by Roderick C. Meredith

There’s a very real Satan the Devil. Jesus Christ twice called him the “ruler of this world” (John 12:31; 14:30). Satan is the great DECEIVER. And the Apostle John made it very clear that Satan deceives the vast majority of mankind: “So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him” (Rev. 12:9).

“But I’m not deceived!” you might say. Don’t be too sure!

For we will now show you, in this article, what is undoubtedly THE MAJOR DECEPTION that Satan has palmed off on main-stream Christianity. In fact, this deception is so thorough that thousands of professing Christian ministers and priests are themselves deceived and therefore don’t even realize that they are perpetrating a lie! Jesus Christ similarly described the false religious leaders of His day: “Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch” (Matt. 15:14).

How Millions Have Been DECEIVED

This mass deception is so wide-spread and so believable because many of its tenets “look good” on the surface. Most of its practitioners will say that we must believe in Christ. They will says that Christians should exhibit love, kindness, mercy and patience. That Christians should “do good” to their fellow man—give to the poor, support hospitals, charities, homes for unwed mothers, etc. They will say that Christians should respond to Jesus’ law of love.”

All of this sounds biblical. It sounds very GOOD!

But what these practitioners DON’T tell you is which of the laws of God are to be kept—and exactly HOW God’s laws are to be obeyed. These people will talk sentimentally about Christ being the “Lord” of our lives. But they will inevitably FAIL to explain that if Jesus is “Lord” then we must obey Him! They’ll never tell you that Jesus directly and consistently taught obedience to ALL of the Ten Commandments!

Therefore, because of this SATAN-inspired deception, many of the bloodiest wars in modern history have been waged between professing “Christian” nations in Europe. Bishops on one side would bless their troops as they prepared for battle. The bishops on the other side did the same. Then thousands of young men—often still in their teens—would rush up some hill to shoot or brutally stab to death other young men who were often of the very SAME church denomination! All were supposedly of the “body of Christ”—the Church of which Jesus is the living, active Head (Eph. 1:22-23).

Does reading this make you a little “uncomfortable”? Well, it should! And, more importantly, I hope and pray that it makes you THINK. Because all too many of us have just grown up in some mainstream church and taken our religious beliefs for granted—simply ASSUMING that all would be well if we just went along with the crowd, blended into this world, and lived reasonably decent and “respectable” lives.

That is precisely how most of us, including myself in years past, have been terribly DECEIVED—and have unwittingly come to believe in a FALSE gospel, a WRONG way of life and a “different” Jesus Christ!

Satan Wants You to “Miss the Mark”

One of the Greek words for “sin” in the New Testament literally means “to miss the mark.” So Satan is content to let you “believe in” God and Christ as long as he can still control you, make you “miss the mark.” His goal is to keep you OUT of the coming Kingdom of God, which will replace him and his demons—by blinding you to what’s really happening! God inspired the Apostle James to write, “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!” (James 2:19).

Then James explains how the true Christian must not merely believe in God, but must surrender to God’s will and DO what He says (vv. 20-24).

“Justified by works?” Yes—along with faith! Read verse 24 for yourself. It should be very clear that true Christianity involves more than just accepting Christ’s death in faith as full payment for our sins—which IS a free gift from God. For when we accept Christ’s sacrifice, we must also make a literal “covenant with our Creator” to QUIT SINNING in the future—to truly surrender to let Christ live His obedient life in us through the Holy Spirit! This involves continued obedience—the “works” of keeping God’s laws and commandments.

But when men cleverly misuse “grace”—teaching “cheap grace” without REAL REPENTANCE from sin—it is the very ESSENCE of the doctrine of the Antichrist! This false concept has allowed millions of professing Christians to go through life regularly and habitually disobeying the Ten Commandments—yet still assuming they are “good Christians”!

The Apostle Jude was inspired to warn us of this very deception. “Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ” (Jude 3-4).

Notice that Jude warns of false teachers using the idea of “grace” as a vehicle for “licentiousness”—license to DISOBEY the very laws of God!

“Oh, my minister would NEVER do that!“ you protest.

I’m sorry, my friends, but chances are that he or she will verify what I am saying if you approach your priest or minister directly with this question: “Pastor Jones, does God REQUIRE true Christians to keep the Ten Commandments?”

If you ask the question directly in these words, most ministers will begin to mumble something about being “saved by grace.” Then, they may hastily add that the Ten Commandments are a good moral guide but that “you don’t have to keep them since you are saved by grace.”

If you press on and try to pin your pastor down on this matter, he may try to skirt the issue or point you to the “new” commandments of Jesus. Or, perhaps, he will finally come right out and say what virtually ALL mainstream theology actually teaches—the Ten Commandments were either “nailed to the cross” when Christ died or the Apostle Paul somehow “did away” with them! As I will now clearly explain, this is the very doctrine of the Antichrist!

How so?

And why is this such a serious matter ? Because it creates a “lawless society”—a society CUT OFF from God since the Ten Commandments actually portray His CHARACTER. God’s awesome purpose involves putting His “divine nature” into us through the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:4). It involves our going through a process of spiritual growth and “overcoming” to reflect the very character of God and be fit to rule with Christ in His soon-coming Kingdom. Jesus directly states, “And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations—‘He shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the potter’s vessels shall be broken to pieces’—as I also have received from My Father” (Rev. 2:26-27).

A Doctrine of DISOBEDIENCE

The true saints of God are being prepared by Him to replace Satan and his demons in ruling over this earth. For Satan is now the “god of this age” (2 Cor. 4:4). He is now the “prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of DISOBEDIENCE” (Eph. 2:2).

Yet the Apostle Paul tells us, “Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?” (1 Cor. 6:2-3).

Why haven’t you heard a lot more about this awesome purpose of the true Christian to exercise RULERSHIP in the future? Because Satan wants to block this knowledge from reaching human beings so they will by UNABLE to replace him and his demons in ruling this earth. Therefore he, the “father” of lies (John 8:44), has DECEIVED the vast majority of all humanity—including two billion professing Christians—regarding God’s PURPOSE fro man and the WAY to fulfill that purpose!

Among Satan’s deceits, surely none is as great as his system of “counterfeit Christianity”! The apostles knew this was going to happen. Paul warned, “Let no one deceive you by any means; for the Day [of Christ’s return] will not come unless the falling away [from the Truth] comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition…. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming” (2 Thess. 2:3, 7-8).

Notice that the false religious system that was to arise is called “the mystery of LAWLESSNESS.” Shortly before Christ’s return, it will be headed by a figure called “the man of sin” or “lawless one.” This man, who will perform “lying wonders” (v. 9) can be found elsewhere in Scripture as the great, miracle-working “False Prophet” (Rev. 13:13; 19-20).

But realize that Paul said this false Christianity was “already at work” when he wrote these verses—even as it still is today. The proponents of this lawless system talk about love and about the Lord—but they LEAVE OUT Christ’s powerful instruction to keep the commandments of God! Yet we know that when the young man came to Jesus asking the way to eternal life, He answered, “If you want to enter into life, KEEP the commandments” (Matt. 19:17). Then Jesus began to name some of the Ten Commandments. And in His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us, “Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:19).

Again, Paul warned the Christians of his day, “For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted; you may well put up with it”! (2 Cor. 11:4). Unwittingly to be sure, most of us have grown up hearing about “another Jesus,” a “different spirit” and, very definitely, a “different gospel” than the one Jesus and the apostles preached!

Again. WHY?

Because Satan has employed every stratagem available to get people to believe the “doctrine of the ANTICHRIST”! If you are willing to face REALITY, if you truly want to fulfill the very PURPOSE for which you were born, you need to understand what that doctrine is and avoid it like the plague.

Antichrist REVEALED

The word “antichrist” is first introduced in 1 John 2:18: “Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.” First of all we see “THE Antichrist” whom they’d heard about. This, of course, is the “lawless one” Paul wrote about and the “False Prophet” of Revelation. Some mistakenly identify the Antichrist as the coming world dictator and political system called the “Beast” in Bible prophecy (please write for our free booklet, The Beast of Revelation). But the Antichrist is the false religious leader.

More importantly, note that John was inspired to tell us that “even now MANY antichrists have come”! So it should be clear that the term “antichrist” does not solely to the False Prophet—though he will certainly be teaching the doctrines of antichrist. Rather, as most modern scholars acknowledge, “antichrist” simply means a spirit or person in opposition to Christ.

John continues to describe the many who are “antichrist,” saying, “Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also. Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father” (vv. 22-24). Notice that John was inspired to warn Christians to hold on to the original teaching that they had been given—“abide in… [what] you heard from the beginning.” This would mean “abiding in”—or obeying—the Law of God.

For from the beginning Jesus had taught them to “keep the commandments.” He had continually warned them about using His name and yet DISOBEYING His teaching! Jesus said, “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). And again, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven” (Matt. 7:21).

So we “abide” in Christ and in the Father by OBEYING Them and living AS Jesus actually did—by EVERY word of God. Jesus explained, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me” (John 14:23-24).

John’s first epistle goes on to describe the “spirit of antichrist” in greater detail: “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but TEST the spirits, whether they are of God; because MANY false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (4: 1-4).

Obviously, a vital key to understanding the teaching of the Antichrist is to recognize that this false doctrine does not admit the full humanity of Jesus Christ. It does not admit that Christ truly “has come in the flesh.”

“Why?” you might ask. What is so special about Christ having “come in the flesh”?

First let’s understand why Satan is continually trying to deceive people into disobeying God’s law—the Ten Commandments. Such lawbreaking constitutes sin since “sin IS the transgression of the LAW” (1 John 3:4 KJV). And “the wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23). So if Satan can somehow keep human beings from obeying God—and so yielding to let God build within them His very nature and character—the these disobedient men and women will continue to be under the death penalty. Cut off from God, they will be UNABLE to prepare to be kings and priests in Christ’s coming Kingdom on this earth (cf. Rev. 5:10) and so replace Satan and his demons.

Diabolical Arguments

So that people will not even try to keep God’s commandments, Satan uses the doctrine of antichrist to foist off on an unsuspecting humanity the idea that people could NEVER keep them! Thus, Roman Catholic and most Protestant theologians have taught, in effect, that although Christ was human, He was not fully “in the flesh.” That is, He was not subject to the “pulls of the flesh” and really tempted like we are—and thus NOT capable of sin. The Catholic doctrine of the “Immaculate Conception” tries to explain this, teaching that the “Virgin Mary” was the perfect, sinless “Mother of God.” Therefore, she did not pass on to Jesus Christ the normal human nature the rest of us have. Thus, Jesus could not sin!

The Protestants almost universally believe that Christ was fully human and fully God at the same time. This means, in practical terms, that although in the flesh, He was NOT CAPABLE of sin! They have ingenious arguments to explain away this biblical contradiction. Yet they present a Christ who was not setting an example for us of keeping God’s commandments while fully in the human flesh. And, therefore, the argument goes, since no true human being has EVER kept God’s commandments, neither can we!

Yet the book of Hebrews tells us, “For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted” (2:18). And again, “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin” (4:15). Was this through some supernatural power of His own? No! For He Himself said, “I can of Myself do nothing” (John 5:30). That being so, it becomes clear that there is a way for US, too, to keep the Ten Commandments while fully in the human flesh!

But how? The same way Jesus did! Hebrews further tells us that “in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death… [He] was heard because of His godly fear” (5:7). If Jesus had to literally CRY OUT with tears to the Father to “save Him from death,” it should be obvious that He was truly in the human flesh—and that we should cry out for God’s help in the same way! So Jesus DID set the example for us in keeping the Ten Commandments in the human flesh. We have a Savior and High Priest who DOES fully understand the pulls of human nature we have to contend with. And through His Spirit within us, as we will see, Christ will EMPOWER us to overcome temptation and keep the Ten Commandments while fully in the human flesh.

But the doctrine of antichrist says just the OPPOSITE. And although Satan is clever enough not to directly teach people to SIN—the antichrist doctrine nevertheless opens the door for them to regularly break one or more of the commandments of God with impunity and still feel that they are somehow “good Christians.”

This clever reasoning—taught in most seminaries all over the world—goes like this: Since God’s law is spiritual and we are only physical, we CANNOT keep the holy, righteous law of God. SO Christ had to keep it for us. Now we just “accept Christ” and His righteousness is somehow “imputed” to us—without any requirement for righteous works.

The above reasoning then relies on a whole series of misunderstandings and perversions of the writings of the Apostle Paul. Misguided theologians somehow put a clever “twist” on literally dozens of verses from Paul’s letters to directly CONTRADICT the plain, clear teachings of Jesus Christ, of His closest disciple, John and of His brother, James. That is one reason for Martin Luther’s famous statement that the book of James was an “epistle of straw.” Luther HATED the fact that James directly taught obedience to the Ten Commandments (cf. 2:8-12).

The Apostle Peter was even inspired to warn us that “Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which those who are untaught and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures” (2 Peter 3:15-16). Yes, Peter said that men would “twist” Paul’s writings to their own destruction! Peter continues this inspired warning: “Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position” (v. 17 NIV).

A warning not to be carried away by the error of “LAWLESS MEN”? Absolutely. For that is precisely the way Peter knew that deceived men would “twist” Paul’s writings—into an excuse to DISOBEY the spiritual law of God, the Ten Commandments!

The Crux of the Matter

The clearest passage of all explaining antichrist is found in 2 John 6-7: “This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it. For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.” In this passage, we see first of all how John defines love: “that we walk according to His commandments.” In context, the “commandments” being spoken of are clearly the commandments of God the Father (cf. v. 4)—not some “new” commandments of Jesus. Then John reminds his readers that the commandments were those they had heard from the beginning. In other words, the clear teaching of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew 19:17 and elsewhere.

Then, in verse 7, John warns that the “deceivers” do not teach “Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh.” He describes such teaching as “antichrist.” The significance of Jesus Christ “as coming in the flesh” is that—as in the original Greek—the present continuous tense is here used, denoting something that is now happening.

So John teaches that Christ DID come (in His human experience) fully in the human flesh and set us an EXAMPLE by faithfully keeping His Father’s commandments. But there’s more to it. In 2 John 7, God inspired John to reveal that Christ is NOW coming in the human flesh as well.

How?

As we have already seen, Jesus said, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him” (John 14:23). Through the Holy Spirit, Christ and the Father actually LIVE within the truly converted Christian, guiding him, inspiring him and EMPOWERING him to keep the commandments and live God’s way of life!

The Apostle Paul was also inspired to make this very plain when he wrote, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:20 KJV).

That is the “key.”

Religious opponents challenge the real Christian by saying, “You CAN’T keep the Ten Commandments! They are spiritual and you are only physical.” But one who is led by God’s Holy Spirit may truly reply, “You are right. In my own human strength, I can’t. But to the degree I yield to God’s Holy Spirit, I can and I will keep God’s commandments! Christ within me helps me not to kill, steal, lie, commit adultery, covet, dishonor my parents, break God’s Sabbath, practice idolatry, take God’s name in vain or have another ‘god’ before the true God. I may slip in some point occasionally, but I will then repent and confess my sin to God and have His forgiveness (1 John 1:8-9). Then I quickly get back on God’s path and, through His Spirit, GROW in grace and knowledge. I am not perfect. But, through Christ living His life within me, I am GROWING toward perfection and walking in God’s law as my basic way of life.”

Christ Lives Within the True Christian

The doctrine of antichrist, then, is that Christ does not literally live His life within His people today. It is the false teaching that Christians today can live a different kind of life from what Jesus lived and still be His true followers. It often includes the idea that Christ was righteous in our stead, and therefore we don’t have to be. We just accept Him and His righteousness is imputed to us. Effectively, God “kids Himself” and pretends that we are really righteous when we actually are NOT!

The doctrine is a damnable LIE!

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever” (Heb. 13:8). He will live the same kind of life in you and me today that He lived nearly 2,000 years ago when He walked this earth in the human flesh. At that time, He continually taught obedience to all of God’s commandments (Matt. 5:19). We have seen His answer to the young man asking Him how to inherit eternal life: “Keep the commandments” (19:17). And near the end of His physical life, He instructed His disciples, “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love” (John 15:10).

There are many,. Many false ministers today who are teaching the doctrine of antichrist, a doctrine that sanctions disobedience to God’s commandments—a doctrine of “no works.” The Apostle Paul said of these ministers, “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works” (2 Cor. 11:13-15). You will notice here that Satan has ministers who appear to be righteous. Ironically, their end—their final reward—will be according to their works, the very thing they seek to deny.

God intends for us to obey His commandments, do good works and live by His every word. Once you get this principle straight, you can clearly understand the spirit of antichrist and how to test whether any idea or doctrine is of God. Then, by diligent study of God’s Word and by constant prayer, you will come to a deeper understanding of the real purpose of your life and experience closer contact with the Living God than you may ever have dreamed possible.

You will come to see who truly is of God—His true Church, which has faithfully proclaimed the same Gospel He sent through Jesus Christ. In this end time, that Message of obedience to God’s Kingdom and rule is to be preached by His Church as a witness to all nations (Matt. 24:14). You are reading that Message this very instant!

In Revelation 12:17, the true Church of God is described as a woman persecuted by the devil. This Church is a remnant. Its members are those “who keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” The true saints of God are described in like manner in Revelation 14:12: “Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.”

Yes, Jesus Christ is to live and dwell within His people today through the Holy Spirit. To the degree they yield to Him, their lives will be ones of full and complete obedience, just as Jesus’ life was in the flesh. Their customs, their traditions, their way of life will be the same as His in every respect, because He does not change. And He will be LIVING within them! Then Christ and the Father can be absolutely sure that Their people are fully surrendered to Them. And They can continually impart to true Christians. Their very divine nature and CHARACTER—and so prepare them to be KINGS and PRIESTS in the literal Kingdom of God soon to be set up on this earth.

The true Christian, then, can say with the Apostle Paul, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but CHRIST LIVETH IN ME: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:20 KJV).

Examine yourself honestly. Have you really understood Christianity before? Is Christ really living His life in you? Do you have the spiritual “backbone” to act on the knowledge you have just received?

If you sincerely wish to understand more, be sure to write for two very powerful and revealing booklets. They are titled, What Is a True Christian? And The Ten Commandments. These booklets will be sent absolutely FREE upon your request. Write to our address nearest you listed on page three of this magazine.

by John H. Ogwyn

The last British colony in Asia is no more. On July 1 the Union Jack was lowered from flagpoles in Hong Kong for the final time. This proud banner, upon which the sun literally never set at the end of World War II, is now entirely gone from Asia. Hong Kong was under British rule for more than 150 years, the island itself having been ceded to the British in perpetuity in 1842. However, much of the additional territory of the colony, which really made Hong Kong viable, was leased by the British in 1898 for a period of 99 years. The lease has finally come to an end and Britain agreed several years ago to relinquish its hold on all portions of the colony at that time. As the magic day has approached, the mood in Hong Kong has been cautiously hopeful, yet tinged with apprehension.

Without question, Hong Kong played an important part in the early development of Britain's commercial relationships with the Far East. Its role as a center for Asian banking and finance has been vital in the years since World War II. In recent decades, Hong Kong's reputation has shone brightly as a bastion of free-market capitalism surrounded by Asian socialism. Its vibrancy and prosperity were contrasted to the drab austerity of China proper.

From the earliest days, Hong Kong's lifeblood has been trade and commerce, and for many years it has been a symbol of the worldwide commercial dominance enjoyed by Great Britain. The British Empire was the greatest and most extensive that the world has ever seen. And to its credit, its influence on other cultures during its time of dominance was generally positive. Hong Kong's early history, however, stands in sharp contrast to the general humanitarianism of British rule. It reflects a dark side of British history, containing seeds that are still yielding bitter fruit to this day. That dark side holds the real origin of the West's Asian drug connection. And therein lies an amazing story

The Opium Connection

Opium is a powerful narcotic obtained from the immature fruit of the opium poppy flower. Morphine and codeine are opium derivatives used in medicine as powerful painkillers. Opium is best known, however, by its illicit and highly addictive derivative—heroin. Both physically and psychologically addictive, its long-term use inevitably produces marked physical and mental deterioration as well.

From antiquity there has been a record of the medicinal use of opium. There are even ancient Assyrian cuneiform tablets that refer to such use. Slowly, over many centuries, the cultivation of poppies for their opium content spread eastward from Greece and Mesopotamia into India and surrounding countries. By the 7th century A.D., cultivation of opium poppies was introduced into China by Arab traders. Opium smoking followed later. It didn't develop in the Far East until after the discovery of America at the end of the l5th century. Smoking, after all, was a custom that the Old World first learned from the New.

By the early 1600s the use of pipes to smoke tobacco had reached China. Some began mixing opium with the tobacco, and before long this new practice was sweeping the country. By 1729, addiction to opium had become such a problem for the Chinese that the emperor outlawed both its sale and use in pipe smoking. This early "war on drugs" met with scant success. It did nothing to stem the tide of abuse and addiction. The result was more laws. Before 1800, efforts were being made in China to halt the import of opium and wipe out domestic cultivation of the poppy.

This is the point where Western interference proved to be crucial. Portugal was the first European country to establish an Asian presence. Beginning in the early 1700s, the Portuguese found that they could export opium from India to China for a considerable profit. By the last quarter of the century the British had discovered this trade as well. Quickly outmaneuvering the Portuguese, the British East India Company took control of the drug trade. The company established a monopoly on opium production in the Indian province of Bengal and moved to gain total control of the Chinese market. Thus was set in motion a series of events reaching to our day.

Since the Chinese government had banned opium imports, the British East India Company didn't initially engage in direct sales to the Chinese. Instead, they "licensed" Chinese citizens to do the illegal marketing for them. The amount of opium coming into China grew from around 200 chests a year in 1727 to more than 40,000 chests by 1838 (Encyclopaedia Britannica, l5th ed., vol. 7, p. 552). By this time, opium sales were producing a very favorable balance of trade for the British. They, in turn, were using the revenue generated to purchase Chinese tea and silks.

Attempts by the Chinese emperor to enforce his ban on this addictive drug led to the first Opium War (1839-1842). This war was actually precipitated by the seizure and destruction of 20,000 chests of opium in Guangzhou by the Chinese government. The war ended in British victory. And one of the treaties made in the war's aftermath ceded the island of Hong Kong to Britain. What had originally been a small, sleepy fishing village now became a British port. In fact, this important port was the main gateway by which British ships brought Indian opium to sell to the Chinese masses.

From 1856 to 1860 the second Opium War was fought. Defeated once again, the Chinese government was forced to legalize the opium trade, but was also allowed to tax it. Now things went from bad to worse. Over the next 30 years, the amount of opium consumed by the Chinese skyrocketed.

This burgeoning trade had become an enormously important source of British wealth. A number of present-day, "respectable" fortunes had their actual origins in these early drug deals. In 1839, at the outset of the first Opium War, the Chinese emperor wrote to Britain's Queen Victoria demanding to know why "barbarian ships" traveled so many miles to engage in such trade. "`I have heard,' he wrote, `that the smoking of opium is very strictly forbidden by your country; that is because the harm caused by opium is clearly understood. Let us ask: where is your conscience'” (St. Louis Globe-Democrat, Feb. 15, 1972). The Chinese government's protests fell on deaf ears.

Chinese Sabbath-Keepers

During those early years that saw the rise of the opium drug culture in China and the emergence of Hong Kong as a great commercial center, another movement began as well. Shortly after the first Opium War, something occurred in a remote Chinese village that proved to have far-reaching consequences. At the center of this part of the story is a young schoolmaster by the name of Hong Xiuquan. In 1843, after having recovered from a serious illness, he began to read a Chinese translation of portions of the Bible at the urging of his cousin Li Jingfang. Hong and Li were soon convinced of the truth of what they read. They prayed to God, asking Him to cleanse them from their sins and promising to no longer worship evil spirits—part of the popular religion. They cast away their idols and then baptized one another. Not content to simply discard his own idols, Hong proceeded to destroy the idols in the little schoolhouse where he taught. This action fueled the wrath of his neighbors. Consequently, Hong and Li fled the village, heading deep into the heart of China.

Hong preached to the peasants and villagers wherever he would encounter them. As the months went by, many hundreds responded to his preaching. He gradually obtained more of the Bible during this time and also had contact with several Western missionaries. These missionaries were displeased with Hong's understanding of the Scriptures and were often jealous of his growing influence in southern-central China. Over the next several years Hong not only won converts to his religious teachings, but in addition, many thousands of malcontents flocked to him from the countryside and sought him out to be their leader. These were individuals whose lives had been disrupted by the internal strife in China caused by the opium trade and the resultant wars. They were generally resentful of the Manchu dynasty, the foreign overlords who had ruled China since the 1600s.

From studying the Bible, Hong concluded that God didn't want people to use opium, or, for that matter, even to smoke tobacco. He also prohibited his followers from practicing foot-binding, then prevalent among the Chinese. This painful custom involved binding the feet of young girls to inhibit normal growth and produce dainty feet. Most importantly, Hong came to understand from his reading of the Scriptures that the seventh day of the week was the true Sabbath and was holy to God. And this truly is what the Bible teaches (please write for our free booklet, Which Day Is the Christian Sabbath?).

Chinese translations of a large portion of the Bible were prepared for Hong's followers. He instructed them to study the Bible every day, one day reading from the Old Testament and the next day reading from the New Testament. "Every Sabbath, in addition, they read the Ten Commandments" (Jonathan Spence, God's Chinese Son, p. 253).

By the 1850s, Hong and his followers had set up an independent state in southern China. Dubbed Taiping, meaning the Heavenly Kingdom, its influence spread. In 1853 they captured Nanking and made it their capital. “The core of the Taiping religion was a monotheism tinged with fundamental Protestant Christianity. But it was mixed with a strong anti-Manchuism and an intolerant attitude toward the Chinese cultural tradition [i.e. idolatry]” (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 15^th ed., vol. 4, p. 360).

The spread of Taiping movement began to seriously threaten the profitable opium trade that then held China in its grip. Western missionaries, hostile to Hong’s religious teachings, soon joined with merchants to lobby for Western governmental intervention to help the Manchus destroy Hong and the Taiping. In 1864 the Taiping capital of Nanking fell to Chinese mercenaries led by British and American officers. Hong himself died several months previously.

Over the next 25 years, memories of the short-lived “Heavenly Kingdom” were kept alive. Remnants of Hong’s followers—primarily some of the political malcontents who had looked to him as a leader without ever really understanding or embracing his religious teachings—launched another rebellion. They called themselves the “Righteous Fists of Harmony,” but are better known in the West as the “Boxers.”

Their efforts culminated in the "Boxer Rebellion" of 1900. The Boxers fought for expulsion of foreign powers from China and the overthrow of the Manchu dynasty. But they could not overcome Western troops, which provided the might to crush their movement.

That was not the end of anti-Western and anti-Manchu sentiment, however. Just over a decade later, in 1912, the Manchu dynasty was finally overthrown by Dr. Sun Yatsen. A new Chinese republic was proclaimed. After Dr. Sun's death in 1925, there developed a struggle between two would-be successors. Each of these, Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong claimed to be the true heir of the revolution.

Shortly after World War II, Mao's Communists defeated Chiang's Nationalists, who then fled to the island of Taiwan off China's coast. Thus, the roots of today's Communist China run through the Boxer Rebellion to the Taiping movement of Hong Xiuquan and his Chinese Sabbath-keepers.

What Goes Around Comes Around

In the l9th century, British (and, to a lesser extent, American) merchants monopolized the illicit drug trade and amassed great fortunes in its wake. In those days India was the source, China was the target and Western merchants were the means. The terrible societal and personal consequences of drug addiction ravaged China just as they do America and Britain today. Drug trafficking engendered corruption on a massive scale. Moreover, the opium trade carried on by smugglers in southern China encouraged gangsterism and piracy. These activities eventually became linked with powerful secret societies that came to control much of China for the first half of this century.

Today, in the final years of the 20th century, illicit drugs still produce horrible consequences in the lives of millions. However, though Asia remains the source of many drugs, the Western World is now the target. Since the days of the Vietnam War, when many young American soldiers were exposed to illicit drugs for the first time, use of addictive and narcotic substances has exploded throughout the entire Western hemisphere.

The lessons of what British Prime Minister Gladstone called one of the "darkest spots" in the history of his nation should not be lost on modern society. Far too many leaders have simply looked at the bottom line, without letting ethical issues get in the way. "It's just business," they reason. No one should ever forget, however, that old sins can cast very long shadows.

The Apostle Paul reminded Timothy, "But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows" (1Tim. 6:9-10).

Greed for gain has tempted many to turn a blind eye to what is right and good. Western merchants—professing Christians all—were well aware of Christ's simple statement in Matthew 22:39: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Their lack of neighborly concern for the Chinese clearly engendered suffering for millions. It is ironic that the descendants of those who helped flood China with narcotics are the ones now smitten with this terrible curse. It was in Asia that an entire generation was introduced to drugs. But, today, Britain and America are reaping what they sowed in China a century and a half ago.

One of the most fundamental lessons demonstrated in history is that righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is always a reproach (Prov 14:34). It is in the days ahead of us that the God of heaven shall finally set up His Kingdom. Human greed and selfishness won't be the motivating factors in that Kingdom. Rather, we're told in Isaiah 11:9-10 that at this time "the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, who shall stand as a banner to the people; for the Gentiles shall seek Him, and His resting place shall be glorious." In that wonderful World Ahead, East and West will finally come together in a spirit of reconciliation and brotherhood. Thank God that time is almost here!

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World Ahead  July - August 1977
page 12

By Their Own Hand...

Increasing numbers of American youth are taking their own lives. But the deadly toll of suicide is not exacted solely from the young—it strikes almost every segment of modern society. What leads seemingly rational, functioning people to this last, desperate act? How can they be helped?

World Ahead  July - August 1977
page 18

Why is the Middle East being “armed to the teeth”? Will the ongoing political battle for control over Palestine—and Jerusalem in particular—spin out of control, thereby igniting a military firestorm that will engulf the entire world?

The concept of “Armageddon” has been familiar to the English-speaking world since at least the 1500s, and is now well entrenched in our culture. But most of those who speak of Armageddon don’t really understand its prophetic significance.

Many of this earth's nearly two billion professing Christians are acquainted with the idea of a "Battle of Armageddon" that is supposed to occur at the end of the world. But most people couldn't tell you much about it. Just what is Armageddon? And what are some of the events that will lead up to it?

Some Perceptions

Today, even though the long, nightmarish Soviet-American standoff is seemingly over, we still sometimes hear about "nuclear Armageddon" that could erase all human life from our planet. But for centuries, men in the midst of one catastrophe or another have believed that "Armageddon" was almost upon them. Some even thought that World War I—and later World War II—would end in this "doomsday battle." But not until the end of the second world conflict had man unleashed the destructive power necessary to annihilate all human life from the face of the earth.

When the Japanese surrendered after atomic weapons were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the allied supreme commander in the Pacific, General Douglas MacArthur, made a historic broadcast to the American people: "Today, the guns are silent…. The destructiveness of war has in fact now reached a point which revises the traditional concept of war.... We have had our last chance. If we will not devise some greater and more equitable system, Armageddon will be at our door. The problem basically is theological and involves... improvement of human character.... It must be of the spirit if we are to save the flesh!"

But' has human character improved since World War II? Sadly, no. Rather, it is now clear that human conduct is rapidly becoming more debased the world over. Violent crime is out of control in many areas of the world. And during the past 50 years countless millions have been butchered through genocidal wars in Southeast Asia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Africa, Central America, the Middle East and other troubled areas. It is obvious that the nations have not heeded MacArthur's warning! And as world events continue to spiral out of control, we may well wonder—more than at any other time in history—if our precious "minutes to midnight" are fast running out.

Concerned that Arab hatred of Israel could engender such an apocalyptic scenario, Israeli Prime Minister " Benjamin Netanyahu states, "For close to a century Arab society and Arab politics have been commandeered by an anti-Jewish obsession that has known no limits: It harnessed the Nazis, promoted the Final Solution, launched five wars against Israel, embarked on a campaign of global terrorism, strangled the world's economy with oil blackmail, and now, in Iraq and elsewhere, is attempting to build nuclear bombs for the great Armageddon. This obsession must be stopped not only for Israel's sake but for the sake of the Arabs themselves and for the sake of the world" (A Place Among the Nations, pp. 330-331).

Mideast Arms Buildup

The entire Middle East—but especially Israel—has become an "armed camp," with the highest concentration of weapons of any place of comparable size on earth. According to the article on "Israel" in the 1997Britannica Book of the Year, each Israeli spends nearly three times as much on national defense as does the average citizen in other countries of the world! And Arab nations—especially the oil-rich states—also spend very heavily on armaments and war related materiel. Of course, all of this comes at a terrible cost. For with so much financial and material resources devoted to war," much less is reserved for the "peacetime" investment of building a thriving, prosperous economy.

How does the Israeli military compare with that of her Arab neighbors? The Jewish Press reports, "Israel has became the third strongest world power and its air force is seven to eight times stronger than the combined might of those of the Arab Nations. This is what the prestigious military magazine, Jane's Intelligence Review, concluded in a report it just released. The British periodical says in its 25-page report that" the IDF [Israeli Defense Force] is a generation ahead of its Arab counterparts. War in the Middle East, the study notes, is closer than ever before, but would result in another Israeli victory…. [If some] general confrontation [developed] into a united Arab stand against the Jewish state…concludes Jane's, Israel is capable of destroying the Arab armies within 10 to15 days" (March 7, 1997, p. 26).

Yet even with the balance of military strength tipped in their favor, there is little reason for jubilation among Israelis. Since December 1987, the Palestinian intifada (often-violent civil unrest) has kept them off guard—with its terrorist bombings of civilian targets in cafes, marketplaces, cars, buses, passenger planes, etc. The Israeli government seemingly does not know how to cope with such violence. And many Israelis have become weary in waging a constant defensive war against an elusive enemy.

As we've seen in previous installments in this series, the late Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin tried to strike a deal with Yasser Arafat and the Palestinians by agreeing to grant them limited sovereignty over certain Israeli-occupied territories including Gaza, Jericho and Hebron (prompting his assassination in 1995 by an Israeli extremist). But violence has not abated since ceding control to the Palestine Authority. Furthermore, the Israelis agreed to allow tens of thousands of Palestinians (some say up to 40,000) to arm themselves. This is a potential source of carnage in the event of another full-scale Arab-Israeli war. In such a scenario, the Israelis would have to fight an internal enemy—reoccupying such areas as Gaza, Jericho and Hebron—while waging a war of survival on two or three external fronts!

Islamic Fundamentalism

Many wonder what persuaded Israeli leaders to go to Norway in 1993 and sit down with Yasser Arafat, whom they had repeatedly labeled a terrorist, to negotiate for peace. Why did they endorse the "Oslo Accords" when they apparently did not trust the other side to abide by its terms? One reason is that the Israelis became convinced they were losing the "propaganda war" to the Palestinian Arabs in the eyes of the world. They believed that the international news media nearly always took the side of the Palestinians.

Another reason is that Israel, with a population of less than 6 million, is surrounded by Arab nations with a combined population of 150 million!

More ominous still, the Israelis saw Islamic fundamentalism—the most powerful force in today's Muslim world—looming on the horizon! Muslim nations—most of which are not Arab—now have a combined population of more than one billion people! Even Arab leaders fear Islamic fundamentalism—especially in light of how easily this movement swept through Iran and gained control of its government m 1979.

Author Thomas L. Friedman makes an interesting point: "Islamic fundamentalism is going to be a permanent challenge for the Jewish state. Rabin and [then Foreign Minister Shimon] Peres were calculating, though, that if they could strike a deal with the Palestinians and the surrounding Arab states, it might give the Arabs a stronger hand to deal with some of their economic problems, reduce the ability of the [Islamic] fundamentalists to blame every blight in their society on Israel, and maybe, just maybe, secure a Muslim majority ready to live and let live with the Jews. That, at least was their theory. As Peres put it, `In twenty years there will be 500 million Arabs and 2 billion Muslims. There is no way to defend ourselves unless we overcome the hostility'” (From Beirut to Jerusalem, pp, 548-549).

As Israelis look to the future, they realize that the Muslim population could reach this two billion mark within one generation! Hundreds of millions of Muslims might throw their political, economic and military support behind the Palestinian Arabs, whom they believe to have been dispossessed of their rightful homeland by Israeli Jews. This is why the specter of Islamic fundamentalism haunts Israel today. What will be its end? Islamic jihad? An Arab-Israeli holy war could engulf the Middle East, eventually escalating into World War III!

Prime Minister Netanyahu says, "Islamic fundamentalism continues to gather momentum. Worse still, the development of nuclear weapons by Arab states and Iran continues at a feverish pace.... Now the U.S. is trying to ferret out of Iraq the multiple hidden nuclear weapons projects that Saddam has built and continues to build, using technologies sold to him by the West…. But this is precisely the danger that the world faces today. Iraq, Iran, and Syria are now all trying to develop nuclear weapons and the missile systems to deliver them" (pp. 249, 390).

Israeli Nuclear Arms?

From its inception in 1948, Israel realized the day might come when she could no longer defend herself against hostile Arab neighbors with conventional arms. Therefore, the Israelis quickly began a nuclear weapons program. It is common knowledge that they have now possessed nuclear weapons for decades.

But would the Israelis use these weapons? Certainly not under any normal circumstance. But what if they found themselves with their backs to the wall, about to be overwhelmed by some numerically superior Arab army?

Netanyahu says, "When advocates of an Israeli withdrawal [from the Occupied Territories] are presented with the facts, they usually fall back on one final argument: Israel can always unsheathe a nuclear sword, thereby ending all threats to its existence. But Israel has promised not to be the first to introduce nuclear weapons into the Middle East, and even if it were to change its policy and introduce them, it is unclear how even this would serve as a deterrent.... But would Israel really be willing to threaten nuclear war every time a Palestinian battalion changed its position? Would nuclear weapons be used if an Arab column crossed into Israeli territory... or would they be reserved for the actual arrival of such a force in downtown Tel Aviv twenty minutes later?" (p. 282).

The prime minister leaves no doubt what Israel would do if hostile armies threatened to snuff out her very national existence; "If Israel were to face a threat to its existence, it would respond with awesome power [i.e. nuclear war]—something that no sane person, Arab or Jew, could possibly desire"! (p. 334). If deemed absolutely necessary, Israel would probably not hesitate to .act. Former Israeli Foreign Minister Abba Eban (1966-74) says, "It is the anomaly of our times that small countries... sometimes have more mobility and resilience than greater powers whose eyes are always fixed apprehensively on each other's potential reaction and on the perils of Armageddon" (My Country, p. 236).

Meaning of Armageddon

Having talked about the potential for an end-time battle, there remains an important question. Just what is "Armageddon"? The dictionary defines this term thus: "Armageddon... Gk. Armageddon, Harmagedon, scene of the battle foretold in Rev. 16:14-16... the site or time of the final and conclusive battle between the forces of good and evil" (Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th ed.).

Let's look at Revelation 16. It is set during the "Day of the Lord," at the time of Jesus Christ's return to this earth. This is when the seven last plagues of God's wrath are poured out on the nations as punishment for their wicked behavior—meant to humble them into submission to God's supreme will. Notice what the Apostle John foresaw, nearly 2,000 years ago, concerning the sixth of these plagues: "Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl [symbolizing God's awesome power] on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared.... [Then Satan’s] demons... go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.... And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon" (vv. 12-16).

Students of Bible prophecy have long understood that a gigantic Eastern army is prophesied to sweep down, cross the Euphrates River and enter the land of Israel. There it will meet other Gentile armies—of the "kings of the earth and of the whole world" at a specific location called Armageddon. But exactly where is this place? The Illustrated Bible Dictionary explains that the New Testament term "Armageddon" comes from the Hebrew har megiddon, meaning "hill of Megiddo." This hill lies to the north of the Carmel Ridge in Israel, commanding "the most important pass from the coastal plain to the valley of Esdraelon [or Jezreel]" (vol. 2, p. 975).

The ancient site of Megiddo, overlooking the Jezreel Valley, has historically been the scene of untold bloodshed due to its important strategic location. The road between Egypt and the ancient empires of Mesopotamia passed through this area. Around 3,500 years ago, Pharaoh Thutmose III claimed that he who controlled Megiddo controlled a thousand cities.

Megiddo was a fortified city in ancient Israel. It was at Megiddo that King Ahazaiah of Judah died in battle as he warred against King Jehu of Israel (2 Kings 9:27). King Josiah of Judah was also killed in battle at Megiddo while fighting Pharaoh Necho (2 Kings 23:29).

Near the end of World War I, Britain's General Allenby won a signal victory over the Turks at Megiddo in 1918: "The engagements fought between 19 and 25 September came to be collectively known as the Battle of Megiddo, after [British forces emerged] on to the plain of Esdraelon…. [Megiddo] was the site of many Old Testament contests and is associated with that great battle of nations, Armageddon, described in... Revelation (16:16). Megiddo was a decisive victory" (Lawrence James, Imperial Warrior, p. 167,).

The Final Battle

But you may be surprised to learn that the prophesied "great battle of nations" will not actually take place at the ancient, war-ravaged site of Armageddon. The Bible only says that the armies will be gathered together at the hill of Megiddo—and certainly in the vast plain of Esdraelon that adjoins it—for this end-time battle. As The Illustrated Bible Dictionary notes, Armageddon is "the assembly point" (vol. 1, p. 111). ....

Where then, does the actual battle take place? Speaking through the Prophet Joel, God says, "Proclaim this among the nations: `Prepare for war! Wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near, let them come up [to Jerusalem]. Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, "I am strong.” Assemble and come, all you nations, and gather together all around.... Let the nations be wakened, and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations’" (Joel 3:9-12). The Valley of Jehoshaphat, a term meaning "the Eternal's judgment or decision," is the ancient name for the Kidron Valley in East Jerusalem.

God continues; "`For their wickedness is great....' Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and moon will grow dark, and the stars will diminish their brightness. The LORD also will roar from [Mount] Zion, and utter His voice from Jerusalem; the heavens and the earth will shake; but the LORD will be a shelter for His people" (vv 13-16; cf. Zech 14; Rev. 19).

Clearly, then, the Bible does not say that Armageddon in northern Israel will be the actual end-time battle site. Rather, that is the place where hostile armies will marshal their forces. They will then march 75 miles south to Jerusalem, where the final "battle of that great day of God Almighty" will actually take place.

Will this final showdown involve nuclear weapons? The Bible doesn’t say. But you may be surprised to learn that, according to prophecy, weapons of mass destruction of some sort will already have been unleashed a few years before the gathering at Armageddon. And though millions upon millions will die, many will be spared. (This subject is more fully explained in chapter five of our full-color brochure, America and Britain in Prophecy. Please write for a free copy if you don't already have one.)

Which nations will take an active part in this final battle of the end time? Who will be the victors? And who will be given ultimate control of Jerusalem—and all of Palestine? These and other questions will be answered in a future issue of ''The World Ahead, as we examine the climactic battle for control of Jerusalem!

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by Staff

Interestingly, the roots of a number of European royal families have been traced to the ancient house of Troy. If all of this is so, then much of British and other European royalty are of Jewish descent! This would make a particular prophecy given by Jacob, father of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, more encompassing than many have thought: `The scepter (kingship] shall not depart from Judah" (Gen. 49:10).

Not surprisingly, the majority of scholars reject the story of King Brutus as having any bearing on the etymology of the name Britain. According to them, the Britons are named after one of the two major branches of the early Celts in the British Isles. One branch was that of the Goidelic Celts, from whom the Gaels of Scotland and Ireland trace their ancestry. The other was that of the Brythonic Celts, from whom the peoples of Wales and Brittany are descended.

It should be noted here that the word Brython, from which Britain came, would mean place of bryth or brit. Since, as pointed out in America and Britain in Prophecy, the Celtic language very likely developed from that of the ancient Israelites, we might wonder what brit means in Hebrew. Remarkably, this is how to pronounce the Hebrew word for "covenant." The Israelites were the people of the covenant (cf. Ex. 19:5). The word b'rit (or berith) could be combined with a name—as it is in that of the false god Baal-Berith (cf. Judges 8:33; 9:4). Does Britain, then, essentially mean place or land of the covenant—or of the covenant people? Perhaps. And perhaps it is only a coincidence that the English word "British" can be broken down in Hebrew as "covenant man"—for though ish is a familiar suffix in English meaning "pertaining to," it means "man" in Hebrew.

Also quite interesting is a statement in an audio study course called An Invitation to Hebrew in its section on the "Vocabulary of Jewish Life." After the teacher confirms that "covenant in Hebrew is... b'rit,” he mentions its occurrence in the term “b'nai b'rit, the children of the covenant" and in referring to "the USA, which is called, in Hebrew, Artzot Ha-brit, the lands of the covenant" (Mordecai Kamrat, Spoken Arts, Inc., 1960).

How astonishing! For both America and Britain are indeed the lands of the covenant—the lands God promised to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph. For those who wish to understand this subject in greater detail, please write for your free copy of America and Britain in Prophecy.

A. You may have heard people say something like this: "I'm praying for more of God's Holy Spirit to overcome my sins." But others would argue that being begotten of God by the Spirit is much like a couple hoping to conceive a child. The wife either is or is not pregnant, a person either is or is not a Christian—with no degrees of variation.

World Ahead  July - August 1997
page 24

Does God Overlook Sin?

It seems apparent that “sin” doesn’t matter anymore in modern Western society. “Right” and “wrong” are terms that are rarely used. High school graduates across the United States are told every year in commencement speeches to “find your own standards” and “discover the values that you want to live for.” But is wasn’t too many years ago that speakers on such occasions urged their audiences to “take the moral high ground” and “uphold the values that made our nation great.”

Children today often grow up confused and disoriented when it comes to understanding the concepts of sin and morality. And no wonder—from the time they are able to hear and learn, they're pummeled with a barrage of confusing standards.

Children are told that violence against others is wrong—but see adults entertaining themselves by watching violence and murder on television and in movies. They are told that sexual relations out of wedlock are wrong but witness, over a year of TV viewing, hundreds of sexual encounters between unmarried characters and hear thousands of innuendoes promoting immorality.

These are just two of many such examples. And the end result is apparent to many—-children reaching adulthood without a moral compass or foundation.

It's Not My Fault!

In his epic bestseller, The Closing of the American Mind, the late Dr. Allen Bloom observed, "There is one thing a professor can be absolutely certain of: almost every student entering the university believes, or says he believes, that truth is relative" (1987, p. 25). He later laments what has become the very real goal of modern educators, "The purpose of their education is not to make them scholars but to provide them with a moral virtue—openness.... There is no enemy other than the man who is not open to everything" (p. 27).

This moral confusion has influenced every aspect of our modern society and has led to people refusing to accept accountability for their actions. For an entire generation, the search has been on to replace the concept of sin and broken law with a "blame-something-else-and-rehabilitate" philosophy.

Our headlong rush to define ourselves as victims and shun responsibility is apparent from our court systems to our schools to our own entitlement programs. We want sin without guilt, and we have concocted a philosophy that promises just that: "Victimism" has become so accepted in our culture that one might say the victim has become the very symbol—indeed the mascot—of modern society

In A Nation of Victims: The Decay of the American Character, author Charles J. Sykes suggests that this is badly eroding the moral character of our nation. He observes, "Whatever the future of the American mind—and the omens are not propitious—the destiny of the American character is perhaps even more alarming.... The National Anthem has become The Whine.... There is always somebody else to blame.

"Now enshrined in law and jurisprudence, victimism is reshaping the fabric of society, including, employment policies, criminal justice, education, urban politics, and in an increasingly Orwellian emphasis on `sensitivity' in language. A community of interdependent citizens has been displaced by a society of resentful, competing, and self interested individuals who have dressed their private annoyances in the garb of victimism" (1992, p. 13).

On virtually a daily basis we read in newspapers and magazines stories of criminals finding something to blame for the heinous crimes they've committed. The excuses are as imaginative as they are outrageous. Recent times have seen defenses based on bad dreams, the influence of drugs or alcohol, stress, past or present family problems, repressed memories, and job or financial difficulties, just to name a few! Quite a number of obviously guilty criminals have either been acquitted or received reduced sentences based on such arguments. But everyone faces stress. Everyone has family problems, financial difficulties or trouble on the job at times. Yet we aren't all driven to rape, steal or commit murder!

Consider what is arguably the most outrageous and preposterous excuse of them all. Dan White was convicted of the 1978 murders of San Francisco Mayor George Muscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk. Yet he wasn't convicted of the charge of murder, but rather the lesser charge of manslaughter. This due to his claim of "diminished capacity" resulting, in part, from having eaten large quantities of "junk food." This legal strategy, now known as the infamous "Twinky Defense," succeeded in reducing White's punishment from a potential death sentence to only a five-year prison term. What's next? Should surviving family members sue Hostess for having marketed Twinkies? Whatever happened to the idea of personal responsibility?

In years past, children who misbehaved or caused problems in school were more often than not punished and made to behave. Today they are more likely to be sent to a psychologist for analysis and therapy—often involving prescription drugs. This is not to say that all psychiatric care is wrong or that all drug therapy is groundless. We are more aware today of treatable medical conditions such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). But ADHD is not the cause of all the problems children have in school. Sometimes they just misbehave! Sometimes they just need to be disciplined until unacceptable behavior is replaced by proper social conduct! But it seems easier to transfer the blame and avoid responsibility.

What kind of message is this sending to our children—the future of this nation?

Dr. John F. MacArthur, Jr., in his recent book, The Vanishing Conscience, makes this observation: "It is theoretically possible today in America to commit the most monstrous crimes and get off scot-free, simply by blaming some imaginative mental or emotional disorder, or by inventing some affliction to explain why you are not responsible for what you have done" ( 1994, p. 22).

A Moral Perspective

But how does our Creator look at all of this? Since He has not intervened to stop crime and evil, can we assume He approves? Can we expect our nation to continue to receive what Abraham Lincoln called the "blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies... these bounties which are so constantly enjoyed... from... the ever watchful providence of Almighty God"? (Proclamation for Thanksgiving, Oct. 3, 1863).

Will we continue to receive these unparalleled blessings, or will we be held accountable as a nation at some future time? How about as individuals? Can we live as if there were no laws regulating behavior—and, thus, no sin? Or will we eventually reap the consequences of ignoring God's commands? Will we always be able to explain away our misdeeds by blaming something or someone else?

The Word of God is very plain on this subject—denying guilt is futile and will only serve as a temporary diversion.

In 1 John 3:4, sin is defined as "the transgression of the law" (KJV). When we break God's law—which is "holy and just and good" (Rom. 7:12)—we have acted contrary to our Creator's instructions. We have "missed the mark" and separated ourselves from God: "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you" (Is. 59:2).

The human tendency to deny responsibility for sin or to try to cover it up is not new. Almost 3,000 years ago, wise King Solomon was inspired to write, "He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy" (Prov 28:13). Many years later, the Apostle John warned his audience about the same thing: "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:8-9).

So the biblically prescribed way to deal with sin is to confess our misdeeds and seek repentance and forgiveness. The Bible is very clear on this subject. It also describes a coming judgment and time of accountability—Jesus Christ spoke of it many times (cf. Matt. 10:15; 11:22; 12:36).

How then can we understand the world we now experience? Why is there seemingly no evidence of justice from a Higher Power?

The answer is that one of the most important aspects of our Creator God is His mercy and love in dealing with humanity. He much prefers repentance and forgiveness over punishment. Some people think of God as harsh or anxious to punish—but, in fact, the exact opposite is true.

Consider how God describes Himself: "Return to the LORD your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness; and He relents from doing harm" (Joel 2:13). God is not eager to execute punishment but, rather, tolerates sinners with patience and longsuffering in order to give us a chance to repent and truly seek Him!

There are many such examples in the Bible. When God first appeared to Abraham and told him that his descendants would be given the land of Canaan as their possession, he was also informed that there would be a delay of 400 years. Why? Because, according to God, "the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete" (Gen. 15:16).

The term "Amorites" was used in a general sense at this time to refer to all the inhabitants of Canaan. The sins of the Amorites are listed for us in Leviticus 18:6-23. They include incest, adultery, idolatry, child sacrifice, homosexuality and bestiality. Even though God had pronounced a curse on those peoples and decreed that they would lose their land, in His great mercy He delayed many years, giving them a chance to repent and change their ways. History shows that they did not forsake their sinful practices, but instead became even more perverse.

God says plainly through Jeremiah that He is merciful in dealing with nations: "The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it" (Jer. 18:7-8).

The concept here of judgment being stayed upon repentance should be very encouraging to us. Our God is merciful and long-suffering and is giving our nation TIME to repent and change—but are we willing to listen and take heed?

One serious problem we face, however, is the human tendency to interpret lack of punishment as approval. We might reason that since God hasn't stepped in to stop us from doing evil, it must be all right! Some come up with the erroneous conclusion that either God doesn't exist or He doesn't care. We like to think, "I've gotten away with it!"

But this is faulty reasoning. Let's look at the very next words of the passage we just examined in Jeremiah 18: "And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it" (vv. 9-10). In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul tells us, "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption" (Gal. 6:7-8).

Now notice this passage from the book of Psalms and how it applies to our society today: "But to the wicked God says... `What right have you... seeing you hate instruction and cast My words behind you' When you saw a thief, you consented with him, and have been a partaker with adulterers. You give your mouth to evil, and your tongue frames deceit.... These things you have done, and I kept silent; you thought that I was altogether like you’" (50:16-21).

It is easy for humans to reason that, since God is silent for now, He must approve! There is no punishment or penalty for breaking His laws! But God continues with a strong warning to nations and individuals who reason this way: "I will reprove you, and set them in order before your eyes. Now consider this, you who forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver" (vv 21-22).

What History Teaches

Even though God has often sent His servants to warn nations or societies, the sad truth of history is that precious few have listened to responded.

Take the example of Noah. Genesis 6:3 records that God gave the society of Noah's day a time limit—120 years—during which time Noah warned them both through words (2 Peter 2:5) and building the Ark. But the people refused to listen. The sad record for us is that "the earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence" (Gen. 6:11). All but eight people were drowned in the Flood as a result.

The same sad story of Israel an other nations refusing to, listen to God's warnings is chronicled throughout the Bible. However, these accounts are recorded for our benefit, so that we might not sin as they did (1 Cor. 10:6).

But let's examine a society that did repent from sin, heeding the warnings God gave. The Prophet Jonah was sent to warn the city of Nineveh because of the great sins of its inhabitants (Jonah 1:1; 3:4). And "the people of Nineveh believed God" (v 5). They turned from their sins, humbled themselves through fasting and asked God's forgiveness. And the result? "Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it"! (v 10).

Lessons for Today

So what do these things have to do with us today? We need to look at two aspects of God's reaction to sin: 1) how does it apply to our nations; and 2) how does it apply to us as individuals.

Nationally: We need to understand that God is aware of the moral slide and degeneration of Western nations. There is a time of coming s judgment. He will not always look the other way. (For a fascinating study about the heritage of the American and British peoples and how God's promises apply to us today, write for our free brochure, America and Britain in Prophecy.)

Speaking prophetically about our time, God inspired Hosea to record for us: "Israel is not hidden from Me…. Israel is defiled. They do not direct their deeds toward turning to their God, for the spirit of harlotry is in their midst, and they do not know the LORD....

Among the tribes of Israel I make known what is sure.... I will pour out my wrath on them like water" (Hosea 5:3-4, 9-10).

Make no mistake about it, this and many other prophecies are strong warnings for our nations that a time of punishment is coming if we do not change our ways!

But even in punishment, God is merciful once His purpose has been accomplished. Hosea continues, "I will return again to My place till they acknowledge their offense. Then they will seek My face; in their affliction they will diligently seek me" (v 15).

So God's purpose in punishing our people will be to bring us back to seeking and obeying Him!

Individually: Each one of us must understand that God is aware of everything we do, say and think (Luke 12:7; Ps. 139:7-12). We will be judged for how we have lived our lives (Rom. 2:5-6). We must not think that, because God has allowed us to live a life of sin and go our own way, He approves or will not eventually bring us into judgment. No matter what we think, as far as God is concerned, we have not gotten away with anything.

The Apostle Peter recorded a very powerful warning for all of us: "But they will have to give an accounting to him who stands ready to judge the living and the dead" (1 Peter 4:5 NRSV).

As we witness the society around us degenerating and becoming more godless and humanistic, don't be led into thinking that somehow God approves of evil or won't eventually intervene. The delay is simply that God, in His great mercy, love and kindness, is giving both nations and individuals space to repent and seek Him before His end-time judgment is carried out. Let's use the time God is giving in His mercy. As we're told in Isaiah 55:6-7, "seek the LORD while He may be found. Call upon Him while He is near ... For He will abundantly pardon"!

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