Live Services
Comments on News and Prophecy (September 5, 2020) / “We Know!”–But Do We… Really?
On September 5, 2020, Norbert Link will present “Comments on News and Prophecy (September 5, 2020),” and he will also present the sermon, titled, “We Know!”–But Do We… Really?
The live services are available, over video and audio, at http://eternalgod.org/live-services/ (12:30 pm Pacific Time; 1:30 pm Mountain Time; 2:30 pm Central Time; 3:30 pm Eastern Time; 8:30 pm Greenwich Mean Time; 9:30 pm Central European Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.
Editorial
Broadcasting Damage
by Brian Gale (United Kingdom)
I remember that some time ago in the UK there was some controversy about the merits, or otherwise, of radio and telephone masts.
One mobile telephone company wanted to install new aerial transmitters in every region of the country over the following two years in order to give the emergency services a comprehensive new digital communications network. But, it seemed that there were growing fears about the health risks of the new transmitters, which some experts regarded as more dangerous than conventional mobile telephone masts.
Some studies had suggested that radio waves around this frequency could cause calcium to leak from the brain and other tissue. This in turn could trigger damage to the nervous and immune systems. One biophysicist said that the electromagnetic radiation could also cause mood swings, headaches, sleep disruption and short-term memory loss. It could even retard the academic development of children.
Of course, for every argument, there is always a counter argument. But the point was that there were those who were concerned and worried about the damage that could be caused by such broadcasting devices.
But there is a spiritual parallel and this is what came to my mind. Worrying about the damage that can be caused by such broadcasting devices is a legitimate concern but worrying about the spiritual application should be an even greater concern. Broadcasting devices may well cause damage; Satan’s broadcasting, certainly and irrefutably, can, and does cause massive damage!
In his book “Mystery of the Ages” on pages 143/144, Mr Herbert W Armstrong makes these insightful comments under the heading “Satan -the Master Broadcaster”:
“In Ephesians 2:2, Satan is called the prince of the power of the air, working in-inside the minds of-people. I could never have understood this until: 1) I had understood how radio and television sounds and pictures are transmitted through the air; and 2) I had learned the truth about the human spirit in the human brain. If your radio is set on the proper radio wavelength, or television set is tuned to the proper channel, the broadcaster’s message comes through clearly. Satan as prince of the power of the air broadcasts-not in words, sounds or pictures, but in attitudes, moods, impulses.
“For example, we read in Ezra 1:1, when King Cyrus of Persia issued a proclamation to send a colony of Jews back to Jerusalem to build the second Temple, he was moved to do so because God stirred up his human spirit-in other words, put the suggestion and impulse in his mind, and the king acted on it. In the same manner Satan moves on the human spirit within people to move them in attitudes of envy, jealousy, resentment, impatience, anger, bitterness and strife. People have no realization of the tremendous power of Satan. The human spirit within each human is automatically tuned to Satan’s wavelength. It seems as if Satan has surcharged the air over the entire earth with his attitude of self-centeredness and vanity.”
The broadcasting systems of men require masts and poles and other equipment because they are all physical. These are necessary items for their equipment to function effectively. Without them, reception would be fuzzy, difficult and, in some cases, non-existent.
Not so with Satan. Our adversary requires no such paraphernalia! His broadcasting is without any physical props whatsoever. He broadcasts, as Mr Armstrong wrote, in terms of attitudes, moods and impulses and is crystal clear at all times. He makes sure that there is no interference in his broadcasting except when it comes to the people of God who can use the gift of the Holy Spirit to thwart his broadcasting and purposes. However, some of the programmes that are broadcast on radio and television today have Satan as their author, anyway! While the transmissions of men may be for the good of mankind at times, the broadcasting of Satan is always to the detriment of its recipients.
In his editorial last week, Robb Harris made these insightful comments: “When we listen to the news, we are bombarded with a never-ending amount of ‘facts’—all aimed at telling a story from a certain perspective. And the select details that are brought to light are often based on the opinions of the speaker. The truth of a situation in today’s political and social environment is designed to push people into a specific mindset. The tendency of man is to build a narrative based more on ego and vanity than on verity.”
The opinions of these “newscasters”, as Mr Harris mentions, are rarely from a godly perspective and so often “worldly” and we know who the god of this world is (see 2 Corinthians 4:4 for confirmation of this!).
God tells us through the apostle Peter to “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). We know from many other Scriptures that Satan is the father of lies and so any broadcasting that is done by him will not be truthful. He is the accuser of the brethren, and he seeks to destroy, and if his broadcasting system can achieve that end, then he will use it to the maximum.
And so we have quite a comparison: a good analogy between the concerns that people in the world have about the problems that may be caused by broadcasting equipment and the concerns that we—you and I as the people of God—should have, and must have, about the broadcasting that Satan the Devil is involved in.
However, there is one big difference—in fact a huge, massive, life and death difference. Physical concerns, while real and difficult to deal with, are in the here and now. Spiritual concerns—as in Satan’s Broadcasting System—have the potential of causing us not physical problems and death, but, most importantly of all, spiritual death.
Now, that is something that we must campaign against on an individual level and something that we must truly be on our guard against.
Current Events
by Norbert Link
We begin with reporting on Russia’s ambitions in Alaska and Belarus; the poisoning of Russian Opposition Leader Alexei Navalny; the fight between the USA and Germany over the Russian Nord Stream pipeline; Turkey’s ambitions in Lebanon and the Middle East; ongoing violence in the USA; hunger in the USA; and terrible atrocities by BLM protestors.
We speak on mean conduct by a county in California against a church; the warning against rushing out a coronavirus vaccine too soon; and further scientific evidence that the number of corona cases is terribly inflated and that lockdowns are useless.
We also speak on huge protests in Berlin, Germany, against coronavirus restrictions, with Robert F Kennedy Jr. being present; as well as the typical incorrect and sickening reporting in the “mainstream” media and the “outrage” of Germany’s federal government and the predictable “retaliation” of Berlin’s local government [please view our new StandingWatch program, “Is Germany again on Its Way to a Dictatorship?” ]; on harsh and ridiculous penalties in the UK for Corona measures “violators”; and on a totally different approach in Italy.
Throughout this section, we have underlined pertinent statements in the quoted articles, for the convenience and quick overview of the reader.
This Week in the News
Russia’s Ambitions regarding Alaska
The Associated Press wrote on August 28:
“The Russian navy conducted major war games near Alaska involving dozens of ships and aircraft, the military said Friday, the biggest such drills in the area since Soviet times… more than 50 warships and about 40 aircraft were taking part in the exercise in the Bering Sea, which involved multiple practice missile launches…
“Russia has prioritized boosting its military presence in the Arctic region, which is believed to hold up to one-quarter of the Earth’s undiscovered oil and gas. Russian President Vladimir Putin has cited estimates that put the value of Arctic mineral riches at $30 trillion…
“The Russian military has expanded the number and the scope of its war games in recent years as Russia-West relations have sunk to their lowest level since the Cold War after Russia’s 2014 annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, and other crises.”
Russia has had its eyes on Alaska for a long time.
Russia Ready to Intervene in Belarus
TRT World wrote on August 28:
“Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has agreed with Russian President Vladimir Putin that their countries could unite their troops in the event of a threat from the West… Lukashenko… is facing the biggest challenge in his 26 years in power after protests and strikes erupted following a contested August 9 election… Lukashenko ordered half of the country’s army to enter combat preparedness…
“The EU… is preparing sanctions against his regime for ballot fraud and a violent crackdown on opposition protesters… German Chancellor Angela Merkel… said she has also tried to call Lukashenko, but that he has refused to speak with her thus far.”
It seems that Russia’s intervention in Belarus is only a matter of time. Belarus will not become a part of the EU. Neither will Ukraine.
Lukashenko Plays Hardball
Deutsche Welle wrote on August 29:
“Authorities in Belarus stripped several foreign media journalists of their press accreditation on Saturday, with some reportedly facing expulsion from the country. Journalists working for news agencies Agence France Presse and the Associated Press as well as British broadcaster BBC, German public broadcaster ARD and US broadcaster Radio Liberty had their accreditation stripped.
“German broadcaster ARD said that one of their camera teams was arrested overnight despite having the appropriate accreditation. They were released in the morning after authorities withdrew their accreditation and ordered two Russian members of the team to leave the country. Their Belarusian producer has been threatened with legal action… the Belarusian Association of Journalists spoke of a massive wave of accreditation withdrawals for journalists working for foreign TV, radio, newspapers and news agencies.”
The Associated Press added on August 30:
“Belarus on Saturday cracked down hard on foreign news media that have been covering the protests, deporting at least four Russian journalists, including two from The Associated Press. The government also revoked the accreditation of many Belarusian journalists working for foreign new agencies, including journalists working for AP.”
VOA News reported on August 29:
“Lukashenko… said he would block neighboring European countries from shipping goods to Russia over Belarusian territory and divert Belarusian exports now shipped through ports in neighboring EU member Lithuania to other outlets.
“‘If they, Poles and Lithuanians, used to fly through us to China and Russia, now they will fly through the Baltic or through the Black Sea to trade with Russia, and so on, and they can only dream of sanctioned products, those products on which Russia has imposed an embargo,’ he said. Lithuania, Poland and Latvia have called for Europe to take stronger action against Lukashenko…”
Demonstrations Ongoing
The Associated Press wrote on August 30:
“Tens of thousands of demonstrators rallied Sunday in the Belarusian capital of Minsk to begin the fourth week of daily protests demanding that the country’s authoritarian president resign… There were no official figures on the crowd size, but some opposition sources claimed it exceeded 100,000…
“Putin and Lukashenko talked by phone on Sunday, but a Kremlin statement gave few details of the conversation, other than noting that Putin congratulated the Belarusian leader on his 66th birthday.”
The situation in Belarus is nearing its boiling point.
Merkel: Russian Opposition Leader Navalny Was Poisoned
Deutsche Welle wrote on September 2:
“Angela Merkel said there was ‘shocking information’ that showed ‘beyond a doubt’ that the apparent poisoning of Alexei Navalny was ‘an attempted murder with nerve agent’ after a toxicology test in Germany showed that the opposition leader had been targeted with Novichok. Merkel said Navalny was ‘the victim of a crime intended to silence him.’
“She said the gravity of that fact made it important for her to ‘take a clear stance.’ The chancellor said the case raises ‘very serious questions that only the Russian government can answer — and must answer,’ adding, ‘the world will wait for an answer.’…
“Berlin will now confer with its EU and NATO partners to discuss an appropriate reaction to the incident… Calling for a united diplomatic reaction in her statement, Merkel said, ‘The crime against Alexei Navalny was aimed at the fundamental values and rights for which we stand.’”
It will remain to be seen what “diplomatic” measures the EU and NATO are willing to take against Russia.
The Nord Stream Pipeline–Resisting the USA “from the Beginning!”
Der Spiegel wrote on August 28:
“Threats of sanctions from the U.S. have put a stop to the construction of the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. The multibillion-euro project is now at risk, and leading German politicians are not amused. … It’s not just environmentalists who have spent years resisting the project. Many of Germany’s European Union partners, particularly Poland and the Baltic countries, see it as a strategic error since it makes Europe dependent on Russian gas… the German government has stubbornly pursued its completion, and now, the two 1,230-kilometer-long pipelines beneath the Baltic Sea from the Narva Bay in Russia to the German town of Lubmin is virtually finished. Only about 150 kilometers still have to be laid.
“Now, though, U.S. President Donald Trump could torpedo the project at the very last moment. Washington is currently threatening to impose sanctions on companies that are involved in the pipeline. Both houses of Congress are intending to expand the Sanctions Act to include the pipeline. Construction has currently been halted due to concern over the potential sanctions… U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has announced that the pipeline falls under 2017 Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), effective immediately. The act was originally passed as a lever against enemies like Iran and North Korea, but now Germany has also become a target of extraterritorial sanctions…
“Placing Germany on the same level as Iran and North Korea in the debate over the pipeline marks a new low in the German-American relationship. ‘Sanctions between partners is clearly the wrong path. Germany and Europe make their own decisions about energy policy,’ said German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, a member of the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD). He was echoed by Manuela Schwesig, the SPD governor of the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, which is where Mukran Port is located and has borne the brunt of the halt in construction. ‘The behavior of the U.S. government is scandalous,’ she said. ‘We can’t accept that. I expect the federal government to make it clear to the U.S. that we do not accept such behavior.’
“But it’s not that easy. For Berlin, the conflict with the U.S. is a sensitive tightrope walk. On the one hand, it must try to protect domestic companies from the American aggression. On the other, it makes Berlin look even more like a sponsor of the project, which promises to provide a significant financial boost to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Given the recent poisoning of Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny, calls for sanctions against Putin have grown louder. Were Berlin to now step in on behalf of the multibillion-euro joint project, say critics, it would seem rather counterproductive. Indeed, there have been increasing demands for Germany to end its involvement in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline… At the same time, though, it would be a victory for Washington and Trump’s foreign policy, which many have begun to view as a form of extortion….
“Germans have underestimated the danger eminating from Putin’s Russia. The suspicion is that the pipeline is part of his geo-political ambitions, giving him yet another lever with which he can exert pressure. It would allow him to simply cut off the gas supply to countries formerly in the Soviet sphere of influence without affecting flows to customers further to the west. Slovakia, Bulgaria, Romania, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia and Estonia are all dependent on natural gas from Russia. At greatest risk, however, is Ukraine, where Russia has been supporting separatists in the country’s far east for many years. Some 40 percent of the natural gas imported by the EU from Russia flows through Ukraine…
That, in turn, will allow Moscow to exert more pressure on Kiev, thus potentially sabotaging the country’s attempts to establish closer ties to Europe…
“Many EU countries that have thus far been critical of the pipeline, however, felt the need to show solidarity with Germany in the face of the harsh U.S. sanctions. In mid-August, 24 of the 27 EU member states sent the State Department a sternly worded note of protest in the form of a video conference. Hungary, Latvia and Romania did not join the protest… Should the U.S. find success with its bullying tactics, says one diplomat, every EU member state would have to prepare for being a U.S. target at some point – and thus dependent on assistance from its partners in the bloc. Today, the focus is on Nord Stream 2, ‘but tomorrow it could be on computers, ships, cars or something else,’ says Daniel Caspary, head of the German conservatives group in the European Parliament. ‘We have to resist at the beginning.’”
Europe’s intent to gang up with Germany against the USA is only too obvious.
Turkey Grants Citizenship to Hamas Operatives
Breaking Israel News wrote on August 28:
“The Telegraph reported its reporter had seen Turkish identity papers issued to at least one of 12 senior Hamas operatives. At least seven of the operatives were granted citizenship and issued an 11-digit identity number and passports, while the five remaining Hamas operatives are in the process of receiving passports… Turkish passports would allow the operatives to travel extensively around the world.
“In a shocking revelation, the Telegraph reported that all of the 12 operatives were released and deported from Israel under the Shalit Deal of 2011, in which 1,027 mostly Palestinian prisoners were released in exchange for an Israeli soldier. Two-hundred and eighty of these had been sentenced to life in prison for planning and perpetrating various attacks against Israeli targets. Hamas military leader Ahmed Jabari was quoted… as confirming that the prisoners released under the deal were collectively responsible for the killing of 569 Israelis.”
The Bible does not have too many good things to say about end-time Turkey.
Turkey’s Ambitions in Lebanon
The Jerusalem Post wrote on August 27:
“… officials in Lebanon are concerned at increased indications of Turkish efforts to build strength and influence in the country. The report quoted two sources in Lebanese intelligence, who mentioned recent Turkish efforts to bring [‘an incredible amount of’] weapons into northern Lebanon…
“Turkey is actively involved using both its own forces and proxies in the two fragmented Arab countries to Lebanon’s east – Syria and Iraq. The deployments in both countries already have the look of the long term about them, with clearly defined areas of control. Turkey is also active in Libya…
“To these areas add Turkey’s aggressive naval stance in the Eastern Mediterranean, and its active backing of Hamas in Gaza and the West Bank and of Islamist organizations in Jerusalem. All these add up to a strategy in which Ankara is seeking to emerge as the main strategic beneficiary of the chaos and fragmentation that has gripped much of the region over the last decade….
“The fragile Lebanese sectarian balance has been shattered over the last decade by the entry of around one million overwhelmingly Sunni Syrian refugees… Sunni Islamist Turkey is seeking to fill the vacuum, and to recruit the Lebanese Sunni street to its banner…”
Turkey would love to become the leader of Sunni nations, but this will never happen. For instance, Saudi Arabia would never agree to this.
Trump Accepts Republican Nomination
Deutsche Welle wrote on August 28:
“In a speech delivered from a huge stage on the White House front lawn he… described the upcoming election as ‘the most important in the history of our country.’ In an attack on his Democrat rival Joe Biden, he said there had never been ‘a clearer choice between two parties, two visions, two philosophies… Joe Biden is not a savior of America’s soul, he is a destroyer of America’s jobs and if given the chance he will be the destroyer of American greatness,’ Trump said…
“The location of Trump’s speech broke tradition and regulations of not using the White House mansion for purely political events. There was no social distancing in place for the crowd sat watching the speech and face masks were not required…
“Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday [accepted] his… nomination. He defended police and called for an end to unrest in cities where violence broke out following anti-police demonstrations… He added: ‘We’re not going to defund the police. Not now, not ever.’”
The coming election might very well turn out to be the most important one in the history of the USA, as it might be the last one.
South Dakota under Attack
KELO wrote on August 28:
“Right now South Dakota has the highest number of active Covid-19 cases since the pandemic started. There were 2,182 active cases in the state as of Friday’s briefing from the State Department of Health. But Governor Noem says that’s not the number she’s most concerned about.
“‘What we’ve always been focused on is the hospitalization numbers,’ Noem said. ‘We’ve seen a little bit of an increase in those as well but previously for the last several weeks they’ve been declining. I think we’re exactly where we thought we would be.’”
Satan is very anxious to try to destroy South Dakota and with it the feast site for the Church of the Eternal God. But he will not prevail.
Deadly Violence in Portland, Oregon
The Associated Press reported on August 30:
“Police issued a plea early Sunday for videos, photos or eyewitness accounts of a fatal shooting in Portland, Oregon, that unfolded after hundreds of supporters of President Donald Trump clashed with Black Lives Matter protesters in the streets of the city. The shooting late Saturday night came about 15 minutes after a caravan of about 600 vehicles that were part of a pro-Trump rally left downtown, police said. It wasn’t clear if the shooting was related to the clashes between Trump supporters and counterprotesters in Oregon’s largest city, which has become a flashpoint in the national Black Lives Matter protests…
“On Sunday, Trump issued a flurry of tweets and retweets including several that blamed Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler for the death… Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf blamed local officials for failing ‘to protect their communities.’…”
Breitbart added on August 30:
“Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) issued a statement on Sunday blaming President Donald Trump for the violence seen across American cities, particularly in Portland, after a Trump supporter was shot and killed. Brown’s comments came after months of inaction by local authorities to wrangle violent protests across the city of Portland under Mayor Ted Wheeler…
“Since the death of George Floyd, Portland has become a hot spot for violent crime, including the burning and looting of buildings, the tearing down of statues and monuments, and various shootings. Police in Portland have been left to fend for themselves with little to no backing from state or local officials.
“Protests across Portland for the past few months have been mostly anti-police. One group took to the streets to burn the American flag and copies of the Bible. Another group set ablaze a severed pig’s head, donned with a cop hat sitting atop an American flag.”
This hypocrisy by Oregon’s Democratic governor and Portland’s incompetent mayor will undoubtedly help Trump in November’s election.
Hunger in the USA
Bloomberg wrote on September 2:
“The ranks of Americans fighting hunger are projected to swell some 45% this year to more than 50 million… About one-third of those relying on food shelves, large-scale and emergency food distributions now are doing so for the first time… In parts of Minnesota, that number is closer to 70%.
“During the pandemic, about a 10th of American households reported they haven’t had enough food in a given week. That’s a shocking figure for the world’s richest country. It’s more than double pre-Covid figures and the highest since comparable government data [started] in 1995… lockdowns have snarled supply chains, and food inflation is projected to rise at the fastest pace in almost a decade. Meanwhile, unemployment, low wages and reduced working hours are diminishing purchasing power—all of which are disproportionately impacting women and minorities, as is food insecurity…”
Terrible consequences of lockdown measures…
Black Lives Matter… That’s How the Nazis Began
The Daily Mail wrote on August 27:
“The footage could hardly be more chilling, like something from the wilder fringes of Hollywood’s dystopian imagination. A woman sits at a table, recoiling in fear. She is penned in, surrounded by a mob of masked men and women, their clenched fists raised menacingly in the air. Again and again the rhythmic chants go up: ‘White silence is violence! No justice, no peace!’ The woman shrinks further back in her chair. The mob moves in. Some of them lean into her face. They stand over her, fists raised, shrieking and shouting, demanding that she too raises her arm in salute. On and on it goes. Nobody comes to her defence. It’s an awful scene, reminiscent of the street scenes in Germany in the spring of 1933, when Nazi thugs demanded that ordinary people raise their arms in homage to Hitler.
“But this is not Germany in 1933… This was Washington DC, one of the great capitals of the democratic West, just two days ago. The woman’s name was Lauren Victor, and her crime was to have been spotted having dinner outside a Washington restaurant. The mob were, inevitably, Black Lives Matter protesters, roaming the streets of the US capital during their latest demonstrations about alleged police brutality towards black Americans. According to an appalled reporter from the Washington Post, the predominantly white activists were trying to force ordinary diners to raise their fists and join in with their chants. Miss Victor, an urban planner, said no.
“Ironically, it turns out she had previously been on Black Lives Matter marches herself, but now she just wanted to have her dinner in peace. ‘It didn’t feel right,’ she said afterwards, adding that she felt ‘under attack’. That seems a remarkably understated way of putting it. I wonder how many of us, in Miss Victor’s shoes, would show the same grace and guts under such horrendous pressure. In almost every detail, it’s a scene that turns your stomach.
“The snarls of aggression and ritual chanting are nothing new. Neither is the hysterical, bullying tone of the protesters. But the facemasks give the episode a deeply sinister feel. So do the ubiquitous camera phones, held up as if the protesters are recording Miss Victor’s non-compliance for some future show trial. In America, the pictures inspired well-deserved horror. Many moderate black leaders were quick to express their condemnation, and even some Black Lives Matter protesters were eager to distance themselves… for weeks now it has been obvious that whatever its origins, the Black Lives Matter movement has become a nihilistic, monomaniacal cult…
“It is now perilously close to fascism – not, perhaps, the same kind of fascism practised by Hitler, Himmler, Goering and Goebbels, but fascism of a peculiarly sinister 21st-century variety. Like all true fascists, the most extreme BLM supporters have a crude… view of history… They believe that through the fires of destruction – ‘defunding’ the police, tearing down statues, emptying museums – humanity can be purged…
“Over time, it has become glaringly obvious that the BLM movement is largely driven by rich, white, expensively educated Left-wing university graduates, like the people involved with Oxford’s Rhodes Must Fall movement. A year ago, they were marching behind the banners of Extinction Rebellion. But anti-racism has become their new status symbol… Their sacred cause permits them to break whatever laws they like…
“It is no exaggeration to say that these self-styled activists will not rest until every museum has been remodelled, every patriotic hymn suppressed, every country house ‘contextualised’, every employee re-educated, every curriculum rewritten. That, too, is how fascism works. There is only one way to stop them. They cannot be appeased, for with every concession their appetite grows. We cannot ignore them and hope they will go away. Nor can we go along with them and hope they leave us alone. The only way to beat them is to stand up to them, and say: ‘No.’”
This is awful conduct! The comparison with Nazi behavior in the 1930s is well deserved.
Californian County Retaliates against Church—“The Essence of Tyranny”
The Washington Free Beacon wrote on August 31:
“A California church challenged local coronavirus restrictions on worship services, and county authorities responded by canceling the church’s five-decade-old lease.
“County officials informed Grace Community Church that it will terminate its decades-old lease on a parking lot after the church filed a lawsuit over local restrictions against in-person worship. The county told the church in a letter it intends to terminate the lease of a large section of the parking lot that the church leases, threatening to forcibly remove any of the church’s property that remained in the lot. ‘If Grace fails to vacate the premise as required, the District may enter the premises and remove Grace’s personal property in accordance with the Agreement and applicable law, and Grace will be responsible for any resultant expenses incurred by the District,’ the letter states.
“Jenna Ellis, special counsel to the Thomas More Society, said the move is meant to punish a religious organization for requesting the same privileges afforded to protesters. She accused county officials of attempting to ‘abuse their power through burdensome, restrictive, and unconstitutional orders’ and retaliate against those who object. ‘L.A. County is clearly trying to evict Grace Church from use of their parking lot for no other reason than because Pastor John [MacArthur] stood firm and is challenging their power,’ she said. ‘This is the essence of tyranny.’
“The church has leased the parking lot since 1975 without interruption. The county has given the church until October 1 to vacate the lot… The church returned to in-person indoor services in July following more than a month of protests tied to the Black Lives Matter movement. While state and local officials turned a blind eye to—and in some cases participated in—the demonstrations that attracted tens of thousands of people, church leaders filed suit. The lawsuit argues that the ongoing state and local coronavirus restrictions violate the church’s First Amendment rights and unconstitutionally favor political protests over religious services. The church won a temporary victory last week when a judge rejected the county’s attempt to obtain a temporary restraining order to shut down church services…”
Shameful and SO hypocritical!
Don’t Rush out a Vaccine too Soon!
CNN wrote on September 1:
“Vaccine experts are warning the federal government against rushing out a coronavirus vaccine before testing has shown it’s both safe and effective. Decades of history show why they’re right…
“On April 12, 1955 the government announced the first vaccine to protect kids against polio. Within days, labs had made thousands of lots of the vaccine. Batches made by one company, Cutter Labs, accidentally contained live polio virus and it caused an outbreak. More than 200,000 children got the polio vaccine, but within days the government had to abandon the program… From 1955 to 1963, between 10% and 30% of polio vaccines were contaminated with simian virus 40 (SV40)… It was being transferred to millions of Americans…
“In 1976, scientists predicted a pandemic of a new strain of influenza called swine flu. More than 40 years later, some historians call it ‘flu epidemic that never was… Ford was being cajoled to put forward a vaccine that was hastily put together… Ford made the decision to make the immunization compulsory. The government launched the program in about seven months and 40 million people got vaccinated against swine flu, according to the CDC. That vaccination campaign was later linked to cases of a neurological disorder called Guillain-Barre syndrome…
“It took several incidents for people to start distrusting vaccines…
“A too-early EUA for a vaccine could cause a ‘nightmare scenario,’ for a few reasons. One, the vaccine may not be safe. Two, if it is not safe, people will lose faith in vaccines. Three, if a vaccine doesn’t offer complete protection, people will have a false sense of security and increase their risk. Four, if a substandard vaccine gets an EUA, a better vaccine may never get approval, because people would be reluctant to enroll in trials and risk getting a placebo instead of a vaccine….”
And fifth, even “safe” vaccines are not safe, as they all have the risks of serious side effects.
Inflated Figures and Lockdown Useless and Harmful
Collective Evolution wrote on August 30:
“According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), out of all the deaths that have been labelled as a COVID-19 death in the United States so far, for 6% of them ‘COVID-19 was the only cause mentioned’ and for 94% of the deaths, there were other causes and conditions in addition to COVID-19. The CDC states that ‘for deaths with conditions or causes in addition to COVID-19, on average, there were 2.6 additional conditions or causes per death.’
“…[For] the majority of deaths that have been attributed to COVID-19, the new virus may not have been the cause of the death… There have also been many claims around the internet that people who have died in car accidents and other causes have been marked as a Covid death if they test positive… a study published in Italy shows that 99 percent of people who had died so far from COVID 19 at the time of the study had pre-existing medical conditions that made them more susceptible to death… we do not see people who die of a heart attack tested to see if they have the flu. What’s been happening here is that if someone dies of a heart-attack but tests positive for COVID-19, it’s also marked as a covid death…
“There have been some eye-opening statements from health authorities all over the world that seem to have emphasized that some deaths that are clearly not a result of covid, but of something else, have again, also been marked as a covid death if the patient tested positive. This has been a common theme throughout the pandemic. For example, Dr. Ngozi Ezike, Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, recently stated that, even if it’s clear one died of an alternative cause, their death will still be marked as a COVID death… Toronto Public Health tweeted in late June that ‘Individuals who have died with COVID-19, but not as a result of COVID-19, are included in the case counts for COVID-19 deaths in Toronto.’
“The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment announced a change to how it tallies coronavirus deaths amid complaints that it inflated numbers… Vittorio Sgarbi, Italian politician Mayor of Sutri, gave an emotional speech at a hearing on the 24th of April where he emphasized that the number of deaths in Italy due to COVID-19 are completely false and that the people are being lied to. He stated his belief that governments were doing this to exercise more control over the population. This sentiment echoes the thoughts of many notable people, like Dr. Ron Paul for example…
“It’s also important to mention the research and opinions of many health experts who have been emphasizing that the case-fatality rate of COVID-19 is very similar to a severe flu. For example, Ronald B. Brown, Ph.D., from the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada says, based on his research, that the coronavirus fatality rates we were/are given represents ‘Worst Miscalculation in Human History.’ Dr. Brown added that CDC and WHO documents show that the case fatality rate for influenza was similar to the coronavirus, implying that the lockdowns were pointless. His paper questions why the 2017-2018 influenza season in the United States did not ‘receive the same intensive media coverage as COVID-19.’
“The Physicians For Informed Consent (PIC) recently published a report titled ‘Physicians for Informed Consent (PIC) Compares COVID-19 to Previous Seasonal and Pandemic Flu Periods.’ According to them, the infection/fatality rate of COVID-19 is 0.26%… Many doctors and scientists around the world have been emphasizing from the very beginning that lockdown measures [are] completely unnecessary, harmful, and don’t really make any sense. For example, more than 500 German doctors & scientists have… expressed the same thing multiple times early on in the pandemic all the way up to today…
“What makes it even more important is that the thousands of scientists and doctors all over the world who are sharing opinions, research, and data that seems to contradict what we’ve been given from organizations like the World Health Organization (WHO) are being heavily censored, and in some cases ridiculed. A lot of the information presented in this article is never really presented by the mainstream media, and as a result the masses are usually beamed with a one-sided perception while these same networks simply ridicule and label any opposing information that threatens their narrative as a ‘conspiracy theory.’…
“We live in a world where big interests seem to dominate politics and science… Understanding what’s going on here, or at least attempting to through the process of critical thinking and questioning, is all part of the process. In an ideal world there would be complete transparency of all issues, but today we have a digital authoritarian ‘fact-checker’ that seems to be patrolling the internet telling people what is and what isn’t instead of allowing people to make up their own minds. You are not stupid, and you have the ability to think for yourself! Don’t ever forget that.”
Very well expressed! Also, the Ron Paul Institute wrote on September 2 about the “Pelosi-Gate: House Speaker’s Hair-Raising Hypocrisy,” continuing:
“US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was busted yesterday, sneaking in to a beauty salon in San Francisco for a shampoo. Salons in California had been closed for months to ‘fight Covid’ but the Speaker obviously believes that some people are more equal than others.”
Robert F Kennedy at Berlin Anti-Corona Demonstrations
BBC News reported on August 29:
“Some 38,000 people took to the streets in [Berlin] for mostly peaceful demonstrations… Similar rallies took [place] in other European cities… Thousands gathered in London’s Trafalgar Square to protest against issues including coronavirus restrictions… Similar protests took place in Paris, Vienna and Zurich…
“The protests have also gained support from Robert F Kennedy Jr. The anti-vaccination campaigner, also the son of assassinated US Democratic presidential hopeful Robert F Kennedy and nephew of assassinated US President John F Kennedy, is at the demonstrations in Berlin.
“Mr Kennedy told the crowd at the Victory Column that his uncle had famously addressed Berlin in 1963 to counter totalitarianism and that ‘today Berlin is again the front against totalitarianism’, warning of a surveillance state…’”
The Irish Times wrote on August 29:
“Robert F Kennedy, a US vaccination sceptic, praised the cheering crowd for pushing back against what he called efforts to spread fear in the pandemic and impose a new surveillance state. Half a century after his uncle visited Berlin, then a cold war frontier against totalitarianism, Mr Kennedy delighted the crowd by repeating his uncle’s most famous slogan, but in a very different context. ‘Today Berlin is once again a front against totalitarianism,’ he said to huge cheers. ‘And that is why I’m proud to say, ‘Ich bin ein Berliner.’”
Spahn Criticizes Demonstration
Die Süddeutsche Zeitung reported on August 30:
“Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) [criticized] on Saturday the demonstration in Berlin against the corona-virus. ‚It showed a lack of solidarity and was deeply unpatriotic, not to wear masks, not to practice social distancing, and thereby to jeopardize others,’ Spahn said.”
Maybe Herr Spahn should check the meaning of the words “patriotic” and “lack of solidarity.” It is interesting that even the higher court, allowing the demonstration, thereby overruling the appeal of the police in Berlin, did not demand the wearing of masks, even though it did require social distancing. However, just about two hours after the demonstration started, police called off the protest, citing as justification the disregard for social distancing rules. According to reports which we received, the police provoked the protestors from the outset. They blocked all side streets and they kept delaying the start of the demonstration in an apparent attempt to prevent social distancing. This then was used by the police as “justification” to call off the demonstration. It was reported that demonstrators held posters that read “stop the coronavirus madness” and “end the coronavirus dictatorship,” and a protest leader called for Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government to resign.
German Politicians Conveniently Outraged over Reichstag Incident
Fox News reported on August 30:
“German police forcibly removed far-right protesters and others who stormed the parliament building in Berlin following a protest against the country’s strict coronavirus restrictions. Police dispersed the protesters after they broke away from a large peaceful demonstration, breached a security barrier and then ran up the steps of the Reichstag late Saturday… Scuffles broke out as police drove back the demonstrators with pepper spray…”
What has been consistently “overlooked” in the mainstream media and the “scandal-mass” tabloids is the fact that those who “stormed” the Parliament building (they never entered it) were a few people who were not part of the demonstration, but acted, “following” the demonstration.
Deutsche Welle reported on August 29:
“President Frank-Walter Steinmeier described the incident as an ‘unbearable attack on the heart of our democracy.’
“Foreign Minister Heiko Maas tweeted: ‘It is shameful to have flags of the German Reich in front of Parliament.’ ‘Nazi symbols and flags of the Reichsbürgers and of Imperial Germany have no place in the German Bundestag,’ wrote Finance Minister Olaf Scholz…
“Authorities arrested around 300 people… Around 200 of those were detained in front of the Russian embassy…”
200 or 300 allegedly “violent” people out of 38.000 mostly peaceful demonstrators! According to reports and video material posted on social media, the police acted or reacted very violently against the protestors in front of the Reichstag building or the Russian embassy. Most of them were average citizens and NOT Nazis or far right protestors. Typical propaganda of the mass media in an attempt to manipulate the public! Will this incident be used by Germany’s politicians as a further excuse for prohibiting any anti-corona demonstrations from now on? A macabre parallel could be drawn from the famous Reichstagsbrand in 1933, allegedly perpetrated by a socialist Jew (although some feel that the Nazis themselves were behind the fire), which was then used by Hitler to enact autocratic laws and suspend civil liberties.
The ”comments” by German President Steinmeier on Monday were quite interesting in this regard. He said, as reported by Deutsche Welle, dated August 31:
“My understanding ends where demonstrators allow themselves to be harnessed to the carts of the enemies of democracy and the political agitators, those who seek cooperation with right-wing extremists on the street, but also those who simply walk — without being concerned — alongside neo-Nazis, xenophobes and anti-Semites. Those who don’t clearly and actively separate themselves from them, make common cause with them.”
As mentioned above, there is no evidence that those who “stormed” the Reichstag were right-wing extremists, neo-Nazis, xenophobes and anti-Semites. But even allowing Steinmeier’s comments to be accurate, with that rationale, EVERY demonstration could be prohibited, as some “political agitators” will always be mingling with peaceful protesters. Maybe this is what the German government wants to achieve. Due to the one-sided political reporting of Germany’s mass media and tabloids, a discussion as to whether to ban all anti-Corona protests has already begun.
It Was SO Predictable
Deutsche Welle wrote on September 1:
“In Berlin, anybody taking part in a rally of over 100 people [will] soon be required to wear a face mask [beginning this Saturday]… Face masks also have to be worn at smaller demonstrations if the protesters chant slogans or sing.
“Berlin Mayor Michael Müller announced the new amendments on Twitter, stating that ‘at open-air meetings of more than 100 people, especially demonstrations, the wearing of a mouth and nose cover is now compulsory.’ Until now masks have only been obligatory in shops and on public transport, as well as for children at school, outside of lessons.
“Alongside the decision to make masks mandatory at protests, further new regulations were also agreed on. These included demanding that anyone who wishes to host a private party such as a wedding or birthday will be responsible for ensuring that safety measures are abided by and to keep track of guests contact details to support the tracing of any possible outbreaks.”
Many New Corona “Cases” in the UK, BUT no deaths
The Daily Mail wrote on August 30:
“Another 1,715 people have tested positive for coronavirus today in the biggest daily rise in 12 weeks…
“But, in a positive sign, the country’s death toll is remaining low as just one person died after testing positive for the disease… There were no new deaths in Scotland for the fourth consecutive day. Wales and Northern Ireland each had no new fatalities for the third straight day.”
And so, the scare tactic continues… Newsmax wrote on August 30: “Health experts say PCR testing is too sensitive and needs to be altered to rule out people who have insignificant amounts of COVID-19 because they’re likely not contagious…”
They must be kidding…
Stiff Fine imposed on Anti Coronavirus Organizer
The Guardian wrote on August 30:
“Piers Corbyn (73) has become one of the first people to receive a £10,000 fixed penalty under new coronavirus laws restricting public gatherings of more than 30 people. The weather forecaster and climate change denier, who is the older brother of the former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, was arrested and fined for his part in organising Saturday’s demonstrations in central London against lockdown restrictions… Corbyn said he was held for 10 hours by police and told officers he and other organisers had filled out all the necessary risk assessments and spent two weeks negotiating with Scotland Yard over the event. He said he planned to challenge the fixed penalty notice in court… Under new changes to regulations, those attending a gathering of more than 30 people may be committing a criminal offence….
“Corbyn’s fine comes after the Met last week dropped a threat to investigate the organiser of another protest on suspicion of breaching coronavirus regulations, after accepting that as a political protest it was exempt.”
What dangerous hypocritical political nonsense.
Another Approach in Italy
Breitbart wrote on August 30:
“The mayor of the Italian town of Sutri north of Rome has established fines for wearing masks except when required by law, insisting that ‘only thieves and terrorists wear masks.’ The contrarian Italian parliamentarian Vittorio Sgarbi, who is also the mayor of Sutri, has been a vocal critic of mask-wearing and other restrictions imposed by the Italian government to address the coronavirus. Mr. Sgarbi announced Saturday that in Sutri ‘anyone found wearing a face mask without need will be fined,’ noting that there are no cases of coronavirus infection in the city. ‘In compliance with the decree of the President of the Council of Ministers, the use of the mask outdoors in the City of Sutri is prohibited for obvious health reasons and indoors except in the case of assemblies,’ the city ordinance reads.
“Mr. Sgarbi said that in all other cases, those found wearing a mask will be fined in compliance with legislation on public order, which prohibits face coverings. ‘The use of protective helmets or any other apparel making it difficult to recognize a person is prohibited in a public places or places open to the public without sufficient reason,’ the law states.
“Mr. Sgarbi also takes aim at certain mask-wearing practices that he finds ‘ridiculous’… ‘the use of the mask in public places, except for employees, appears in evident contrast to the time dedicated to eating that requires taking food without a mask,’ he writes. ‘It therefore seems contradictory that after eating without a mask you get up from the table and put it on. These are ridiculous forms of ostentation that have nothing to do with healthcare needs,’ he concludes.”
His assessment regarding the mandates of wearing masks is quite convincing.
Acknowledgement and Disclaimer
These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.
Q&A
In light of the coronavirus pandemic and the possibility of getting sick when attending church services in person, wouldn’t it be better to stay home and just listen in via the Internet?
As the question suggests, the underlying motivation is one of fear. We have recently published several Q&As on the topic of fear, but in this time of ongoing panic, paranoia and propaganda with the goal of causing people to become afraid and fearful, we need to bring out biblical principles and clear promises from God, assuring us that fear of the future is not inevitable for Christians.
We are going to focus in this Q&A on the many Scriptures which deal with fear of future events—with anxiety as to what our future may bring and what may “happen” to us if we were to act in obedience to God’s commands.
Specifically, and in answering the question raised in this Q&A, we will address concerns of those who may not personally want to attend weekly Sabbath services or assemblies during the annual Holy Days and especially the Feast of Tabernacles, for fear that they might get sick of the coronavirus or of another contagious disease if they did… and especially in those countries or US states without mandatory social distancing measures or mask-wearing mandates.
Would it be permitted in God’s eyes to just stay home and not assemble with God’s people? Would this kind of fear be justified or at least an excuse in God’s eyes? Is such fear even “necessary” or “logical”?
To begin with, God clearly commands us to assemble on God’s Holy Days in person. They are sacred assemblies or holy convocations. In Old Testament times, offerings had to be brought to the LORD (Leviticus 23:8). Even though these animal offerings do not have to be brought today, the implied sense of personal attendance is clear. We are told not to forsake assembling of ourselves together (Hebrews 10:25). Listening in via the Internet is only meant for those who are unable, because of physical handicap or great distance, to attend in person.
Addressing the question of perhaps not attending in person because of fear, we must first of all have the conviction and persuasion that God hears us when we call on Him (Psalm 4:3). When we are convinced that God is on our side, we need not fear or be afraid of the future (Psalm 118:6).
David wrote in Psalm 32:6-7: “For this cause everyone who is godly shall pray to You In a time when You may be found; Surely in a flood of great waters They shall not come near him. You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble…”
Is that our conviction? Do we believe that when we obey God, God is mighty and powerful enough to preserve us from trouble and to prevent that a contagious disease comes near us?
Again, David writes in Psalm 23:4: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”
Right now, we are living in the valley of the shadow of a deadly disease—so we are told. But even if that were true, do we live in fear that we might get sick with it… thereby forgetting that God is with us?
The sons of Korah stated this in Psalm 46:1-3,7:
“… God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, Even though the earth be removed, And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though its waters roar and be troubled, Though the mountains shake with its swelling. Selah… The LORD of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.”
The sons of Korah expressed their confidence in God which would not be shattered even in times of earthquakes and huge tidal waves. How much more confidence in God should we have that He will be a very present help in trouble when we obey His commands to keep His weekly and annual Holy Days?
David also said in Psalm 31:15: “My times are in Your hand.” He knew that nothing could happen to him unless God were to allow it—including his “good” times and “bad” times, as well as the time of his life and the time of his death—and that God would only allow or do in his life what would be best for him. Paul would later say that all things work together for good to those who love God and do His commandments. We read in Psalm 112 that the righteous who “delights greatly in His commandments” (verse 1) “will not be afraid of evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD. His heart is established; He will not be afraid” (verses 7-8).
We ought not be afraid of “evil tidings” that the number of “cases” of coronavirus is climbing in the state where God has placed His name for the Feast of Tabernacles. We must not think that we, as an organization, would be wise to cancel that Feast site or, as individual members, should stay home, rather than attending.
We must always have the confidence that God is on His throne; that He knows what is happening in our lives; and He will not allow that anything happens to us which would be too difficult for us. At the same time, He tests us and His Church to see whether we are always willing to obey Him—no matter what the circumstances.
God promises us in Isaiah 43:2, 5, 15:
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you… Fear not, for I am with you… I am the LORD, your Holy One, The Creator of Israel, your King.”
God is with us. He is our mighty King—the RULER over the entire universe. Even if He allows us to go through fire which could burn us and water which could drown us, or through the shadow of a contagious disease all around us (real or imagined), He is with us and will not allow that they harm or kill us before the God-decreed time of our death.
Note God’s powerful promise to His people in Psalm 91:3-11:
“Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence… You shall not be afraid of… the pestilence that walks in darkness… Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place, No evil shall befall you, Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways.”
Do we truly believe this? Do we believe that God’s angels will protect us from the pestilence or plague that walks in darkness, let alone the coronavirus, when we attend His Feast site? Or do we live in fear that IF we were to go there, we MIGHT get sick there? If that is the way we approach things, then our faith is very small.
God also gave this promise to ancient Israel, as well as to us today. We read in Exodus 15:26:
“If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.”
God promises us His protection, including from sickness, when we obey Him. In context, when we obey His command to attend His Festivals in person.
Note, too, His promise to His people in Deuteronomy 7:15, if they were to obey Him:
“And the LORD will take away from you all sickness, and will afflict you with none of the terrible diseases of Egypt which you have known, but will lay them on all those who hate you.”
If we obey God by attending His weekly and annual Holy Days, including the Feast of Tabernacles, then God will not afflict us with terrible diseases, nor will He allow that we will be afflicted with them.
As we point out in our free booklet, “Obeying God rather than men,” it has also been a remarkable experience within the Church of God that God’s ministers who fulfill God’s commands to anoint those who are sick (compare James 5:14) have not contracted a contagious disease for which and when they anoint the sick person, as God has been protecting His ministers who faithfully follow His directions in this regard. He did not and does not allow that they are afflicted with the disease and sickness for which they anoint the sick. That is why any prohibition to ministers to anoint the sick with the laying on of hands constitutes a total lack of faith in God’s power.
We might also want to consider God’s promise in Exodus 34:22-24, where we read:
“(22) And you shall observe the Feast of Weeks of the firstfruits of wheat harvest [Pentecost], and the Feast of Ingathering at the year’s end [Feast of Tabernacles]. (23) Three times in a year all your men shall appear before the Lord, the LORD God of Israel [Three festival seasons—one in the spring, one in the summer and one in the autumn—are mentioned here, as one has to appear before God on every annual Holy Day: Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread as the first season in the spring; Pentecost as the second season in the summer; and the fall season, consisting of the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, the Feast of Tabernacles and the Last Great Day]. (24) For I will cast out the nations before you and enlarge your borders; neither will any man covet your land when you go up to appear before the LORD your God three times in a year.”
That we must appear in person is also clear from God’s command not to appear empty-handed, but to give as we are able (Deuteronomy 16:16-17). This command tells us to appear in person to give our offering at the place which God has chosen.
God grants us security when we observe God’s annual Holy Days by assembling at the Church’s designated Feast sites—especially during the eight days of the Feast of Tabernacles and the Last Great Day. The Church’s understanding of this passage has been that God will protect our belongings, which we are leaving behind during this time, so that no one will covet them and break into our homes to rob us during our absence.
When God promises us protection of our physical belongings while attending the Feast in obedience to His Word, do we think that He won’t protect us when we are at His Feast site—including from contracting a dangerous sickness—while worshipping with God’s people on God’s Holy Days and during the Feast of Tabernacles. It seems to us that fear and concern in that regard would constitute a lack of faith and trust in God Almighty. After all, when we are living with the understanding and conviction that we are in God’s hands and that NOTHING will happen to us without God’s knowledge and consent, WHY THEN are we afraid to keep His commandments of keeping His Holy Days, and to do so in person and in the way which He has ordered us to do? This would include singing in services (Psalm 30:4; 2 Chronicles 29:30; Hebrews 2:12)—making to God a “joyful noise” (Psalm 81:1-3).
We are of course not to put God to a serious test and to try Him. And we must never break one of His commandments with the (misapplied) wish to keep one of His other commandments. For example, we cannot lie or steal in order to save life. Likewise, we must not attend Church services if and as long as we ARE sick. The Bible contains provisions for quarantine regarding those who suffer from contagious diseases so that they cannot infect others. However, the idea to place someone into quarantine to protect him or her from others who might be sick is just turning the biblical commands on their head, by quarantining the sick together with the healthy.
The biblical principle of quarantine applies to persons who ARE sick. THEY are to stay in isolation as long as they are suffering from their contagious sickness so as not to infect others. The idea that an entire city, county, country or the entire world must be locked up and that everyone needs to stay in isolation or in house arrest—whether sick or not—is just a Satanic perversion of God’s holy law of quarantine. The same applies to Church members who refuse to attend Sabbath services or one of God’s Feast sites in person because of fear that someone in attendance might be sick (even though he or she shows no symptoms). This attitude is in direct violation of God’s command to keep the Feast.
To conclude, as true Christians who are being led by God and place their confidence in Him, there is no need to fear anything. They know that they are in God’s hands, and that “God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted [or tested] beyond what you are able, but with the temptation [or test] will also make the way to escape, that you may be able to bear [or endure] it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Lead Writer: Norbert Link
The Work
Preaching the Gospel and Feeding the Flock
compiled by Dave Harris
“Is Germany again on Its Way to a Dictatorship?” is the title of a new StandingWatch program, presented by Evangelist Norbert Link. Here is a summary:
Are the huge protests in Berlin against coronavirus restrictions; the incorrect national and international reporting in the “mainstream” media; and the “outrage” of Germany’s government about the “storming” of the Reichstag showing signs of the development of a totalitarian dictatorship in Germany? This program will show that the “official” reporting of the events has been terribly deceiving, and what REALLY happened in Berlin last Saturday.
“Globale Corona-Restriktionen—Regiert die Angst?” is the title of a new AufPostenStehen program, presented by Norbert Link. Title in English: “Global Corona-Restrictions —Does Fear Rule?”
“Lehnt das orthodoxe Christentum Jesus Christus ab?” is the title of this Sabbath’s new German sermon, presented by Norbert Link. Title in English: “Does Orthodox Christianity Reject Jesus Christ?”
“Der tägliche Blick in den Spiegel,” is the title of last Sabbath’s German sermonette, presented by Robert Macher. Title in English: “The Daily Look in the Mirror.”
“The Falling Away IS HERE—Comments on News and Prophecy (August 29, 2020),” is the title of last Sabbath’s first message, presented by Norbert Link. Here is a summary:
Looking at the ongoing fulfillment of biblical prophecy right now, the question becomes more and more critical for you as to whether you will keep the Feast of Tabernacles at the place where God has chosen to “put His name.” And, whether you will keep it in the way which God has prescribed and ordered by God. If you are not, or if you compromise in any way, maybe because of fear, you are in danger of departing from the Truth and the living God—slowly perhaps, but surely.
“Internal Healing,” is the title of last Sabbath’s sermon, presented by Rene Messier. Here is a summary:
We need to be healed internally as well as physically. This might require repenting and drawing closer to God by using the tools available to us. Especially asking for help is very important .
The YouTube channel for the Church of the Eternal God presents past videos for StandingWatch programs along with sermonettes, sermons and promotional videos. These are also available on our website: www.eternalgod.org.
How This Work is Financed
This Update is an official publication by the ministry of the Church of the Eternal God in the United States of America; the Church of God, a Christian Fellowship in Canada; and the Global Church of God in the United Kingdom.
Editorial Team: Norbert Link, Dave Harris, Rene Messier, Brian Gale, Margaret Adair, Johanna Link, Eric Rank, Michael Link, Anna Link, Kalon Mitchell, Manuela Mitchell, Dawn Thompson
Technical Team: Eric Rank, Shana Rank
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