Part 8. One More Warning, As It Was In The Days Of Noah...

So Shall It Be At The End Of This Present Age.

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These Next Chapters Are: "An Overview" Concerning Events We Have Discussed In This Entire 8 Part Message About The Past, The Present And The Future.

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Noah Part- 8. MENU

[ No. 170 ] - The Final Call, Death Was Never God's Desire For Mankind . . .

[ No. 171] - Considering The Flood Of Noah's Day And Dinosaurs, Plus Modern - Day Philistines. . . . The Following Is A Somewhat Different Prospective. . .

[ No. 172 ] - The Tie To Evolution And Their Millions 0f Years Indoctrination . . .

[ No. 173 ] - The 'Glory' Is Departing . . .

[ No. 174 ] - Taking Dinosaurs Back . . .

[ No. 175 ] - Creation And The Flood: 200 Years 0f Compromise . . .

[ No. 176 ] - Church Organizational Compromise . . .

[ No. 177 ] - Modern Creationism . . .

[ No. 178 ] - What About All Of This? Does What The Bible Says About Creation Really Matter? . . .

[ No. 179 ] - The Beginning Of Life . . .

[ No. 180 ] - The Purpose Of The Lord's Creation . . .

[ No. 181 ] - What Genesis Refutes Concerning Atheism . . .

[ No. 182 ] - "Pantheism" . . .

[ No. 183 ] - "Polytheism" . . .

[ No. 184 ] - "Materialism" . . .

[ No. 185 ] - "Humanism" And Or Naturalism . . .

[ No. 186 ] - Foundations Of The Earth. Can The Big Bang And Biblical Creation Coexist? . . .

[ No. 187 ] - Secular Compromises . . .

[ No. 188 ] - Scientific Problems With The Big Bang . . .

[ No. 189 ] - Where Is The Antimatter? . . .

[ No. 190 ] - Why Refute Creation Compromise? . . .

[ No. 191 ] - The Clearness 0f Scripture Is Doubted . . .

[ No. 192 ] - Denial Of The Sin-Death Reason For The Fall Of Humanity . . .

[ No. 193 ] - There Aren't Any Apes, Gorillas, Or Any Other Creature Of The Animal Family In The Human Family Tree! . . .

[ No. 194 ] - One Blood . . .

[ No. 195 ] - The Role Of Death . . .

[ No. 196 ] - Alleged Humanoid Ancestors . . .

[ No. 197 ] - Human And Chimp DNA . . .

[ No. 198 ] - Concerning Noah And The Unregenerate . . .

[ No. 199 ] - Noah's Time And The Events Of Today: . . .

[ No. 200 ] - The Ark And The Body Of Christ: . . .

[ No. 201 ] - Power And Obedience: . . .

[ No. 202 ] - Today's Wickedness: . . .

[ No. 203 ] - The Christian And The Unsaved One: . . .

[ No. 204 ] - God's Grace And Judgment . . .

[ No. 205 ] - The Remnant . . .

[ No. 206 ] - Israel Then And Now: . . .

[ No. 207 ] - The Door Of The Ark About To Shut: . . .

[ No. 208 ] - The Prophets And The Gospel: . . .

[ No. 209 ] - How Would You Like To Live For 1,000 Years? . . .

[ No. 210 ] - Man Has Tried To Define Or Explain The Aging Process As Follows . . .

[ No. 211 ] - It Rained For The First Time On This Earth In The Time Of Noah . . .

[ No. 212 ] - This Question Has Been Asked Many Times: "What About The Antichrist And The Common Market?" . . .

[ No. 213 ] - One. . . Who Is The Antichrist? And Again We Repeat . . .

[ No. 214 ] - Two. . . Is There Any Prophecy To Be Fulfilled Before Jesus Comes? . . .

[ No. 215 ] - God's Last Minute Bulletin! . . .

[ No. 216 ] - 1. The Only Hope For Each And Every One Of Us. . . .

[ No. 217 ] - 2. It Purifies Us Of Idleness . . .

[ No. 218 ] - 3. It Purifies Us Of Worldliness . . .

[ No. 219 ] - 4. It Purifies Our Motives . . .

[ No. 220 ] - When The Saints Get Out Of Place . . .

[ No. 221 ] - Misplaced Values . . .

[ No. 222 ] - Being Out Of Place Causes - - - Doubt: . . .

[ No. 223 ] - Being out of place Causes - - - Denial . . .

[ No. 224 ] - Being Out Of Place Causes . . . Lack Of Physical Necessities . . .

[ No. 225 ] - Being Out of Place Causes Countless Souls To Be Forever Lost To Christ! . . .

[ No. 226 ] - The Man Who Came to The Altar Too Late: . . .

[ No. 227 ] - The Sinners Prayer. . . .

Chapter Fifty Nine . . .

1. Commentary . . . God does not desire the death of the wicked, but that they should turn from their evil ways and live. This is because God's will is directed toward the establishment of peace between men and their Maker! All the happenings of today are only God's preparation for the most glorious of all: the best for the Body of Jesus Christ is yet to come! Nevertheless Satan's goal is the hindering of the Lord's coming. The Lord brings world history of the future to pass through people who have surrendered their wills to Him unconditionally. Satan's desires are similar except . . . he is looking for people, who as the Bible says, are taken captive by himself according to his own nefarious will, { 2 - Timothy 2:26 }.

2. We can understand, therefore, that our hearts [ Minds ] are the battlefield between light and darkness. In His dealings with us, God allows us to exercise our sovereign free will. We can say "No" to God and He accepts our decision. But whoever says "No" to His offer, His wonderful unspeakable gift, "Jesus Christ," is inevitably saying yes to the devil! There is no other alternative. This is why the Holy Spirit wrestles with every individual human soul. This is also why the Lord always brings His will to pass through individuals, while Satan works his diabolical plan through the unregenerate masses.

3. Commentary . . . It has been concluded that creation ministries like answers in Genesis are fighting the "Philistines" of our day. How? In Exodus, we read of "the Ark of God" . . . the Ark of the Covenant . . . that God commanded the Israelites to build. This Ark represented the presence of God . . . where God spoke from above the mercy seat. It was typical of Christ, and representing the treasures of wisdom and knowledge found in Christ.

4. As we read through the history of the Israelites, we find time and time again that they forgot God's Word and compromised with the pagan beliefs of the cultures around them. Because of these things, God brought judgment upon His people. From the prophet, we read the sad event when the Philistines captured the Ark of God, When Eli's daughter-in-law heard what happened, she said . . .

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5. Scripture: ". . . The glory is departed from Israel: for the Ark of God is [ has been ] taken, { 1- Samuel. 4:22 }." [ Naturally the Hebrew people were bound and determined to go and retrieve the Ark from the Philistines ].

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6. Commentary . . . The fact is, there is a practical application of that event in { 1- Samuel } to our world today. By and large, many who are professed Christians of today have compromised God's Word in Genesis by allowing millions of years and evolutionary ideas to be embraced by God's Children. Most folks in the Body of Christ have permitted false knowledge to be taught in the schools to our children and this has been going on for generations and, this falseness is really "the world's religion of secularism / naturalism. In a sense, we could say that the "Philistines" [ the world ] again have captured the "Ark" [ the Word of God. ]

7. Some of the trouble is it seems, is that many conservative Christians in the Body of Christ . . . across this nation . . . have abandoned the Bible's history / science - and have just tried to cling to the New Testament's Gospel message and morality. By not accepting the essential history of Genesis, many clergymen have convinced generations that evolutionary ideas and millions of years [ NOT the Bible's account of history ] explain our world: dinosaurs, the Grand Canyon, fossils and so on.

8. Commentary . . . As a result, we have seen America become less Christian every day. Now, there have been successes in getting Christians to make positive changes in society, but as people have naively accepted the idea that the Bible's history is not true, they were also consistent in believing that both the Gospel and the morality based in that history are false. Social ills [ abortion, "quare marriages," etc. ] now plague our country and the world at large. Creation, prayer and the Bible have all but been eliminated from the public schools. Yes, the "glory" is departing from this and the rest of the world's nations.

9. What is needed today is for all Christians to proclaim a "battle cry" not only to those in the Body of Christ but to the world at large, a clarion call to all people to awake to the truth of God's revealed Word, and to submit our lives to the Lordship of our Creator. We need to take back the "Ark." We need to take back the maligned Grand Canyon, the majestic mountain ranges, the massive coal beds, the glaciers, the dinosaurs, fossils, the question of the origin of "races" [ various groups of humanity ], the formation of the sun and stars and so on. We need to return them to their rightful place in history.

10. Commentary . . . Evolutionary secular humanists need to be put on notice, because we're taking dinosaurs back! Almost every time there's news in the secular press about answers in Genesis, the reporter will mock the fact that many Bible believing Christians believe that dinosaurs and humans have lived at the same time in the past. For sure, evolutionists absolutely hate it when Bible teachers proclaim the truth that dinosaurs living alongside men is a historical fact that can be proven by Christian scientist and by none-christian geologist alike.

11. The Bible explicitly proves the falsity of the evolutionary teaching concerning the beginning of humanity. Also countless geologist become upset about the Biblical teaching of creation. Kin Ham stated, that nearly every secular news reporter who visits the AiG Creation Museum west of Cincinnati, seems perplexed as to why dinosaurs have been included in the Museum. These reporters often express amazement because of the dinosaurs being there or why the officials would dare to allow them to be put there. When their TV or newspaper report comes out, there it is again: a mocking statement about dinosaurs and humans together.

12. Children and adults alike are fascinated by these creatures. Unfortunately, most people equate dinosaurs with millions of years ago theories and the evolution belief system. Dinosaurs have become almost icons for evolutionary teaching . . . they're treated as sacred "gods" that belong only to evolutionists for their purpose of indoctrinating generations in secular humanism. This has occurred because the religionist organizations . . . by and large . . . handed dinosaurs over to the "world" when they abandoned the literal history so clearly communicated in Genesis and allowed belief in millions of years and evolutionary ideas [ Like the big bang theory ] to be taught to generations.

13. To the humanists: we have invaded your evolutionary temples, and we have gone into your "holy of Holies." We have captured the dinosaurs, and we're taking them back to give them their rightful place in history! And no, it's not ridiculous to believe dinosaurs and people lived at the same time [ as the Bible makes very clear ] . . . it's ridiculous and illogical not to consider the two signs pictured from the Australia wildlife sanctuaries that prove the evolutionist to be wrong.

14. Think about it: according to evolutionary time, crocodiles have been around since the time of the dinosaurs . . . and yet, humans live with crocodiles today. So why is it ridiculous to think humans and dinosaurs lived at the same time? But it's not just crocodiles . . . there are many other examples. In Australia there is found a certain tree nicknamed the Wollemi pine, it is known from fossils and is classed as being from the so-called Jurassic age around 150 million years ago, but not from fossils in rocks of later periods.

15. Humans and the Wollemi pine tree live today, and yet from an evolutionary perspective, the Wollemi pine dates back to the "time of the dinosaurs." That's why the evolutionist called it the "dinosaur tree." While we don't find 'fossils' of the Wollemi pine tree and humans together, we do know they live together . . . Because both are alive today.

16. According to an AiG web article, Dr. David Catchpoole of AiG-Australia stated that a recent New Scientist article ponders an enigma to evolutionists . . . "living fossils." These are creatures alive today which are identical to fossilized forms believed to have lived "millions of years ago." Examples include crocodiles that are living today and not classed to be 140 million years old.

17. Why then would it be so ridiculous to think that dinosaurs also lived beside humans but have died out in recent times? I.e., what we mean by recent times, we are referring to the time of the Flood of Noah and some time afterward when the largest of them became extinct. But, even the news in March 2005 about soft tissue in dinosaur bones is consistent with this. And, of course there's a great deal of other interesting evidence, such as dragon legends, the description of Behemoth in the Book of { Job Ch. 40 } that we have before mentioned, and also of Indian petroglyphs that look like dinosaurs and so on.

18. Nothing in observational science contradicts the obvious conclusion based on the Bible history . . . [ 1 ]: Dinosaurs were positively created alongside man 6,000 years ago according to the Scriptures. [ 2 ]: Representative kinds of them were on Noah's Ark. [ 3 ]: Most dinosaur fossils are from the Flood period [ about 4,400 years ago ]. [ 4 ]: Dinosaurs lived beside men before the Flood and also to a certain extent even after the Flood, but like many other creatures and plants, have become extinct since that time.

19. No, as we will further proclaim in the future, it's not ridiculous to believe dinosaurs and humans lived at the same time. In fact, it's the most logical belief based upon the Scriptures and the fossils! More and more understanding of this science is being brought to the insight of science every day. Yes, we're reclaiming what rightfully belongs to the God of creation! Indeed, God's people must take back the history that has been stolen from them. In doing this, we are, in a sense, taking back the Gospel that has been "stolen" from humanity world-wide, as people have been "brain washed" in being convinced that the Bible is not true. Join us . . . as we take them all back!

20. Commentary . . . For around 1,800 years the almost universal belief of the Church was that God created the world in six literal 24-hour days - 6,000 years ago and destroyed the earth in a global Flood at the time of Noah. In the early 19th century, however, most of the religionist whom practice their own religiosity, began to reject this Biblical view of earth history, instead even Christians themselves have been accepting the evolutionary idea of millions of years of evolutionary change. How and why this happened is very instructive for Christians today as many are returning to a belief in the literal history of { Genesis Chapters 1-11 }.

21. The years 1790-1820 have been called the "heroic age" of geology, as it truly became established as a separate organized field of scientific study. Two anti-biblical theories of earth history were developed at that time, [ 1]: catastrophism and [ 2 ]: uniformitarianism that we spoke of in an earlier part of our message. Both of these theories ignored the Bible and viewed earth history as much longer [ millions of years ] and much different from what the Bible portrays.

22. The most influential catastrophist was Georges [ 1768-1832 ], the famous French comparative anatomist and vertebrate palaeontogist. In his "Theory of the Earth [ 1813 ]" a scientist named Cuvier concluded that over the course of long ages of earth history, many catastrophic floods of regional or nearly global extent had destroyed and buried creatures in sediments, later to become fossil-bearing rock layers. According to Cuvier, all but one of these catastrophes [ Noah's Flood ] occurred before the creation of men.

23. But, a massive blow to catastrophism came when Charles Lyell [ 1797-1875 ] published his three-volume work: "Principles of Geology [ 1830-1833 ]." Reviving and augmenting the idea of James Hutton [ 1726-1797 ], Lyell's Principles presented his radical uniformitarianism. He insisted that only present-day processes at present-day rates of intensity and magnitude should be used to interpret the rock record of past geological activity. These assumptions of uniform process and rates ruled out the Genesis Creation and the Flood.

24. Although the catastrophist theory had greatly reduced the geological significance of Noah's Flood and expanded earth history well beyond the traditional, biblical view, Lyell's work was the final blow for belief in the Flood. By supposedly explaining the whole rock record by slow gradual processes, he reduced the Flood to a geological non-event. As a result, by the late 1830s, catastrophism was essentially dead in geological thought. Lyell's assumption of slow, gradual geological change also laid the foundation for Charles Darwin's later biological theory of slow, gradual evolution.

25. Commentary . . . Christians responded in various ways to these old-earth catastrophist and uniformitarian theories. In the 1810s and 1820s, the gap theory [ fitting the millions of years between { Genesis 1:1 - & - 1:2 } and the day-age view [ that thhhe days of creation were figurative, representing long ages ] became popular. And this writer will have to admit that he himself was partially caught up in that kind of belief! But, no more, because the Lord opened his mind to the truth of the Scriptures instead of the untruth of the false doctrine put forth by the gap-theoriest teachers!

26. For many - many years the gap-theory has been mistakenly interpreted by both good Christian ministers, and bad unlearned theologians and leading countless people to stray from the truth. Also, the great Flood was reinterpreted by many as being either so peaceful that it left no geological evidence [ tranquil flood view ] or only covering the Mesopotamian valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers . . . modern day Iraq [ local flood view ]. But, one thing this writer must say, he always looked on these beliefs as being very questionable and, most of these views as outright falsehood and erroneous!

27. A number of Christian writers raised biblical, geological and philosophical arguments against the catastrophist and uniformitarian views of earth history, as well as against the various Christian attempts to fit the millions of years theory into the Bible. Many of these "Scriptural geologist" were geologically very competent by the standards of their day. They argued that the biblical account of creation and Noah's Flood very well explained the rock record.

28. But, by the time of Darwin's Origin of Species in [ 1859 ] their view had essentially disappeared within religious circles. In the decades that followed, many godly men compromised with the millions of years theories, not realizing that this completely undermined biblical authority and the Gospel itself. They did this because they assumed that the geologists had proven that the earth had existed for millions of years.

29. Even the well remembered Baptist preacher, Charles Spurgeon, was mistaken, when he preached in 1855: he stated "Can any man tell me when the beginning was? Years ago we thought the beginning of the world was when Adam came upon it; but we have discovered that thousands of years before that God was preparing chaotic matter to make it a fit abode for man, putting races of creatures upon it, who might die and leave behind the marks of His handiwork and marvelous skill, before He tried His skill on man."

30. The great Presbyterian theologian Charles Hodge, A.A. Hodge and B.B. Warfield compromised on the age of the earth, unintentionally contributing to Princeton Seminary's slide into liberalism in the late 1920s. C.I. Scofield inadvertently misled millions of Bible-lovers by putting the gap theory in the marginal notes of { Genesis 1:2 } of his much appreciated reference Bible.

31. The fundamentals bible believers in 1910 defended orthodox Christian doctrine against the onslaught of liberalism, but, sadly, many of them started accepting the millions of years theory. Dr. Terry Mortenson said that . . . As a result of the compromise of these and most other Christian leaders, and the increasing brainwashing of our culture with millions of years dogma, most Christian colleges, seminaries and churches today accept that the earth was formed millions of years ago.

32. Lyell's uniformitarianism dominated geology until about the 1970s when Derek Ager [ 1923-93 ], a prominent British geologist, and other evolutionary geologist increasingly challenged Lyell's assumptions and argued that much of the rock record shows evidence of rapid catastrophic erosion or sedimentation, drastically reducing the time involved in the formation of many geological deposits. These "neo-catastrophist" reinterpretations of the rocks have developed contemporaneously with the rise of young-earth creationist "Flood Geology."

33. Commentary . . . The modern creationist movement, now worldwide in scope, is a miraculous revival and expansion of the arguments of Scriptural geologists and gives abundant proof of the enduring truth of the Word of Almighty God. Genesis can and should be trusted from the very first verse as true, literal history. Christians need to learn the scientific evidence that confirms the truth of God's Word and refute the lies of evolution and the millions of years theories, and thereby help to stop the compromise.

34. Commentary . . . The Bible declares that God created the world instantaneously, by the power of the spoken Word. Yet the theory of evolution says that the world evolved over a period of billions of years. Every year, when America's young people go back to school, they are confronted with the challenge of evolution in the public schools. The tragedy for many of our Christian young people is that they end up confused and brain washed. On the one hand, they have been taught the biblical account that God created them in His Own image and likeness.

35. They are then told, "No, your the product of an accident of chance. A series of evolving events over billions of years finally led to the development of the human race." It is no wonder they are confused. When we open the pages of the Bible, we find in Genesis Chapter 1, the six days of creation are summarized. Then in Chapter 2, the six days of creation are scrutinized. In the first chapter, notice that the Bible begins with two major facts. First of all, it begins with the fact of God Himself. "In the beginning God created . . . { Genesis 1:1 }.

36. Secondly, the fact of creation is presented. Dr. Edward Hindson states that the Hebrew Bible begins with the word: [ 'bereshith.' ] It is the Hebrew word for 'beginning." Genesis is the Latin word for beginning. The Book of Genesis is the book of beginnings. It records the onset of time as we know it. For until God created a material universe that is time sensitive, there was, in essence, no time. God has always existed from eternity past, and He always will exist into eternity future as well.

37. In the beginning of time, the God Who was already there . . . Elohim, as He is called in the Hebrew text . . . created the Heavens and the Earth. The Hebrew word for 'created' is the word 'barah.' It means that God literally created the entire world. He initiated the creation distinct from Himself. He did not take preexisting matter, form it and shape it. He literally created the world from nothing.

38. Commentary . . . The Bible tells us that God instantly created life and the various life forms. Every day of creation is spoken of as a specific 24 hour day. Genesis used the Hebrew word 'yom' for the word "day," a word that "always means a 24-hour period of time, especially when it is used with a number: such as day one, day two, day three and so on." In fact, in { Exodus 20:11 }, the Scripture specifically says "God created the world in six days." That is why the Jews rested on the Sabbath, the seventh day. There are three things in the biblical account of creation that are evident from the very beginning.

39. First of all, the creation was instantaneous; secondly, "it was created with the appearance of age;" and thirdly, species tend to develop after their kind, or after their type. In other words, the Bible begins with the assumption that God exists, and that the God that had eternity existed was the God that created the world instantaneously. God took nothing and instantaneously made something appear out of nowhere. All of a sudden, instantly, He made the world appear "supernaturally." God created this world from nothing by the power of His Own creative genius.

40. Since God made a planet appear out of nowhere, then it automatically looks older than it really is. If He can create Adam and Eve instantly, He can make them appear to be older then they are. Adam was not an infant crawling around on the ground. He was created as a full-grown man. Jehovah then took Adam's rib and from it He created Eve as a full-grown woman for Adam as a wife. They likely looked as if they were 20 or 30 years of age when in reality they were brand new. The same can be said for the animal kingdom.

41. We must believe that all animals and other life forms were created as adults in-stantaneously. God's creation was an instantaneous creation that carried with it the appearance of being older than it really is. God can make something appear from nothing and give it an appearance of a great age. All created substances by God is by "supernatural origin." That means that when you and I look at the world we live in, the stars, moon, sun and planets, they already appear older than they actually are.

42. But that is not to say that there are not processes that take place on this planet. Rivers had to cut their way through canyons. Rapid moving water shaped mountains and valleys. Moving ice did the same thing. In fact, when we consider the impact of the Flood of Noah's day, we discover that much of what we see on our planet today was carved and cut by the Noachic Flood.

43. The Grand Canyon was not formed because the Colorado River just slowly trickled away in the bottom of the canyon. If you go there and look at it today, it is just laying there doing almost nothing. But the Grand Canyon itself, was cut through in the past by a massive wall of water moving at one time during the great deluge. A place called the "Natural Bridge" in Virginia is another example.

44. Commentary . . . Ultimately, the creation of God's world was accomplished immediately by the power of His spoken Word. The world has meaning and significance because it is not here as an accident of chance. Rather, it was created by the direct intervention by a Divine Being, Who is a personal and sovereign God. God uniquely existed from eternity, and He created the world with nothing, instantly, powerfully and dramatically, by the power of His spoken Word.

45. Yet the God Who created this world did so for a reason and a purpose. He was moving toward the apex of what would come to pass: "And God said, Let "US" make men in "OUR" image . . . { Genesis 1:26 }." . . . This verse contains a plural reference to God. It refers to the Trinity Of God Himself. Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It was God the Father Who planed and initiated the creation. It was God the Holy Spirit Who moved over the planet. And, the New Testament tells us that it was the Son of God Who created. As to the exalted Creator . . .

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46. { V. 15 } Scripture: "Who is the image [ exact likeness ] of the invisible [ unseen ] God . . . [ the visible representation of the invisible ], the firstborn of every creature [ i.e., of all creation ],

47. { V. 16 }: For by Him [ Jesus Christ ] were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in [ the ] earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him: { Jehovah Lord of Hosts, the Three in One ]

48. { V. 17}: And He is [and always was in eternity past ] before all things, and by Him all things consist, [ or holds together ], { V. 18}: And He is the Head of the [ called out Body of Christ, therefore Christ Jesus ]: Who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence, { Colossians 1:15-18 }." [ God Himself teaches about wisdom, all Bible students should read the following chapter { Proverbs 8. }

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49. Commentary . . . God in three persons actively created all matter and all things including the universe and all things in it. Scripture is clear, we are not accidents of chance, nor are we here as a result of any scientific process. The Lord may use certain processes to shape and develop life as time goes on, but it is He Himself Who has initiated that creation as a unique and distinct action of His Own. He has ultimately made you and me in His image and likeness.

50. Commentary . . . The story of creation in our Bible contradicts the major philosophies of life as they are often given to us today. For example, the Bible begins by saying in the beginning God existed, and contradicts the philosophy of atheism. Atheism means "no theism; no God." Atheism is the view that says, "I know beyond a shadow of a doubt there is no God. God does NOT exist. We are alone in the universe, floating around on a planet in outer space. We are all that there is. There is no God." The Scriptures, by contradiction to that, says "In the beginning, God was there, He has always been there, and He will always be there, here and everywhere as an 'Omnipresent Creator.'

51. Secondly. Commentary . . . The Scriptures also contradicts the idea of "pantheism," the idea that all things are God. God is everything, and everything is God. The philosophy of pantheism says, "The trees are God, the flowers are God, the Earth is God, the sky is God, everything is God." The problem with that, logically, is, if God is everything, then in reality God is nothing! He isn't anything that is unique and distinct from everything else. If something is everything, it is ultimately nothing. That is, it is nothing in particular. But the Scriptures state that God is not part of the creation; God is the Creator, Who uniquely, distinctly created the world, separate from Himself, and as we have before stated, His creation was by the power of His spoken Word.

52. Thirdly. Commentary . . . The Scriptures contradicts the philosophy of "polytheism," which is found in so many primitive cultures. This is the idea that there are "poly - many - gods." There are gods for this and gods for that, and everybody has their own god to worship. The Bible, in contradiction to that, says there is only one God. The Lord God Himself, "Elohim, in other words He is one God in plurality," and there is no other god or gods. Elohim spoke the world into existence, and did so instantaneously and dramatically. He is the only God and there has never been or never shall be another.

53. The word "Elohim" refers to the Trinitarian God in three persons . . . There are various cults whom are polytheist, and teach the polytheistic doctrine concerning various gods. One of such is the Jehovah Witness, to prove this, this writer spoke to a member of this cult just recently who believes in the one God and then made reference to Christ as being "A god." But this cult does not believe that Christ is the one true God. Nor do they believe that Jesus Christ in the New Testament and Jehovah of the Old Testament are one and the same God! Thus they and all other religions who teach Polytheism are actually false witnesses according to the King James Bible!

54. The Jehovah Witness use the "New World Bible" and it was written according to their own translation of the Scriptures. In { John 1:1 } of the King James Bible the Text states . . . Scripture: "In the beginning was the Word [ Jesus Christ ], and the Word was with God [ i. e., with the other two persons of the God head, God the Father and God the Holy Spirit ], and the Word was God."

55. Commentary . . . This verse is taken from the true Word of the Triune God Himself and this is the theme of the verse in plain English!: "In the beginning. Before time began, Christ was already in existence with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. This is what is meant by the term "the pre-existent Christ." See { Genesis 1:1; - & - 1- John 1:1. } The Word [ 'logos' in the Greek ]. Logos means 'word, thought, concept, and the expressions thereof.' In the O.T. the concept conveyed activity and revelation, and the Word or wisdom of God is often personified { Psalm 33:6; - & - Proverbs Ch. 8 }.

56. In the Targums [ Aramaic paraphrases of the O.T. ] it was a designation of God. to the Greek mind it expressed the ideas of reason and creative control. Revelation is the keynote idea in the logos concept. Here it is applied to Jesus Christ, Who is all that God is and the expression of Him { 1:1, 14 }. In this verse the Word [ Christ ] is said to be with God [ i.e., in communion with and yet distinct from God ] and to be God [ i.e., identical in essence with God ]. And now let us quote the same verse from the "New World - Jehovah Witness Bible":

57. "In [ the ] beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god."

58. Need we say more concerning the Witness religion? They are extreme in their Polytheistic doctrine. To be very explicit in teaching correctly from the Word of God, unless a person and, or certain religions believe what the Bible expresses about there being only ONE TRUE GOD, then they must strongly be considered as false teachers and unsaved according to God's Word! I might say also that the Mormons and the Christian Scientist also, do not believe that Christ is the True God of the Universe! And, many other cults also believe this same type of doctrine!

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59. { V. 6 } Scripture: "This is He that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that bears witness, because the Spirit is truth.

60. { V. 7 }: For there are three that bear record in Heaven, the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit; and these three are One.

61. { V. 8 }: And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in One.

62. { V. 20 }: And we know that the Son of God is come, and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him that is true, and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life, { 1- John 5:6-8, 20 }." [ Can the Biblical Trinity be taught any clearer than this above text? ]

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63. The above 4 verses paraphrased . . . { V. 6 }: "This is He Who came by [ with ] water and blood [ His baptism and His death ], Jesus Christ, not by [ or in ] the water only but by [ in ] the water and the blood. And it is the [ Holy ] Spirit Who bears witness, because the Holy Spirit is the Truth.

64. { V. 7 }: So there are three witnesses that bear record in Heaven, [ 1 ]: God the Father, [ 2 ]: the Word . . . God the Lord Jesus Christ, and [ 3 ]: God the Holy Spirit, and these three are One God.

65. { V. 8 }: And there are three witnesses [ the "Trinity" ] that bear witness in [ and ] on the earth, God the Holy Spirit, the water, and the blood: and these three agree . . . i.e., are in unison, as One, that is, their testimony coincides.

66. { V. 20 }: And we [ have seen and ] know [ positively ] that the Son of God has actually come to this world and has given us an understanding and insight progressively, to perceive [ recognize ] and come to know better and more clearly Him Who is true; and we are in Him Who is true, in God the Father's Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God [ Elohim ] and life eternal.

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67. Commentary . . . The Scriptures also contradicts the philosophy of "materialism," the idea that matter is eternal. Some would try to argue that the world has always been here. Material things have always existed, so ultimately, all that God ever did is reshape what was already here. Or some maintain that there is no God, and the material universe created and shaped itself. By contradiction to that, the Scriptures state there was a time when nothing was here except God, and as He spoke the Word it came into existence from nothing. Matter is not eternal. Mater, in fact, is aging, wearing out, and running down all the time.

68. Commentary . . . The Scriptures also contradicts "Humanism" the philosophy that man is the measure of all things. Humanism is the concept that "I am the one around who the world ought to revolve." This philosophy teaches that human beings are the ultimate apex of the evolutionary process, against which all things are to be measured. Another version of that is called naturalism. It teaches that nature is really the ruler of all things. In the end, the weeds win. The jungle takes over. Nature conquers all.

69. From this comes the idea of evolution, that life has evolved from lower life forms. The Scriptures make very clear that species can adapt over a period of time. But it never gives us the idea that mankind merely evolved as an accident of natural processes. Instead the Bible emphasizes very emphatically, very powerfully, and very clearly that God Himself is, and was the Creator of the universe. God brought life into existence.

70. One of the fundamental principles of science is that non-living things cannot produce living things. Dead things cannot produce living things. Two cannonballs cannot produce a beebee! Two chairs cannot get together and have a footstool. It is absolutely impossible. Non-living things cannot reproduce. It takes life to produce life. The message of the Bible is that God, Who is life Himself created the world, and created you and me.

71. Therefore, we are responsible and accountable to God. We cannot simply say, "I'm going to live life by myself. I'm going to do my own thing. It doesn't matter how I live. Millions of years from now, it will not have made any difference at all. I'm just a 'blip' on the biological radar screen of life." Instead, the Scriptures tell us that an infinite, personal God has created us, brought us into existence, so that we might have a relationship with Him. Our lives have meaning and purpose because we reflect the ultimate purpose of the God of creation Himself.

72. Commentary . . . The "big bang" is another false story about how the universe came into existence. It teaches that billions of years ago, the universe began in a tiny, infinitely hot and dense point called a singularity. This singularity supposedly contained not only all the mass and energy that would become everything we see today, but also "space" itself. According to this story, the singularity rapidly expanded, spreading out the energy along with space.

73. It is supposed that over vast periods of time, the energy from the big bang cooled down as the universe was expanded. Some of it turned into matter . . . hydrogen and helium gas. These gases collapsed to form stars and galaxies of stars. From some of this matter caused the creation of the heavier elements in their core and then exploded . . . distributing these elements into space. Some of the heavier elements allegedly began to stick together and formed the earth, and other planets.

74. This above story of origins is pure fiction. But, sadly, many people claim to believe the big bang lie. It is particularly distressing that many professing Christians have been taken in by the big bang . . . perhaps without realizing its atheistic un-biblical false teaching. They have chosen to re-interpret the plain teachings of Scripture in an attempt to make this science fictionalized idea go along with secular beliefs about origins, and all of this is taught while leaving the Eternal God completely out of creation!

75. Commentary. . . . There are several reasons why we cannot just add the big bang theory to the Bible. Ultimately, the big bang is a secular story of origins. It attempts to explain how the universe can be created without God. Really, it is an alternative to the Bible; so it makes no sense to try and "add" it to the Bible. Let us examine some of the profound differences between the Bible and the secular/big bang view of origins.

76. The Bible teaches that God created all things in six 24 hour days { Exodus 20:11 }. But, the big bang teaches the universe has "evolved" over billions of years. The Bible says that earth was created before the stars, and that the trees were created before the sun. However, the secular/big bang view says the exact opposite. The Bible tells us that the earth was created as a paradise; the secular model teaches it was created as a molten blob.

77. Many folks don't realize that the big bang is not only a fiction story about the past, but also about the future. The most popular version of the big bang teaches that the universe will expand forever, and run out of usable energy. According to the story, it will remain that way forever in a state that astronomers call "heat death." But, the Bible teaches that the world will be judged and remade. Paradise will be restored everywhere as it was in the beginning. The big bang denies this crucial fact.

78. Commentary . . . The big bang also has a number of scientific problems. Big bang supporters are forced to accept on "blind faith" a number of notions that are completely inconsistent with real observational science. Lets explore some of the differences between the big bang story and the real universe.

79. Commentary . . . First consider the "baryon number problem." Recall that the big bang supposes that matter [ hydrogen and helium gas ] was created from energy as the universe expanded. However, experimental physics tells us that whenever matter is created from energy, such a reaction also produces antimatter. Antimatter has similar properties to matter, except the charges of the particles are reversed. [ so whereas a proton has a positive charge, an anti-proton has a negative charge ]. In any reaction where energy is transformed into matter, it produces an exactly equal amount of antimatter; there are no known exceptions.

0. The big bang [ which has no matter to begin with . . . only energy ] should have produced precisely equal amounts of matter and antimatter. Thus, if the big bang were true, there should be an exactly equal amount of matter and antimatter in the universe today, But, there is not. The visible universe is comprised almost entirely of matter . . . with only trace amounts of antimatter anywhere.

81. This devastating problem for the big bang believers is actually consistent with biblical creation; it is a design feature. God created the universe to be essentially matter only . . . and it's a good thing He did: When matter and antimatter come together, they violently destroy each other. If the universe had equal amounts of matter and antimatter [ as the big bang requires ] life would not be possible.

82. Now of course, the big bang has many other scientific problems as well. These problems are symptomatic of the underlying incorrect world-view. The big bang teachers erroneously assumes that the universe was not supernaturally created in six days. But reality does not agree with this assumption. Biblical creation explains the evidence in a more straightforward way without the ignorant speculations prevalent with the big bang theorist. But ultimately, the best reason to reject the big bang is that it goes against what the Creator of the universe Himself has said about the beginning.

83. Commentary . . . Jonathan Sarfati stated that compromise on the first chapter of Genesis has caused enormous damage to the Church. After all, if the first chapter of Genesis can't be trusted, why then should the rest of the Bible? Indeed, all doctrine of Christianity have their foundations in Genesis. There are at least three ways where adding "long ages" to the Genesis account of creation harms the Scripture: "faith which was once for all delivered to the Saints, { Jude V. 3 }."

84. Commentary . . . The Protestant Reformation recovered the doctrine that Scripture was perspicuous, meaning that it is, understandable by ordinary people without needing an elite group to interpret it. In the past the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy have brain washed countless people with the idea that only their own church fathers could interpret the Scriptures. This of course, makes God a liar, actually they themselves were the ones who were telling fables!

85. To teach the Scripture correctly it must be made understandable to Bible students that, the numbered sequence of days with evening and morning should be very easy to comprehend as ordinary 24 hour days. But, if long-agers are right, we can not understand Genesis according to its grammatical and historical context; instead, we need the modern elite group of secular scientists to determine its meaning. This is a very dangerous slippery slide. where do we stop?

86. To teach such nonsense makes these scientist as guilty in teaching false doctrine as the Roman Church was in their teachings. "Science" also tells us that virgins don't conceive and dead men don't rise. So should we likewise re-interpret the nativity and resurrection narratives? The 19th century liberal Scottish scholar Marcus Dods wrote: "If, for example, the word 'day' in these chapters does not mean a period of 24 hours, the interpretation of Scripture is hopeless." Indeed, evil could be interpreted as good { see Isaiah 5:20 }. It's no accident that many denominations permeated by the Genesis compromise have condoned fornication, homosexual practice and abortion, even among leaders.

87. Commentary . . . The largest problem of non-literal interpretations of Genesis is that there then would have been billions of years of death, struggle and suffering before man's fall. But, Scripture teaches that death is the result of Adam's fall.

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88. Scripture: "Therefore, as by one man's sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned, { Romans 5:12 }."

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89. The above verse paraphrased: "Therefore, as by one man Adam . . ., sin: [ through the old sin nature inherited from Adam alone ] entered into the world, and death as the result of and by sin; spread upon all men [ with no one being able to stop it or escape its power . . . for all have sinned: [ and . . . all still sin, no one is without some form of sin ]. See { 1- John 1:8-10. ]

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90. { V. 7 } Scripture: "But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

91. { V. 8 }: If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

92. { V. 9 }: If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleans us from all unrighteousness.

93. { V. 10 }: If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His Word is not in us, { 1- John 1:7-10 }." See { Psalm 32:5-6; - James 4:7-8; - 2- Corinthians 4:3-4; - Ephesians 6:12; - Isaiah 59:2; - & - Proverbs 16:18 }.

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94. The above 4 verses paraphrased . . . { V. 7 }: "But if we really are walking and living in the light comprehensively as Christ Himself is in the light of understanding, we have true and unbroken fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His [ i.e., God the Father's ] Son cleanses and removes us from all sin and guilt . . . . [ But, on the other hand ] . . .

95. { V. 8 }: If we say that we have no sin [ i.e., and or - do not sin, by refusing to admit that wwwe are sinners ], we delude and lead ourselves astray, AND THE TRUTH [ which the Gospel presents ] IS NOT IN US [ does not dwell in our hearts. ] [ Contrast between the old sin nature and the new Christ like nature ].

96. { V. 9 }: If we freely admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He [ God the Father ] is faithful and just [ true to His Own nature and promises ] and will 'forgive us our sins [ dismiss our lawlessness' ] and continuously cleanses us from all unrighteousness . . . everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought and action.

97. { V. 10 }: If we say [ claim ] that we HAVE NOT SINNED, we contradict His Word and make Him [ God Himself out to be false and a liar, and His Word is not in us . . . the Divine message of the Gospel is not in our hearts! " . . . And the next verses states:

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98. { V. 21 } Scripture: "For since by [ One ] man [ Adam ] came death [ and ], by [ One ] man [ i.e., the God man Christ Jesus ] came also the resurrection of the dead.

99. { V. 22 }: For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ [ as God the Saviour, those whom are adopted Children of God the Father ] shall all [ i.e., all born again Saints in Christ ] be made alive, { 1- Corinthians 15:21-22 }."

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100. Commentary . . . Death is also called the "last enemy" { V. 26 }. And { Genesis 3:19 } indicates that physical death was part of the punishment, and the context of { 1- Corinthians 15:21 } involves a bodily resurrection of Jesus who was physically dead. All [ Mis ] interpretations of Genesis which deny its plain meaning, and so involved death before sin, must assert that "the last enemy," death, was a part of the "very good" creation { Genesis 1:31 }.

101. One problem for compromise is fossils of undoubted human "dated" to 195,000 years ago . . . by "dating" methods the long-agers accept. There is no way to stretch Adam back anywhere near this far. Another problem is the future. If all the creation that "was subjected to frustration" { Romans 8:20-22 } is eventually to be restored { Acts 3:21 }, we must ask: "Restored to what? Billions of years of death and suffering?"

102. And, { Romans Ch. 8 } shows that the curse in Adam's day had cosmic consequences. One of them was the end of the original vegetarian diet { Genesis 1:30 }. But, the earth during the Millennial reign of Christ will have no bloodshed between animals in the animal kingdom, in other words animals will not harm each other, { See Isaiah 65:25 }.

103. On the other hand, there will be burnt offerings throughout the Millennial reign of Messiah, and literal animal sacrifices by man! See: { Ezekiel 40:38-42; - 43:18-27; - 44:29-31; - 45:21-25; - 46:24; - Zechariah 14:16-21; - & - Isaiah 56:6-8 }. [ see our message concerning the "Different Temples Of God, And The Temple For The Bride Of Christ In The Millennium." ] There are many who are troubled about the authenticity of the Bible and especially the Book of Genesis but, Christ Himself endorsed the Genesis records of creation { Matthew 19:3-6 }, and of Noah's Flood and the Ark { Luke 17:26-27 }. Jesus also said,

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104. Scripture: "But from the "beginning" of the creation God made them male and female, { Mark 10:6 }."

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105. Commentary . . . As man were made in the sixth 24-hour day after the earth's creation { Genesis 1:24-31 }, a true timeline of the world would indeed have man right at the beginning, which the Bible indicates was 6,000 years ago. But, evolution/long age ideas have man's existence in a microscopic segment at the end of a five billion-year timeline. How on earth did the evolutionist figure that time element? . . . Jesus Christ Himself cited Abraham with approval when He stated . . .

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106. Scripture: "And he said to him, If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets [ i.e., what the O.T. prophets have written ], neither will they be persuaded [ or convinced of the truth even ] though one rose from the dead [ to tell them the truth of what God has said ], { Luke 16:31 }."

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107. Commentary . . . Indeed, denominations that doubt the writings of Moses by teaching theistic evolution often have leaders who doubt the Resurrection also. Many Christians fortunately don't carry doubt of Genesis to the logical conclusion of doubting Christ, Who endorsed Genesis. But a professing evangelical leader of a prominent theistic evolutionary group in Australia has told several people that Jesus was limited by His first century Jewish culture, and we now know better because we "have the light of science." But then, what else should we question? Should we dismiss, "love your neighbor as yourself, { Matthew 19:19 }" as another example of Christ's limitation by His culture . . . this above quotation in Matthew was a quote from { Leviticus 19:18 }.

108. Was Christ's promise that He would "give His life as a ransom for many, { Matthew 20:28 }," also wrong, since this was based on the "suffering servant" prophecy in { Isaiah Ch. 53 }? { Genesis 3:15 } foretold that Christ, the seed of the woman [ virgin-born ], would crush the serpent's head, so is this also a doubt? To doubt this prophecy is to be guilty of complete apostasy!!!!! All those theistic evolutionary leaders are really challenging the very Deity of Christ! Those who treat compromise lightly need to examine the destructive consequences of taking such action to its logical conclusion. Not surprisingly recent church history has shown these consequences time and again.

109. Commentary . . . A common teaching of evolutionary theory is that man and chimpanzees are a common ancestor. In other words, according to evolutionist, if we could trace our ancestry back for many generations, eventually we would find apes. Going further back we would find dogs, frogs, fish and plants. This is because evolutionists construe the fact according to their own ungodly teachings, that all living things on earth share a common ancestor. However, the Bible states that God created different kinds of animals separately and made man in God's Own image from the dust of the ground. Unfortunately, too many Christians have compromised with this view without realizing the damage that can be done to the Gospel.

110. Commentary . . . First, the Bible clearly teaches that all people on earth are descendants of Adam and Eve. "Adam named his wife Eve because she would become the mother of all the living, { Genesis 3:20 }. Paul tells the people of Athens: "From one man He made every nation of man . . . { Acts 17:26 }." The Apostle Luke traces the genealogy of Jesus back to Adam. So at one time, Adam and Eve were the only people on the planet and there were no others that were directly created by God, as this pair was. Second, In { Romans Ch. 5 }, Paul contrasts the first Adam with Christ as the second Adam. And to repeat the next verse . . .

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111. { V. 18 } Scripture: "Therefore as by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.

112. { V. 19 }: For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous, { Romans 5:18-19 }."

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113. The above paraphrased . . . { 18 }: "Consequently, just as the result of the one man [ Adam's ] trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men.

114. { 19 }: For just as through the disobedience of the one man Adam, the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man { Jesus Christ Himself, the perfect God Man ] shall the many become righteous { Romans 5:18-19 }." [ Fallen humanity is able to be redeemed through the blood of Christ because we are related to Him by blood." ]

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115. Commentary . . . It is crucial to understand that the fall in the Garden of Eden was a real event in history. The Bible teaches that death is the result of sin, that it entered the world through the disobedience of Adam. Death is the last enemy and one that Jesus Christ came to destroy. In contrast, an evolutionary view requires death . . . and millions of years of death . . . for "natural selection" to work its magic and evolve into humans over the generations.

116. This is one of the key reasons that evolution and millions of years theories are incompatible with Scripture. Since death came as a result of Adam's Fall, "there could not have been any death of either man or animal beforehand." Some people reject direct creation of Adam as an adult from the dust of the ground. However, there would be theological problems for us if Adam had a physical mother. Would his parents have sinned? Would they have died? These issues are typically ignored by those who try to blend the Bible with evolutionary thinking.

117. Commentary . . . Evolutionists often point to alleged human ancestors such as the Neanderthals or Homo erectus as proof for their theory that man shares a common ancestor with apes. The word "Humanoid" actually refers to a creature that is nearly human but lacks the status of being one hundred percent human. The evolutionists suggest that the fossils of the creatures mentioned above are intermediates between modern man and apes.

118. Many of these specimens have alleged dates of 100,000 years to a million-plus years. How should Christians respond to this? In the case of Neanderthals, they had an average brain size exceeding that of the average modern man. Don't let the pictures of the "cave man" fool you. There is nothing in their behavior to suggest they were apelike.

119. Fossil evidence of Neanderthals indicate that they used musical instruments and wore jewelry. They made tools, hunted and used fire. Importantly, they also buried their dead. These uniquely human activities suggest they were human and therefore descendants of Adam and Eve, just like us. The absolute truth is that, the ancient date is incorrect. In many cases, human remains are downgraded to make them seem more apelike, or fossil apes are upgraded to make them seem more human. The results is according to evolutionary science, this brings out a so-called "missing link." Several examples of these alleged "missing links" . . . such as Lucy [ the Australopithecine ] . . . are simply extinct forms of apes.

120. Commentary . . . An often quoted hypothesis is the alleged 99 percent identical DNA between chimpanzees and humans. This statistic is repeatedly cited to "prove" that man and apes shared a common ancestor. Interestingly, the claim was first made years before the human genome was sequenced and the chimpanzee genome had not been completely sequenced and released. There were several problems with the DNA similarity that are overlooked.

121. Even if the DNA was 99 percent the same, this does not prove evolution. Similarity can result from the same Creator. Even in humans some men look like woman and some woman look like men but that does not make them the same!!! Builders and manufacturers often use similar processes and design elements in construction. People and chimpanzees live in the same world, breathe the same air, eat the same kinds of food, need to reproduce, etc. Why should there not be similarities?

122. In the human genome there are about three billion DNA bases [ letters ]. A difference of 1 percent is 30 million [ and naturally you have counted all of them, so this is nothing new to you ] However, as scientist are getting more and more chimpanzee DNA sequence, they are finding that there are many important distinctions . . . much of which is not easily estimated into an exact percentage. One example is the bits of DNA that are present in either man or chimpanzee. These are called insertions or deletions.

123. In many studies of chimp/human DNA similarity, these sequences have been excluded from the analysis even though they constitute more. When these extra sequences are included, the percentage similarity drops significantly. It is important that we understand that man was made uniquely in the image of God not in the image of an animal !!!!! A proper understanding of creation and the origin of sin and death help give a firm foundation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

124. Commentary . . . The events surrounding the life of Noah illustrates everything concerning creation very clearly. The masses of humanity acted as if they were demonized, and perhaps they were, while Noah was the only one who held fast to the Lord and did His will. As we have before stated, Noah means 'rest.' The rest of humanity, the 'secularists' of that generation, were oblivious to the Holy Spirit. We hear the Lord bemoaning that . . . Scripture: "My Spirit shall not always [ dwell and ] strive with man { Genesis 6:3 }." In other words: they did not listen despite God's repeated offer.

125. The only exception was Noah. Let us not go into that which Noah actually did so much as his obedience to what God said, "Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he." When we are also unconditionally willing to do what the Lord requires of us, then He will also bring to pass His glorious purposes in and through our lives. God did not want to destroy the people . . . that was what the devil wanted. The devil has a mighty weapon and that is SIN!

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126. { V. 8 } Scripture: "He that commits sin [ singular or in plurality ] is of the devil; for the devil sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil, { 1- John 3:8 }."

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127. The above { V. 8 } paraphrased . . . "But, he who commits sin, who practices evil in any form, is of the devil and takes on the same type of characteristics as Satan, for the old devil Satan has continually violated God's Divine law from the beginning. The reason the Son of God was made manifest [ visible ] was to undo, destroy, loosen and dissolve the works of Satan and what he has done."

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128. Commentary . . . { V. 8 } here might sound like God was holding Himself guilty for creating the Cherubim who became the devil and brought evil upon the earth, and only sent Christ down to this earth to undo what The Father had done. But, remember, only God knows the answer to the problems taking place in His Universe, so we are not to ever question His motives! The true fact is as a result of what has taken place through Satan, he as the devil is able to stand before God and say: "this man or woman is a sinner and belongs to me," and God can only confirm it.

129. But, God did send His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, of Whom John the Baptist exclaimed, " . . . Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world." By the will of God, through the obedience of ONE man, Noah, their was victory, and humanity survived! Through his obedience, Noah served as a good role model through the centuries, till the Lord Jesus came on the scene as Saviour of mankind, and Master of Satan's will. And, Christ remains on the scene right into our own present day!

130. Commentary . . . Today we can observe exactly the same situation! Jesus said, Scripture: "But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be, { Matthew 24:37 }." Noah is still calling to our own Dispensation! The parallels are unmistakable so that no one can evade understanding the end-time message. When the example of Noah reaches through Christ's words right into our day, then we are compelled to notice the important points.

131. Read again what Jesus said in { Matthew 24:38-39 }. No great intelligence is required to be able to recognize that this is taking place at this very time, and again we repeat what Scripture says: " . . . they were eating and drinking. . . ." Hordes of humanity are ruining their health because they eat and drink too much, ". . . marrying and giving in marriages." . . . The number of shattered marriages, the spirit of harlotry, which is flooding wholeheartedly even into Christian circles, is incomparable. The Lord Jesus said:

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132. Scripture: "And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another, { Matthew 24:10 }."

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133. The above { V. 10 } paraphrased . . . "And then [ during the 'Day of the Lord' - the Tribulation Period ] shall many be offended [ and repelled ], and shall [ begin to distrust and even ] betray one another, and shall hate one another [ and pursue one another because of their hatred, and will follow the dictates of the Antichrist" ].

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134. Commentary . . . the verse above has a future Tribulation Period setting, but even today hatred and murder are increasing at an alarming rate. Senseless acts of brutality are flashed across the front pages daily throughout the world. For example, we hear how hundreds and even thousands of Christians in various parts of the world are being imprisoned and killed by the fanatic demon possessed leaders of some nations. But the U.N. says nothing. And, iniquity is all over the world. 0nly a short time ago a mother of two boys confessed to sending her car off a pier with the little ones strapped inside!

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135. Scripture: "And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold, [ all of this because of multiplied lawlessness and diabolical sin ], { Matthew 24:12 }."

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[ Heading No. 200 ] The Ark And The Body Of Christ . . .

136. Commentary . . . The Ark of Noah in one way is a picture of the Body of Christ. The building of the Ark was a slow project. Similarly, the Body of Christ is not yet complete because ". . . the fulness of the Gentiles . . ." has not yet come in thus the spiritual building is not finished. Some might say "it is not finished because Christians are too slow and too lazy and because there is so little missionary zeal!"

137. This is not true, the fulness of the Gentiles hasn't come in because God goes only by His Own timetable, when it is the right time the Rapture will take place but only according to His Own will! The Ark at the end of this Christian Dispensation will be complete when the last Member of the Lord's Body has been converted. In the same way as the Ark moved towards its completeness in Noah's day, so we are approaching the complete number of the Body of Christ. The Lord said,

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138. Scripture: ". . . the door of the Ark shall you set in the side thereof . . . { Genesis 6:16 }." Jesus said . . .

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139. Scripture: "I am the door: by Me if any man enter in [ through Me ] , he shall be saved, and shall go in and out [ freely ], and find pasture, {John 10:9 }." [ Jesus Christ, our Ark, offers the human race the only possibility of being saved from coming judgment! ]

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[ Heading No. 201 ] Power And Obedience . . .

140. Commentary . . . What power the obedience of one person towards God has! The Apostle Peter makes clear in { 2- Peter 2:5 } that Noah was a preacher of righteousness. . . . Noah preached about God's righteousness but apparently he was not fruitful as a converter of souls because not one person repented as a result of his efforts. Was that Noah's fault? No!

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141. Scripture: "And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination [ and intention ] of the 'thoughts of his heart [ mind' ] was only evil continually, { Genesis 6:5 }."

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142. Commentary . . . "This shows us that the enormous increase in wickedness which had become overwhelming on the earth was too much for God to bear without doing something about it." The Lord emphasized by saying . . .

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143. Scripture: ". . . for the imagination of man's heart [ mind ] is evil from his youth. . . { Genesis 8:21 } "

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144. Commentary . . . Thus, the frightful words "No more time" according to the Word of God spoken by Noah to the people of that day, because of:

[ Heading No. 202 ] Today's Wickedness . . .

145. Commentary . . . Wickedness, harlotry, crime, and the like are increasing. Young teenagers and yes, even older folks, are committing heinous murders as if their consciences had been erased. And, the love of a mother for her children can no longer be taken for granted! In the passage we have cited from the Bible, not only words, deeds and plans are described as wicked, but even the desires arising in the hearts [ minds ] of man! The hard hardiness of the people in Noah's Dispensation was complete! Notice the words "evil from his [ or their ] youth . . ." Naturally this does not include babies who are innocent.

146. Babies were drowned in the Flood, and the Lord knew that the babies would go directly - right into Heaven. The word "youth" is referring to children who have reached the age of accountability! "And God said unto Noah, the end of all flesh is come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth." Thus, because this judgment does not allow for any exceptions, this is the death sentence which hovers over today's unregenerate humanity! There is only one way of being saved and that is through the one open narrow door - that folks might inter - into the Ark of salvation.

[ Heading No. 203 ] The Christian And The Unsaved One . . .

147. Commentary . . . And again we read a repeat of this verse with the words of Christ when He said: And we repeat this verse:

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148. Scripture: "I am the door: by Me if any man enter in [ through Me ] , he shall be saved, and shall go in and out [ freely ], and find pasture, John 10:9 }." [ We must see one thing absolutely and clearly ] . . .

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149. Commentary . . . The difference between the Christian and the lost unbelievers is that they are on opposite sides of the door. One has traveled the narrow road and gone through the narrow gate whereas the other has not. Through the grace of God, one saw himself as a sinner and accepted salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ whereas the other rejected or ignored it! The sin and guilt of one has been carried away and atoned for, while the other remains laden and burdened with his sin, separated and bound for eternity in Hell without God, for sin and holiness are mutually exclusive!

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150. { V. 23 } Scripture: "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God,

151. { V. 24 }: [ All Children of God ] Being justified freely by His grace [ i.e., freely and gratuitously ] through the redemption that is [ provided ] in Christ Jesus,

152. { V. 25 }: Whom God has set forth [ before the eyes of all humanity and principalities whether on the earth or in the heavens ] to be a propitiation [ the act of conciliation, to placate; win over ] through [ Christ's cleansing and life-giving sacrifice of atonement and reconciliation through the ] faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God [ i.e., because in His Divine forbearance He had passed over and ignored former sins without punishment ].

153. { V. 26 }: To declare, I say, at this [ present ] time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the Justifier of Him which believes in Jesus [ Christ with true faith ], {Romans 3:23-26}."

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154. Commentary of above four verses . . . { V. 23 }: "All have sinned." . . : sin is defined in { 1- John 3:4 } as lawlessness, and here as lack of conformity to the glory of God. These are complementary ideas, since the law of God is an expression of Christ's character. Justified . . .

155. Above { V. 24 }: "To justify" . . . was a legal term meaning to secure a favorable verdict, to acquit, to vindicate, to declare rightness { Deuteronomy 25:1 }. It is an act of God { Romans 8:33 }. Who takes the initiative and provides the means through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. The sinner who believes in Christ receives God's gift of righteousness { 5:17 }, which then enables God to pronounce him righteous. On redemption: three ideas are involved in the doctrine of redemption . . .

[ 1 ]: paying the ransom with the blood of Christ { 1- Corinthians 6:20; - & - Revelation 5:9 }; . . .

[ 2 ]: removal from the curse of the law { Galatians 3:13; - & - 4:5 }, and . . .

[ 3 ]: release from the bondage of sin into the freedom of grace { 1- Peter 1:18 }. Redemption is always through Christ's blood; i.e., through the death of Christ { Colossians 1:14

156. Above { V. 25 }: "Propitiation": here this may mean the "place of propitiation"; i.e., the mercy seat as in { Hebrews 9:5 }. Christ is pictured as the mercy seat where God's holy demands were satisfied { see Leviticus 16:14 }. See also { Hebrews 2:17 }, sins that are past, the death of Christ also paid for sins committed before He died.

157. Above { V. 26 }: "that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believes in Jesus." Because of the death of Christ, God can remain just when declaring righteous the one who believes in Jesus Christ and who is therefore forgiven of his sins.

[ Heading No. 204 ] God's Grace And Judgment . . .

158. Commentary . . . God's grace is great and glorious but outside this saving grace, this Ark of salvation, the rejection by sinners and their punishment from God is certain. It is not that the Lord wishes to punish people in a judgment from above, but because continual sin without repentance is a situation which is grievous to God, { see Genesis 6:6 }. That is why He told Noah to build a door into the Ark and why He called Noah to preach God's Words of righteousness and grace leading to salvation, for righteousness is both grace and judgment!

159. How Noah must have pleaded with the people! "We today are living in the end times," Noah must have shouted, "God is going to judge the whole world! But you can be saved! Come into the Ark today!" But, the Scriptures states that the people, ". . . knew not until the Flood came, and took them all away. . . { Matthew 24:39 }."

160. We need to consider the whole situation quite practically: God created out of the dust of the earth, out of chaos, humanity in His Own image and He saw that it was good. Then man turned away from God back into chaotic conditions by following Satan and that grieved God in His heart. When we see that our days are a mirror image of the time of Noah, then the pertinent question is, "Have YOU gone in through the door into the Ark of salvation?

[ Heading No. 205 ] The Remnant . . .

161. Commentary . . . When the judgment of the Flood began and the wicked people were washed away, the Ark was also a picture of the remnant of Israel which will be kept faithfully despite having to go through the Tribulation Period. Just as God saved a live remnant of His beloved Israelis out of the living hell imposed by Nazi Germany, so He will keep and save the remnant through the antichristian hell.

162. God will remove Israel's enemies out of the land and put fear into their hearts according to the measure that the Jews have returned from all over the world to Israel. There is something like 14 million Jews on this earth and only a little over 6 million are in Israel today! But eventually the Jews from America and elsewhere around this world will have that natural desire to return to Israel and posses their inherited land, otherwise their inheritance would mean nothing to them!

163. We strongly suggest that the reader look up the word land in Strong's Concordance of the Bible, this will give you a good idea as to what has been promised to the descendants of the Hebrew Patriarchs. When all the Hebrews have been returned to their land, Israel will no longer need any F-16's Mirage fighter planes, and other military hardware, because they will have the victory over all their enemies. God helps His people in miraculous ways. He is teaching them now - and without Christianity's help! The so-called peace agreements we have been seeing negotiated at great cost to Israel and in violation of common sense are a signal that the departure of the Body of Christ is near.

[ Heading No. 206 ] Israel Then And Now . . .

164. Think back to the Yom Kippur war. What district in Egypt did Israel capture in 1967? The land of Goshen from which they were saved almost 3,500 years ago! It is as if the Lord wanted to say to Israel: "I am the Lord your God Who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!" And then the agreement was signed with Egypt. Which part was Israel to keep at the first stage? Rephidim, the place where according to { Exodus 17:1-7 }, living water flowed out of the rock from the Lord. Who was the rock? { I- Corinthians 10:4 } tells us that ". . . they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ." There at Rephidim many centuries before, the Lord gave the Hebrew people the victory over Amalek { Exodus 17:8-16 }.

165. The whole agreement that was signed between Egypt and Israel is, spiritually speaking, leading Israel gradually out and away from the old Mosaic law, out of Sinai where the old law was given, into grace. The Lord with utmost care is preparing His little nation inwardly for the last great Tribulation. He is doing it so thoroughly that despite threats on a worldwide scale, the sons of Jacob do not suffer national collapse.

166. How would other governments react if they were threatened and pressured like Israel? China, one of Israel's bitterest enemies, was known to have an army of 200 million a short time ago. Today it is even greater. Added to this, China appears to have had for some time multi-stage intercontinental rockets which have a possible range which if they wished, could attack Moscow and most parts of Asia and Israel!

[ Heading No. 207 ] The Door Of The Ark About To Shut . . .

167. Commentary . . . What is the position of humanity today? It is facing the opened door to the Ark, which could close finally ANY MOMENT NOW. Let those six words in { Genesis 7:16 } have their full effect on you, ". . . and the Lord shut him in!" Noah and his family were inside the Ark, but all the others stood outside and the door was closed. Among those outside were various types: the lukewarm ones who could not decide whether or not to go into the Ark; there were friends of Noah who were at the same time friends of the world; and of course there were people who "Believed" in God. The Bible says, ". . . the devils [ demons and wicked angels ] also believe, and tremble, { James 2:19 }."

168. Today there are not only lukewarm and feeble people but MANY, MANY who believe in some "Higher being or power" but they refuse to bow their knee to the God of the Bible! All these people were left outside the Ark, ". . . And knew not until the Flood came, and took them all away, { Matthew 24:39 }." On which side of the door are YOU? Are you hidden with Christ in the Triune God? If not, then delay no longer for the age of grace is coming to an end! Accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, and enter the Ark of God's salvation before it is too late!

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169. Commentary . . . Preterist ministers behind the pulpits of the various Assemblies who believe and teach the false doctrine that all prophecy was fulfilled in A.D. 70, must be wailing and gnashing their teeth after reading the July 1, 2004, edition of Time. Actually there are many events foretold in Revelation that prove that A.D 70 was not the fulfillment of those prophecies! What these false teachers do not know is that a Catholic Monk hundreds of years ago was the one who falsely put forth the lie that the Book of Revelation was fulfilled in A.D 70.

170. This Monk was angry at Martin Luther for calling the Pope of Rome the Antichrist. If they would read up on the subject they could find this out for themselves. It is well known that those who teach such nonsense look down on the Catholic religion, so they would not be very happy to find that they are teaching popish dogma themselves. As we have repeatedly stated, Jesus said that the last generation of this age would be given many signs { Luke Ch. 21; - & - Matthew 24 }. These signs would precede: the Second Coming of Christ:

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171. Scripture: "And then shall they see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great [ transcendent and overwhelming power and all His kingly ] glory [ majesty and splendor ], { Luke 21:27 }."

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172. Scripture: "[ And ] Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars [ wicked angels ] shall fall from heaven { see Revelation 12:3-4 }, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken, { Matthew 24:29 }." { See Isaiah 13:10; - 34:4; - Joel 2:10-11; - & - Zephaniah 1:15. }

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173. Commentary . . . Therefore, the generation to which these signs appear are already seeing many of these signs appearing on the earth and also in the heavens, and even more great signs will appear during the Tribulation Period [ Daniel's 70th week, ] to prove that Messiah's Coming is just around the corner.

174. Therefore, we are to watch and know that the Tribulation is at hand, and that to be followed by the Lord's return.

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175. Scripture: "So likewise you, when you shall see all these things, know that it [ the dispensation of the Tribulation ] is near, even at the door, { Matthew 24:33 }." [ And, after that generation has elapsed the Lord will take over the reigns of the earth to save the world from those who would try to destroy it ].

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176. Scripture: "And the nations were [ past tense ] angry, and Your wrath [ present tense ] is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that You should [ future tense ] give reward to Your servants the prophets, and to the Saints, and them that fear Your name, small and great; and should destroy them which destroy the earth, { Revelation 11:18 }."

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177. The above { V. 18 } paraphrased: "And the heathen [ the Gentile nations and all who are not God's Children ] raged, but Your wrath [ retribution, and indignation oh Lord ] came, the time when the dead will be judged and to reward Your servants, the prophets and Saints, and those who revere [ fear ] Your name, both low and high and small and great; and [ the time ] for destroying the corrupters of the earth. See { Psalm 2:1 }.

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178. Commentary . . . The rage of the nations, they have exhibited defiance and arrogance against God many times before, but now it has reached its culmination { see Revelation 16:13-16; -19:19; - & - Psalm Two }. Here is an epitome of Armageddon. As to God's wrath, no longer will the patience of the Lord be manifest. The hour of His vengeance will have arrived { see Psalm 2:5; - & - 2- Thessalonians 1:7-8 }.

179. The judgment of the dead in the above verse obviously has a twofold meaning, one meaning refers to the future Great White Throne judgment mentioned in { Revelation Ch. 20 }. The other meaning refers to the Old Testament Saints that have returned to the earth with Christ, and the Tribulation Saints who had been killed during the Tribulation Period and has also returned back with Christ to receive their resurrected dead Bodies that were changed into spiritual bodies at His return. See the resurrection of the O.T. saints in { Daniel 12:1-2 }.

180. This resurrection does not take place at the time of the Rapture of the Body of Christ, but 7 or so years afterward at the Second Advent of Messiah. The rewarding of the Godly will be the rewards passed out to those whom were saved during the Tribulation whom are called sheep, and to the Old Testament Saints that will return from heaven with Messiah at His Second Coming. And consider the judgment of the nations after His Second Advent, { See Matthew 25:31-46 }.

181. This particular rewarding of Saints has nothing to do with the rewards that the Body of Christ is to receive. The Body of Christ will receive their rewards in the heavenlies at the judgment seat of Christ that will take place while the Tribulation Period is in full sway upon the earth. Today there are those who would destroy this earth to get at their enemies, and there will be those who will try to do so during the Tribulation Period. The destruction of the destroyers of the earth would actually refer to those who carry out their diabolical purposes in the future, what a summary this is to be.

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182. Scripture: "For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but [ we ] were eyewitnesses of His majesty, { 2- Peter 1:15 }."

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183. Commentary . . . The Apostle Peter's testimony concerning what happened on the Mount of Transfiguration related to the Second Coming of Christ . . . Peter, James and John were up there on the Mount when Christ's Transfiguration took place. This Transfiguration was an exact duplication of the appearing of Christ as Messiah when He returns at His Second Coming, { Zechariah 14:4 }.

184. This event confirms the truth of the Old Testament prophecies and makes them even more sure from a human viewpoint, { see 2- Peter 1:19-21; - & - Matthew 17:1-8 }. The word Transfigured literally means transformed. The transfiguration gave the three disciples a preview of Messiah's future exaltation and the coming Millennial Kingdom. The Lord was seen in His body of glory; Moses and Elijah illustrated those 0ld Testament Saints whom Christ will bring with Him, { Jude 14-15. } The disciples represented those who will behold Messiah's coming.

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[ Heading No. 208 ] The Prophets And The Gospel:

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185. { V. 10 } Scripture: "Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:

186. { V. 11 }: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.

187. { V. 12 }: Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the Gospel unto you with the Holy Spirit sent down from Heaven: which things the angels desire to look into, { 1- Peter 1:10-12 }."

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188. Commentary . . . Peter directs the people's attention to the prophetic Books of the Bible. The Spirit of Christ was in them and they testified before of the suffering of Christ { see Psalm 22, } and the glories that should follow. This is the great message of these holy men of God who spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. When our Lord said to the Jews "Search the Scriptures . . . they are they which testify of Me" He called attention to the same fact. They prophesied of the grace which was to come and though they did not understand their own prophecies, they sought diligently, they studied what they had written, searching and always searching, to find out what time, near or far, these things should come to pass. Therefore, they knew one thing, . . .

189. Read { Vs. 10-12 } above again. The people knew that it was not for themselves, not for their own times, that which the Holy Spirit had announced, but for another time. The passage is illustrated by comparing { Isaiah 64:4 with 1- Corinthians 2:9-10 }. The Holy Spirit having come down from Heaven after Christ had died and was raised from among the dead, has made known the fulness of redemption. And the angels desire to look into these things; they seek to explore and to fathom the wonders of that redemption and the coming glories which are connected with it.

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190. Scripture: "We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto you do well that you take heed, as unto a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts [ minds ], { 2- Peter 1:19 }."

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191. Commentary . . . "We have also a more sure word of prophecy" should be rendered, "We have the word of prophecy made more sure." The word 'prophecy' is, of course, in the Old Testament. But, is this not sure enough? Why should it be made more sure? It must be understood in the sense of attesting, or confirming the word of prophecy. The transfiguration confirmed the prophecies in the O.T. . . .

192. The prophets describe such a scene like the transfiguration, when the Son of man comes from Heaven in power and great glory; hence the word prophecy has been confirmed, made more sure, by the scene on the holy mount. Let it be stated again that the O.T. prophetic Word does not reveal that coming for the Body of Christ "that blessed hope." When Paul speaks of the Rapture in { 1- Corinthians Ch. 15 } he speaks of it as a mystery; it was hidden in former ages { 1- Corinthians 15:51}. Yet in the above verse Peter alludes to it when he speaks of the morning star.

193. There is a difficulty connected with this verse, and some have read it as if it meant that the morning star must arise in the heart of the individual, as it has been stated in the following comment: "The day star arising in our hearts will be the inner premonitions which announce the coming, as the day star heralds the dawn; such premonitions might be occasioned by observing the various signs of the coming."

194. It does not mean this at all, nor does it mean that prophecy is only to be used for encouragement till we possess the proper Christian hope. The suggested rendering in the numerical Bible removes the difficulty. "We have also the prophetic Word confirmed, to which you do well in taking heed [ as to a lamp that shines in an obscure place, until the day dawn and the morning star arises ] in your hearts."

195. It does not mean that the morning star is to arise in the heart of the Believer; it means that we should take heed to prophecy in our minds [ hearts ]. And, how the entire prophetic Word, that blessed lamp, is needed in these darkening days! The day dawn is preceded by the rising of the morning star, or day star and the morning star is the blessed emblem of the coming of the Lord for His Saints, He is both the morning star and [ shines as ] the 'sun' of righteousness. He appears as the morning star for His Saints and afterward in full glory as the 'sun' of righteousness.

196. Many folks are in the dark dungeon of sin today, they need a lamp to find their way out, and away from their sinful conditions, so that they might return back into God's grace. Those folks in Peter's time needed light until dawn [ i.e., understanding future minds ]. This text could be considered as suggesting that Christ is as like light in the early dawn, He shines into men's 'hearts [ minds' ] { see Luke 1:78-79, - & - John 8:12 }. Christ stated: "I am the light of the world."

197. Our Lord here in { John 8:12 } draws an analogy between the sun as the physical light of the world and Himself as the spiritual light of the world { see John 9:4-5; - & - 11:9-10 }. The Apostle continued to give us many additional prophetic signs of the Lord's return and the end of the age. There are many Biblical signs that are given as warning of the coming Tribulation, as Christ said . . .

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198. Scripture: "For then shall there be great tribulation [ affliction, distress, and oppression ], such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no nor ever shall be [ again ], { Matthew 24:21 }." { See Daniel 12:1 - & - Joel 2:2 }.

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199. Commentary . . . Troublesome times have become so evident that more Americans are beginning to wonder if judgment is near at hand. The September 11th catastrophe and the various hurricanes have awakened folks and have caused many of them to search the Scriptures. Just to rehash a few of the prophetic signs we are instructed to watch for, We submit the following:

200. [ 1 ]: Increase in knowledge. As we have mentioned: it is stated by the prophet . . .

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201. Scripture: "But you, 0 Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased, { Daniel 12:4 }."

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202. Scripture: "And at that time shall Michael [ the archangel of Heaven ] stand up, the great prince which stands [ as the mighty angelic prince and protector ] for the children of Your people: and there shall be a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time Your people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book [ of eternal life ], { Daniel 12:1 }."

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203. Commentary . . . The increase of Knowledge was to come before the great Tribulation, this is self-evident. It is stated by many educators that man's knowledge is doubling every two and one-half years. Almost every time we turn around the latest computers become outdated. This writer was informed that every year smarter computers are on the market that far out perform last years computers. Without the increase of knowledge there would have been no automobiles, no airplanes, no computers, no nuclear weapons, etc.

204. [ 2 ]: Again we repeat, that there was to be an increase in travel. Daniel prophesied that at the end of the age people would be traveling at a tremendous rate. Without the increase in travel and transportation methods, many of the other end time prophecies would not be possible. Over one hundred years ago the first crude motor vehicles came on the scene, we were told that the first American car to be built was the "Duryea Motor Wagon in 1893." Today there are over 650 million cars with another 60 million being produced annually. We read that in the last days when God prepares the world for judgment . . .

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205. { V. 3 } Scripture: "The shield of the mighty men is made red, the valiant men are in scarlet: the chariots shall be with flaming torches in the day of his preparation, and the fir trees shall be terribly shaken.

206. { V. 4 }: The chariots shall rage in the streets, they shall justle one against another in the broad ways: they shall seem like torches, they shall run like the lightnings, { Nahum 2:3-4 }."

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207. Commentary . . . Naturally we believe that these verses have a twofold meaning and refers to two different dispensational time periods which we will not go into at this time. But, nothing has accelerated the rate and speed of travel and transportation like the automobile. The Airplane appeared about the same time as the automobile; the first airplane flight lasted 12 seconds, December 17th, 1903. There were approximately two billion scheduled airplane flights in 2002. Entire armies can be transported half way around the world by air in less than one day.

208. [ 3 ] Communications. The first radio broadcast was August 20th, 1920. There is now a radio in almost every house, and in most other places also. No doubt, there are as many as five radios in various residences, I personally can think of at least seven in my own home right now with two more in my car and truck. There are thousands of radio stations with millions of radio wave messages traveling through our bodies every hour. It would be difficult to fulfill the Lord's command to preach "the Gospel of Christ" to every nation without the radio { Matthew 24:14 }. In 1925 the first TV was invented. The Lord Jesus stated . . .

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209. Scripture: "So likewise you, when you shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors, { Matthew 24:33 }."

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210. Commentary . . . We can sit in our living room and literally see on TV many of the end-time prophecies as they are progressing throughout the world. Without television, all the nation's people in the near future would not be able to see the Antichrist when he appears on the Temple Mount, during the Tribulation Period. Nor could they see the bodies of God's two witnesses lying in the street of Jerusalem { Revelation 11:7-10 }. Also, we must not forget the cell phones, which make possible direct communication between individuals almost any place on earth.

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211. { V. 23 } Scripture: "And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences [ the Antichrist ], shall stand up.

212. { V. 24 }: And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: [ but by the power that Satan bestows upon him ] and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practice, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.

213. { V. 25 }: And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand: and he shall magnify himself in his 'heart: [ mind ' ], and by [ this 7 year peace treaty he will sign with Israel in which he breaks himself, and thus, this so-called peace treaty he has lied about, he annuls it and by this false ] peace he shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of Princes; but he shall be broken without hand, { Daniel 8:23-25 }."

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214. [ 4 ] Commentary . . . Therefore, evil transgressors shall prosper according to the prophet Daniel in the latter times. During the Tribulation Period the Antichrist will come and stand against the "Prince of princes," Who is the Lord Jesus Christ. The Antichrist will be immediately preceded by the most cruel and godless world leaders in history. Have there been any that you can personally name in recent years?

215. There have been many cruel kings and dictators of history: Nimrod, Nebuchadnezzar, the Pharaoh during the time of Israel's Exodus from Egypt; Alexander the great; Nero; Napoleon; Genghis Kahn; Attila the Hun, etc. But none can compare with Hitler, Stalin, Mao Tse-tung, and so many others like Saddam Hussein [ i.e., 'insane' with wickedness ], Pol Pot, the leaders of today's Moslem nations, and other evil contemporaries. The victims of these 20th and 21st century transgressors run not just in the millions, but in the hundreds of millions.

216. [ 5 ]: Three world leaders die in just one month. In the setting of the latter times when God prepared Israel to return to the land, we read that these three men would be "cut off in one month" as a sign.

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217. Scripture: "Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and My soul loathed them, and their soul also abhorred Me, { Zechariah 11:8 }."

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218. Commentary . . . We are not saying that these following three are the ones that the prophet mentions, but between April 14th and April 28th, 1945, three of the main leaders of nations in world War Two died: American president Roosevelt, Hitler of Germany and Mussolini of Italy. They died not only in one calendar month, but also in one Jewish month.

219. [ 6 ]: Wars of Israel. Within the context of the "wars and rumors of wars" in the last days are the wars of Israel against greatly superior foes. This prophecy is found as follows:

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220. Scripture: "In that day will I make the governors [ Hebrew 'alup' literally, 'chiefs, leaders' ] of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem, { Zechariah 12:6 }."

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221. The above verse paraphrased: "In that day will I make the chiefs of Judah like a big, blazing pot among sticks of wood and like a flaming torch among sheaves of grain; and they shall devour all the people [ enemies ] round about, on the right hand and on the left: and they of Jerusalem shall yet again dwell and sit securely in their own place in Jerusalem."

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222. Commentary . . . Just how effective they will be in the final conflagration is now portrayed: the defenders will be as invincible to the invaders as fire is invincible to wood and a sheaf of grain. They will be completely victorious over the enemy on every side of them. The result is that the citizens, who have been driven out by the invader { see Matthew 24:15-22 }, will be able to return to Jerusalem and dwell in complete safety. This text has a Tribulation period setting and will have its fulfillment just before Messiah sets up His Kingdom reign. . . .

223. The Jewish wars of 1948, 1967, and 1973 against overwhelming odds have amazed the world. and are obviously a type of what takes place in the above verse. After the 1967 war, the Jews took possession of all of Jerusalem. It is to be noted in these wars, Israel will be under governors . . . a democracy, without a king. Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East. This prophecy was made in 487 B.C., and no armies of Israel since then have gained such victories until A.D. 1948 and afterward.

224. [ 7 ]: Revival of the Roman Empire. According to { Daniel Ch. 2; - & - Revelation Ch. 17 }, and other prophecies, concerning Babylon, tells the story about three other future world empires. And, then another fourth empire, Rome, would break into pieces and bruise [ war ]. This occurred in about A.D. 500 when the Roman Empire broke up into the French Empire, British Empire, Spanish Empire, German Empire, Italian Empire, Netherlands Empire, Belgium Empire, Portuguese Empire, etc.

225. The major wars of the past 1,500 years were caused by these Empires warring against each other. Even in its broken state as the European Federation known as the Common Market of Europe today, it is looked upon as the revived Roman Empire and has gained domination over the world in several different ways { see Daniel 7:24-28 }.

226. In the end of the age, the huge chunks of the Roman Empire were to be broken into small pieces. This occurred in 1945 when Roosevelt and Stalin forced Churchill to agree that their European colonial systems give up their colonies. The number of nations rose from 70 in 1949 to about 200 in 2001. Jesus prophesied that not only Israel [ whose symbol the fig tree ] would bud again in the end of the age, but so would "all the trees" bud { Luke 21:29 }.

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227. Having no more colonies to fight over, it is prophesied in { Daniel Ch. 2; - & - Revelation Ch. 17 } that for their own advantage, a collection of nations out of the original Roman Empire would unite to reform the iron empire once more. That is evidently taking place today through the European Union which now has a common passport, a common parliament, and a common currency. There are several prophecies that indicate the Antichrist will come out of this revived Roman coalition.

228. [ 8 ]: World government. There will one day be a righteous world government, because we read four times in the book of Revelation that during the Millennial reign of Jesus Christ, He, as the Messiah of Israel and King of the world, will rule all nations with a rod of iron. However, there will first be for a brief period a counterfeit world government ruled by an evil dictator, the Antichrist { Daniel Chs. 2, 7, 9; - & - Revelation Ch. 13, 17 }. Cecil Rhodes through the Rhodes scholarship plan promotes the concept of solving the political, social, and economics problems of the world through a world government.

229, The League of nations was another attempt, the Council on Foreign Relations took up the cause, and finally the United Nations was founded in 1945. While the U.N. does have the worldwide influence in social, cultural, environmental, and to a degree, political matters, it does not fulfill prophetic expectations. However, if world terrorism increases which it is bound to do, and a nuclear holocaust is in view, it could become a serious international political authority.

230. [ 9 ]: Beginning sorrow signs. In the Olivet Discourse in { Matthew Ch. 24; - Luke Ch. 21; - & - Mark Ch. 13 }, The Lord gave three other signs besides wars that would be a warning that the Tribulation was near. These catastrophes were definitely not taking place in A.D. 70, nor were they to be confined to Israel. They would be occurring in many places at the same time. The first of these signs was to be "famines." As we have mentioned before, there have been many famines in this last generation! The U.N. World Food Program in a news report dated May 30, 2002, said that because of the raging AIDS epidemic in Africa, unless help came, ten million in central Africa would starve to death in the very near future.

231. [ 10 ]: The second "Beginning of Sorrow" sign was to be "pestilences." We have written a great deal concerning pestilence in a previous part of this message, but just a little more if you please. There will be general pandemic diseases in the near future. In spite of the best medical care that doctors and hospitals can provide, heart disease, diabetes and cancer are the international problem of contemporary mankind in this age.

232. As we have stated before, there is also an insidious and deadly disease that has already claimed over twice as many lives as the previously most deadly disease in history, the black plague. According to the U.N. AIDS report as of 2000 [ 6 years old ], 58 million' up to that time, had been infected with AIDS, of which about one-half had already died. There is no telling how many have been infected and died since the year 2000. Also AIDS is spreading very rapidly in China, a nation of over 1.3 billion population. China is right now on the verge of a "titanic" population and AIDS disaster. And, then we have Ethiopia.

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233. Ethiopian orphans fend for themselves. Last Updated: 2005-06-29 [ Reuters Health ]. A young girl named Tad wants to be like the other children chasing through the rain-splashed alleyways of her shanty town. Instead, the 13 year-old wakes at dawn to prepare breakfast for her siblings, fetch the water, wash their clothes and clean their one-roomed home. Once the chores are finished, she slings a white satchel across her back and heads to school.

234. Like more than one in 10 Ethiopian children, Tad is an orphan and for four years she has played mother to younger brother Endas, 11 and sister Yeshi, 8. "When I took over Mother's duties, I stopped playing and laughing with my classmates. I miss my childhood," Tad said. "Most of my time is dedicated to the family. My life has completely changed."

235. The United Nations' children's charity UNICEF estimates that there are 20 million orphans across Africa. In Ethiopia alone there are up to 4 and 1/2 million orphans - higher than the total population of some African states. One million Ethiopian orphans, like Tad, lost their parents through HIV/AIDS, and UNICEF says orphan-headed households are on the rise in this largely peasant society.

236. SOCIAL STIGMA. The statistics are deepening as the virus scythes its way through the population of 72 million, already weakened by cyclical droughts, poor access to health care and a history of armed struggle. "There's maybe 200,000 people dying of HIV/AIDS, leaving behind at least 200,000 orphans every year," UNICEF country director for Ethiopia, Bjorn Ljungqvist, told Reuters. "Ethiopia is more vulnerable because of extreme poverty, which is worse than in other places."

237. Ethiopia is cited by the United Nations as the country with the 16th highest rate of HIV/AIDS prevalence in the world, with some 5,000 people being infected every week. A news item in January 05 stated that Muslim terrorist have now a plan in effect to use AIDS carriers to blow themselves up in crowded areas to pass along the AIDS virus to thousand of people in many different places. Can you imagine the prospect of having these "Satan inspired killers" doing such a thing? Time is short and the days of Noah have arrived!

238. The third of the "beginning of sorrows" signs is earthquakes. According to the actual reported statistics by 2002, the National Earthquake Information Center, U.S. Geological Survey, the number of earthquakes between 1987 and 2000 doubled, and the number of earthquakes between 7.0 and 9.9 on the Richter Scale have more than doubled. And what about all the earthquakes that have taken place in the last five years?

239. [ 11 ]: Moral bankruptcy: It is now stated that 56 percent of boys and 54 percent of girls from the age 15 through 19 engage in oral sex in the U.S. Satan is having a fine time of it, don't you think? Crime: Juvenile crime has increased by 600 percent since 1960. There are over two million Americans in prison, and the reason there are not more, is that prisons cannot hold them. We have given our understanding concerning "Divorce," but again concerning "abortions," we mentioned God's penalty for folks who cause a woman to abort a child, see { Exodus 21:22-24 }. The latest statistics in our own country on abortion is estimated at being over 47,000,000 thus far. In 1996 it was reported that there were 1, 365, 000 abortions reported in the United States alone.

240. The District of Columbia has 15 times the national average. In China alone there are 32 million abortions each year. Worldwide, the number would exceed 100 million. That is approximately the same amount of deaths that occurred during all the years of World War Two. Is it possible to call abortion a "humanity made plague?" If there were that many babies murdered each year since the 1970s think how many legal murders of tiny children have been performed since that time worldwide. Unwed births. It is said that last year alone in the U.S. there were one and a half million babies born by unwed mothers, we wonder where all the fathers have gone.

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241. Concerning Births. Perhaps nothing will emphasize the tragedy of the moral decline just in the United States like the statistics provided by the U.S. Department of Human Services on births. In 1979, just 26 years ago, 5.5 percent of white babies were born out of wedlock. In 1999, 26.8 percent of white babies were born out of wedlock, an increase of 500 percent. In 1979, 5 percent of black babies were born out of wedlock. In 1999, 68.9 percent, almost 7 out of 10, black babies were born out of wedlock. And, what about from the 1990s to this present day?

242. Homosexuality. According to { Romans Ch. 1 }, the moral decline of a nation begins with taking God out of education. This began in the U.S. in 1962 with Federal Aid to Education. Besides increase in crime and violence, and breakup of the home, the Apostle Paul said the most evident result would be homosexuality between both sexes, and when this happened, no nation could stand. On June 30th, 2002, homosexuals by the millions marched to defy God in the major cities of the world. Most credible statistics still show that 70 percent of the AIDS cases are the result of male, sexually perverted activity. Although it is not politically correct to give the Biblical judgment for homosexuality, God has His own way of administering Justice.

243. [ 12 ]: Falling of towers. Pride and defiance of God was signified by a tower at Babel. The termination of man's day and the beginning of the Lord's day is to be signaled by another falling of towers. ". . . The great day of the Lord . . . that day will be a day of wrath . . . against the fenced cities, and against the high towers, { Zephaniah 1:14-16 }." ". . . In the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall . . . the name of the Lord comes from far, burning with anger . . . to sift the nations . . . { Isaiah 30:25-28 }." The Twin Trade Towers were the most famous towers built by man since the Tower of Babel, where are they now?

244. [ 13 ]: Computers. Without the invention and implementation of modern computer systems it would be difficult to conceive how the Mark of the Beast could be enforced to apply to well over six 1/2 billion people on planet Earth. Fifth-generation computers can perform millions or billions of computations per minute. Crime, computer fraud, and world terrorism are hastening the day when every individual must have their own personal computer mark and number.

245. If the electric system was to be put out of commission today all the computers would shut down, banks would close, planes would not fly, late model cars, trucks, trains, tractors and other computerized vehicles could not be operated, lights would not come on and many of the heating systems and air conditioners would be almost useless . . . the world would practically shut down. Computers came into general use only around years ago, yet they already make possible the fulfillment of { Revelation Ch. 13 }.

246. Those who allow themselves to have an individual computer chip placed under their skin are called "chipsons." We believe that in the very near future, the Antichrist will command that a computer chip must be placed under the skin of the right hand and or the forehead of mankind to become the "Mark Of The Beast." When this is forced upon the people no one will be able buy or sell without this mark! { See Revelation 13:16-17 }.

247. [ 14 ]: Nuclear weapons. The judgment that will befall the world during the Tribulation encompasses the contamination of the seas and oceans; vast areas of forests burned; and well over two thirds of the world's population killed; cities and nations destroyed in one hour; and countries like Egypt being so contaminated that even animals will not be able to live there for forty years { see Ezekiel Ch. 29 }.

248. It is amazing that with increasing wars; the European Union; Israel a nation again; England, the U.S. the Muslim world of terrorism; computers; Aids; etc., and because of atomic power, we have been told that 40 or so nations have developed atomic weapons capable of destroying the earth . . . and the number is still growing. All these prophecies are beginning to be fulfilled in part, within a generation time frame just as Jesus prophesied. Many end-time prophecies like in { Joel - & - 2- Peter } accurately describe Tribulation nuclear warfare, but we will just refer to one:

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249. Scripture: "And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite "all " the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth, { Zechariah 14:12 }."

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250. Commentary . . . This is an accurate description of what has already occurred at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. Israel is the third most powerful nuclear armed nation. A World Tribune news release reported that Israel was arming its submarines with nuclear missiles. There would be enough nuclear missiles on just one submarine to destroy an entire continent.

251. [ 15 ]: Israel. Concerning Messiah's literal return, Jesus said, "Behold, the fig tree."

252. [ 1 ]: Israel is the "Fig Tree" and the number one prophetic sign in the world.

253. [ 2 ]: Israel was re-established as a nation just as prophesied,

254. [ 3 ]: Israelites returned to the land in the exact order prophesied,

255. [ 4 ]: Israel after being re-established in the land again, filled the earth with fruit as prophesied,

256. [ 5 ]: Israel's most popular city, Jerusalem, has become a center of controversy just as prophesied,

257. [ 6 ]: Israel is still fighting the descendants of Ishmael and Esau just as prophesied,

258. [ 7 ]: and, practically all the nations of the world, at least in part, are against Israel just as prophesied. This and much more are documented in several books that have been published by various Theologians.

259. [ 16 ]: Others. Time and space permitting, we would have covered many other important end-time prophecies that are shadows of much more horrendous things to come in fulfillment of Bible prophecy, such as Middle East oil, and Desert Storm, U.S. in prophecy, world terrorism and Islam, world religion, false Christs, Petra and the Hebrew remnant, kings of the East, the Temple Mount and rebuilding of the Temple, the seven year covenant, and much more. We have also considered some of these things in previous writings.

260. As we consider all these things beginning to come to pass in our day, we recall the prophecy of Daniel, "the end thereof shall be with a flood, {Daniel 9:26 }." This is an end time prophecy, war will continue throughout the Tribulation Period like a flood over the earth. No wonder those who have eyes to see and ears to hear are talking about the coming of the Lord. Is the reader ready for His coming?

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261. Commentary . . . How would you like to live for more than 900 years? . . . The Patriarchs in Genesis did, you know. This is only one of the remarkable things recorded in Genesis. Many of the neo-orthodox theologians deny the validity of the book of Genesis. They claim that the chronological and genealogical table of the Patriarchs in { Genesis Ch. 5 } cannot be taken as stated, because we know that the earth is much older than indicated. They are in effect, saying God did not create the earth . . . that someone just made up the story. This concept is covered in { Timothy 1. } I think they are dead wrong. If Genesis 5 is not true then the entire Bible is suspect as is our salvation. Genesis lays the ground work for the entire Bible.

262. The average age of the Patriarchs up to and including Noah was 912. This excludes Enoch whom God took to Paradise at the age of 365 years, and Lamech who was 777 years old when he died. He was probably caught in the Flood. From the Scriptures we can determine that Adam lived to within approximately 130 years of Noah. And, Methuselah lived to be 969 years and did not die until the Flood took place. We do not know for sure that every adult lived as long as these men but it is reasonable to accept that most of them did.

263. One of the remarkable things about the record of the early chapters of Genesis, is the straightforward simplicity with the writer having recorded certain amazing and almost unbelievable facts of history. One would think that if Genesis was really written in a much later period in Jewish history, as critics declare, the writer would have explained or at least expressed wonder at the uniqueness of the things he was describing. But instead he wrote the account in the most simple and straightforward way possible, as a sober historian or news reporter would do, with no attempt whatever to justify or explain events which would seem almost incredible to later generations.

264. The only logical explanation for reporting these amazing facts in such a simple way is that, when the original writer recorded them they were not unusual at all, but common experience. As pointed out earlier Adam lived to within approximately 130 years of the birth of Noah. So these accounts in the early chapters of Genesis were probably eyewitness accounts, orally transmitted. by God Himself to Moses and ordered him to put the words into writing.

265. That these ages are given in terms of real years is evident from the ages of the fathers at the birth of their sons, ranging from 65 years in the case of Mahalaleel and Enoch, to 500 years in the case of Noah. Another proof of this is the fact that, after the Flood, the life-span began an exponential decline from 950 years for Noah to 205 years for Terah, and eventually down to about 120 years at the time of Moses. The lifetime started leveling out in Joseph's time. God had said . . .

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266. Scripture: "And the Lord said, My Spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years, {Genesis 6:3." }

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267. Commentary . . . Most ministers believe that the verse above is saying that God shortened the years of mankind down to 120 years just before the Flood took place. This writer disagrees! This is not what the Lord was saying! God was warning the world's people through Noah that from the beginning of the Arks construction, they had just 120 years to live on the pre-flood earth before the Flood would take all their lives during the great Deluge. Noah was 600 years old when the Flood took place and lived 350 more years after the Flood { Genesis 9:28, K J V }.

268. Shem, 'Noah's son,' was born 98 years before the flood and lived five hundred and two years afterward { see Genesis 11:10-11 }, Shem was 600 years old when he died. Ham and Japheth were born later on after the birth of Shem. This shows that Noah started building the Ark several years before his sons were born. Therefore, even if the sons had provided some of their own labor in the Arks construction they could have only helped Noah in just the few years before the Flood took place.

269. Abraham lived to be 175 years old at the time he died, { Genesis 25:7 }. Moses was 120 years old when he died, {Deuteronomy 34:7 }. As the student can see, it took hundreds of years after the Flood before the life-span of humanity was shortened down to below 120 years.

270. This decrease in lifetime was a direct judgment from God for the unrighteousness of man. Man has tried to explain this as a natural phenomena. These are the same people who deny the validity of Genesis. If they don't believe Genesis, then why try to rationalize what happened to cause the change. This could have been caused by the decrease in the speed of light and its resulting effect on bodily functions. Remember, our bodies are electrical entities, and as its electrical systems are impaired, so is health. Obviously something happened at the time of the Flood that drastically affected the human aging process and the onset of death.

271. God usually works through his own established physical and biological laws. Although we cannot be sure what He did, there are certain interesting facts in both science and Scripture which provide at least a possible plausible explanation. Even with our advanced science we still don't understand everything concerning what "life" is or what causes the loss of this "Life force" unless we go by the Scriptures. One can look into another's eyes and see love, hate, pleasure, fear, disgust, wonder and essentially all the other emotions. What is it that one sees? We cannot define it. We can only determine the presence or absence of it.

272. By common thought along with scientific explanations no one knows, of course, even today, exactly what causes death. According to scientists there seem to be no necessary, innate reason why man could not live hundreds of years! As a matter of fact, man was originally created as an immortal being, and death came only as a judgment of God upon sin. The decrease in man's life-span was also the result of his own unrighteousness.

273. No one simply dies of old age, but the aging process increases the susceptibility to disease and decreases the operational functions of the vital bodily organs. Finally, there is a complete breakdown of some particular body mechanism, and this causes death. This may happen at anytime in the life of the individual, and eventually it happens to all.

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274. Scripture: "Therefore, as by one man, sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned, { Romans 5:12 }."

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275. Commentary . . . Experts have stated: "The fundamental factor in longevity, therefore, is the rate of the aging process and the possible environmental influence with it. There are various theories of aging, but the one apparently supported by the best evidence is the somatic mutation theory. A somatic mutation is a sudden, random change in the structure of a cell of the body. Since almost all mutations are harmful, the fragile accumulation of mutations in the cells of various organs and tissues will inevitably lead to impaired bodily efficiency and eventually to complete breakdown of one or more bodily components.

276. Though much less frequent than somatic mutations for this reason, genetic mutations, which are also almost always harmful, are transmitted to the children and thus affect not only the individual, but also all his descendants. It seems reasonable to suggest, therefore, that somatic mutations lead to the aging and death of the individual, and genetic mutations to the aging and death of the species, with both primarily attributable to radiation in the environment.

277. Other factors also are involved, of course, but this seems to be the most universally prevalent cause." I don't know about you but - this writer is undoubtedly not near as smart as these experts just mentioned, one thing I know is that nobody dies until his time has come, and nobody will, or ever has, died before his time, see { Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 }.

278. Commentary . . . As to the times of Noah, the first indication of rain was at the time of the Flood. The earth was watered by a mist by night. Before the Flood, the "waters above the firmament" were in the form of a water vapor blanket in the atmosphere. This would have produced a "greenhouse effect," and maintained a mild and calm climate over all the world. It would also have provided a highly efficient filter for ultra violet radiation from outer space.

279. Thus the "Background radiation" of the environment before the Flood was much less than it is at present, and this could certainly have contributed significantly to the long ages of men before the Flood. When the rains came, the water in the atmosphere would be removed. However, the water vapor remaining in the present atmosphere also provides a greenhouse effect and radiation filter to sustain life at its present level.

280. Scientists are now worried about the ozone hole at the poles, stating this could cause an acceleration of the amount of radiation we now receive. The earth's drastically changed climate after the Flood, together with the inbreeding, would also contribute to the general decline in longevity and viability. In any case, there is not a good reason to doubt the reasonableness of the Biblical record of the antediluvian patriarchs and their great ages. Man has not accepted the fact that when he became totally unrighteous, God placed a judgment on him and shortened the life span. God had intended for man to live forever, but man sinned and caused death to enter the picture.

281. But, God permitted man to have a life time of almost a thousand years even after the fall. However, the continuously evil heart [ mind ] of man caused him to become even more unrighteous and God repented that He had made man and decreased humanities life span. The life of man went from an unending life, to less than a thousand years down to what it is today because of man's own sin. Now according to the medical profession, man's expected lifetime is seventy seven years and has been slowly increasing. But at the onset of the Millennial Kingdom the lifetime of man will be extended again. This is related by Isaiah . . .

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282. Scripture: "There shall be no more then an infant of days, nor an old man that has not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed, { Isaiah 65:20 }."

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283. Commentary . . . During Messiah's reign, If a person dies at a hundred he dies as a child. In Jewish law a child becomes a man at 14 years of age, then Isaiah is indicating that in the future millennium, when Christ will reign as King over the entire earth, one is still to be a child at 100. This would translate to a full lifetime of seven hundred - to a thousand years. Does this mean that those who enter the Millennial Kingdom in the flash, or are restored to life, will live throughout the Millennial Reign of Christ? I think so. Revelation states:

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284. { V. 4 } Scripture: "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the Word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

285. { V. 5 }: But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

286. { V. 6}: Blessed and holy is he that has part in the first resurrection: on such the second death has no power, but they shall be priest of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years, { Revelation 20:4-6 }."

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The above three verses Paraphrased in commentary form . . .

287 { V. 4 }: "Then I saw thrones, and sitting on them were those to whom authority to act as judges and pass sentence was entrusted. Also I saw the souls of those who had been slain [ beheaded with either axes, or a guillotine ] for their witness to [ or about ] Jesus and [ for teaching, preaching, and testifying ] for the Word of God, and who had refused to pay homage to the beast [ Antichrist ] or his statue and had not accepted his mark or permitted it to be placed on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived again, and ruled with Christ, the Messiah, a thousand years. { See Daniel 7:9, 22, 27.}

288 { V. 5 }: The remainder of the dead were not restored to life again until the thousand years [ Millennial reign of Messiah ] were completed. This is the first resurrection.

289 { V. 6 }: Blessed [ happy, to be envied ] and holy . . . [ spiritually whole, or unimpaired innocence and proved virtue ]. . . is the person who takes part [ and shares ] in the first resurrection! Over them the second death exerts no power or authority, but they shall be ministers of God and of Christ, the Messiah, and they shall rule along with Messiah a thousand years, { Revelation 20:4-6 }."

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290. Commentary . . . After the 1000 years the Believers will enter the New Heaven and Earth and be with the Lord forever. I.e., during the Millennial reign of Christ God's children, who are still living in the flesh, will go from a 70 year lifetime, to a 1000 year reign with Christ to an eternal life with Christ. This reverse of the lifetime trend was brought on because of sin, why? Because Christ cleansed us from all sin and God restored the initial purpose and lifetime to His creation. "Blessed be the name of the Lord!"

And The Common Market?

291 Commentary . . . The World has for some time now been witnessing the birth of a great new super confederacy of nations known as the Common Market or European Union. Six European nations, France, West Germany, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, signed a Treaty of Rome back in 1957. There was born the European Economic Community. . . . The Common Market . . . the beginning of the fulfillment of the age-old dream of a United States of Europe.

292 This revived Roman state has come into view, Caesar's European federation has had a rebirth. All of this was to bring forth a huge single economy. The U.S. present at the beginning of that federation stated that America must look toward Europe. Why? Not long ago trade in the Common Market had reached several billion dollars. In 1959 it was less than 600 million for a typical month. Industrial production has boomed upward tremendously in just the last few years.

293. World leadership is presently emerging very rapidly in Europe. Since the 1950s, the output of that organization has quadrupled many times. Americans have assumed for many years that they have been the givers and the rest of the world, especially Europe, are the receivers. This assumption is now ceasing to be valid. In this last century we have witnessed great powers die. Now, it would seem, we are witnessing the birth of new great powers. Ultimately , China, India, The Muslim nations and the greatest nation of all, the Revived Roman Empire. From this day onward we are going to observe the making of the greatest industrial and economic power on the globe.

294. So, watch Europe very carefully. The day of God's grace is closing rapidly. The pointing signs of world federation indicates that at long last God is permitting a confederacy of evil to make itself known. This could mean one thing. It is the approximate time for Christ to appear in the heavens to call His Body of believing Saints home. Soon after the Rapture, the Man of Sin will take this one-world Empire and will lead the world into its final Babel. As we have stated before, the final goal of the common market will be a One-World Government. The trend now is toward this end. Man longs for a "togetherness". Long ago God recognized the possibilities for such an evil federation. And we again refer to Noah and his sons:

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295. Scripture: "These are the families of the sons of Noah, after [ i.e., according to ] their generations, in their nations: and by these were the nations divided [ and spread throughout ] the earth after the Flood, { Genesis 10:32 }."

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296. Scripture: "And have made of one blood [ i.e., one common origin, one source, ] all nations of men for to [ settle and ] dwell on all the face of the earth and [ having definitely ] determined the [ allotted periods of ] time before appointed, and the bounds [ i,e., fixed boundaries ] of their habitation, { Acts 17:26 }." Then something happened! . . .

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297. Scripture: "And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech [ one accent and mode of expression ]. { Genesis 11:1 }."

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298. Commentary . . . A great effort was organized. There was a common aim. The tragedy was, as it is today, that the whole affair was made by unregenerate man. World powers in the hand of unregenerate men means exactly what the book of Revelation pictures it to be . . . the reign of the Beast. This will finally bring total war between God and man. The Battle of Armageddon.

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299. { V. 7 } Scripture: "For the mystery of iniquity [ lawlessness . . . that hidden principle of rebellion against constituted authority ] does [ and is ] already [ at ] work: [ in the world ] only He Who now lets will let, until He [ The Body of Christ "masculine" ] be taken out of the way, [ Rapture ].

300. { V. 8 }: And then shall that wicked [ one the Antichrist will ] be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the 'spirit [ breath' ] of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming: { see Job 12:10; - & - Isaiah 11:4 }.

301. { V. 9 }: Even him [ the Antichrist ], whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs [ all sorts of pretended miracles ] and lying wonders,

302. { V. 10 }: And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved, { 2 - Thessalonians 2:7-10 }."

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304. Commentary . . . Therefore, The Antichrist will have his great period of deceitful control in the seven years between the Rapture of the Body of Christ and the revelation of the Second Advent of Messiah. This period is known as the great Tribulation.

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305. { V. 16 } Scripture: "And he causes [ by compelling ] all, [ alike ] both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads [ which we believe will be an international identification system computer chip ]:

306. { V. 17 }: And that no man might [ have the power to either ] buy or sell, save he that had the mark [ or computer chip ], or the name of the beast, or the number of his name, { Revelation 13:16-17 }".

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307. Commentary . . . In { 2- Thessalonians 2, } he is called "a man of sin and the son of perdition." Because of this name some folks believe the Antichrist will be Judas reincarnated. Judas was also called the son of perdition. If Judas was not the Antichrist, he certainly was a distinct type. There were types of the Antichrist throughout the Old Testament. Nimrod, Pharaoh, and Haman were types of the coming Antichrist. Judas Iscariot was Satan's first attempt to produce the devil-inspired man, but he failed. Satan will make his final attempt to set up his own counterfeit christ after the Rapture. This time he shall succeed.

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308. Scripture: "[ But ] Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve [ apostles ], { Luke 22:3 }."

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309. Commentary . . . This passage states that Satan entered into a man. We have many passages which tell of demons who took up their abode in men and women, but this speaks of Satan personally taking up his temporary abode in Judas. Jesus called Judas a devil. { John 6:70. } In { Acts 1:25 }, we read these words concerning Judas: ". . . that he might go to his own place."

310. When we consider who he was we can understand that it was the devil's own place [ the place prepared for the devil and his angels ]. And, as there was a first and a second coming of Christ, so does it make sense that there might be two comings of the Antichrist: Judas and the Antichrist. Whether you agree with this theory or not, and no matter who the Antichrist will be, it is a fact that the Antichrist of the Tribulation Period will be an incarnation of the devil.

[ Heading No. 214 ] Two. . . Is There Any Prophecy To Be Fulfilled Before Jesus Comes?

311. Commentary . . . People everywhere are asking if there are signs and prophecies which indicate Christ's soon return. Yes, there are. We ought to be looking at signs and not for signs. I am looking for the personal return of the blessed Lord. Born again Believers are called upon to watch. "lift up your heads, for your redemption draws near." The first sign I call your attention to is "The night of sin deepening." { Isaiah 60:2 } says, "for behold, the darkness shall cover the earth." This is a prophetic statement of the end of an age, and thus referring to spiritual darkness which leads to open sin. Let us turn to Luke and see the sin picture Jesus pointed to that which must take place before His Second Coming. And again we read this next text . . .

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312. { V. 26 } Scripture: "And [ just ] as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of Man.

313. { V. 27 }: [ As to the multitudes of people: ] They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage [ right up ], until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and the Flood came, and destroyed them all. { See Genesis 6:5-8; - & - 7:6-24. }

314. { V. 28 }: Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built;

315. { V. 29 }: But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.

316. { V. 30 }: Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed, { Luke 17:26-30 }." { See Zechariah 14:4, Second Coming [ NOT the Rapture, ] but 7 years after the Rapture }.

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317. Commentary . . . We come now to our second sign, and that is, the Great Religious Apostasy, which is looming up over every horizon. Let's read the following verses . . . and once more we repeat this next text . . .

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318. { V. 3 } Scripture: "Let no man deceive [ or beguile ] you by any means: for that day [ of Tribulation ] shall not come, except there come "a falling away first" and that man of sin [ and lawlessness, the Antichrist ] be revealed, the son of perdition [ of doom ]; { See 1- Timothy 4:1; - Daniel 7:25; - & - 8:25. }

319. { V. 4 }: Who opposes and exalts himself [ so proudly and insolently against and ] above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God [ actually ] sits in the Temple of God, showing = [ proclaiming to ] himself [ and to others ] that he is God, { 2- Thessalonians 2:3-4 }." { See Daniel 11:36-37; - & - Ezekiel 28:2}: Ezekiel in this text refers to the future Antichrist."

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320. Commentary . . . What does Paul mean when he says that 'the falling away' first in { V. 3 } above, and that it must come before the Tribulation Period? We have a double meaning implied here in typology, but the definite article 'the' denotes that this will be a definite event, distinct from the appearance of the man of sin. The Greek word 'apostasia': refers to apostasy, but the Greek word for 'falling away' taken by itself, does not necessarily mean that it refers to religious apostasy or defection alone - even though that is taking place at the present time.

321. Neither does the word mean 'to fall from grace,' as the Greeks have another word for that. The best translation of the word is "to depart." The Apostle refers here to a definite event which he calls 'the departure,' and will occur just before the start of the Tribulation Period. This is to be the departure of the "One new Man in the masculine gender" which refers to the Rapture of the "Body of Christ [ the one New Man Himself { Ephesians 2:15 }." Naturally, . . . Scripture also alludes to lost mankind falling away from the teachings of Christianity, and this will be definite apostasy throughout the worlds nations such as that which is taking place during this very hour, and will climax during the Tribulation Period . . .

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322. { V. 14 } Scripture: "And unto the angel [ messenger ] of the Church [ Greek "Ekklesia," Congregation or Assembly ] of the Laodiceans write; These things says the Amen [ God Himself ], the faithful and true Witness, the [ Origin and ] Beginning [ and Author ] of the creation of God; {see Isaiah 55:4; - & - Proverbs 8:22. }

323. { V. 15 }: I know your [ record of ] works, that you are neither cold nor hot [ and what you are doing ]: I would [ desire by the grace of God that ] you were cold or hot!

324. { V. 16 }: So then because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue you out of My mouth!

325. { V. 17 }: Because you say, I am rich [ I have prospered and grown wealthy, ] and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and [ therefore, you ] do not know [ or realize or comprehend ] that you are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked. {See Hosea 12:8 }.

326. { V. 18 }: I counsel you to buy of me [ i.e., purchase from Me ] gold tried [ that is, refined and tested ] in fire, that you may be [ truly ] rich; and [ have ] white clothing , that you may be clothed [ in fine refinement ], and that the shame of your nakedness do not appear; and anoint your eyes with eyesalve, that you may [ better ] see, { Revelation 3:14-18 }."

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327. Commentary . . . This mentioned above will concern the False church system of the last days of the Body of Christ, and also especially of this same false system during the Tribulation Period. And, then of course there is the sign of scoffers { 2- Peter 3:3-4 } that we talked about before. I have never witnessed in my life as much scoffing, fun-making and belittling of the Rapture or the Second Coming of Christ by professed believers, and especially much of the ministry from various denominations. Over 80 percent of ministers even today, reject the fact that the Lord will ever come back to this earth, and especially come down to Rapture His Christian Body of Saints. Shame on these so-called Bible overlords! Their interpretation of the Scriptures is far off the path of constructive elucidation.

328. When the Rapture is taken out from the Word of God, what is really left for the people on this earth? When so-called Christian ministers refuse the Word of God, what chance do their flocks have of becoming God's children? But, thank God, He is coming back!!!!! All the infidels, atheists, and other unsaved religionists cannot keep Christ from coming for us because, the Scriptures are full of such promises!

329. The day of Christ's appearing is drawing near, and the last prophecy to be fulfilled for the Body of Christ will take place when the Lord descends from Heaven with a shout, and with the voice of the Archangel Michael [ a prince of the highest order of angels, which means one similar to God ] and with the trumpet of God. What a day that will be. See { 1- Thessalonians 4:16 }. Remember this: The Bible teaches that there is one God the Father, one Son of God Jesus Christ Himself, one Holy Spirit of God, the three in One. There is one Body Of Christ. One Holy Spirit Baptism for each of the Children of God. And, one trumpet call for God's Children.

[ Heading No. 215 ] God's Last Minute Bulletin!

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330. Scripture: "Let your moderation be known unto all men, The Lord is at hand, { Philippians 4:5 }." To put this verse in a more modern perspective, lets say it in this paraphrased way . . .

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331. Scripture: "Let all men know and understand by recognizing your own unselfishness . . . your considerateness, your forbearing spirit. The Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour is near at hand, He is coming very soon!"

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332. Commentary . . . If Paul felt that the Lord was at hand, then how much more should we feel it today with the understanding of His soon coming to receive us. What does this coming mean to you my friend? Are you waiting for His coming? Are you laboring for the souls of mankind? Let's first give ourselves to the Lord, and then pass on all the Biblical knowledge God puts into our mind and memory to get the truth of His Word out into the world. We should do this, and then we can say when He comes, "The blood of no man is on our hands."

333. How about you, unsaved one? Christ's coming is not a joy to your heart is it? I know that you can only look for vengeance and the anger of the Lord for rejecting Him. You cannot sing about His appearing? You cannot rejoice in His coming. My unsaved friend, I wish I could hear you say, "Yes, I know Jesus Christ is coming, and I want to be saved. Lord Jesus, save me before You come! I want to be in the Rapture, I don't want to be left behind. Lost friend, accept Him today as your personal Saviour, for tomorrow may be too late!

[ Heading No. 216 ] 1. The Only Hope For Each And Every One Of Us.

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334. Scripture: "Looking [ and waiting for the fulfillment, the realization of ] that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ, { Titus 2:13 }."

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335. Scripture: "And every man [ woman or child ] that has this [ blessed ] hope [ resting ] in Him purifies [ cleanses ] himself, even as He is pure [ chaste, undefiled, guiltless ], { 1- John 3:3 }."

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336. Commentary . . . There is a definite, particular hope which is held by most of the Lord's people, described as the "blessed hope." By it we mean the personal, literal, imminent appearing, of the Rapture of the Body of Christ to meet the Lord Jesus in the air, { 1- Corinthians 15:51-54 }." The hope that Christ may come back in person at any minute has been appropriately termed "the greatest event for all Christians world-wide ever, whether living or dead Saints." Because of its associations, implications and results it is called: the "Blessed Hope."

337. As is true with all other parts of God's revealed truth, Satan has, both directly and indirectly, attacked this precious teaching of God's Word. He has cast suspicion upon it, ridiculed it, and brought false accusations against those who believe it. Strange as it may seem, Satan has been highly successful in getting many people to believe certain falsehoods. Satan has misled many of God's people, including the majority of ministers. These ministers teach their people not to expect Christ to Rapture them, thereby robbing them of the "blessed hope" in their own hearts!

338. This is the reason the Ah-millennialists and Post-millennialists are in such a mixed up condition about the soon coming of Christ to Rapture them from off this earth. But the expectation of Christ's imminent appearing is practical! In fact it is one of the most practical teachings in all the Bible. It tends to produce a purifying effect on the Lord's people. The hope that the Lord may return even today and call us to give an account of our whole Christian life challenges us to be, and practice that which will meet His approval. The "blessed hope" makes us want to do our very best for the cause of our speedily returning Redeemer. The Lord Jesus gave us an illustration of this as follows . . .

[ Heading No. 217 ] 2. It Purifies Us Of Idleness.

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339. { V. 45 } Scripture: "Who then is a faithful [ thoughtful ], and wise servant, whom his lord [ and master ] has [ put in charge and ] made ruler over his household, to give them [ food, supplies and ] meat in due season [ i.e., at the proper time ]?

340. { V. 46 }: Blessed is that servant, whom his lord [ i.e., Master ] when he comes shall find so doing.

341. { V. 47 }: Verily [ Surely and truly ] I say to you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods, { Matthew 24:45-47 }."

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342. Commentary . . . Surely this is not difficult for us to understand. If the master goes on a journey, leaving a certain servant in charge of his household, and his servant does not know at what moment his master may return, he will want to be diligent all the time so as to be sure to meet with the approval of his master when he returns. The fact that Christ may return at any moment to inspect our Christian works should cause us to be occupied all the time for Him so as not to be caught "loafing" when He does come. And, did not the Lord ask a very important question when He asked . . .

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343. Scripture: "Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar [ Protected ] people, zealous of good works, { Titus 2:14 }?"

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344. The above verse paraphrased: "Who gave Himself on our behalf that He might redeem us [ purchase our freedom with His Own life blood ] from all iniquity and purify for Himself a people . . . to be peculiarly His Own . . . [ people who are ] eager and enthusiastic about [ living a life that is good and filled with ] beneficial deeds."

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345. Commentary . . . This writer does not mean that we are to hurry and convert the world and then He will come. God's Word does not foretell a regenerated world in this age. But, in relation to unbelievers both of the Gentiles and the Israelites after the Rapture, the text states . . . and we repeat part of this text . . .

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346. { V. 11 } Scripture: "And for this cause God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie.

347. { V. 12 } That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. [ On the other hand:

348. { V. 13 }: But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God has from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.

349. { V. 14 }: Whereunto He called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, { 2- Thessalonians 2:11-14 }. He is now calling out His people from the nations. [ During the Tribulation Period . . .

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350. Commentary . . . The strong delusion comes from God Himself; it is both a punishment and a moral result of their rejection of the truth { Vs. 10, 12. } These verses reflect the O.T. concept that God is sovereign even in the activities of the powers of evil { see Exodus 4:21; - Joshua 11:20; - 1- Kings 22:19-23; - 1- Chronicles 21:1; - & - 2- Samuel 24:1. } The result will be that men will believe a lie [ literally, the lie ] as Satan works through the Antichrist. Through sanctification of the Holy Spirit and belief of the truth, God's activity [ The Holy Spirit's work of regeneration ] and man's responsibility [ faith ] are equally necessary in salvation.

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351. { V. 14 } Scripture: "Simeon has declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for His name.

352. { V. 15 }: And to this agree the words [ and predictions ] of the prophets; as it is written,

353. { V. 16 }: After this [ the out calling of the Body of Christ from the Gentiles ] I will return, and [ I Personally ] will build again the tabernacle of David [ I will rebuild its ruins ], which is fallen down, [ you notice in the above verse that the Tribulation Temple will have been destroyed before the return of Christ!. See our message concerning "The Temples Of God." ]

354. { V. 17 }: [ So ] That the residue [ rest ] of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom My Name is called, says the Lord, Who does all these things.

355. { V. 18 }: Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world, { Acts 15:14-18 }." Be sure and read { Amos 9:11-15; - Jeremiah 12:15; - & - Isaiah 45:21 }. [ Notice that Isaiah states that, "there is no God except the One True God" ]!

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356. Commentary . . . The Holy Spirit revealed God's gracious purpose concerning the age that is and the age to come. The people during the time the Book of Acts was in progress, the whole Acts period was in a transition period . . . and during those years that the Book concerned, both the Kingdom and the Grace periods were in transition and confusion reigned supreme during Paul's early ministry. Therefore, there is a twofold lesson involved in these verses, One which concerned the Israelites and the other the New Body of Christ in His [ masculine gender ].

357. Notice in { Vs. 14-18 } the four important steps . . .

358. [ 1 ]: God visits the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for His Name. This is the purpose of this present age. The called out people constitute the Body of Christ.

359. [ 2 ]: "After this I will return." This refers to the Second Coming of Christ at the end of Daniel's 70th week. When the Body of Christ is completed and all the members added to Christ's Body, Jesus comes again, first, as subsequently revealed, for His Saints.

360. [ 3 ]: The restoration of Israel follows after His return at His Second Advent. The Tabernacle [ Millennial Temple ] of David will be built again after the beasts Temple that had been defiled by the Antichrist has been destroyed, and this new Temple will be the Millennial Temple for the Messiah. This points to the fact that there are two future Temples yet to be constructed in Jerusalem.

361. [ 4 ]: At Messiah's Second Coming, all the Gentiles will seek after the Lord, some will be saved at the end of the Tribulation Period and will be counted as sheep, but the majority who will have accepted the mark of the beast will be joined to the host of goats that will be cast into Hades, { Matthew 25:31-46 }. How strange that this divinely revealed program should be entirely ignored by most church-councils at the present time. At this present time, God is calling out, through the preaching of the Gospel of the Mystery, His people from among the Gentiles to become members of the Body of Christ.

362. Concerning the Mystery Gospel for today, See { Romans 2:16; - 16:25; - 1- Corinthians 2:7; - Ephesians 1:9; - 3:3, 4, 9; - 5:32 - 6:19; Colossians 1: 24-29 - & - 4:3. Plus, notice the Great Commission for those in the Body of Christ and, { notice especially verses 18-20, in 2- Corinthians 5:14- 21 }. Therefore, some might say that "the sooner we win these to faith in Him and thereby completing the Body of Christ, the sooner He will return."

363. But naturally, Christ's actions does not depend on us. Also as we can see, the Lord Himself is calling many of His Hebrew children home to Israel from the world's nations. But of course, not in the same way He will call the saved Hebrews to His holy nation at the time of His return as Messiah the King of Kings! See { Matthew 24:31; - & - Isaiah 27:13 }.

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364. Scripture: "Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, { 2- Peter 3:12 }."

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365. Commentary . . . Wouldn't you like to be sitting by the last soul who had to be won, with your open Bible, showing him the way of salvation, and just as soon as he received Christ as Saviour, experience the Rapture of all the Saints? It may be your privilege, therefore get busy and win them as rapidly as possible!

[ Heading No. 218 ] 3. It Purifies Us Of Worldliness.

366. Commentary . . . There are some things which you would not like to be found to be saying and doing when Jesus comes to call on you to the meeting in the air; therefore, it would be safe not to do them at all. Notice how much emphasis God places on this . . .

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367. { V. 12 } Scripture: "Teaching us that, denying ungodliness [ irreverence ] and worldly lusts [ passions, overpowering attractions for the secular world and ], we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world [ Age ].

368. { V. 13 }: [ Awaiting and ] Looking for that [ fulfillment, the realization of our ] blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour, Jesus Christ [ the Anointed One ], { Titus 2:12-13 }."

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369. Scripture: "And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts [ minds ] be overcharged with surfeiting [ excessive self indulgence ] and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day comes upon you unawares, { Luke 21:34 }." He also makes the appeal to us in these words . . .

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370. Scripture: "And now, little children, abide [ live, remain permanently ] in Him; that when He shall appear [ in a visible form ], we may have [ and enjoy perfect ] confidence, [ boldness, assurance ] and not be ashamed [ and shrink ] before Him at His coming, In { 1- John 2:28 }."

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371. Commentary . . . There is no doubt about it: there are some things which many professing Christians do, and places to which they go, which they would not like to be doing and where they would not like to be found when Jesus comes. Honestly now, would you like for Jesus to come and catch you up from around a card table where you were using gamblers' tools; or from in front of a beer bottle which you had just emptied.

372. Would you like Him to catch you coming out of a theater where you were gazing upon scenes of horror, crime, lust, and vice; or out of the embrace of some unsaved person with whom you were dancing to the accompaniment of some silly jazz in a honky-tonk; or out of some group which was engaged in gossip or telling of filthy stories and jokes; and some of the other things which you may do? NO, you would find it very embarrassing and unpleasant to go from such an environment to meet your Lord in the air. If you really have the "blessed hope" of Christ's imminent appearing filling your heart [ mind ], you will not go to such places and do such Christ-dishonoring things, for God's Word says,

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373. Scripture: "[ And ] Every man [ or woman which ] has this hope [ resting ] in him purifies themselves, even as He [ Christ Jesus ] is pure . . . [ chaste, undefiled, and guiltless ], { 1- John 3:3 }." [ Therefore in the light of this, please heed those words of Peter . . .

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374. Scripture: "Seeing then that all these things shall be [ i.e., in the process of being ] dissolved, what manner of persons ought [ each of ] you to be [ in the meanwhile ] in all holy conversation [ and holy behavior ] and [ devout ] godliness? { 2- Peter 3:11 }."

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375. Commentary . . . Whenever you find a Christian who is really expecting Christ to come at any moment, you find one who is trying to live as he would like to be living when Jesus comes. Also, when you find an Assembly where true Biblical truth is preached from the pulpit and believed by the members, you find a clean, earnest, consecrated group of Christians in whom even unsaved persons have confidence.

[ Heading No. 219 ] 4. With This Blessed Hope - It Purifies Our Motives. . .

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376. Ah, here is where the test comes. The prophet wrote these words . . . 377. Scripture: "But the Lord said to Samuel, look not on his countenance [ outward personal appearance ], or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord sees not as a man sees; for man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart [ mind, which is the heart of every individual ], { 1- Samuel 16:7 }."

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378. Commentary . . . Man sees the act; God sees the motives which prompts the act. Man sees what is done; God sees why it is done. After all, the motives which prompts the act is what makes it good or bad. If the motive is wrong then the result must be displeasing to God. We may get by here with a wrong motive, but there, in the presence of the returning Redeemer, it is a different matter. So far as I know there are only three possible motives for Christian service. There is fear, hope of reward, and love.

379. The person who serves because of fear renders a slavish service; that one who serves because of a hope of reward for it renders a selfish service: but the one who serves the Lord because of love for Him and appreciation for His glorious salvation renders a satisfactory service, for he is moved by the noblest impulse that ever stirred anyone. Therefore we can see that the right motive must be present if we are to be pleasing to Christ now and at His appearing. We are not to be rewarded because we work, but because we work according to the rules. Remember what Paul wrote . . .

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380. Scripture: "And if a man also strive for the masteries [ when he enters competitive games ], yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully [ according to the rules laid down ], { 2- Timothy 2:5 }."

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381. Commentary . . . "strive for the masteries" contend in the games. The picture in this verse is of an athlete who must play according to the rules [ lawfully ]. A minister must adhere to the requirements of his calling, making the Word and will of God his standard in all things. And truthfully, since every Child of God is a minister in their own right, they should adhere to the same rules as an Assembly Pastor when obeying their anointed calling as an ambassador of Christ, { 2- Corinthians 5:18-20 }! The trial of our works in the day of Christ's appearing will be by fire. We are told . . . and we repeat this next verse . . .

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382. Scripture: "Every man's work shall be made manifest; for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is, { 1- Corinthians 3:13 }."

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383. The above verse paraphrased in commentary form . . . "The work of each one will become [ plainly, and openly understood at the judgment seat of Christ. It will be ] known and shown for what it is; for the day [ of Christ ] will disclose and declare it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test and critically appraise the character and worth of the work each person has done." [ Nothing superficial will be able to stand such a test. Therefore the person who is continually looking for the coming of Christ must be very careful to see that his works are such as will stand the test and meet the approval of his soon coming Lord. ] Otherwise his works may . . .

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384. Scripture: "be burned [ up under the test ], he shall suffer loss [ of it all, losing his reward ]: but he himself [ being a child of God ] shall be saved; so as by fire [ i.e., but only as one who has passed through the fire of testing ] , { 1- Corinthians 3:15 }." See { Job 23:10 }.

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385. Commentary . . . Christians, should be looking up for the imminent appearing of their blessed Saviour. The language of God's Word makes it very clear that we are to live expecting Him to return at any minute. Lost person, perhaps sooner than you think the day of grace will be over, the Body of Christ may be withdrawn, and the time of opportunity for you will be past. Now while you are sure that you can be saved, will you turn to God in repentance of your sins?

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386. Scripture "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved, { Acts 16:31 }."

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387. { V. 31 } above paraphrased "And they answered, Believe in and on the Lord Jesus Chri st . . . that is, give yourself up to Christ, take yourself out of your own keeping and entrust yourself into His keeping, and you will be saved; [ and this applies both to ] you and your household as well."

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[ Heading No. 220 ] When The Saints Get Out Of Place. . .

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388. { V. 24 } Scripture: "But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was NOT WITH THEM when Jesus came.

389. { V. 25 }: The other disciples therefore said to him, we have seen the Lord. But he said to them, Except I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into His side, I WILL NOT BELIEVE, { John 20:24-25 }."

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390. Scripture: "Then came Jesus with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, sit down here, while I go and pray yonder, { Matthew 26:36 }."

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391. { V. 8 } Scripture: "And the Word of the Lord came to him, saying,

392. { V. 9 }: Arise, get yourself to Zarephath, which belongs to Zidon [ Sidon ], and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain [ provide for ] you, { 1- Kings 17:8-9 }."

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393. Scripture: "Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it for their wickedness is come up before Me, { Jonah 1:2 }." See { Genesis 10:11-12 }.

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394. Scripture: "And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage [ feast ], and the door was shut, { Matthew 25:10 }."

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[ Heading No. 221 ] Misplaced Values . . .

395. Commentary. . . As we think of our world today in the light of this subject, we can readily see that much of the turmoil is resulting from misplaced values. There would be a difference in the present situation if God had His way with this old world's activities; and no one should ever question that fact! But I am led to declare that the trouble with current conditions are due largely to Christians being outside the will of God.

396. By looking into God's Word I find the account of God's people bringing catastrophe upon their land and people, by ignoring God's will for their places of service. Let us make an examination of these peoples lives, and receive a lesson for ourselves, and an answer or reason for our personal and national difficulties. The proceeding five passages of Scripture are related to this message and I would ask you to notice the definite place involved in each verse, and also the results that were caused by them being out of place.

[ Heading No. 222 ] Being Out Of Place Causes - - - Doubt:

397. And once again we repeat this verse: Scripture: "But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. . . . but he says unto them, except I shall see His hands the print of the nails and put my finger into the prints of the nails, and thrust my hand into His side, I will not believe, { John 20:24-31 }."

398. Commentary . . . In our first text we find Thomas was not present when Jesus appeared, though he had been commanded to be there. His failure to be where Christ led him, won for him the title, "Doubter of all ages." Today many are attending Christian Assemblies who are literally distracted by doubts. Some of these people hamper and put the damper on every effort to go forward for God, by not stepping out on His promises in faith. They have to see the proof of something accomplished before they will obey marching orders. What causes such doubt? Why, the same thing that made Thomas a doubter . . . by not obeying God, and by not following His leadership.

399. God has commanded that we be faithful to the services of the Body of Christ, { Hebrews 10:25 } says for us not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together. On the other hand, if the Assembly leaders would return to the old faithful standards of worship, perhaps the members would be more faithful in attendants. Truthfully . . . there is no excuse to disobey God's Word, unless it is impossible to do so. Children of God should assemble together in a good Bible believing Assembly to worship the Lord together!!!!!

[ Heading No. 223 ] Being out of place Causes - - - Denial . . .

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400. Scripture: "Then came Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, you sit here, while I go and pray yonder, { Matthew 26:36 }." [ Gethsemane, the name means "oil press." The garden of Gethsemane was a garden doubtless containing olive trees, on the side of the Mount of Olives. ]

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401. Commentary . . . Let us look at the life and testimony of another Christian out of place. None other than the Apostle Peter, who was called on to watch while the Master prayed. You know the story . . . Peter went to sleep at the job of watching and praying. Prayer is our source of power; watching keeps us expectant of His coming thus keeping our houses in order. Therefore, Peter is found later with the wrong crowd, following the Lord afar off. Careful now Christian, if you cannot be found faithful in your prayer life, you are likely to get afar off! Then finding pleasure with the worldly crowd, if you are not very careful . . . they will encourage you into denying the Lord, the one who saved you from your sins.

402. A dangerous thing! Getting out of tune and touch with God. As Christ asked Peter "Could you not watch with Me one hour": can you not dear Christian, avail yourself the necessary power for your witness by talking with the Lord a part of every day? Praying often will pave the way for a much better and smoother tranquillity in the family life. Confusion in our world of today brings us to stand with you in prayer. Yes, the way to stand close to God and follow Him close up instead of afar off is to stay in place in our prayer life. When talking to your Heavenly Father, talk to Him just like you would talk to your own father but remember your Heavenly Father's deity when praying.

[ Heading No. 224 ] Being Out Of Place Causes . . . Lack Of Physical Necessities:

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403. { V. 8 } Scripture: "And the Word of the Lord came unto him, saying, { V. 9 }: arise, get yourself to Zarephath, which belongs to Zidan, and dwell there; behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain you, { 1- Kings 17:8-9, King James V }."

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404. Commentary . . . Zarephath, was a town on the Mediterranean sea coast between Tyre and Sidon. In our third text we find Elijah a real man of God, one who has just called down rain from Heaven, being commanded by God to move to another place. The word Elijah means "Yahweh is God." This was a significant name in a time when Baal worship threatened to extinguish the worship of Yahweh in Israel.

405. Here in this place Elijah had been supplied with food by God through ravens, while he was staying away from the wrath of Ahab and Jezebel. God spoke to Elijah and ordered him to the widow's house, but Elijah felt that he was getting to close to Ahab and Jezebel. Therefore, through his disobedience to God in staying where he was too long and not going where he was told . . . the brook dried up and the birds stopped coming. Elijah had to be forced to go where God called him. The point is:

406. Do not force God to dry the brook of blessings and physical needs for yourself. Go where He wants you and He will care for you. Personally, I want to be in His will, so I will not limit His power to care for me. Let me illustrate in a very personal way what I am trying to say: several years ago I got into certain critical circumstances. It got so bad that I had just about decided to sell my property and move too some other place to live. Shortly afterwards in a conversation with a stranger I had just met, I told him about my trouble, and a few days later he came to me and offered me financial assistance which took care of my problems.

407. One thing I am positively sure of, it was through prayer to the good Lord that brought a complete stranger to my assistance! The fact is, it was only my own idea to quit and move elsewhere. I learned a good lesson, since then I have relied on God to take care of me and my family as long as He wants me to stay or go where He wants me to go. If trouble comes upon you, perhaps you are in the wrong place. Maybe God wants you to move somewhere else, or maybe He just wants you to rely more on Him as Children of God should do! I believe that God has a definite place for every Christian, not only preachers, but for every one of God's children who may be living beside a dry brook. . . . Perhaps folks such as this are just out of place, or out of tune with their Maker.

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408. Scripture: "Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before Me, { Jonah 1:2 }." See { Genesis 10:11-12 }.

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409. Commentary . . . The prophet Jonah caught a boat in the opposite direction from where God was calling him to go. But, that great city Nineveh was in need of God and salvation. Therefore, this stranger named Jonah who was a prophet - whom God had called to show the people in Nineveh a way out - decided to travel according to his own wwill, and definitely against God's will! Thus, Jonah went in the opposite direction away from Nineveh! After Jonah was chastised by Jehovah God and was made to see the need of following God's will, he was privileged to return and lead Nineveh to repentance and to the Lord.

410. On the other hand, suppose the people in Nineveh had perished before Jonah came to them? An entire city would have died . . . God's work would have been held up because of one disobedient prophet being out of place. Is God's work being hindered today because of your mistakes? . . . Are souls waiting . . . just for you and me to get in our place?

411. How careful we need to be in choosing our places of work for the Master. How long must they wait for us to bring them the message of salvation. Christ has very definitely called us to go and do whatever we are failing to do to fulfill His orders for us as His ambassadors. What or who is hindering you personally from obeying this commandment? { 2- Corinthians 5:17-21 }. God has said "You are to go to the lost and compel them to come in." Therefore, if we are failing to bring understanding to others, this could mean that loved ones and even strangers you could have witnessed to and led to Christ may remain lost.

412. In order to keep family members along with other people from spending eternity in the Lake of fire, you as a Child of God should obey the commission given to all of the Lord's Saints. We are commissioned as ambassadors for Christ to teach the ministry of reconciliation to every one and especially to those who are unsaved! See what your marching orders are . . . { 2- Corinthians 14- 21}. These verses concern the heart of the "Gospel of Grace!"

413. My friend, I believe from the very depths of my heart that many men, women, boys and girls are dying and going to Hell every day because we as Christians are as Jonah was, in the boat going the wrong direction. I repeat, could it be that you and I, rather than going toward that poor lost soul, and telling him or her about the wonderful Saviour Jesus Christ Who died for all our sins, are ourselves going in the wrong direction? May God help us to be more soul-minded and be willing to go to Nineveh and warn the people of their sins.

[ Heading No. 225 ] Being Out of Place Causes Countless Souls To Be Forever Lost To Christ!

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414. Scripture: "And while they went to buy, the Bridegroom came; and they that were ready [ and prepared ] went in with Him to the marriage [ feast ], and the door was shut, { Matthew 25:10 }."

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415. Commentary . . . In the past we have talked about the above passage of Scripture, in which thousands of messages have been preached, by wrongly applying the text to the Body of Christ of this age of grace. This verse should be applied to the end of the Tribulation Period when the saved remnant of Israel goes out to meet their Bridegroom. Still we today can gleam an understanding of typology which can be applied to humanity as a whole from this text. Because, this is typical of any dispensation previous to the part that will be played out at the Second Coming of Christ when the Messiah Bridegroom shall appear.

416. We find In the above text the familiar story of the five foolish virgins. Here we also find that there is a great danger of being out of place when our Lord comes to complete the Rapture of His Body of Saints. And, when this takes place, we certainly do not wish to be out of place in the sense of our relationship to Christ. The Scripture says when those foolish Israeli virgins go out to buy oil for their lamps [ future tense ] the Bridegroom will appear on the scene.

417. In the latter portion of the text the virgins are warned of great danger, especially for those who have never accepted Christ as Saviour, who naturally will be found not ready. Thus, it is clear that only those who are ready will go to be with the Bridegroom and on into His Millennial reign with Him. In type, the same thing applies to us today. Those who are found not ready and still in a lost condition, the door of salvation will be closed!

418. My appeal to the reader is that you will not do as the five foolish virgins are going to do in the future, when they fail to be in their right place for Messiah. For as they will flunk their final examination when Christ, their Bridegroom, returns, so also will you go to the examination bar having been first tested. People all over the earth are right now at this very time being tested. This world is a great testing ground. No form of pretense, claims of self righteousness, or church membership will do.

419. Don't wait until the Lord comes, to try to make preparation. Man your station now, take your place now in the Kings army. Today is the time for salvation. If Christ were to come today where would He find you????? If you have NOT been born into the family of God you will be out of place just like the five foolish virgins will be as prophesied in the Scriptures. You will find the door shut, and no matter how LOUDLY you CRY "0pen The Door" you will get the answer "TOO LATE. TOO LATE," the door is shut!

420. May God help us as Christians to see the pitfalls of being out of place in our profession, or calling in our service as Christ's ambassadors in our personal living and in our prayer life. Are you filled with fears and doubts?? Do troubles camp on your trail?? Could it be that you are a member of the Misplaced Persons Bureau?

[ Heading No. 226 ] The Man Who Came To The Altar Too Late:

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421. Scripture: ". . . And Joab fled unto the tabernacle of the Lord, and caught hold on the horns of the altar, { 1- Kings 2:28 }."

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422. Commentary . . . Joab was a general. He was a man of might and power. In many ways he was the most important man of his time. He was brave, resourceful and patiently persistent. He was one of the men who could bide his time. If, as King David's son Absalom set Joab's barley-fields on fire { 2- Samuel 14:29-30 }, he could shut his own anger down under the hatches and keep it smoldering there for years until someday when that happy young politician Absalom should be hanging by his curls in the forest, a fair target for Joab's own dart.

423. Joab never forgot, and he never forgave. He was a man of strength, and a successful leader of armies. On the occasion of the conquest of the city of Jerusalem he was appointed by King David to lead the army, and he displayed such bravery and such splendid gifts of leadership that he remained at the head of the armies of David for thirty years.

424. His position in the kingdom was second only to David. He was rich, and of tremendous influence and prestige among the people; but he was NOT a good man. Joab had had unusual opportunities to become an intelligently religious man. Although a soldier, and a leader of armies, not even Havelock, England's soldier saint, not Howard, our American Christian general, had a better opportunity to receive religious influence.

425. He associated for three decades with King David, the author of those wonderful Psalms, and a man who, with all his follies and sins, was deeply religious. He was David's counselor. He knew all that was in David's heart. No man could know David so intimately without being convinced of the intense sincerity of the man and his true faith in God. Undoubtedly he often attended David in the worship of the sanctuary; but it had no influence on Joab.

426. For thirty years he lived close to David, knew of all the interposition of God's providence in behalf of His people, and yet his heart continued to grow hard and stubborn and cruel. His spirit became more vindictive as age crept on him. He became more revengeful, and having the power, he used it for his own advancement. He lived a godless life despite godly examples and influences all around him. David is now an old man, about to die, and Joab has grown old along with David; and yet with David on his death-bed, Joab engages with Adonijah in a wicked rebellion against the King. David hears of it, and turns the matter over to Solomon, the son who is to be king in David's place, with these words:

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427. { V. 5 } Scripture: "Moreover you know also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner, and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle [ belt ] that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet.

428. { V. 6 }: Do therefore according to your wisdom, and let not his 'hoar [ gray' ] head go down to the 'grave [ sheol' ] in peace, { 1- Kings 2:5-6 }."

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429. Commentary . . . When the plot against Solomon had failed, and when the news came to gray-haired old General Joab that his protege priest, had gone into exile, his conscience told him that his own ruin was bringing much trouble toward himself. He then fled to Gideon, and concealed himself for protection in the tabernacle of the Lord, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. But it did not save him, for Benaiah, one of David's faithful friends, pursued him even to the altar, and slew him there, and he was buried at his own camp in the wilderness, see { 1- Kings 2:28-34 }. There are some important and interesting lessons we may learn from this tragic story . . .

430. First: A man may have the most religious surroundings, and the very best of friends, and yet remain godless and without salvation himself. We have spoken a great deal about Joab - realizing the wonderful opportunities that had laid before him since he had been a close friend of the King during his courier as a General of the Kings armed forces. No man can read the Psalms of David without feeling that it must have been a gracious privilege to have unlimited opportunity for conversation with that poetic and worshipful King. Yet Joab's future now became nothing but failure, for he failed his King drastically.

431. The truth is, such stupidity "has caused" many other men to also fail. In many families are one or more children that are raised in a Christian home, went to the Congregational meetings and were taught the right way for a Christian to live. But, some as we have said, have ignored their Biblical teachings and are headed toward Hell as their future home, how sad!!!

432. Abraham's nephew Lot, was brought up in the tent of Abraham, who was the most godly man of his day, one of the most unselfish and devotedly righteous men the world has ever seen. Abraham was known throughout the entire East as "the friend of God," and yet, notwithstanding all that, Lot pitched his tent toward Sodom. Judas associated with Jesus Christ Who was God Himself in the flesh, and listened to all His sermons and conversations for a three and a half year period, Judas witnessed all Christ's miracles for that entire period, and then betrayed his Lord for thirty pieces of silver.

433. Religious, or even Christian associations are not enough; a man may have all this plus wealth, perhaps a family, and even great prestige among the people who know him, and all of this may be ignored and his heart can still be hardened to the point of no return. If I speak to anyone who has been blest with a Christian father or mother and has been surrounded by a circle of Christian friends for years, and yet has not influenced you to become a Christian, I pray that God will arouse you to a proper sense of your danger. These very facts show that religious associations and hard-heartedness on your own part may be hardening rather than helping you. Christianity must take hold of your own heart, and fertilize your soul, if it is to be of any real value to you.

434. Second . . . Conscience will turn the bravest man into a coward. The Scripture states that "The wicked flee when no man pursues." No man pursued Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Everywhere In the garden of Paradise, with its flowers and fruits, there was no visible enemy, and yet Adam and Eve sought to hide themselves from God, and when God called Adam by name he answered, "I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid." He was afraid because he had sinned against God and his conscience had spoken in rebuke and warning.

435. After Cain had slain his brother Able he fled, though no one was pursuing him. Conscience followed him, and a man who has his conscience after him does not require any other detective to track him. No man pursued Judas. He had made his bargain and got his money, and no one sought to trouble him. But conscience drove him back to the men who had bribed him to betray his Lord, and conscience made him throw the blood-stained silver down on the floor at their feet. And it was conscience that drove him to his suicidal death.

436. There was not a word at all about himself, but his conscience warned him that he was the chief sinner in the conspiracy and that vengeance would soon follow and overtake him. And, strange to behold, he fled to the Temple, the house of God, and took hold of the horns of the altar. He would not go there while he was well and strong and in his youthful glory, when he should have been there to thank the Lord God for all his blessings. He never worshipped at God's altar while he was in the height of his power and the splendor of his influence.

437. But now, when he is old, and in disgrace, hunted, pursued by his conscience, tracked down by his sins, he hurries to God's altar and flings his arms about it. Why? Because his soul is full of sorrow that he has grieved his heavenly Father and that he has hardened his heart [ mind ] against God's mercy. Was he sorry about what he had done? N0, he was sorry that his plot had failed. He grieved because he had been caught in his own trap, and he used God's altar as an attempt to escape from the just punishment for his sins. Repentance, to avail, must go deeper than that.

438. Third . . . Repentance may come too late. He had sinned away his day of grace. There is a line on the side of a vessel beyond which, if it careens just a hairbreadth too much, the ship will capsize. And so there is a point in a man's life, God only knows where it is, beyond which if it goes he becomes like Ephraim, joined unto his idols, or like Esau, who sold his birthright for a mess of pottage and afterwards could not reclaim it, though he sought for a place of repentance with tears.

439. There could be no more solemn question for consideration. A soul, sinning away its day of opportunity and mercy, and knocking at last at the closed gate, and finding no admission. Tennyson never wrote sadder words or more powerful than those he put on the lips of the sinning queen in "The Idyls of the King" . . .

"Late, late, so late! And dark the night and chill!

Late, late, so late! But we can enter still.'

"Too late, too late! Ye can not enter now.'

" 'No light had we; for that we do repent,

And learning this, the bridegroom will relent.'

'Too late, too late! Ye can not enter now.'

" 'No light! so late! And dark and chill the night!

0 let us in, that we may find the light!"

'Too late, too late! Ye can not enter now.'

" 'Have we not heard the bridegroom is so sweet?

0 let us in, though late, to kiss his feet!"

'No. no, too late! Ye can not enter now.' "

440. My dear sinner friend, will you wait too late? Will you continue to reject God's love and mercy? How much longer do you expect God to show mercy toward you. How good God has been to you to spare you as long as He has. Were it not for His mercy you would be screaming in Hell for just one drop of water to cool your scorched and burning tongue. Will you repent too late? God help you not to put off your salvation. Receive Jesus now by faith as your Lord and Saviour. Please read and pray the following:

[ Heading No. 227 ]: The Sinners Prayer:

441. Heavenly Father, I know that I'm a lost sinner and that I cannot save myself by good works. I believe that Jesus Christ is God the Son Who came down from Heaven and took on a human body of flesh and was born of the Virgin Mary. I believe that Jesus shed His blood on the Cross of Calvary and died paying the price for my sins with His death so that I can receive salvation because and through His sacrifice. I believe that after Christ's sacrifice and death, He arose from the tomb after three literal days and nights. That Jesus ascended into the third Heaven to sit at the right hand of God the Father.

442. I believe that Jesus will return for all Saints who belong to the Body of Christ in the Resurrection [ Rapture, 'Rapere' ] according to His own promise! I know that I have been up to this time a lost sinner and deserved to go to hell. So I beseech you Heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit at this very moment into my heart and save me for Jesus Christ sake as has been promised me by Your Holy Word. I am receiving Jesus Christ at this very moment as my personal Saviour, my Lord and as my only blessed hope for salvation. Thank You Lord for now I am saved by Your wonderful grace. Amen!

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443. Scripture { V. 16 }: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

444. { V. 17 }: For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved, { John 3:16-17 }."

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445. Scripture, { V. 8 }: "For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. . .

446. { V. 9 }: Not of works, lest any man should boast, { Ephesians 2:8-9 }."

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447. Scripture, { V. 9 }: "But as it is written, Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love Him,

448. { V. 10 }: But God has revealed them to us by His [ Holy ] Spirit, for the Spirit searches all things, yes the deep things of God, { 1- Corinthians 2:9-10 }."

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449. Commentary . . . The signs indicating the seven years of tribulation has already become evident before the Tribulation on a smaller scale, while increasing in intensity as the tribulation approaches. The signs serve the purpose of a clarion call to the Body of Christ to prepare for the coming of Christ as the Head of the Body in the air, and also to the unrepentant world not to continue shunning the grace of God { Hebrews. 2:3 }.

450. When the signs that indicated the Tribulation Period only begin to become evident, people were to ready themselves for the Rapture. Plus, the Israelis are to ready themselves for the Second Coming of their Bridegroom Messiah { Luke 21:28 }. Both classes of people, the Body of Christ first and later Israel and the nations are to lift up their heads because their redemption is drawing near. We have given a list of final signs that indicate the nearness of the Rapture first, and seven years later the Second Coming, at the end of the seven year-long tribulation. Are you waiting and watching for this time to culminate?

51. Today, do not postpone your decision for Jesus Christ. Remember, it may be indeed too late tomorrow. Make use of it today, because if you really want the harmony and peace of the Lord in your heart, then you must prepare now. There must be a change of authority in your mind and that change will determine eternity. To put it briefly, you either will spend eternity in everlasting, never-ending punishment or in never-ending eternal glory with your Lord.

In regard to our readers, we would deeply express our thanks to those who will re-copy this message and pass it on to others that they too may find Salvation and knowledge from it.

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This Message was written with Help and excerpts from such folks as the following people mentioned below . . .

C.S. Lewis . . . Rabbi Daniel Lapin . . . Ben Yaacov . . . Stanley Price . . . W. D. Thornbury . . . M.R. Dehaan . . . Dr. J.R. Church . . . Josephus . . . Dr. Arno C. Gaebelein . . . William Kelly . . . W.R. Newell . . . C.A. Coates . . . Dr. James M. Gray . . . John Milton the famous poet. . . . F.C. Jennings . . . Erich Sauer . . . Kyle M. Yates . . . Sr. Merrill F. Unger . . . Frederick A. Tafford . . . G.H.Pember . . . Dr. Biederwolf... William MacDonald . . . F.W. Thomas . . . Cyril S. Fox . . . Duane T. Gish . . . Melvin Cook . . .

Mason Sutherland . . . Robert Harris . . . Leonard Engel . . . Pallas . . . Baron Toll . . . Donald W. Patten . . . Lorus J. Milne . . .

James A. Green . . . Sidney P. Clementson . . . Raymond C. Moore . . . Mr. Stuart Nevins . . . Hill Fendel . . . Joe Kovacs . . . Daniel Pipes . . . Ted Sluijter . . . Madeline Albright . . . Dr. Jack Van Impe . . . Wim Malgo. . . Dr. N.W. Hutchings. . . John C. Whitcamb. . . Readers Digest. . . Time Magazine. . . Newsweek. . . Dr. James Curran. . . The Associat Press. . . The Atlanta Center for disease Control. . . President George Bush. . . French Prime Minister Dominigue deVillepin. . . Shigeru Omi. . . Dr. Irun Redliner. . . Laurie Garrett. . . The Council of Foreign Relations. . . William Karesh. . .The National Center for Disaster Preparedness. . . Dr. Malik Peiris. . . Michael Osterholm. . . Michael Leavitt. . . John Oxford. . . Dr. David Reddy. . . Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist. . . Prof. George Poste. . . John Gribbin. . . Stephen Plagemann. . . Hoagland. . . Gary Hardin . . .

Fernando Gil Alonso. . . U Thant. . . Maurice Woodruff. . . Joseph Bayly. . . American Astronomer Harlow Shapley. . . William Petersen. . . Dr. William L. Pittingill. . . Dr. J.E. Shelley. . . Whitcomb and Morris. . . Dr. George R. Hill. . . Professors George Mulfinger and Ray Gsell . . . Gilles William Goldnadel . . . Michel Gurfinkiel . . . Alain Griotteray . . . Olivier Guitta . . . Jean-Christophe Mounicq . . . Kin Ham . . . Dr. David Catchpoole . . . Charles Lyell . . . James Hutton . . . Dr. Terry Mortenson . . . Derek Ager . . . Charles Hodge . . . A.A. Hodge . . . B.B. Warfield . . . Dr. Edward Hindson . . . Jonathan Sarfati . . . ETC.

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