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EDITORIAL
Do You Believe in Miracles?

by Rene Messier

How much importance do we place on belief or believing something? I am not just talking about "believing" anything, but rather things in relationship to God the Father and Jesus Christ and their ability to perform miracles in our life. Some may not think it is that important, while others may feel that it is somewhat important, and then there are those who know that it is very important.

There was a popular song called “Believe," which was performed by two well-known artists. This song had very interesting lyrics. Here are a few lines from that song: "There can be miracles when you believe. Though hope is frail, it’s hard to kill... Who knows what miracles you can achieve? When you believe, somehow you will. Now you will... when you believe."

It is amazing how true these words are. Let us consider some of the healings that Christ performed, and let us also review some of the examples when Christ did not do mighty works....

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QUESTION AND ANSWER

Please explain what Jesus meant in His statement found in Luke 16:16—especially, regarding the Kingdom of God, when He said, “‘…and everyone is pressing into it.’”

In the context of this verse, the account shows that Jesus was reacting to the rejection of His teaching by the Pharisees (compare verse 14). In Luke 16:13, Jesus concluded a parable with this admonition, “‘…You cannot serve God and mammon’”—a statement that challenged the Pharisaical practices!

Continuing in Luke 16:15-16:

“And He said to them, ‘You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

“‘The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.’”...

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WORLD NEWS HEADLINES

This Week in the News

The state of the U.S. economy appears to be hopeless. No recovery is in sight, nor should we expect any substantial improvement. Instead, we are told that the latest U.S. budget is "a recipe for financial disaster" and that America's debt crisis can be associated with Third World countries.

The recent Afghan conference was a total and complete failure, and it is interesting how everything seems to work against the USA. Brussels is upset with Washington, and Europe is becoming painfully aware that it must do more to achieve influential and powerful unification. Tensions between the USA and Iran are heightening, in spite of empty words and "promises" from the Iranian government, and mixed signals from Washington show an ongoing policy of glaring inconsistencies and indecisiveness....

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