Church of God News

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COGwriter

The Continuing Church of God (CCOG) is pleased to announce the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

9:09

Was Increased Cursing Prophesied?

Facebook reported cursing up 41% over the previous year. Twitter reported it up 27%, whereas CleanSpeak reported that cursing tripled. Was increased cursing prophesied for these last days times? Is cursing helpful and relaxing as some insist? Or is it corrupt, vulgar, and wrong? What does the Bible teach about this? Dr. Thiel goes over these matters and more in this short video.

Here is a link to our video: Was Increased Cursing Prophesied?

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

FIRST COMMANDMENT: Priorities and the Most Broken Commandment Which commandment is broken the most? Which one is most involved with what should be your top priority? Here is a link to a related sermon: The Most Violated Commandment and Priorities.
SECOND COMMANDMENT: What Did the Early Church Teach About Idols and Icons? Did the early Church use icons? What was the position of Christians about such things? A related sermon is available: The Second Commandment, Idols, and Icons.
THIRD COMMANDMENT: Words Matter Are you obeying the Third Commandment? Are you sure? Could you be blaspheming with your euphemisms or life actions? Here is a link to a related sermon: Third Commandment Plus: Words Matter. Here is a link to a shroter video: Was Increased Cursing Prophesied?
FOURTH COMMANDMENT: The Sabbath in the Early Church and Abroad Was the seventh-day (Saturday) Sabbath observed by the apostolic and post-apostolic Church? Here is a link to a related sermon: Fourth Commandment: Saturday or Sunday?
The Ten Commandments Reflect Love, Breaking them is Evil Some feel that the ten commandments are a burden. Is that what Jesus, Paul, Peter, James, and John taught? For a more detailed discussion of the first four commandments, please see the video The Ten Commandments: Loving God. For a more detailed discussion of the last six commandments, please see: The Ten Commandments: Loving Your Neighbor. Here is a link to a related article in Mandarin Chinese 十条诫命显示爱，违反诫命的就是邪恶的 .
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?
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?
Proof Jesus is the Messiah This free book has over 200 Hebrew prophecies were fulfilled by Jesus. Plus, His arrival was consistent with specific prophecies and even Jewish interpretations of prophecy. Here are links to seven related sermons: Proof Jesus is the Messiah, Prophecies of Jesus’ birth, timing, and death, Jesus’ prophesied divinity, 200+ OT prophecies Jesus filled; Plus prophecies He made, Why Don’t Jews Accept Jesus?, Daniel 9, Jews, and Jesus, and Facts and Atheists’ Delusions About Jesus. Plus the links to two sermonettes: Luke’s census: Any historical evidence? and Muslims believe Jesus is the Messiah, but … These videos cover nearly all of the book, plus have some information not in the book. We also have the book translated in the Spanish PRUEBA de que JESÚS es el MESÍAS and French PREUVES QUE JÉSUS EST LE MESSIE languages.
The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN: Why Did God Create Anything? Why did God make you? This free online book helps answers some of the biggest questions that human have, including the biblical meaning of life. Here is a link to three related sermons: Mysteries of God’s Plan, Mysteries of Truth, Sin, Rest, Suffering, and God’s Plan, and The Mystery of YOU.
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?
Universal OFFER of Salvation, Apokatastasis: Can God save the lost in an age to come? Hundreds of scriptures reveal God’s plan of salvation Will all get a fair chance at salvation? This free book is packed with scriptures showing that God does intend to offer salvation to all who ever lived–the elect in this age, and the rest in the age to come. Here is a link to a related sermon series: Universal Offer of Salvation 1: Apocatastasis, Universal Offer of Salvation 2: Jesus Desires All to be Saved, Mysteries of the Great White Throne Judgment (Universal Offer of Salvation part 3), Is God Fair, Will God Pardon the Ignorant?, Can God Save Your Relatives?, Babies, Limbo, Purgatory and God’s Plan, and ‘By the Mouth of All His Holy Prophets’.
Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Christians: Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God, Biblical instructions on living as a Christian This is a scripture-filled booklet for those wishing to live as a real Christian. A related sermon is also available: Christians are Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God.
The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast This is a free pdf book explaining the what the Ten Commandments are, where they came from, how early professors of Christ viewed them, and how various ones, including the Beast of Revelation, will oppose them. A related sermon is titled: The Ten Commandments and the Beast of Revelation.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to four related sermons: The Fantastic Gospel of the Kingdom of God!, The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
Where is the True Christian Church Today? This free online pdf booklet answers that question and includes 18 proofs, clues, and signs to identify the true vs. false Christian church. Plus 7 proofs, clues, and signs to help identify Laodicean churches. A related sermon is also available: Where is the True Christian Church? Here is a link to the booklet in the Spanish language: ¿Dónde está la verdadera Iglesia cristiana de hoy? Here is a link in the German language: WO IST DIE WAHRE CHRISTLICHE KIRCHE HEUTE? Here is a link in the French language: Où est la vraie Église Chrétienne aujourd’hui? Here is a link to a short animation: Which Church would Jesus Choose?
Continuing History of the Church of God This pdf booklet is a historical overview of the true Church of God and some of its main opponents from Acts 2 to the 21st century. Related sermon links include Continuing History of the Church of God: c. 31 to c. 300 A.D. and Continuing History of the Church of God: 4th-16th Centuries and Continuing History of the Church of God: 17th-20th Centuries. The booklet is available in Spanish: Continuación de la Historia de la Iglesia de Dios, German: Kontinuierliche Geschichte der Kirche Gottes, French: L Histoire Continue de l Église de Dieu and Ekegusii Omogano Bw’ekanisa Ya Nyasae Egendererete.
CCOG.ORG Continuing Church of God The group striving to be most faithful amongst all real Christian groups to the word of God.
Congregations of the Continuing Church of God This is a listing of congregations and groups of the Continuing Church of God around the world.
Continuing Church of God Facebook page This has news and prophetic information.
CCOG.AFRICA This is a website targeted towards those in Africa.
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 www.ccog.asia, 关注于亚洲并且有各种各样的中英文文章，其中一些用菲律宾语翻译的文章也正在进行中，准备添加到这个网站中。 Here is a link to our Statement of Beliefs in Mandarin Chinese 继续神的教会的信仰声明.
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.
CCOGCANADA.CA This is a website targeted towards those in Canada.
CDLIDD.ES La Continuación de la Iglesia de Dios. This is the Spanish language website for the Continuing Church of God.
CG7.ORG This is a website for those interested in the Sabbath and churches that observe the seventh day Sabbath.
PNIND.PH Patuloy na Iglesya ng Diyos. This is the Philippines website Continuing Church of God. It has information in English and Tagalog.
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.
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.
Statement of Beliefs of the Continuing Church of God “Contend 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.

(photo from Pixabay)

COGwriter

Many are fascinated by astrology, but it is not the source of truth or real knowledge of the future.

The Guardian ran the following from a former astrologer named as Felicity Carter:

I was an astrologer – here’s how it really works and why I had to stop

Customers marvelled at my psychic abilities but was that really what was going on when I told their fortune? … the universe told me I wasn’t cut out for science, by sending me my second-year results. I dropped out to pursue theatre and also signed up for a one-year course at the Sydney Astrology Centre, a cavernous commercial building in a seedy part of town. …

Although astrologers use Nasa data for their calculations, horoscopes aren’t a true map of the heavens. The Babylonians who invented astrology believed the sun rotated round the Earth; modern astrologers still use Earth-centred charts, as if Copernicus had never existed. That’s only the start of the scientific problems.

The astrological meanings themselves derive from a principle called sympathetic magic, where things that look alike are linked together. Mars looks red, so it rules red things like blood. How do you get blood? You cut, so Mars rules surgery and war. …

Astrology is one big word association game.

I loved it, though I was losing interest in other mystical practices. …

When I saw the ad for a fortune teller, I pounced.

My credentials impressed the man on the counter (“My name is Ron,” he said. “My spirit guide is Blue Star. He’s on the intergalactic committee”) and I was hired.

We charged A$50 an hour, a significant sum at the time, and I wanted to offer value. No fishing for clues from me – I printed a horoscope or laid the cards and started interpreting immediately, intending to dazzle the customer with my insights.

Half the time, though, I couldn’t get a word in. It turned out what most people want is the chance to unload for an hour.

The range of problems faced by people who can afford $50 for fortune telling turned out to be limited: troubles with romance, troubles at work, trouble mustering the courage for a much-needed change. I heard these stories so often I could often guess what the problem was the moment someone walked in. Heartbroken young men, for example, talk about it to psychics, because it’s less risky than telling their friends. Sometimes I’d mischievously say, “Let her go. She’s not worth it,” as soon as one arrived. Once I heard, “Oh my God, oh my GOD!” as an amazed guy fell backwards down the stairs.

I also learned that intelligence and education do not protect against superstition. …

What broke the spell for me was, oddly, people swearing by my gift. Some repeat customers claimed I’d made very specific predictions, of a kind I never made. It dawned on me that my readings were a co-creation – I would weave a story and, later, the customer’s memory would add new elements. I got to test this theory after a friend raved about a reading she’d had, full of astonishingly accurate predictions. She had a tape of the session, so I asked her to play it.

The clairvoyant had said none of the things my friend claimed. Not a single one. My friend’s imagination had done all the work.

Yet sometimes I could be uncannily accurate – wasn’t that proof I was psychic? One Sunday, I went straight from work to a party, before I’d had time to shuck off my psychic persona. A student there mentioned she wasn’t sure what to specialize in – photography, graphic design or maybe industrial design?

“Do photography,” I said.

She looked at me, wide-eyed. “How did you know?” she said, explaining photography was her real love, but her parents didn’t approve.

I couldn’t say, “because my third eye is open”, so I reflected for a moment. Then it hit me. “You sounded happier when you said ‘photography’,” I said. My psychic teacher was right – the signals we pick up before conscious awareness kicks in can be accurate and valuable. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/nov/06/i-was-an-astrologer-how-it-works-psychics?utm_source=pocket-newtab

Felicity Carter is correct that astrology is not scientific. It is not even consistent with itself as the signs people supposedly were born under are all off by about a month.

Notice the following:

Another fact must also be pointed out. Everyone’s astrological “sign” is wrong! The Zodiac charts were set more than 2,000 years ago, but since then the position of the Earth relative to other heavenly bodies has shifted. The earth is spinning on its axis, wobbling like a top, completing one great loop every 26,000 years.(10) The constellations are no longer in the same relative viewing positions they were in when the Zodiac charts were devised. “In effect, all of the constellations have moved,” said Fraknoi. “This puts the signs of the Zodiac off by one whole sign.”(11) Astrologers have stuck with tradition, even though their maps of the heavens are out of step with reality. Thus, right now everybody is reading the wrong horoscope!

Its Claim to Analyze Character Is Deceptive

We are fascinated by astrology’s claim to be able to reveal a person’s character. However, the system is especially deceitful and manipulative in this regard. Astrologers tell people what they want to hear. This classic technique is used by salesman, hypnotists, advertising experts, and not a few preachers. Psychologist Ray Hyman said, “To be popular with your fellow man, tell him what he wants to hear. He wants to hear about himself. So tell him about himself. But not what you know to be true about him. Oh, no! Never tell him the truth. Rather, tell him what he would like to be true about himself!”(12) This is the key to manipulating other people. The human mind is more willing to accept what is would like to believe rather than what evidence indicates is the truth. As an example, Hyman cites the following astrological analysis:

Some of your aspirations tend to be pretty unrealistic. At times you are extroverted, affable, sociable, while at other time you are introverted, wary and reserved. You have found it unwise to be too frank in revealing yourself to others. You pride yourself on being an independent thinker and do not accept others’ opinions without satisfactory proof. You prefer a certain amount of change and variety, and become dissatisfied when hemmed in by restrictions and limitations. At times you have serious doubts as to whether you have made the right decision or done the right thing. Disciplined and controlled on the outside, you tend to be worrisome and insecure on the inside. . . While you have some personality weaknesses, you are generally able to compensate for them. You have a great deal of unused capacity which you have not turned to your advantage. You have a tendency to be critical of yourself. You have a strong need for other people to like you and for them to admire you.(13)

Sound familiar? Does it describe your personality in any way? This spiel was first used in 1948, composed mostly from a news stand astrology book. Statements that supposedly would describe people born under various signs were combined together. This pitch is designed to apply to everyone but not seem that way. In a controlled study, psychologists gave a group of college students a detailed psychological questionnaire and then made a detailed analysis of each student. They gave the students a copy of their customized analysis and a copy of the fake psychological sketch found above. The students were then asked to identify which was which. Fifty-nine percent of the student thought the fake sketch was a more accurate description of their personalities.(14) (http://www.truthmagazine.com/archives/volume34/GOT034263.html#N_3_ viewed 01/15/15)

The last one shows why some people believe in astrology. Sometimes, it feels right to them–even when it is wrong or ‘lucky.’ The Prophet Jeremiah labeled the human heart “deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9)–people can deceive themselves and allow themselves to be deceived by Satan and his devices, including astrology.

Is astrology scientific? Notice the following:

Some expectations generated by astrology are so general that any outcome could be interpreted as fitting the expectations; if treated this way, astrology is not testable. However, some have used astrology to generate very specific expectations that could be verified against outcomes in the natural world. For example, according to astrology, one’s zodiac sign impacts one’s ability to command respect and authority. Since these traits are important in politics, we might expect that if astrology really explained people’s personalities, scientists would be more likely to have zodiac signs that astrologers describe as “favorable” towards science.1 If used to generate specific expectations like this one, astrological ideas are testable.

Relies on evidence? In the few cases where astrology has been used to generate testable expectations and the results were examined in a careful study, the evidence did not support the validity of astrological ideas.2

1In fact, physicist John McGervey did this study and found no bias towards particular signs. Hence, the results did not support the validity of astrological explanations. You can read about this study in McGervey’s book “Probabilities in Everyday Life.”
2For example: Carlson, S. 1985. A double-blind test of astrology. Nature 318:419-425.

(Astrology: Is it scientific? http://undsci.berkeley.edu/article/astrology_checklist viewed 07/10/13)

That being said, sometimes demonic forces provide assistance to fortune tellers of various times.

Some have confused astrology and astronomy.

While various ancient astronomers often engaged in astrology, there was then and now a difference between astrology and astronomy.

To try to make this clear, let’s notice the difference between the two:

astrology: the study of the movements and positions of the sun, moon, planets, and stars, and the skill of describing the expected effect that some people believe these have on the character and lives of people (Definition from Cambridge Dictionaries Online. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/astronomy, viewed 7/10/13)

astronomy: the scientific study of the universe and of objects that exist naturally in space, such as the moon, the sun, planets, and stars (Definition from Cambridge Dictionaries Online. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/astrology, viewed 7/10/13)

Astronomy, logically noticing what happens in the sky, is endorsed by the Bible. Astrology, trying to make predictions on the sky’s affect on human beings, is not.

They are not the same, yet some try to get Christians to think that they are.

Notice some of what Jesus and His followers taught about astronomy:

1 Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven. 2 He answered and said to them, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red’; 3 and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times. 4 A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” And He left them and departed. (Matthew 16:1-4)

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. (Matthew 24:29-30)

20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord (Acts 2:20).

Jesus did not teach that humans were to see how the position of heavenly bodies would affect them based upon their birth (astrology), but to notice that God would use certain signs in the heavens to show weather or His return. That is a use of astronomy, not astrology.

The children of Israel were warned not to pay attention to astrology as the heathen did.

Notice:

19 And take heed, lest you lift your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun, the moon, and the stars, all the host of heaven, you feel driven to worship them and serve them, which the Lord your God has given to all the peoples under the whole heaven as a heritage. (Deuteronomy 4:19-20)

By changing one’s actions based upon what a horoscope says, one is serving the stars which God clearly tells people not to do.

Notice also:

2 Thus says the Lord:

“Do not learn the way of the Gentiles;
Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven,
For the Gentiles are dismayed at them. (Jeremiah 10:2)

Now, the above is not saying not to pay attention to weather patterns, as Jesus Himself endorsed that.

Nor is it saying that there cannot be any signs in the heavens to ever pay attention to from a prophetic perspective, as Jesus said to notice specific occurrences in the heavens before He returns.

What the Bible was warning about was to rely on astrological and similar interpretations of the heavens to affect your life or future.

The Bible condemns astrology, not astronomy. Notice a biblical purpose for various heavenly bodies:

14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; 15 and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth”; and it was so. (Genesis 1:14-15)

2 “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you. (Exodus 12:2)

4 ‘These are the feasts of the Lord, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at their appointed times. 5 On the fourteenth day of the first month at twilight is the Lord’s Passover. 6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; seven days you must eat unleavened bread. (Leviticus 23:4-6)

The Bible clearly teaches that the heavenly bodies are involved with the seasons (including holy days) and that is part of why they were made. But signally the start of Spring or Fall for example, is not the same as suggesting that there is hidden meaning in the stars related to your date of birth.

Astrologers will not save you:

13 You are wearied in the multitude of your counsels;
Let now the astrologers, the stargazers,
And the monthly prognosticators
Stand up and save you
From what shall come upon you.
14 Behold, they shall be as stubble,
The fire shall burn them;
They shall not deliver themselves
From the power of the flame;
It shall not be a coal to be warmed by,
Nor a fire to sit before!
15 Thus shall they be to you
With whom you have labored,
Your merchants from your youth;
They shall wander each one to his quarter.
No one shall save you. (Isaiah 47:13-15)

If you want direction, trust in God:

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

4 “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'” (Matthew 4:4)

One is to trust God and His word, not some pagan-inspired horoscope.

One major difference between God’s predictions and those of astrologers is that God can make His come to pass:

9 Remember the former things of old,
For I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like Me,
10 Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things that are not yet done,
Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
And I will do all My pleasure,’
11 Calling a bird of prey from the east,
The man who executes My counsel, from a far country.
Indeed I have spoken it;
I will also bring it to pass.
I have purposed it;
I will also do it. (Isaiah 46:9-11)

3 “I have declared the former things from the beginning;
They went forth from My mouth, and I caused them to hear it.
Suddenly I did them, and they came to pass. (Isaiah 48:3)

If you want to know more about the future, believe the word of God:

9 Behold, the former things have come to pass,
And new things I declare;
Before they spring forth I tell you of them. (Isaiah 42:9)

You should believe biblical prophecies that are properly explained by His true ministry (cf. Acts 8:30-31). Not astrologers.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

The Bible and Astrology Should Christians avoid participating in astrology or did God inspire it? Does the Bible encourage astrology? What does the Bible actually teach? What is astrology? How does astrology differ from astronomy? Here are links to two videos Astrology, the occult, tattoos, and pornography and Should Christians Be Involved In Astrology?
OMENS? DIVINATION? HOROSCOPES? THE ORIGIN OF ASTROLOGY Where did astrology come from? Should you read your horoscope?
Does Astrology Work? Many believe and follow astrology–but does it work? Here is a link to the article in Mandarin Chinese: 占星术准确吗？
Christians: Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God, Biblical instructions on living as a Christian This is a scripture-filled booklet for those wishing to live as a real Christian. A related sermon is also available: Christians are Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God.
Angels, Cherubim, and Seraphim This is information about various types of angelic beings.
Human Nature: Good or Evil? a Did God create humans evil or good? What is human nature? Where does it come from? Here are links to two related sermons: Human Nature: Its Cause and Solution and Human Nature: Where Did it Come From?
Did God Create a Devil? If not, what happened? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet.
Close Encounters of a ‘Spirit’ Kind discusses some experiences I believe were (demon) ‘spirit’ related. A video is also available titled: Poltergeists and Lying Wonders.
Read the Bible Christians should read and study the Bible. This article gives some rationale for regular bible reading.
Bible: Superstition or Authority? Should you rely on the Bible? Is it reliable? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject.
Did Early Christians Celebrate Birthdays? Did biblical era Jews celebrate birthdays? Who originally celebrated birthdays? When did many that profess Christ begin birthday celebrations?
Why Prophecy? Why is so much of the Bible devoted to prophecy? Some question or downplay the role of prophecy. This article gives some of the biblical reasons what it is important and explains why the world cannot end (the Great Tribulation will not start) until after biblically-required events occur.
How to Understand Prophecy This is the late Herbert W. Armstrong’s overview on understanding prophecy.
20 items to prophetically watch in 2020 Much is happening. Dr. Thiel points to 20 items to watch (cf. Mark 13:37) in this article. Here is a link to a related sermon: 20 Prophetic Items to Watch in 2020.

(Photo by Geierunited)

COGwriter

Should anyone smoke?

It’s been said that good habits are hard to make but easy to live with, while bad habits are easy to make but are hard to live with.

The intent of the new law looks to make it a little harder to start.

Should Christians smoke?

Does smoking show love to self or neighbor?

No.

Why?

Here are some facts to consider from the US Centers for Disease Control:

Smoking leads to disease and disability and harms nearly every organ of the body.

• More than 16 million Americans are living with a disease caused by smoking.
• For every person who dies because of smoking, at least 30 people live with a serious smoking-related illness.
• Smoking causes cancer, heart disease, stroke, lung diseases, diabetes, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
• Smoking also increases risk for tuberculosis, certain eye diseases, and problems of the immune system, including rheumatoid arthritis.
• Smoking is a known cause of erectile dysfunction in males.

Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death.

• Worldwide, tobacco use causes more than 7 million deaths per year. If the pattern of smoking all over the globe doesn’t change, more than 8 million people a year will die from diseases related to tobacco use by 2030.
• Cigarette smoking is responsible for more than 480,000 deaths per year in the United States, including more than 41,000 deaths resulting from secondhand smoke exposure. This is about one in five deaths annually, or 1,300 deaths every day.
• On average, smokers die 10 years earlier than nonsmokers. https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fast_facts/index.htm#beginning accessed 12/27/19

Smoking is bad.

Moses said, “be sure your sin will find you out” (Numbers 32:23).

You do not “get away with” smoking.

Consider also that smoking causes DNA damage:

November 3, 2016

Smoking leaves an “archaeological record” of the hundreds of DNA mutations it causes, scientists have discovered.

Having sequenced thousands of tumour genomes, they found a 20-a-day smoker would rack up an average of 150 mutations in every lung cell each year. http://www.bbc.com/news/health-37849000

Smoking is dangerous and hurts the smoker and those around the smoker.

Notice some of what the New Testament teaches:

19. WHAT! Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, which you have within you from God, and you are not your own? 20. For you were bought with a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20, AFV)

37…”‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:37-40, NKJV)

Consider that smoking does not glorify God in your body–it harms your body. Consider that smoking also does not show love towards one’s neighbor–it harms your neighbor. Smoking is a sin against the body, and sometimes more than that.

Don’t deceive yourself that smoking is not a sin:

8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. (1 John 1:8-10)

Can or should smokers quit?

Yes.

As hard as it seems to be, smokers can change. Notice that the Apostle Paul taught:

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

Jesus can help the smoker.

The Apostle Paul also specifically taught that Christians who had a variety of sinful practices can change (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).

Here is information about his own smoking and views on it by the late Hebert W. Armstrong from his Autobiography:

In order to keep up with the job, due to inadaptability and resultant slowness, it became necessary to work nights. I established a system. I worked alternately one night until ten, the next until midnight, rising at 5:30 every morning. Time had to be taken out to walk the one or two miles from my room to the mill, and also to walk over to the boarding house where I took meals. I kept awake on the job nights by smoking a pipe — my first habitual smoking. In just six months this overwork and loss of sleep exacted its toll, and I was sent to the hospital with a very severe case of typhoid fever…

I had taken up pipe smoking during those long and frantic night hours at Wiggins, Mississippi, as an aid to staying awake while I worked over the books. I had smoked, moderately, ever since. However, I will say that I was never a heavy smoker. Never more than one cigar a day, or three or four cigarettes in a day. That’s the reason I did not have the battle many men have had in breaking the habit, when I saw that it had to be broken…

{Later} I was baptized, the matter of smoking had to be settled. Of course the Quaker church, in which I had been reared as a boy, taught that smoking was a sin. But I had been unhappily disillusioned to see that in so many basic points the Bible teaching is the very opposite of what I had absorbed in Sunday school. “I’ve got to see the answer to the tobacco question IN THE BIBLE!” I said to myself. Until I found the answer in the Bible, I decided I would continue as before — smoking mildly. I had continued to smoke lightly, averaging three or four cigarettes a day, or one cigar a day. I had never been a heavy smoker.

Now I had to face the question: Is smoking a SIN? I wanted the BIBLE answer, for I had learned by this time that Christ had said we must live by EVERY WORD OF GOD. The BIBLE is our Instruction Book on right living. We must find a BIBLE reason for everything we do. I knew, of course, there is no specific command, “Thou shalt not smoke.” But the absence of a detailed prohibition did not mean God’s approval. I had learned that GOD’S LAW is His WAY OF LIFE. It is a basic philosophy of life.

The whole Law is summed up in the one word LOVE.

I knew that love is the opposite of lust. Lust is self-desire — pleasing the self only. Love means loving others. Its direction is not inward toward self alone, but outgoing, toward others. I knew the Bible teaches that “lust of the flesh” is the way of SIN.

So now I began to apply the principle of God’s Law. I asked myself, “WHY do I smoke?” To please others — to help others — to serve or minister to or express love toward others — or only to satisfy and gratify a desire of the flesh within my own self? The answer was instantaneously obvious. I had to be honest with it. My only reason for smoking was LUST OF THE FLESH, and lust of the flesh is, according to the BIBLE, sin! I stopped smoking immediately.

This beginning of overcoming was not too difficult, for it had not been a “big habit” with me. Once weaned, I was able to see it as it is — a dirty, filthy habit. And today we know it is a serious and major contributing cause of lung cancer! God designed and created the human body. He designed the LUNGS to take in FRESH AIR to fire and oxidize the blood, and at the same time to filter out of the blood the impurities and waste matter the blood has picked up throughout the body. Befouled smoke, containing the poisons of nicotine and tars, reduces the efficiency of the operation of this vital organ.

The physical human body is, God says, the very TEMPLE of His Holy Spirit. If we defile this TEMPLE — this physical body — God says He will destroy us! God intended us, if we are to be COMPLETE, to live happy, healthy and abundant lives, and to gain eternal life, to take in HIS SPIRIT — not poisonous foreign substances like tobacco.

Hebert W. Armstrong died on January 16, 1986, at age 93 1/2. His reasons for quitting smoking make biblical sense to me. People should not smoke. It harms them and others around them.

He concluded, correctly, that Christians should not smoke.

Quitting cigarette smoking is good for your health. A study out of the UK has quantified that for women:

Life expectancy was dramatically improved among participants in Great Britain’s Million Women Study who quit smoking compared with continuous smokers, confirming the previously uncertain benefits of smoking cessation in women, researchers said.

Although women who stopped smoking around age 50 remained at significantly higher risk of all-cause mortality compared with never-smokers (relative risk 1.56, 95% CI 1.49 to 1.64), it was much lower than the tripled risk of death seen in current smokers, according to Kirstin Pirie, MSc, of the University of Oxford in England, and colleagues…

“Stopping well before age 40 years would avoid well over 90% of the excess hazard in continuing smokers,” Pirie and colleagues wrote.

But, they stressed, “this does not … mean that it is safe to smoke until age 40 years and then stop.” http://www.medpagetoday.com/PrimaryCare/Smoking/35605

Researchers who followed one million women found those who smoked a pack a day starting in their teens reduced life expectancy by an average of 11 years, according to a new study published in The Lancet. NBC’s Robert Bazell reports. http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nightly-news/49575213/#49575213

The sooner one quits, the better it is for one’s health.

Notice one reported way to help a smoker quit:

September 9, 2013

Want a smoker to quit? Scare, shock or disgust him. That’s what the U.S. government did with its first federally funded anti-smoking ad campaign and, new data suggest, it worked.

An estimated 1.6 million Americans tried to quit and at least 100,000 likely succeeded as a result of graphic ads that showed how real ex-smokers had suffered paralysis, stroke, lung removal, heart attacks and limb amputations, according to a study Monday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The first round of ads ran from March through May in 2012, followed by a second one this past spring. A third round is planned for next year.

The CDC created the startling ads after consulting with smokers, who urged it to make the statistics about smoking — that it’s the leading cause of preventable death and that it shortens life expectancy by 10 years — real. So it focused on the effects of smoking-related disease rather than the risk of death. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/09/09/cdc-anti-smoking-ads-prompt-100000-plus-to-kick-habit/2777357/

Of course, the smoker also has to want to quit. But realizing the truth about smoking should help.

Notice also the following from someone in the Continuing Church of God:

I have an unusual aspect of faith that I went through. I am a recovering alcoholic and smoker. When I first became a member of WCG in 1982 (I think), I smoked and drank. I knew I couldn’t continue in the Church without repentance and therefore quitting. I prayed to God regarding smoking (drinking wasn’t that bad in those days) and through His Word, I quit. After falling away (sometime in the late 90’s, I think), I started smoking again and drinking became quite severe. I longed for the days when God was in my life (I know I was the one that left) when a friend of mine with similar feelings found the CCOG. We both immediately felt God said, “OK, here you go. Seek and ye shall find”.

The problem was I was back smoking and drinking and knowing I couldn’t continue with those habits. I was actually afraid to pray to God to quit smoking and drinking because I KNEW HE WOULD DO IT! I was scared to death to go without tobacco. The thought of having to deal with the irritability associated with quitting until my body was functioning normally was more than I wanted to deal with. The thought of night sweats and raw nerves until my body readjusted to no alcohol was really scary. These feelings were real and they kept me from turning to God. I tried to quit smoking on my own, every minute was an ordeal. I tried to quit drinking on my own, I was wringing wet with sweat at night and my legs screamed with “restlessness”. I lasted a couple of days at most each time I tried. It always reinforced my fear of praying to God for help because I knew He would help and I would have to go through the ordeal just described. I just kept putting off quitting because of fear.

I was so bothered by my behavior and knew I couldn’t continue with the way I was going that I finally asked God to make me quit. He did, just like I knew He would. I threw my burden on Christ and said “here it’s yours”. Now I waited for the irritability of no cigarettes and the dreaded night sweats. They never came.

In my fear I forgot how merciful God is. I thank Him hour by hour for stopping me from smoking and drinking. I use this experience to try to let go of my fears in other areas and let the gift of God increase my faith.

Yes, God is merciful.

Biblical Tips to Help You Quit

Having grown up in an area where I knew a lot of people who smoked, it was clear to me that quitting smoking is not easy for those really hooked on it.

Christians can ask God for assistance in stopping smoking. Christians need to have faith in God (see also the free pdf booklet Faith for Those God has Called and Chosen).

But what if you make mistakes and stumble?

If you stumble get up!

Consider that Jesus stated to His disciples:

31 All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written:

‘I will strike the Shepherd,
And the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ (Matthew 26:31)

Well, a dozen of the stumbling disciples ended up being the 12 apostles.

James wrote:

2 For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body. (James 3:2)

James was including himself in that. The New Testament says we ALL stumble in one thing or the other.

If you stumble, you need to get up.

Endure.

Jesus taught:

13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. (Matthew 24:11)

James also wrote:

12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. (James 1:12)

Jesus also taught:

20 But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. (Matthew 13:20-22)

Notice something else that James wrote:

2 You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. 4 Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”? (James 4:2-5)

Be careful that you are not trying to get along with the smoking crowd.

6 But He gives more grace. Therefore He says:

“God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”

7 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.

10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. (James 4:6-10)

The Apostle Paul wrote:

13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10:13)

Physical ways to “bear it” would include changing what you are doing when you are tempted to smoke. Do something else! Like go to another room. Start reading the Bible. For some, perhaps taking a walk or doing more vigorous exercise. Et cetera.

Nicotine seems to have some temporary effects on the body, like the necessary thyroid hormone triiodothyronine. Nicotine is highly addictive and comes along with a range of negative chemicals in tobacco products that are harmful to human health. Nutritional support for the thyroid can help some break their addiction to nicotine.

Consider the analogy of getting air out of a glass. On our own, without equipment, we can’t make it a vacuum. But if we change the glass by pouring water in, the air leaves.

Be filled with the Holy Spirit:

18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, (Ephesians 5:18)

If you do not want to stumble and wish to be better filled with the Holy Spirit, take true heed of the instructions that the Apostle Peter wrote:

1 Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ,

To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:

2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3 as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.

10 Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; 11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:1-11)

Not that it is easy, but the Bible says that if you endure, humble yourself, resist Satan, and draw near to God you can get to the point you would not stumble in your efforts to stop smoking.

You may have tried to stop smoking many times. You may have prayed about it.

You should not give up. In the Old Testament we read of God telling the children of Israel to punish the Benjamites in Judges 20:12-20, and those who tried to do so failed and suffered loss (Judges 20:21). Then, God told them to do it again (Judges 20:23), and they suffered loss again (Judges 20:25). The children of Israel wanted to give up (Judges 20:26-28), but God said to try again (Judges 20:28), and that time they succeeded Judges 20:29-46). What happened to the children of Israel was more difficult than not lighting up a cigarette.

Overcome bad habits. Jesus said:

7 … To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God. (Revelation 2:7)

26 And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations —

27 ‘He shall rule them with a rod of iron;
They shall be dashed to pieces like the potter’s vessels’ —

as I also have received from My Father; 28 and I will give him the morning star. (Revelation 2:26-28)

12 He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name. (Revelation 3:12)

7 He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. (Revelation 21:7)

Endure and overcome! The promised benefits are better than the “passing pleasures of sin” (Hebrews 11:25)–which in the case of smoking also has serious health consequences.

Smoking is wrong and it kills people. God wants people to change/repent (Acts 17:30)–which means that, despite its difficulties it can be done (cf. 1 Corinthians 10:13).

The sooner one starts the better off one will be. Christians should strive to not smoke and should strive to be healthy.

With God’s help, yes, you can quit smoking or overcome other sins in your life.

As far as helping others to quit, IF they say they could like to quit, you could refer them to the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

Should You Smoke? Would You Like Help to Quit?

has been said that bad habits are easy to get into, but difficult to get out of. Smoking leads to disease and disability and harms nearly every organ of the body. On average, smokers die 10 years earlier than nonsmokers. A 20-cigarette-a-day smoker racks up an average of 150 mutations in every lung cell each year. Many find it hard to stop smoking as the nicotine habit is a difficult addiction to break. Is smoking a sin? Can smokers quit? Why did Herbert W. Armstrong quit smoking? Are there things that smokers can do to help them quit? If you have tried to quit before and failed, should you keep trying? Does the Bible offer any help to people addicted to smoking or other vices? Does Jesus promise rewards for those who overcome? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more.

Here is a link to our video: Should You Smoke? Would You Like Help to Quit?

Several items of possibly related interest include:

Should Christians Smoke Tobacco? Is smoking a sin? What does the Bible teach? What have COG leaders written? Can smokers change? What about marijuana?
Marijuana: Should a Christian Get High? There is increasing acceptance of the use of marijuana. How should Christians view this? Here is a related video titled How Should a Christian View Marijuana?
Alcohol: Blessing or Curse? This is an article from the old Good News magazine that attempts to answer this question.
Binge Alcohol Drinking and the Bible Many college students and others overindulge in alcohol. Are there health risks? What does the Bible teach?
Obesity, processed foods, health risks, and the Bible Does the Bible warn about the consequences of being obese? Is overeating dangerous? Is gluttony condemned? What diseases are associated with eating too much refined foods? A related video would be Eating Right, Eating Too Much, and Prophecy.
Christians: Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God, Biblical instructions on living as a Christian This is a scripture-filled booklet for those wishing to live as a real Christian. A related sermon is also available: Christians are Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God.
Living as a Christian: How and Why? In what ways do Christians live differently than others. What about praying, fasting, tithing, holy days, and the world? There is also a YouTube video related to that also called: Living as a Christian: How and Why?
Who Was Herbert W. Armstrong? How is He Viewed Today? Includes quotes from the 1973 edition of The Autobiography of Herbert W. Armstrong and explains how he is and should be viewed today.
Overcoming Sin What is sin? How are Christians suppose to overcome it? Here is also a link to a video titled How to Overcome Sin.
How to Prevent Sin This is an article by Herbert W. Armstrong.
Just What Do You Mean Conversion? Many think that they are converted Christians. But are they? Would you like to know more about conversion. Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject.

COGwriter

The Continuing Church of God is pleased to announce this sermon from its ContinuingCOG channel:

1:10:23

The Plain Truth About Christmas

What is the ‘Plain Truth About Christmas’? Dr. Thiel goes through a booklet with that title as well as some writings from the old Plain Truth magazine. He answers questions such as Was Jesus born December 25th?, Did the Apostles and early Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus?, Did the many of the Greco-Romans switch from a celebration on January 6th to December 25th? When and why was December 25th adopted? Are there ties to Egypt, Babylon, Odin, and even Nimrod of Genesis 10? Any ties to Semiramis? What about Christmas trees and the ‘spirit of Christmas’? What do encyclopedias and historical records reveal? Does the Bible warn about worship involving green trees? Is Christmas listed as one of God’s Holy Days?

Here is a link to the sermon video: The Plain Truth About Christmas.

Here is a link a different version of the sermon in the Spanish language: La Verdad Acerca de la Navidad.

Several items of possibly related interest may include:

The Plain Truth About Christmas Booklet written by Herbert W. Armstrong. A related sermon, with additional information, is also available: The Plain Truth About Christmas. Here is a link to the sermon dubbed in the Spanish language: La Verdad Acerca de la Navidad.
What Does the Catholic Church Teach About Christmas and the Holy Days? Do you know what the Catholic Church says were the original Christian holy days? Was Christmas among them? Is December 25th Jesus’ birthday or that of the sun god?
Did Early Christians Celebrate Birthdays? Did biblical era Jews celebrate birthdays? Who originally celebrated birthdays? When did many that profess Christ begin birthday celebrations? A related sermon video is available and is titled: Birthdays, Christians, and December 25th.
Should You Observe God’s Holy Days or Demonic Holidays? This is a free pdf booklet explaining what the Bible and history shows about God’s Holy Days and popular holidays.
Beliefs of the Original Catholic Church. Did the original “catholic church” have doctrines held by the Continuing Church of God? Did Church of God leaders uses the term “catholic church” to ever describe the church they were part of? Here are links to related sermons: Original Catholic Church of God? , Original Catholic Doctrine: Creed, Liturgy, Baptism, Passover, and What Type of Catholic was Polycarp of Smyrna?, Tradition, Holy Days, Salvation, Dress, & Celibacy, and Early Heresies and Heretics, and Doctrines: 3 Days, Abortion, Ecumenism, Meats, Tithes, Crosses, Destiny, and more, and Saturday or Sunday?, The Godhead, Apostolic Laying on of Hands Succession, and Church in the Wilderness Apostolic Succession List.
John Chrysostom, Bishop of Constantinople and Antisemite This late fourth/early fifth century Bishop of Constantinople is considered to be a ‘saint’ and ‘doctor’ by the Church of Rome, Church of England, and the Eastern Orthodox, but he did not teach Christ’s love. Here is a link to a related sermon: John Chrysostom, Holy Days, and Holidays.
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.
Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God Differs from Protestantism The CCOG is NOT Protestant. This free online book explains how the real Church of God differs from mainstream/traditional Protestants. Several sermons related to the free book are also available: Protestant, Baptist, and CCOG History; The First Protestant, God’s Command, Grace, & Character; The New Testament, Martin Luther, and the Canon; Eucharist, Passover, and Easter; Views of Jews, Lost Tribes, Warfare, & Baptism; Scripture vs. Tradition, Sabbath vs. Sunday; Church Services, Sunday, Heaven, and God’s Plan; Seventh Day Baptists/Adventists/Messianics: Protestant or COG?; Millennial Kingdom of God and God’s Plan of Salvation; Crosses, Trees, Tithes, and Unclean Meats; The Godhead and the Trinity; Fleeing or Rapture?; and Ecumenism, Rome, and CCOG Differences.
Tradition and Scripture: From the Bible and Church Writings Are traditions on equal par with scripture? Many believe that is what Peter, John, and Paul taught. But did they? Two related sermons are available Scripture and Traditions and Tradition and Scripture.
Was Jesus Born in the Grotto of the Nativity? Was Jesus born in a below ground cave? Was Jesus born below the “Church of the Nativity”? Were the wise men there?
How did December 25th become Christmas? Was Jesus born then? If not, why December 25? Here is the article translated into Mandarin Chinese 12月25日最后是怎么被许多基督的信仰者采纳的.
Is Keeping Christmas a Sin? Is keeping Christmas acceptable for true Christians? What are some scriptures to consider?
Did Early Christians Observe the Fall Holy Days? The ‘Fall’ Holy Days come every year in September and/or October on the Roman calendar. Some call them Jewish holidays, but they were kept by Jesus, the apostles, and their early faithful followers. Should you keep them? What does the Bible teach? What do records of church history teach? What does the Bible teach about the Feasts of Trumpets, Atonement, Tabernacles, and the Last Great Day? Here is a link to a related sermon: Should you keep the Fall Holy Days?
Holy Day Calendar This is a listing of the biblical holy days through 2033, with their Roman calendar dates. They are really hard to observe if you do not know when they occur 🙂 In the Spanish/Español/Castellano language: Calendario de los Días Santos. In Mandarin Chinese: 何日是神的圣日？ 这里是一份神的圣日日历从2013年至2024年。.
The History of Early Christianity Are you aware that what most people believe is not what truly happened to the true Christian church? Do you know where the early church was based? Do you know what were the doctrines of the early church? Is your faith really based upon the truth or compromise?
The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN Why Did God Create Anything? Why did God make you? This free online book helps answers some of the biggest questions that human have, including the biblical meaning of life. Here is a link to three related sermons: Mysteries of God’s Plan, Mysteries of Truth, Sin, Rest, Suffering, and God’s Plan, and The Mystery of YOU.
Universal OFFER of Salvation, Apokatastasis: Can God save the lost in an age to come? Hundreds of scriptures reveal God’s plan of salvation Will all get a fair chance at salvation? This free book is packed with scriptures showing that God does intend to offer salvation to all who ever lived–the elect in this age, and the rest in the age to come. Here is a link to a related sermon series: Universal Offer of Salvation 1: Apocatastasis, Universal Offer of Salvation 2: Jesus Desires All to be Saved, Mysteries of the Great White Throne Judgment (Universal Offer of Salvation part 3), Is God Fair, Will God Pardon the Ignorant?, Can God Save Your Relatives?, Babies, Limbo, Purgatory and God’s Plan, and ‘By the Mouth of All His Holy Prophets’.
The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast This is a free pdf book explaining the what the Ten Commandments are, where they came from, how they develop love, how early professors of Christ viewed them, and how various ones, including the Beast of Revelation, will oppose them. A related sermon is titled: The Ten Commandments and the Beast of Revelation.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to four related sermons: The Fantastic Gospel of the Kingdom of God!, The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
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?
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.
CCOG.ORG Continuing Church of God The group striving to be most faithful amongst all real Christian groups to the word of God. There are links to literature is about 100 different languages there.
Congregations of the Continuing Church of God This is a listing of congregations and groups of the Continuing Church of God around the world.
Continuing Church of God Facebook page This has news and prophetic information.
Continuing Church of God, Africa, Facebook page This has news and prophetic information.
Continuing Church of God, Canada, Facebook page This has news and prophetic information.
Continuing Church of God, Europe, Facebook page This has news and prophetic information.
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 www.ccog.asia, 关注于亚洲并且有各种各样的中英文文章，其中一些用菲律宾语翻译的文章也正在进行中，准备添加到这个网站中。 Here is a link to our Statement of Beliefs in Mandarin Chinese 继续神的教会的信仰声明.
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.
CCOGAFRICA.ORG This is a website targeted towards those in Africa.
CCOGCANADA.CA This is a website targeted towards those in Canada.
CDLIDD.ES La Continuación de la Iglesia de Dios. This is the Spanish language website for the Continuing Church of God.
CG7.ORG This is a website for those interested in the Sabbath and churches that observe the seventh day Sabbath.
PNIND.PH Patuloy na Iglesya ng Diyos. This is the Philippines website Continuing Church of God. It has information in English and Tagalog.
CCOG Animations YouTube channel. The Continuing Church of God has some animations to teach aspects of Christian beliefs. Also available at BitChute COGAnimations https://www.bitchute.com/channel/coganimations/
Bible News Prophecy channel. Dr. Thiel has produced hundreds of videos for the BibleNewsProphecy channel. You can find them at them on YouTube at BibleNewsProphecy https://www.youtube.com/user/BibleNewsProphecy, plus also on Vimeo at Bible News Prophecy https://vimeo.com/channels/biblenewsprophecy as well as on Brighteon Bible News Prophecy https://www.brighteon.com/channel/ccogbnp and Bitchute Prophecy https://www.bitchute.com/channel/prophecy/
CCOGAfrica channel. This has messages from African pastors in African languages such as Kalenjin, Kiswahili, Embu, and Dholuo. Also available at BitChute COGAfrica https://www.bitchute.com/channel/cogafrica/
CDLIDDSermones channel. This contains messages in the Spanish language
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.
ContinuingCOG channel. Dr. Thiel has produced scores of YouTube video sermons for this channel. Note: Since these are sermon-length, they can take a little longer to load than other YouTube videos. Also available at BitChute COGTube https://www.bitchute.com/channel/cogtube/
Statement of Beliefs of the Continuing Church of God “Contend 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.

pic.twitter.com/G5yIH5cifx

— President of Russia (@KremlinRussia_E) December 23, 2021

COGwriter

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin held his annual end-of-the year Q&A session last night and made some true statements that Western leaders will not:

President Putin: I Will Never Allow the ‘New World Order’ To Pervert Nature – There Are Only TWO Genders

December 24, 2021

Speaking to journalists at an end-of-year press conference, Putin warned that the elites in the West are deliberately trying to pervert nature by claiming that men can be women and women can be men.

“It’s inevitable [that these concepts will arrive in Russia],” Putin warned. “If someone thinks men and women are the same thing, let them think that, but let us think about common sense.”

“I believe that the traditional approach is correct. Male is male, female is female, mother is mother, and father is father. I sincerely hope that our society has the moral armor to protect us against this,” Putin added.

He also spoke about the far-left movement in the US to allow inmates to legally change their gender to female in order to enter women’s prisons.

“To fight against that, we should not just shout and point fingers, but we should support our own traditional values,” he declared.

Rt.com reports: Putin’s statement isn’t the first time a senior Russian politician has spoken out against modern, progressive ideas in regards to gender issues. Earlier this month, Russian Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matvienko said that it is “unacceptable” to impose foreign values on a country without taking into account its history, faith, religion, and national characteristics.

“They are trying to impose alien values on us. And not only on us but on the advancement in the world in general,” she said. “It’s sexual minority rights. There are already 85 genders in Europe. It is unacceptable for us.” https://newspunch.com/president-putin-i-will-never-allow-the-new-world-order-to-pervert-nature-there-are-only-two-genders/

As far as the Putin Administration goes, it has been consistently supporting the idea of biblical marriage as well as not pushing the LGBTQ agenda. Actually, it has long been my view that it is precisely because of that that Hillary Clinton and the Obama Administration turned against Russia years ago (I figured that out after reading Hillary Clinton’s book Hard Choices as she was not pleased with Russia’s response to her pushing LGBTQ matters inside of Russia). That led to US support to overthrow the Russia-supporting lawfully elected government of Ukraine. And is still a factor in how various politicians in the US view Russia.

Vladimir Putin has been the most powerful political leader in the world to take a stand against several parts of the LGBTQ+ agenda, vulgarity (see Russia’s Vladimir Putin takes a stand against vulgar language), and some other sins that plague Western society.

Billy Graham’s son Franklin Graham made some comments some time ago related to Vladimir Putin:

July 12, 2017

In 2014, Graham published an opinion piece about the Russian president’s decision to sign a law barring the distribution of “propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations” to children. The law, which was widely perceived to be homophobic, stirred controversy ahead of the 2014 Olympic games in Sochi. But Graham defended it anyway, saying America’s embrace of LGBTQ rights amounts to “secularism” that “is as godless as communism.”

“In my opinion, Putin is right on these issues,” Graham wrote. “Obviously, he may be wrong about many things, but he has taken a stand to protect his nation’s children from the damaging effects of any gay and lesbian agenda.”

He also lauded Putin’s pledge to protect Christians in Syria, noting how it was “one justification for his support of the Assad regime in Syria.”

“It’s obvious that President Obama and his administration are pushing the gay-lesbian agenda in America today and have sold themselves completely to that which is contrary to God’s teaching,” Graham wrote. “In my opinion, Putin is right on these issues. Obviously, he may be wrong about many things, but he has taken a stand to protect his nation’s children from the damaging effects of any gay and lesbian agenda.”

“Isn’t it sad, though, that America’s own morality has fallen so far that on this issue — protecting children from any homosexual agenda or propaganda — Russia’s standard is higher than our own?” he added.

“Pray for the President of Russia, [who] defends traditional Christianity,” Graham reportedly said. …

Pat Buchanan — another leader of the Religious Right — published his own piece about Russia potentially replacing the U.S. as a bastion of “Christian values,” asking “Whose side is God on now?” …

Graham still invited a delegation from the ROC to the 2017 event, and it was moved to D.C. at the suggestion of ROC external relations head Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev of Moscow — the same man who helped Graham come up with the idea for the conference in the first place. https://thinkprogress.org/religious-right-russia-3e80e2ea2e4a/

Notice also something else from the past:

22 September 2014

Well, it is true, is it not, that President Vladimir Putin stands virtually alone among national leaders of the major powers in publicly proclaiming his Christian identity, and in condemning homosexual “marriage” — while leaders of the so-called Christian West have adopted the politically correct line that these unnatural unions are now sacrosanct? And is it not true that Putin and the Russian government have been spending hundreds of millions of dollars to rebuild hundreds of Russian Orthodox churches destroyed during the militant atheism of the Soviet era? Has he not restored sacred holidays of the Julian Christian calendar? Did he not sign a national law last year outlawing advertisements for abortion? To which we must answer: yes, yes, yes, yes; true, true, true, true.

Additional “facts” can be cited to paint an even more striking image of Putin as pious champion of Christianity: crossing himself and kissing the icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary that he presented to Pope Francis during his 2013 visit to the Vatican; numerous appearances with (and blessings and endorsements from) Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church and other Christian church leaders; signing into law a “ban on the propaganda of homosexuality and pedophilia” directed at children, while President Obama promotes the LBGT agenda at every level and every opportunity; speaking out against the persecution and murder of Christians by Islamic jihadists in Syria and Iraq. …

In his current ruse as Defender of the Faith, Putin is not only channeling Stalin, but also Lenin, that original Bolshevik persecutor of the church. Lenin was the supreme pragmatist, happily willing to use “whatever works,” and constantly at odds with rigid communist “purists” who failed to grasp the necessity of operational flexibility in the pursuit of the final objective. http://www.thenewamerican.com/world-news/europe/item/19162-putin-defender-of-christian-faith-and-morality

While many in the West do not trust him, Vladimir Putin has been willing to take biblically-consistent stands on moral issues that few other influential leaders have.

Interestingly, back in 2014, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin signed in a law against foul language (see Russia’s Vladimir Putin takes a stand against vulgar language)–that is also something we are not seeing hardly influential leaders in the West speaking out against.

Vladimir Putin believes that he is standing for traditional Russian Orthodox values.

Jesus said:

4 … Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? 6 So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.” (Matthew 19:4-6)

Notice that God made humans male and female from the beginning for marriage. The human body is “not for fornication” (1 Corinthians 6:13, KJV), nor for homosexual (1 Corinthians 6:9-10) or lesbian (Romans 1:18-32) relations.

God did not create humans to be sexually immoral:

18 Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. (1 Corinthians 6:18)

The once Protestant or Roman Catholic dominated nations of the West have not had top leaders stand up for biological facts about males and females.

Russia’s President remains the most powerful leader in the world to repeatedly and publicly do so.

This does not bode well for the West.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Why sex and marriage? What are each spouse’s responsibilities regarding sex in the marriage? What is not allowed according to God’s word? Why is there sex and why is there marriage? Parental discretion is advised as to whether or not everything in this article is now appropriate for their children. Dr. Thiel goes over scriptures, The Missing Dimension in Sex, and provides answers to questions many have had. A related sermon is available: Sex and Marriage. Here is that sermon in the Spanish language: Matrimonio y sexo.
Are any types of birth control scripturally allowed? Did Jesus make a statement that might be consistent with birth control? Are there any methods that might be appropropriate? What methods would be biblically prohibited? Here is a link a related video: Can Christians Use Birth Control?
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 and the LGBTQ agenda?  Can homosexuals change? A related video sermon is titled: What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality? A short video is available titled: Gay Gene? Born That Way?
Making Your Marriage Work Marriage is not also easy, but it pictures a divine relationship. How can you make your marriage work? Here is a link to the video sermon: You Can Make YOUR Marriage Work.
Here’s the Plain Truth About OLD TESTAMENT POLYGAMY by Herbert Armstrong. Here is a related article in the Spanish language: ¿Es la poligamia una senda de Dios?
Love, Marriage, and Sex It is important to get them in the right order.
THIRD COMMANDMENT: Words Matter Are you obeying the Third Commandment? Are you sure? Could you be blaspheming with your euphemisms or life actions? Here is a link to a related sermon: Third Commandment Plus: Words Matter.
The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN: Why Did God Create Anything? Why did God make you? This free online book helps answers some of the biggest questions that human have, including the biblical meaning of life. Here is a link to three related sermons: Mysteries of God’s Plan, Mysteries of Truth, Sin, Rest, Suffering, and God’s Plan, and The Mystery of YOU.
Pornography: A scourge on s
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2029 or or 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
Might the U.S.A. Be Gone by 2028? Could the USA be gone by the end of 2028 or earlier? There is a tradition attributed to the Hebrew prophet Elijah that humanity had 6,000 years to live before being replaced by God’s Kingdom. There are scriptures, writings in the Talmud, early Christian teachings that support this. Also, even certain Hindu writings support it. Here is a link to a related video: Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028? In Spanish: Seran los Estados Unidos Destruidos en el 2028?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2022, 2023, or 2024? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: Great Tribulation: 2026 or 2027? A shorter video is: Can the Great Tribulation start in 2022 or 2023? Here is a video in the Spanish language: Es El 2021 el año  de La Gran Tribulación o el Grande Reseteo Financiero.
The Ten Commandments Reflect Love, Breaking them is Evil Some feel that the ten commandments are a burden. Is that what Jesus, Paul, Peter, James, and John taught? For a more detailed discussion of the first four commandments, please see the video The Ten Commandments: Loving God. For a more detailed discussion of the last six commandments, please see: The Ten Commandments: Loving Your Neighbor. Here is a link to a related article in Mandarin Chinese 十条诫命显示爱，违反诫命的就是邪恶的
Was the Commandment to Love the Only Command? Some have stated that John’s writings teach this, but is that what the Bible really says?
The Ten Commandments and the Early Church Did Jesus and the Early Church keep the ten commandments? What order were they in? Here are quotes from the Bible and early writings. A related sermon is titled: Christians and the Ten Commandments.
The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast This is a free pdf book explaining the what the Ten Commandments are, where they came from, how early professors of Christ viewed them, and how various ones, including the Beast of Revelation, will oppose them. A related sermon is titled: The Ten Commandments and the Beast of Revelation.
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
Ezekiel 38: For Russia & Iran in Our Day? Is Ezekiel 38 about to be fulfilled? A related video is available titled Ezekiel 38: For Russia, Ukraine, & Iran Now? Another could be Russia, Iran, Syria, & the Bible (Code).
Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? There is also a video sermon available: Russia in the Bible and in

COGwriter

A while back, I saw something from Time that seemed interesting. It was partially in response to the PEW survey showing that less people in the USA identify themselves as Protestants or Roman Catholics (see PEW: Declines in USA Catholics and Protestants). And that has reduced further since (see As America becomes more Godless, more see it declining).

Anyway, here is part of the Time article:

If America Became a Christian Nation

They probably wouldn’t like what it looks like

With political season kicking off again, so is the season where folks begin to use the term “Christian nation.” Some claim we were one, some claim we are one, and some say we need to become one. Yet, each time I hear that phrase I have an inner Princess Bride moment where I say to myself, “you keep using that word, but it doesn’t mean what you think it means.”

So, what if we became a Christian nation? Well, a few things would have to change… drastically. Here’s a few quick examples:Because truth be told, if America actually were to become a Christian nation, I don’t think the people who advocated for it would be too happy with the end product. …

We’d Have To Abolish the 2nd Amendment.

The 2nd Amendment is so beloved by American Christians that this alone would likely be the sticking point preventing us from ever becoming a Christian nation. Jesus taught his disciples that they were to never use violence to respond to evil (Matthew 5:39) and that they were to actively love their enemies. He also lived a life of nonviolent enemy love as a model for us to follow– and living our lives patterned after how he lived his is the ultimate proof that we belong to God (1John 2:6). A Christian nation would have no room for the 2nd Amendment.

No, the USA would not have to get rid of the 2nd amendment (cf. Luke 22:36). But it would have to cease being a warlike nation (see Military Service and the Churches of God: Do Real Christians Participate in Carnal Warfare or Encourage Violence?) and also its love of violent sports (see Is American Football Evil?).

Early Christians would NOT participate in carnal warfare nor watch violent sports (see Military Service and the Churches of God: Do Real Christians Participate in Carnal Warfare or Encourage Violence?).

Many who claim to be Christian in the USA would condemn the original Christian faith as a cult (see also Is the Genuine Church of God a Cult?) and not be willing to accept it. This is despite the fact that Jude wrote “to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).

Most do not understand original Christianity and do not want to. You can learn about it if you are interested in the truth:

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?

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.

Let me also add that if the USA were a Christian nation, there would not be crosses associated with churches (see What is the Origin of the Cross as a ‘Christian’ Symbol?), the religious holidays would change (see the free online book: Should You Keep God’s Holy Days or Demonic Holidays?), people would finally really keep the Ten Commandments (check out the free online book: The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast), and there would be many blessings that most cannot conceive of truly happening today.

People would actually be keeping the Feast of Tabernacles and not Christmas if the USA practiced original Christianity.

But because the USA is not Christian, but is ‘an hypocritical nation’ (Isaiah 10:6, KJV), punishment will be coming (Isaiah 10:5-11; Romans 1:18-32; Daniel 11:39; see also USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses) and some of the prophesied sorrows (Matthew 24:4-8) are already here.

The USA needs national repentance, which is not likely, but personal repentance still is.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Christian Repentance Do you know what repentance is? Is it really necessary for salvation? A related sermon is also available titled: Real Christian Repentance.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.
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?
Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God Differs from Protestantism The CCOG is NOT Protestant. This free online book explains how the real Church of God differs from mainstream/traditional Protestants. Several sermons related to the free book are also available: Protestant, Baptist, and CCOG History; The First Protestant, God’s Command, Grace, & Character; The New Testament, Martin Luther, and the Canon; Eucharist, Passover, and Easter; Views of Jews, Lost Tribes, Warfare, & Baptism; Scripture vs. Tradition, Sabbath vs. Sunday; Church Services, Sunday, Heaven, and God’s Plan; Seventh Day Baptists/Adventists/Messianics: Protestant or COG?; Millennial Kingdom of God and God’s Plan of Salvation; Crosses, Trees, Tithes, and Unclean Meats; The Godhead and the Trinity; Fleeing or Rapture?; and Ecumenism, Rome, and CCOG Differences.
Beliefs of the Original Catholic Church. Did the original “catholic church” have doctrines held by the Continuing Church of God? Did Church of God leaders uses the term “catholic church” to ever describe the church they were part of? Here are links to related sermons: Original Catholic Church of God? , Original Catholic Doctrine: Creed, Liturgy, Baptism, Passover, and What Type of Catholic was Polycarp of Smyrna?, Tradition, Holy Days, Salvation, Dress, & Celibacy, and Early Heresies and Heretics, and Doctrines: 3 Days, Abortion, Ecumenism, Meats, Tithes, Crosses, Destiny, and more, and Saturday or Sunday?, The Godhead, Apostolic Laying on of Hands Succession, and Church in the Wilderness Apostolic Succession List.
Should You Keep God’s Holy Days or Demonic Holidays? This is a free pdf booklet explaining what the Bible and history shows about God’s Holy Days and popular holidays. A related sermon is Which Spring Days should Christians observe?
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?
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.
Is There “An Annual Worship Calendar” In the Bible? This paper provides a biblical and historical critique of several articles, including one by the Tkach WCG which states that this should be a local decision. What do the Holy Days mean? Also you can click here for the calendar of Holy Days. (Here is a related link in Spanish/español: Calendario Anual de Adoración –Una crítica basada en la Biblia y en la Historia: ¿Hay un Calendario Anual de Adoración en la Biblia?
What is the Origin of the Cross as a ‘Christian’ Symbol? Was the cross used as a venerated symbol by the early Church? A related YouTube video would be Origin of the Cross.
The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast This is a free draft/unedited pdf book explaining the what the Ten Commandments are, where they came from, how early professors of Christ viewed them, and how various ones, including the Beast of Revelation, will oppose them. A related sermon is titled: The Ten Commandments and the Beast of Revelation.
The Ten Commandments and the Early Church Did Jesus and the Early Church keep the ten commandments? What order were they in? Here are quotes from the Bible and early writings. A related sermon is titled: Christians and the Ten Commandments.
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?
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.
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.

(Pixabay)

COGwriter

The amount of foul language has been increasing. Here is a report from the Wall Street Journal on that:

December 20, 2021

In November, Jay Rosenthal unexpectedly found himself uttering a curse word—at his children’s school. …

The old boundaries between work and home have blurred, reducing formalities and often forging foxhole bonds during difficult times.

“Artificial walls came down,” says Mr. Rosenthal, a Toronto-based founder of a media company.

Pandemic stress, the melding of personal and professional spheres, and an exhausted slide toward casualness are making many of us swear more. It is “a perfect swearing storm,” says Michael Adams, a linguist at Indiana University Bloomington.

Mentions of {curse words and their variants}, rose 41% from full-year 2019 to 2021 through the end of November on Facebook and 27% on Twitter, according to Storyful, a news and intelligence agency. Storyful is owned by News Corp, the parent company of The Wall Street Journal.

Denver-based Inversoft Inc.’s CleanSpeak profanity-filtering software, which is used by companies that host online communities and other discussion forums, says the volume of filtered words has more than tripled in the past 18 months.

“People are becoming more aggressive in their use of profane and sexually explicit terms,” says Inversoft’s Chief Executive Don Bergal. https://www.wsj.com/articles/were-cursing-more-blame-the-pandemic-11640008801

The increased use of foul language was prophesied in the New Testament:

1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!  (2 Timothy 3:1-6)

As far as being despisers of good, some people think foul language is fine and even relaxing:

Dropping a curse word here and there can also demonstrate comfort with someone else. “It’s something you’re not supposed to be doing, but you trust them,” says Dr. Adams. “It’s a sign of intimacy.” He says people are seeking this type of connection as they experience tectonic life shifts while often feeling isolated from their colleagues. “We’re using what we’ve got,” he says.

Tracy Brady, a communications executive in Boston who has found herself swearing more during the pandemic, likens the relaxing of language to a parallel relaxation of how we dress now.

Cursing “is the yoga pants and Uggs of language,” says Ms. Brady. …

Yet swearing can convey a kind of grittiness, or an appealing edge, say branding experts.

“If it’s used judiciously, it can be a spotlight, an exclamation point, a way to break out and seem authentic,” says Allen Adamson, co-founder of brand-consulting firm Metaforce. Yet too much swearing can undercut the substance of the speaker’s message, he adds.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/were-cursing-more-blame-the-pandemic-11640008801

No, it should not be used at all. It is not relaxing–it shows lack of self-control and lack of respect for the word of God.

The Bible condemns foul language. Notice scriptures from the Hebrew scriptures:

11 ‘You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain. (Deuteronomy 5:11)

28 “You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people. (Exodus 22:28)

In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul wrote:

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. (Romans 12:14)

33 Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. (1 Corinthians 15:33, KJV)

29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. (Ephesians 4:29)

Foul language is unnecessary and should not be used. Using ‘art’ as an excuse, does not excuse it.

Furthermore, using God’s name in vain is a prideful lie.

Interestingly, back in 2014, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin signed in a law against foul language (see Russia’s Vladimir Putin takes a stand against vulgar language). This resulted in certain ‘artists’ objecting to it (see Certain Russian ‘artists’ oppose ban on profanity).

I would add here that sadly, many ‘artists’ do need to be censored as what passes for art if often vulgar, lust provoking, and/or otherwise immoral. Nude shows in the West are called ‘performance art’ and now is showing actual acts of homosexual intercourse in the West. Now ‘soft pornography’ is considered as appropriate family entertainment by many in the Western media.

It is a sad commentary on the USA and its British-descended allies that it is the President of Russia and not a president of the USA that has taken steps to reduce foul language.

Violating the 3rd commandment, along with encouraging the violations of the 7th and 10th commandments, should not be done–and it is NOT real art.

Related to words and the third commandment, the Continuing Church of God put together the following sermon on its ContinuingCOG channel:

1:11:03

Third Commandment Plus: Words Matter

Do words matter? What is the third commandment? Does the command cover more than cursing with God’s name? Are cursing and blaspheming the same thing? Are we to try to control our words and our thoughts? Are there inappropriate or blasphemous religious titles? Is calling yourself a Christian without being a real one a form of blasphemy? Can real Christians blaspheme God’s name by not living as a proper Christian? What about ‘sacred names’? What about the use of euphemisms? Can you be speaking against God when you speak against His ministers? What about talebearing or gossip? What about swearing or taking oaths? How about affirmations? Did Satan use God’s name in vain? Was cursing a sin before the Ten Commandments were written in stone on Mount Sinai? What about after Jesus was resurrected? What did James, Peter, and Paul teach in the New Testament portion of the Bible related to words and blasphemy? What about Old Testament writings and the command in Exodus 20? Did people blaspheme God when they spoke against Moses, Aaron, and Samuel? Can you blaspheme God through hypocrisy? Are Christians to use words to hurt or words to help? What about bullying? Will the Beast of the Sea and the final Antichrist use blasphemous words? Will you be judged for your words? Dr. Thiel addresses these and more in this sermon?

The amount of foul language tolerated in Western and other societies is excessive and should not be done.

It is not good that such language use is increasing.

Even though that was also prophesied for the last days (cf. 2 Timothy 3:1-5), Christians should not do it.

As the Apostle Paul wrote:

29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, …. (Ephesians 4:29)

UPDATE 12/26/21: We now have a short video related to this article:

9:09

Was Increased Cursing Prophesied?

Facebook reported cursing up 41% over the previous year. Twitter reported it up 27%, whereas CleanSpeak reported that cursing tripled. Was increased cursing prophesied for these last days times? Is cursing helpful and relaxing as some insist? Or is it corrupt, vulgar, and wrong? What does the Bible teach about this? Dr. Thiel goes over these matters and more in this short video.

Here is a link to our video: Was Increased Cursing Prophesied?

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast This is a free pdf book explaining the what the Ten Commandments are, where they came from, how early professors of Christ viewed them, and how various ones, including the Beast of Revelation, will oppose them. A related sermon is titled: The Ten Commandments and the Beast of Revelation.
FIRST COMMANDMENT: Priorities and the Most Broken Commandment Which commandment is broken the most? Which one is most involved with what should be your top priority? Here is a link to a related sermon: The Most Violated Commandment and Priorities.
SECOND COMMANDMENT: What Did the Early Church Teach About Idols and Icons? Did the early Church use icons? What was the position of Christians about such things? A related sermon is available: The Second Commandment, Idols, and Icons.
THIRD COMMANDMENT: Words Matter Are you obeying the Third Commandment? Are you sure? Could you be blaspheming with your euphemisms or life actions? Here is a link to a related sermon: Third Commandment Plus: Words Matter.
FOURTH COMMANDMENT: The Sabbath in the Early Church and Abroad Was the seventh-day (Saturday) Sabbath observed by the apostolic and post-apostolic Church? Here is a link to a related sermon: Fourth Commandment: Saturday or Sunday?
The Ten Commandments Reflect Love, Breaking them is Evil Some feel that the ten commandments are a burden. Is that what Jesus, Paul, Peter, James, and John taught? For a more detailed discussion of the first four commandments, please see the video The Ten Commandments: Loving God. For a more detailed discussion of the last six commandments, please see: The Ten Commandments: Loving Your Neighbor. Here is a link to a related article in Mandarin Chinese 十条诫命显示爱，违反诫命的就是邪恶的 .
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?
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?

George and Anne Buchanan

 

COGwriter

This week’s recommended sermon is from former Worldwide Church of God elder, George ‘Doc’ Buchanan.

Here is a autobiographical sketch from him:

I was born at home on the family farm in Western Ohio that stopped at the Indiana state line. I attended school in Willshire, population about 600. A friend’s mom introduced me to The Radio Church of God/Worldwide Church of God through the PLAIN TRUTH magazine.

When I was about 12 years old, my parents flew my brother and me from Fort Wayne to Dayton to Columbus for the Ohio State Fair. A couple of days later, we returned the same way. The airplane was a TWA DC-3. From that time on, I wanted to be a pilot. The problem was that I did not know the way to that goal. Neither did any of my teachers in that small town school.

During my high school years, I remember leaving the house to sit in the car in the garage at 11 o’clock at night hoping to be able to tune in the World Tomorrow radio broadcast from a distant city.

 I considered applying to Ambassador College but Pasadena seemed like the other side of the world from the farm in Ohio. Consequently, I attended a nearby engineering college (they had a flying club!)

Along the way, I learned about a Professional Pilot Training program at Purdue University. I was accepted into their limited numbers program. During the second year, I flew DC-3’s in their charter airline, Purdue Airlines, once all of the way to Hudson Bay, Canada where there were icebergs on the bay in June! Upon graduation, I was hired by TWA (Trans World Airlines), this time to fly the Lockheed Constellation (“the Connie”). After 37 years with them, and several different airplanes all of the way up to the Boeing 747, I had to retire due to Federal Aviation Regulations. By then, I had flown about 34,000 hours. I calculate that to be the equivalent of 161 trips to the moon and back… And that at 500 mph, not the 25,000 mph that the astronauts fly.

I began attending the Worldwide Church of God in 1973 and was baptized in February 1974. In 1984, I moved to Freeport, The Bahamas where I was made Deacon in 1988. Having my own single engine airplane, I was able to serve brethren in the out-islands. One sabbath in 1992, I flew to Marsh Harbour, Great Abaco to lead a service there. This was one of the few times that I served in only one location in a day.  I returned to Freeport in the afternoon for their afternoon service where the Bahamas’ Pastor Mather had come up from Nassau to give the sermon. It was a total surprise when he asked me to come on-stage and ordained me as Elder. Afterward, I served by traveling to lead the service in Belize. Further, I had the opportunity to give a sermonette in Fiji in 1993, one in Paris, France and a sermon at Nassau, The Bahamas during the Feast of Tabernacles in 1995.

I returned to Florida in 1996. In 2001, my wife, Jo Anne, and I built, as building contractors, our house in Hobe Sound. While there, I had some regularly scheduled Bible Studies. For three months, I had a 100,000 watt daily radio broadcast. The broadcast could reach from northern Ft. Lauderdale to Melbourne, Florida and east to the northern Bahamas.

After the financial meltdown in 2008, we began to look for a cheaper country to live. We looked at Panama about every year until we moved there.

Before moving down here to the Rep. of Panama in 2014, I attended a two-week study program on how to conduct a Bible study for the purpose of Bible Study/church multiplication. My plan was to eventually cover the entire nation of Panama with Bible studies. But my plan was thwarted by my inability to speak Spanish adequately.

Here in El Valle, I have had some Bible studies, each numbering about 15 in this volcano, mountain community of 8,000. But even this came to a close with the restrictions imposed because of the Covid-19. Even our international airport was closed for 9 months! We still must wear masks at all times and observe a curfew.

I do not remember now how I first learned about the Continuing Church of God. I do know that I looked at some other Churches of God but was not drawn to them. When Dr. Thiel called me the first time, I think we both saw that God was drawing me into this church. Subsequently, we have discussed my serving in the area of ministerial counseling, baptisms, and all of the tasks that an Elder might have.

Before I close, let me reveal to you the reason for my nickname. Three weeks before we moved to Freeport, Bahamas, my youngest little girl was born at home in Michigan. Her older brother and sister were 20 and 18 years old respectively. This at-home birth was unplanned. It was supposed to happen in the hospital. After all, that is what hospitals and doctors demand when the mother is over 40 years of age. Furthermore, although the birth was due then and I had bid my days off to occur then, the doctor told us the day before this that it would be at least two more weeks. I was devastated in that I would be working every day during that newly planned birth date. But it wasn’t 14 days later that she was born; it was 14 hours later! Every father knows, after staring at the flickering florescent ceiling lights all night in the hospital, that all babies are born at 6 AM. This was only 6PM!

We did not make it to the hospital, but, rather, she was born at the top of the stairs on the second floor. But it wasn’t that normal. We were going to the hospital. On the way to the top steps, mother said, “I am having the baby!” I went to the bedroom to get my telephone. When I came back, the baby’s head was out, but the bag was not broken. It still covered the baby’s head. I could see the eyes and nose through the membrane. I got down on one knee and said, “It is all right to have the baby at home.” With one little push, the baby was in my hands! I didn’t spank the little thing; I simply told her that it was all right to breathe. In seconds, when I heard her breathe, I called the hospital with my other hand and told them to send the ambulance. When we arrived at the emergency entrance to the hospital, the doctor was waiting outdoors on the asphalt for us. He said, “Congratulations Doctor Buchanan. I am Dr. Lake.” So, here I am, Doc Buchanan. I kept the name. I tell people that it is like a battlefield commission. I’m not a real doctor; I am just Doc Buchanan

Now I anxiously watch and pray for Jesus’ return and the establishment of the kingdom of God on this earth. I want it desperately. I want to see healthy and happy people, no longer dying and hungry people. I want to see joy, peace, love and prosperity all around the world. It is worth working for it.

G.E. ‘Doc’ Buchanan

George and Anne Buchanan  reside in Panama. I met the Buchnans at the Feast of Tabernacles in the Bahamas in 1992.

Anyway, the Continuing Church of God is pleased to announce this sermon from its ContinuingCOG channel:

Here is a link to the sermon: After Death – Heaven or ?

Some items of related interest may include:

Did Early Christians Teach They Were Going to Heaven? What do the Bible and scholars teach? What about ‘near-death experiences’? Here are links to a related sermons: Heaven and Christianity and It’s not heaven.
What Is the Place that Jesus Is Preparing? Dr. Herman Hoeh wrote this and answered whether the saints go to heaven upon death.
Proof Jesus is the Messiah This free book has over 200 Hebrew prophecies were fulfilled by Jesus. Plus, His arrival was consistent with specific prophecies and even Jewish interpretations of prophecy. Here are links to seven related sermons: Proof Jesus is the Messiah, Prophecies of Jesus’ birth, timing, and death, Jesus’ prophesied divinity, 200+ OT prophecies Jesus filled; Plus prophecies He made, Why Don’t Jews Accept Jesus?, Daniel 9, Jews, and Jesus, and Facts and Atheists’ Delusions About Jesus. Plus the links to two sermonettes: Luke’s census: Any historical evidence? and Muslims believe Jesus is the Messiah, but …
Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Is God’s Existence Logical? Is it really logical to believe in God? Yes! Would you like Christian answers to give atheists? This is a free online booklet that deal with improper theories and musings called science related to the origin of the origin of the universe, the origin of life, and evolution. Here is a link to a related sermon: Evolution is NOT the Origin of Life. Two animated videos of related interest are also available: Big Bang: Nothing or Creator? and A Lifegiver or Spontaneous Evolution?
Christians: Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God, Biblical instructions on living as a Christian This is a scripture-filled booklet for those wishing to live as a real Christian. A related sermon is also available: Christians are Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God.
Beliefs of the Original Catholic Church. Did the original “catholic church” have doctrines held by the Continuing Church of God? Did Church of God leaders uses the term “catholic church” to ever describe the church they were part of? Here are links to related sermons: Original Catholic Church of God? , Original Catholic Doctrine: Creed, Liturgy, Baptism, Passover, and What Type of Catholic was Polycarp of Smyrna?, Tradition, Holy Days, Salvation, Dress, & Celibacy, and Early Heresies and Heretics, and Doctrines: 3 Days, Abortion, Ecumenism, Meats, Tithes, Crosses, Destiny, and more, and Saturday or Sunday?, The Godhead, Apostolic Laying on of Hands Succession, and Church in the Wilderness Apostolic Succession List.
Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God Differs from Protestantism The CCOG is NOT Protestant. This free online book explains how the real Church of God differs from mainstream/traditional Protestants. Several sermons related to the free book are also available: Protestant, Baptist, and CCOG History; The First Protestant, God’s Command, Grace, & Character; The New Testament, Martin Luther, and the Canon; Eucharist, Passover, and Easter; Views of Jews, Lost Tribes, Warfare, & Baptism; Scripture vs. Tradition, Sabbath vs. Sunday; Church Services, Sunday, Heaven, and God’s Plan; Seventh Day Baptists/Adventists/Messianics: Protestant or COG?; Millennial Kingdom of God and God’s Plan of Salvation; Crosses, Trees, Tithes, and Unclean Meats; The Godhead and the Trinity; Fleeing or Rapture?; and Ecumenism, Rome, and CCOG Differences.
The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN Why Did God Create Anything? Why did God make you? This free online book helps answers some of the biggest questions that human have, including the biblical meaning of life. Here is a link to three related sermons: Mysteries of God’s Plan, Mysteries of Truth, Sin, Rest, Suffering, and God’s Plan, and The Mystery of YOU.
Universal OFFER of Salvation, Apokatastasis: Can God save the lost in an age to come? Hundreds of scriptures reveal God’s plan of salvation Will all get a fair chance at salvation? This free book is packed with scriptures showing that God does intend to offer salvation to all who ever lived–the elect in this age, and the rest in the age to come. Here is a link to a related sermon series: Universal Offer of Salvation 1: Apocatastasis, Universal Offer of Salvation 2: Jesus Desires All to be Saved, Mysteries of the Great White Throne Judgment (Universal Offer of Salvation part 3), Is God Fair, Will God Pardon the Ignorant?, Can God Save Your Relatives?, Babies, Limbo, Purgatory and God’s Plan, and ‘By the Mouth of All His Holy Prophets’.
The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast This is a free pdf book explaining the what the Ten Commandments are, where they came from, how they develop love, how early professors of Christ viewed them, and how various ones, including the Beast of Revelation, will oppose them. A related sermon is titled: The Ten Commandments and the Beast of Revelation.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to four related sermons: The Fantastic Gospel of the Kingdom of God!, The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
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?
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.
CCOG.ORG Continuing Church of God The group striving to be most faithful amongst all real Christian groups to the word of God. There are links to literature is about 100 different languages there.
Congregations of the Continuing Church of God This is a listing of congregations and groups of the Continuing Church of God around the world.
Continuing Church of God Facebook page This has news and prophetic information.
Continuing Church of God, Africa, Facebook page This has news and prophetic information.
Continuing Church of God, Canada, Facebook page This has news and prophetic information.
Continuing Church of God, Europe, Facebook page This has news and prophetic information.
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 www.ccog.asia, 关注于亚洲并且有各种各样的中英文文章，其中一些用菲律宾语翻译的文章也正在进行中，准备添加到这个网站中。 Here is a link to our Statement of Beliefs in Mandarin Chinese 继续神的教会的信仰声明.
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.
CCOGAFRICA.ORG This is a website targeted towards those in Africa.
CCOGCANADA.CA This is a website targeted towards those in Canada.
CDLIDD.ES La Continuación de la Iglesia de Dios. This is the Spanish language website for the Continuing Church of God.
CG7.ORG This is a website for those interested in the Sabbath and churches that observe the seventh day Sabbath.
PNIND.PH Patuloy na Iglesya ng Diyos. This is the Philippines website Continuing Church of God. It has information in English and Tagalog.
CCOG Animations YouTube channel. The Continuing Church of God has some animations to teach aspects of Christian beliefs. Also available at BitChute COGAnimations https://www.bitchute.com/channel/coganimations/
Bible News Prophecy channel. Dr. Thiel has produced hundreds of videos for the BibleNewsProphecy channel. You can find them at them on YouTube at BibleNewsProphecy https://www.youtube.com/user/BibleNewsProphecy, plus also on Vimeo at Bible News Prophecy https://vimeo.com/channels/biblenewsprophecy as well as on Brighteon Bible News Prophecy https://www.brighteon.com/channel/ccogbnp and Bitchute Prophecy https://www.bitchute.com/channel/prophecy/
CCOGAfrica channel. This has messages from African pastors in African languages such as Kalenjin, Kiswahili, Embu, and Dholuo. Also available at BitChute COGAfrica https://www.bitchute.com/channel/cogafrica/
CDLIDDSermones channel. This contains messages in the Spanish language
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.
ContinuingCOG channel. Dr. Thiel has produced scores of YouTube video sermons for this channel. Note: Since these are sermon-length, they can take a little longer to load than other YouTube videos. Also available at BitChute COGTube https://www.bitchute.com/channel/cogtube/
Statement of Beliefs of the Continuing Church of God “Contend 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.

COGwriter

Many of God’s people are enduring severe and/or numerous trials and difficulties.

Here is something that the late Church of God evangelist Raymond McNair wrote about difficulties for Christians in the July 1967 edition of the old Good News magazine. and which was included in the CCOG Letter to the Brethren: December 16, 2021:

You Need To Know Why – Fiery Trials are Necessary

Throughout its history, God’s Church has experienced many persecutions and tribulations. God’s children often experience severe trials and tests! Why? Do you know why a LOVING Creator has decreed that all of His children must go through their share of fiery trials? Read, and understand this. Trials are a vital part in developing spiritual character.

MANY FAIL to realize that TRIALS are really BLESSINGS IN DISGUISE — unpleasant though they may be at the time! You, brethren, need to understand why our loving Father has ordained that all His children must experience a number of temptations, trials, persecutions and tribulations.

God Almighty has deliberately designed the begettal and birth of a child in this life to be a type — an exact picture — of the spiritual begettal and birth which the child of God must experience — before he can be born into His Family.

We were born into this world under terrific pressure! In childbirth, both mother and child usually experience much stress and strain, as well as a certain amount of physical pain.

This is an exact type of the spiritual birth.

Christ said:

“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God” (John 3:3).

What are the very beginning steps toward salvation? (1) repentance (2) baptism and (3) the receiving of God’s precious Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). …

WE CAN ONLY BE BORN INTO THE KINGDOM OF GOD UNDER STRESS AND STRAIN — UNDER PRESSURE!

You need to understand why this is necessary, and also how God will permit us to be sorely tried at times!

King David, a man after God’s own heart, will have a very high position of rulership in the Kingdom of God. He will be king over all Israel (Ezek. 37:24; Hosea 3:5; Jer. 30:9). In order to qualify for this high position of responsibility and service in God’s Kingdom, David first had to suffer many trials, persecutions and afflictions. His life was, in fact, full of tribulations.

He understood that God’s people must experience many trials and tests in this life:

“Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivereth him out of them all” (Ps. 34:19).

David made some very serious mistakes in his life, and had to be afflicted by God to learn his lesson — the lesson that SIN NEVER PAYS! …

Did David know why God had afflicted him? Certainly! “Before l was afflicted, I went astray [I sinned]: but now have I kept thy word” (Ps. 113:67). He then freely confessed that God was righteous in punishing him: “It is GOOD for me that I have been AFFLICTED; that I might learn thy statutes” (Ps. 119:71).

Much Tribulation

The zealous apostle Paul also understood the absolute necessity of God’s people going through tribulation in this world — in order to purify them. He exhorted the disciples “to continue in the faith, and that we must through MUCH TRIBULATION enter into the Kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22).

He solemnly warned the evangelist, Timothy: “Yea, and ALL that will live godly in Christ Jesus SHALL SUFFER PERSECUTION” (II Tim. 3:12).

Paul will certainly have a very high position in the Kingdom of God. The many temptations, trials, persecutions, tribulations and labours which he endured fully qualified him to receive a position of great responsibility.

Have you ever carefully noticed just how much this dynamic apostle suffered and endured for Christ’s sake?

“Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more: in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the cure of all the churches” (II Cor. 11:23-28).

In addition to these trials, Paul revealed that he had certain physical “infirmities” which Jesus Christ had refused to heal — in order to keep Paul humble — so he would look to Christ and glory in God, rather than in what he had done (II Cor. 12:1-9). Paul concluded:

“Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (II Cor. 12:10). …

The Fiery Trial

Did the Apostle Peter believe the life of a Christian would be an easy one? No! He revealed that the faith of the Christian must sometimes be sorely tried: “Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in HEAVINESS through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith being much more precious than gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory it the appearing of Jesus Christ” (I Pet. 1:6-7).

This same apostle was also inspired to give the following warning: “Beloved, think it not strange concerning THE FIERY TRIAL which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy” (I Pet. 4:12-13).

Christ’s exemplary life — especially during the three-and-one-half years of His earthly ministry — was not a life of idleness and ease but a life filled with constant trials of every sort! He was continually opposed, persecuted, slandered, criticized, and was finally crucified by the very people whom He loved — loved so much that He was willing to die for them!

Yes, Christ knew what real tribulation was. “In the world ye shall have TRIBULATION” said Jesus, “but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

How does God try and test us? How does He learn what is really in our heart?

We have already seen that God sometimes afflicts us in order to humble us or teach us an important lesson (Ps. 119:71; II Cor. 12:7-10).

God Chastens Us in Love

Yes, God Almighty has to chasten all of His sons and daughters — just as we have to correct our children:

“And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth” (Heb. 12:5-6).

The apostle Paul then goes on to show that if we “endure chastening,” then God deals with us as with sons.

But if we will not receive this loving correction, then what does God call us? He bluntly calls us (spiritual) “bastards”! We are not really God’s sons at all but are merely pretending to be His sons.

Does Godly chastisement cause us to bear good fruit?

Notice why God chastens us.

“Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of RIGHTEOUSNESS unto them which are exercised thereby” (verse 11).

God has ordained that this life will not be an easy life — for a very good reason. He knows that, if we have no severe trials and tests, then we become spiritually soft and flabby!

A comfortable mm is a complacent man. A comfortable man doesn’t want to change — doesn’t want to alter the status quo! Why should he? He is quite happy to let things continue as they are. Why change — when everything seems to be going along so very smoothly?

God Almighty knows that we need problems, temptations, trials, necessities, weaknesses, persecutions and afflictions to stir us to action — to stir us up enough to overcome cur spiritual lethargy!

God promises a special blessing on those who steadfastly resist and overcome temptations: “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life which the Lord hath promised to them that love Him” (James 1:12).

How We Are Tried

What are some of the main ways by which we are afflicted? Ways by which we are caused to go on our knees to God in heartrending prayer? What are some of the trials which cause us to really cry out to God (as unto a merciful and loving Father) for help and strength to overcome our trials and tribulations?

PERSECUTION is one of the main ways by which God’s people are drawn closer to Him.

PHYSICAL NECESSITIES often cause God’s people to have to go to Him in prayer. When we don’t have the necessities of life (food, clothing, shelter) we are often brought to our knees before our heavenly Father.

WEAKNESSES, PHYSICAL INFIRMITIES AND SICKNESS are often the means by which God brings us back into line. When we are told that we may remain an invalid for the rest of our lives, or when we know that we may actually die of an incurable disease (unless God miraculously heals us!) then this brings us to our sober senses. Such a shock often causes us to get down on our knees in heartfelt prayer, beseeching our merciful God for mercy — for health and healing (II Kings 20:1-7).

OVERPOWERING TEMPTATIONS are often the means by which we are brought to the realization of how weak and wretched our human nature is. Through strong and persistent temptations (fears, worries and anxieties; lust and covetousness; hatred and malice; envy and jealousies) we are often sent to the throne of grace for additional strength to overcome our wretched nature (Rom. 7:14-25).

Has God solemnly promised to deliver us from all of our temptations — if we will only rely upon Him?

“There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not stiffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it” (I Cor. 10:13).

When we really repent of our sins and turn from them, accepting the blood of Christ as the means by which our transgressions will be washed away, then we are assured by God that sin will no longer rule over us — will no longer dominate our lives.

God promises: “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the [death penalty of the) law, but under grace [pardon)” (Rom. 6:14). Once we are forgiven our sins, God has solemnly promised that sin will no longer reign over us — will not control our lives!

A true Christian must continually suffer trials, tribulations, persecutions, pressures, hardships and temptations of every sort. But God will not let them overcome or defeat us as long as we steadfastly look to Him for complete deliverance:

“For He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me” (Heb. 13:5-6).

Is it God’s will that His children be kept under a certain amount of pressure? He knows that we need to have continual trials, tribulations and persecutions in order to toughen us up spiritually — in order to show us how weak and helpless we are so that we will always look to Him and rely on Him for everything!

Pressure is Essential

There are several analogies in the Bible — analogies which clearly show us why God permits us to have trials arid tribulations.

The Christian is compared to precious metals — gold or silver — which has to be put into a fiery furnace in order to burn away the dross and impurities. Also, gold and silver must become molten before it can be poured into a mould. This is true with the Christian. We must at least be heated red hot in order to be malleable enough to be able to be easily bent and shaped by the hands of our faithful Creator (see I Pet. 1:7; 4:12; I Cor. 3:12).

The Bible compares the saints to precious jewels or precious stones (Mal. 3:17). Again, it is interesting to note that diamonds, rubies and other precious jewels can only be made under terrific heat and pressure!

So it is with us. We must be subjected to the tremendous heat of our fiery trials and to the constant pressure of temptation, persecution and tribulation — in order to become a precious jewel in the sight of God!

God even compares His people to common clay in the hands of the Master Potter: “But now, O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand” (Isa. 64:8).

God would like to see us prosper and be in health (III John 2) ; hut He will even deny us these blessings if He knows that we need to suffer deprivation, affliction or persecution — in order to cause us to really look to Him as our Provider and our Deliverer from all our trials.

Jesus Christ will reject anyone who remains in a lukewarm condition (Rev. 3:15-16)! He doesn’t want to see us become spiritually drowsy — insensitive to our Creator’s wishes. God doesn’t want us to be spiritual drones.

Spiritual Exercise Is Vital

God Almighty knows that it is only through the constant spiritual exercise of problems, trials, tests, persecutions, temptations and tribulations that we develop real spiritual sinews and strength. If one doesn’t actually tire himself with a certain amount of strenuous daily exercise he can’t develop his body to its optimum and remain in the best physical health.

So it is spiritually. If we don’t daily exercise our spiritual faculties by overcoming and solving our spiritual problems, trials and hardships — then we will not remain in very good spiritual shape. We will then become spiritually weak and flabby. God doesn’t want this to happen!

Yes, brethren, whether we like it or not, this is the type of life our loving Father has ordained that we must lead. It is only those who constantly overcome who will make it into the Kingdom of God (Rev. 2, 3). Only those who exert themselves enough to hang on for dear life — to endure unto the very end — will be saved (Mat. 24:13).

“But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.”

We came into this world under terrific stress and strain — under pressure and anguish — and we will not be born into the Kingdom of God unless and until we have proven that we can withstand the pressures and strains of the everyday trials, tribulations, persecutions and temptations of this world.

“If Any Man Draw Back”

But, regretfully, some prefer to give up and quit — to turn back! What does God think of these quitters?

If we wilfully, deliberately sin against God, we will never receive forgiveness (Heb. 10:25-31).

“Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man DRAW BACK, my soul shall have no pleasure in him” (Heb. 10:38).

Yes, some are not willing to really fight, to endure, to labour, struggle and strive in order to make it into the Kingdom of God. Christ showed that we must really strain if we wish to make it into His Kingdom.

“STRIVE [struggle and strain] to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able” (Luke 13:24).

Furthermore, Christ revealed that it is only those who are so fervent in their desire to make it into God’s Kingdom that they are willing to be “violent” with themselves — who actually make it (Mat. 11:12),

Trouble Is Certain, But…

The truth of the matter is that we are going to have trials and tribulations — whether we obey God or not. Job declared:

“Man is born unto TROUBLE, as the sparks fly upward’ (Job 5:7).

Yes, we will have troubles whether or not we obey God. But if we obey Him, He will give us the needed wisdom and strength to overcome all our trials and temptations (I Cor. 10:13).

Hardships, trials and persecutions are certain to befall all who live an upright, godly life. But these tribulations are all designed by a loving Creator to teach us to go to God daily — completely trusting in Him for our every need, including deliverance from all our sore trials.

God declares:

“If thou faint in the day of adversity [hardship], thy strength is small” (Prov. 24:10).

An all wise, loving Creator God has deliberately designed life in such a way as to include many trials and afflictions. The Almighty even goes out of His way to rebuke and chasten us — in love — so as to keep us on the straight and narrow path.

Knowing this, should we not earnestly desire God’s correction? You need to learn to desire — and even PRAY daily for chastisement from the hand of God!

“Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty” (Job 5:17).

Don’t ever forget that God corrects us for our good — because He loves us and longs to share with us the eternal inheritance of co-ownership and co-rulership of the whole Universe.

Can you now clearly see how trials, temptations, pressures and hardships have been put here as a blessing in disguise? These tribulations assist us in building the kind of perfect, godly character that we need to possess throughout all eternity.

Thank God for the blessing of these trials! It is through them that we develop godly character!

A minister who was assigned to three areas in which I lived used to teach that a diamond is a dirty hunk of coal that only developed because of pressure.

Notice also the following:

11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. (Hebrews 12:11)

Enduring trials, frustrations, and difficulties is not easy–but we need to do so in order to be the best that we can be in the coming Kingdom of God.

Some additional items of possibly related interest may include the following:

The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN: Why Did God Create Anything? Why Did God Make You? This free online book helps answers some of the biggest questions that human have, including the biblical meaning of life, and why there is suffering. Here is a link to three related sermons: Mysteries of God’s Plan, Mysteries of Truth, Sin, Rest, Suffering, and God’s Plan, Mystery of Race, and The Mystery of YOU.
Why Does Man Suffer? Herbert Armstrong gives biblical reasons on this topic. I also wrote and added a section titled Suffering Has a Future Purpose.
Why Does God Allow Suffering? This is a pdf booklet put out by the old Worldwide Church of God that also answers questions about why God allows war as well as babies to die. Here is a link to a sermon titled Why YOU? Why Do YOU Suffer?
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to four related sermons:  The Fantastic Gospel of the Kingdom of God!, The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.

{Public Domain Pictures)

COGwriter

Tomorrow, there is a new mandate in the State of California to require indoor masks throughout the entire state (https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/coronavirus/california-announces-mandatory-indoor-mask-mandate-despite-vaccination-status/2815877/).

Officials claim this will help.

In the UK, there are debates about another set of restrictions:

14 December 2021

Boris Johnson is facing his biggest backbench rebellion since he became prime minister when MPs vote on new Covid rules for England later.

Around 70 Tories are expected to vote against the introduction of mandatory Covid passes to enter large venues like nightclubs.

Ministers are concerned about rising cases of the Omicron variant. …

The Covid pass scheme, which would come into force on Wednesday, is still likely to pass despite the Tory rebellion, as Labour plans to support it.

In a series of votes in the House of Commons on Tuesday afternoon, MPs will also vote on:

• A new regulation making it compulsory to wear a face covering in most indoor settings, except for pubs and restaurants
• A measure allowing fully-vaccinated people who have been exposed to a positive Covid case to avoid self-isolation if they take daily lateral flow tests, and receive a negative result
• Making it compulsory for frontline NHS and social care staff to be fully vaccinated from April 2022

Mr Raab said the measures, as well as increasing rates of vaccination, meant “people can feel reassured they can enjoy their Christmas with loved ones”. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-59640792

Have masks, lockdowns, and vaccines eliminated COVID?

No.

There have been more deaths in the USA attributed to COVID in 2021 than 2020, despite the vaccines and various other governmental measures:

Nov. 22, 2021 — The number of COVID-19 deaths recorded so far in 2021 has surpassed the total for 2020, according to the latest data from Johns Hopkins University. https://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20211122/us-covid-deaths-2021-surpass-2020-total

As far as the effectiveness of many government mandates and pressures go, notice the following:

More than 400 studies expose failure of COVID-19 measures

A former adviser to the World Health Organization and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has compiled a list of more than 400 studies showing that COVID-19 lockdowns, shelter-in-place policies, school closures, masks and mask mandates have failed to curb virus transmission or reduce deaths.

“These restrictive policies were ineffective and devastating failures, causing immense harm especially to the poorer and vulnerable within societies,” wrote Dr. Paul Alexander for the Brownstone Institute in an article in which he lists the studies.

Alexander said that while nearly all governments have attempted compulsory measures to control the virus, the research shows that no government can claim they have had a “discernible impact” on “virus trajectories.”

A study published in January 2021, for example, reported “in the framework of this analysis, there is no evidence that more restrictive nonpharmaceutical interventions (‘lockdowns’) contributed substantially to bending the curve of new cases in England, France, Germany, Iran, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, or the United States in early 2020.”

“We’ve known this for a very long time now,” Alexander said, “but governments continue to double down, causing misery upon people with ramifications that will likely take decades or more to repair.”

Some of the harms, he said, include “the undiagnosed illness that will result in excess mortality in years to come, depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation in our young people, drug overdoses and suicides due to the lockdown policies, the crushing isolation due to the lockdowns, psychological harms, domestic and child abuse, sexual abuse of children, loss of jobs and businesses and the devastating impact, and the massive numbers of deaths resulting from the lockdowns that will impact heavily on women and minorities.”

Currently, Alexander noted, there are calls for new lockdowns in response to the omicron variant, despite indications it will likely be infectious but not more lethal.

But it has always been clear, he said, that “we could never eradicate this mutable virus (that has an animal reservoir) with lockdowns and that it would likely become endemic like other circulating common cold coronaviruses.” 12/13/21 https://www.wnd.com/2021/12/400-studies-show-failure-covid-19-measures/

It isn’t that nothing should have been done.

Specifically, some isolation of the more vulnerable, telling people to take steps to strengthen their immune system, and reminding people they have responsibility to improve their own health would have had benefits.

The Bible teaches:

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

2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
And let your soul delight itself in abundance.
3 Incline your ear, and come to Me.
Hear, and your soul shall live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant with you —  (Isaiah 55:2-3)

For teaching things like the above, YouTube retroactively censored one of our videos this Fall (see post YouTube censors: COVID-19: Eat what is good!).

Anyway, the increased COVID-attributed deaths in 2021 along with the 400 studies article brought to mind the following passage from the Bible:

11 … O virgin, the daughter of Egypt;
In vain you will use many medicines;
You shall not be cured.  (Jeremiah 46:11)

It is worse than than not being cured.

The lockdowns have caused economic problems, food shortages, hurt children, and increased mental health issues (see ‘UN Report Shows Lockdowns Created A Massive World Hunger Crisis’ ‘Five Times More Children Committed Suicide Than Died Of COVID-19 During Lockdown: UK Study’).

On those last points, notice the following:

Study: Recent Tyranny Linked To 23% Decline In Children’s Cognitive Abilities

December 14, 2021

New research out of Brown University has found that keeping children masked and locked up at home away from their friends has resulted in a 23 percent decline in their cognitive abilities. These and other Wuhan coronavirus (Covid-19) restrictions have been so destructive to children’s health that many of them are no longer able to communicate, either verbally or non-verbally.

For their research, Brown scientists analyzed 1,070 assessments given to 605 children in March 2020 when the lockdowns and mask mandates first began. Between March 2020 and July 2021, another 154 assessments were made from 118 children. https://humansarefree.com/2021/12/study-recent-tyranny-linked-to-23-decline-in-childrens-cognitive-abilities.html

Global rise in childhood mental health issues amid pandemic

March 12, 2021

PARIS (AP) — By the time his parents rushed him to the hospital, 11-year-old Pablo was barely eating and had stopped drinking entirely. Weakened by months of self-privation, his heart had slowed to a crawl and his kidneys were faltering. Medics injected him with fluids and fed him through a tube — first steps toward stitching together yet another child coming apart amid the tumult of the coronavirus crisis.

For doctors who treat them, the pandemic’s impact on the mental health of children is increasingly alarming. The Paris pediatric hospital caring for Pablo has seen a doubling in the number of children and young teenagers requiring treatment after attempted suicides since September.

Doctors elsewhere report similar surges, with children — some as young as 8 — deliberately running into traffic, overdosing on pills and otherwise self-harming. In Japan, child and adolescent suicides hit record levels in 2020, according to the Education Ministry.

Pediatric psychiatrists say they’re also seeing children with coronavirus-related phobias, tics and eating disorders, obsessing about infection, scrubbing their hands raw, covering their bodies with disinfectant gel and terrified of getting sick from food.

Also increasingly common, doctors say, are children suffering panic attacks, heart palpitations and other symptoms of mental anguish, as well as chronic addictions to mobile devices and computer screens that have become their sitters, teachers and entertainers during lockdowns, curfews and school closures. …

Pablo’s father, Jerome, is still trying to understand why his son gradually fell sick with a chronic eating disorder as the pandemic took hold, slowly starving himself until the only foods he would eat were small quantities of rice, tuna and cherry tomatoes.

Jerome suspects that disruptions last year to Pablo’s routines may have contributed to his illness. Because France was locked down, the boy had no in-school classes for months and couldn’t say goodbye to his friends and teacher at the end of the school year.

“It was very tough,” Jerome said. “This is a generation that has taken a beating.” https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-mental-health-epidemics-coronavirus-pandemic-paris-8392ceff77ac8e1e0f90a32214e7def1

Here are some other reports:

We Are Not Safer At Home

At the start of the pandemic last year, Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti chose “safer at home” as the motto for his lockdown policies. If the past year has shown us anything, it’s how misguided that notion is. Lockdowns have created not just economic devastation for America’s small businesses, restaurants, museums, and zoos. They have also taken a significant toll on the mental and physical health of everyone from small children to the elderly (while doing little to contain the virus itself). …

Adults are suffering, too. A report from the CDC, based on a survey conducted in June, found that “Suicidal ideation was . . . elevated; approximately twice as many respondents reported serious consideration of suicide in the previous 30 days than did adults in the United States in 2018, referring to the previous 12 months (10.7 percent versus 4.3 percent).” …

From the spike in drug overdoses to deaths resulting from a lack of preventive medical care, it’s clear that long-term lockdowns are having serious, often fatal effects on Americans of all ages. If states are supposed to be laboratories of democracy, the results of the past year’s experiments are in. We are not safer at home. 02/23/21 https://www.city-journal.org/lockdowns-impact-on-mental-and-physical-health

More than 42% of people surveyed by the US Census Bureau in December reported symptoms of anxiety or depression in December, an increase from 11% the previous year. Data from other surveys suggest that the picture is similar worldwide (see ‘COVID’s mental stress’). “I don’t think this is going to go back to baseline anytime soon,” says clinical psychologist Luana Marques, at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, who is monitoring the mental-health impacts of the crisis in US populations and elsewhere. … The pandemic’s toll on physical and mental health has also been severe, no doubt related to these economic losses but also caused by the severe isolation people experience under lockdown. …

Fear and isolation

The distress in the pandemic probably stems from people’s limited social interactions, tensions among families in lockdown together and fear of illness, says psychiatrist Marcella Rietschel at the Central Institute for Mental Health in Mannheim, Germany.

Studies and surveys conducted so far in the pandemic consistently show that young people, rather than older people, are most vulnerable to increased psychological distress, perhaps because their need for social interactions are stronger. Data also suggest that young women are more vulnerable than young men, and people with young children, or a previously diagnosed psychiatric disorder, are at particularly high risk for mental-health problems. 02/03/21 https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00175-z

Yes, pushing fear has a cost.

Was it worth it?

No it was not according to reports such as the following from Standford University:

COVID Lockdowns May Have No Clear Benefit vs Other Voluntary Measures, International Study Shows

January 14, 2021

A study evaluating COVID-19 responses around the world found that mandatory lockdown orders early in the pandemic may not provide significantly more benefits to slowing the spread of the disease than other voluntary measures, such as social distancing or travel reduction.

The peer reviewed study was published in the European Journal of Clinical Investigation on January 5, and analyzed coronavirus case growth in 10 countries in early 2020.

The study compared cases in England, France, Germany, Iran, Italy, Netherlands, Spain and the U.S. – all countries that implemented mandatory lockdown orders and business closures – to South Korea and Sweden, which instituted less severe, voluntary responses. It aimed to analyze the effect that less restrictive or more restrictive measures had on changing individual behavior and curbing the transmission of the virus.

The researchers used a mathematical model to compare countries that did and did not enact more restrictive lockdown orders, and determined that there was “no clear, significant beneficial effect of [more restrictive measures] on case growth in any country.” https://www.newsweek.com/covid-lockdowns-have-no-clear-benefit-vs-other-voluntary-measures-international-study-shows-1561656

The USA and many other nations overly hurt their economies and the mental health of their people with unnecessary and often useless lockdowns.

Many “authorities” pushed fear.

While USA government officials have been promoting fear and often hypocrisy, understand that Christians do not need to fear.

In these stressful times of political immorality, censorship, and COVID-19 restrictions, remember that Jesus taught:

Yes, many of us are facing various tribulations, but as Christians we need to “be of good cheer.”

Related to dealing with fear, the Continuing Church of God put out the following sermon on its ContinuingCOG channel about a month after the start of the lockdowns:

1:22:34

Ten Plus Steps to Rid Yourself of Fear

Billions of people are afraid for many reasons, including COVID-19. Are any fears good? Are there mindless fears and phobias? Can autosuggestion be deceptive? Can you deal with mental torment? What are some causes of bad dreams (nightmares)? Does Satan try to exploit fears through his lies? Can the weak become strong? Were Christ’s disciples ever fearful? Are there biblical ways to deal with fear? What about spiritual fear and the ‘fear of God’? The late evangelists Dr. Herman Hoeh had an article published in 1955 titled ‘How to Conquer Your Fears?’ What are eight steps from the Apostle Peter? What did Jesus teach about worry? Are most Christians Philadelphian? What did Jesus teach about fear? What is the ultimate biblical fate for cowards? Here a the list of ten steps to help rid yourself of fear: 1. “Whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these things” (Philippians 4:8). Changing your mental focus will help you push out fear. 2. Develop faith. “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). 3. Add virtue to your faith in the power of God. You cannot hide your sins from God (cf. Psalm 90:8). 4. Add to virtue knowledge. Study the word of God, study CCOG literature, pay attention to sermons (ContinuingCOG YouTube sermon channel) and sermonettes (BibleNewsProphecy YouTube sermonette channel). 5. Add self-control to knowledge. Resist Satan and his hopes that you will walk by sight instead of faith. 6. Add patience to self-control. You may have to go through many tests and trials to build patience, but as you get through the tests and trials you should have the faith to recognize that God got you through them and that you do not need to fear. 7. Add godliness to patience. 8. Add to patience, brotherly kindness. “Let Philadelphia continue” (Hebrews 13:1). 9. Add to brotherly kindness, love. 10. Be courageous. “He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). This is how YOU can conquer your fears and worries! Ask God for help to carry out His ten-fold plan to attain real peace of mind. Then there is also prayer and fasting. Yes, through God’s help you can rid yourself of fear. This sermon by Dr. Thiel covers these topics and more.

Here is a link to the sermon: Ten Plus Steps to Rid Yourself of Fear.

If all the government rules and big tech involvement were actually about improving health, they would not have interfered with publishing research and commentary from scientists who do not agree with governments or Big Tech.

Misreporting, use of fear, totalitarianism, and censorship will be factors in the rise of the totalitarian leader that the Bible calls the Beast.

We have been experiencing a trial-run of what is coming.

Related to some of that, the Continuing Church of God is put out the following sermon on our ContinuingCOG channel:

1:16:57

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

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

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Christian Repentance Do you know what repentance is? Is it really necessary for salvation? Two related sermons about this are also available: Real Repentance and Real Christian Repentance.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?
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? Marque aquí para ver el pdf folleto: Fe para aquellos que Dios ha llamado y escogido. In German: Glaube für die von Gott Berufenen und Auserwählten. In French: La Foi pour ceux que Dieu a Appelés et Choisis. Here is a link to a related sermon titled: Faith for the Called and Chosen.and here is a link to another sermon Faith and Courage. Here is a link to shorter version of the written article in Mandarin Chinese 一篇关于信仰的小文章.
Prayer: What Does the Bible Teach? This free booklet contains 28 biblically-based tips on improving the effectiveness of your prayers. This is a pdf. A related two part sermon is available: What Does the Bible Teach About Prayer? and What does the Bible Teach About Prayer (& Healing)?
What Should I Pray About? An old article by Lynn Torrance on prayer. Here is a link to it in Mandarin Chinese 我应该祷告什么？
Importance of Fasting An old article by Herbert W. Armstrong on this subject. Here is a link to it in Mandarin Chinese 禁食的重要性.
The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN: Why Did God Create Anything? Why did God make you? This free online book helps answers some of the biggest questions that human have, including the biblical meaning of life. Here is a link to three related sermons: Mysteries of God’s Plan, Mysteries of Truth, Sin, Rest, Suffering, and God’s Plan, and The Mystery of YOU.
Why Were You Born? Why did God make you? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject. You may also wish to read the article What is Your Destiny? or watch the video, also titled What is Your Destiny?
Building Character: Going on to Perfection Once you have accepted Jesus, do you need to strive for perfection and build character? A related video sermon is available: Going on to perfection and building character.
What is the Meaning of Life? Who does God say is happy? What is your ultimate destiny? Do you really know? Does God actually have a plan for YOU personally? If you would like to watch videos covering subjects of this article, you can click on the following links: Why YOU? Why Do YOU Suffer? and What is the meaning of your life?
Biblical Keys to Happiness This is an article for those interested in biblical teachings about being happy. A related sermon is available and is titled: 14 Biblical Keys to Happiness.
Elementary Doctrines of the Church: Hebrews 6 Seven doctrines are mentioned and discussed. A related sermon is also available titled: Basic Doctrines of Hebrew 6.
Just What Do You Mean — Repentance? Do you know what repentance is? Have you truly repented? Repented of what? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject.
When You Sin: Do You Really Repent? This is an article by Charles F. Hunting. A related sermon is Confess to God and truly repent.
Do Christians Sin? This is an article by Herbert W. Armstrong.
Overcoming Sin What is sin? How are Christians suppose to overcome it? Here is a link to a version in Mandarin Chinese: QKg f/‘͉v„. Here is a link to a version in Spanish: Vencer al pecado. Here is also a link to a video in English titled How YOU Can Overcome Sin.
How to Prevent Sin This is an article by Herbert W. Armstrong. Here is a version in Mandarin: Y‚OUN r¯j
The Two Trees: Only Two Ways of Life This is from a two-part radio broadcast from Herbert W. Armstrong. Here is a video on: Cause and Effect: Two Trees, Two Ways.
Real Conversion Many think that they are converted Christians. But are they? Would you like to know more about conversion?
False Conversion! Have you really been converted? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote an article on this important subject–but more scriptures have been added to it. How can you tell false conversion? A related video is also available: False Conversion.
All About Water Baptism What is baptism? Would you like to know more about it. Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject. As far as early history, see also Baptism, the Early Church, and the Continuing Church.
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?