Who Was Jesus?

From http://el-paso.ucg.org/  or call 1-888-886-8632.

Who Was Jesus?


While Jesus was human in the fullest sense, He was also more than simply human—for He was, in fact, the divine Son of God with all that name implies. Indeed, as we have seen, He was the Creator God made flesh. And when His human life was over, He returned to the divine glory He shared with the Father from eternity past.



"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.



See All...).



Except perhaps for the book of Hebrews, the Gospel of John gives the most complete explanation in the New Testament about the divinity of Jesus Christ. As previously noted, verses 1-3 and 14 of John 1 clearly explain that the Word was God and dwelt with the Father until He later became the Messiah or Christ, meaning "Anointed One."



As British scholar F.F. Bruce commented regarding Jesus: "The New Testament indicates that he existed before he lived on earth as a historical character. We are thus encouraged to ask not only, 'What was the mode of this earlier existence of his?' ... but also, 'What is he said to have done in that earlier existence?'" ( Jesus Past, Present and Future: The Work of Christ, 1979, pp. 11-12).



As The New Bible Commentary: Revised explains about the opening passage of John's Gospel: "In the prologue the pre-existence and deity of Christ are expressed explicitly. The Logos [the Greek term rendered 'Word' here] was not only with God in the beginning, but was God (1:1), and it was this Logos who became flesh and is identified with Christ" (p. 928).



Several other passages in John's Gospel reveal significant details that help us understand even more fully. Consider an account later in chapter 1: "The next day John [the Baptist] saw Jesus coming toward Him, and said, 'Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, "After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me"'" (verses 29-30; compare verse 15).



John the Baptist was born before Jesus (Luke 1:35-36 [35] And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

[36] And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.





See All..., 57-60) and began his ministry before Christ began His. Yet John still said of Jesus, "He was before me." Why? Considering the whole of John 1, the reason must be that Jesus was the preexistent Word prior to His human birth (John 1:14And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.



See All...).



His existence before Abraham

In dealing with accusations from the Pharisees in John 8, Jesus said to them, "Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true, for I know where I came from [beside the Father in heaven] and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from and where I am going" (verse 14).



Later the apostle Paul commented on their lack of understanding: "The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, or understand the words of the prophets which are read sabbath by sabbath; indeed, they fulfilled them by condemning him" (Acts 13:27For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him.



See All..., REB).



Just as in the first century, relatively few people today truly comprehend who Jesus was, where He came from, what He is doing and what He will yet do.



Later in John 8, the Jews gathered about Jesus asked Him, "Who do You make Yourself out to be?" (verse 53). They simply had no idea of the real identity of the One with whom they were speaking. It is the same today. Few people really understand the true origins of Jesus Christ.



He patiently explained, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad" (verse 56). But how was this possible? The patriarch Abraham lived around 2,000 years before Jesus' birth. So those who heard Him challenged, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?" (verse 57). To this question Jesus gave a stunning response: "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM" (verse 58).



We should pause for a moment to digest what Jesus said.



He was declaring that His existence preceded that of Abraham. Moreover, the phrase "I AM" was a well-known title of divinity to the Jews. This goes back to Moses' first encounter with God at the burning bush.



A crucial encounter with Moses

Moses was concerned about how the Israelites would receive him and the commission God gave him, so he asked God, "Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they say to me, 'What is His name? What shall I say to them?'" (Exodus 3:13And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?



See All...).



Observe the Creator's reply: "And God said to Moses, 'I AM WHO I AM.' And He said, 'Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you'" (Exodus 3:14And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.



See All...).



Note also the next verse: "Moreover God said to Moses, 'Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: "The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations" (verse 15).



As is common throughout most English translations of the Old Testament, the word "Lord" here with capital letters is substituted for the Hebrew consonants Y-H-W-H (commonly known as the Tetragrammaton, meaning four letters). No one today knows for certain how to pronounce this name, but the most common pronunciation now is Yahweh. (A common, though errant, earlier rendering was Jehovah .)



The name YHWH is similar in meaning to "I AM" (Hebrew EHYH or Eheyeh ). Both imply eternal, self-inherent existence (compare John 5:26For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;



See All...). No one created God. We should understand that He has many names in Scripture, each of which tells us something about His wonderful, divine nature and character.



Given this background, therefore, when Jesus said in John 8:58Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.



See All... that He preceded Abraham and referred to Himself with continuous existence using the term "I AM," there really should be no doubt as to just what He meant. The Jews well knew what He meant, which is why they immediately tried to stone Him to death (verse 59). Jesus was saying that He was the very God of Israel.



Who was the God of the Old Testament?

The fact is, Jesus Christ is the "I AM"of the Bible. He was the guiding Rock who was with the children of Israel in the wilderness when they left Egypt (see Deuteronomy 32:4He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.



See All...). Paul wrote: "Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed [accompanied] them, and that Rock was Christ" (1 Corinthians 10:1-4 [1] Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;

[2] And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;

[3] And did all eat the same spiritual meat;

[4] And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.





See All...).



The "I AM"of the Old Testament is further described as abounding in "goodness and truth" (Exodus 34:6And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,



See All...). Similarly, the New Testament tells us that Jesus was "full of grace and truth" (John 1:14And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.



See All...). Jesus Christ is "the same yesterday, today, and forever" (Hebrews 13:8Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.



See All...).



There are, it should be noted, places in the Old Testament where YHWH clearly refers to God the Father. For instance, in Psalm 110:1(A Psalm of David.) The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.



See All..., which we've noted earlier, King David stated, "The Lord [ YHWH ] said to My Lord . . ." YHWH here is the Father speaking to David's Lord, the One who became Jesus Christ. Often, however, the name YHWH refers to the One who became Christ—and sometimes it refers to both the Father and Christ together, just as the name God often does.



Consider that except for Jesus, no human being has ever seen the Father (John 1:18No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.



See All...; 5:37; 6:46; 1 John 4:12No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.



See All...). Yet Abraham, Jacob, Moses and others all saw God (Genesis 18; 32:30; Exodus 24:9-11 [9] Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:

[10] And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.

[11] And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.





See All...; 33:17-23). So the YHWH, the "I AM," the Word, who later became Jesus Christ, was the One they saw. It was He who dealt directly with human beings as God in Old Testament times. Christ later died for our sins and became the ultimate mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;



See All...), a role He had already partially fulfilled as the preexistent Word before His human birth.



So the Word was indeed the God of the Old Testament—and yet the Father fulfilled this role in a very real sense as well. For Jesus dealt with mankind on the Father's behalf as His Spokesman (compare John 8:28Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.



See All...; 12:49-50). Moreover, in many passages in the Old Testament it can be difficult to separate these two great personages, whereas the New Testament is usually clear in this respect.



Of course, since Jesus came to reveal the Father (Matthew 11:27All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.



See All...), the logical conclusion is that the Father was not generally known by those in Old Testament times except for a few of the Hebrew patriarchs and prophets. King David, for example, is one who understood.



Partially quoted earlier, Hebrews 1:1-2 [1] God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

[2] Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;





See All... states: "God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds."



In this opening passage of the book of Hebrews the clear implication is that the Father is the moving force behind the whole Old Testament. In context, verse 2 interprets verse 1. Though God the Father is the prime mover behind the Hebrew Bible, it is through Jesus Christ that He created the entire universe.



Also, the vital principle of the Bible interpreting the Bible helps us to understand the intent of Hebrews 1:1God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,



See All... in the light of other scriptures. Since God made the worlds through Christ and created all things by Him (Ephesians 3:9And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:



See All...; Colossians 1:16For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:



See All...; John 1:3All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.



See All...), He dealt with man through the agency of the preexistent Word, Christ.



Jesus—both God and man

Jesus Christ today is the mediator between God the Father and man. But to perfectly fulfill that crucial role He had to have been both God and man. He was truly a man in every sense of that word or we have no salvation from our sins. The apostle Paul calls Him "the Man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;



See All...), as does the apostle Peter (Acts 2:22Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:



See All...).



Paul tells us, in a verse quoted earlier from a different translation, that we should have the same humble, serving attitude of Jesus Christ, "who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped [i.e., held onto], but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross" (Philippians 2:6-8, New American Standard Bible).



Jesus' manhood was full and complete in the sense that He lived a life as a physical human being that ended in death. He became hungry and ate, grew tired and rested, and walked and talked just like any other human being. There was nothing in His physical appearance to distinguish Him from other Jewish men



of His time (Isaiah 53:2For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.



See All...).



The essential difference was in the realm of the spiritual. Jesus continually received needed spiritual power from the Father (compare John 5:30I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.



See All...; 14:10). In fact, He possessed God's Spirit from conception, actually being begotten in Mary's womb through the Holy Spirit. Although tempted like every one of us, Jesus never transgressed God's law. He never once sinned (Hebrews 4:15For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.



See All...; 1 Peter 2:22Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:



See All...).



One of the most insidious heresies in the 2,000-year history of Christendom is that Jesus Christ was not really a man—that He was not really tempted to sin. The apostle John condemned this teaching in the strongest terms (1 John 4:3And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.



See All...; 2 John 7).



This heresy began in the first century and it persists even today, continuing to lead people away from the truth of God. We need to recognize that if Jesus had not really been human, then His sacrifice for our sins would be null and void.



The Son of Man and the Son of God

Jesus Christ is called "the Son of Man" more than 80 times in the New Testament. It was the term He most commonly used in referring to Himself.



Christ repeatedly referred to Himself as the Son of Man in connection with His sufferings and sacrificial death for the sins of mankind (Matthew 17:22And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men:



See All...; 26:45; Mark 9:31For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day.



See All...; 14:41). Although of divine origin, He deliberately identified with our human plight—the sorrows and sufferings of the human race. The prophet Isaiah foresaw Him as "a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief" (Isaiah 53:3He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.



See All...).



Sympathizing with our human frailties and difficulties, Jesus tells us: "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light" (Matthew 11:28-30 [28] Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

[29] Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

[30] For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.





See All...).



He also called Himself the Son of Man when referring to His role as the coming Ruler of humanity in the Kingdom of God (Matthew 19:28And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.



See All...). He even used it when He described Himself as "the Lord of the Sabbath," explaining how the seventh-day Sabbath should be observed with mercy and compassion (Mark 2:27-28 [27] And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:

[28] Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.





See All...; Matthew 12:8For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day.



See All...; Luke 6:5And he said unto them, That the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.



See All...).



Then, when He came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asked His disciples, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?" (Matthew 16:13When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?



See All...). They replied by recounting several commonly held but erroneous beliefs about Jesus' identity. Simon Peter responded by saying, "You are the Christ [the Messiah], the Son of the living God" (verse 16). Jesus observed that the Father Himself had revealed this wonderful truth to Peter (verse 17). And all of His apostles came to recognize the same truth, which is reiterated elsewhere in the New Testament (Matthew 14:33Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.



See All...; John 20:31But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.



See All...; Romans 1:3-4 [3] Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;

[3] Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;

[4] And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:

[4] And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:





See All...).



Indeed, while Jesus was human in the fullest sense, He was also more than simply human—for He was, in fact, the divine Son of God with all that name implies. Indeed, as we have seen, He was the Creator God made flesh. And when His human life was over, He returned to the divine glory He shared with the Father from eternity past. (To learn much more about who Jesus was and the events of His life, death and resurrection, be sure to read our free booklet Jesus Christ: The Real Story .)

India: A Nation on the Rise

From http://el-paso.ucg.org/  or call 1-888-886-8632.

India: A Nation on the Rise






article by Melvin Rhodes





The former "jewel in the crown" of the British Empire, India is one of Asia's great economic success stories. With economic might comes military might. What lies ahead for this country of over a billion people, other nations in the region and the larger world scene?







Source: stock.xchng/asifthebesWe were being shown around the Red Fort in Agra, India. Our tour guide was an elderly man who had spent his whole life in India. As our tour began he asked where we were from, and I said, "America." Towards the end of the tour of the old Mughal fort, I saw a raised burial site in the middle of the fort complex and asked who was buried there. "An Englishman," he said. I responded by telling him that I was originally from England.



He then brightened up and said, "Before, when you said you were from America, I liked you. But now I love you." He put his arms around me and gave me a big hug.



He then explained, telling us that his father and his grandfather both served in the British military prior to independence from Great Britain in August 1947. "They had great respect for the British," he said. He added, "Now we are suffering." I asked him in what way. He said that it was too costly to live with all the corruption, a problem that did not exist in colonial times.



It was an interesting conversation on one of the biggest problems India faces today—corruption.



But it was also a reminder that India played a major role in the British Empire for two centuries, when a third of the British military was made up of native Indian troops. In World War II, two million Indians volunteered to fight for Britain, the biggest volunteer army in the history of the world.



Once again, India is becoming a significant military force, with a powerful role in South Asia and the Indian Ocean. "In fact," as author Robert Kaplan writes in a recent book titled Monsoon: The Indian Ocean and the Future of American Power, "India hopes a nexus of east-west roads and energy pipelines will ultimately give it soft power dominance over the former territorial India of the (British) Raj, which encompassed Pakistan, Bangladesh and Burma" (2010, p. 13).



The power balance is shifting—in the region and in the world at large. India and neighboring Asian nations are on the rise while American influence in the region and around the globe weakens. What will these developments eventually lead to?



Corruption and sectarian conflict

Besides the history and the news of systemic corruption, I learned a great deal more from our guide in India.



He told us that he was a Sikh by religion. As he was bareheaded, I expressed surprise since Sikh men normally wear turbans. He explained that he had to remove his turban and shave his head in 1984 following the assassination of Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by two Sikh bodyguards.



Following her cremation three days after she was repeatedly shot by the two men, millions of Sikhs were displaced and 3,000 killed in extensive rioting. As Mrs. Gandhi's son Rajiv put it, "When a big tree falls, the earth shakes." Our guide chose to remove his turban so as not to be conspicuous, in an effort to stay alive and take care of his family.



Rajiv himself was assassinated less than seven years later by Tamil nationalists angry at India's involvement in neighboring Sri Lanka's civil war, where Tamil nationalists were fighting for independence from predominantly Buddhist Sri Lanka.



These sectarian conflicts go back centuries. At independence, British India was divided between predominantly Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan (the latter subdivided into East and West, separated by nearly 1,000 miles). Less than a quarter century later, East Pakistan broke away from West Pakistan and became Bangladesh.



Yet India itself, though mostly Hindu, still has many Muslims—in fact, the second- largest Muslim population in the world at about 160 million. In addition, there are sizable numbers of Sikhs and Christians. Christians are less than 3 percent of the population, but that still works out to several tens of millions of people.



While corruption and sectarianism remain serious challenges for all governments in India, the country can point to many positive accomplishments.



A vibrant, thriving nation

Visiting the country for the first time, I was struck by its vitality. Whereas America's streets are largely empty of pedestrian traffic, India's are teeming with thousands and thousands of people, as far as the eye can see.



They are all moving, anxious to make money in whatever business pursuit they are involved in. All this energy has contributed to making India one of the fastest-growing economies in the world.



Service is second to none. Those employed in the hotel industry could not do enough to make our stay more comfortable. We were greatly impressed.



Another accomplishment is the fact that India remains a democracy 65 years after independence. Neighboring countries have had periods of military rule when their constitutions were suspended or rewritten, but India has remained the world's biggest democracy, now with well over a billion people.



Along with a functioning democratic system, India has a thriving free press. I looked forward to reading The Times of India and other papers each morning. Journalists are certainly not afraid to criticize their leaders.



While we were there the papers (and government leaders) were not afraid to criticize the United States after President Obama called on India to open its economy more to U.S. investment. They did not appreciate a lecture from Washington, capital of a country that appears to be in rapid economic decline while India is growing.



Indian television news spent some time focused on the fact that the country's growth rate has recently dropped to 7.6 percent, a cause of great national concern. The U.S. growth rate is roughly a quarter of that, while Great Britain is in negative growth. The eurozone is in an even bigger mess.



It's difficult to understand why Western nations still give aid to India when India is clearly doing better than they are. Britain, for example, gives more aid to India than to any other nation.



Waning respect for the declining West

Not only are Western economies in decline, but respect in Asia for the former European colonial powers and the United States is also in decline, as Western values have dramatically liberalized. People often commented on our Western television shows and movies and the degenerate values portrayed on both.



There was also consternation in both India and Sri Lanka over the British prime minister's speech at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth, Australia, in October 2011. David Cameron urged former British colonies to liberalize their laws on homosexuality and same-sex marriage, laws originally given to them by the British! The Bible says that "righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people" (Proverbs 14:34Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.



See All...).



In a number of conversations, people remarked on the breakdown of the family in the West. The comment was made that no Indian man would ever walk out on his family. The divorce rate there is 1.1 percent compared to the United States and United Kingdom, where about half of all marriages end in divorce.



Interestingly, the high Western divorce rate was blamed on "love marriages," where everyone chooses their own mate. Indian marriages are more successful, it was said, because most are "arranged marriages," determined by parents. Although choosing your partner has become more common in modern India, the cultural values and negative stigma on divorce also play vital roles in the low divorce rate.



What is clear is that "intact" families do not become a burden on the state. The breakdown of the traditional family is a major contributing factor in rising government spending in Western countries.



This, in turn, contributes to a decline in military power. As a recent article in The Wall Street Journal showed, the choice is increasingly between food stamps—to alleviate poverty, mostly caused by family breakdown—and national defense (Mackenzie Eaglen, "Defense vs. Food Stamps—What Would You Choose?" Aug. 7, 2012). The United States is no longer able to afford both.



The new superpowers of Asia

America's economic decline must inevitably lead to military decline. At the same time, India's economic rise must lead to a greater military role in the region. The same applies to China. These two countries are the new superpowers of Asia.



Bible prophecy shows the rise of a major military bloc east of the Holy Land able to put together a 200-million-man army immediately prior to Christ's return (Revelation 9:16And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them.



See All...). This military force emerges onto the world scene east of the River Euphrates, the eastern border of the Roman Empire 2,000 years ago.



This prophecy doesn't specify whether this is the military forces of just one nation or an alliance of nations. But a later phase of end-time conflict will involve a group of Eastern powers—the Euphrates River being dried up "so that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared" (Revelation 16:12And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.



See All..., emphasis added).



In any case, such a force is only possible with considerable wealth.



India, China and other smaller Asian nations are benefiting from open markets in the West, an opportunity for them to sell their finished products cheaply to Americans and Europeans. They're even lending to Western nations the money to purchase these goods from them!



It could be said that the interest payments the Asian countries receive from Western nations, particularly the United States, are enabling them to build up their military might.



It never seems to occur to anybody in the West that they might be trying to do exactly what America did to the Soviet Union. Under President Ronald Reagan the United States built up its military, forcing the Soviets to try to keep up, thereby leading them into national bankruptcy. Could the same thing happen to the United States as it tries to maintain its lead over China and other emerging powers? Of course it could!



"Although China's expanded regional interaction and influence is a natural reflection of China's growing economic strength and attendant political and military influence, a rising China poses a challenge to U.S. interests" ("Washington's Long Turn East," Stratfor Global Intelligence, Aug. 31, 2012).



American preeminence in jeopardy—as Britain's before it

Returning to Bible prophecy, it's important to understand that the United States and Britain are descendants of the biblical patriarch Joseph, one of the 12 sons of Jacob, later renamed Israel. Joseph's two sons were prophesied to become a great nation and a multitude of nations (Genesis 48:18And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head.



See All...)—fulfilled in the United States and the former British Empire and Commonwealth (see our free Bible study aid The United States and Britain in Bible Prophecy to learn more).



In Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28, the descendants of Israel were promised tremendous blessings for obeying the laws of God and were warned of great negative consequences for disobedience.



In Deuteronomy 28:43-44 [43] The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high; and thou shalt come down very low.

[44] He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail.





See All... God warned, referring to gentiles or non-Israelites: "The alien who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower. He shall lend to you, but you shall not lend to him; he shall be the head, and you shall be the tail." What this means for the times ahead is that the nations that America and Britain are indebted to will call the shots. They will soon be dictating to us—and it's all because of our national sins, our progressively turning away from God.



It should be remembered that the geopolitical map of the world is never the same two days in a row. The world is constantly changing. As one nation declines, so others emerge—until conflict ensues.



A major turning point in Asia came during World War II with the fall of Singapore in February 1942, when British forces surrendered it to Japan. Although the Western allies were eventually triumphant against the Japanese, irreparable damage had been done. The British were no longer seen as invincible.



Within a few years after the end of the Second World War, Britain gave independence to its Asian territories. The fall of the empire changed the balance of power in the region—leading eventually to the creation of two new nuclear powers, India and Pakistan.



At the time of India's independence, nobody thought that Britain would completely pull out of Asia and cease to be a global power. Yet once the decline started it sped up, and Britain's imperial power went into a rapid downward spiral. Could the same happen again with the decline of the United States, Britain's successor in Asia and elsewhere?



The current path's days are numbered

What effect will the decline of American power have on the region? That's the subject of Robert Kaplan's book Monsoon: The Indian Ocean and the Future of American Power. He concludes that "the U.S. military, with its sheer size and ability to deploy rapidly, will still be indispensable, even as the United States itself plays a more modest political role, and other, once-poor nations rise up and leverage one another" (p. 16). Other nations, especially India and China, are certainly rising up.



However, as with Britain, the future may turn out to be quite different, with America playing a diminished role, if any. The Wall Street Journal 's David Wessel, in his book Red Ink, quotes former Congressional Budget Office director Bob Reischauer on the state of the U.S. deficit: "We're driving seventy miles an hour toward a cliff . . . And when we reach that cliff will be determined by events over which we have very little control. The path we're on can't go on for fifteen years. Whether it can go on for two, three, four years, I have no idea" (p. 129).



The aforementioned Wall Street Journal article highlighted the fact that U.S. military forces have seen three straight years of spending cuts. The threat of sequestration (automatic spending cuts being triggered by law) hangs over the defense budget, which now faces a further cut of half a trillion dollars beginning in January.



And then there is India.



A global high-tech leader, this nation of growing power and influence is planning a mission to Mars. It is also the world's biggest importer of weapons, an indicator of where it is headed in terms of military power.



On the downside, it has a major problem with poverty and corruption. Additionally, the recent power failure that affected most of the country showed it has serious problems with its infrastructure.



But these problems are not likely to hinder its relentless climb to superpower status in a region that is rapidly changing.

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When Ideology Takes Over

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When Ideology Takes Over

article by Robert Berendt





What ideologies dominate your life? Let’s explore God’s balanced approach.







Ideology is defined as the science of ideas. Words like “abstract speculation,” a “body of ideas” (usually political or economic) that form the basis of policy, “a way of thinking”—all define this concept. It is a very powerful driving force in religion—and it is also a powerful deceiver. Ideas are needed and can be wonderful. They have changed our world. Ideas have also led to disaster, sorrow and misery. Stated policies such as “Might makes right,” “The only good Indian is a dead Indian,” “When our leader speaks, it is God speaking,” and such have driven people to do some terrible things. We note atrocities of the past and clearly the ideology that drove the conduct of armies, victors or politicians was strong. We also have good ideologies such as freedom of speech, freedom from fear and the “inalienable rights” of every human being.



Policy makers, theologians and academics all function across cultural, historical, linguistic and religious lines when forming their policies. All have concepts or ideologies that drive the direction of their thoughts and work. An ideology often does not take into account the differences between people. Culturally, educationally and religiously, there are vast differences that separate us. If the ideology states that everyone is basically alike in their thoughts, dreams, goals and view of the world, then that ideology becomes a hindrance to understanding anyone who has a different viewpoint. Differing viewpoints are strong, and demanding unity among peoples almost always backfires.



When I was a boy, our town had people from many nations of Europe living and working together. People needed a job, so that factor was like glue for the different people. Nevertheless, within that small town, there were a lot of ideologies that brought some together who thought more or less the same, but it also separated others. Groups, cliques and clubs were formed—and those outside those ideas were on the sidelines. In the city in which I now live, there are various gangs—mostly uniform as to race, culture, language and aspirations. There is much tension and even warfare among the gangs.



Perhaps the financial constraints and living below the poverty line that our family experienced caused me to be far more realistic about life situations than some others, but I find myself being far more pragmatic than many around me. Pragmatism is the concern for the practical rather than the ideals and theories. It is the more “matter-of-fact” approach to things in life. It treats history more in the light of cause and effect and practical lessons. I learned to be concerned and balanced about matters of fact rather than theories. I should hasten to add that my favorite course at university was philosophy. That certainly is a course that allows for theories, ideology and abstract concepts, but I tried mightily to keep a balance ever present in my thoughts and actions. I have striven to set aside that which I knew to be abstract speculation from the reality of life. I found that when ideology takes over and becomes the force behind making decisions, reality could easily be pushed aside.



If only people of every culture strove to live as the Apostle Paul spoke of when he said, “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than themselves.", (Philippians 2:3). In Canada, where I live, for example, leaders set out with the grand notion to show the world that all people can live together in peace by instituting a concept of cultural equality. Unfortunately, bringing people with different customs and cultures together in one place does not produce peace. The truth is they don't mix. People keep their own ideals, concepts, language and religion. Tension is the result. They find it too difficult to, as Paul says again in verse 4, "Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others." If this were done, people could find the peace they seek.



Ideology is important, but it can deceive us. It can make us set up concepts and ideas that persist even when factual evidence goes against them. The frightening conclusion in our Western world and our churches is that we now face the growing evidence that ideology has taken over the setting of policies and standards while pragmatism—or facing reality—has been pushed aside. Ideologies can become barriers to understanding even the most basic truths before us. That leads to errors in judgment and action and increased tension. It leads to intellectual blindness. It leads to shackling human progress, and is one of the causes of evil.



Some examples from the Bible show us the danger of letting ideology dominate. Preconceived notions drove leaders to condemn people for carrying too heavy a load or walking more than a prescribed distance on the Sabbath Day (John 5:10-12 [10] The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed.

[11] He answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and walk.

[12] Then asked they him, What man is that which said unto thee, Take up thy bed, and walk?





See All..., Acts 1:12Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day's journey.



See All...). Jesus ate with people who were not considered “kosher” by the leaders, and was condemned for breaking that society’s standards (Mark 2:16And when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eat with publicans and sinners, they said unto his disciples, How is it that he eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners?



See All...). But Jesus showed His pragmatic side (and therefore that of God) that it is proper to take care of their animals, and provide healing on the Sabbath (John 9:16Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them.



See All..., Mark 3:4-5 [4] And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace.

[5] And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other.





See All...). Jesus was grieved at the hardness of their hearts. It is ideology run amuck that causes policies to be made that ignore the reality and facts of life.



Jesus Christ revealed the mind of God the Father by the way He lived His life. He had a strong ideology to live by, but it was grounded in God’s word and guided by pragmatic reality. Failing to look at the facts of life or failing to understand them are often a result of some preconceived ideology. It is very hard to break away from thoughts that grow into a mindset. For example, during the Second World War, the idea that the Aryan race was the super race was behind untold misery and horror turned loose on the rest of mankind.



We may ask ourselves, “What can we do to ensure a good result?” As I mentioned, it may have been circumstances in my life as a child, but reality always stared me in the face. If I did not study, the results in school reflected that. If I did not practice, I could not play the piano. If I did not pay sufficient and proper attention to my children, they would grow up to be led by something or someone else. Truth and consequences were ever present in my actions. I have found that the book of Proverbs is filled with support for being pragmatic, along with maintaining ideals. Here are three safeguards to keeping ideology in check— abstract speculations which bring about new ideas and directions.



(1) Keep the truth of matters clearly before one’s eyes. Think about it, talk about it and practice living the truth. Live in the here and now of consequences.



(2) Let events teach you what way is best. Learn from your mistakes and be willing to incorporate new paths to keep from hardening your mind.



(3) Make the Bible, Jesus Christ, and the example of living that He set your guide in life. He gives a far better understanding of how things work, and His ideas and way of thinking result in eternal life.



We should never stop being a dreamer of sorts. We, too, ought to seek for that city that Abraham sought (Hebrews 11:10For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.



See All...). One aspect of faith is reaching out for the unseen, the abstract ideal, the concept of a future. We must not lose sight of that, and perhaps therein lays my love of philosophy. But we must never let a concept we have formed cloud and shield us from reality



For more information about living God’s way, request the free study guide: Making Life Work

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In Brief... Court's Jurisdiction Challenges National Sovereignty

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In Brief... Court's Jurisdiction Challenges National Sovereignty






article by Bill Eddington, Cecil Maranville, Jim Tuck





The arm of the law is growing more potent, and an age without political borders is dawning upon the world. National leaders accused of human atrocities no longer neccessarily have a secure place to hide.



The case of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic who was handed over to an international tribunal recently, "demonstrates that even the highest government officials are vulnerable to international prosecution for human rights crimes," said Kenneth Roth, the executive director of Human Rights Watch.



In 1989 Manuel Noriega, the dictator of Panama, was seized and convicted of drug trafficking by the United States. The former leader of Chad was under arrest in Senegal until a new government turned him loose last year, but his fate remains in question. Then more recently, Augusto Pinochet, the former Chilean strongman, spent considerable time in British custody on a Spanish warrant before being allowed to return home. The trend is that the long arm of the law is growing in strength and challenging national sovereignties.



That trend is quite evident in a landmark decision by the International Court of Justice, the UN's highest judicial tribunal, when it ruled for the first time on June 27, 2001, that its provisional orders were binding on countries and that the United States should have acted to postpone the execution of a German national until his case was considered by the court.



Venturing into dual emotional issues-the death penalty in America and the extent of the United States' willingness to bow to international bodies-the 15-member "World Court" effectively sought to stake a claim of influence over the American legal system. The decision, which came in a 14-to-1 vote in The Hague, will please opponents of capital punishment in Europe and infuriate American opponents of international organizations and treaties that appear to intrude on U.S. sovereignty. President George W. Bush's first official tour of Europe was dominated by disagreements over capital punishment due to the recent execution of Timothy McVeigh, convicted bomber of a federal building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, that killed 168 people.



European politicians have expressed widespread disgust concerning capital punishment in the United States and the deep American suspicion about international authority. The countries of the European Union appear to have more of a willingness to accept the growing trend of more powerful international law, even if it challenges a nation's capacity to maintain its own right of sovereignty.



Sources : New York Times, The Washington Post .

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God, Science and the Bible: More to Consider About the Ant

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God, Science and the Bible: More to Consider About the Ant






article by Robert Curry





Consider the ant, Solomon urged, and learn wisdom from her ways (Proverbs 6:6Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:



See All...).







Source: 123RFMost of us consider the ant to be a pest—an unwelcome nuisance that disrupts our picnic or invades our kitchen. But there is so much to consider about this tiny insect.



Vivid contrast to laziness

What did Solomon admire about the ant? "It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest" (Proverbs 6:7-8 [7] Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler,

[8] Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.





See All..., New International Version). Solomon challenged a "sluggard"—a habitually lazy person—to learn from how these energetic, industrious, relentless little creatures do their work without being told.



Solomon decries the way a sluggard sleeps too much and at the wrong time (Proverbs 6:10-11 [10] Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:

[11] So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.





See All...). His motto: "A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep ... " When the alarm sounds, his rested hand is practiced at unfolding and hitting the snooze button! When day is done, he has nothing done.



He procrastinates so habitually that he becomes a pro at it. When life's opportunities are presented to him like they are to others who make good choices and succeed, he fritters them away. Solomon warns that this leads to poverty, and the real danger is spiritual poverty.



Yet there are further observations to make.



The worker or the egg?—defying evolution

Though the anthill has a queen and can't survive without her, her only function is to lay eggs. In one study of an actual leaf-cutter ant colony—as reported in the 2013 BBC documentary Planet Ant: Life Inside the Colony —it was calculated that the queen laid about 30,000 eggs.



Myrmecologists (ant experts) say all the eggs are exactly the same. Yet, remarkably, how much food a worker ant feeds each egg determines whether the generic egg becomes another worker ant, a soldier ant or a queen! Think about the enormity of that—what's in that food?



More food to make a bigger ant is understandable. But how does more of the same food create ants with different functions? Not surprisingly, the film gives no explanation for this.



Can you even dream up a theory about how that could have evolved? Why would the first worker ant "think" it should go up and feed an egg a certain way?



How would evolution luckily create just the right mix of ant types for a balanced, functioning ant colony—every time?



And the real question is, like the famous chicken-and-egg conundrum, where did the first worker ant come from that was needed to feed an egg so that it could grow into the first worker ant?



As with all of God's wondrous creation, all unique features and parts had to work perfectly the first time or the ant colony would not have survived, let alone prospered. Though the film makes casual references to evolution, it states with a measure of awe, "There is nothing haphazard about this project." How true!



Extraordinary load bearing

The leaf-cutter ants do not cut leaves the way naturalists expect. They don't wield their mandibles like a pair of scissors. Instead, they anchor a leaf with one mandible and then drop the other rapidly like a guillotine!



The leaf-cutter ants also anchor with their back legs, and the result is the bigger the ant, the bigger an arc it can cut in the leaf. The film calls this "a really nice mechanism to make sure the bigger ants carry bigger loads."



And while ants certainly don't look like all that strong, each worker ant can carry up to four times its weight for as far as a kilometer—the equivalent of hundreds of miles for a human being. Some sources claim an ant can lift 20 times its own body weight!



How does that compare with what the strongest human beings can lift? The current official record for the clean and jerk in the men's 105+ kg class is held by Hossein Reza Zadeh of Iran—580 pounds (263 kg) at the 2004 Athens Summer Olympics. In the women's 75+ kg class at the same Olympics, Gonghong Tang of China lifted 402 pounds (182.5 kg). That's about 2 1⁄2 times their weight.



These human accomplishments came about through rigorous training, diet and determination, not blind chance. And they come nowhere close to matching an ordinary ant!



Can ants predict earthquakes?

In one remarkable study, red wood ants living along active faults in Germany were found to change their behavior the day before an earthquake (of magnitude 2 or greater). Instead of collecting food in the day and resting at night, they stayed active all night. The day after the quake, they returned to normal.



These startling findings were presented April 11, 2013, by Gabriele Berberich of the University Duisburg-Essen in Germany at the European Geosciences Union annual meeting in Vienna, Austria. Using a special camera and software, Berberich and her colleagues tracked the ants for three years from 2009 through 2012. During this period 10 earthquakes between 2.0 and 3.2 occurred.



How do the ants sense an earthquake coming? Berberich believes they are either registering changing gas emissions with special cells called chemoreceptors or reacting to tiny changes in the earth's magnetic field with their magnetoreceptors.



This is the first time it has been reported that ants react to future earthquakes. Berberich plans to conduct similar research in areas prone to more and bigger earthquakes—with the potential of saving many lives.



Copying ant efficiencies in technology

In 2006, researchers at the University of Bristol, England, spent countless hours analyzing Temnothorax albipennis ants searching for food. They found that both leader ants and followers appeared to work in tandem and provide bidirectional feedback.



Though a leader ant could race to the food four times faster on its own, it would work with a follower ant, teaching it how to find the food and remember its location. The teaching ant seemed to adapt its pace according to the follower's ability to keep up. Since ant colonies seem to function in flawless communication, researchers are analyzing what we should copy from their example.



Today's technologically driven world is considering the ant for clues about solving technical problems.



Consider the ants' ability to quickly determine the most efficient path to food and to bringing it back to the colony. Stated simply, an ant comes to a fork in the path. If food is found going left, the ant leaves a scent on the path. If no food is found on the right, the ant comes back and leaves no scent. At the junction the rest of the ants follow the scent left and reinforce it.



Recognizing such success, a nationwide company considers the ants' methods to determine the best sequence of deliveries to its warehouses. Experts focused on travel in outer space are considering such determination in slinging spacecraft from one planet to another by gravity for maximum energy efficiency.



These are some of the remarkable discoveries researchers are making about ants. Indeed, as Solomon advised, we have much to learn from them! For more than 3,000 years, wise men and women have found that it's worth our time to ponder this amazing part of God's creation!

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In Brief... World News Review: Chinese Interests in Bahamas

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In Brief... World News Review: Chinese Interests in Bahamas






article by Cecil Maranville, John Ross Schroeder, Peter Eddington





Concerns have been raised by Communist Chinese connections so close to American soil.



In 1962 the United States and Russia came dangerously close to nuclear war over the issue of nuclear weapons based in Cuba, just a few miles off the coast of Florida. Today there are concerns expressed over the presence of a Chinese company, Hutchison Whampoa Limited, in Panama, where it has contracted to manage the entrances to the former U.S. possession. The same Chinese company is currently completing construction of the largest container port in the world in Freeport, Bahamas-just 60 miles from Florida.



While this is a far cry from placing nuclear weapons close to United States soil, it has raised concerns that a company with Communist Chinese connections is operating in two strategic geographic points very close to American interests.



Several U.S. military experts say that these activities in both Panama and the Bahamas by Hutchison Whampoa Limited, a Hong Kong-based conglomerate, pose a significant risk to U.S. national security.



Officials for Hutchison Whampoa have heatedly denied any links with the Red Chinese government, but several established connections suggest that the Chinese government has a keen interest in the company's activities.



One port facility that has captured the interest of the Chinese government is Hutchison Whampoa's sprawling port facility in the tourist destination of Freeport on Grand Bahama Island.



According to the company's Web site, the port is located at one of the most strategic spots in the world because "Freeport is the closest offshore port to the east coast of the United States, at the cross-roads of routes between Europe and the Americas and through the Panama Canal."



Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (Republican-Mississippi) and former U.S. Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger have expressed concerns about Hutchison's influence over the Panama Canal.



Lott has described the Hong Kong firm as "an arm of the People's Liberation Army."



Hutchison Whampoa's chairman, Li Ka-Shing, is also a board member of CITIC-the China International Trust and Investment Corporation. U.S. intelligence sources have described the firm as a front for China's governmental State Council.



Congressman Dana Rohrbacher (Republican-California) has stated that CITIC has been used as a front company by China's military to acquire technology for weapons development. A recently declassified report by the United States Southern Command's Joint Intelligence Center, prepared in October 1999, said that "Hutchison Whampoa's owner, Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-Shing, has extensive business ties in Beijing and has compelling financial reasons to maintain a good relationship with China's leadership."



The military intelligence report also warns that "Hutchison containerized shipping facilities in the Panama Canal, as well as the Bahamas, could provide a conduit for illegal shipments of technology or prohibited items from the West to the PRC, or facilitate the movement of arms and other prohibited items into the Americas."



Retired Admiral Thomas Moorer, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and former commander in chief of the Pacific and Atlantic Fleet said this of the Chinese efforts: "Of course the Chinese military sees the benefit of having a base, a future base, so close to the United States. What China is trying to do is get a kind of maritime position worldwide, and they need a home base, so to speak, in every ocean." (Newsmax.com)

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Our Dark Side

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Our Dark Side

A commentary by Sean Yarbrough



Marketing experts know there's something strangely appealing about the dark side of human nature—and they are capitalizing on it.



"Get in touch with your dark side," urges Toyota in an ad for the Matrix VCAM.



"Go ahead, indulge your dark side," Nestle says of its dark chocolate caramel Treasures.



Marketing experts know there's something strangely appealing about the dark side of human nature—and they are capitalizing on it.



Goth and Halloween

One example of this strategy is the successful promotion of Goth characters such as Emily the Strange that are rapidly gaining popularity with preteens. As Karyn M. Peterson of Playthings magazine reports, "Fuzzy zombie teddy bears wielding weapons, cuddly-yet-creepy skeletal pets, designer dolls with ghostly death-mask faces—toys and collectibles like these that embrace dark (and even macabre) themes...are increasingly finding younger and younger fans."



Another example is the annual marketing blitz surrounding Halloween. According to Businessweek , "Halloween is the second-biggest holiday behind Christmas in home-decorating sales, and the sixth-biggest retail holiday for overall sales." Between all the parties, TV shows and special events that accompany this holiday, themes of fear and death have now become normalized as entertaining traditions.



Desensitizing games

Does popularizing evil desensitize us to the true nature of the human heart?



A 2007 Iowa State University study of video game players found that even brief exposure to violent media has a measurably desensitizing effect. The authors of this study expressed the following concerns regarding the way popular media is presented to the public over our lifespan:



"Children receive high doses of media violence. It initially is packaged in ways that are not too threatening, with cute cartoon-like characters, a total absence of blood and gore, and other features that make the overall experience a pleasant one, arousing positive emotional reactions that are incongruent with normal negative reactions to violence. Older children consume increasingly threatening and realistic violence, but the increases are gradual and always in a way that is fun. In short, the modern entertainment media landscape could accurately be described as an effective systematic violence desensitization tool."



Desensitization often starts when we are very young, whether through the surrounding culture and related media or via family experiences. This may lead to a decreased appreciation—or even subtle acceptance—of the evil and all too typical violence that permeates the world such as:



•The attack that occurred in Beijing just after the opening ceremony of the Olympics .

•The practice of slavery —still a problem all over the globe.

•Terrorist plots to overthrow entire national or religious cultures.

Cure for a sick heart

How dangerous is our world to us? The common thread among these and other evils we see today is a sick heart—and we're all vulnerable to infection.



"Who can understand the human heart? There is nothing else so deceitful; it is too sick to be healed" (Jeremiah 17:9The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?



See All..., Good News Bible).



God says we all have the capacity to deceive ourselves into thinking good is evil, and evil is good. That's a frightening revelation. Given the right circumstances, we have the ability to commit evil and justify doing so. If we desensitize to the point that we can no longer recognize evil, is it possible that we, too, could become agents of evil instead of just spectators?



Our Creator warns us to carefully guard the thoughts and motives of our heart to avoid falling prey to self-deception. With His help and careful vigilance as to what we allow into our minds, we can prevent the dark side of the human heart from controlling our destiny.



To find out more about how to overcome your dark side, read "The Battle for Your Mind." VT

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The Backstory to "5 Keys to a Happy Marriage"

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The Backstory to "5 Keys to a Happy Marriage"

by Jerold Aust

 My first thought in writing "5 Keys to a Happy Marriage " was that I didn't want to duplicate my previous articles. I deliberately chose a simplistic thesis and five practical points that apply to marriage. Here's the backstory to "5 Keys to a Happy Marriage ."

The article is based on my marriage of 49 years and a combination of marriage counselings that I conducted over decades.



Point number one highlights the differences between infatuation and true love. Dr. Pat Love ( The Truth About Love, 2001) wrote a groundbreaking book about the stepwise progression from infatuation, to post-rapture, to true love. Many married couples don't know these naturally occurring steps in a marriage, otherwise you wouldn't hear this lament: "I think I just fell out of love."



Next I added three endearing responses that I've used over the years in our marriage: "Please," "I'm sorry," and "Thank you." These might seem inconsequential, but they can make a big difference in your marriage. Universally men assume they're weak to verbalize these thoughts. The opposite is true: Real men lead with humility. Jesus did (Philippians 2:2-8).



Good marital communication says, "I care." I learned this in my graduate communication studies. If you were in our home, you would hear me say, "I hear you," "I'm listening," or "I understand," not because I'm bored, but because I want to confirm that I'm listening.



Patience sustains life (Luke 21:19In your patience possess ye your souls.



See All...). Understanding patience turns the corner from the excitement of infatuation to the deliberate application of true love (Ephesians 5:25Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;



See All...). The love cocktail brings a man and woman together, but honeymoons don't last forever. The honeymoon automatically transitions into the reality of everyday living, where we accept shortcomings once overlooked. Marriage, like life, advises this axiom: Growing older includes growing up.



Reviving one's marriage is vitally important. Some couples do this easily: They go dancing, go to athletic events, the gym, a movie, or plan a date once a week.



A happy marriage is directly related to personal sacrifice. "Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ" (Ephesians 5:21Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.



See All...). God's marriage plan works. We must work His plan to reap the benefits.



Thanks for reading and applying the godly principles of The Good News . May your marriage be as happy as God intended!







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Evolution's Probability Is Humorously Slim

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Evolution's Probability Is Humorously Slim


by Jason Nitzberg


There is this great scene in a movie I once saw. A guy has tried his hardest to pursue the woman of his dreams, and he finally asks her the big question: what are his chances that they could become a couple? 1 out of a 100?



She responds, “No, more like one out of a million.”



As he drops his head to think about her answer, a contemplative look washes over his face. Then he looks up. His eyes are getting a little bigger, as he says with excitement building in his voice, “So, you're telling me there's a chance!”



Call it hope, call it optimism, or maybe just call what it really is: faith.



The very probability of one out of a million seems to scream "this is not going to happen," but that doesn't seem to stop us sometimes from hoping. Even the very fact that the odds got worse tells you that the woman’s point was not that he had a chance, but that he didn’t have a chance.



The leap of faith required to believe in evolution is similar to this man’s faith that he had a chance. The probability of evolution is directly analogous to this man’s humorously slim odds.





With Infinite Amount of Time, Anything is Possible

There is a lot in the teachings of evolution that makes a lot of sense. But this teaching always rubbed me the wrong way: with an infinite amount of time, anything is possible. While I can certainly put together an argument showing that this is perfectly logical, it ignores the fact that there are all these other ramifications that would help validate it—or invalidate it.



One of my friends recently gave an example of this on his blog , when he wrote about the Boltzman Brain . The teaching supposes, hypothetically, that given enough time through billions and trillions of years, all the atoms needed to form a self-contained brain would convene in one spot floating in the middle of space. This brain would already have feelings and emotions and memories locked into it.



Where Are All the Monkey Brains?

Again, the Boltzman Brain makes perfect sense and given the chance, is a logical conclusion given an infinite amount of time. But logic is not truth. The problem is that if a brain could be formed in the depths of space with memories, then we should be seeing, even in our limited life-span of 70 years here on earth, all kinds of examples of strange things just appearing.



Don’t you remember the half banana that appeared out of thin air on the wall in that downtown Chicago pizza place back in 1994? How about the random popcorn kernels appearing over the Suez Canal in 1972? How about that story your great grandmother tells of her great grandmother finding this fluffy thing that is described eerily like a blue colored Kleenex? Where are all the random monkey brains appearing in our house that didn’t quite make it to become Boltzman Brains?





Missing Accidents

With the Infinite Monkey Theorem, we have a very logical thought process: eventually, given enough time, all the works of Shakespeare would be reproduced by an infinite amount of monkeys sitting at typewriters. The problem however, is that it would leave an awful lot of accidents—parts of Shakespeare at different levels of completion, all over the place. There would be an infinite amount of in-between stages of partials, and lots and lots of failures. Lots of accidents. An over abundance in fact—so much so that we should be overrun by the accidents.



But so many of the so-called accidents are missing.





The odds are so slim, but yes, I am admitting evolutionists have a chance.



Do we really want to take it, though?







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What Will Happen to Latin America?

From http://el-paso.ucg.org/  or call 1-888-886-8632.

Free Trade Area of the Americas What Will Happen to Latin America






article by Fred Nance





The United States can no longer take its superiority in the economy of the western hemisphere for granted. The EU's economic reach grows ever longer and its influence ever stronger.



Many people in the western hemisphere desire the "American dream." The prosperity and economic boom of the 1990s in the United States has many nations longing for open markets, so they can begin to taste some of the good times. On the planning table is the "Free Trade Agreement of the Americas" (FTAA) that would create the largest free trade agreement the world has ever seen. It is hoped that by the year 2005, the FTAA will create a market of 800 million people in the Americas, from the Arctic to Antarctica.



This past April, 34 nations participated in the Summit of the Americas in Quebec. President Bush actively took part in that summit and has been asking the U.S. Congress for authority to negotiate this agreement. "I will look south, not as an afterthought, but as a fundamental commitment of my presidency. Those who ignore Latin America do not fully understand America itself," said the president ( Latin Trade Magazine, June 2001, p. 30). He has promised that the trade zone will not only create markets for the United States, but will fortify democracy in Latin America and spread the economic benefits equitably.



Can a partnership be forged between the United States and Latin America? What is the most likely scenario for these nations, according to Bible prophecy?



As pointed out in a recent New York Times article, the combination of democracy and free enterprise in Latin America does not guarantee higher living standards. Every nation in the western hemisphere except Cuba presently has an elected government, with increasingly open markets. Yet, 224 million Latin Americans (roughly 36 percent of the population) live in poverty. Many of these nations are experimenting with democratic capitalism for the first time. As a result of this experimentation, economic benefits do not filter down to the masses, because the region's rigid social structure isn't equipped to equitably distribute wealth.



"Latin Americans get to choose their leaders, but once they are in place, it's the old cliques that make the bottom-line decisions that are suitable to their own needs, not the needs of the people," says Hernando De Soto, a Peruvian economist ("Latin America's Poor Survive It All," New York Times, June 24, 2001).



The source of divergence



Why are the United States and Canada so much more prosperous and more democratic than Latin America?



Ibero-America actually had a head start on the United States and Canada. The first permanent Spanish settlement was established in 1493 on Hispaniola in what is today the Dominican Republic. The first permanent British colony was established more than a century later, in 1607 at Jamestown in what was to become Virginia.



Venezuelan writer Carlos Rangel wrote: "As late as 1700, the Spanish American empire still gave the impression of being incomparably richer, much more powerful and more likely to succeed than the British colonies of North America" (Lawrence E. Harrison, The Pan-American Dream, 1997, p. 18). Latin America had an earlier start, yet British America surpassed it in power and influence.



Lawrence Harrison writes: "As we approach the end of the 20th Century, Latin America is roughly fifty years behind the United States and Canada in terms of the prosperity of its citizens and the solidity of its democratic institutions" (ibid, p. 18). What explains this flip-flop in history?



We can turn to Bible prophecy for the answer. God made known through Jacob that Joseph's descendants would receive the birthright promises "in the last days" (Genesis 49:1And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.



See All..., 22-26). It is because of the tremendous physical blessings promised to the descendants of Joseph that the United States has prospered so much more and become more powerful. The United States was molded from British, Anglo-Protestant traditions, whereas Latin America traces its roots to Ibero-Catholic culture. These are the fundamental differences that explain the divergence between the nations of the Americas at the beginning of the 21st century.



Where will it go from here? Can a partnership be forged among all the nations of America?



Leadership needed



There are many who believe that without leadership, the United States might lose out in the competition for Latin American markets. Jenny Bates, an international economist at the Progressive Policy Institute, writes: "There is an emerging risk of the United States being slowly shut out of Latin American markets, while our competitors, particularly the European Union, gain ground. In the future, if Latin American countries face lower barriers on imports from the EU than from the United States, they will purchase goods and services, including highly lucrative capital goods, from our competitors. This potential outcome is not lost on the Europeans" ( Blueprint Series, Ideas for a New Century, 2001, p. 5).



Despite President Bush's desire to negotiate a free trade pact, many forces are at work to prevent it. Powerful U.S. interest groups, especially labor unions and environmentalists, oppose free trade. The U.S. Congress itself might be against it, as President Clinton found out when he failed to obtain the renewal of "fast track" negotiating authority that he needed to forge a similar accord.



Whether free trade is reached throughout the western hemisphere, one can be sure that Europe is watching these developments closely. Europe has a strong historical, cultural and demographic relationship with many countries of Latin America. European multinational corporations have established a major presence there.



Corporations from Spain are especially dominating in acquisitions of banking, energy and telecommunications to the point that they will soon hold pan-regional power in Latin America. A trade agreement between Mexico and the European Union was recently signed, which was Europe's response to NAFTA. Some economists believe that agreement set the pattern for possible future trade agreements between Europe and Latin America.



From "dollarization" to "euroization?"



"Dollarization," the abandoning of a country's local currency to adopt the dollar, has been occurring in some Latin American nations. Last year, Ecuador officially adopted the dollar. El Salvador began using it as legal currency on January 1, 2001. Guatemala joined the race to dollarize in May, and it is also being discussed in Costa Rica and Nicaragua. Argentina has pegged its peso one-to-one with the dollar for a decade.



Now Argentina has announced it will also link its peso to the euro. The value of the peso will be fixed at one euro, as soon as the euro rises to parity with the dollar. When the euro rises or falls against the dollar, the peso will be set at the mid value between the two currencies.



Cuba has also debated switching to the euro, although no action has been taken at this time. Might this become a trend, if poor Latin American countries see a more powerful Europe rising and the leadership of the United States declining, as Bible prophecy foretells?



Economic system foretold



Latin America's desire to embrace globalization and free markets could lead it to make an economic pact with a coming world economic system that is unveiled in the 18th chapter of Revelation. There it describes the merchants of the earth becoming rich by her (verse 3) and states they will mourn because Babylon, the greatest customer for their goods, will be gone after she is destroyed (verse 11).



The increasing presence of European multinational corporations, along with the historical and cultural ties between Europe and Latin America make the possibility of future trade alliances and monetary movements worth watching. WNP

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Another Sea Gate Threatened?

From http://el-paso.ucg.org/  or call 1-888-886-8632.

Another Sea Gate Threatened?<br />





article by Darris McNeely





Shipping lanes off Indonesia may seem irrelevant to the West. But at stake is part of an ancient promise to Abraham that his seed would possess the "gates of their enemies."



Events in the South Pacific may seem irrelevant to the West, but could bring significant changes affecting both American naval influence and continued freedom of shipping through a critical world sea passage.



Not long ago the United States turned over the Panama Canal to the Republic of Panama, thus relinquishing control of a major passage linking the Atlantic and Pacific shipping lanes. Many observers saw little significance behind this event, since today's Internet-dominated global economy seems little impacted by ocean-borne commerce. One pundit commented, "Windows 2000 travels over the Internet not on the deck of a ship."



Now, another vital sea passage in an increasingly unsettled region of the world could come under the control of powers with different views than those of Western nations.



A strategic Asian passage



The Strait of Malacca is one of the world's crucial strategic choke points. Many experts consider it a vulnerable objective of any hostile power seeking regional control and influence upon the Western economies.



The Strait of Malacca is a narrow waterway between Malaysia and the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Virtually all commercial sea traffic between the Far East and Europe, the Middle East and India passes through the Strait. All fuel and gas shipments purchased from the Persian Gulf for the Far East pass through there. Moreover, Singapore-the regional commercial and communication center, and a key port, lies at the eastern mouth of the Strait.



Today more than 60,000 ships a year pass through the Strait. Within four years that number could go as high as 100,000-thus showing the need for regional stability to insure free passage for ships of all nations. Yet, the region has historically been plagued by animosities of ethnic and religious bias, demands for scarce resources and, in the post-colonial period, poor government. The American Navy recognizes the value of the waterway to its projection of power from the Persian Gulf to the South China Sea and further east in the Pacific.



China's strategic objectives



Controlling access to this key sea gate has become a strategic priority of China. China knows that any role it may play in southwest Asia and beyond will require the ability to control access to not only the important shipping lanes, but also to the broader oceans bordering so much of Asia.



China also understands that its naval capability is several years away from matching that of the United States. America's Seventh Fleet is capable of projecting force from the Straits of Taiwan throughout the western Pacific, South China Sea and beyond into the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf. For China to fully assert power over the Asian region, it will someday have to confront the United States and, at the least, check its vast military power in the region. Exactly how this could be done is widely discussed among those who understand the ambitions that China nourishes and cultivates.



Yossef Bodansky, a director of the congressional Task Force on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare writes, "Any Chinese naval and military surge into the Indian Ocean-a major strategic priority of Beijing-must pass through the Strait of Malacca. Beijing considers its surge into the Indian Ocean as part of a strategic surge of global proportions aimed at consolidating military posture in a hostile environment (from both a global and regional strategic point of view), and in a strategic grand design that anticipates the possibility of a major military clash with the U.S. in the foreseeable future" ("Beijing's Surge for the Strait of Malacca," Yossef Bodansky, www.freeman.org/m_online/bodansky/beijing.htm ).



Writing in the National Review of March 20, 2000, Mark Helprin, contributing editor of The Wall Street Journal, chronicled China's future possibilities in an article entitled, "East Wind." He quotes Deng Xiaoping's 16-Character Policy: "Combine the military and the civil; combine peace and war; give priority to military products; let the civil support the military." Over the last two decades, all signs point to China's determination to become a major modern world power by taking every advantage from the West and preparing itself for future conflict. "It is approaching this with purposeful concentration...and resolve.... Its task is to win the next war, whenever that may be, and its determination is not to be dismissed" (p. 37).



Clearly the coming years will continue to see China assert its influence on the affairs of its neighbors as part of its grand design. With this in mind as we look at current events in this region we can understand their significance.



Unrest in the Pacific islands



Since 1998, the Indonesian archipelago has been going through significant change and upheaval. The autocratic rule of President Suharto was replaced by the regime of newly elected President Abdurrachman Wahid. His short term has seen separatist movements unravel Indonesia's fragile unity. Last September the former Portuguese colony of East Timor voted for independence. Evacuating Indonesian troops carried out a vicious revenge upon the inhabitants. Today, while trying to rebuild with the help of United Nations' troops, tiny East Timor is a shambles. Moreover, Indonesia faces continuing separatist movements.



Closer to the all-important Malaccan strait is Aceh. Inhabitants of this region have long sought their independence. Before Indonesia was formed, they fought the Dutch for the right of sovereignty. Since the 1950s, a strong independence movement has sought autonomy from greater Indonesia, which presents a major challenge to the stability of the Wahid government.



Other regions of Indonesia are seeing the rising tide of separatism, which threatens to fragment this country of 13,000 islands, containing 300 ethnic groups with 365 languages. Recent fighting in the northern Moluccas resulted in the imposition of martial law and the call by some for international intervention.



Although further to the east and not a part of Indonesia, the small island of Fiji has also been racked with civil unrest, as the majority Fijian population have lashed out at the dominating economic and political influence of the Indian inhabitants. An attempted coup and political hostage taking has resulted in an ongoing drama.



Decades of fragile unity are unraveling in an area of the world that few understand.



A potentially important chapter



Stratfor's Global Intelligence Update of June 12, 2000, put these isolated events into a broader perspective. "It is therefore startling to step back and realize that with these two crises, a virtually unbroken belt of instability now stretches from the Straits of Malacca in western Indonesia to the south central Pacific.



"It is easy to dismiss this as an interesting coincidence. And it may well be that purely local forces exploded simultaneously. Nevertheless, the strategic implications of events may be very real, if not at all intended by the actors involved. Alone each of these events means little. But taken as a whole, they could threaten commercial shipping-and naval traffic. If, in the course of a few years, hostile forces emerge in control of these islands and portions of Indonesia, the world will find every reason to care.



"But what power would be in a position to benefit from this situation? There is but one: China. The government in Beijing is clearly intent on becoming the dominant East Asian power; it has an interest in keeping U.S. forces at bay and it has the means to take advantage. So long as American fleets lurk just over the horizon, China will fail in its ability to redraw a new regional order."



The article goes on to show the possible ways China could take advantage of a breakdown in the region and assert control. The countries that stand to lose the most in such a global power shift-the United States, Australia and New Zealand-are not taking the critical steps necessary to prevent such long-term threats. It concludes by saying, "A potentially important chapter is opening in the Pacific." How important may be better understood by a look at what Bible prophecy says about the future of the modern-day descendants of ancient Israel.



Students of biblical prophecy who understand the identity of Israel in the end time, will focus on the prophecies made to Abraham and his descendants concerning the possession of certain "gates." God made this promise to Abraham first in Genesis 22:17That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;



See All..., where it says, "...and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies." This is repeated to Rebekah in Genesis 24:60And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.



See All...: "Our sister, may you become the mother of thousands of ten thousands; and may your descendants possess the gates of those who hate them."



Traditionally these gates have been understood to be land and sea passages that controlled access to larger geographic regions and allowed one nation to control and influence trade, travel and political and cultural affairs of other countries.



Historically, the modern descendants of Israel, with Britain (Ephraim) and America (Manasseh) leading the way, have held control of many such gates scattered around the globe. Events of the past two hundred years have seen a remarkable collection of such possessions play a major role in the ascendant power of the two nations.



Gibraltar, which stands at the western gate of the Mediterranean Sea, is still today a British possession. The Suez Canal, once called "the backbone of the British Empire" came into British control during the late 19th century. At its peak, the British Empire controlled or influenced such major world "gates" as Hong Kong, the Khyber Pass, the Cape of Good Hope and many others. Possession of these strategic points helped create and maintain the economic and military dominance of the British Empire.



Similarly, the United States acquired control of key points that helped it grow into a great single power. The United States has taken up the power vacuum left behind by the demise of the British Empire in the 20th century. The Panama Canal, a modern engineering marvel, is one such example. With the Strait of Malacca, the power of the U.S. Navy insures unhindered passage of both Western and Eastern commercial interests.



What will the future bring?



The past decade has seen the American military begin withdrawing from Asia. In 1992 the navy shut down its huge base at Subic Bay in the Philippines. This was its largest repair and fueling station in the Pacific. Okinawa in Japan is another major U.S. military installation. Japanese protests over this presence are a recurring problem, which creates pressure to withdraw. Recent reunification talks between North and South Korea highlight the presence of U.S. peacekeeping troops that have been there since the end of the Korean War. Should those two nations reunite, there would be no compelling political reason for the American troops to stay. The pressure to leave would be very strong.



In Leviticus 26:19And I will break the pride of your power; and I will make your heaven as iron, and your earth as brass:



See All..., God says to Israel that because of sin and breaking of divine law there would be a breaking of the "pride of your power…." The dual nature of this prophecy applies to modern descendants of Israel as well.



Though no one would say that modern day Manasseh's (U.S.) power has been completely broken-indeed America straddles the world today as the sole superpower-there is a part of this prophecy that is instructive. In verse 17, God says, "I will set My face against you, and you shall be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you shall reign over you, and you shall flee when no one pursues you."



The United States and Britain have reaped the blessings of their forefather Abraham. Their unprecedented wealth and global influence is traced to the obedience of that man. Today, the moral fiber of these nations has the cancer of greed and immorality, which has severely eroded national will.



Empires fall for a variety of reasons. A common cause is a loss of will, the inner impulse to expand or to defend and preserve core values and national principles. Part of Britain's retreat from its empire was due to its lack of desire and conviction to maintain the far-flung territories gained at a different time by another generation. Today, other nations are watching America to see if it has the will to defend its founding principles on the world scene. The balance of power in today's world depends on that outcome. WNP

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