On, January 13, 2024, Eric Rank will present the sermonette, titled, “Is Your Heart Poisoned?” and Dave Harris will present the sermon, titled, “Deceived? Not Me!”

The live services are available, over video and audio, at http://eternalgod.org/live-services/ (12:30 pm Pacific Time; 1:30 pm Mountain Time; 2:30 pm Central Time; 3:30 pm Eastern Time; 8:30 pm Greenwich Mean Time; 9:30 pm Central European Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

This phrase is a public relations strategy that has become particularly associated with the British Royal Family. 

Wikipedia states that “The phrase is believed to have originated with the prime minister of the United Kingdom, Benjamin Disraeli. The surgeon and writer Robert Tuttle Morris wrote in his 1915 book Doctors vs. Folks that ‘It is well to follow the rule to “Never complain, never explain.” A man is judged by his character as a whole – not by individual acts.’   The motto became particularly associated with Queen Elizabeth II and was perceived as crucial to the success of her long reign.”

In the UK, as in many countries in the western world, there has been a certain level of free speech allowed although with the advent of political correctness and wokeness, this has been considerably eroded in recent years.  Nevertheless, criticism of the British Royal Family has been permitted unlike the situation in a number of other regimes where any criticism of their royalty or political leaders is simply not tolerated and any infraction can lead to arrest, and even imprisonment.   

In spite of Queen Elizabeth II having an impeccable reputation for her diplomacy and the way she conducted herself in over 70 years as a monarch, there have been those who would want to replace the Royal Family with yet another set of politicians. Such views can be said and written about in the UK without fear of any legal action although such views seem to be held by a small minority. 

For many decades, she was a figure of national pride and a symbol of stability and continuity who was respected around the world.  With the conduct of some of her family before her death in 2022, she must have been grieved with what she saw and heard and yet no one would have known. It can be so easy to become embroiled in argument and debate, and the Royal Family has not been an exception to that in recent years.

The Bible tells us that Solomon was the wisest person who ever lived (except, as we know, Jesus Christ): “So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom” (1 Kings 10:23); and “…men of all nations, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom, came to hear the wisdom of Solomon (1 Kings 4:34). No human being other than Christ has surpassed him since then.

Those of us who have been called at this time can learn from biblical examples, and those who set high standards in public life, like the late Queen who, being a God-fearing woman, implemented standards expected of someone in her position.   And the result was, that as the reigning monarch in the UK for over 70 years, no one could ever point an accusing finger in her direction about her life style and behaviour.  She put up and shut up and she never complained and never explained if adverse publicity arose about the Royal Family.   Had she done so, she could have been embroiled in unseemly conduct but her behaviour was impeccable.  She chose her approach early in her reign and stuck steadfastly with that until her death in 2022.

We know that Jesus Christ didn’t argue and debate when He was accused in His last hours before His crucifixion.   He knew, more than any mortal being, that it was neither the time nor the place to do so and that it was foreordained that He was to die for the sins of mankind.   And that was the best example of all!

Solomon gave some brilliant advice as recorded in the Word of God.  I’m sure that the late Queen would have been very familiar with his advice.  Let us look at a few of these wise admonitions:

Proverbs 26:4-5: “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, Lest you also be like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, Lest he be wise in his own eyes.”

Proverbs 15:1-2: “A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, But the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness.”  (Also see verses 7, 23, 28)

Ecclesiastes 3:7: “[There is a] time to keep silence, And a time to speak.”

Ecclesiastes 5:2: “Do not be rash with your mouth, And let not your heart utter anything hastily before God. For God is in heaven, and you on earth; Therefore let your words be few.”

These golden nuggets of information, and there are many more along the same lines, are there to enable us to live a life pleasing in the sight of God.   Like the Queen, we must choose our approach, and the Bible is there to guide us in this matter.

In Matthew 5:16, we see the instruction of Jesus: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

When we, as true Christians, let our light shine, we set the best example of God’s Way of Life which is not seen when we unnecessarily argue and debate with others.

Let us behave as Proverbs 25:11 instructs: “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold In settings of silver.”

by Norbert Link

We begin with the important decision of the US Supreme Court to hear arguments regarding the attempts to strike Trump from the Colorado ballot; continue with the ongoing battle between Biden and Trump; and address the escalating situation in Germany pertaining to its farmers and their fight against the government. We also speak on Germany’s former spy boss’s announcement to found a new party; and the push for compulsory military service in Germany.

We publish an insightful analysis on the civil war and the issue of slavery; and speak about Europe’s perceptive towards Ukraine and Israel.

Throughout this section, we have underlined pertinent statements in the quoted articles, for the convenience and quick overview of the reader.

US Supreme Court Will Decide

Breitbart wrote on January 5:

“The Supreme Court will hear arguments on former President Donald Trump’s appeal of a Colorado Supreme Court decision to strike him from the ballot, a monumental case with implications for similar ballot access challenges in states across the country that could determine the presidential election. The court will hear oral arguments on February 8, 2024, an expedited schedule that demonstrates the significance of resolving the case quickly…

“The [Colorado] Court… determined that ‘clear and convincing evidence’ proved ‘that President Trump engaged in insurrection’ despite Trump having never been convicted of that or any other crime or even been charged in court with the crime of insurrection…

“While Trump has received favorable outcomes in multiple states — including Colorado before its Supreme Court partially reversed that ruling — the Maine secretary of state also removed Trump from the ballot. The Supreme Court has never ruled definitively on the meaning of Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court’s decision on the Colorado case could be the final word in Maine as well as other states.”

It is widely expected that the Supreme Court will overturn the Colorado and Maine decisions, as being in violation of the Constitution. Some hope that the decision will be unanimous, but that may not be clear. Note the next article.

Trump Warns

Newsmax wrote on January 6:

“Former President Donald Trump is warning there will be ‘big trouble’ for the United States if the Supreme Court doesn’t treat him fairly and rule that he’s eligible for the 2024 presidential primary ballots. ‘I just hope we get fair treatment,’ Trump said during a rally in Sioux City, Iowa, Friday…

“‘Because if we don’t, our country’s in big, big trouble. Does everybody understand what I’m saying?’…  ‘They’re saying, “Oh, Trump owns the Supreme Court; he owns it… He put on three judges… If they rule in his favor, it will be horrible for them. And we’ll protest at their houses.’ ‘But such pressure is pushing ‘people to do the wrong thing,’ Trump added.”

Biden vs. Trump

The New York Post wrote on January 5:

“Speaking near Washington’s 1777-1778 winter encampment at Valley Forge outside Philadelphia, Biden went scorched earth on both the likely Republican nominee [Trump] and his allies in Congress, claiming the latter group ‘abandoned democracy’ after ‘we nearly lost America’ during the Capitol riot of Jan. 6, 2021…

“Backed by a cheering audience, Biden tore into Trump repeatedly during the roughly half-hour speech — accusing his predecessor of intentionally using the violence of the Capitol riot as a tactic to remain in power and even likening his rival — not for the first time — to Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler…

“Trump fired back, telling Fox News Digital that ‘because of his gross incompetence, Joe Biden is a true threat to democracy’…

“Biden enters this election year with approval ratings that rival the lowest of any modern president [Jimmy Carter] with Americans giving a collective thumbs-down to his handling of the economy, immigration, and wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. As of Friday, [Biden] trailed Trump by 2.2% in the popular vote…

“No evidence has emerged that Trump had advance knowledge of plans for violence by some of his supporters during the congressional count of the Electoral College results. In other comments Friday, Biden said Trump could bring the US into an era of dictatorship…”

It is interesting that the Biden administration has been pursuing politics which constitute a threat to democracy and which have brought the USA into an era of dictatorship.

German Farmers Stage Nationwide Blockade

dw.com wrote on January 8:

“German farmers are angered by the government’s plans to slash agricultural subsidies. Blockades have disrupted road traffic across the country, posing a nightmare for commuters.” More than 500 tractors and trucks were parked at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate protesting in the heart of the government quarter in Berlin.”

German Farmers Confront Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck

The European Conservative wrote on January 5:

“A crowd of about 150 angry farmers were awaiting the arrival of a ferry carrying Germany’s Economic Minister and Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck on his return from vacation on Thursday evening at the port of Schlüttsiel in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein.  While the farmers demanded to speak to Habeck about the left-liberal government’s tax burdens on the farming community, the minister’s bodyguards advised him to stay on the ferry for security reasons. Habeck himself was willing to let three farmers onto the boat to discuss their grievances, but the protesters demanded that the minister speak to them all outside… There were scenes of scuffles as some of the farmers tried to stop the ferry—with Habeck and his entourage onboard—from leaving. All other passengers were allowed ashore…

“Farmers have been outraged since the government announced plans to abolish subsidies on agricultural diesel and introduce new taxes on farm vehicles. The plans are part of budget cuts and new taxes that will put an even larger burden on households already grappling with the cost-of-living crisis. Thousands of farmers took to the streets of Berlin and other regional centres on December 18th, and are planning more protests…

“Conservative publication Tichys Einblick assessed the situation by saying: ‘Robert Habeck himself can afford a holiday, while the country, along with many citizens, is collapsing like never before since the Second World War. Companies are going bankrupt in droves, freight forwarders can no longer pay drastically increased tolls, ever-increasing electricity and energy costs as well as more and more taxes on CO2. Many are on the verge of extinction or are already extinct, freezing because heating costs are rising exorbitantly.’

“On Thursday, January 4th, the government backtracked somewhat, and decided it would not end the farmers’ tax break on agricultural diesel immediately, but will reduce the subsidy by 40% this year, 30% in 2025, and will end it from 2026. Also, the abolition of preferential treatment in vehicle tax for forestry and agriculture is no longer planned. However, the German Farmers’ Association (DBV) is still not pleased. Its president, Joachim Rukwied said: ‘This can only be a first step. Our position remains unchanged: both proposals for cuts must be taken off the table. This is clearly also about the future viability of our industry and the question of whether domestic food production is still desirable at all.’

“Elsewhere, Rukwied criticised the behaviour of the farmers who demonstrated against Habeck. ‘Personal attacks, insults, threats, coercion or violence are not acceptable,’ he said. Agriculture Minister Cem Özdemir (Greens) called  participants in the protest ‘fanatics’ and ‘radicals,’ and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) tweeted: ‘Where words are replaced by rabble, and arguments by violence, a democratic boundary has been crossed.’

“Politicians from the governing social democrats and the liberal FDP, as well as opposition centre-right CDU denounced Thursday night’s protests. Right-wing opposition AfD’s co-leader Alice Weidel accused the Economy Minister of escaping instead of seeking dialogue. Habeck himself acknowledged on Friday that the mood of the country ‘worries me.’

“The minister has every right to be worried, as the budget cuts, the attack on farmers and the government’s green agenda is causing ever-growing concern among the population. According to the latest opinion polls, the governing parties are in their worst position since they came into power two years ago. In that time, the social democrats have dropped from 26% to 12%, the Greens from 15% to 10.5%, the liberal FDP from 11.5% to 4.5%, meaning the latter would not be able to enter parliament. Meanwhile, the centre-right CDU/CSU alliance has gained in the polls by 10 percentage points, and stands at 34% overall, while the stigmatised AfD now enjoys the backing of 24.5% of the electorate.”

Germans are looking for an alternative. The next article bears that out, even though many feel that that “alternative” will only be short-lived.

False Outrage

Report 24 wrote on January 5:

“The reports of the media read as if an attack had been carried out on the economics minister… The mainstream acts in a horrified way… But what is the real conclusion…? There were no arrests… The spokesman for the Flensburg Police Department stated… that they were refraining from talking about violence. The narrative of the radical farmers is crumbling…

“In any case, the population’s sympathy for the minister [Habeck] is noticeably limited on social networks… it is the Ampel government that is dragging democracy into the mud by openly acting against the will of the citizens… Banning opposition in Germany in the form of the AfD shows that the anti-democrats are among the old parties – and not with the farmers, who, in contrast to the politicians currently in power, work in the service of the population.

“The Schlüttsiel example also shows the federal government clearly what they think of the back and forth of their decisions, their communication and their staff: what is shame for one person is anger for another. And this anger is now everywhere…

“Politicians know very well that they have caused and fomented this anger themselves. In recent months and years, those in government have consistently decided not to act for the benefit of their citizens – and they have hereby betrayed their own people. What was to be expected?… Anyone who continues to ignore the situation in which not only the farmers but also the citizens find themselves and instead covers up for political failure is part of the problem. What’s more, it contributes to escalation.”

Germany’s Former Spy Boss (CDU) to Found New Party

The European Conservative wrote on January 5:

“Hans-Georg Maaßen, Germany’s former domestic intelligence chief has announced his intention to break away from the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) to establish a new political party..  The new party… will be based on the ‘classic positions of the Union parties’ [CDU and CSU]. He added that, if successfully established, the party could run in this year’s elections in the eastern German states of Saxony, Thuringia, and Brandenburg.

“… the Alternative for Germany (AfD) commands the support of 37%, 36%, and 32% of the population in Saxony, Thuringia, and Brandenburg, respectively… even though nearly half of the German population supports the AfD’s participation in government, all parties with a parliamentary presence have ruled out the possibility of forming a government with it. This could potentially change if Maaßen’s party were to run and garner a considerable number of seats.

“Maaßen stated that he would work with all parties that are ‘ready for a change in policy in Germany,’ leaving the door open for future cooperation with the AfD… The former spy boss didn’t hesitate to level sharp criticism against CDU party leader Friedrich Merz for wanting to continue what he described as the ‘left-wing course’ taken by former Chancellor Angela Merkel.

“Maaßen wrote: ‘…  Merkel’s policies have caused significant damage to Germany in all political areas. The recent statement by the General Secretary of the CDU that Merkel had ‘governed the country well’ confirms the impression that the Merz CDU has not understood the catastrophic situation Germany is in and that it is not prepared to deal with the situation for this. The German people have to deal with Merkel’s catastrophic policies.’…”

Germans are also worried about Russia; hence their desire to reinstate compulsory military service, as the next article shows.

Majority of Germans For Compulsory Military Service

Breitbart wrote on January 5:

“More than half of Germans of all ages… want to restore compulsory military service, a survey [by Die Welt] released Thursday reveals, as war on the European continent between Russia and Ukraine drags on into another year… It shows 52 percent of respondents are in favor of armed service while 32 percent are against it…

“Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) suggested conscription based on the ‘Swedish model.’… Men and women are recruited on an equal basis, one of the only countries in the world to do so… Today, the Bundeswehr is a professional army made up of volunteers — but the volunteers are no longer coming. A recent report found there were some 27,000 positions in the Bundeswehr left vacant in 2022, out of a total of 164,000.”

The Civil War Was Not About Slavery

The Ron Paul Institute published on January 4 the following article by Judge Andrew P. Napolitano:

“When Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley answered a question last week in which she stated that the American Civil War was fought over ‘government,’ ‘rights’ and ‘freedoms,’ she was correct. Yet, like most politicians, when she realized that the popular answer should have been ‘slavery,’ she modified her answer. She should have stood her ground…

“… when it comes to the interrelationship between slavery and the American Civil War, most Americans have their history backward. Because it is nearly always written by the winners, history nearly always makes the winners look good. The American Civil War is no exception… No less an authority on the reasons for the war than Abraham Lincoln acknowledged many times during his presidency that the war was fought to preserve the union, not to eradicate slavery…

“In government schools, we all learned that Lincoln freed the slaves. He didn’t. They were freed by the 13th Amendment, which was ratified in December 1865, eight months after the war ended and Lincoln’s death.

“What about the Emancipation Proclamation? In government schools, we all learned that by that document, the slaves were set free. They weren’t. The Proclamation did not have the force of law on civilians, as it was a military order issued to troops by Lincoln in his capacity as commander in chief so as to enable the Union Army to conscript slaves into the Army against their will — from one form of slavery to another. Moreover, the Proclamation expressly prohibited the Army from interfering with slavery — and thus preserving it — in the five border states; fully one-third of the Confederacy.

“In government schools, we learned that Lincoln was anti-slavery. He wasn’t. In the earliest days of his presidency, he championed the Corwin Amendment — the Republican Congress’s original 13th Amendment — which Congress passed and sent on to the states. Had its ratification not been interrupted by the war, it would have enshrined slavery in the Constitution. The same Congress that moved to abolish slavery as soon as the war ended had moved to protect it before the war started; this is history bent and rewritten by the victors.

“The initial verbal and military salvos in the war were over whether the states — covetous of tariff revenues seized by the feds — could voluntarily leave the union and resume collecting tariffs; hardly a novel concept at the time, but in a government school, you probably never heard this…”

As so often, history is distorted to serve certain political agendas. That the Civil War was NOT about slavery should be known and realized by all Americans… sadly, it is not.

More Money For Ukraine?

On January 2, Ron Paul wrote the following in his weekly column:

“In the closing days of 2023, the Biden Administration once again announced a large military aid package for Ukraine, this time a ‘mere’ quarter of a billion dollars. Without a new authorization of funds from Congress, it is said to be the last bit of money left over from the more than $100 billion already authorized by Congress for the proxy war with Russia through Ukraine.

“President Biden’s request for an additional $100 billion to spread around Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan was rejected by a Congress eager for its winter break, and with each passing day it looks like it’s going to be harder to push it through. Poll after poll show that Americans are increasingly opposed to more of their money being spent on the neocon’s lost-cause war to overthrow Putin in Russia. For example, a recent Fox News poll revealed that more than 60 percent of Republican voters do not want any more money sent to Ukraine. As we enter an election year, it’s probably safe to predict that Republican candidates will be wary of crossing the wishes of the clear majority of voters…

“Last month Secretary of State Antony Blinken inadvertently revealed what exactly all the spending for war is about when he stated that as much as 90 percent of the aid for Ukraine is actually spent in the United States. The money is used ‘to the benefit of American business, local communities, and strengthening the US defense industrial base,’ he said in an interview. In other words, the money ‘for Ukraine’ is actually a massive welfare program for well-connected military contractors back home.”

Amazing!

Time Is Running Out

The Times of Israel wrote on January 5:

“Defense Minister Yoav Gallant says time is running out on diplomatic efforts to end tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, indicating that Israel will soon be left with no choice but to launch a major military offensive against the terror group in Lebanon.”

EU on Ukraine and Israel

On January 3, the official website of the EU published the following article by Josep Borrell, Vice President of the EU:

“Two deadly wars are unfolding on our borders and dominating the European agenda: the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and the war that has recently flared up again in the Middle East…

“Hamas is opposed to the very existence of the State of Israel. But the current Israeli government is also opposed, and for a long time, to the two-state solution. Benyamin Netanyahu, the current Prime Minister, promised to his fellow citizens that with him a Palestinian state would never see the light of day, despite the entire international community being in favour of it. This community therefore has a problem with Benyamin Netanyahu’s policy..,.

“But let’s return to Europe and ask ourselves a fundamental question: what is our capacity to act collectively in the face of these conflicts? We are not a state, and not even a federation of states. Our foreign and security policy is still being defined unanimously, which means that the opposition of only one State is sufficient to make us unable to act… If one can impose a veto, the others are obliged to haggle over the return to consensus. Often this haggling is very costly, and above all it wastes a lot of time. We react far too slowly to events, and we often pay dearly for it…

“In the case of Ukraine, unanimity was fortunately achieved quickly… However, this came at a high cost. Inflation rose and the economy held back… Will this unity last? What are we going to do if the Americans reduce their support for Ukraine once they have elected a new president, or perhaps even before then?… we need to act faster and more decisively to support Ukraine, because Russia represents a major strategic threat to the European Union…

“We are the biggest supplier of aid to the Palestinians, and in particular the biggest funder of the Palestinian Authority… Regarding Israel, we are the country’s leading trading partner… This means that we would have the means to influence both players in the conflict, should we choose to do so. However, so far we have not exercised this influence… Europe should be much more involved in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  Until now, we have relied too heavily on the United States in the search for a solution to this conflict that directly affects us…”

Needed… A European Army

Reuters wrote on January 7:

“The European Union should form its own combined army that could play a role in peacekeeping and preventing conflict, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said…

“‘In a world with powerful players like the United States, China, India, Russia – with crises from the Middle East to the Indo-Pacific – Italian, German, French or Slovenian citizens can only be protected by something that already exists, namely the European Union,’ he added… Tajani also said the 27-nation EU should streamline its leadership and have a single presidency, rather than the current structure of a European Council president and a European Commission president.”

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

In the first two parts of this series, we looked at just a tiny part of the criticism directed at the traditional family – husband and wife, plus any children they may have.  Much of the criticism, but not exclusively, comes from those intent on pushing the sexual agenda emanating from LGBT+ issues.   With the uptake in different ungodly lifestyles, removal of existing norms is seen as necessary to accommodate the new “freedom” to do what they want and that is expressed as contempt to what the great God of the Bible stated in His Word at the dawn of civilisation.

Another criticism can be read in fee.org. “Even today the aversion to the traditional family remains strong in socialists.  A 2019 article in The Nation, titled “Want to Dismantle Capitalism? Abolish the Family,” offers a glimpse of the modern socialist critique of the institution.

“We know that the nuclear private household is where the overwhelming majority of abuse can happen,” author Sophie Lewis explains. “And then there’s the whole question of what it is for: training us up to be workers, training us to be inhabitants of a binary-gendered and racially stratified system, training us not to be queer.”

“For true believers of collectivism, there’s little question that private family matters are also state matters. Socialism requires collective control of resources, and humans are the ultimate resource. This is why the traditional nuclear family, which places authority in the hands of parents rather than the community, is an affront to so many socialists.”

To be clear, we thoroughly condemn this socialist, communist and fascist approach, as it would give the ungodly state total control over the people.

Timothy P Carney wrote the following in the Washington Examiner, on December 17, 2020:

“In Alienated America, I argue that strong communities need strong families and vice versa. Where community breakdown occurs, it’s often the fruit of family breakdown. Children raised by only a mother are at a disadvantage, but their neighbors suffer, too, because that mother (probably working full time and charged with all household duties) is less available to coach, volunteer, or just sit on the front porch keeping an eye on things.

“Marriage implies permanence, dedication, and commitment. Communities need those things. Less marriage means weaker communities.

“Raj Chetty’s research, in fact, suggests that having many households with two married parents is the best way to guarantee the upward mobility of children.”

An older, but still very relevant essay published by docslib outlines the grim reality of “The Decline of the Traditional Family”:

“The traditional family today has been transformed into a post-modernistic family, as the modern culture has pulled apart the connected bonds of a family. Our popular television shows today portray wrong visualizations to their commonly young audience with inappropriate content and family morals.  The ‘Little House on the Prairie’ TV series, popular in the late 1900’s, was a refreshing family show that portrayed the common traditional family in that era.  However, new TV series accentuate today’s post-modernized family that makes untraditional family morals desirable for their viewers. One of the newest series ‘Modern Family’ portrays the life of three modern related families of today, including same-sex partners with an adopted child.  The appeal to be like the celebrities on these post-modernistic shows are draining away the traditional values families should have.  However, ‘Modern Family’ is one of the top TV series today, winning up to 11 Emmys.

“This essay will focus on the core of the decline of the traditional family as divorces, abortions, same sex marriages, and ignorance of biblical principles increase daily-making our present families diverse from tradition.

“The government is also encouraging the destruction of the traditional family.  One example is the rising of same-sex marriages.  The title, ‘Ex-Lesbian: Obama Destroying Traditional Families,’ is as shocking as it sounds.  Janet Boynes, a former lesbian, is now the leader of her Christian ministry called Janet Boynes Ministries, where she ministers to individuals who either question their sexuality or wish to leave a homosexual lifestyle.  Janet affirms that it is hard to keep the values [of] traditional family ideals today, because our current generation and government powers are advocating rights for homosexuals. Ms Boynes mentions that President Barack Obama is using the financial governmental power to encourage people to accept and normalize same-sex relationships!  This rips apart the picture of the traditional husband and wife.

“The government’s intentional ignoring of Biblical values are affecting the children of America. The children’s educational system that used to be taught with Biblical-based principles is now the design of a humanistic, person-centered program that is corrupting our future traditional families with immoral doctrines.  The ability to pray or talk about God’s love is banished from the classroom and discouraged from children’s vocabulary!  Parental consent is also considered unneeded for the health of their children.

“Today, traditional family values are being destroyed as if crushed by a huge rock.  Matthew 5:13 says, ‘Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt has lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted?  It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.’  The children of today have lost their identity, living opposite to the Bible!  

“We must stay strong to the faith and proclaim God’s Commandments to all!   Together, let us empower ourselves with the determination, as one nation under God, to revolutionize our future and bring back the traditional family.”

In the Daily Mail, dated Monday, Feb 13th 2023, one of the headlines was: “I’m a psychologist and these are 13 reasons why people DON’T want to get married anymore – and why staying single makes you happier.”   It went on to say:

“If you are about to have a baby, chances are you are more likely to be unmarried than married.  Figures from the Office of National Statistics (in the UK) show that 2021 was the first year on record that more children were born out of wedlock than in it. It follows a long-term trend of declining marriage rates and rising numbers of cohabiting couples seen in recent decades.

“Explaining the decline, Dr Max Blumberg, a relationship psychologist and chartered member of the British Psychological Society, says that marriage no longer offers what it used to.” 

Below is how he breaks down exactly why the traditional institution is on the way out.  We have deliberately not quoted the text under the headings except for number 11, as this was too long to quote in its entirety.

1. Traditional reasons for marriage no longer matter 
2. People marry when they are happy (and we are less happy)
3. Growing acceptance of cohabiting
4. High divorce rates paint a bad picture
5. No evidence to show that marriage makes you happier and healthier (especially for women)
6. Cost of weddings
7. Marriage is not promoted by UK government
8. Women are fine doing motherhood alone
9. People don’t want to invest
10. Being born out of wedlock is no longer a social disgrace
11. Sexual fluidity

The younger generations are far more likely to be open minded than older generations. An increasing number are gay or lesbian or pansexual, as well as being gender fluid. If people want to date people of differing and varied sexes, then again marriage is less likely to be an option, particularly as the church does still not support gay marriage.

12. Lack of married role models
13. Sexual liberation and the pill 

We could respond to each of the items above but that could seem somewhat tedious and the answers are pretty obvious!

Julie Roys, a speaker, freelance journalist and blogger in the USA wrote: “A little known fact about socialism is that, from its beginning, it has sought to destroy marriage and family. In the USA, Grove City Professor Paul Kengor explains this in detail in his book, ‘Takedown: From Communists to Progressives, How the Left Has Sabotaged Marriage and Family.’ Essentially, what socialism seeks is for the state to replace the family. That way, it can indoctrinate children in its Leftist way of thinking, and remove from them any notions of God and religion.

“Friedrich Engels, co-author with Marx of the ‘The Communist Manifesto,’ once wrote that the society he envisioned would be one where ‘the single family ceases to be the economic unit of society. Private housekeeping is transformed into a social industry. The care and education of the children becomes a public affair.’”

We hasten to add that this is not only true for socialist or communist societies, but also for fascist regimes which try to control their people. National Socialism under Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler would be prime examples. 

In a paper “Redefining the Family: Undermining the Family,” by John DeWitt Gregory” from the University of Chicago Legal Forum, the following snippet is interesting: “In addition to casebook editors and treatise writers, professorial contributions of legal scholarship in law reviews have contributed frequently and at length to efforts to redefine the family. One prominent commentator, for example, has stated bluntly: [Our] society has undergone profound transformations in the past century, and the long-standing legal structure of marriage may now be anachronistic. The state’s interest in preserving the traditional family may not be important enough to offset new societal and individual needs which require more flexibility and choice in family forms.”

On the website voiceofthefamily, we read how local government is usurping the authority of parents in raising their children in a family environment.  “A group of parents in Wales is asking the High Court to overrule a decision by the government in Cardiff to make attendance at sex education classes mandatory in local primary schools. When the Welsh government introduced a ‘new code’ for the teaching of ‘sex and relationships education’ (RSE) earlier this year, it removed the right of parents to withdraw their children from the lessons.

“Sadly, parents in the rest of the UK, the Irish Republic and across most of the Western world have already been confronted with the situation unfolding in Wales. And although the legal action against the Welsh government is unlikely to succeed, there is a strong body of international law aimed at protecting the family and the rights of parents. The fact that governments no longer respect these rights is the result of a strategy worked out decades ago by organisations, such as International Planned Parenthood Federation. These organisations, which have managed to seize control of the agencies established by the United Nations, are now sufficiently powerful to have their agenda enforced across the globe.”

We can see how those who want the rights of the godly-ordained family to be paramount are overridden by those who think that the state knows best.   The family is certainly under threat by bureaucrats who think that they know better than God who created the family 6,000 years ago.

The traditional family, according to the Word of God, is simply put: Marriage as God ordained it is between a man and a woman (Genesis 2:24).   For a more thorough exposition on this subject, please see our Q&A as mentioned in the second part in this series: https://www.eternalgod.org/what-is-a-family/

(To be continued)

Lead Writer: Brian Gale (United Kingdom)

compiled by Dave Harris

“2023—a Year of Chaos… With More to Come,” is the title of a new StandingWatch program, presented by Evangelist Norbert Link. Here is a summary:

As the New York Post wrote, 2023 was “one of the strangest years in American politics. Both parties contributed, but Democrats were extra strange.” Many examples of incredible and frightening “incompetence’ are given, but the chaos is not limited to domestic issues. Is America’s demise inevitable?

“2023—ein chaotisches Jahr… und mehr wird folgen…” is the title of a new AufPostenStehen program, presented by Norbert Link. This covers the same subject as described above.

A Tech Team meeting was conducted on January 7. 2024 via Google Meets. Hosted by Eric Rank, we once again spent much of the discussions reviewing results and needs for our current booklet advertising programs—for both English and German booklets.

The final text for your new booklet about youth has been sent to graphic artist Shelly Bruno to prepare for printing.

Our 2024 Church Conference will be conducted on May 16^th to May 19^th in Escondido, California.

“Die erbauende Liebe,” last Sabbath’s first split sermon presented in Germany by Robert Muhr, is now posted. Title in English: “The Uplifting Love.”

“Was ist die Welt von Morgen?” last Sabbath’s second split sermon presented by Johann Schell, is now posted. Title in English: “What is the World Tomorrow?” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNcPq3eGmjg

“How Is Your Conscience?” last Sabbath’s first split sermon presented by Kalon Mitchell, is now posted. Here is a summary:

God has placed a conscience within man. Yet, how do we use this tool given to us? How can we make sure that our conscience is working correctly? We have to be making sure that we are on the right track in regards to the conscience within!

“What Is Your Highest Goal?” last Sabbath’s second split sermon presented by Christoph Sperzel, is now posted. Here is a summary:

It sounds good that we are allowed to enter the kingdom of God. Should we strive for more than just entering the kingdom of God? What should be the true Christian goal? Is God revealing to us that we should strive for more than eternal life?

On January 6, 2024, Kalon Mitchell will present the first split sermon, titled, “How Is Your Conscience?”, and Christoph Sperzel will present the second split sermon, titled, “What Is Your Highest Goal?”

The live services are available, over video and audio, at http://eternalgod.org/live-services/ (12:30 pm Pacific Time; 1:30 pm Mountain Time; 2:30 pm Central Time; 3:30 pm Eastern Time; 8:30 pm Greenwich Mean Time; 9:30 pm Central European Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

It seems God’s disciples have always felt that Jesus Christ would return during their lifetime. Today is no exception. But why is it now different than in times past? Or is it?

Christ told us that we should be able to determine the time of the end. And there should be no doubt that we are now living in the last days. World War III is coming—the war which would annihilate all life on earth if Christ was not to return to shorten those days.

Even unconverted people begin to realize more and more that we are now living in unprecedented dangerous times.

Germany’s defense minister Boris Pistorius said recently: “We have about 5-8 years to catch up, in terms of armed forces, industry and society,” to be able to defend against an invading Russian army. In Germany, compulsory military service was suspended in July 2011 after 55 years by the then Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg.

But Pistorius declared that this was a mistake and that compulsory military service could be reintroduced. The conservative opposition is supporting this concept. For instance, Bavarian leader Markus Söder has spoken out in favor of a return to compulsory military service for at least seven months. Söder also said: “We are talking about implementation over a period of five years at the earliest in order to adapt the necessary structures.”

Many feel that Ukraine has already lost the war with Russia, and the pressure on Ukraine is growing to cede some territory to the Russians in order to bring this war to a close. A Republican-controlled House has not approved Biden’s funding request of $106 billion, which includes $61 billion in additional aid for Ukraine. The feeling is that it is “unlikely” that Ukraine will become victorious against Putin’s forces and push them out, and if the USA stops supporting Ukraine financially and militarily, the war will be over for sure.

It was reported that, according to military experts, Russia would be prepared to launch an attack on Europe about six years after the Ukraine war has ended.

We know from the Bible that a fierce and devastating war will be fought between, on the one hand, Russia and its allies and, on the other hand, Europe under German leadership. We also know that this war will break out 2 ½ years after the Great Tribulation has begun, describing Europe’s war with the USA, the UK and Israel, and about 1 year before Christ’s return.

In this context, the estimated timeline is quite interesting. The number five (or a combination of five’s) appears quite predominately in the above-quoted prognostications. To recall, military conscription ended in Germany after 55 years; allegedly, Germany needs five years to reintroduce it; and it also needs at least five years to be ready militarily to “defend” against Russia.

In the Bible, the number five signifies quite often God’s grace and power (compare our free booklet, “Hidden Secrets in the Bible.”)

For instance, following the four worldly kingdoms described in the book of Daniel, the Kingdom of God—the fifth Kingdom—will be established on earth.

The coming war between Russia and Germany does in fact signify God’s grace and power… in that Christ will graciously and powerfully intervene to make an end to man’s misrule and Daniel’s fourth kingdom. He will destroy Russian and European armies which will be determined to fight Him when He and His saints stand on the Mount of Olives.

We also saw that it is proposed that it will take Russia about six years, after the war with Ukraine has ended, to launch its attack on Europe. (In fact, Europe will strike first, and then Russia will retaliate). We say in our above-quoted booklet:

“Number six is the number of a man who is far from God or alienated from Him. The most famous combination of the number six is perhaps the number of the beast in the book of Revelation, namely 666. In the Greek, this number is written as 600 and 60 and 6. This number stands for total separation from God and the unconditional submission to Satan the Devil. Most people will be so deceived that they will worship Satan and his human instruments—the beast and the false prophet—while rejecting the true God and His Law. The sixth commandment forbids murder in all of its different forms (Exodus 20:13), but man, separated from God, thinks that some kinds of murder are permitted, such as killing in war.”

The coming war between Russia and other Far Eastern nations with Europe under German leadership exemplifies clearly man’s total separation from God and man’s willingness to completely destroy all life on earth, and to even fight against Jesus Christ.

We are not saying that these events will in fact occur within five or six years from now. But it is interesting that these numbers are mentioned by people who know little, if anything, about the Bible. Are these mere coincidental estimates, or are they perhaps inspired, in some way, to use those numbers? And if they are inspired, who inspired them?

What we are saying is that the time is short (1 Corinthians 7:29), and that “knowing the time,” “now it is high time to awake out of sleep” (Romans 13:11); while “redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:16; compare Colossians 4:5). We are to watch and to pray always in order to be counted worthy to escape all these things which will surely come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man when He returns (compare Luke 21:36). Let us be mindful of the fact that this “is the last hour” and that “the end of all things is at hand” (1 John 2:18; compare 1 Peter 4:7).  

by Norbert Link

We begin with an article showing the political chaos in 2023 in the USA; continue with another example of our corrupt political and legal system by discussing a blatant assault on our democracy and the constitution by the unqualified Biden-adoring Maine Secretary of State; and report about the incredible and shocking preference for another candidate by Democrats if Biden were to drop out of the 2024 election race; and we publish the list of 24 Democrat-run states, led by California, opposed to free speech in America, as well as California’s costly healthcare system for illegal aliens, while its deficit soars and its population shrinks.

We continue with Iran’s admission that it WAS behind the terrorist attack and massacre in southwestern Israel on October 7 [which was clear from the outset]; the assessment of a freed hostage that “there are no innocent civilians in Gaza”; a provocative, ungodly and on its face false decision in Israel by its High Court of Justice; more interesting developments pertaining to Israel, the Middle East, and the West; and the evaluation that Ukraine has lost its war against Russia, while the propaganda of politicians, the war industry and the mass media are anxious to paint a different picture.

We conclude with a deeply distressing article about ongoing attempts in Germany to reintroduce conscription and compulsory military service, as well as reports on the EU’s challenges for 2024; an attack on the family; and “global warming.”

Throughout this section, we have underlined pertinent statements in the quoted articles, for the convenience and quick overview of the reader.

2023—a Year of Political Chaos

The New York Post wrote on December 30:

“The best thing about 2023 is that it’s ending, meaning we can finally say good riddance to one of the strangest years in American politics. Both parties contributed, but Democrats were extra strange. Many of them say they hate Donald Trump, but have a weird way of showing it. Often it seems like they’re doing everything under the sun to elect him. 

“After the 2020 election and the overheated aftermath, Dems could have chosen to govern in a center-left way that would have largely united the nation and isolated Trump and his grievances. Instead, they let the far left set the domestic agenda, ruined the economy, threw open the border and pursued a history-shattering prosecution of the former president. The result may be that Trump gets his party’s nomination and wins the White House largely because his opponents tried to put him in jail! 

“House Speaker Nancy Pelosi did her part with the dopey idea that two Trump-hating Republicans, Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, would give a bipartisan sheen to her Jan. 6 inquisition. President Biden fell sway to the same delusion, publicly spitting out MAGA, MAGA, MAGA as a curse and privately pushing his bitter attorney general, Merrick Garland  to charge the former president with crimes. Garland did as he was told, even as he dutifully tried to kill the strong case against the president’s son, Hunter Biden… Prosecutors inside and outside of Washington accepted the invitation and hit Trump with four separate indictments, a total of 91 criminal counts, most of them silly or suspect…

“The overreach also features a New York civil case where authorities aim to take away Trump’s businesses and bankrupt him. It’s a financial case without a victim, but has an overtly partisan state attorney general who, along with a judge… concocted a show trial that would gladden the hearts of authoritarians everywhere… The Dems’ latest efforts — to block Trump from appearing on state ballots — is a testament to their determination and resourcefulness. It also smacks of desperation, as they suddenly realize their prosecutions backfired. Now afraid he’ll win, they’re trying to prevent him from playing…

“In addition to Biden’s rampant failures, his age and in-your-face family corruption, many Republican and independent voters view the prosecutions as persecutions and are raising their hands for Trump in response. Those converted voters are why Trump has risen like Lazarus and racked up such large leads for the GOP nomination. His national lead in polls is a remarkable 50 points… Contrast that with the start of the year, when Trump’s total GOP support was about 35%…

“The fact that Biden is even running again adds another twist to 2024, with a majority of Dems saying they want someone else. Then again, most voters also say they don’t want a Biden-Trump rematch, but all signs point to exactly that…”

Add to this the Republican infighting regarding the Speaker of the House, and you can see the absolute chaos in American politics.

An Attack on the Constitution, Not Trump

Daily Mail wrote on December 29:

“Donald Trump’s campaign has unleashed a furious attack against Maine’s top election official after she banned him from running for the Oval Office in the state, with both Republican and Democrat rivals backing the former president. 

Maine’s secretary of state Shenna Bellows last night ordered that Trump would not be allowed to appear on the ballot in the 2024 election. 

“Her decision made Maine the second state to make a concerted effort to stop the former president from running for high office. Both Colorado and Maine found that Trump had participated in an insurrection, and so was ineligible to hold office, under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution. But Michigan on Wednesday found the opposite, and California on Thursday night sided with Michigan, ruling that Trump could remain on the ballot. [NBC News reported in this regard: ‘In California, Trump was included Thursday on the list of candidates for the state’s March 5 primary. Secretary of State Shirley Weber, a Democrat, who has faced pressure from the state’s lieutenant governor to ‘explore every legal option’ to remove Trump from the ballot, said last week that the question involved ‘complex legal issues’ that under state law the courts should decide.” [Newsom had also stated that he was against removing Trump from the California ballot.]

“Bellows, a Democrat, [said] that while she knew her decision was historic, she stood by it, though she chose to suspend the decision until the Supreme Court decides to rule on the matter…. ‘The Maine Secretary of State is… a virulent leftist and a hyper-partisan Biden-supporting Democrat who has decided to interfere in the presidential election on behalf of Crooked Joe Biden,’ Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said.  ‘We are witnessing, in real-time, the attempted theft of an election and the disenfranchisement of the American voter,’ he added…

“Florida governor Ron DeSantis said on Fox News shortly after the Maine decision was announced: ‘It opens up Pandora’s box. Can you have a Republican secretary of state disqualify Biden from the ballot.’ Vivek Ramaswamy, another presidential rival, said: ‘This is what an actual threat to democracy looks like. The system is hellbent on taking this man out, the Constitution be damned.’ “Nikki Haley’s campaign, meanwhile, said: ‘… It should be up to voters to decide who gets elected.’

“But Democrats were also vocal in their criticism of Maine’s decision to ban Trump from the ballot. Jared Golden, a congressman from Maine, said in a statement: ‘… we are a nation of laws, therefore until he is actually found guilty of the crime of insurrection, he should be allowed on the ballot.’…

“Jena Griswold, Colorado’s secretary of state, announced on Thursday that Trump will for the time being remain on the ballot, which goes to print on January 5 – unless the Supreme Court affirms the lower court’s ruling or otherwise declines to take on the appeal…”

Fox News added on December 30:

“Former top Obama adviser David Axelrod warned Friday that a court decision removing former President Donald Trump from the primary ballot ‘would rip the country apart.’”

In other words, he is prognosticating civil war.

The Unqualified Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows

The New York Post wrote on December 30:

“The Maine Democrat who moved to boot former President Donald Trump from the state’s Republican primary ballot visited the White House twice in the past year — meeting President Joe Biden during one jaunt — and reportedly once referred to the Electoral College as a ‘relic of white supremacy…. On March 22, she attended a Women’s History Month event and took a photo with a smiling Biden, putting his left hand on her shoulder and clutching one of her hands with his right…

“She boasted it was an ‘honor’ meeting Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and other ‘female leaders’ at the gathering in a press release put out by her office… Bellows also visited the White House June 6, to meet with Justin Vail, a special assistant to Biden...”

Breitbart added on December 29:

“Bellows, who previously worked as Executive Director of the Maine Chapter of the ACLU but is not an attorney and did not attend law school, made the legal conclusion in her ruling that ‘the declaration on [Trump’s] candidate consent form is false because he is not qualified to hold the office of the President under Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment.’

“The secretary of state, a Democrat whose social media is littered with photos of President Joe Biden, justified her ruling based on Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment’s ‘Insurrection Clause.’ The statute has never been used to disqualify a president from the ballot and has generally been understood not to apply to the office of the president… “

This is not an attack on Trump… it is an attack on democracy and the Constitution. Maine’s Secretary of State Shenna Bellows rendered a “judgment” based on YouTube videos, newspaper articles and some other dubious sources. The four partisan Colorado judges and Bellows should be ashamed of themselves. They are a disgrace to the USA.

Biden’s Military Leadership to Be Court-Martialed?

 The Daily Mail wrote on January 1:

“Over 200 active duty and retired service members are vowing to hold the Biden administration accountable for ‘trampling’ on their rights by enforcing the COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The mandate enacted in August 2021 led to the forced firing of over 8,000 service members who refused the shot on religious or medical grounds.

“On New Year’s Day, over 200 service members declared that they will do ‘everything’ in their power to get accountability since not a single leader has resigned or been held to account despite the rollback of the vaccine mandate last year… They are threatening to even force Biden’s top leaders to be brought out of retirement so they can be court-martialed and held to account… In the open letter, they explicitly name now-retired and still serving top commanders that they are demanding accountability from.  Those include the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley who exited the military in October and Gen. James McConville who served as the 40th chief of staff of the Army until 2023.”

The one who should really be held accountable is Biden.

Decisions Against Trump Un-American

Breitbart wrote on January 3:

 “…  independent presidential candidate Robert Kennedy, Jr. criticized the decisionmakers in Colorado and Maine for removing former President Donald Trump from their presidential primary ballots… ‘I’m not a fan of President Trump, that’s why I’m running against him… the American people want to see a fair fight. They want debates, they want real democracy. They want to be able to choose their candidate, their president, not have a court choose it…

“I’ve read the decision and it makes no sense to me that you can deprive an American citizen of this right. We’re unprecedent [sic] without ever charging him with much less convicting him of insurrection… that seems to violate due process and it makes us look like a banana republic… I think it turns Trump into a kind of… a mythological figure. I think it’s very, very short-sighted and it’s just wrong, it’s un-American.’”

Kennedy is a lawyer as well.

What if Biden Were to Drop Out?

Daily Mail wrote on December 29:

“What happens if 81-year-old Joe Biden… drop[s] out of the 2024 election race?… Democrats [one in five] say they would like to see Biden’s [deeply unpopular] vice president, Kamala Harris, or [as the next favorite] former first lady Michelle Obama take up the mantle… Other potential headline names, such as California Gov. Gavin Newsom or Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, are further down the Democratic field…

“The question is not entirely academic. Biden is already the oldest president in history and shows clear signs of slowing down… Biden has seen his support fall within his own party and among women.”

How anyone can like to see “deeply unpopular” and totally incompetent Kamala Harris “take up the mantle” is beyond belief.

Are You Living in an Anti-Free Speech State?

Professor Jonathan Turkey wrote the following on December 29, which was published by the Ron Paul Institute:

“For years, we have discussed the alarming shift in the Democratic party on free speech… Now, a filing in the Supreme Court supporting censorship efforts by the Biden Administration has supplied a handy list of the anti-free speech states for citizens. The 5th Circuit previously ruled in Missouri v. Biden that administration officials ‘likely violated’ the First Amendment and issued a preliminary injunction banning the government from communicating with social media companies to limit speech.

“Not surprisingly, the state of California is leading the effort to get the Supreme Court to reverse a decision enjoining the government from censorship efforts. California has long sought to impose speech limits on doctors, businesses, and citizens to silence opposing viewpoints. However,  23 Democrat-led states joined this ignoble effort in signing on to the brief of California Attorney General Rob Bonta… So here is the list to see if you are residing in an anti-free speech state [this is in addition to California, of course]:

“Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, District of Columbia.”

Let it be noted that these states favor a dictatorial and autocratic form of government.

Free Healthcare for Illegal Aliens

Fox Business wrote on December 30:

“California is ushering in 2024 with free healthcare for more than 700,000 migrants living illegally in the Golden State as the state is faced with a looming $68 billion deficit… the Medi-Cal expansion to include all illegal immigrants is expected to cost $2.6 billion annually. The added cost comes as California is faced with a major budget crisis due to a ‘severe revenue decline.’

“…  the state’s budget deficit has grown exponentially in just a few months’ time, up more than $54 billion from just $14.3 billion in June. The growing budget deficit comes as residents and businesses have fled the predominately Democrat-run state… economic factors like the cost of living and the housing market have also contributed to people moving out of California, and so has remote work.”

This is one way of bankrupting a state.

Iran Responsible for Oct. 7 Attack

Israel 365 News wrote on December 28:

“The Oct. 7 massacre in southwestern Israel was a response to the 2020 killing of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force Commander Qassem Soleimani by the United States, Tehran claimed on Wednesday. ‘The Al-Aqsa Flood was one of the acts of revenge for the assassination of General Soleimani by the U.S. and the Zionists,’ IRGC spokesman Brig. Gen. Ramezan Sharif told Iran’s state-run ISNA news agency, using Hamas’s name for the Oct. 7 cross-border attacks. ‘Certainly, these acts of revenge will continue in different times and places,’ stated Sharif, vowing to also avenge Razi Mousavi, the Iranian major general killed in an alleged Israeli airstrike in Syria earlier this week…

“In a statement responding to Sharif’s remarks, Hamas denied the IRGC’s claim, insisting that the Oct. 7 massacre was a response to alleged Israeli ‘crimes’ at Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. ‘We have repeatedly confirmed the motives and reasons for Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, and foremost are the dangers that threaten Al-Aqsa mosque,’ stated the Iranian-backed terror group…

“Iran supports Hamas by supplying it with funding, intelligence, weapons and technological knowledge, and the Biden administration has described the Islamic Republic as being ‘complicit’ in the Oct. 7 attacks…

“On Tuesday, the International Atomic Energy Agency reported that Iran had tripled its enrichment of uranium to 60%…  Israeli National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi warned in September that Jerusalem will have no choice but to act if Iran enriches uranium above 60%.

“Also on Tuesday, IRGC-affiliated media outlets published a video animation depicting the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu… The video ended with the text, ‘Brought to you by the friends of Haman,’ in an apparent reference to the genocidal Jew-hating villain from the biblical book of Esther.”

Finally, Iran admitted direct involvement and responsibility for the October 7 attack, even though lying and deceiving Hamas was quick to state their own version, in an obvious attempt to shield the murderous regime of Iran. But that Iran was behind the attack was clear from the very onset. That Iran identifies itself as the murderer Haman is telling.

Hezbollah Promises Revenge

JTA wrote on January 3:

 “Hassan Nasrallah blamed Israel for the assassination of a senior Hamas leader who was under Hezbollah protection in Beirut and said the Lebanese terror group would retaliate… Israel has not officially claimed responsibility for the blast, which also took down six others, including two other Hamas leaders.

 “But it is widely believed to have carried out the strike, and a backbench lawmaker belonging to the governing Likud Party, Danny Danon, said Israel was responsible… Al-Arouri was an architect of the Oct. 7 Hamas invasion of Israel, which launched the current war. Nasrallah praised Hamas for the massacre.”

Houthis Defiant and the West Is Too Weak

BBC wrote on January 4:

“The US, UK and 10 other states have warned rebels in Yemen they will face consequences if they continue to attack commercial shipping in the Red Sea… However the Houthis have responded with defiance, vowing to continue targeting vessels they consider linked to Israel… The Bab al-Mandab strait is a critical waterway through which almost 15% of global trade passes. If attacks continue, the fear is that fuel prices will rise and supply chains will be damaged.

“Iranian-backed Houthi rebels have declared support for Hamas in the war it launched against Israel in October. Since November, the rebels have attacked commercial shipping in the Red Sea more than 20 times using missiles, drones, fast boats and helicopters… US and British warships in the region have intercepted some missiles but they have resisted attacking targets in Yemen itself. That may be about to change.”

The Daily Mail wrote on January 1:

“… if the Americans think they can smash the Houthis easily, they are deluded. The truth is that this conflict has a sinister resonance to the humiliating 1956 Suez Crisis… The U.S. is now fighting proxy wars on two fronts: the Gaza Strip and Ukraine. Even the Pentagon’s vast budget of some $824 billion can’t arm Kyiv and Israel, let alone fight a new Middle Eastern war, and keep an eye on China, too….

 “… it’s unlikely that a fleet of 19 ships can achieve much success in the region.. the allied Red Sea fleet and threats of air strikes are not a quick fix… the need to use them is a graphic illustration of the West’s overall weakness… the U.S., with all its power and might, is seen as unable to overwhelm a feeble militia like the Houthis… Britain’s role in international affairs had slipped away… As the new year dawns, my fear is we may be witnessing — in real time — the collapse of American power which has sheltered us for all our lives.”

The demise of America’s and Britain’s influence and power is aptly described.

“Death to America and Israel”

Breitbart wrote on January 3:

“Crowds of people in Kerman, Iran, gathered on Wednesday night chanting, ‘death to America’ and ‘death to Israel,’ multiple outlets reported, in response to a bombing there earlier on Wednesday believed to have taken at least 95 lives.

“Wednesday marked the fourth anniversary of a drone strike eliminating Major General Qasem Soleimani — the Iranian regime’s most respected terrorist leader… Former President Donald Trump ordered the airstrike against Soleimani… Thousands convened in Kerman, Soleimani’s hometown, on Wednesday to mark the anniversary of his ‘martyrdom,’ an annual tradition promoted by the Iranian Islamist regime.”

In the meantime, ISIS claimed responsibility.

“No Innocent Civilians in Gaza”

The Times of Israel wrote on December 29 about the account of freed hostage Mia Schem. Her report is too horrible to repeat here; suffice to say that according to her testimony, the Hamas terrorists acted like brutal inhumane murderers and vicious animals. It is also worthwhile to emphasize that according to Schem, “there are no innocent civilians in Gaza”:

“Released hostage Mia Schem, 21, described going through ‘hell’ while in the Gaza Strip in a pair of televised interviews that both aired on Friday evening. Schem was shot in the arm and taken hostage from the Supernova music festival on October 7, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists burst into southern Israel, killing more than 1,200 people and dragging around 240 into Gaza. Some 360 partygoers were killed during the assault on the music festival, and another 36 were taken hostage. She was released on November 30 after 54 days in captivity, reuniting with her family and loved ones, and undergoing extensive surgery and rehabilitation on her wounded arm. Her family said she has since developed epilepsy, from the trauma and the lack of sleep during her eight weeks as a hostage in Gaza.

“Schem spoke in depth for the first time about the experience to both Channel 12 and 13 news, recounting the moments she was taken hostage, the suffering and mental torture she endured in captivity, and the experience of coming back home.

“‘It’s important to me to reveal the real situation about the people who live in Gaza, who they really are, and what I went through there,’ she told Channel 13 news. ‘I experienced hell. Everyone there are terrorists… there are no innocent civilians, not one,’ she said. ‘[Innocent civilians] don’t exist.’”

Same-Sex Couples Eligible to Adopt Children, in Violation of the Written Law

The Jerusalem Post wrote on December 28:

“Israel’s High Court of Justice unanimously ruled on Thursday that same-sex couples are eligible to adopt children. The verdict was reached by three presiding justices following a petition, which argued that Section 3 of the Adoption Law must be interpreted so LGBT couples would be eligible to adopt within the scope of the existing law. Section 3 states that ‘there will be no adoption but by a man and his wife together.’

“”This is a historic, groundbreaking victory which gives a shred of light and hope in these difficult times, Ran Shalhavi, director-general of the Aguda – Israel’s LGBT Task Force said following the verdict’s publication. ‘For years, we have been battling to be seen as equals when it comes to raising families in Israel, as governments over the years discriminated and incited against us because of who we are. The Supreme Court again proves its worth in protecting our rights,’ Shalhavi added.”

How could the clear language of the law be “reinterpreted” to allow something which is clearly against the wording of the law? Are we surprised that God is angry with Israel?

Supreme Court Rules Against Netanyahu

CBS News wrote on January 1:

“Israel’s Supreme Court on Monday struck down a key component of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s contentious judicial overhaul, delivering a landmark decision that threatens to reopen the fissures in Israeli society that preceded the country’s ongoing war against Hamas… Monday’s court decision could reignite those tensions, even while the country remains at war. Justice Minister Yariv Levin… lambasted the court’s decision, saying it demonstrated ‘the opposite of the spirit of unity required these days for the success of our soldiers on the front.’…

“Netanyahu and his allies announced their sweeping overhaul plan shortly after taking office a year ago. It calls for curbing the power of the judges, including by limiting the Supreme Court’s ability to review parliamentary decisions and changing the way judges are appointed.

“Supporters said the changes aim to strengthen democracy by circumscribing the authority of unelected judges and turning over more powers to elected officials. But opponents see the overhaul as a power grab by Netanyahu…”

Israel is fighting within and without.

Ukraine Faces Growing Calls from US to Cede Land to Russia

Newsweek wrote on December 30:

“[Republican] Ohio Senator J.D. Vance said it was preposterous to think that the Ukrainian military was going to force Russian troops back to the border crossed during the invasion in February 2022. Vance told CNN’s State of the Union: ‘What’s in America’s best interest is to accept Ukraine is going to have to cede some territory to the Russians and we need to bring this war to a close.’

“… A Republican-controlled House has not approved Biden’s funding request of $106 billion, which includes $61 billion in additional aid for Ukraine… ‘What we’re saying to the president, and really to the entire world, is you need to articulate what the ambition is; what is $61 billion going to accomplish that $100 billion hasn’t?’ Vance said…

“Vance isn’t alone in his party… Part of the frustration for conservatives is the lack of movement in the war. That is, significant numbers in aid has been sent to Ukraine, but it remains unlikely that it will become victorious against Putin’s forces and push them out.”

In addition, it is totally unclear where all that money sent to Ukraine has ended up.

Propaganda Campaign

Report 24 wrote on December 27:

“In recent weeks, reports and comments have been a common thread running through the mainstream media. This shows that there is a propaganda campaign underway.

“The war in Ukraine is as good as lost; it has been the case since day one. Nevertheless, many hundreds of thousands of people had to die completely senselessly… All of these people did not die to defend their homeland, but to secure the billions from George Soros and others… But it wasn’t just the Ukrainians who were harmed…

“The European economy lost trillions; price increases, inflation and countless company closures were the result – but we have only seen the beginning…

“Of course, it is not about preventing a war [in Europe], but it is about rearmament…”

Germany Contemplating Conscription and Compulsory Military Service

Deutsche Welle reported on December 29:

“Since taking office at the beginning of 2023, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has been thinking about ways to make the Bundeswehr more attractive as a career…

“Even conscription, something Germany ended in 2011, is also up for debate. ‘There were reasons at the time to suspend compulsory military service. In retrospect, however, it was a mistake,’ Pistorius told newspaper Die Welt earlier in December. He also cited the case of Sweden, where compulsory military service was suspended and then reintroduced…

“When Pistorius floated his ideas about conscription in December, he faced a barrage of criticism, including from within his own center-left… [SPD] Party… Criticism also came from the neoliberal… FDP,  the smallest member in the three-way coalition that makes up the federal government…

“But there has been support from the conservative opposition. Johann Wadephul, deputy leader of the center-right… CDU  and… CSU… told DW: ‘… we are in favor of general compulsory service, i.e. service in the Bundeswehr, but also in other emergency services… Now is the time for young people to be asked what they can do for our country and for our society,’ added Wadephul….”

The frightening thing too is that Pistorius is viewed as the most popular politician in Germany.

EU’s Tough Challenges in 2024

Deutsche Welle wrote on January 1:

 “The 27 member states of the European Union have repeatedly promised to help Ukraine for as long as it needs to defend itself against Russia… but the question now is whether they will continue to stand by Ukraine in 2024. Recent weeks have seen a lot of discussion of war fatigue and waning solidarity in Brussels. EU member states are finding it difficult to unanimously sign off on the financial aid that the European Union has promised. The current approach, that it’s up to Ukraine to decide whether to negotiate with Moscow, may be called into question in the coming year

“…having a war-ravaged Ukraine integrate into the European Union could have enormous costs for the existing member states. Even Ukraine’s closest backers, Poland and the Baltic EU member states, seem to be getting cold feet…

“… the potential return of firebrand Republican Donald Trump to the White House would be a headache for the European Union and for many NATO members. The EU could lose the United States as its closest ally in trade, supporting Ukraine and deterring Russia. The German American Chamber of Commerce worries that a reelected Trump would impose punitive tariffs on trade with EU members. In return, the European Union would have to increase customs duties and taxes…

“In June, voters EU-wide will head to the polls to elect the European Parliament… The center-right European People’s Party is expected to once again come out as the largest group in the parliament. The far right is also expected to do well… the biggest issue for voters is their individual economic situation and standard of living. Ukraine, migration and EU enlargement all come much further down the list when it comes to voters making their choice…”

Get Out of the House?

The Washington Examiner wrote on December 30, 2023:

“Two-thirds of working mothers in the United Kingdom would work fewer hours if they could afford to… So, how does the major center-left party in the U.K. address this situation? By funding government-run day-cares for every single baby in the kingdom…

“While working mothers mostly want to mother more and work less, that’s not what the political class wants them to do. They want those women out of the home as soon as possible and back in the paid economy. This isn’t unique to the U.K….

“If the Labour Party wants to spend billions of pounds Sterling giving women what they want, they would instead just create a new monthly child allowance — and build more family-friendly housing.”

 Note our new Q&A series on the family.

Coldest January in Sweden

The Associated Press wrote on January 5:

“Europe experienced stark weather contrasts on Wednesday, with extreme cold and snowstorms disrupting transportation and closing schools in Scandinavia while strong winds and heavy rain in western Europe caused flooding…

“Temperatures fell below minus 40 degrees Celsius (minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit) in the Nordic region for a second day in a row Wednesday. In… Swedish Lapland, the mercury dropped to minus 43.6 C (minus 46.5 F), the lowest January temperature recorded in Sweden in 25 years…”

So much for global WARMING…

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

The day of the “nuclear” family” – husband, wife and children – is no longer applicable. An article in “betterhelp” states: “Gone are the days when nuclear families (mom, dad + one or more kids) are considered the norm in the United States. These days, different family types are not only common but also much more accepted than they were in the past. It’s not uncommon to be raised by a single mother or be part of a mixed family. It seems more uncommon to live in a household where both parents are happily married, unfortunately, although many of those families do still exist.”

The family is under attack because of its importance. It is yet another attack on the family which God initiated some 6,000 years ago and has continued right down through the millennia attacking the family at every available opportunity. It would be fair to say that such attacks on the family will, somewhere, have the fingerprints of Satan on it.

So, first of all, let us look at those who are in favour of its removal or dismissal, undoubtedly with Satan somewhere in the mix.

In the New York Post in September 2020, it was confirmed that “Black Lives Matter scrubbed a page on its website this week that disparaged the Western-prescribed nuclear family structure….they removed a page titled ‘What We Believe’ that included its public policy positions as well as describing itself as part of the ‘global Black family.’  It read, before its removal, as follows:

“We disrupt the Western-prescribed nuclear family structure requirement by supporting each other as extended families and ‘villages’ that collectively care for one another, especially our children, to the degree that mothers, parents, and children are comfortable.”

Noelle Mering in her book “Awake, Not Woke: A Christian Response to the Cult of Progressive Ideology” wrote the following: 

“Targeting of the family is intrinsic to the agenda of woke ideology precisely because of the way the family is meant to uphold the dignity of the person and serve as a bulwark against political tribalism. A healthy well-formed family is preventative; it provides the belonging and care that prepares one to walk confidently into adulthood. As the family is weakened, the pull toward tribalism grows, feeds, and repeats itself.”   

A review of her book states that ‘‘Awake, Not Woke’ unmasks this ideology by examining its history, major players, premises, and tactics, showing us that ‘Wokeness’ at its core is an ideology of rupture. Indeed, it is an ideology with fundamentalist and even cult-like characteristics that is on a collision course with Christianity.”  It goes on to say “This is a spiritual battle, and it is not accidental. The architects of revolution have long known that the transformation of the West had to come by way of destabilizing the social, familial, and religious pieties of a citizenry.”

Clearly, those who oppose God and His plan for humanity want to destroy the traditional family because it stands in the way of their desire to rule in God’s place.

John Deighan wrote in Faith Magazine (November-December 2007) the following, and these are but brief extracts from a long article, entitled, “The Undermining of the Family: Where are we at?”:

“The Church recognises the family as the building block of society and for good reason has carefully defended the understanding of family relationships and of human sexuality which is so intimately linked to the ordering of family life and the procreation of succeeding generations.

“Recent changes in legislation have transformed the legal understanding of family structure and human sexuality. These changes have been preceded by changes in the views being promoted in the culture shaping institutions of society such that there are now a considerable number of people in the areas of politics, law, media and education who are ready to implement a new agenda for family and social life.

“Issues around sexuality and sexual practice are therefore powerful factors in shaping public attitudes and concomitantly the policies of public authorities. An important aspect of this cultural development has been the influential presence of the homosexual movement in public life. The role of this movement as a tool to marginalise religion in society should not be overlooked. An overview of the progress of the homosexual movement in recent years is necessary to assess its rapid and startling success.

“To gain an insight into the end point aimed at by homosexual campaign groups it is useful to consider and the terms ‘homophobia’ and ‘heterosexist’. We need to understand what the abolition of the supposed social evils they label will achieve. The former is understood as dislike of homosexuality and the latter as the belief that heterosexuality is the norm. By working to get these recognised as social evils akin to racism or sexism it has been possible to get towards the goal, which is that homosexual behaviour is firmly accepted in society and that society should be indifferent to the form of relationships which individuals choose to enter or make the basis of their family lives.

“In 2000 we saw the removal of the law which prevented the promotion of homosexuality by local authorities (Clause 2a) because it was maintained that no-one would ever want to promote homosexuality.

“The next stage was the promotion of the concept that sexuality is not biologically determined but rather socially constructed. The Gender Recognition Act 2004 was introduced to allow individuals to choose their ‘gender’ and it is permissible to be of male sex and have a female gender.

“The Civil Partnership Act, passed in November 2004, raised homosexual relationships to the same status as marriage by granting the same rights to couples entering a civil partnership as to spouses entering marriage. 

“Having established that homosexual relationships are the same as heterosexual relationships, the next step of promoting homosexual relationships as equal in providing a suitable environment to raise children logically and actually followed. The adoption bill permitted homosexual couples jointly to adopt and in another strike against the status of marriage also allowed unmarried couples to adopt. This bill was given overwhelming approval by the Scottish Parliament in December 2006. 

“The homosexual lobby has been very effective in aligning itself with minority groups, is prominently represented at the Holocaust memorial service each year and has created an image of itself as a group of people under persecution. This further prepares the mood for dealing with those who oppose the homosexual lifestyle, or in fact not just those who oppose it but those who fail to approve it.”

We can see the “frog in boiling water” principle at work in the above account. The end product is that today, any group of people can live together and proclaim that they are a family. By biblical standards they are not, unless they conform to the biblical standard of a husband and wife and any children that they may have, which is something that society is trying to eliminate.

On the biblicalhealingrevolution website under their heading: “Is woke-ism trying to Eradicate Christianity and the family?” we read:

“Their agenda includes teaching our children critical race theory, child molestation, paedophilia, drag queen children’s shows, same-sex bathrooms, locker rooms, and men competing in woman’s sports.  Worse yet are puberty blockers, gender transformation, body mutilating sex-change surgeries for children, and yes even children sacrifice.”

We know that God is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33) but Satan the devil is, as he is trying his best to turn everyone, especially those called by God, away from the way that God wants us to live according to His Way of Life.

(To be continued)

Lead Writer: Brian Gale (United Kingdom)

compiled by Dave Harris

“Mein Reich ist nicht von dieser Welt,” last Sabbath’s German sermonette presented by Mike Richter, is now posted. Title in English: “My Kingdom is Not of This World.”

“Let Us Choose Wisely,” last Sabbath’s sermonette presented by Brian Gale, is now posted. Here is a summary:

We should surround ourselves, wherever possible, with uplifting and positive true Christians, whose guiding principles would be wholly positive and not disruptive to our faith in any way ensuring that the company we keep is helpful to our calling.

“Parents Are to Teach Their Children About God and the Bible,” last Sabbath’s sermon presented by Norbert Link, is now posted. Here is a summary: Is it the responsibility of parents or the church to teach children about God and the Bible? What is the function of the church, and what must parents—both fathers and mothers—do? And what do children and young people have to consider? The Bible warns us that if we fail to live up to our responsibilities, the consequences will be disastrous.

On December 30, 2023, Brian Gale will present the sermonette, titled, “Let Us Choose Wisely,” and Norbert Link will present the sermon, titled, “Parents Are to Teach Their Children About God and the Bible.”

The live services are available, over video and audio, at http://eternalgod.org/live-services/ (12:30 pm Pacific Time; 1:30 pm Mountain Time; 2:30 pm Central Time; 3:30 pm Eastern Time; 8:30 pm Greenwich Mean Time; 9:30 pm Central European Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

When God intervenes in our lives, it is not always the opening of the Red Sea before us but mostly in small areas and at times totally unaware by us, at least at first.

I was in Penticton for a lung function test at the hospital and afterwards, I went to Walmart to pick up a few things.  As I entered the store, I thought, “I don’t need a basket with the wheels on them since I will only have a few items which I can carry in my arms,” thinking that the coffee I was intending to buy would not be on sale and I would just get a couple of jars, which would be easy to carry with the other few small items I needed. To my complete surprise the coffee was on sale—a savings of over two dollars a jar, so I quickly went and got a rolling basket and put quite a few jars of regular and also decaf coffee in the basket. I also picked up four other items, and as I was walking down the aisle, I thought, “I will not l be able to carry all this so I will have to purchase a bag with handles which are around two dollars to carry the goods to the van.”

As I turned on the passage way to the checkout, there was an employee with a shopping cart full of small boxes. I immediately asked if I could have one to carry my goods in, which she allowed.  At the self-checkout I was surprised that the width of the box was a perfect fit for six jars of coffee, and it was about 4 inches high and everything fit inside and it was easy to carry. When I got to the van, I thanked God for assisting me in getting a box for the goods and how perfectly the jars of coffee fit and even though I had not asked for His help, He provided for my needs and saved me two dollars. 

God knows our every need and is aware of our thoughts and nothing is hidden from Him. If He numbers the hairs of our heads, as Matthew 10:30 says, then He is aware of us in an intimate way, and I thanked Him for that.

Zechariah 4:10 tells us not to despise small things. The indication is to rejoice in them; especially, when He is intervening in those small areas of our lives.

I told the following story before, but it is worth repeating because of the lessons learned from God intervening for us in small areas. 

My son-in-law had been looking at houses in the area in the summer, and I wanted to look at a house myself, so I got on my scooter and went searching. I knew the general area but could not find the house. I thought to myself, “I need a map of Summerland.” Needing to go to the bank, I headed for town. The bank is at the corner of two streets so it offers six or more options as to where to park. As I approached it, I saw a spot alongside the bank, close to the front door. I pulled into the spot, pulled the scooter onto the kickstand and looked down to the ground. To my complete surprise, there was a map of Summerland, undamaged and in good shape. My immediate thought was, “Nice touch, Father.”

God supplied my needs without me asking.

The lesson in all this is that we are going into another calendar year very shortly.  We will face various trials and tests and there will be times when we need intervention. It’s really comforting to know that as God’s children, He cares for us, watches over us and at times fulfills our needs before we even ask.

Matthew 6:8 tells us:  “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.”

We must never lose sight of this important fact because as a loving Father, He is looking after us, and also our needs, and even more. It says in Luke 12:32: “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

What more could we ask for?

by Norbert Link

We begin with the failed attempt by the USA to convince other countries to send warships to the Red Sea under the command of the Pentagon; speak on measures in Russia and Poland to silence governmental opponents; the fear that the 1930s are making a comeback; and the concern of an economic expert that we will experience a huge crash in 2024.

Please view our new StandingWatch program, titled, “What‘s in Store for ‘24?”

We speak on developments in Germany demanding a war tax for Ukraine and the concept of German rearmament, as well as the idea of punishing Ukrainian men who fled to Germany to avoid fighting in war. We also speak on Ukraine’s ongoing corruption.

We address Catholic opposition to Pope Francis’ decree to bless homosexual couples; his attack on the war industry; the feeling that UFOs are demonic; the objections to Christmas celebrations and a push in Germany to force foreigners to buy Christmas trees.

Throughout this section, we have underlined pertinent statements in the quoted articles, for the convenience and quick overview of the reader.

Not Under American Command

The Ron Paul Institute wrote on December 23:

“Australia is the latest country to reject a request from the United States to send warships to the Red Sea under the command of the Pentagon’s Operation Prosperity Guardian to protect commercial vessels along the critical maritime trade route from Iran-backed Houthi…Reuters said about twenty countries have signed up for the Pentagon’s new operation. However, several countries, including Australia, Spain, Italy, and France, have rejected the Pentagon’s request to participate in the operation. 

“Spain’s Defence Ministry said it would only participate in NATO-led missions or European-coordinated operations – not ones commanded by the Pentagon… Italy’s Defence Ministry voiced similar concerns…

“The fact that seven major shipping companies… have halted sails through the Red Sea shows their lack of confidence in the US protecting the critical waterway.”

Nation World News wrote on December 26:

“France, the Netherlands, Norway, and Denmark have also refused to send their warships against Houthi. One European country after another is refusing to cooperate in ‘Operation Prosperity Guardian, led by America. America is becoming isolated against the Houthis… Many NATO allies do not want to join the Red Sea Task Force. America… itself said that the US did not have enough warships to field against the Houthis… the US does not want to deploy its ships in the Red Sea… America fears that if its ships are attacked, a direct war will start with the Houthis; hence, America is also not sending its ships to Operation Prosperity Guardian. America’s coalition efforts to stop Houthi have proved useless, and in a way, it can be said that Houthi now has control over important waterways like the Red Sea…

“If war breaks out in the Red Sea, America will be trapped in a petroleum crisis… America has said that Iran is also involved in this conspiracy… American intelligence agencies have said that without real-time location and guidance, ships cannot be attacked and Iran itself is giving this guidance to Houthi.”

What another debacle for the USA!

Michigan Supreme Court Allows Trump to Stay on the Ballot

 Breitbart wrote on December 27:

 “Former President Donald Trump will remain on the ballot in Michigan after the Michigan Supreme Court rejected an appeal rooted in the Constitution’s ‘Insurrection Clause,’ although on procedural grounds…. It upheld the unanimous ruling of Michigan’s Court of Appeals, where a three-judge panel held that the argument… was not ripe (meaning that ruling on it would be premature). 

“However, the Michigan Supreme Court did not delve into whether or not it believed Trump engaged in insurrection as rooted in Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment…. In other words, the legal challenges are still not over.”

Russia Bars Challenger of Putin

Deutsche Welle wrote on December 23:

“Former TV journalist Yekaterina Duntsova has been barred from running in March’s presidential election because of ‘mistakes’ in her application for registration as a candidate, Russian television reported… Duntsova, 40, would have been a challenger to President… Putin, and was planning to run on a platform of ending the war in Ukraine and freeing political prisoners.

“With most Russian opposition figures either behind bars, like high-profile rival Alexei Navalny or outside the country, Putin seems almost certain to win a fifth term as head of state in March, cementing a decades-long grip on power… Had Duntsova’s application been accepted, under Russian election law she would still have to have obtained 300,000 signatures in support of her candidacy, from all across Russia by January 31.”

Surely, the methods employed by Russia to silence a political challenger and the methods employed by the Biden Administration to silence Trump are merely coincidental.

How Corrupt Russia Mistreats and Persecutes Dictator Putin’s Opponents

Newsmax wrote on December 25:

“Jailed Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny has been tracked down to a penal colony north of the Arctic Circle… about 1,900 km (1200 miles) north east of Moscow… Navalny’s allies, who had been preparing for his expected transfer to a ‘special regime’ colony, the harshest grade in Russia’s prison system, said he has not been seen by his lawyers since Dec. 6 and raised the alarm about his fate…

“Navalny’s new home, known as ‘the Polar Wolf’ colony, is considered to be one of the toughest prisons in Russia. Most prisoners there have been convicted of grave crimes. Winters are harsh – and temperatures are due to drop to around minus 28 Celsius there over the next week… the prison was founded in the 1960s as part of what was once the GULAG system of forced Soviet labor camps… Lawyer Zhdanov said supporters of Navalny had sent 618 requests for information about his location and suggested that the Russian authorities wanted to isolate Navalny ahead of the March presidential election.

“Navalny… says he has been imprisoned because he is viewed as a threat by the Russian political elite. As a prisoner, he is unable to run in the election. He denies all the charges he has been convicted of and casts Russia’s judicial system as deeply corrupt…

“Navalny, now 47, earned admiration from Russia’s disparate opposition for voluntarily returning to Russia in 2021 from Germany, where he had been treated for what Western laboratory tests showed was an attempt to poison him with a nerve agent. Navalny says he was poisoned in Siberia in August 2020…”

Russia is a corrupt dictatorship, and Putin a dictator and war criminal who systematically orders the murder or the incarceration of his opponents. Satan is clearly at work here.

Poland Silencing Governmental Opponents

The Guardian wrote on December 20:

“The new Polish government has gutted the top management of public television, making good on a campaign promise to reform a broadcaster that functioned as a mouthpiece of its rightwing populist predecessor, but also prompting criticism of their methods from some quarters.

“The government led by prime minister, Donald Tusk, was sworn into office last Wednesday…  On [the following] Tuesday, the new parliament adopted a resolution calling for the restoration of ‘impartiality and reliability of the public media’. After the resolution, the new culture minister, Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz, announced that the chairs and boards of state television, news and radio had all been removed.

“The vote prompted PiS lawmakers [from the Law and Justice Party, previously in power] to stage a protest outside the headquarters of TVP, the state broadcaster.

“… some questioned the legality of the moves, and cautioned that by acting in such a swift way, the Tusk government risked simply creating its own politicised public television network to replace the old one.

“The debate around public television shows how Tusk will have difficult choices to make as he attempts to enact a radical reform programme. PiS are still a vocal, large opposition voice in parliament, and the party ally Andrzej Duda remains president until 2025 and has veto powers. This leaves the government with a choice of either scaling down or delaying its ambitions, or finding creative legal ways to enact them.”

1930s All Over Again?

Express wrote on December 8:

“Recent developments in the Russo-Ukraine war have had a somewhat sobering effect on Ukraine’s short to mid-term prospects. Their counteroffensive of which so much was perhaps unfairly, expected has proved to be a bit of a damp squib, and the frontlines have barely shifted over the past few months… It’s pretty clear that the Russians are not going to pack it in and go home, and it’s equally clear that the Ukrainians are finding it hard going in their attempts to break the enemy’s lines…

“We also know that North Korea has been shipping ammunition in large quantities and in the required calibres from the east. We also suspect that China has been doing the same, despite their public denials. And then there’s Iran, which has supplied Russia with its Shahed-136/-131 one-way-attack drones (OWA/UAVs) and allowed the Russians to set up manufacturing lines at home to make more.

“… it does seem that the world is now dividing into two defined camps. On the one hand there is the USA and its NATO allies, plus Israel in the Middle East and its Indo-Pacific allies including Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Vietnam, and the Philippines among others.

“On the other side there is Russia, Iran, North Korea, and very probably China, a new ‘Axis of Evil’ if you like. Plus in South America there is Russia’s new best friend Venezuela under the de facto dictatorship of Nicolás Maduro threatening to annex part of neighbouring Guyana, in addition to the loose cannon that is Argentina under… Javier Milei…

“All of which combined appears to be scarily reminiscent of Europe in the 1930s, with the rise of Hitler and Nazi Germany and of Italy and Mussolini, added to the recently established fascist regime of Franco in Spain. And Japan was rattling her sabre in the Pacific and threatening the dominance of the USA.

“Could we be witnessing in plain sight the gearing up for another world conflict?… it can happen by default as well as by design.

“None of which is particularly helpful for Zelensky and Ukraine. Nobody wants to say it, but the Ukrainians are quite clearly fighting NATO’s proxy war against the clear and present danger that is a resurgent Russia under Putin. If Ukraine succumbs to the Russian onslaught, where next? Poland? The Baltic states? If that were to happen then NATO would become directly engaged via Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty and the resulting war would be terrible to behold…”

Biggest Crash in Our Lifetime in 2024?

The Daily Mail wrote on December 24:

“… economist… Harry Dent claims the effects of the crash will ‘be obvious’ by May and will slow the economy for over a decade. He told Fox Digital: ‘If I’m right, it is going to be the biggest crash of our lifetime, most of it happening in 2024’… He added: ‘When this asset bubble bursts and the price of everything, especially housing, comes back down to reality, imagine, not only can you buy the house you want at half-off… you can buy twice as nice a house here for the same mortgage you were going to get before…’

“Market bubbles are characterized by a rapid rise in stock prices, before a sharp fall and Dent says that sky-high prices are going to plummet next year… People will be hurt ‘the most’ by the real estate crash, which he says will drop housing prices back to 2012 prices. He said: ‘That’s a 50% crash for the average house, which went down 34% in the last crash, more than the Great Depression, more than any time in history…’”

Germany “Must” Arm Itself!

Bild Online pushed the following on December 23:

“After Defense Minister Boris Pistorius…, more and more politicians and experts are demanding that Germany must prepare for an attack, for example from Russian dictator Vladimir Putin…. The head of the Munich Security Conference Christoph Heusgen… is therefore calling for military spending to be doubled…

“More should be said and taught about the Bundeswehr and war at schools and universities. Teacher President Stefan Düll… wants, among other things, visits by youth officers to schools. He also calls for consideration of whether curricula need to be sharpened ‘with regard to threats, geostrategy and defense preparedness.’”

Indoctrination and invitation to become cannon fodder for our innocent children in schools! What else is new? But it is taking on increasingly dangerous forms.

Erdogan vs. Netanyahu

 The Jerusalem Post wrote on December 27:

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is worse than Adolf Hitler. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan charged as he likened the IDF’s military campaign to oust Hamas from Gaza to the World War II Holocaust….  ‘All sorts of support comes from the United States. And what did they do with all this support? They killed more than 20,000 Gazans,’ he said.

“Netanyahu shot back, ‘Erdogan, who is committing genocide against the Kurds and who holds the world record for imprisoning journalists who oppose his regime, is the last person who can preach morality to us.’ ‘The IDF, which is the most moral army in the world, is fighting to eliminate the most abhorrent and brutal terrorist organization in the world, Hamas-ISIS, which has committed crimes against humanity, and which Erdogan has praised and whose leaders he hosts,’ Netanyahu stated.”

Conscription for Ukraine?

Bild Online wrote on December 23rd:

“Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians living abroad should be mobilized for military service in the fight against Putin’s invading army! The Ukrainian parliament is currently working on a corresponding draft law… There are currently around 700,000 Ukrainians subject to military service living in the EU states. Since the start of the war, around 180,000 Ukrainian men between the ages of 18 and 60 have fled to Germany alone and are still staying here… The bill is scheduled to be put to the vote in January…

“Already this week, the new Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umjerow … said that next year he wanted to recruit Ukrainians living in Germany between the ages of 25 and 60 into military service at home. Estonia has already stated that it will locate and extradite Ukrainians in the country who are subject to military service…

“Umjewor’s announcement also sparked a discussion in Germany. Justice Minister Marco Buschmann explained… ‘It will not be the case that we are now forcing people into conscription or military service against their will.’ It is good that the war refugees have been accepted. CDU defense expert Roderich Kiesewetter… demanded… that the citizen’s allowance of Ukrainian men who are subject to military service should be reduced. And further: If the men didn’t want to go to the front, they could be deployed in homeland security. That could be clarified in a government agreement.”

Kiesewetter’s statements are simply outrageous. And Ukraine’s planned methods are absolutely condemnable.

German War Tax for Ukraine?

Breitbart wrote on December 25:

“The struggling German population should be forced to pay a Ukraine tax to continue funding the war against Russia, a top economic advisor to the government has argued.

“Monika Schnitzer, the chairwoman of the German Council of Economic Experts, an advisory body to the government known locally as the ‘five sages’ of the economy, declared this week that a special tax to send money to Ukraine should be added to the already hefty income tax levied against the population… The recommendation to introduce a Ukraine tax comes as the public already labours under one of the highest tax rates in the West… The German economy has been deeply impacted by the war in Ukraine…”

How crazy can it get?

More Corruption in Ukraine

Die Welt wrote on December 23:

“A high-ranking Defense Ministry official has been arrested in Ukraine for allegedly embezzling 36 million euros. The money was actually intended for grenades…

“In recent months, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry has been rocked by several corruption scandals. At the beginning of August, Zelensky had already fired all heads of the regional offices responsible for recruiting. He denounced a system that enabled conscripts to be smuggled out of the country.”

One has to wonder where all the money goes which is being sent to Ukraine.

Catholic Bishops Disagree With Pope Francis—Permanent Split Coming?

Fox News wrote on December 23:

“Following the Vatican’s publication of Fiducia Supplicans — a document outlining when individuals in same-sex or otherwise ‘irregular’ couples can be blessed — the worldwide Catholic Church has seen battle lines forming around its application. While early disputations came from African prelates in countries such as Nigeria, Zambia, Cameroon, and Malawi, now Eastern European leaders [from Poland and Ukraine] have joined in dissent.”

African News and the Associated Press reported on December 24:

“In an extraordinary pushback against Pope Francis, some Catholic bishops in Africa, Poland and elsewhere say they will not implement the new Vatican policy allowing blessings for same-sex couples… The reactions show how polarizing the issue remains… Some of the strongest responses came from bishops in Africa, home to 265 million Catholics, or nearly a quarter of the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics. Many of those Catholics live and their churches operate in societies where homosexuality is condemned and outlawed.

“Out of the continent’s 54 countries, 31 have laws criminalizing homosexuality, more than any other continent,..

“The Polish bishops conference — among the most conservative in Europe and a reference point beyond the continent given its ties to St. John Paul II — said it has no plans to give blessings to same-sex couples. Marriage, the conference asserted, remains only the union between a man and a woman, and sexual acts outside of that are ‘always an offense against God’s will’…”

Newsmax added on December 22:

“The former head of the Vatican’s doctrinal office called Pope Francis’ recent approval allowing priests to bless same-sex couples blasphemous…. ‘The difficulty of blessing a union or couple is especially evident in the case of homosexuality,’ Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller, who led the Vatican’s doctrinal office from 2012 to 2017, wrote in an essay published Thursday by The Pillar. ‘For in the Bible, a blessing has to do with the order that God has created and that he has declared to be good.’…

“Some Catholic leaders… are warning that the pope’s declaration may create a permanent split in the church, pointing to stark disagreements over the issue in the Anglican Communion. Conservative Anglican churches, which include some in Africa where nearly half of the world’s estimated 100 million Anglicans worship, have broken with sister churches that back liberal teaching and views on homosexuality. This includes the Episcopal Church in the United States.

“Further, a dozen leading Anglican archbishops, mainly from the global South, called to break with the Church of England after it decided to allow blessings of gay relationships.’

On the other hand, President Biden and some bishops in Germany welcomed the Pope’s decision to bless homosexual couples.

Francis Speaks Out Against the Weapon Industry

The New York Post wrote on December 25:

“Pope Francis on Monday used his annual Christmas address to push for Mideast peace while blasting weapons makers and their ‘instruments of death’ for helping to fuel such conflicts… Hitting out at the weapons industry, Francis argued that it is fueling conflicts around the globe. The pope called on people to pay more attention to the amount of their tax dollars going to weaponry…. ‘And how can we even speak of peace when arms production, sales and trade are on the rise?’

“Francis went on to say that today’s wars… are simply being used to try out new weapons or use up old stockpiles.”

He also attacked abortion, calling it a massacre and murder.  He is correct on both counts.

UFOs—It’s All Demonic

LifeSiteNews wrote on December 22:

“The popular conservative political commentator Tucker Carlson recently shared his belief that the non-human beings the U.S. government has reportedly encountered are ‘not aliens’ but are ‘spiritual’ in nature… Carlson went on to affirm his belief in both good and evil non-human spiritual beings, although he did not label them outright…

“His interpretation accords with that of Catholic philosopher Daniel O’Connor, who shared with LifeSiteNews last year his thoughts on the ‘diabolical’ nature of reports of UFOs, aliens, and abductions. O’Connor also weighed in on former president Barack Obama’s ‘hope’ that ‘the knowledge that there were aliens out there would solidify people’s sense that what we have in common is really more important,’ and his speculation that ‘new religions would pop up’ in the aftermath of the discovery.

“O’Connor believes Obama would not have talked about the possibility of alien life without ‘permission’ from his ‘handlers,’ and that his statement aligns ‘perfectly’ with what the public is being prepared for. O’Connor told LifeSiteNews editor-in-chief John-Henry Westen that the public is gradually being acclimated to the idea of aliens, like the proverbial frog slowly boiled in a pot of water, so that we may eventually be presented with a ‘new gospel’ from ‘the heavens’ to replace Christ’s Gospel.

“Regarding reports of UFO encounters or alien ‘abductions,’ O’Connor believes ‘it’s all demonic.’” 

See our Q&A on this topic. https://www.eternalgod.org/ufos-aliens-angels-or-demons/

Christians Who Do Not Celebrate Christmas

Israel 365 News wrote on December 24:

“…there are a growing number of ministries that have broken with the holiday… Breaking with Christmas was described as returning Christianity to its roots. The two main reasons cited for separating from Christmas were the holiday’s pagan origins and the lack of any Biblical source. Pastor Mark Biltz stopped celebrating Christmas 20 years ago, and he points to the Book of Jeremiah to explain how the Bible views the pagan origins of Christmas. [Jeremiah 10:2] describes a pagan holiday, complete with a decorated tree, that is unacceptable to the prophet. This pagan holiday eventually transformed into Christmas… When Emperor Constantine made Christianity the dominant religion of the Roman Empire, he incorporated many pagan customs, including Saturnalia, in order to accommodate the majority pagan populace… [It] was an ancient custom that the Catholic Church decided would be a great way to get pagans to accept their teachings…

“Separating from Christmas was described by many as part of a larger spiritual process, in some cases deriving from a desire to reconcile with Jewish roots and return to a Biblical understanding of the religion… Pieter and Anneke Leeuwestein from Holland stopped celebrating Christmas but found that despite living in a rural area outside of Amsterdam, they were not alone. ‘In my part of the country there are hundreds of people who do not celebrate Christmas or Easter anymore,’ Anneke said. ‘It wasn’t difficult. After so many years of walking in sin, it felt like coming home’…”

You Must Buy a Christmas Tree?

Deutsche Welle wrote on December 21:

”Friedrich Merz leader of Germany’s conservative opposition CDU on Thursday returned to the contentious topic of defining the country’s ‘Leitkultur’ – which could be translated as ‘guiding’ or ‘leading’ or ‘mainstream’ or even ‘dominant’ culture in English–by suggesting that the purchase of a Christmas tree was an integral part thereof.

“Speaking with the Funke Media Group, the outspoken politician said, ‘When we talk about Leitkultur, about our way of life, then, for me, this includes buying a Christmas tree before Christmas… It is part of our Western Christian-influenced identity,’ he continued, adding that it has been so for generations and as such influences today’s children, who will continue it into the future…

[The term ‘Leitkultur’] can often be ambiguous, for instance, whether the term lists examples of established German culture that migrants ought to accept and respect, or actually adopt themselves… Some critics of the concept saw a direct parallel to the concept of ‘Germanization’ propagated by the Nazis…

“Less than two weeks ago, the CDU released a blueprint for its vision of Germany’s future. Among the policy points the paper highlighted was one entitled, ‘The Courage to Embrace Leitkultur: Only those who acknowledge our dominant culture can integrate and become German citizens.’…

“One retired former German Cabinet minister, Ruprecht Polenz, interpreted Merz’s comments as an implicit demand for people to buy Christmas trees…”

It would be hard to believe that Merz’s comments were merely coincidental. Rather, his words appear to be intentional to set a dangerous precedence.

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

In the following series of Q&As, we will be setting forth comments for and against the divine institution of the godly-ordained family. It should come as no surprise that we wholeheartedly support and agree with the concept that marriage is between a man and a woman, and that the Christian family consists of such a union together with their child or children. We will be quoting opinions and statements from articles and books advocating this concept, and also those arguing against it, thereby showing how far our societies have departed from the mind of the living God of the Bible.

At the same time, we may not agree with those who, even though they support the traditional family, may advance ideas as to how, in their opinion, such a family should be functioning. We may agree with some or many of those concepts, but we may disagree with others, and we did not take the time to explain in each and every circumstance where we might disagree, even though we have, at times, added a “disclaimer” or further information. In any event, none of the quoted opinions should be viewed as including an endorsement on our part as to how the traditional family ought to live and behave, except when quoting Scriptures backing up those concepts. We are citing many published opinions, however, to show the discrepancy between those who advocate the institution of the traditional and godly-ordained family on the one hand, and the fight against the biblical family on the other hand, in trying to either replace it completely with totally ungodly “alternatives”, or to at least water it down by allowing such alternative lifestyles and representing them as being of equal or maybe even superior value.

When quoting opinions as to how to conduct a godly-ordained family, you will find that on numerous occasions, human thinking and reasoning is expressed, without biblical backup. Even though such reasoning might be acceptable and even applaudable in some cases, it might not be on other occasions. To give a pertinent example, you will find that some believing in the godly-ordained family propose that the husband must be the sole breadwinner, while the mother must stay at home to take care of their children. While this concept is desirable and might have been workable decades or centuries ago, it is most certainly not an option in many, if not most situations today. Many families—except for the rich and super rich—would not be able to financially survive with following such a proposal. But more importantly, it does not find support in the Bible. If we consider the biblical concept of a family, and how it should function, we find that the father and the son worked together in the field or in the occupation of the father. The children would not be sent away to be taught in school. Rather, the children would be taught at home by the parents or perhaps in the case of more wealthy families, by tutors coming to the home. However, in just about every quote trying to establish how a Christian family should function, these concepts and standards have been overlooked.

Today, even though we may have the concept of home-schooling in some countries, it is not permitted in other countries. And where it is permitted, parents—especially mothers, since the father is working “outside”—might not find themselves in a situation to be able to do so, nor is the home-schooling curriculum with provided textbooks in far too many cases seldom in harmony with biblical injunctions and teachings. In any event, unless both parents work from home, none of this reflects the standard as to how children were raised in biblical times. Satan has managed to create societies where, at first, the father leaves the home to go to work, then the children are sent away to school for most of the day where they are being indoctrinated with false teachings, and then the mother also leaves the home to pursue an outside career. Parents—father and mother alike—need to take the time to counteract what their children are being “taught” in school when it is in opposition to God’s Way of Life.

Still, the articles are quoted herein, pro and con, to show the confusion in our societies as to what a godly-ordained family is, and the degree to which our societies, ruled by Satan and his demons, have gradually, step by step, alienated the children from the parents, and vice versa. It is therefore incumbent upon all of us, while reading the following Q&As, to consider how we can, to the best of our abilities, fulfill our roles as parents and children, in pursuance of godly principles and directives.

There is no question that the traditional family is under attack today.

One-parent households, cohabitation without being married, same-sex families, and voluntary childless young couples are increasingly common while the traditional family, as designed by God, is in decline.

In our weekly Update #698, dated July 24, 2015, we had a Q&A, entitled, “What is a Family?” and we will quote briefly from this:

“The Creator God Who created man in His own image gave a blueprint in His instruction manual for mankind in order to enjoy life and live happily. The general definition of a family used to be ‘A fundamental social group in society typically consisting of one or two parents and their children.’ We must further add that those parents should be married as the Bible clearly teaches that ‘living together’ without being married is sin. There are many verses in the Bible that condemn fornication (see 1 Corinthians 6:18; Galatians 5:19; Ephesians 5:3; Colossians 3:5; 1 Thessalonians 4:3; and many other references).

“‘The Christian Home’ is the sub-heading of Colossians 3:18-21, showing the duties and responsibilities of family members, wives, husbands and children: ‘Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.  Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter toward them. Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.’

“One on-line commentator made these observations: ‘All Christians believe families are important. Many Christians believe that the family is the best place for having, and raising children. They believe God intended the family to be a place where children can be raised in a loving and supportive environment. They also believe parents should raise their children to learn about, and believe in God. The love that family members show to each other, should show how much God loves everyone. Many Christians believe that parents play an important role in showing their children, and non-family members, how much God loves and cares for them.

“The family, as correctly defined, is vital to a healthy society today.”

There are those today who seek to eliminate the family as we have known it and as God instructed.

To give a most recent example, Breitbart reported on December 24, 2023:

“A Catholic parish in southern Italy has exhibited a Nativity scene featuring the Virgin Mary together with another woman in place of Saint Joseph. Father Vitaliano Della Sala, the pastor of the parish of Saints Peter and Paul in the southern province of Avellino, said he created the provocative crèche scene to underscore the changing shape of families and the need for a more inclusive Church. I placed ‘two mothers in the crèche,’ Father Della Sala wrote on Facebook. ‘This year I see the light of Christmas also shining on these families affected by inhuman and anti-evangelical criticism and condemnation.’ There are ‘so many ways of being a family’ because ‘nothing is impossible with God!’ he said.”

This decision has drawn sharp reactions from Catholics in Italy, as has the decision of Pope Francis to bless same-sex couples. The former head of the Vatican’s doctrinal office, Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller, called the decision “blasphemous” (Newsmax, dated December 22, 2023), and Franklin Graham wrote that “none of us, including the Pope, has the right to ‘bless’ what God calls sin” (Newsmax, dated December 21, 2023). It was also stated that one cannot bless something which is sinful, as blessings are restricted to something which is good. Still, we can see from these examples how far our societies and churches are willing to go to attack the divine concept of a godly-ordained marriage.

The following Q&As will look at the attacks on the family, and will also review those who fully support this God-given institution.  We know and understand that Satan is the “god of this age” (2 Corinthians 4:4) and “the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2), and that his broadcasting and evil influence permeates every strata of society in every part of the world.   We must never underestimate what Satan and his demons can achieve. 

Our member letter of February 2023 included these comments: “Deception has been rampant in various shapes and forms for mankind since the time that Satan deceived Eve. Satan’s manipulation influenced the judgment of Eve. He blatantly lied to her, leading her to believe that it was a good thing to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Her choice in believing Satan demonstrates a form of deception that is very direct and intentional. His motive was to tell her a lie and cause her to disobey the commandment from God.”

Satan’s involvement with the race of man since the dawn of civilization has been relentless and, as he knows, his time is short.  His relentlessness is aimed primarily, but not exclusively, at the people of God, and in Revelation 12:9, he is noted as “the one who deceives the whole world.”

(To be continued)

Lead Writers: Norbert Link and Brian Gale (United Kingdom)

compiled by Dave Harris

“What‘s in Store for ‘24?” is the title of a new StandingWatch program, presented by Evangelist Norbert Link. 

Here is a summary:

Some feel that today’s events are scarily reminiscent of Europe and the USA in the 1930s. Will we see a repeat in 2024?

“Was ist uns klar fürs neue Jahr?” is the title of a new AufPostenStehen program, presented by Norbert Link. This program in German covers the same subject as described above in English.

“Eltern müssen ihre Kinder über Gott und die Bibel belehren,” this Sabbath’s German sermon presented by Norbert Link, is now posted. Title in English: “Parents Are to Teach Their Children About God and the Bible.”

“Weihnachten und was daraus wird,” last Sabbath’s German sermon presented by Thilo Hanstein, is now posted. Title in English: “Christmas and What Comes of It.”  

“Having a Strong Connection With God,” last Sabbath’s first split sermon, presented by Christoph Sperzel, is now posted. Here is a summary:

Do you know God? Do you know Him well? Do you have contact with God? And what can we do to make the connection stronger?

“Right Prayer and Meditation,” last Sabbath’s second split sermon, presented by Norbert Link, is now posted. Here is a summary:

How do you pray, and what are you praying for? How do you meditate, and in what way? Can we pray and meditate amiss? And what is the connection between right prayer and right meditation?