(Español: ¿Deberíamos tener miedo al futuro?)

The world lives in fear—in fear of a nuclear war; fear of sickness and disease; fear of the end of the world; fear of a car accident; fear of dying in an airplane crash; fear of financial disaster and the loss of work; and fear of death in general. One of the greatest fears is also directed towards our fellow men… the concern how they would act and react when one stands up for the Truth.

How about true Christians? How about you? Do you live in fear? If so, this series of articles will explain how we can overcome our fears.

As mentioned, one of the biggest fears which we could have is the fear of men—what they might think or say or do if we embrace and live by the Truth of God’s Word.

To “bear witness of Jesus Christ” means different things to different groups of nominal Christian religions. To some, “bearing witness of Jesus Christ” involves proselytizing to as many people as will pass by. To others, bearing witness involves merely going to church services to socialize with others of like mind. An innumerable variety of interpretations abound beyond these two examples as well. But what does the Bible say in regard to the responsibility of a Christian to “bear witness of Jesus Christ”?

Rightly understood, the Bible nowhere uses these terms. Where then does the idea of “bearing witness of Jesus Christ” come from? Two of the primary Scriptures in the Bible that describe bearing witness of the things and events pertaining to Jesus and the message which He brought can be found when He addresses His disciples in John 15:27 and Luke 24:48.

In our last Q&A, we answered the question whether there still will be a future king of the South. We explained that even though the prophecy in Daniel 11 regarding the king of the South has been fulfilled, the prophecy could be dual and find another end-time fulfillment in the near future, but if so, the king of the South would have to be Ethiopia which could be leading several Arab nations, including Egypt and Libya, against Europe.

In addition, we showed from Psalm 83 that other Middle Eastern nations, including Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Iraq and Jordan, will at first form a confederacy with Europe (under German leadership) against “Israel.”

The previous Q&A limited and confined our comments mainly to the friendly or hostile relationship of Middle Eastern nations with continental Europe. In this Q&A, we will address the relationship of Middle Eastern nations with “Israel.”

We have been writing and speaking at length about a future king of the South, and we have NEVER said that there will not be one, even though we made clear that there does not HAVE to be one. At the same time, we have pointed out that future confederations of Arab states with and against Europe will be formed, even though technically, those might not be referred to as “the king of the South.”

Let us once again review what we have been stating on the subject, while limiting and confining our comments in this Q&A to the relationship of Middle Eastern nations with continental Europe.

To begin with, we said this in our Q&A, “Who is the king of the South?” 

“Many believe, based on prophecies contained in the 11th chapter of the book of Daniel, that immediately before the return of Jesus Christ, a powerful Arab leader or ‘king of the South’ will still arise in the Middle East. Daniel 11:40-41 says: ‘At the time of the end the king of the South shall attack [or: push at] him [the king of the North]; and the king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter the countries, overwhelm them, and pass through. He shall also enter the Glorious Land, and many countries shall be overthrown…’

We have warned time and again of worldwide plagues and disease epidemics which will come upon mankind in these last days.

We said the following in our Q&A on the events foretold by Jesus Christ in Matthew 24:

“The third horse of the Apocalypse (mainly famine) is followed, according to Revelation 6:7-8, by a pale horse, and the rider’s name is ‘Death,’ and ‘Hades’ or ‘the Grave’ follows him. Christ says in Matthew 24:7 that famines will be followed by pestilences [see also Luke 21:11]… Historically, the Black Death alone killed upwards of one-third of the people living in Europe in the 14th century. The Spanish flu pandemic lasted from March, 1918, to June, 1920, spreading even to the Arctic and remote Pacific islands… estimates put the number of those who were killed at 40 to 50 million people…

We occasionally receive inquiries from people asking about our origins and beliefs. While there are endless claims by various groups that they, alone, are the one and only true Church of God, the question remains—can they prove it?

Jesus, when warning about false prophets, said, “‘by their fruits you will know them’” (Matthew 7:20). The “fruits” of true Christians can be understood as the way of living among those who have received God’s Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22-25). By contrast, note what Paul writes:

“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).

In the first two parts of this series, we showed from the Bible that God can and does indeed listen to many prayers at the same time, and we showed how this is possible. However, we also showed that God does not listen to billions of prayers at the same time; in fact, He may only listen to a few thousand who pray to Him. But even this concept may be too difficult to grasp for the limited human mind, and so, in this final installment, we will point out additional important aspects in respect to God’s hearing and answering our prayers.

It may be easier for man’s mind to grasp the fact that God can and does listen to multiple prayers at the same time, and that He acts on them at the same time, when we realize that God is not just one Being, but a Family, consisting of two God beings—the Father and Jesus Christ, the Son. We are told that when we pray to the Father, we may and should do this “in the name of Christ” (compare John 14:13; 16:23-24, 26). This concept needs to be understood in its full magnitude and application.

In the first part of this series, we showed from the Bible that God can and does indeed listen to many prayers at the same time, and we showed how this is possible. We explained that God consists of two Persons, the Father and the Son, who are both Spirit Beings, having [spiritual] form and shape; and therefore, God cannot be, as a Person, at different places at the same time. Still, the Bible teaches that God is omnipresent, and we showed that this is true because of the Holy Spirit, emanating from both the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit is NOT a Person with form and shape. It can be compared with water or electricity or wind, emanating from a source—God Himself. It is through the Holy Spirit dwelling in each converted Christian that  God is omnipresent and that He can listen to multiple prayers at the same time.

This question has perplexed many people, and the attempts of theologians and other religious “experts” to answer it are even more perplexing and confusing. Here are some samples, taken from the Internet:

“I see God as Ultimate Consciousness: an eternal, all-knowing, pure-loving reality that birthed and continues to sustain the universe… And so, our prayers… are already in God. They are part of the fabric of this awesome universe…”

“God is timeless… A being as big as the universe would experience all time in history at the same moment.”

“God is in us, and we are in God. That mutual indwelling means that our prayers are not even our prayers: They are God’s, and God is praying within us… there is no gap between the prayer and the hearing of that prayer.”

We find many Scriptures in the Bible encouraging us to pray for others. But why? Why should a Christian spend time in praying for others, especially for those in the faith? Is there a benefit for doing this? What is God’s purpose in having us pray for each other?

One of the trademarks of a Christian is an attitude of outgoing concern for others. Putting others ahead of one’s self shows absolute love and kindness which is a key trait of one who calls him- or herself a Christian. Please note 1 Corinthians 13:4-7; Romans 12:10; Mark 12:31 and 1 Peter 3:8. All these Scriptures point out the fact that true love does not only think about oneself, but also about others. It is ALWAYS looking out for the betterment of others and their situations. Philippians 2:3-4 iterates: “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.  Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”