Saturday 29 October 2016
Is Big Government the Solution—or the Problem?
Thirty-five years ago, United States President Ronald Reagan said, “In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.” In the United Kingdom, Margaret Thatcher shared that same skepticism of government.
Today we are living in an era of big government, and few people are denouncing it like Reagan and Thatcher once did. There is virtually no limit on the ever-expanding size and scope of government in nations around the world.
On this episode of the Trumpet Daily, we explain why government overreach is a massive problem, how too much government power leads to more troubles and what you can do personally to weather the impending storm.
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Friday 28 October 2016
Hope in the Midst of Aleppo’s Battlefields
https://www.thetrumpet.com/article/14276.19.0.0/world/war/hope-in-the-midst-of-aleppos-battlefields
The hope does not lie in today’s politicians but rather in a Bible prophecy which politicians and policymakers reject.
In Matthew 24, Jesus Christ’s disciples asked Him when He would return and bring an end to this present violent age. In reply, Christ gave them a timeline of the events that would precede His coming. Among others things He warned of deceit, wars, famine, pestilence, earthquakes and much tribulation. But He also told them these comforting words: “See that you be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass” (verse 6).
Christ knew that conditions would appear hopeless in these last days before His return. But wars such as the ongoing carnage in Syria actually indicate the imminence of His return! Christ actually says that His Father’s plan for mankind is to save the overwhelming majority of all human beings. If you understand that long-term plan, there is much reason to have hope.
Behind the dark headlines lies great hope! To understand the great hope each of these children shares with you, watch Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry’s Key of David episode: “Matthew 24 Unlocks the Seven Seals.”
Wednesday 26 October 2016
Will Europe Rediscover Its Christian Identity?
https://www.thetrumpet.com/article/14249.18.190.0/religion/christianity/will-europe-rediscover-its-christian-identity
A Biblical Prophecy
The pattern of the Catholic Church granting legitimacy to a rising European power is familiar to historians. It should be familiar to students of the Bible too. It describes a political power led by a church, a model that continually recurs in Europe’s history. For an in-depth study on this, request our free book The Holy Roman Empire in Prophecy.
Herbert W. Armstrong described how this empire would function in modern times. The leaders of Europe, he wrote in 1980, “talk continually of POLITICAL union—which means, also, military. So far they have been unable to bring about full political union. This will be made possible by the ‘good offices’ of the Vatican, who alone can be the symbol of unity to which they can look” (The United States and Britain in Prophecy; request your free copy).
That is Europe today—unable to bring about full political union. Among its elites, the desire for union is stronger than ever, and they have tried just about every other option for unity and seen each of them fail.
The church may have to compromise to bring about this church-state entity. Mr. Armstrong wrote in 1978 that “liberals will object to this enforcement of the Catholic faith, if it is to enforce the traditional conservative doctrines” (Good News, Aug. 28, 1978). Mr. Armstrong was speculating about the outcome of a specific conclave, but it’s clear he considered this a possible outcome more generally.
“The conservative cardinals may give some ground,” Mr. Armstrong wrote, noting that the church “may emerge with a slightly changed Catholic doctrine” to facilitate the church’s leadership in Europe. However, he still believed that “traditional conservatism will probably carry the balance of power” within the church.
Just as in the past, this will not be a harmonious marriage or meeting of minds. Church and state will still have their own ambitions and will disagree on who is in charge. Their alliance will vault both of these entities into great power. But once that power is attained, the nations of this coming European superstate “shall hate” the Catholic Church (Revelation 17:16). They “shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.”
“One of the most remarkable aspects of the Revelation 17 prophecy,” notes our book The Holy Roman Empire in Prophecy, “is that in addition to forecasting the unity” between church and state, “it says that there would also be tension and confrontation.”
The fact that Europe has moved away from the Catholic Church in recent decades is not a sign that the two can never cooperate. But it is a foreshadowing of their eventual fallout.
Europe has hosted the bloodiest empires the world has ever seen. Autocratic powers have repeatedly arisen, claiming the mantle of Rome and working with the Catholic Church to further their power.
The Bible says only one more of these destructive empires is to come, and it will only last “a short space” before it all falls apart (Revelation 17:10). Ultimately the history of Napoleon and of other “holy” Roman emperors shows that European powers have a strong incentive to work with the Catholic Church, but also that that power cannot last long.
That is the good news behind Europe’s migrant crisis. It is hastening the arrival of the final resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire. With today’s modern technology, that empire will be able to inflict more destruction than ever before. But after a short span, that empire will be gone forever.
The Bible clearly prophesied of this repeated church-state empire. Details about this empire recorded in Revelation 13 and 17 and elsewhere have proven correct.
These same prophecies foretell what happens afterthis final empire is destroyed. Jesus Christ will return and set up His benevolent empire. It won’t be an empire that uses religion to dominate men. Instead it will use religion to finally bring peace to the world.
Tuesday 25 October 2016
Monday 24 October 2016
Why Man Needs God’s Spirit
https://www.pcog.org/articles/3021/why-man-needs-god-s-spirit
To keep a spiritual law, man needs a spiritual power!
To keep a spiritual law, man needs a spiritual power!
The Spirit of God is the most powerful force in the universe. By it, God created the entire universe and renewed the Earth (Genesis 1:1-2; Psalm 104:30). When the Word, the One who used this Spirit to create, became a fleshly human being, it was the power by which He was begotten into Mary’s womb (Matthew 1:18). He had an immeasurable amount of it (John 3:34), through which He conquered Satan and sin and thus qualified to rule the Earth at His Second Coming. But perhaps most impressive is that this power can enter a carnal mind (a mind initially hostile toward God’s way—Romans 8:7) and make it capable of living the way God and the Word have lived for all eternity.
Humans were put on Earth, in fact, to become eternal members of God’s family. First, though, they must prove that they are worthy of such life—such power. God gave the first man, Adam, a choice, symbolized by two trees. One represented the Holy Spirit. God explained all this to Adam, but Adam still rejected God’s Spirit.
“… God pronounced sentence,” Herbert W. Armstrong wrote in Mystery of the Ages. “God said, in effect: … [Y]ou have rejected power from me through my Spirit to live the righteous way ….”
Here is the most valuable lesson this story could teach us: To keep a spiritual law, man needs aspiritual power! Man needs the Spirit of God.
What if man had only the law and not the Spirit? Ancient Israel was actually God’s “guinea pig” to answer that question. “[God] was going to prove to the world that without His Holy Spirit their minds were incapable of receiving and utilizing such knowledge of the true ways of life. He was going to demonstrate to themthat the mind ofman … without the addition of God’s Holy Spirit, could not have spiritual discernment …” (ibid.). They were certainly given the law that we must keep to receive eternal life, for God had codifiedon physical stone, and in 10 major points, the way He had lived for all eternity. This actually happened on the day of Pentecost. But Israel was not given the Spirit to keep this law or develop His nature. Why? Because in Eden, the Word cut off access to the Spirit. Thus He would prove to man how integral the Spirit was in law-keeping.
On physical Israel’s first Pentecost, when God gave the Israelites the law, there was a tremendous display of His Spirit of power (Exodus 19:18, 21). A similar display of power occurred in the New Testament on spiritual Israel’s first Pentecost. Luke writes of a “rushing mighty wind” (Acts 2:1-2).
Pentecost is about the law and the Spirit ofpower, and about how those two are intertwined. God proved this by giving one on the first Pentecost with ancient Israel and not giving the other until the first Pentecost with spiritual Israel. You cannot keep the law without the Spirit, and you cannot keep the Spirit without the law (for God gives His Spirit to those who obey—Acts 5:32).
The Beautiful World Tomorrow
https://www.thetrumpet.com/article/7358.2.0.0/world/the-beautiful-world-tomorrow
Breathtaking! That may be the best way to describe the physical, material world after Jesus Christ’s Second Coming to rule this Earth.
Scripture is clear on this fact: The beauty of tomorrow’s world will be resplendent beyond anything we’ve ever seen. Deserts will be fertile. Waste cities will be rebuilt. The temple in Jerusalem will set the ultimate example for such physical opulence: “The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to BEAUTIFY THE PLACE OF MY SANCTUARY; and I will makethe place of my feet glorious” (Isaiah 60:13).
Material wealth will be significantly upgraded (verse 17), and humanity will devote much effort to building and planting (Isaiah 65:21-22).
From a visual standpoint, fertile lands and fruit-producing plants are more aesthetically pleasing than barren trees and dead grasslands. A remarkable characteristic of fruit- and vegetable-producing plants is that they blossom with flowers before they produce an edible fruit or vegetable. Why did God create them that way? He did not have to. Obviously, He wanted the physical beauty to match the physical abundance. Imagine the houses and vineyards, the architecture and horticulture!
Imagine how much more BEAUTIFUL (not just more manageable) the world would be without thorns and weeds and the many struggles man has with the soil—curses that resulted from Adam’s disobedience (Genesis 3:17-18). God will restore the land to the way things were in Eden (Isaiah 51:3).
Since everyone will own property (Micah 4:4), streets will no longer be a place where those who have lost everything will throw down cardboard and sleep amid unmentionable waste. Streets will not breed inhumanity, indecency, depravity or disease; rather they will be safe for all ages (Zechariah 8:4-5). No more ghettos, slums, run-down trashy neighborhoods.
We go to the Feast of Tabernacles each year to celebrate this coming beautiful world. Living for eight days on 10 percent of our income allows us to experience finer material things: from our dress and appearance to our living conditions and dining. At worship services, our men and women strive to make the stage, flowers, music and surrounding environment of a higher quality than at any other time of the year.
Why all this effort for the physical? Is God thatconcerned with the material world? Do we understand why that beauty will be there?
Those observing the Feast of Tabernacles in this life will be teaching those in the future why their world is so beautiful. They will be teaching people to notice that beauty—to notice the flowers, vines, music and precious stones. To be able to do that, those of us in that position must understand why God puts such an emphasis on that beauty—understand the TWO GREAT PURPOSES for the beautiful surroundings and quality environment of the World Tomorrow.
Seeds of a New World
https://www.pcog.org/articles/3037/seeds-of-a-new-world
Young People: Do you know what you’ll be doing in the Millennium?
Young People: Do you know what you’ll be doing in the Millennium?
Get your mind involved in this new world—today. Look at the kinds of problems in which so many young people get themselves stuck in the world today. They can’t see past the present! Meanwhile, here you are, growing in the vision of the reality of tomorrow and preparing yourself for it already!
Don’t underestimate the value of what you do with your life right now. Of developing a strong work ethic and putting your talents to use. Of getting grounded in the basics of that future way of life, the foundation of knowledge that will soon cover the face of the Earth (Isaiah 11:9). Realize the value in meditating on and getting excited about this world to come. All the effort you put in now will pay off bountifully. Whatever you may have to give up now will be restored manifold—and soon!
God is planting the seeds of the new world now. You are those seeds! The seeds that will soon burst out into full blossom as the first generation of that new world—the wonderful World Tomorrow. Get ready, young people—it’salmost here!
Saturday 22 October 2016
Drugging America for Profit
https://www.thetrumpet.com/article/14251.2.190.0/society/crime/drugging-america-for-profit
Who is more dangerous, the Sinaloa drug cartel or the United States pharmaceutical industry?
Who is more dangerous, the Sinaloa drug cartel or the United States pharmaceutical industry?
Money will not halt this epidemic as long as Americans glamorize drugs as the solution to their problems. Instead of educating people about diet, exercise, moral living and other healthy lifestyle habits, doctors and educators tout drugs (legal or illegal) as the go-to solution for sickness, pain, anxiety, depression and a myriad of other problems.
Like screen addiction, sugar addiction, gambling addiction or pornography addiction, drug addiction triggers unhealthy levels of the brain chemical dopamine. It is mainly this chemical that gives people the feelings of pleasure and exhilaration during a drug high. Addiction is about escaping.
Instead of addressing the underpinning causes of chronic pain, doctors just write a prescription for painkillers. Instead of educating people about the underpinning causes of sickness, they write a prescription for the newest antibiotic on the market. Instead of counseling people on how to overcome depression, they hand out the latest psychiatric drug. Our culture prescribes pills as a solution to almost every problem imaginable.
As the opioid crisis reveals, America’s overreliance on prescription pills is leading millions toward addiction.
There are very real causes behind the problems that drive so many people into addiction. Until people turn to God, His law and His truth—and away from fleeting, drug-induced moments of euphoria—these problems will worsen.
The long-term solution to this epidemic isn’t drug legalization or more spending to stop drug trafficking. The solution is dismantling America’s culture of escapism and turning to God’s pure, wholesome, happy way of life.
Why Bill Clinton Won the Charlemagne Prize
https://www.thetrumpet.com/article/14248.19.190.0/united-states/why-bill-clinton-won-the-charlemagne-prize
British and American leaders have actually helped build a modern resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire.
Former United States President Bill Clinton did so much to help Europe unify that in 2000, he received an award for doing so. The name of that prize was theCharlemagne Prize. President Clinton wanted to build up a power in Europe. In fact, he was the one who gave Germany the American firepower to conquer the Balkan states.
The Germans have empire on their mind. If they will allow Russia to expand into Ukraine, Russia will allow them to expand some of their interests. The Holy Roman Empire is interested in ruling the world.
Tuesday 18 October 2016
This Looks Like a Job for Superman!
https://www.thetrumpet.com/article/14261.18.190.0/europe/germany/this-looks-like-a-job-for-superman
Bible prophecy says this is what is going to happen. Isaiah 10:5 and Habakkuk 1:6, for example, prophesy about the end-time reemergence of the Holy Roman Empire. This European superpower will be led by Germany. Daniel 7 and 8 provide further insight into this seventh and final resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire. In fact, these chapters describe specifically the appearance of an end-time antitype of Antiochus Epiphanes—the cunning, calloused Greek dictator who inflicted terrible destruction on the Jews and Jerusalem in the second century B.C.
Notice how the Bible describes this end-time Antiochus: “And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise .… And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many …” (Daniel 8:23-25).
This man is discussed again in Daniel 11:21: “And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.” Notice how this man is characterized. He has a “fierce countenance,” meaning he’s mighty and powerful. He has an “understanding [of] dark sentences.” AsClarke’s Commentary says, he’s “very learned and skillful in all things relating to government and its intrigues”— he’s a skilled politician.
Notice, he inherits the throne of Europe “peaceably,” obtaining his kingdom by “flatteries.” He’s crafty and sly, with an engaging, vibrant, attractive personality. The Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary says “the nation shall not, by a public act, confer the kingdom on him, but he shall obtain it by artifice, ‘flattering.’” In other words, the people, and perhaps European leaders, likely invite this man into power.
What might cause the public to invite this man to take control? There must be a political crisis, and the people must believe that only this man can solve their problems!
Chancellor Merkel’s star is fading. And it would diminish even quicker if the German people were presented with an individual like the one described in Daniel 7 and 8. If they were presented with a leader who was energetic, eloquent and personable; a leader who wasn’t shy about confronting the issues; a leader who wasn’t afraid to talk tough, nor to make tough decisions and take tough actions; a leader whose personality and politics appeared suitably modern, moderate and sophisticated, but who could also think and speak and act pragmatically, with force, vigor and power; a leader who felt fresh and new, but at the same time was experienced in German politics, tradition and customs; perhaps a leader with an impressive royal legacy, who would stir the patriotic sentiments of the German people—this kind of leader could capture the imagination of the German people. He would be a leader capable of filling the role of German superman.
Perhaps someone like Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg.
Sunday 16 October 2016
Why Herbert Armstrong Met World Leaders
Only one church leader in this end time met with more than 300 world leaders—upon their invitation. He spoke frankly about the heartbreaking problems he saw in their nations. He also gave them the inspiring solution. Learn why this man visited so many heads of state. Discover the law of love he preached that will bring peace at last to all nations—next, on The Key of David, with Gerald Flurry.
Herbert W. Armstrong eloquently explained to heads of state the cause and the solution for disease, famine, poverty, joblessness and war. He possessed insight like no other man of his time because he found answers within the pages of the Bible. Before his death in 1986, Mr. Armstrong correctly prophesied of events that took place in all corners of the globe. But he never took the credit—it was Bible prophecy that informed every forecast. Request our free booklet He Was Right for an insightful look back at five decades of accurate predictions—and a glimpse at the glorious future that Mr. Armstrong always proclaimed to world leaders.
General Douglas MacArthur forced the Japanese to surrender, ending World War 2. But the world had already entered an age in which nuclear annihilation is a frightening possibility. MacArthur saw no nuclear deterrent in the present systems of man. He said that human survival depends on something far different: human character. Even the best scientists and educators can’t offer a better solution. Request our free booklet We Have Had Our Last Chance to learn the hard-hitting lessons from General Douglas MacArthur during World War 2. Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
You will also receive a pamphlet about the Armstrong International Cultural Foundation. Sponsored by the same people who produce the Key of David program, this foundation continues Mr. Armstrong’s sterling legacy of international humanitarianism through archaeological excavations, a concert series, and other exciting projects.
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The 950th Anniversary of the Battle of Hastings
https://www.thetrumpet.com/article/14264.2.0.0/world/war/the-950th-anniversary-of-the-battle-of-hastings
Hastings in Prophecy
The dramatic turning point of Hastings was not the result of human design or foresight. Those men who fought and died, both Normans and Saxons, could only dream that the consequences of the battle would last 950 years. It was not the product of vast impersonal forces shaping the outcome of nations. Hastings was the result of a very personal, direct force intervening in events.
The Great God used this battle to prepare the island race to fulfill some of the greatest prophecies in the Bible. The Norman conquest was the first phase of a systematic development of British character and institutions so that, when the time was right, the British were ready for world empire. All of the great historians quoted in this article point to the Norman invasion as the first step towards the development of English political liberty and the English language—the cornerstones of English genius.
Magna Carta was the foundation of the political culture of Britain and America—the two nations whose ideas of freedom and government now reach the four corners of the earth. The English language used by William Shakespeare, and the vision he sought to convey in his works, was the first consciousness of Englanders of a destiny beyond the borders of their island. Hastings was one of the first steps in God’s transformation of little England into Great Britain.
God guided the development of the English nation in order to keep an ancient promise. 3000 years before 1066 AD, a righteous man named Abraham was promised by God that his descendants would become a great people, controlling key sea gates and inhabiting the globe (Genesis 12:1-3, Genesis 22:16-18). The children of Abraham would come to be called the nation of Israel; because of their disobedience, these blessings were not given until the beginning of the 19th century. Herbert Armstrong wrote in his book, The United States and Britain in Prophecy:
“It may not be generally realized—but neither Britain nor the United States became great world powers until the 19th century. Suddenly, in the very beginning of the 19th century, these two—until then small, minor countries—suddenly spurted to national power and greatness among nations, as no nations had ever grown and multiplied in wealth, resources and power before.”
This may seem too fantastic to believe, but it is the plain truth. You can prove all of this for yourself by reading Herbert Armstrong’s book, The United States and Britain in Prophecy.
The Battle of Hastings was a dramatic turning point God used to prepare England for its prophesied empire.
Today, we are in the midst of another turning point in history. The future seems uncertain, and the outlook bleak. But this history shows the kind of bravery we need to withstand the worst of times when they come. We can gain some measure of courage from the conduct of our ancestors; we may also gain some hope. If God is indeed in control of world affairs, and if God can effect changes such as the conquest of a nation and the sudden turning of the historical tide, we may have hope that one day God will turn the tide of history back toward peace. This is sure. God changed the course of the world at the Battle of Hastings. He will also change the world in the near future.
“But when, in this work, I speak of probabilities, I speak of human probabilities only,” Creasy wrote. “When I speak of cause and effect, I speak of those general laws only by which we perceive the sequence of human affairs to be usually regulated, and in which we recognize emphatically the wisdom and power of the Supreme Lawgiver, and the design of the Designer.” Creasy saw God in history. We should do the same.
Literature Offer
Iran’s Play for the Red Sea
https://soundcloud.com/trumpetdaily/irans-play-for-the-red-sea
This week, Iranian backed rebels based in Yemen fired sophisticated anti-ship missiles at United States ships in the Red Sea. While most commentators are focusing on the United States response, Middle East correspondent Brent Nagtegaal focuses today’s program on Iran’s strategy in the Red Sea.
This week, Iranian backed rebels based in Yemen fired sophisticated anti-ship missiles at United States ships in the Red Sea. While most commentators are focusing on the United States response, Middle East correspondent Brent Nagtegaal focuses today’s program on Iran’s strategy in the Red Sea.
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