What
can we expect to take place
in this new year, 2004? This
is a question that was
recently asked of me.
In
this current writing I want
to consider this question in
view of what has taken
place in the recent past
here in this country along
with what we are continuing
to hear from our own
governmental leaders in
Washington, D.C.. Combining
this with what we are seeing
take place in Jerusalem, and
in Europe, the
end-time prophecies speak a
most alarming warning to all
who will listen of the
end-time approaching
very rapidly!!
Presently,
our governmental leaders continue
to urgently warn us that we
can expect virtually
anything from terrorists
striking here in this
country. The forces of
nature is another area that
should be taken into
consideration for they have
been taking a real toll on
this country and will
continue to worsen!
The feeling of peace and
security has fled!
As
true and faithful pastors of
God's true Church, and
as such, watchmen, we have
been given a degree of
understanding of things to
watch for based on the
understanding God has given
us of the overall framework
of Biblical prophecies. The
framework along with much
detail was taught to us with
understanding by God's late
apostle, and the Elijah to
come, Mr. Armstrong.
Further
understanding within that
teaching comes to us as we
see the unfolding of
those prophecies along with
what we now see developing
on the world scene.
Before
I touch on some of the
things that I seriously
wonder as to what will take
place during this and the
coming year, I want to
hasten to write that it is
well realized by me that I
am no prophet nor do I
pretend to be one by any
stretch of the imagination!
Any
perceptions I might have are
based on the same
understanding of the
prophecies God has
graciously opened all of our
minds to read from Holy
Scripture, accompanied by
what we see taking place
here in this country, and on
the world scene.
To
aid us further in our
understanding, we should
keep in our minds what we
were so often told by God's
late apostle that we have to
consider the duality of past
events that so very often
have a way of repeating
themselves.
The
Beginning of the End
Terrorism
Considering
the understanding God has
given us, it is easy to see
we have entered into the
time of the end! The
very time of the fulfillment
of the end-time prophecies
that make known the end of
this present evil world is
in sight and at hand!
God
makes known through one of
His prophets where we now
are in time:
"...
Thus says the LORD God to
the land of Israel: 'An end!
The end has come upon the
four corners of the land
(meaning, no city or town in
the land will escape! It
shall come and sweep the
land ). NOW THE END
HAS COME UPON YOU, and I
will send My anger against
you; I will judge you
according to your ways, and
I will repay you for all
your abominations. My
eye will NOT spare you; nor
will I have pity but I will
repay your ways; and your
abominations will be in your
midst (the cup has reached
to the full); then you shall
[come to] know that I am the
LORD. .. The end has come;
IT HAS DAWNED FOR YOU ...
the time has come'"
(Ezekiel 7:1-4, 6).
"
It has DAWNED for you"]
the
dawning of the morning is
the time the executioner has
been waiting, for the exact
day, time of the morning,
and the hour. Also like
the sun at the break of day
before it fully comes up and
works it way to full
strength, one can see the
curse has begun! The
long-predicted DOOM is on
the way!
For
now, God has begun to paddle
us with the beginning of
deadly attacks upon us by
terrorists. This is the
beginning of all that He
said He would do unless
there should be repentance.
Intended correction with the
hope the house of Joseph
will repent so these
dreadful things will not
have to come upon us:
"But
if you do not obey Me, and
... your soul abhors My
judgments, so that you do
not perform all My
commandments, but break My
covenant, I also will do
this to you: I WILL EVEN
APPOINT 'TERROR' OVER YOU
[along with] wasting disease
and fever ...[and after all
of this], if you do not obey
Me, then I will PUNISH YOU
SEVEN TIMES more for your
sins, I WILL BREAK THE PRIDE
OF YOUR POWER [by the coming
famine and disease
epidemics]. I will
make your heavens [that will
follow if there is no
repentance] like iron and
your earth like bronze (due
to no more rain) ... Then
[after all this] if you walk
contrary to Me, and are not
willing to obey Me, I will
bring on you seven times
more plagues according to
your [continued
accelerating] sins. ... and
if by these things YOU ARE
NOT REFORMED BY ME, but walk
contrary to Me, then I will
also walk contrary to you,
and I will PUNISH YOU yet
seven times for your sins
[and after this final
INTENDED CORRECTION].
And I WILL BRING A SWORD
[real war] AGAINST YOU, that
will execute the vengeance
of the covenant. .."
(Leviticus 26:14-16, 18-19,
21, 23-25).
Though
we hope and pray there will
be repentance, it seems very
unlikely it will happen.
Based
on what God tells us here,
and what has since come upon
America, it would be well to
heed the continued WARNINGS
this Nation's leaders are
making known to us on a
continued basis! ALARMS ARE
CONTINUING TO BE SOUNDED! We
are being WARNED that we can
very probably expect other
terrible disasters from
terrorists in the coming
months.
Aside
from all of this, we need to
keep in mind the forces of
nature will continue to be
at work! We can expect the
continued breaking of known
records from the past from
now on! They will continue
to be at work and will
accompany the prophesied
famine of Joel that is soon
to begin.
The
End of This Age -
We
truly need to keep in mind
the end of this age has
already begun to come upon
us and very rapidly coming
to a close! Once it
does, it will then give way
to the New Age that will be
brought about by the return
of Jesus Christ, who will
usher in the beginning of
what will come to be a
wonderful new world that
will based on His holy and
righteous laws.
No
longer will mankind be
governed by human reason as
represented by the Tree of
Good and Evil, but by the
revealed laws and Government
of God. Mankind will begin
walking in that new path of
life by beginning to eat
from the Tree of Life -
symbolic of being given
God's Holy Spirit to help
them.
Wars
and Rumors of War -
Though
there have been wars and
rumors of wars in past times
along with many tragedies,
none have touched this
country in the way we are
now experiencing.
Terrorism
and the continued threat of
it has struck real fear into
the minds and hearts of
people. No longer do
we feel as safe and secure
as we once did for war has
never come from the outside
into this country in this or
the past century - in our
lifetime!
When
I was in combat in Germany
during World War II, the
question came up one day
among a few of us as to
whether we should tell our
people upon returning home
what war is really like?
The consensus was, "No,
we should not; we do not
want them to know."
Though
war has long since been seen
by all on screen, there is a
great difference between
what they see on screen, and
what will be experienced by
all in the near future.
People got a real internal
view of it by watching on
screen what took place on
that fateful day in New York
City and in Washington, D.C.
War
entered into this country
that fateful morning in a
very real preliminary manner
in the form of terrorism! It
really DAWNED
on this country! However as
bad as it was, and will
yet be, the terrible
isolated acts carried out by
terrorists, cannot be
remotely compared to the
final war that will destroy
all of the big cities of the
house of Joseph.
When
that final war comes, it
should be realized that the
initial attack and
concentration by the enemy
has to be directed first of
all on America and the UK
first! After these two
nations are out of the way,
the other tribes of Israel
will not have the slightest
chance of standing up
against this very powerful
enemy that is soon to arise
in Europe! This was
proved during World War II.
They
will quickly capitulate with
the lone exception of the
nation of Judah.
Terrorists
Strike Inside America -
Though
terrorism first struck this
country in 1993, and later
in 1995, they did not have
the same impact and meaning
that has since occurred in
2001.
With
this in mind, I feel it is
meaningful that we revisit
2001 and review some of the
headlines and writings of
that momentous morning of
September, 11, 2001, that
speak of the beginning of
the end.
(The
subheads and excerpts I will
use is taken from a special
booklet that was printed
almost immediately after
that assault on this
country, entitled: THE
DAY THAT CHANGED AMERICA,
by America, Media, Inc.
I found no copyrights in
it):
The
Day That Changed America
[Forever]!
"As
of that date we became a new
America, in a new world that
hates this country!
This country entered a new
era of conflict! There
are many forces against this
nation and in many parts of
this world. They
hate us!" (The
emphasis throughout all the
quotes are mine)
"That
day began a new struggle for
the freedom this
country has long cherished
.."
A
totally different kind of
freedom than that which this
country had been founded
upon, and intended, now
reigns! In just the
last approximate 25 years or
so, this country (and the
United Kingdom) has
degenerated into a very evil
nation as a whole and
rapidly becoming more vile
and despicable.
Such
degrading evil is apparent
for all to see and witness
from the television screens!
As such the increase of
it has brought upon this
once great nation the real
beginning of the curses from
God into reality as of that
date!
The
cup of evil will continue to
fill until it has begun to
overflow then the complete
destruction will occur to
this once great nation that
was given to us by God.
Look what the leaders of
this nation have done to it!
It
is God in heaven above who
has begun turning the
blessings of this country
into curses just as He said
he would do because of the CONTINUED
INCREASE OF EVIL within
this once great nation.
God WARNED Israel millennia
ago what would befall us if
we failed to obey Him:
"But
it shall come to pass, if
you do NOT obey the voice of
the LORD your God, to
observe carefully ALL HIS
COMMANDMENTS AND HIS
STATUTES, which I command
you today, that ALL THESE
CURSES will come upon you
AND OVERTAKE YOU ... you
shall become troublesome to
all the kingdoms of the
earth" (Deuteronomy
28:15, 25).
Curses
will continue to come until
they fully OVERTAKE
us! This was not said by God for
just that time! This
was to apply throughout the
whole future of Israel right
up to the end-time!
Though
these nations spoken of by
God are also evil
themselves; however they see
the evil here as far worse
than in their own nations.
In addition, they know we
are the exporters of it and
as such adversely affecting
their own children by what
they see coming from
Hollywood and other sources.
This
nation is called Satan
by some nations! The United
Kingdom is just as bad!
In
past millennia, God brought
about the total destruction
of Jerusalem and His Temple,
twice! The Temple Solomon built
was destroyed by the
Babylonians, and the one
built by Herod was destroyed
by the Romans in 70 A.D. It
made no difference that Jesus
Christ Himself entered into
and taught in the last one;
for it was He Himself who
brought about the
destruction of it due to
their terrible sins!
So will He do to the House
of Joseph and will show no
mercy just as He did not in
70 A.D., as numerous
Scriptures and history make
known.
Notice
further some of the
headlines of that day and
time after the war of
terrorism struck America,
that changed this nation - forever:
And
Then They Were Gone
The
World Trade Center Towers
Collapse
"The
first jumbo jet passenger
plane struck the first tower
at 8:45 am. The second jumbo
jet struck the second tower
at 9:03 am! People
wondered - "How could
two substantial symbols of
America's financial and
construction know-how
disappear in just
minutes?"
Due
to today's capability to
make war, whole cities and
nations can disappear in
minutes as we should well
know since 1945:
The
Nuclear Age -
This
is the nuclear age! And with
it modern sophisticated
military technology has been
developed to make possible
the complete loss of all
life! Rocket-powered
missiles with attached
nuclear bombs can be
launched from land and sea
and carry nuclear bombs into
any and all cities in any
country in the world within
bare minutes!
As
we all should well know, all
nations on earth could
disappear in minutes!
If God were to permit such a
thing to take place, which
He won't!, we would then be
left as pictured in Genesis
1:2 - the earth totally
wrecked, and surrounded by
complete darkness; all
life gone!
We
began moving into it when
the Atomic Age Was Born -
July 16, 1945. The
first explosion of an
experimental atom bomb in
the New Mexico desert
occurred on that date.
Newsday
"Those who witnessed
the first explosion of a
nuclear bomb - a device
built by their own hand -
struggle still to put into
words the fearsome beauty of
that unsettling moment at
the New Mexico desert ... when
the world changed forever.
When
interviewed about it,
physicist Morrison said of
the explosion of that device
at the aptly named Journey
of Death near
Alamagordo: "'We
knew that we had done
something remarkable and
terrifying.'
Oppenheimer, ... the project
leader, recalled a passage
from Hindu scripture: 'Now I
am become death, the
shatterer of worlds.'"
Please
remember this was only a
beginning device! And
further understand, the
awesome power that was
unleashed that day cannot be
remotely compared to the
hydrogen bomb! It is so
powerful it requires a
fully developed atom bomb to
trigger one.
There
is now talk and fear of
terrorists will use a dirty
bomb that would spread
radiation on a large scale.
Also, there has been
expressed concern of the
terrorists using a
suitcase atom bomb on us!
Either or both being
detonated somewhere, some
place, in this country,
would take away many lives.
The
Real Enemy ----
At
the same time, please
realize, terrorists are not
the enemy that will destroy
this nation! It is realized
they can bring about terror,
panic, and limited loss of
life of people here and
there, but they will NOT
destroy this country!
We
need to keep the bigger
picture in mind when in just
a few short years our real
enemy will rise up in
Europe. They will be
the ones who will launch
blitzkrieg nuclear warfare
against us! And when they do
it will only take minutes
for their hydrogen
bombs to destroy and flatten
large cities all over the
whole House of Joseph, as
God says they will do
(Ezekiel 6:6; 12:20;
Deuteronomy 28:49-50).
Further
Damage and Loss of Lives in
2001 -
What
we read from what is
described below is only a
very small picture of what
will occur on a massive
scale all over the country
on the coming day of our
rendezvous with prophesied
destiny.
"A
third building, a 48 floor
structure known as 7 World
Trade Center, collapsed more
that 8 hours after the
carnage began, victims of
damage from the Twin Towers.
"Before
the [twin] towers fully
collapsed people were
jumping from 90 floors with
the futile effort of somehow
surviving the fall!
One witness said,
"... what we thought
was more building shrapnel,
but in fact it was people
jumping 90 floors - hoping
to survive. It was
horrifying! They had no
chance of living. We
watched them hit the ground
... it was like a watermelon
being thrown out of a window
and hitting the ground.
There was blood everywhere.
... It was
sickening, and everyone was
crying!"
Death
Had Come From the Skies
The
Day America Stood Still
"The
entire nation was jolted by
what took place on this
fateful day! Americans
paused - caught up in
horrible suspense as they
awaited contact from friends
and or loved ones.
Hundred of thousands hung on
the words of any news report
they could get."
With
this in mind, please picture
in your minds the
destruction that will come
to all of the major cities
throughout America in the
coming and final war! The
people who survive will be
caught up in bewilderment
and confusion not knowing
where to turn or what to do!
They will not know what to
expect next? Using the
total destruction of
Jerusalem as a type, God
tells us of this end-time
through Jeremiah:
"From
above He (God) has sent FIRE
into my bones and it
overpowered them ... He has
made me destitute ... for He
has BLAZED against Jacob
like A FLAMING FIRE which
devour all around"
(Lamentations 1:13; 2:3).
"The
sinners in Zion are afraid:
fearfulness has seized the
hypocrites: Who among us
shall dwell with the
devouring fire? Who
among us shall dwell with
EVERLASTING BURNINGS?"
(Isaiah 33:14).
The
Enemies of America Rejoice
---
"Palestinians
clap, sing, laugh and waved
flags upon learning that
terrorists hit America from their
long expressed hatred of the
United States."
Using
Jerusalem again as a type,
Jeremiah wrote of the
present that will lead into
the aftermath of the
destruction of America and
the United Kingdom:
"All
who pass by clap their hands
at you; they hiss and shake
their heads at the daughter
of Jerusalem, 'Is this the
city that is called the
perfection of beauty (the
song, we all sing,
"America the
Beautiful") the joy of
the whole earth?' All your
enemies have opened their
mouth against you; they hiss
and gnash their teeth.
They say, 'We have swallowed
her up! Surely this is
the day we have waited for;
we have found it, we have
seen it! The LORD has done
what He has purposed; He has
fulfilled His word which He
commanded in days of old, He
has thrown down and has not
pitied, and HE HAS CAUSED
YOUR ENEMY TO REJOICE OVER
YOU. He has exalted
the horn (power) of your
adversaries.'"
(Lamentations 2:15-18).
No
one will have believed in
this coming time that
America, the only great
super-power nation on earth
today, could be brought to
her knees and conquered!
But God says it will take
place.
Eyewitness
To Tragedy
The
Sights and Sounds That Will
Never be Forgotten
"People
were in cars, taxis, on foot
in New York and in
Washington, D.C.. It
was a normal Tuesday
morning, time to head back
to the job, weary or
not from being up late to
watch the New York Giants
and the Denver Broncos in
the NFL season's first
Monday night football game.
"Life
was fine, life was good.
Everything the way it was
suppose to be.
Suddenly they were
eyewitnesses to the most
devastating act of cowardly
terrorism in American
history."
What
occurred on that fateful
morning is an extremely
small type of what is yet to
be witnessed in a very few
short years by the survivors
of the coming terrible time.
Jesus
Christ spoke solemnly, and
sorrowfully, of the coming
time when the house of
Joseph and other tribes of
Israel will feel the full
weight of all the
destruction and loss of life
that will soon be faced by
all Israel. He said all will
be caught asleep as to what
will then befall all in bare
minutes. We have all
witnessed how it can and
will be on our television
screens on that tragic day
in 2001:
"And
as it was in the days of
Noah, so it will be also in
the days of the Son of Man:
They ate, they drank, they
married wives, they were
given in marriage, UNTIL the
day that Noah entered the
ark, and the flood came and
destroyed them all.
Likewise as it was also in
the days of Lot: They ate,
they drank, they bought,
they sold, they planted,
they built: but on the day
that Lot went out of Sodom
IT RAINED FIRE AND BRIMSTONE
from heaven and destroyed
them all. Even so will
it be when the Son of Man is
[begins to be]
revealed" (Luke
17:26-29).
Though
a last-second warning will
be given from the leaders
through the media, it will
be too late for escape or
retaliation as Scripture
makes known:
"Set
the trumpet to your mouth!
He (the enemy) shall come
like an eagle (swiftly)
against the house of the
LORD, because they have
transgressed My covenant and
rebelled against My law.
Israel will cry, 'My God, we
know You!' Israel has cast
off the good, the enemy WILL
PURSUE him" (Hosea
8:1-3).
"They
have blown the trumpet
(symbol for warfare) and
made everyone ready, but NO
ONE goes to battle; for My
wrath is on all their
multitude" (Ezekiel
7:14).
"...
The LORD will bring a nation
against you from afar, from
the end of the earth, AS
SWIFT AS THE EAGLE FLIES
(blitzkrieg warfare), a
nation whose language you do
not understand. A
nation of fierce
countenance, which does not
respect the elderly nor
shall show favor to the
young" (Deuteronomy
28:49-50).
The
house of Joseph has fought
two world wars in this past
century with an enemy who
showed no mercy or
compassion on the elderly or
the young, so it will occur
again! This coming time it
won't be limited to the Jews
but will include all the
House of Israel!
And
for the first time it will
come inside American and
England.
NOTE:
The leaders of this country
have said in an official
statement some few years ago
that this country would NOT
strike the first blow! It
was also said that an early
warning is critical!
In
this day and time an early
warning could only give
leadership anywhere in the
world the briefest of
minutes to respond!
Much, much, too late, for
any nation, including
America and England.
Washington.
D. C. Struck
Destruction
to the War-Planning Pentagon
"For
the first time ever, war
struck the very building in
which America plans it's
wars!
The five-floor southwestern
section of the Pentagon was
slashed open. The
58-year old building was
built with 435,000 tons of
concrete so it could
withstand enemy attack, but
it could not survive a
direct hit by a fully fueled
jumbo jet. The plane
penetrated three of the
building's five rings,
obliterating walls two feet
thick The 3,000-degree
inferno created by the jet
fuel decimated a top-secret
Pentagon sector!"
Try
to imagine the heat that is
generated by a hydrogen
bomb! There is no real
comparison!
As
we may recall the leaders of
this nation were caught
completely by shocking
surprise on that tragic day,
just as we were in 1941,
when the Japanese attacked
Pearl Harbor! A total
shocking surprise even with
conventional weaponry!
When
we consider the very fact
the terrorists were able to
strike right inside the very
heart of this nation should
enable all of us to realize
there is no safe place
anywhere to hide. It
was only due to a merciful
act of God that the third
jumbo jet flown by
terrorists did not slam it
into the White House.
This
is where it seemed to be
heading until God put it
into the minds of a few of
the passengers to overpower
the terrorists and the one
piloting the place crashed
it into a field in
Pennsylvania.
No!
- there will be no
place to hide from what is
yet coming in a few short
years just as there is no
place to hide from the
elements and forces of
nature now.
In
this regard, please note an
newspaper article to this
effect regarding the forces
of nature:
The
Stockton record (Knight
Ridder Newspapers), August
21, 1999
WASHINGTON
- When you map all the
different kinds of disaster
that strike the United
States year by year, it's
obvious: You can run, but
you can't hide. ..."
The
same is true with the acts
of terrorists as we have
already seen from what has
occurred since 1993 in
Washington, D.C., and later
in Oklahoma City in 1995 -
then in New York City, and
in Washington, D.C., both in
2001.
America
Tunes In
The
TV News Media Calms a
Nervous Nation
"What
took place on that fateful
morning quickly spread
across the nation and people
quickly gathered around
their TV to learn details
from the News Media of the
awesome destruction and loss
of lives of the horrific
events of America's darkest
day. It was a time
when panic could have
overcome the nation but were
calmed by being able to see
and hear the passion
expressed but tempered with
calmness.
There
will be no one to calm
people during this coming
crisis! Panic,
confusion, bewilderment,
amidst disruption and
destruction, will be
experienced by the
survivors. They will
be looking for guidance from
the nations and religious
leaders, but in vain
(Lamentations 2:1) A;; will
find themselves completely
helpless:
"...
the hands of the common
people will tremble. I
will do to them according to
their way, and according to
what they deserve I will
judge them' ..."
(Ezekiel 7:27).
Days
of Infamy
When America Wept Tears
of Blood
"This
fateful day that appeared to
be a normal work day became
a day of death [for almost
3,000 people]! It
became their day of death -
a new day of infamy more
terrifying and savage than
the sneak air attack on
Pearl Harbor, December 7,
1941, the Oklahoma City
nine-story federal building
bombing at 9:02 am of April
19,1995 (at the exact hour
and minute that the second
plane tore into a World
Trading Center Tower), and
the World Trade Center
basement truck bombing on
February 26, 1993."
In
this coming time, God
through His prophet wrote:
"... one-third of you
shall fall by the sword
..." (the
sword of nuclear warfare,
and the follow-up, Ezekiel
5:12).
What
is one-third of 200,000,000?
Presently this nation
numbers right at
300,000,000. God shows in
that same Scripture that
one-third will have already
died due to the coming
famine and pestilence. The
other third is scheduled for
the ovens and worse! -
and slavery.
Prayer
and Hope
Multiple
Thousands gather to Pray
"America,
a nation founded on
religious freedom [that
has been shoved aside to
make room for the legalized
evil in our midst that can
be seen on virtually every
channel on television],
remembers it's
heritage after
being confronted with
adversity and tragedy.
Americans prayed for peace,
justice and hope for a
better future. Members
of the United States
Congress assemble on the
steps of the capital the
evening after the mayhem and
sang, "God Bless
America", expressing
faith in a higher power and
love of their country.
"America the
Beautiful" was the song
that was most often heard -
a hymn for the living and
the dead."
People
were visibly sobered and
shaken for the moment in the
face of real tragedy hat
come into America. They
appeared repentant and
were seeking God! It is
sad that it was so soon
forgotten, and the leaders
and nation moved on after a
very short while to continue
living their lives in the
same way as before. EVIL
PREVAILED!
The
horrible and vile sins of
legalized sodomy not only
continues unabated
throughout this country, but
even in the top echelon of
the government of this
country and legally approved
by the judiciary. By law
sodomy is even taught as an
acceptable alternate to the
children of all ages in the
school system. No one on the
teaching staff or in
political office dares speak
against it!
It
would appear from comments
made through the media from
time to time, all are
acquainted with the total
destruction God brought on
Sodom and Gomorrah for the
same sins, yet there is no
fear! In their minds, if
there is a God, He would not
punish mankind today
for the same sins. How
wrong they are! God is
no respecter of persons.
This
is only one sin among many
for which God is now judging
this nation and other
nations of Israel. Many
other sins could also be
mentioned, among them a
major one - ABORTION! THE
MURDER OF THE LIVING UNBORN
BY THE MILLIONS! Then there
is idolatry.
What
Can We Expect in 2004-2005,
A Repeat of Terrorism?
What
we are now seeing, in
particular since September
11, 01, is to see a
progressive march toward the
fulfillment of the Ezekiel
warning that God gave to him in
writing. A warning message that
was to be proclaimed here at
the end-time by His late
apostle, who was also the
Elijah to come! This
man faithfully and
powerfully WARNED of the
dire (meaning, a
desperately imminent
terrifying disaster)
things to befall the house
of Israel, and in particular
the House of Joseph for
almost 60 years.
What
God used him to proclaim
during all those years is
now being seen more fully,
but the leaders -- the
religious, national,
and international, have
conveniently forgotten that
message of warning since his
death.
Since his
death God has given all
of these leaders and people
governed by them this period
of a few years as a test and
an opportunity to reflect on
our ways and repent.
But it has not happened! -
even within the Church of
God! As the result God
is now in the process of
closing the door (Matthew
25:10-12), that is not yet
completely closed
(Revelation 3:20). The
coming fateful Day has begun
to dawn!
We
should be fully
awakened by not only what
God tells us in these
prophecies, but also by even
the top leaders of this
country who continue to WARN
us through the news media
that we must realize we are
to continue living under the
imminent threat of further
acts of terrorism of one
kind or another that could
cause multiple thousands of
deaths anywhere in this
country.
It
has also been said, there is
no way to protect ourselves
against suicide bombers.
Men and women who willingly
give their lives for a
diabolical cause and cannot
always be recognized as the
enemy.
There
are millions of immigrants
in this country. Many
of them are from the very
countries that are
perpetrating these violent
acts. Many are loyal
citizens of this country,
but it is seriously doubted
that all of them are.
Enemies
are hard to recognize! No
one can tell the difference
between the loyal and the
enemy for they all look
alike as did the people this
nation fought in Korea and
Viet Nam.
One
way that an enemy can
deceive is to declare loudly
he or she is a loyal
American and even carry
around an American flag.
In similar ways the
terrorists have killed many
Israelis by being dressed as
a Jewish Priest or in
similar attire to deceive
the people they are there to
kill and maim.
We
are very vulnerable in this
nation!
In
conjunction to those
immigrants who are already
here in this country, an
article in our morning
newspaper (The Record,
12/31/03) quoted the Census
Bureau as reporting that an
immigrant comes into this
country every 25 seconds.
The
question begs: Are they all
coming here for the right
reasons? No one knows
for sure.
Will
there be a repeat of 9/11/01
this year? If so, will
it be another fuel loaded
passenger jumbo jet being
used as a flying bomb from
some other nation that will
slam into the Los Angeles
airport, Chicago,
Atlanta, Denver, San
Francisco, etc.? No
one knows for sure.
Every
possible precaution is being
taken to prevent such a
thing from happening, and
maybe it won't We certainly
hope not! Perhaps it will
come in another way, and
maybe not at all. No
one knows for sure. However
it was said recently by
representatives of Bin
Laden that we should expect
an internal attack.
What
About the Church? ---
What
can we expect will occur
within the Church of God
during this new year and the
next one? Some are
expecting momentous things
to occur.
January
16, 2005 will be the 19th
year since Mr. Herbert W.
Armstrong died.
Realizing
the meaning of the number
19, some are expecting
something spectacular to
take place? Maybe it
will, and maybe it won't.
No one knows for sure. We
will just have to wait and
see.
Perhaps
there are those who wonder,
when considering the meaning
of the number nine as to
whether there might be a
repeat of the death of the
apostate leader that
occurred nine years and nine
months after the death of
Mr. Armstrong.
The
Companion Bible states that
number nine speaks of the
finality of judgment.
The product of Divine
completeness. The
number 10 another new first;
after the ninth digit.
This would be 2005.
Watching and
Praying ---
As
I wrote in the beginning of
this writing, there are some
things God makes very clear
through the understanding of
the overall framework of the
end-time prophecies when
comparing them to what we
now see developing on the
world scene, in Jerusalem,
in Europe, and within the
house of Joseph, and in
particular America, for we
are the super-power nation
of the world.
Other
areas can only be speculated
on in that light. We
will just have to wait and
see what does take place in
this new year, while being
prepared for any
eventuality!. The
important thing is to KEEP
our relationship right with
God, while WATCHING
AND PRAYING as we
see the end-time fast
approaching (Luke 21:36).
Brethren,
we do not have much longer
to wait. Are we prepared?
Until
next time, your brother and
servant in Christ,
Don
Billingsley
Please
continue to frequently view
our website: www.cog-ff.com
If you haven't looked at it
for a few days, you may be
pleasantly surprised to see
what is now there.
There
is now an ARCHIVE posted
inside my Pastor's Comments
by which you will be able to
review past writings.
The "Open Letters"
I have written that have
appeared in the Journal can
also now be viewed on the
website
To
listen to our Church
services by a speaker phone,
please dial (free call):
1-877-553-9909, then follow
the operator's instruction
and punch in the code: 8819
(our Post Office Box
number), and you will be
connected to us.
We
recently have begun a
'Fellowship Hour', on Friday
evenings beginning at 5:30
P.M., California time. This
presents an opportunity for
you who are scattered
members to chat with one
another (again, a free call
for you).
There
are now 25 lines available
to us to make possible for
many of you to get
acquainted with one another
as well as to renew already
made friendships.
It
is our desire to serve all
of you as well as we can for
we know it gets lonely out
there by yourselves and you
need fellowship along with
the Church services.
