It may seem strange in our modern world, but many of us are being harassed and persecuted. Persecuted not for departing from our original beliefs, but for holding them fast. Persecuted not for going into some orgiastic pagan cult, but simply for transferring our membership from one Sabbath-keeping Church to another which we feel is preserving the biblical Truths we were converted to in the first place.

Jesus said: "Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of Man's sake. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, for in like manner their fathers did to the prophets" (Luke 6:22-23).

Most of you know that I, personally, am being vilified and persecuted on a regular basis. Should I waste my time trying to answer every single lie, distortion or exaggeration they come up with? I think not. For GOD will fight my battles and take care of those who attack me in a way I could never do myself.

And God will do the same for each of you! Let us always remember the apostle Paul's inspired statement: "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31.)

Perhaps these misguided persecutors would do well to remember the advice given by Gamaliel to those who persecuted the original apostles: "And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found to fight against God" (Acts 5:38-39).

That is the "acid test," brethren. And I think we in the Global Church of God understand what this test involves. If we are increasingly blessed and used of God to preach and publish the Truth, and if more and more people from the outside world are brought into contact with the true Jesus Christ and His teachings through us—and are strengthened, encouraged and healed physically, emotionally and most of all spiritually—then WOE be to those who attack and vilify the servants of the living GOD!

So when confused individuals and organizations spend much of their time, money and energy attacking and harassing simple Christians who want the freedom to worship God where they feel the full Truth is being taught, perhaps that should tell us something. Do these people feel very insecure, frustrated—perhaps even guilty? What is the real motive behind these malicious, unprovoked attacks?

Let us be encouraged, brethren, to move forward and do the Work of God in a positive way. We are following in the footsteps of Christ and the apostles. And we are in very good company when we are persecuted merely for preaching the Truth, and wanting to share that precious Truth with others. Again: "If God is for us, who can be against us?"

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by John Daneri Schroeder

The Law of Moses is every true prophet's bread and butter. In the introduction to this series we said that all prophecy is based upon the Law of Moses. Actually, all Scripture is based upon the Law of Moses. And, in a sense, all of Scripture can rightly be termed "prophecy," although just a part of it specifically predicts the future. The biblical terms translated "prophecy" include everything inspired by God, or "God-breathed, " as the Greek has it in II Timothy 3:16. And there is false prophecy; but more about that later.

The term prophet is derived from a Greek word prophetes, which means "one who speaks on behalf of another." It may also be interpreted as "one who speaks forth" or "makes a public declaration." The modern concept of a prophet as "one who predicts" or "forecasts the future" is based upon the fact that the ancient prophet did occasionally predict future events through divine inspiration. But this represented only one aspect of his ministry. Forthtelling, rather than foretelling, was his primary function (Exploring the Old Testament, W . T. Purkiser, Editor, Beacon Hill Press, Kansas City, 1968, pp. 287- 288).

In the Hebrew Scriptures, nabi (or navi) is consistently translated "prophet." The words roeh and chozeh (ch is the guttural "h" as in "Bach") are typically rendered "seer." All three words were used more or less interchangeably, one giving way to the other as words do tend to change over time (I Sam. 9:9). They all mean about the same as the Greek, prophetes—announcing or pouring forth declarations of God (Unger's Bible Dictionary, Merrill Unger, Moody Press, Chicago, 1957; p. 890).

A prophet's work is not mystical or occult, but rather is the work of reasonable men and women called by God and inspired by the Holy Spirit. Their work was and is quite normal, even by modern standards. For example, the Temple singers, all of them Levites, were said to "prophesy with harps" (I Chron. 25:1). Strong's Concordance notes that naba, to prophesy, is to "speak (or sing) by inspiration (in prediction or simple discourse [Strong's #50121))." So, in a broad sense, inspired preaching and singing are legitimate forms of prophesying.

Our Lives are Prophecy

Indeed, the apostle Paul told the Corinthians to "Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy"—which he defines as simply speaking “edification and exhortation and comfort to men" (I Cor. 14:1, 3). Since New Testament Church members are called into a “royal priesthood... [to] proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;" then our Christian lives should be prophetic, or representative of the Kingdom of God (I Pet. 2:9). This is not the formal office of a prophet, but is a normal function of the Holy Spirit within each member of Christ's body, Christ Himself being a prophet (Luke 4:23- 27).

If the prophetic significance of our lives is to be felt by the world around us, the Church membership should be governed today as the Kingdom of God will be governed in the future—by the "perfect Law of Liberty" of which we read in James 1:25, which is the pure and peaceable, gentle wisdom from above (James 3:17, Deut. 4:6). God has not changed; nor has His perfect Law. But there is a surprise for many where the Law of Moses is concerned. It is not a "Law" as protestant Christianity has often viewed it, because in our English Bibles "The Law" usually does not refer specifically to a Law, although it includes many laws, commandments and statutes. This is generally quite a shock to those who try to pit law against grace—because grace is among the most important qualities of "The Law." Yet how many people think of grace when they hear the word Law?

A Perfect Law of Liberty

"The Law" is only a fair definition for Moses' books. They do contain the laws of Israel, but the term "Law" is incomplete by itself. Torah is the Hebrew word most often translated "Law” in our English Bibles. But Torah means "Teachings"—not just "Law". And since the Greek word, nomos, was used by Jews to translate Torah in the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, it (nomos) should more often be understood to mean Torah in the New Testament. In our New Testaments, when coupled with the definite article, o nomos (The Law) refers to the Divine Law of Israel, and should be understood as such (A Critical Lexicon and Concordance, E. Bullinger, Lamp Press, London, 1957, p. 442).

The basic term for "law" in the O.T. would appear at first glance to be "Torah.” In Judaism this term is used to designate the first five books of the O.T. Pentateuch. Its actual meaning, however, is not "law" but “instruction," “guidance," “direction." Torah is that which points the way for the faithful Israelite and for the community of Israel. Not merely the laws of the Pentateuch provide guidance; the entire story of God's dealings with mankind and with Israel points the way (Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, OT TERMS FOR LAW, Volume 3, p. 77).

The utterly false concept of harsh law being administered by a heavy-handed Old Testament God is not remotely biblical. Any careful study of Moses' books will reveal God as chesed—a term which includes mercy, kindness, devotion, grace, faithfulness, loyalty—traits which define a loving marriage covenant between God and His chosen people. God is perfect love—perfect chesed—yesterday, today and forever" (I John 4:8, Heb. 13:8).

Anyone speaking contrary to the "Law" has no light in him; truth never dawns on him (Isa. 8:20). The Teachings of Moses are Israel's very life (Deut. 32:45-47). From these perfect Teachings, Micah understood what the Law requires, and wrote, "What does the LORD require of you, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?" (Mic. 6:8). This agrees completely with Jesus' appraisal of the royal Law:

Then one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question, testing him, and saying, "Master, which is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him , "You shalt love the Lord God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like to it, You shalt love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the Prophets. (Matt. 22:35- 40).

Every week, portions of the Torah and of the Haftorah (the Law and the Prophets) are read in synagogues around the world (Acts 15:21). Moses is completely covered each year in this fashion, with appropriate commentary from the Prophets. Since Jesus was raised in the knowledge of the Scriptures, referring to the Torah and Haftorah would have been as natural as sunrise. He clearly saw the Law of Moses as an expression of His own love. In no way is it an expression of "legalistic" theology. Both God and His Teachings are perfect expressions of love and of true freedom (I John 5:3, James 1:23-25). When we choose to ignore the royal Law, even our prayers become repugnant to God (Prov. 28:9). These writings are not something to be trifled with.

God's Laws establish LIBERTY

The power of good laws to secure freedom is no mystery to Americans. This is enthusiastically proclaimed in the song, America the Beautiful, with the inspiring lyrics, "Confirm thy soul in self-control, thy Liberty in law!" A remarkably well-written constitutional law establishes and protects the precious freedoms enjoyed by citizens of the United States. Few would call this law "bondage"—except when it is unjustly administered.

Similarly, there is no document in existence to compare with God's "Constitution". It so perfectly defines justice, mercy and caring as does the perfect "Law" of Liberty—summarized in the Ten Commandments (actually called the "Ten Words" in Hebrew), and which, in turn, are explained in perfect detail through hundreds of other laws and prohibitions.

These more numerous "commandments" were an extremely important matter in the community in which Jesus Christ was raised. He was what every Jewish boy becomes at age 13—a bar mitzva—a "son of the commandments." Not all of these commandments apply to everyone. For one obvious example, only priests and Levites can legally perform Temple sacrifices—although everyone can learn from their services. But far more of God's commandments or teachings can be obeyed than the average man of does in most societies today. Consider the command of impartiality in judgment. Is this always carefully obeyed when the rich confront the poor? How many of us observe the year of release or the Great Law of loving neighbor as oneself'? The laws of justice, kindness and humility?

Jesus said, "If you love me, keep my commandments" (John 14:15, Deut. 30:6, 8). His good friend, the apostle John said, "He who says, `I know Him' and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him" (I John 2:4). The Ten Commandments which God wrote on two tables of stone are the great categories into which the other commands are to be organized—the many mitzvas which Solomon mentioned when he said, "Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole man" (Eccl. 12:13).

When Jeremiah wrote, "Let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth. For in these I delight, says the LORD," he left no room whatsoever for anyone who ignores the great or even the least commandments of the Law (Jer. 9:24, Matt. 5:17-20).

David cried, "Oh, how I love your Law! It is my meditation all the day" (Psa. 119:97)! He loved the perfect guidance God had given him through Moses, which enabled him to deal justly and humbly as Israel's king.

In Psalms 19 David wrote with fervent devotion:

The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; the statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them your servant is warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward (Psa. 19:7-11).

It is difficult to find any teaching more kind or merciful than the "Law." It contains the perfect Teachings of the One who is both All-Powerful and perfect in steadfast, tenderhearted mercies and lovingkindness. Nothing gets much better than that, though Christ "magnified" the law and made its meaning even more full and clear in His own life and teachings (Isa. 42:21). Any people who really strive to live by the Teachings of Moses will be among the kindest and most generous on earth. The Law converts the soul into some thing very much like God (Psa.19:7)!

Elijah's N.T. Prophetic Work

All true prophets taught and will teach according to the Law (Isa. 8:20). Take for a poignant example the background and work of Elijah the prophet as presented at the end of Malachi:

Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel. See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse (Mal. 4:4-6, NIV).

One coming in the spirit and power of Elijah was to restore the Law to many in Israel just prior to the coming of the Messiah in glory. He was to successfully reestablish families in reverence for Israel's magnificent God—but not through trite "pop" psychology. Through his ministry, parents were to learn to teach the royal Law to their children in Godly fear (Deut. 4:9-10, 6:4-9, 11:19). This was Abraham's good example, and if we are Christ's, then we are spiritual children of Abraham (Gen. 26:5, Gal. 3:29). We will teach our children as Abraham did, turning them to God and to their parents, and ourselves to our children (Gen. 18:17-19).

Missing from Malachi's description of Elijah's prophetic work is the popular concept of foretelling future events. The Law of Moses will do some of that, but predicting is not stated as the central character of Elijah's work. Each true prophet's work is always based upon the Law of God—or the work is false and will ultimately be destroyed (Deut. 13, II Pet. 2:1-22).

So we have seen that prophecy—the work of a prophet —is not merely a job of foretelling future events. Far more important than that, it is the monumental task of turning humanity wholeheartedly to the perfect Law of Liberty—to the Teachings of Jesus Christ through Moses, the Prophets, the Writings and the New Testament (Isa. 8:20, John 5:46-47). In the final analysis, prophecies of future blessings or curses are merely incentives to motivate us to fervently return to God and to His perfect royal Law of Liberty (Deut. 30:1-14).

by Ron Nelson

"Wind, rain, earthquakes, hail, floods, fire—everything but pestilence—hit the property/casualty insurance industry in 1992, the worst year ever for catastrophes, " so says an article in the business section of The Los Angeles Times, February 21, 1993. Assessing the effects of last year's losses, the article about the insurance business went on: "Things were so bad that even without Hurricane Andrew, the killer storm that caused more than $15 billion in insured losses in Florida and Louisiana, 1992 still would have been the second-worst year on record. That's because the Los Angeles riots, Hawaii's Hurricane Iniki and winter storms in the Northeast together caused more than $3 billion in havoc."

This year of disasters has sorely effected the insurance industry which always has to take a strict, bottom line view of things in order to stay in business at all. The article continued: "Andrew prompted the insurance industry to revise its thinking about worst-case scenarios. One immediate outcome was sharp price increases by reinsurers—the global community of firms, such as Lloyd's of London which absorb a share of insurance companies' risk."

In California, water shortages is an on-going concern despite unusually heavy rainfall being recorded this winter.

Although California's governor announced in February of this year that the six-year dry spell was over that had severely impacted some of the state's towns and cities, water shortages are likely to remain a serious concern for the foreseeable future. "Water politics" is becoming a familiar term because of the divergent views of politicians, agencies and the public about how to meet the need.

Even without the drought in California, man's poor judgment and faulty management of land and resources has lead to over-building in arid and semi-arid areas. Consequently, the "water-guzzling behemoth" of Southern California is forced to depend on water from hundreds of miles away.

As the prophet Amos was inspired to predict, "I also withheld rain from you, when there were still three months to the harvest. “ I made it rain on one city, I withheld rain from another city. One part was rained upon; and where it did not rain that part withered. So two or three cities wandered to another city to drink water, but they were not satisfied, yet you have not returned to Me,' says the Lord" (Amos 4:6- 8).

The California coastal city of Santa Barbara was experiencing such dire shortages that water had to be trucked into the community. All kinds of bizarre schemes were considered such as floating an iceberg down the coast to supply water for the city. During the protracted time of drought, water usage was so restricted in Santa Barbara that some residents resorted to spraying green dye on their parched brown lawns!

There is growing uncertainty about having enough water to meet the needs of burgeoning cities and towns in scattered areas across the country. At times, we seem totally helpless to anticipate and guard against more and more natural disturbances. Associated Press on February 25, 1993 reported from Arizona "Water poured uncontrolled over a dam spillway, feeding a flood that is expected to swamp the homes of 3,500 people and ruin $10 million worth of agricultural produce, officials said. The normally dry Gila River, fed by record winter rains that have caused millions of dollars in damage elsewhere in Arizona, was expected to spread across thousands of acres of sparsely populated desert farmland over the next several days."

Reuters News Service related another instance where the government is having to step in with assistance. "President Clinton on Friday declared a major disaster for Washington state because of severe storms that struck the area in January. The declaration makes the state eligible for federal assistance" ( Reuters, March 3, 1993 ).

For the time being, state and federal agencies have been able to help localities and regions cope with the clean-up and repair of public infrastructure damage as well as render aid and low-interest loans to private parties and small businesses. But what will be the social, and even the political ramifications, if national and/or state authorities are overwhelmed or financially unable to respond adequately to natural calamities in the years just ahead?

A headline in a recent Gannett News Service story warns "Changes in Weather Patterns Could Heat Up World Political Tensions." The article by Dell Richards explained that "with the Cold War over, some politicians and scientists believe we may be facing an even greater superpower—the weather." On a worldwide basis, the article said, "this past year saw some of the most extreme weather conditions on record."

It was noted that politicians from Vice President Al Gore to former West German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt have said that climate change could create major political problems both within nations and between them. In 1991, Schmidt told a group of international business leaders that "climate change could become one of the biggest dangers to global stability."

The article also pointed out that even the CIA is studying that possibility. Its director, Robert Gates, recently said that rapid environmental changes, which affect short-term weather and long-range climate, are being added to the agency's list of threats to national security.

How, you might ask, could weather problems in the United States have an international impact. The Gannett report gave the example of a reduced grain harvest. This would mean less grain to sell to countries that rely on it. In turn, this would lead to fewer exports to trade and the U.S. trade deficit would worsen. Eventually, these world leaders know, if climatic troubles continue to worsen, starving refugees could become a problem for neighboring countries."

Jesus warned of a coming revolution in nature (see Luke 21:11, 25). To any nation that rebels against His laws God says: "And your heavens which are over your head shall be bronze, and the earth which is under you shall be iron. The Lord will change the rain of your land to powder and dust; from the heaven it shall come down on you until you are destroyed” (Deut. 28:23-24).

Satan is the prince of the power of the air. He is still able to affect the weather, and certainly the destruction and loss we see increasingly prevalent, is characteristic of him. But God is the Absolute Power at the controls of the Universe. He is able to command the climate and direct the weather to be a blessing to that nation or nations that obey Him and His righteous ways.

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by Bill Brazil

Many of us use the statement "God allowed it." Do we really know if God was involved in each instance where we have used this expression? Could we be unknowingly attributing to God—even blaming God—for something we did to ourselves or Satan may have caused?

Do we ignore injustice or evil by simply saying "God allowed it for a reason?" If so we might not learn the lesson, or do our part to change a situation which is nettling or hindering us in our Christian lives. No doubt we all grow and change more when we don't limit ourselves by drawing faulty conclusions about God's role in some of the troubles and difficulties that beset us. We might slip into thinking that for some reason God is pulling back His help or blessings for some mysterious reason. Actually, He always wants our best and nothing is too difficult for Him to help so long as we do our part in a positive way.

Consider these examples: we know God allowed Lucifer free moral agency. However, He did not want Lucifer to rebel. Lucifer did that on his own. Also, God allowed Adam and Eve the freedom to choose which tree to pick from in the garden. But they chose Satan's advice, instead of God's. By their own choosing, Satan was able to influence them and that set the path for all mankind until God corrects their mistake at the return of Jesus Christ.

God certainly allows all humans to personally choose life and blessings, or death and curses. But God also commands that we choose life (Deuteronomy 30:16). If God were to stop us from choosing the wrong way, we would not have a choice, would we?

But we do have some control over most of the significant events in our own lives. We cannot use the excuse "God allowed it" when part of a situation is under our control and there are decisions for us to make. God holds us accountable! (Matthew 12:36, I Peter 4:16. )

We just want to avoid a mind-set that limits our thinking about growth, overcoming and finding solutions to the problems and the challenges of our lives when we almost automatically assume "Well, God allowed it." We surely need to seek His guidance and ever-present help. Yes, God may allow many things, but he also hopes that we will make the best decision, decide to stand up and live by the full Truth in whatever situation presents itself.

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“And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years—on that very same day—it came to pass that all the armies of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. It is a night of solemn observance to the LORD for bringing them out of the land of Egypt. This is that night of the LORD, a solemn observance for all the children of Israel throughout their generations” (Exodus 12:41-42, NKJV).

As is the custom of the people of God, the Night to be Much Observed is a time of reflection commemorating God’s deliverance of ancient Israel from slavery. It is a “solemn observance” to be celebrated with brethren of like mind, in a setting appropriate for the occasion. “Solemn” in the Hebrew indicates a sacred or festive time. The Israelites, on the first observance, did so in their homes by themselves or with a few neighbors (Exodus 12:3-14).

Jesus gave us an example of meeting privately with the disciples in a room—possibly a rented facility. The disciples asked where they should prepare for the Passover (Mark 14:13-15). All Jerusalem was filled with Jews from many nations. As in any tourist town, property owners were eager to rent rooms.

Many have asked if it is all right to go to a restaurant for the Night to be Much Observed. Yes, but a private room is preferable to sitting in a noisy, smoke-filled room occupied with people who are not there for a “solemn observance” as you are.

Try to inspect the facilities before you commit to a reservation. Insure that your group’s privacy will be respected. The ideal would be a place where everyone in your group can fellowship and rejoice together. Remember, this is not a party or a night on the town. The Great God has commanded the observance and this is the eve of an Holy Day. We should do our best to act as though Christ is there with us—and indeed He will be—if we do our part and keep the night as He intended it to be kept.

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