Dear Brethren and Friends,
As I write this letter, the UK is consumed with Brexit, with a country, families and politicians split on where their loyalties should lie. There has been, and still is, antagonism at all levels of society where even the politicians of all parties are not united within their own group. This all follows the result of the referendum on 23rd June 2016 where the result to leave the European Union was 52% against 48% who wanted to remain.
Since that time, negotiations have been ongoing between the UK and the EU with a withdrawal scheduled to occur on 29th March 2019. Many who have been following these events may now be tired of the wrangling, disputing, arguments, bickering, squabbling, in-fighting and general all round disagreeable altercations that have, and still are, taking place.
It would be a waste of everyone’s time in this brief letter to try and re-hash the main arguments of both sides of the divide but, suffice to say, it is the biggest political development for many decades in the UK. Many are genuinely concerned about staying in the EU—or leaving it, as the people voted. Whatever happens, the UK will be on a downward slope towards unprecedented times of great difficulty that is not understood by the British people nor by its politicians.
The Church of God has long warned that the nations descending from the ancient nation of Israel will be attacked by the European Union. In our free booklet The Fall and Rise of Britain and America (published in 2005), we read the following on page 40:
“The United States, Great Britain and the State of Israel in the Middle East will suffer at the hands of the rising superpower which is now developing in Europe. Scripture identifies the superpower as the prophesied seventh and last revival of the Holy Roman Empire in the form of ten nations or groups of nations. Europe will be led by an Assyrian king (‘King Jareb’), that is, by a powerful German-speaking leader. God will use Europe and especially the modern Assyrian ‘king’ to punish modern Israel and Judah for their spiritual treachery toward Him. Hosea 6:7 states: ‘… they (Ephraim and the modern house of Israel, as well as modern Judah, compare verse 4) transgressed the covenant… they dealt treacherously with Me.’ Notice, too, Hosea 8:7: ‘They sow the wind, And reap the whirlwind.’”
Our politicians are oblivious to anything other than the material; never it seems for a moment that they consider why the nation is experiencing such chaos. These same politicians are the ones who push through ungodly laws to satisfy some minority groups, and others, under the guise of equality; not, it seems, even for a moment realising the damage they are doing. God promised blessings or cursings (retribution) for the behaviour of the ancient Israelites as can be read in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28, and history shows us that they failed miserably. These same blessings and cursings are applicable to the descendants of Israel and Judah today as God doesn’t change (Malachi 3:6), but this is not understood by our current leaders nor by the mainstream churches.
The political system in the UK is to have a government and an opposition. Being opposed to something denotes disagreement which it turns out to be in practice most of the time. Wouldn’t it be a real step forward if the word “opposition” was replaced by “the co-operation”? So many don’t want to co-operate as this would probably reduce their chances of high office for the politically ambitious, but it could work well for the country.
In God’s Kingdom, democracy will be a thing of the past. Sir Winston Churchill observed that “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others”, and that is probably correct as long as man is in charge. When Christ returns, He will govern with love and perfection. We read in the book of Isaiah a prophecy that should thrill all of us who long for God’s Kingdom to come: “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).
“The government will be upon His shoulder” tells us who will be in charge, and this verse looks to a time, still future, when Christ will reign over a literal, earthly, kingdom that will encompass the whole earth. In Daniel 2:44 we read: “And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.” In Zechariah 14:9 we read: “And the LORD shall be King over all the earth. In that day it shall be—‘The LORD is one,’ And His name one.”
When Jesus Christ does return to this earth, Godly government will be the order of the day and “Brexit” and all of the other political manoeuverings and machinations of man, in every country around the world, will be history, and a glorious new world will begin. And it will last forever!
When we hear of all that is going on in the world, we can become downcast and discouraged, and Satan will be somewhere there in the mix. Let us think about, and pray for, God’s Kingdom to come as we are instructed to do (see Matthew 6:10) and make sure that we make it into God’s Kingdom for eternity, with Jesus Christ in charge, not man, and that will be perfect, just perfect!
With Christian love,
Brian Gale (United Kingdom)
