A Little Bit of This & a Little Bit of That – November 2013
I received a note from a Washington State reader who couldn’t believe how far we have fallen and how the tentacles of evil have us in its grasp. Surely, she said, there has to be an end to it and she wondered when God will intervene.
In reply let me paraphrase a couple of Bible passages courtesy of the Contemporary Bible Version of the Bible, dual or more fulfillments in the life of True Israel. Jeremiah 5:30 says, “You are constantly receiving messages from false gods, your leaders don’t want to serve me and you, my own people, like it this way.” Then He asks, “But in the day of disaster, where will you turn for help.” Several times in past writings, I referred to Hosea 5:15, where God says He will return to His Place until we acknowledge our offence and turn to Him for help. Sadly, Israelites as a whole are not yet there.
But soon? I like the way Commander D.H. MacMillan, M.B.E. explained it a half century ago when he wrote in The National Message, “It is obvious to students of Biblical Prophecy that the age-long period for the permission of evil and disobedience among men and angelic spirits is rapidly moving towards its predestined close. The climax is now almost upon us, and at a time when it would appear to the uninstructed or fearful that the forces of evil are moving to triumph in every sphere, religious and secular. In reality, the satanic powers are about to be exposed and paralyzed.
But we should never forget, God is still on His throne, and, although His eyelids try us by His self-imposed silence, those of the Faith realize that events today have been increasingly accelerated by scientific revelations made from time to time. And at the last, by a series of final acts of power, God will break His age-long silence by returning, in the Person of His Son, to judge terribly the earth, and defend His redeemed sons and daughters.” (end of slightly abridged quote)
Events are moving very quickly now and I think soon True Israel will go to our collective knees and beg for help. Then, as He promised in 2 Chronicles 7:14, He will heal our lands.
You know, looking at the Hosea 5:15 verse mentioned above, there have been fulfillments in the past. Here is a great example. When Elizabeth I ascended the throne after five brutal years under Bloody Mary, a member of the court summed up the condition of the country, “The Queen poor, the realm exhausted, the nobility poor and decayed. Want of good captains and soldiers. The people out of order. Justice not executed. All things dear. Excess in meat, drink and apparel. Divisions among ourselves. Wars with France and Scotland. The French King bestriding the realm, having one foot in Calais and the other in Scotland. Steadfast enmity but no steadfast friendship abroad.” So, how do you think that after a relatively few years, England was at peace and returned to a state of prosperity. There was a great revival in trade, agriculture and manufacturing. Exploration was encouraged and many overseas colonies were claimed for England. It was a golden period in the nation’s growth. Yet, the highlight of her reign was the emergence of Britain from under the shadow of the great European powers, culminating in the defeat of Spain and the Spanish Armada.
There was a reason for this astonishing success. And that reason was “GOD” bringing about the Reformation. Look at this little reference on pages 816/817 of Halley’s Bible Handbook, “It was the discovery of a Bible by Martin Luther, and its Release to the People, backed by Luther’s own matchless invincible soul, that Brought Forth the Protestant Reformation, and Proclaimed Liberty to the Modern World—mightiest step forward in human progress ever known in history. Those who read history know full well how directly we owe our Freedom and All That is Dear to us to the Bible.
Example [is] of Elizabethan England. In Green’s Short History of the English People it is stated that “No Greater Moral Change ever passed over a nation than passed over England in the latter part of the reign of Queen Elizabeth. England became the people of a Book, and That Book Was The Bible. It was Read by Every Class of People. And the Effect was Amazing. The Whole Moral Tone of the Nation was Changed.”
Sadly, today, the Bible, the Laws of God and the Almighty God Himself have been placed on the dusty shelf by most Israelites and we are paying the penalty for this outrage. We can only pray for our nations and our brethren and hope the unveiling of our blindness takes place soon.
There is no doubt about the warning from the Apostle Paul in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 that we should not be deceived, there will be a falling away (i.e. the people will rebel against God) before the day of Christ’s return, indeed also before that day, the man of sin will be revealed, the son of perdition. The Epistle Dedicatory in the KJV seems to point to the Pope as this Man of Sin, its words are, “Which hath given such a blow unto the man of sin, as will not be healed”. This no doubt refers to the Reformation. But, isn’t it interesting that the September 12th Province newspaper ran this excerpt from an article, “Rome – Pope Francis has struck a surprisingly conciliatory tone toward atheists and agnostics, saying that God will “forgive” them as long as they behave morally and live according to their consciences.”
If only our brethren would dust off their Bibles. They would quickly see the wisdom of turning back to God. I like the way The National Message worded it in 1957, “More than 1,900 years ago [now nearly 2,000 years], before His Death and Resurrection, the Lord Jesus Christ assured His disciples that He would return to this earth in power and glory. Forty days after rising again from the grave—during which period He was seen by over 500 of His followers—He was with His disciples on the Mount of Olives and they saw Him ascend into the clouds and vanish from their sight. But as they stood gazing upwards angelic messengers declared to them: This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner.’”
It’s time to start watching.
One reader telephoned to ask what tribe ended up in Switzerland, the homeland of his close relative. I couldn’t answer him, although my mind quickly went to the Tribe of Judah. Not so, according to renowned author, Steven M. Collins in his well-researched book, “The ‘Lost’ Ten Tribes of Israel … Found”. He pointed out that Switzerland is a mixture of German, French and Italian-speaking people. He suggested that the French Swiss are likely Reubenites, but the others (German & Italian-speaking) are not yet identified. Mr. Collins does make a good case that the Israelite tribe of Gad forms at least a part of Germany’s population and if so, then it could possibly be assumed that the German Swiss are in part from Gad. Still, I had always thought Judah was represented in Germany as well. And so does Pastor Alan Campbell of Northern Ireland. In one section of his booklet, “The Remnant of Judah Revealed in Germany”, he wrote, “We are not claiming that Germany was an Israel nation, neither are we saying that all of Germany is Judah, but we are saying that present within Germany is a Judahite section.” His booklet is very convincing.
So, there you are reader, Switzerland may be composed of peoples from the tribes of Reuben, Judah, Gad and some Italian-speaking peoples that have yet to be identified. Hope this helps.
Surprisingly, many young people today have no idea of the great sacrifices of our nations during the two world wars. In Canada, the Institute of Historic Dominion decided to do something about it. So, a program has been developed to send veterans to the schools to tell young people what the wars were about, the sacrifices made and their personal stories. It will be interesting to learn of the results.
