Stupendous, wonderful, amazing news lies just beyond the hopelessness which so characterizes our time! God’s rule will be established on the earth, and we are destined to have a part in this glorious future!
Dave Harris
Reaching Atonement
Days are often observed as memorials, but society doesn’t really observe a day that looks forward! God’s Holy Days are different—their meaning encompasses the past, present AND the future.
You Have Been Warned
We grow used to warnings, and it is easy to think that they don’t really apply to us. That attitude becomes tragic when the warnings are from God—for His warnings are a matter of life and death!
SOUND DOCTRINE!
A campaign called, “National Back To Church Sunday,” was recently promoted in the U.S. with the goal of inviting people back to church again. Another appeal regularly seen in the media is, “attend the church of your choice.”
While some might respond to these slogans, their actions would not improve their relationship with God, for their whole premise is founded on falsehood (compare Matthew 7:21-23). For the people who have truly been called by God and then have engaged themselves in compromise, there is a much more definitive and somber rallying cry given to members of the Church of God.
Jude puts it this way:
“Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (verse 3).
Jude’s letter was written in the later decades of the first generation of the Church of God—a time of wholesale apostasy.
Jesus addressed those who had left their first love; who suffered great persecution; who embraced vile doctrines; who were letting the truth of God die; who had only a little strength; and who, filled with self-righteousness, had lost their zeal for obeying God. These warnings are found in Revelation, chapters 2 and 3, and all members of the Church of God are responsible to heed His admonitions.
Paul was inspired to address the way the truth of God would be rejected in our time—the “last days”:
“For the time will come when they will not endure SOUND DOCTRINE, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables” (2 Timothy 4:3-4).
Do you embrace sound doctrines which can be clearly proven from the Word of God? When you listen to sermonettes or sermons, read booklets and articles, fellowship with brethren—is it all based on the doctrines of truth, those only found in the Bible? Or do you harbor a private interpretation—a pet theory which the Church of God does not teach?
With this Update, we are presenting the fifth and final installment of a series, “How Are We to Keep the Sabbath?” Just as Jude did, so are we “exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.”
Knowledge of the weekly Sabbath and annual Holy Days must not be taken for granted—they ARE part of the faith. Keeping them as God has commanded IS sound doctrine, and if you aren’t, if you have become lax and permissive, don’t close your eyes and ears to God’s counsel:
“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?–unless indeed you are disqualified” (2 Corinthians 13:5).
Are You a Humble Person?
Humility is a growth characteristic for Christians, and it is an attitude we must choose to live by!
It’s the Truth
In our world—this year, this month, this week, this day, right now—TRUTH has fallen, it has failed! This must not happen for Christians!
What Does the Bible Say About Jews?
In both its history and prophetic revelations, the Bible has a great deal to say about the Jewish people. In fact, events associated with the House of Judah provide vital keys to understanding God’s great plan of salvation for all of mankind!
The term “Jew” is found in the Old and New Testament and primarily refers to the descendants of one of the sons of Jacob—as distinguished from other of Jacob’s children.
It is important to understand that Judah was ONE of twelve sons born to Jacob. Jacob had twelve sons by four wives (Genesis 35:22-26). These are the ones who became the nation of Israel with each son becoming a distinct tribe and, eventually, individual nations. Not all Israelites are Jews, but all Jews are Israelites. This distinction is vital.
In Genesis 29, verse 35, the birth of the fourth son of Jacob by his wife, Leah, is recorded, and the name given to him was Judah—which means “praise.”
Some further details about Judah are given in the Book of Genesis.
It appears that Joseph was favored by Jacob, and, furthermore, that Joseph was disliked by his brothers to such an extent that they contemplated killing him (compare Genesis 37:18-20). First Reuben and then Judah intervened to save Joseph’s life, and we find that Judah’s suggestion was as follows:
“So Judah said to his brothers, ‘What profit is there if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother and our flesh.’ And his brothers listened. Then Midianite traders passed by; so the brothers pulled Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt” (Genesis 37:26-28).
Later, when Joseph’s brothers stood before him, accused of theft, it was Judah who offered himself as a substitute for Benjamin:
“‘For your servant became surety for the lad to my father, saying, “If I do not bring him back to you, then I shall bear the blame before my father forever.” Now therefore, please let your servant remain instead of the lad as a slave to my lord, and let the lad go up with his brothers. For how shall I go up to my father if the lad is not with me, lest perhaps I see the evil that would come upon my father?’” (Genesis 44:32-34).
Another incident about Judah involved his daughter-in-law (compare Genesis 38). This occurred following the death of two of the sons of Judah—both of whom were successively married to Tamar, but the sons were evil and God killed them. Tamar disguised herself as a harlot, and Judah—not knowing that she was his daughter-in-law—lay with her.
Twins, Perez and Zerah, were born to Judah by Tamar. Shelah was Judah’s son by his wife, Shua, but it is from the lineage of Perez that David was born (Ruth 4:18-22), and from David’s lineage, Jesus Christ was born (Luke 3:23-38).
On his death-bed, Jacob blessed his twelve sons, and he specifically spoke of their circumstances “‘…in the last days’” (Genesis 49:1). Here is what he said about Judah:
“‘Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s children shall bow down before you. Judah is a lion’s whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; And as a lion, who shall rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people. Binding his donkey to the vine, And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, He washed his garments in wine, And his clothes in the blood of grapes. His eyes are darker than wine, And his teeth whiter than milk’” (Genesis 49:8-12).
The “scepter”—that is, rulership—was given to the tribe of Judah, and the Bible establishes this fact in the unfolding history of the Jews. David understood this:
“‘However the LORD God of Israel chose me above all the house of my father to be king over Israel forever, for He has chosen Judah to be the ruler; and of the house of Judah, the house of my father, and among the sons of my father, He was pleased with me to make me king over all Israel’” (1 Chronicles 28:4).
In the Psalms, we find this further acknowledgement:
“Moreover He rejected the tent of Joseph, And did not choose the tribe of Ephraim, But chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion which He loved. And He built His sanctuary like the heights, Like the earth which He has established forever. He also chose David His servant, And took him from the sheepfolds; From following the ewes that had young He brought him, To shepherd Jacob His people, And Israel His inheritance” (Psalm 78:67-71).
A momentous event occurred when Judah and Israel became SEPARATE nations. The reason was because of Solomon’s disobedience—especially his idolatry:
“Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, ‘Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. Nevertheless I will not do it in your days, for the sake of your father David; I will tear it out of the hand of your son. However I will not tear away the whole kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of my servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen’” (1 Kings 11:11-13).
From this point forward, ten tribes of Israel and the tribe of Judah were and have remained separate. At times, violent wars were fought between the kings of Israel and Judah. Ultimately, Israel was taken into national captivity by the Assyrians (about 722 B.C.). That record is found in 2 Kings, chapter 17.
Likewise, Judah rebelled against God, and He sent them into national captivity in Babylon (just before 600 B.C. and culminating in the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple of God in 587 B.C.).
After a seventy-year period, Jews were allowed to return. They rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem and the Temple of God. Judah once again became a nation in their homeland. This set the stage for the prophesied appearance of the Messiah which would occur several hundred years later.
When Jesus was born, Judah was a nation under Rome’s dominion. Jesus preached to the Jews of that time, but He was rejected by all but a very few of that generation—they did not believe that He was the Messiah:
“He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11; compare Isaiah 53:3; Matthew 13:54-58; Acts 3:11-15).
Many Old Testament prophecies revealed that the Messiah would come from King David’s lineage—note this example:
“‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the LORD, ‘That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS’” (Jeremiah 23:5-6).
In the New Testament, Jesus Christ is identified as a Jew, and this is confirmed by what is written in the Book of Hebrews, “For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah…” (7:14). Furthermore, Paul presents more proof of the lineage of Jesus Christ:
“Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Romans 1:1-4).
As the promised “Messiah,” Jesus has been appointed ruler over all things:
“Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-11).
At this time, the Jewish people reject Jesus Christ as being the hoped–for Messiah. However, Jesus has promised to return to the earth and at that time, the Jews will accept Him. Jesus prophesied of this:
“‘O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!”’” (Matthew 23:37-39).
Jesus made a remarkable statement about Jews when He told a Samaritan woman, “‘…SALVATION IS OF THE JEWS’” (John 4:22).
The Messiah, God’s Son, was a Jew.
We plan to follow-up with more information which deals with the Jewish people—especially considering the modern day role of the State of Israel.
Additional references:
Was the State of Israel Prophesied?
Who will build the Temple of Ezekiel? Part 1
Who will build the Temple of Ezekiel? Part 2
Who will build the Temple of Ezekiel? Part 3
Lead Writer: Dave Harris
Good News!
World news is bad news—wars, disease epidemics, acts of violence, political turmoil–these are the kind of reports we read and hear about. It is the unavoidable reality of our time.
Added to this are countless conspiracy theories of alien invaders, poisonous chemtrails, secret ruling societies and a host of other troubling or suspiciously fabricated rumors about occurrences happening around the world. Separating truth from fiction is a daunting challenge.
Yet, there is a true message of real hope being given! It is identified in the Bible as the “gospel.” It is the same news Jesus Christ proclaimed as noted in Mark 1, verse 15, when He said, “‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.’”
The word, gospel, is derived from a Greek transliteration, euaggelion, meaning “good news.” The Church of God has carried forward the preaching of the gospel. It is a message about God’s Kingdom being established on the earth. It forecasts the end of bad news and promises a time of unending peace, joy and eternal life:
“Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.’ Then He who sat on the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new.’ And He said to me, ‘Write, for these words are true and faithful’” (Revelation 21:1-5).
This good news has been written in advance to strengthen us, “upon whom the ends of the ages have come” (1 Corinthians 10:11). Our challenge is to see through the darkness that now surrounds us and to continually look forward to the future God has promised:
“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:1-2).
The good news is that God’s Kingdom is coming—very soon!
National Captivity is Near!
The focus of this sermon is NATIONAL CAPTIVITY – a time of God’s punishment. It is about our day and the immediate future we now face!
Other People
In our world of violent extremism, other people don’t seem to matter! However, we must reject this approach, because Christians are people who love other people!