sermon video Daniel 9:27 and the Start of the Great Tribulation.
Jerusalem: Past, Present, and Future What does the Bible say about Jerusalem and its future? Is Jerusalem going to be divided and eliminated? Is Jesus returning to the area of Jerusalem? There is also a related YouTube video you can watch titled Jerusalem To be divided and eliminated.
Who is the Man of Sin of 2 Thessalonians 2? Is this the King of the North, the ten-horned beast of Revelation 13:1-11, or the two-horned Beast of Revelation 13:12-16? Some rely on traditions, but what does the Bible teach? Here is a related link in Spanish/español: ¿Quién es el Hombre de Pecado de 2 Tesalonicenses 2? Here is a version in Mandarin: 主编: 谁是’大罪人’?Here is a link to a related YouTube video, in English, titled Who is the Man of Sin?
Continuing Church of God The group striving to be most faithful amongst all real Christian groups to the word of God.
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo (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 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.

The Superbowl: Is American tackle football harmful for Christians to watch?

Thursday, February 4th, 2021

COGwriter

This coming Sunday is known as “Super Bowl Sunday” in the USA. Most years, the American football (which is not the same as the sport called soccer in the USA) contest known as the Superbowl is the most watched television program in the USA. Between 100,000,000-150,000,000 are expected to intentionally (as opposed to perhaps seeing a news item about it) watch at least some of it this year according to various reports.

Should Philadelphian Christians, those who are to have love for others, watch the Super Bowl? Could it be harmful to watch?

Tackle football is dangerous and many people who play it are still getting severely hurt:

A concussion protocol was first introduced in 2009 by the NFL’s Head, Neck and Spine Committee in an effort to improve concussion detection. …

Prior to the 2016-2017 season, the NFL added additional elements to its concussion policy to ensure enforcement of the protocol, namely disciplining those teams that violate the required procedures. …

Enhancing the protocol to strengthen enforcement seemed like a wise move from the NFL. However, if teams are not going to face penalties for poor concussion management, it raises serious questions about the League’s intentions in making these changes.

The League’s history with concussion management is already so fraught, and while the NFL has appeared to make positive efforts in their handling of concussions, these situations only suggest the League has regressed. The protocol should have been enforced since its institution, but it wasn’t. It should have been followed since disciplinary action was put in place to avoid these situations, but it wasn’t. And the League should have disciplined teams for violating the protocol to set a precedent and strengthen their policy, but they didn’t.

The NFL has released injury data from the 2016-2017 pre-season and regular season. Combining this data, the number of reported concussions decreased by 11.3 percent from last season. While this may appear on its face to be a marked improvement, this is a decrease against the previous season, which saw the highest number of diagnosed concussions (275) in the past five years.

Having a loosely followed concussion protocol clearly is not enough. http://www.sporttechie.com/2017/02/03/sports/nfl/nfl-concussion-protocol-still-inadequate-after-enhancements-this-season/

Should Christians, who are part of Jesus’ church of brotherly love, encourage people causing themselves and others great bodily harm?

We live in an age of heightened awareness about concussions. From battlefields around the world to football fields in the U.S., we’ve heard about the dangers caused when the brain rattles around inside the skull and the possible link between concussions and the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

A number of high-profile NFL stars have developed CTE, and parents are increasingly worried about how concussions may affect their children who play sports. …

A study published online Thursday in Brain, a journal of neurology, presents the strongest case yet that repetitive hits to the head that don’t lead to concussions —meaning no loss of consciousness or other symptoms that can include headaches, dizziness, vision problems or confusion — cause CTE.

“We’ve had an inkling that subconcussive hits — the ones that don’t [show] neurological signs and symptoms — may be associated with CTE,” says Dr. Lee Goldstein, an associate professor of psychiatry at the Boston University School of Medicine and the lead investigator on the study. “We now have solid scientific evidence to say that is so.”

And this evidence, he says, leaves researchers “terrifically concerned.”

“The concussions we see on the ballfield or the battlefield or wherever — those people are going to get attention,” Goldstein says, “because it’s obvious they’ve had some sort of injury. We’re really worried about the many more people who are getting hit and getting hurt — their brain is getting hurt — but are not getting help because we can’t see the evidence on the outside that their brain is actually hurt. It’s a silent injury.”

Translating Goldstein’s concern to the football field, Chris Nowinski, who heads the Concussion Legacy Foundation, says, “We see the hard hits all the time, where a guy pops up and smiles and [signals] a first down, and [we think], ‘OK, that hit was fine.’ But what this study says is: No, that hit probably wasn’t fine, and that poor guy can’t feel the damage that’s happening in his brain right now.” https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/01/18/578355877/repeated-head-hits-not-concussions-may-be-behind-a-type-of-chronic-brain-damage

Thus, sports like American tackle football are not safe.

There is NO DOUBT among those interested in the truth that American tackle football is violent and causes harm to the players–much of which is permanent.

It is SO BAD that many insurance companies do not wish to be associated with American tackle football:

Insurers are leaving the football market fearing Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) is the new asbestos.

Steve Fainaru and Mark Fainaru-Wada wrote in a spectacular ‘outside the lines’ piece for ESPN+,

To an increasing number of carriers, football is a dam built atop an earthquake fault. A disaster might never occur, but the specter of huge potential losses is scaring many companies away.

“Thirty years from now, you could be on the hook, and that’s a very difficult situation for an insurance company to be in,” James Lynch, chief actuary for the Insurance Information Institute in New York told Fainaru and Fainaru-Wada. “This is why the industry is concerned about it. You want to be able to box up that risk.”

Having played high school and college football, and now dealing with a variety of neurological issues, the following paragraph resonated with me.

It’s not just CTE. CTE isn’t going to be the expensive part,” said one insurance executive who spoke to Outside the Lines on the condition of anonymity. “Dementia and every case of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s are going to be blamed on football. There will be a bevy of doctors in California and other states, and they’re going to say, ‘I’m sure it was because you played football.’”

There was a time when insurers lined up to provide the NFL with General Liability and Workman’s Compensation coverage. Now there is only one carrier writing this business, without an exclusion for head trauma, Berkeley Entertainment & Sports. January 28, 2019 https://mises.org/wire/nfls-latest-headache

Consider also something about Joe Namath:

One of the most legendary figures in NFL history will deliver a sobering message to football fans on the morning of Super Bowl XLVIII. Former New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath, who famously guaranteed a win for his underdog squad in Super Bowl III, revealed the toll that football has taken on him in an interview with CBS scheduled to air on Sunday.

“I’ve been through some things medically. I’ve seen some things on my brain,” Namath told Rita Braver of CBS Sunday Morning in a brief preview of the interview released in advance. “But I’ve had treatment, and I’ve improved. None of the body was designed to play football. Excuse me, you know, football, we’re just not designed for it.” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/01/joe-namath-brain-damage-nfl_n_4709018.html

Football causes great harm. No one has excuses anymore to pretend otherwise.

Tackle football fans WANT one team to repeatedly knock down players of the opposing team. They get a thrill and satisfaction from their team winning.

But for many tackles to happen, one or more players often gets at least slightly injured, and sometimes permanently so.

To encourage this as a fan and to be pleased when it happen simply is not good for Christians and is harmful for character development–including developing more of the love of God.

The Apostle John was inspired to write, “he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also (1 John 4:20-21).

Encouraging and celebrating violent physical contact (tackling) is not showing love towards players.

Since most people in the USA have, at one time or another, made some hint of professing following Jesus, a relevant question may also be:

Would Jesus want you to watch the Super Bowl?

Jesus, of course, taught “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39), while the Apostle Paul wrote “no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it” (Ephesians 5:29).

The Bible teaches:

15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world — the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life — is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever. (1 John 2:15-17)

Tackle football is a lust of the flesh and eyes. Those who claim to be Christian and endorse it are letting the pride of life deceive them.

How many who are in the COGs love the worldly sport of American tackle football and really do not care that it causes irreparable harm to its participants? Is not another reason that some watch it because of their lust for violence and/or for social acceptance?

This is not what loving Christians should do.

Most violent sports advocates do not seem to realize that they are being influenced by the devil who is the prince of the power of the air:

1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:1-10)

Why would anyone feel that God Himself would condone encouraging violent sports as the type of ‘good works’ Christians should be involved in?

After seeing the injuries that some of my high school football-playing colleagues suffered, I could not reconcile the scriptures with American football. There are better ways for Christians to learn principles like teamwork from other sports or activities than watching actual violence such as occurs in American tackle football.

Also, notice what John the Baptist taught soldiers:

14 And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what shall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages. (Luke 3:14, KJV)

I could not reconcile loving my neighbor as myself and cherishing my flesh and not doing violence to any man by watching others do it in a football game. Nor could I reconcile it with the following:

9…You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. (Romans 13:9-10, NKJV)

The Super Bowl will do harm to participants in it.

The New Testament also warns Christians against being violent or approving of those that are (Romans 1:28-32), while history records that early Christians would not watch violent sports. Notice one such report from Theophilus of Antioch perhaps written about 180 A.D.:

Consider, therefore, whether those who teach such things can possibly live indifferently, and be commingled in unlawful intercourse, or, most impious of all, eat human flesh, especially when we are forbidden so much as to witness shows of gladiators, lest we become partakers and abettors of murders. But neither may we see the other spectacles, lest our eyes and ears be defiled, participating in the utterances there sung. (Theophilus of Antioch. To Autolycus, Book III, Chapter XV. Translated by Marcus Dods, A.M. Excerpted from Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 2. Edited by Alexander Roberts & James Donaldson. American Edition, 1885. Online Edition)

So, Christians did not believe that they were to watch the violent sports so popular in the second century.

In the 20th century, the late Herbert W. Armstrong wrote:

Competition and not cooperation, is the attitude which Satan inculcates human minds. But that does not mean that all sports are wrong or to be banned. The law of God is based on the way of righteousness…The basic law is love, out flowing toward God above all else, and secondarily, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”

To harm the other fellow and to gain by doing so for self is a kind of competition that is wrong. Hostility toward the other is sin…

Wherever a game in sports involves antagonists–in hostile attitude to harm the other and/or to “get” from the other–to get the best of the other then a harmful, satanic and evil attitude enters in, and the sport is evil, not good…

Football (American football) is a violent body-contact sport. It is often played with an attitude of hostility and is dangerous and is fraught with physical injury…Soccer does not embody the same evils. (Plain Truth, July-August 1984)

CNN (01/29/2012) had a report that the average American high school football player received 650 sub-concussion hits per season which increased risk for brain damage of various types.

Since I do not actually watch American football, I do not know how many violent acts are likely at this year’s Super Bowl, but the number is likely to be very high, and maybe even a lot more if thoughts of violence are included (cf. Matthew 5:21-22).

In my view, the tackle version of the sport of American football is evil (touch football I would not consider to be inherently evil–though attitude is still a possible factor there). Also, no Christian can really defend how professional football cheerleading females are publicly dressed and displayed–and presumably some of how they will be displayed at the Super Bowl game.

Gambling, which is often a form of covetousness is also involved. I saw an estimate that $6 billion is expected to be bet on the Super Bowl.

For more on gambling, see the article Gambling and Sin: Is it a Sin for Christians to Gamble?

As far as violence goes, the Bible shows that God is against violence:

23 ‘Make a chain,
For the land is filled with crimes of blood,
And the city is full of violence.
24 Therefore I will bring the worst of the Gentiles,
And they will possess their houses;
I will cause the pomp of the strong to cease,
And their holy places shall be defiled. (Ezekiel 7:23-24)

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)

Do you approve of those who practice violence?

Since American football games, like the Super Bowl, intentionally inflict various hurts, the following scripture supports the idea that American football will not be allowed in the Millennium:

9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,
For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
As the waters cover the sea. (Isaiah 11:9, NKJV)

While “love does no harm to a neighbor” (Romans 13:9), what do sports like American football do?

A while back, on the night before the Super Bowl, I saw portions of TBN’s Christian World News. Towards the end, they interviewed players on the teams in that scheduled Super Bowl game who professed Christ. The players, individually, basically stated that their faith was more important than winning the Super Bowl. But none said that they would renounce violence, not harm others, or not participate in the game because of its negative fruits.

Additionally, of the multitude of groups that profess Christ, it appears that only an actual or relative handful or so will tell their members that they should not be fans of American tackle football. Sometimes they will not denounce it because their leaders are fans, sometimes because they are afraid that they might lose members and/or money, and sometimes because of all of those reasons.

Would Jesus want you to watch the Superbowl? What about the Apostle Paul who warned against approving violence? The same Apostle Paul who said to imitate him as he imitated Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1). Would Jesus or the Apostle Paul watch the Superbowl as football fans rooting for one team to crush the other team?

“Perhaps,” some might answer. And still others may ridicule and/or dismiss what I have written.

However, if Jesus Himself did watch the Superbowl, would He watch it and hope that one team would tackle and crash into members of the other team? Or might He watch it, if He did, so He could make social commentary against the violence and/or distorted priorities of the land?

Would Jesus take pleasure in humans damaging other humans for entertainment?

This is something that Christians, and others, should think about.

For more scriptures, as well as the position of early Christians and others on watching violent sports or participating in other violent pursuits, please see the following:

Is American Football Evil? Is the most popular spectator sport in the USA something that Christians should watch? What do the Bible and early writings show? There is also a YouTube video available titled Should Christians watch American football?
Military Service and the Churches of God: Do Real Christians Participate in Carnal Warfare or Encourage Violence? Here are current and historical perspectives on a matter which show the beliefs of the true church on military participation. Is war proper for Christians? A related sermon would be: Christians, Violence, and Military Service.
What is a True Philadelphian? Many claim to be part of the Philadelphia era of the Church, but is claiming enough? This article has biblical and historical evidence about who really are the Philadelphians.
Continuing History of the Church of God This pdf booklet is a historical overview of the true Church of God and some of its main opponents from Acts 2 to the 21st century. Related sermon links include Continuing History of the Church of God: c. 31 to c. 300 A.D. and Continuing History of the Church of God: 4th-16th Centuries and Continuing History of the Church of God: 17th-20th Centuries. The booklet is available in Spanish: Continuación de la Historia de la Iglesia de Dios, German: Kontinuierliche Geschichte der Kirche Gottes, French: L Histoire Continue de l Église de Dieu and Ekegusii Omogano Bw’ekanisa Ya Nyasae Egendererete.
The Philadelphia Church Era was predominant circa 1933 A.D. to 1986 A.D. The old Radio Church of God and old Worldwide Church of God, now essentially the most faithful in the Church of God, which is best represented by the Continuing Church of God.
Gambling and Sin: Is it a Sin for Christians to Gamble? What does the Bible reveal? A related video is Gambling: A Covetous Sin?
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? Here is a link to a YouTube video Pornography: Harmless Fun or a Scourge on Society?

Pope Francis adds special day for Hildegard of Bingen: Any COG ramifications?

Wednesday, February 3rd, 2021


Hildegard Allegedly Receiving a Vision (Wikipedia)

COGwriter

Pope Francis decreed that “three Doctors of the Church” need to have a special day:

February 2, 2021

Doctors of Church

In a separate decree, Pope Francis inscribed three Optional Memorials in the Roman Calendar for three Doctors of the Church.

– Saint Gregory of Narek, Abbot and Doctor of the Church, on 27 February;
– Saint John De Avila, Priest and Doctor of the Church, on 10 May;
– Saint Hildegard of Bingen, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, on 17 September.

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2021-02/pope-francis-martha-mary-lazarus-inserted-roman-calendar.html

Roman Catholic “doctors of the universal church” are relatively rare, and there are about three dozen of them.

Historically, Roman Catholics tend to put a lot of emphasis on certain statements from many people they declare to have been “doctors of the universal church.”

By giving three of them special days, this looks to increase the influence of their writings.

The one that may have the most ramifications for the Church of God is Hildegard.

The mystic Hildegard, who died in 1179, clearly had visions that seem to be opposed to Bible prophecy.

Here is one from her:

Antichrist will make the earth move, level mountains, dry up rivers, produce thunder and lightning and hail … (Culleton, The Reign of Antichrist, p. 129)

Yet, the Bible does not teach that Antichrist “make the earth move, level mountains, dry up rivers, produce thunder and lightnings and hail.” The Bible teaches that God will have this done during the Day of the Lord (Revelation 16:12, 17-21).

Furthermore, she also taught:

Antichrist … His doctrine of faith will be taken from the Jewish religion and seemingly will not differ much from the fundamental beliefs of Christianity, for he will teach that there is one God who created the world, who rewards the obeyers of his commands and trespassers he chastises, who will raise all from the dead in due time. (Culleton, p. 127)

Yet, because the Bible shows that God will resurrect everyone else after the millennium (Revelation 20:5,13), this is certainly something that we would expect Jesus to teach. This is not a doctrine or Antichrist. Jesus, of course, practiced the “Jewish” religion, but the way that God, not certain rabbis, intended for it to be practiced.

Roman Catholics need to understand that some of their prophets (such as Hildegard) are really warning against the returning Jesus Christ, and are referring to Him as Antichrist. Please do not be taken in by that.

Furthermore, Hildegard also claimed the following in another vision:

And fly from those who linger in caves and are cloistered supporters of the Devil. Woe to them, woe to them who remain thus! They are the Devil’s very viscera, and the advance guard of the son of perdition.

Therefore, O you My beloved children, avoid them with all devotion and with all the strength of your souls and bodies. For the ancient serpent feeds and clothes them by his arts, and they worship him as God and trust in his false deceptions…Because they are afraid of My people, they do not openly resist these institutions of Mine, but in their hearts and their deeds they hold them as nothing. By devilish illusion, they pretend to have sanctity; but they are deceived by the Devil, for if he were to show himself to them openly they would understand him and flee him…But because the Devil knows he has only a short time for his error, he is not hastening to perfect infidelity in his members; you, you evil deceivers, who labor to subvert the Catholic faith. (Hildegard of Bingen. Scivias. Paulist Press, Mahwah (NJ), pp. 301-302)

Hildegard’s teaching that the Christians in something that sounds like the biblical place of safety in the wilderness (Revelation 12:14-16; see also There is a Place of Safety for the Philadelphians. Why it May Be Near Petra), as well as those that support them, are tools of Satan is something that should concern all who believe Church of God doctrines. And the person who had this vision is getting exalted by the Vatican.

Notice what my book 2012 and the Rise of the Secret Sect (written in 2009) points out the following related to Hildegard’s prophecy:

It would appear that the mystic was demonically-influenced as she is actually warning against supporting the true Philadelphian pacifist Christians (something that may happen, as some might try to join them per Isaiah 56:8). It is the Philadelphians who will be protected, yet she seems to be claiming that they are the “supporters of the Devil” (probably because they will oppose the final revised ecumenical church and because that church will have persecuted them). Because she calls them “the advanced guard of the son of perdition,” she apparently refers to a group of people who will be protected in caves just before Christ returns.

Notice also that she specifically warns against religious people in caves who are miraculously fed.

Yet she must not have realized that the Bible indicates that those who receive God’s protection in the wilderness during the end time (Revelation 12:14–16), and are in caves (Jeremiah 48:28), are His people (Isaiah 16:1–4 in Sela/Petra), will be religious (Revelation 14:12), and will be miraculously fed (Isaiah 33:15-16). Hence, the above vision does indicate that even the demons have known about a place of protection where some people will be miraculously fed, for quite some time.

However, those associated with the King of the North will then turn their attention to the rest of her seed, the non-Philadelphian Christians (which will be a “secret sect,” but will try to remain hidden, most likely, to avoid this persecution).

Even a commentator’s note in the Rheims New Testament (a Roman Catholic translation) agrees that the Church goes to a wilderness location:

The Church shall flee as to a desert in Antichrist’s time, but not decay or be unknown, no not for
so short a time.

Early Catholic leaders such as Irenaeus, Hippolytus, and Cyril also believed this. Hence Hildegard is once again not even faithful to Catholic positions on prophetic matters.

Furthermore, notice:

Bishop St. Victorinus (2nd century): But the woman fled into the wilderness, and there were given to her two great eagle’s wings…to that…church…let them go to that place which they have ready, and let them be supported there for three years and six months from the presence of the devil.

Thus, the idea of true Christians fleeing, being supported, and being away from the devil for 3 ½ years is consistent with both biblical and certain Roman Catholic teachings. No one should rely on Hildegard’s false admonition. The Greek Orthodox also tend to believe that the faithful will flee to caves in the desert/wilderness for 3 ½ years.

Yet, Hildegard is being exalted again.

Perhaps I should point out that Hildegard herself wondered if her visions were of demonic source at times. I suspect that many were.

Hildegard professed positions that were apparently opposed to biblical and certain Greco-Roman understandings of end time events. Her promotion will likely increase the “value” of her visions. This is not a positive for those in the truly faithful church.

Some articles of possibly related interest may include:

Satan’s Plan Does Satan have a plan? What is it? Has it already been successful? Will it be successful in the future? Here are links to a two-part sermon series: What are Some of the Parts of Satan’s Plan? and Satan’s Plan is More Dramatic than Many Realize.
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?]
Do Certain Catholic Prophecies About Antichrist Warn Against Jesus? Will the final “Anti-Christ” be Jewish, insist on Saturday, be opposed to the trinity, and bring in the millennium? Certain Catholic writings indicate this, while others take a different view, but what does the Bible show? A related sermon is Will Jesus Christ be called the Antichrist?
Catholic Prophecies: Do They Mirror, Highlight, or Contradict Biblical Prophecies? People of all faiths may be surprised to see what various Roman and Orthodox Catholic prophets have been predicting as many of their predictions will be looked to in the 21st century.
Some Similarities and Differences Between the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Continuing Church of God Both groups claim to be the original church, but both groups have differing ways to claim it. Both groups have some amazing similarities and some major differences. Do you know what they are? Here is a link to a related sermon: Eastern Orthodox 40+ Similar Beliefs to the CCOG.
There is a Place of Safety for the Philadelphians. Why it May Be Near Petra This article discusses a biblical ‘place of safety,’ Zephaniah 2 to ‘gather together,’ and includes quotes from the Bible and Herbert W. Armstrong on fleeing to a place–thus, there is a biblically supported alternative to the rapture theory. Two sermon-length videos of related interest are available Physical Protection During the Great Tribulation and Might Petra be the Place of Safety?  Here is something related in the Spanish language: Hay un lugar de seguridad para los Filadelfinos. ¿Puede ser Petra?

AP: Activists wary of broader law enforcement. Ron Paul: Libertarian Terrorists?

Wednesday, February 3rd, 2021


Ron Paul (photo from http://ronpaulinstitute.org/)

COGwriter

The Associated Press (AP) reported the following:

Activists wary of broader law enforcement after Capitol riot

February 3, 2021

CHICAGO (AP) — As federal officials grapple with how to confront the national security threat from domestic extremists after the deadly siege of the U.S. Capitol, civil rights groups and communities of color are watching warily for any moves to expand law enforcement power or authority.

They say their communities have felt the brunt of security scrutiny over the last two decades and fear new tools meant to target right-wing extremism or white nationalists risk harming Muslims, Black Americans and other groups, even if unintentionally.

Their position underscores the complexity of the national debate surrounding how to balance First Amendment expression protections with law enforcement’s need to prevent extremist violence before it occurs. In particular, many Muslim advocates oppose the creation of any new domestic terror statute modeled after existing laws that criminalize support for foreign terror organizations. …

President Joe Biden moved swiftly to declare domestic extremism an urgent national security concern, tasking the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to create a threat assessment. The Department of Homeland Security issued a terrorism bulletin warning of the prospect of additional violence. https://apnews.com/article/capitol-siege-race-and-ethnicity-statutes-violence-riots-d59af890bbbec3283aeb40589c9d5cab

Former US Congressman Ron Paul wrote the following:

Libertarian Terrorists?

The Department of Homeland Security issued on Wednesday a nationwide terror alert lasting until April 30. The alert warns of potential terrorist attacks from Americans who are “ideologically motivated” and have “objections to the exercise of government authority and the presidential transition, as well as other perceived grievances fueled by false narratives.”

The language used in this alert suggests that millions of Americans are potential terrorists. Second Amendment supporting, antiwar, anti-tax, anti-politics, anti-militarization, pro-life, and anti-Federal Reserve activists certainly have “objections to the exercise of government authority.” They are certainly viewed by the political class and its handmaidens in big tech and the mainstream media as ideological extremists. Anyone who gets his news from sources other than mainstream media or big tech, or who uses certain “unapproved” social media platforms, is considered to have had his grievances “fueled by false narratives.” For something to be considered a false narrative, it need only contradict the “official” narrative.

The “domestic terrorist” alert is the latest sign that activities on January 6 on Capitol Hill, like the attacks of September 11, 2001, are being used to advance a long-standing anti-liberty agenda. Legislation expanding the federal government’s authority to use its surveillance and other unconstitutional powers against “domestic terrorists” is likely to soon be considered by Congress. Just as the PATRIOT Act was written years before 2001, this legislation was written long before January 6. The bill’s proponents are simply taking advantage of the hysteria following the so-called insurrection to push the bill onto the congressional agenda.

Former CIA Director John Brennan recently singled out libertarians as among the people the government should go after. This is not the first time libertarians have been smeared. In 2009, a federally-funded fusion center identified people who supported my presidential campaign, my Campaign for Liberty, or certain Libertarian and Constitution parties candidates as potentially violent extremists.

The idea that libertarianism creates terrorists is absurd. Libertarians support the non-aggression principle, so they reject using force to advance their political goals. They rely instead on peaceful persuasion. …

The ultimate goal of those pushing for a crackdown on “domestic terrorism” is to make people unwilling to even consider “radical” ideas — to make people so afraid of certain ideas that they refuse to even give those ideas a fair hearing. http://ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/featured-articles/2021/february/01/libertarian-terrorists/

So, yes, people on ‘the left’ and on ‘the right’ have concerns about government plans for more surveillance.

As far as Ron Paul’s assertion that libertarianism is basically non-violent, that is irrelevant to those who want to limit the spread of ideas that go against the currently preferred government, media, and Big Tech agenda.

Now, as Ron Paul pointed out, this is not a brand new idea. Over a decade ago various academics were musing over more surveillance and considering those who held on to various ideas of free speech and biblical morality to be ‘extremists’ or potential domestic terrorists.

As far as Muslims go, they will push for exemptions with the Biden-Harris Administration. Most likely they will get some. Or at least not be surveilled so much to stop the coming terrorism that will hit the USA. Terrorism that will at least be partially enabled by certain Biden-Harris Administration policies and objectives (see ‘Biden Extends, Expands Deportation Protection for Syrians in US’–a terrorism risk?).

The following warnings that look to be applicable to the USA:

25 … There shall be terror within (Deuteronomy 32:5,25)

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

5 Also they are afraid of height, And of terrors in the way (Ecclesiastes 12:5).

While the above most certainly includes what we tend to consider as violent acts of terrorism–which will happen–it also looks to include terror caused by governments–like a police state.

That last statement is also consistent with the following prophecy:

1 Hear my voice, O God, in my meditation;
Preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
2 Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked,
From the rebellion of the workers of iniquity,
3 Who sharpen their tongue like a sword,
And bend their bows to shoot their arrows — bitter words,
4 That they may shoot in secret at the blameless;
Suddenly they shoot at him and do not fear.

5 They encourage themselves in an evil matter;
They talk of laying snares secretly;
They say, “Who will see them?”
6 They devise iniquities:
“We have perfected a shrewd scheme.”
Both the inward thought and the heart of man are deep. (Psalms 64:1-6)

As posted here before, while you might think that if you have done nothing wrong, you have nothing to fear from surveillance, consider that many running the government of the USA consider that not supporting homosexual marriages, cross-dressing, abortion, etc. are extremist. Years ago, I saw someone once on a documentary that stated that people who believed in the millennium could not be trusted and should be considered as potential domestic terrorists. The fact that we in the Continuing Church of God would be considered pacifists, does not change the fact that since we hold to millennial and other biblical views that we will not be improperly classified by government employees with various agendas.

The USA is moving towards being a totalitarian state.

Its top leadership in the political, academic, media, and tech world wants to stop aspects of biblical morality from being taught.

Furthermore, the government is pushing anti-biblical immorality. See, for example: ‘Outrage After Biden Signs Executive Order Pushing Schools To Include Transgender Athletes In Girls’ Sports’.

Back in 2015, I posted the following:

The USA will, within the next couple of decades, be no more. The agenda its government is pushing cannot succeed and is contributing to its decline and ultimate destruction:

20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! (Isaiah 5:20)

(Thiel B. Transgender agenda: ‘Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil’. COGwriter, November 7, 2015)

The end of the USA is getting closer (watch also Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028?).

America needs to repent, but will not do so:

5…But the Assyrian shall be his king, Because they refused to repent. 6 And the sword shall slash in his cities, Devour his districts, And consume them, Because of their own counsels. 7 My people are bent on backsliding from Me. Though they call to the Most High, None at all exalt Him. (Hosea 11:5b-7)

This will not end well for the USA (cf. Isaiah 10:5-12; see also Germany in Biblical and Catholic Prophecy).

But you can repent and even have physical protection (see There is a Place of Safety for the Philadelphians. Why it May Be Near Petra).

America as we have known it is gone. It changed a lot in the past year and will change further in the wrong direction.

Do you see what is happening?

Is God Calling You?

If so, will YOU properly respond?

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Why Terrorism? Is Terrorism Prophesied? What does the Bible teach? Which nations may be affected? Here is a link to a related sermon: Terrorism, Christianity, and Islam.
Internet Censorship and Prophecy Are concerns about internet censorship limited to nations such as Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. But what about the USA, Canada, and Germany? What about the European Union? What about internet media companies such as Facebook, Google, YouTube, or email services like MailChimp? Has the attempt to control information been made by various ones over the centuries? Was the New Testament affected by it? What about the church throughout the centuries? Has the Bible already been partially censored? Which Bible prophecies point to coming Internet censorship? What about the Book of Amos? What about the coming 666 Beast and final Antichrist? Is there anything that can be done about this? Should Philadelphian Christians be working on anything now? Will preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God vs. a highly media-supported alternative lead to a ‘famine of the word’? More internet censorship is coming as various statements in the Bible support.
The Spanish Inquisition and Early Protestant Persecutions Was the Church of Rome really responsible for this? What happened? Here is a link to a related video sermon: The Past and Future Inquisition.
Persecutions by Church and State This article documents some that have occurred against those associated with the COGs and some prophesied to occur. Will those with the cross be the persecutors or the persecuted–this article has the shocking answer. There is also a YouTube video sermon you can watch: The Coming Persecution of the Church. Here is information in the Spanish language: Persecuciones de la Iglesia y el Estado.
Orwell’s 1984 by 2024? In 1949, the late George Orwell wrote a disturbing book about a totalitarian government called “nineteen-eighty four.” Despite laws that are supposed to protect freedom of speech and religion, we are seeing governments taking steps consistent with those that George Orwell warned against. We are also seeing this in the media, academia, and in private companies like Google, Facebook, and Twitter. With the advent of technology, totalitarianism beyond what Orwell wrote is possible. Does the Bible teach the coming a totalitarian state similar to George Orwell’s? What about the Antichrist and 666? Will things get worse? What is the solution? Dr. Thiel answers these questions and more in this video.
Canadian censoring of the Bible In 2017, Lauri Skori of the Battle River School board told a religious school in Alberta, Canada that it could not teach/read certain portions of the Bible. In 2002, a court in Canada ruled against one who referred to certain scriptures that some homosexuals objected to. In 2017, there was “An Act to Amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and Criminal Code” related to those who wish to be considered transgendered. Government officials in Canada and elsewhere have been ruling against the Bible. Is any of this prophesied? Will this get worse? What was the prophet Amos inspired to write? This is a video.
Internet Control, Famine of the Word, and 666 Is the internet going to be used to suppress the teaching of the word of God?
Cross-dressing and other assaults against your children. What should you do? Is there an agenda to turn your children and/or grandchildren away from biblical morality and towards practices promoted by homosexuals? What does the Bible teach about cross-dressing? What should parents do? If there is an agenda, what has been going on? There are also three YouTube videos related to this, titled Transgender ‘Woe to those who call evil good’ and Cross dressing and Other Assaults Against Your Children and USA pushing gender confusion.
The Bible Condemns Homosexuality “Same-sex marriage” for “gays” and lesbians is becoming more acceptable to many. What does the Bible teach about homosexuality? 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?
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.

Christian Repentance Do you know what repentance is? Is it really necessary for salvation? A related sermon is also available titled: Real Christian Repentance.
Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is a link to a related sermon: Could God be Calling You? A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?

Should the Church Still Try to Place its Top Priority on Proclaiming the Gospel or Did Herbert W. Armstrong Change that Priority for the Work? Some say the Church should mainly feed the flock now as that is what Herbert W. Armstrong reportedly said. Is that what he said? Is that what the Bible says? What did Paul and Herbert W. Armstrong expect from lower level leaders? A related sermon is available titled Priority of the Philadelphia Work.
Persecutions by Church and State This article documents some that have occurred against those associated with the COGs and some prophesied to occur. Will those with the cross be the persecutors or the persecuted–this article has the shocking answer. There is also a YouTube video sermon you can watch: The Coming Persecution of the Church. Here is information in the Spanish language: Persecuciones de la Iglesia y el Estado.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to three related sermons: The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses Can you point to scriptures, like Daniel 11:39, that point to the USA in the 21st century? This article does. Two related sermon are available: Identifying the USA and its Destruction in Prophecy and Do these 7 prophesies point to the end of the USA?
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.

Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first? Here is a link to the Spanish version of this article: Anglo-América & las Tribus Perdidas de Israel. Information is also in the YouTube sermons titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter? and British are the Covenant People. A short YouTube of prophetic interest may be: Are Chinese threats against Australia for real?
Will the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas?
British are the Covenant People What do ‘British’ and ‘Britain’ mean in Hebrew? Are the descendants of the Anglo-Saxons people of the covenant? Does the British royal family connect to the throne of David? What does the Bible teach? What does history show us? Is there any DNA evidence related to British-Israelism? When did Christianity make it to the British Isles? Could Jeremiah have made it to the British Isles? What type of Christians made it to the British Isles? Did the last King of England believe in British Israelism?
Canada in Prophecy: What Does Bible Prophecy, Catholic Prophecy, and other Predictions Suggest About the Future of Canada? There are prophecies that suggest involvement with Canada. And many are not positive about its future. A sermon of related interest is also available: Canada in Prophecy.
Australia and New Zealand in Prophecy Do biblical prophecies help explain the wealth blessings for Australia and New Zealand? Might cursings from disobedience come in the 21st century? Here is a link to a related sermon: Australia and New Zealand: Origins and Prophecy.
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? 2028 or or 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
The Great Tribulation: What Happens First? What events have happened? What are some events that are now happening? And what events need to happen for the Great Tribulation to start? Here is a link to a related sermon video: Counting Down to the Great Tribulation.
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2021, 2022, or 2023? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: 2021: The Great Tribulation or the Great Reset?
Banning the Bible? Could we see a ban of the Holy Bible in North America? Have there been partial bans proposed and enforced by government officials in Canada? Do any USA politicians consider any biblical teachings as fraudulent and hence banning them is NOT a violation of the 1st amendment to the Constitution of the USA? Are there risks associated with AB 2943? Have politicians like Hillary Clinton and California Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi called for long-held religious beliefs to change and “evolve with the times”? What about Jude 1:3 and 2 Timothy 3:14? Are there biblical prophecies about not being able to hear the word of God? Might we see more restrictions on explaining teachings of the Bible on the Internet and other forms of media? What are some of the verses that various government people do not want made public? Dr. Thiel provides facts on these issues and more.
Europa, the Beast, and the Book of Revelation discusses the largest church since the second/third century, which in a real sense is the eighth church mentioned in the Book of Revelation (it also endorses “eighth day” worship). What church would support the Beast? Here is a link to a video titled: Europe and the ‘Holy Roman Empire’.
Germany’s Assyrian Roots Throughout History Are the Germanic peoples descended from Asshur of the Bible? Have there been real Christians in Germanic history? What about the “Holy Roman Empire”? There is also a You-Tube video sermon on this titled Germany’s Biblical Origins.
Germany in Biblical and Catholic Prophecy Does Assyria in the Bible equate to an end time power inhabiting the area of the old Roman Empire? What does prophecy say Germany will do and what does it say will happen to most of the German people? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: Alemania en la profecía bíblic. Here are links to two English language sermon videos Germany in Bible Prophecy and The Rise of the Germanic Beast Power of Prophecy.
Might the U.S.A. Be Gone by 2028? Are there prophetic reasons to believe that the USA will not last two complete presidential terms? Yes. There is a tradition attributed to the Hebrew prophet Elijah that humanity had 6,000 years to live before being replaced by God’s Kingdom. There are scriptures, writings in the Talmud, early Christian teachings that support this. Also, even certain Hindu writings support it. Here is a link to a related video: Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028?
Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction Can the USA survive two full presidential terms? In what ways are Joe Biden and Kamala Harris apocalyptic? This book has hundreds of prophecies and scriptures to provide details. A Kindle version is also available 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 your free Kindle reader app (or if you already have one or a Kindle), you can go to: Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction (Kindle) to get the book in seconds.

 

Earl Roemer died

Wednesday, February 3rd, 2021


Earl Roemer (from ucg.org)

COGwriter

7th day COG News page had the following:

Death of Earl Roemer

Announcement from the United Church of God:
Earl Roemer, longtime pastor and servant to many congregations in the U.S., the Philippines and Hong Kong, had a massive brain bleed that proved inoperable and unrecoverable. He died in his home state of Alaska.
Earl was ordained into the ministry in October 1967 and was known for his dedication to God and his service to our brethren. He will be greatly missed until the resurrection to eternal life in a much, much better world. The family appreciates your love and support. In lieu of cards, feel welcome to go to Earl’s Facebook page and share a story.

Gloria Sexton of Legacy Institute writes:
Leon, I, and all of Legacy are very saddened by the death of Mr. Earl as we called him here in Asia. He will be missed greatly until our reunion and rejoicing at Jesus’s return.
Mr. Earl first came to visit Leon and me in Chiang Mai, Thailand in 2018 upon learning we were unable to travel after Leon had suffered a severe stroke and congestive heart failure.
Mr. Earl, along with his son-in-law David Bensinger, arrived during an overwhelming time of trial and need. Mr. Earl came to our rescue by joining with pastor Gum Seng Aung in Myanmar (Burma) in service to God and the Myanmar congregation for Passover and Unleavened Bread.

Prior to his death, UCG posted the following about him:

Earl Roemer retired from the full-time employed service to the United Church of God in 2018 after 52 years. He was a longtime pastor and servant to many congregations in the U.S., the Philippines and Hong Kong. He continued to serve God’s people until his death in December 2020.

At the time of his retirement, Earl wrote: “Serving the great God in Heaven and His Son in shepherding thousands of called and chosen ones has been a rewarding experience beyond compare! It is an experience beyond the average human consideration and understanding. To have been allowed to share in the lives of many thousands of individuals—their hopes, their dreams, their struggles, their accomplishments—is a blessing beyond compare.”

FWIW, let me add that I met Earl Roemer a couple of times.

The first time was in Alaska and the other time was in Hawaii.

His family is in my prayers.