Below are answers to topics posed in THE RUGBY REGISTER magazine issued in Rugby, Warwickshire. The monthly answers following aim to stimulate hope in the turmoil of our troubled and scary world. Please explore our drop-down menus for other Study topics.
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The governments of the United Kingdom, the United States, the European Union and many others across the world, are striving to overcome the devastating problems that unscrupulous seekers of power and/or indulgence are bringing to millions.
The title of this article was the nature of our invitation to readers of ‘The Rugby Register’ local advertising magazine, and anyone else who cares to drop in, to share with us our investigations into what can be done to mitigate or even escape from the apparent disasters that lie ahead.
First we must recognise the complexity of the problem and we have found a table that helps very much in that respect.
Just looking at these problems it immediately becomes apparent that they are caused by many different people and nations. Is there a place to go to deal with worldwide problems like these. Well, the horror of World War II, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history, involved more than 50 nations fighting on land, sea and in air in nearly every part of the world. The end of this war led to a meeting of the leading nations of the world in San Francisco. Within months 29 nations formed the United Nations on October 24, 1945, and now it has 193 member states and a very grand charter. Let’s have a look!
When you look at the history of civilization on the earth there seems to be little hope of success. The Egyptians, Jews, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans and all empires down the ages gained their power by fighting, killing and oppression.
However, in the late 1940’s some extensive scrolls were discovered in a series of caves. Wikipedia tells us “researchers have assembled a collection of 981 different manuscripts – discovered in 1946/47 and in 1956 – from 11 caves.”
Paraphrasing Wikipedia, hundreds of professional researchers and scientists have worked on these largely Hebrew manuscripts, many of which are in fragments, to piece them together, date and translate. Below is an example of one of the larger scrolls.
Why are we telling you about these ancient scrolls? Well, It is because in looking at the modern world we have been unable to find the answer to our question, “Who controls our future ?”, if anybody in particular does in the modern world. By looking further afield, we found that manuscripts have been discovered that demonstrate the Old Testament of the Bible is a very old book and that it contains some amazing information.
We have been looking, very briefly, at the content of the caves discovered in the 1940s near the Dead Sea in Palestine. Wikipedia describes even more interesting to us, the contents of some caves found in 1957 plus, in the same area.
One of those researchers is Steve Rudd who had joined workers in several Archaeological sites in the Middle East as part of the team digging, co-ordinating their work schedules and compiling very detailed reports. Steve Rudd has compiled a long and detailed report of the content and age of some of these scrolls.[see end of this article]
The first cave in this you collection was called “Cave of Horror” because it contained the skeletons of Jews, including women and children, apparently hiding from results of the national revolt from the Roman occupation in 135 AD.
Rome had promptly brought in their ruthless armies to destroy and carry off captive many thousands Jews out of their land and ban them from living there. This community of Jews had hidden in the “Cave of horror” and leaving the cave would have meant surrendering to the Romans below. They did not want to do this and when their food stores run out they buried their precious scrolls at the back of the cave, burnt their possessions in the cave and starved to death.
The “Cave of Horror”, when discovered find in 1957, was named “Nahal Hever” and the main manuscript labelled, 8HevXllgr “Dodekapropheton”.
Analysis of the new batch of manuscripts (mss) revealed they were of the Greek ‘Septuagint’ translation of the Hebrew, described by Wikipedia as, “the Hebrew Torah (Old Testament) … translated into Greek at the request of Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285–247 BCE) by 70 or 72 Jewish scholars: six scholars from each of the Twelve Tribes of Israel.” The long translation process of the Septuagint was completed by 132 BCE.”
It is these manuscripts made at least 50 years before Jesus was born that we want to tell you about. Steve Rudd realized the amazing significance of the manuscripts and built a website detailing all the work that was done on them. Below are some extracts downloaded from his website. [see link to it given at the end of this article]
Here we have a few of the pieces of mss of the ‘12 Minor Prophets Manuscripts’ dated 50 BC (copy mss) by a team of experts.
The prophet Micah was active during the last half of the 8th century BC so he wrote hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus. The translation of fragments highlighted here together with many more in other of our articles on this website are very significant. Here is a summary of parts of one of them.
The Romans had occupied the land of Israel and put their man, Herod, an Idumean, on the throne. It is quite possible you will have heard how wise men came looking for a baby born to be king and thought Herod would be able to help them find him. Matthew 2 records they asked
2Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. 3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
As Herod wasn’t a Jew, and wasn’t religious he called the high priest and his associates to explain.
4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
They were able to tell him straight away.
5And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, 6And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.
You have already seen a copy of what the prophet Micah wrote long before Jesus was born.
Micah 5 2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. [Old Testament]
They had in their hands a copy of one of the many prophecies about Jesus Christ in the Old Testament. Reading a little further in Matthew 2 we see …
9 When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was … 11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh. 12 And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
So there really was a child, Jesus, there. But see what was going on in the palace.
16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.
Herod did not want to worship Jesus as he pretended to the wise men. He wanted to kill him to avoid any competition for the throne. This too was prophesied in the Old Testament, this time by the prophet Jeremiah active around 600 BC.
Jeremiah 31 15Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rachel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. [Old Testament]
Ramah is an area where Bethlehem, Jesus’s birthplace is situated.
13 … Behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child too. 14 When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: 15 And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.
And here is what the Old Testament prophet, Hosea, prophesied guided by God, over 750 years before Jesus was born.
Hosea 11 1When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.
So there we have 3 prophecies in the Old Testament that were fulfilled in these few verses in Matthew [New Testament].
Note: Jesus was uniquely God’s Son because Mary’s pregnancy was by a miracle – no man was involved. As the Angel who told her she would have a son said.
Luke 1 34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? 35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
Returning to Old Testament prophecy, Alfred Edersheim, an 18th Century Bible Scholar in his book, “The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah” [still available], found 456 Old Testament verses referring to the Messiah or His times. Conservatively, Jesus fulfilled at least 300” of those prophecies in the 1st Century.
Adding together all the Hebrew and Greek Dead Sea Scrolls that historical, scientific and archaeological experts have confirmed are genuine and were originally written well before Jesus was born, we have fragments from every book of the Old Testament except for the Book of Esther. Isaiah is complete and a number are substantially so.
Thus, the Old Testament is undoubtedly a book of TRUTH, and it provides, for those who read the Bible the answer to our opening question.
WHO CONTROLS OUR FUTURE ?
It certainly is not man … …
Proverbs 16 25 There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
God uses His Word the Bible to explain His purpose in creating the earth.
2 Peter 1:21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
He goes into great detail largely in the Old Testament and this passage from Isaiah giving us a good start into learning the future He is going to establish on the earth in place of the ruination and hopelessness that man is bringing the earth to.
5 I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: … … 7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things. … … 18 For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else. 19 I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth: I said not unto the seed of Jacob*, Seek ye me in vain: I the LORD speak righteousness, I declare things that are right. Isaiah 4 *One of the forefathers of Israel
The earth or civilization certainly will not be destroyed, however near man seems to be bringing that about.
29 The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever. Psalm 37
We could go on at length about these things, but the article would be far too long. So below links to articles that you might find interesting.
This presentation is one many on this website. The subjects included in it listed below might be an interesting follow up to the one above at some convenient time. To view please Ctrl+Click on any.
PLUS another demonstrating THE BIBLE IS TRUE.
How can Israel be God’s witnesses?
Earth full of knowledge of God’s glory
Why are we here?
Many scientists say the purpose of life is first survival, followed by reproduction. The New York Times says ‘The universe doesn’t care about your purpose’, and leading physicist Lawrence Krauss in his latest book says, the fact that we evolved on this planet is just a “cosmic accident”. But we have far better facts to put before you on our website. And you have probably joined us from our Home Page by invitation.
Of course, science does not say anything. It is ‘certain people’ who use it, that say things. A more accurate assessment of science is one given by Professor Carl Sagan (1934 – 1996). He was a famous American astronomer, cosmologist, astrophysicist, astrobiologist, author, science populariser, and science communicator in astronomy and other natural sciences.
He said, “Science is a way of thinking much more than it is a body of knowledge.”
“Albert Einstein, was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time, made the following profound statement.
“Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.”
And we support the view of many scientists that true religion and science go hand in hand especially as the claim that the truth of the Bible is based wholly on faith is false.
Hebrews 11 1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Let us show you an example.
First you need to be aware of the make up of the Bible. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so let us give it a try.
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If you are not familiar with the Bible, please have a good look at the above diagram. You will see that the Bible is written in two parts – the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament tends to be called the Hebrew Bible because it was written down and preserved by the Jews for centuries. They kept copies of their Bible in the temple in Jerusalem and their synagogues across the country long before Jesus was born.
We can read in the Bible in the first book of the New Testament how one day some men came from outside Israel to see Herod, the king, in Jerusalem. It is quite possible you will have heard about it, even if you have never read a page of the Bible.
Matthew 2 1Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
They had a question about a king and thought he would be able to help them.
2Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. 3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
Herod wasn’t a Jew, and he wasn’t religious. So he called the high priest and his associates to explain.
4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
They were able to tell him straight away.
5And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, 6And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.
We will stop here a moment to be sure that you appreciate the significance of the priests words. This is what the prophet Micah wrote around 500 years before.
Micah 5 2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
You can read it for yourself in any Old Testament Bible in Micah chapter 5. And this was not just a lucky guess. There are many prophecies about Jesus Christ in the Old Testament. Let’s just read a little further in Matthew 2 .
9 When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was … 11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh. 12 And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
So the child, Jesus, was really there. But see what was going on in the palace.
16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.
Herod did not want to worship Jesus as he pretended to the wise men. He wanted to kill him to avoid any competition for the throne. This too was prophesied in the Old Testament.
Jeremiah 31 15Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in *Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not.
Did Herod succeed in killing Jesus. Of course, not.
13 … Behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child too. 14 When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: 15 And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.
And here is what the Old Testament prophet, Hosea, wrote,
Hosea 11 1When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.
We have identified above at least three fulfilled prophecies in the second chapter of Matthew.
The only way this is possible is if there is an all knowing, all powerful, Creator God, in charge of what happens on the Earth and what is recorded in the Old and New Testaments.
Isaiah 45 11 Thus saith the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me. 12 I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded.
Thus, the basis of belief in our God (Heb: Yahweh) as Creator and Sustainer of all life and things throughout the universe, is not blind faith. It is based on the evidence of prophecy in the Old Testament of what happened later in the New Testament. Faith comes into our dealings with God as our Heavenly Father.
Now the answer is straightforward!
Genesis 1 1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. 3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
And He tells later,
Isaiah 45 18 For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.
So He had a purpose with the Earth and it involved people. In fact, if you read the first chapter of Genesis it describes the whole clothing of the earth with vegetation, trees, insects, animals, and so on, right up to man at the top.
Genesis 1 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
The highlighted phrase tells us that God needs thinking beings that can understand Him. The word ‘image’ in Genesis in the original Hebrew is צֶלֶם and means ‘similar’, rather than, ‘the same as God’. The similarities God gave human beings includes a mind that could think, reason, remember and have emotions in the same way as God can, and the ability to communicate with Him.
We suggest that God did not want to live in isolation, but rather with people around Him that are responsive and appreciative of what he does for them. For example, Moses was a man who showed much concern for his Heavenly Father.
God had chosen the nation of Israel to be His own people. He made a promise to them that He would love and care for them if they would do the same for Him. The blessings He lavished upon them, with the promise of even better times to come were amazing. And yet within a little time they were worshipping an idol that they had made and behaving abominably before Him so that God threatened to destroy them and start again with Moses. But rather than glow with pride, Moses’ first thought was for his Heavenly Father.
Exodus 32 11 And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand? 12 Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever. 14 And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people.
That is the kind of mutual relationship that God is looking for. Appreciation of what He does for people in return for remarkable protection and wonderful benefits top come.
John 3 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
We shall receive a new transformed body like the body Jesus now has.
1 John 3:2 2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
What an amazing body to have. But we must do our part to receive that huge honour of a body like Jesus with the ability to do the things he has done in the past and will do in the future, but plus much more. So let us hear and respond faithfully to the words of Jesus.
Mark 12 30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. 31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
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If you would like to know more about these important matters, we have Bible talks and invite you to come and listen to one. They are held every Sunday, God willing, and the coming subjects can be found on the “Sunday Bible talks details” page at the top of the page. (Please us red arrow on right.) We also have more articles and some audio and video recordings covering many Bible topics in our “Bible study” section.
Wikipedia reports “Artificial Intelligence” (AI) is intelligence demonstrated by machines”. AI tells of “the formation of our universe and the evolutionary events which created life as we know it.”.
But hear what God says,
“I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded.” Isa 45:12
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. Artificial Intelligence
We emphasise, AI is not truly intelligent, but rather, it is well-designed to perform specific tasks within a set of man-made rules. AI lacks the ability to think independently, and understand the nuances of human speech and behaviour.
Professor Crawford has published a number of scientific books on her subject area. Her latest book, “Atlas of AI,” was published by Yale University Press in May 2021, and has been described as “timely and urgent” by Science.
”AI is made from vast amounts of natural resources, fuel, and human labour. And it’s not intelligent in any kind of human intelligence way. It’s not able to discern things without extensive human training, and it has a completely different statistical logic for how meaning is made. Since the very beginning of AI back in 1956, we have made this terrible error, a sort of original sin of the field, to believe that minds are like computers and vice versa. We assume these things are an analog [equivalent] to human intelligence, and nothing could be further from the truth.”
One of the most fundamental aspects of human consciousness and intelligence is the ability to understand the subtle art of language, from sarcasm to figures of speech. Robots simply cannot do that, which is why we can be confident true artificial intelligence will be impossible to develop. Here is the foundation to our confidence.
. Our God and Heavenly Father.
Turning our thoughts to God, the designer, creator, and sustainer of the universe, the situation is so very simple. As we have indicated,
18 For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else. I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth: I said not unto the seed of Jacob [Israel], Seek ye me in vain: I the Lord speak righteousness, I declare things that are right. Isaiah 45
As man’s creator God knows exactly what He has made. Especially as He has made man to be part of His purpose with the Earth.
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. Genesis 1
That tells us that God needs thinking beings that can understand Him. The word ‘image’ in Genesis in the original Hebrew is צֶלֶם and means ‘similar’, rather than the same as God. The similarities God gave human beings includes a mind that could think, reason, and have emotions in the same way as God can, and the ability to communicate with Him.
So intricate is His understanding of man that he knows the thoughts of man,
1 O lord, thou hast searched me, and known me. 2 Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. Psalm 139
God can even foresee the actions of people as we will see in the quote below. It describes the future actions of the army of a nation that is the enemy of God’s people – Israel.
10 Thus saith the Lord God; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought: 11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, 12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land. Ezekiel 38
You will see that those few verses describe the attack of one nation on another people in detail, and thus a prophecy, in this chapter and the next, of a war which is yet to come.
This war is not the subject of this article which is aiming to give you an idea of how the Bible describes life on our planet Earth as wholly the work of God and completely under His control.
Obviously, this is only a short description of a small part of the workings of life on earth which is under the control of a greatly superior intelligence to human beings and their inventions.
Now, there is a very important thing we must emphasise about God’s book from which we learn about Him and His purpose with the world. It contains absolute proof that it is a book of truth, and that God exists.
The Old Testament contains many prophecies of the coming of the Lord Jesus to the earth and it was complete before his birth. When Jesus was born the Old Testament was in the hands of many Jews around him and therefore they had read it and were expecting Jesus. Here is an amazing example in an incident remembered every year by millions of people! It is recorded in Matthew 2.
. THE TRUTH OF THE BIBLE
Soon after the birth of Jesus, we can read wise men wanted to see the child. They came to king Herod and asked,
2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. Matthew 2
Herod called the priests to ask if they knew about this and they referred him to their scriptures, now known as the Old Testament, and the prophet Micah who lived over 700 years before Herod’s day.
Prophecy: Micah 5: 2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. 5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, 6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel Matthew 2
We know from the New Testament that is where Jesus was born!
It is clear that even the priests, who reject Jesus, as the prophesied Messiah they were expecting – the Jews longed for a king and deliverer from the Romans.
But when Herod heard this he saw him as a possible rival and wanted to kill him. So, he sent soldiers into the Bethlehem area to kill all the children under two years old, a second prophecy (Jeremiah 13:15 ) thus fulfilled, but for time we will move on to a third fulfilled prophecy.
Also an Angel warned Joseph, the ‘father’ of Jesus, of the danger and sent him to safety In Egypt.
Prophecy: Hosea 11 1 When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.
14 When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: 15 And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son. Matthew 2
There are many fulfilled prophecies from the Old Testament in the New Testament. Thus, the Bible itself contains undeniably fulfilled prophecies.
And interestingly, there is outside support for the truth of the Bible in the form of the “Dead Sea Scrolls”. The BBC broadcast a programme with that title in their series “IN OUR TIME” on Thursday, 4th May 2023 now available on “BBC sounds” (on line). The many scrolls found in the caves on the shores of the Dead Sea included at least fragments from every book of the Old Testament except for the Book of Esther and up to a nearly complete one of Isaiah, all date back to at least 250 BC. Many are older.
. Conclusion
So, we can assure you that true “Artificial Intelligence” does not, and cannot exist in the universal realm of The Supreme Intelligence of Almighty God.
17 Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen. 1 Timothy 1
15 … who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; 16 Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen. 1 Timothy 6
The apostle John started his first letter with the most important message he had made since his call to follow Jesus.
1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; 2(For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us,) 3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, … that your joy may be full.
He spent nearly four years with Jesus and witnessed him die on the ‘cross’ and after his death, Jesus appeared to him alive. So he knew beyond doubt Jesus was resurrected. He had also seen a man named Lazarus who had been dead in his tomb 4 days brought back to life by Jesus.
43 … he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. 44 And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go. John 11
Returning to the resurrection of Jesus, there were many doubters in John’s day, just as there are today. Here’s an extract from 1 Corinthians 15. A chapter well worth reading that demonstrate’s there were a large number of witnesses to Jesus’ resurrection.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: 5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: 6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. 1 Corinthians 15
If you are wondering where Jesus is now, that is something else John witnessed. This time he was with the other ten of Jesus’ close disciples. Judas Iscariot of course had committed suicide.
9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. 10 And while they looked stedfastly as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; 11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
Jesus has been given eternal life as the following quotation from Romans shows.
The risen Jesus has been given eternal life, because he completely overcame sin.
9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. Romans 6
THE TRUTH ABOUT RESURRECTION
A fundamental cornerstone of God’s plan with His creation revolves around the need for men to be resurrected from the dead. This is in complete contrast to beliefs concerning heaven-going and the immortality of the soul.
Now since the truth of resurrection can only be found in the Bible, it is essential that our readers know why we are confident in the truth of the Bible. That confidence is based upon fulfilled prophecy contained in the Bible that can be proved to have been written before its fulfilment.
THE TRUTH OF THE BIBLE
So we are going to step aside to quickly give you a simple couple of examples of a fulfilled prophecy. The very interesting full account of these prophecies can be found in Matthew 2.
Soon after the birth of Jesus, we can read wise men wanted to see the child. They came to king Herod and asked,
2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. Matthew 2
Herod called the priests to ask if they knew about this and they referred him to the scriptures and the prophet Micah who lived over 700 years before Herod’s day,
zProphecy: Micah 5: 2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
Fulfilment: Matthew 2 4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. 5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, 6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.
It is clear that even the priests, who turned out to be very hostile to Jesus, knew about this prophecy and were expecting the coming of the Messiah – the Jews longed for a king and deliverer from the Romans.
However, Herod saw him as a possible rival and wanted to kill him. So he sent soldiers into the Bethlehem area to kill all the children under two years old. Then came the 2nd fulfilled prophecy.
An Angel warned Joseph of the danger and sent him to safety In Egypt.
Prophecy: Hosea 11 1 When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.
Fulfilment: Matthew 2 14 When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: 15 And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.
So, do we have any proof that these Old Testament prophecies were written before the events recorded in the New Testament took place?
We are very fortunate that in 1947 some very old scrolls of the Old testament were found in caves very near the Dead Sea. You can read about these events in many scholarly documents on the Internet including Wikipedia.
“The Dead Sea Scrolls are ancient Jewish and Hebrew religious manuscripts first found in 1946/47 at the Qumran Caves in what was then Mandatory Palestine. … Dating back to between the 3rd century BCE and the 1st century CE, the Dead Sea Scrolls are considered one of the most important finds in the history of archaeology. … About 40% are copies of texts from the Hebrew Scriptures.”
Above left: Some of the scroll jars that survived at least 2,500 years in the caves.
Middle right: Part of the equally old, 7m 34 cm (24 feet) long Isaiah scroll (Old Testament)
Bottom right: Some of the Qumran caves where the scrolls were found
The above is just a brief reference to the archaeological and scientific research that has proven the Old Testament was written well before Jesus was born.
If you would like more information please go to our article The reliability of the Bible, an earlier, more detailed, article demonstrating the truth of the Bible.
The important thing for us now is that the scrolls contained many prophecies concerning the coming of Jesus written at least 250 years before Jesus was born at the beginning of the 1st century AD.
BACK TO RESURECTION
Now, let us return to the importance of resurrection being a reality. For, the Apostle Paul wrote,
17 And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. 18 Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. 19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. 20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept**. 1 Corinthians 15
** sometimes the Bible refers to death of the faithful as sleep because resurrection will, for them, be like waking from sleep
Later in the same chapter Paul wrote,
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. 52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 1 Corinthians 15
This “change” is a marvellous process by which God will transform a mortal, corruptible body into an immortal and incorruptible one.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 1 Corinthians 15
Resurrection is a two-stage process. First, the body which may have laid in the ground for many centuries must be remade and caused to stand again on the earth. The standing is for a specific purpose – for Jesus to decide who deserves to join in receiving immortal nature and helping him to spread peace, glory and goodness throughout the earth.
10 … … for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. Romans 14
Jesus Christ is the judge and his Father has given him the task of raising the dead who had heard and understood the Gospel. He had said,
28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. John 5
Also, to selecting the faithful who have “done good” to join him in the Kingdom of God. They are the ‘Saints’, chosen by Jesus and no one else.
50 Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice. Psalms 50
The covenant for us is our promise to follow Jesus example faithfully.
IT IS THE ONLY HOPE OF SALVATION
There is no mention in the Bible of immortal souls which can continue existence after death.
16 The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD’S: but the earth hath he given to the children of men. Psalm 115
Just as the leaders of the Jews hated Jesus and brought about his undeserved death, so they hated Paul and strove to get Paul condemned to death by the Romans. Paul, in his defence at his trial, made clear what his hope was.
6 But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee: of the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question. Acts 23
Paul completely understood the wonderful reward he hoped to receive
8 … (I) count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but rubbish that I may gain Christ. Philippians 3 (NKJV)
WHAT IS A RESURRECTED BODY LIKE?
Jesus is the only example of resurrection so far.
20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. 1 Corinthians 15
He spent some time with his disciples after his resurrection and was able to show them he had a body and was not a ghost or a spirit –
39 Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. 40 And when he had thus spoken, he shewed them his hands and his feet. 41 And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat? 42 And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. 43 And he took it, and did eat before them. Luke 24
Clearly, his body, though substantial, it was not flesh and blood. And Jesus promised his faithful followers that they will have a truly wonderful new body …
36 Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection. Luke 20
4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Revelation 21
WHERE WILL RESURRECTION BE ENJOYED?
Jesus quoted Psalm 37,
5 “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” Matthew 5
Which, in the Psalm, continues …
11 … and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. Psalm 37
He was speaking of His Father’s purpose in creating the Earth.
14 For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. Habakkuk 2
He designed it from the beginning to give Him pleasure.
11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. Revelation 4
He was speaking of a complete change of system of government – its laws, its politics, and its administration – which is the Kingdom of God. Jesus will be on the throne in Jerusalem, with his Saints helping rule the territory of his people Israel as their promise king and the rest of the earth as his empire.
This marvellous reward of a transformed body and assisting in building God’s future kingdom on earth is promised to those who hope to receive His promises by following His son’s example in this life. Nothing will come of hoping, however sincerely, for what God has not promised. It is vital to believe and strive for what He has promised. And we have seen the Bible tells us, if we do that, we will have a glorious and satisfying future.
If you would like to know more about these important matters, we have Bible talks and invite you to come and listen to one. They are held every Sunday, God willing, and the coming subjects can be found on the “Sunday Bible talks details” page. We also have more articles and some audio and video recordings covering many Bible topics in our “Bible study” section.
Most of the many Bibles in the world never leave the bookshelf or are banished to the bottom of a cupboard. This is sad because Jesus said the Good News it contains is “like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” As soon as he recognised the value of it he wanted it at all costs.
The Bible is a treasure that men have died to save from it’s enemies. William Tyndale (see left) was burnt at the stake for translating the Latin Bible into English so the common man could read it; when he cried, “Lord open the king of England’s eyes.” (From an Elizabethan edition of Foxe’s Martyrs.)
What can the Bible reveal to the reader that is so valuable? Jesus likens it’s message to a farmer who unexpectedly finds treasure in the field he rents that is so valuable he totally changes his life to claim it? And Jesus adds power to that with another short parable.
45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 46 Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it. Matthew 13
This time a merchant searching for a pearl more valuable than those he had, to someone who was looking for the true way to future life and when he found the gospel Jesus taught, he gave up all other ideas or future life that he had heard, like the Law of Moses, because he could see Jesus was offering “The Truth”.
14 … Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. Mark 1
Jesus brought the true hope of it eternal life to his people, Israel, so let us follow the gospel of the kingdom of God Jesus taught. When Jesus’ disciple Thomas could not understand how to follow him, …
6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. John 14
If you don’t know much about the great treasures to be discovered in the Bible that can thrill and amaze the reader we hope that by introducing you to it you will want to dig further to learn more about it for yourself. We can tell you it is essential to read Jesus’ own words for yourself, as many who claim they can tell you what he says get it wrong. That is why there are so many different churches and chapels today
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15
Writers of commentaries or paraphrase versions of the Bible tend to impose their own views upon the Bible. Using such sources alone is very unlikely to accurately reflect the contents of the Bible.
We use the Bible throughout all our articles to show you the Gospel message.
Today there are many versions of the Bible. The serious Bible student must use a translation that remains faithful to the original language. We are using the well-established King James Version of the Bible. When using any additional material apply the test that the Bible itself advises …
“To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Isaiah 8:20
START WITH AN OPEN MINDThe key to this article is those words of Jesus we quoted above, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”John 14:6 Let’s think about those three matters.
First, “The way” to what? Jesus said in that same quotation from John 14. “No man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” God told Moses what His purpose was,
21 But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord. Numbers 14
Just think of that! a world without wickedness, or evil, or ugliness.
38 But the transgressors shall be destroyed together: the end of the wicked shall be cut off. Psalm 37
And how does Jesus offer, “The Truth”?
49 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. John 12
And always remember God does not, and cannot lie.
19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? Numbers 23
And finally, how is Jesus “The Life”?
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3
Make no mistake – the value of his offer is vast and we can only give you a brief look into its wonder in this article.
OUR PERSON
Resurrection
28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 29And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. John 5
21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself. Philippians 3 NKJV
4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Revelation 21
Unspoilt beauty of the countryside and the characters of the population
14 For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. Habakkuk 2
Animal Kingdom at peace
6 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. 7 And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den. Isaiah 11
Contrast that with the world today – war, earthquake and terrorism,
to the world when Jesus returns and rules the world from Jerusalem.
Peace and harmony for all
4And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. Isaiah 2
The true worship of God will be desired by the survivors.
2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. 3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. Isaiah 2
The situation in the world that will bring Jesus back.
You may be wondering how such huge changes can be brought about in our world today. Especially as the conditions in the world are going to get worse before they get better!
This is predicted by a number of prophets like Joel, Zechariah, Isaiah, Daniel and others, including Ezekiel where God speaks to Gog, which leads a band or alliance, of nations in the Middle East to attack Israel – whose people, only in the middle of the last century, returned to their land to escape the murderous intent of Hitler.
God’s message continues.
5 Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet: 6 Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee. 7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them. 8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them. Ezekiel 38
This chapter is well worth a read, with a good atlas at your side, to see what nation is the leader of the many peoples described in this prophecy (vs 6-8).
And this is only one of the prophets that between them give a detailed description of a large fighting force who will attack God’s people of Israel. See these verses from Zechariah 14.
2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captFivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
Clearly, Israel will be in great trouble, and something must be done to save God’s people from destruction. Zechariah immediately tells us God will act urgently as He has in the past.
3 Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. Zechariah
The new life that we have been showing you is a huge change from the war that the prophets predict. Obviously, someone with great power will be needed to save Israel from destruction and bring about the marvellous changes in the Earth we have begun to outline. Especially as many powerful nations will resist giving up their soverFeignty at all cost. A good example of such a leader is Vladimir Putin the present President of Russia.
Maybe you have worked out who will save Israel’s saviour.
30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. Matthew 24
The return of Jesus to the earth and all that he must do is a large, detailed subject and beyond the scope of this article. It is also a very interesting subject since those to whom Jesus gives eternal life are vitally involved. But, if there is enough interest we will undertake that task, God willing, very soon. Do let us know if you have any comments about this article or future articles using our comments box at the top right of this page.
WHAT NEXT?
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A Bible Reading Plan and Guide consisting of fourteen booklets each containing guidance notes for four weeks of the twelve-month plan.
God offers men and women a part in His marvellous purpose with the earth that He reveals in His word, the Bible. Since benefiting from the great blessings God offers is dependent upon fulfilling certain conditions He lays down, it is essential that all who would have a part in His glorious purpose read and
Understand the Bible for themselves. This plan is therefore designed to introduce the reader directly to God’s message and the accompanying guidance notes highlight the straightforward teaching of the Bible, deal with difficulties which people have expressed in the past and draw attention to many examples of divine authorship which reinforce the absolute assurance that this is the Word of the Living God.
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The Lord’s prayer, surely the best known prayer in the world, is from the Bible, the most widely circulated book across the world, and often recited by those attending religious services all over the world. But, if you asked those there, or anyone else, few could tell you what the Kingdom of God is, where it will be or when it will be!
This Kingdom and its purpose is largely a mystery today, but this need not be the case. Whilst it is not an easy task, it is possible for virtually everyone to grasp the basic themes of the Bible. It just requires a little time and attention, but the great treasures to be discovered there are well worth the effort and are designed to thrill and amaze the reader of the Bible.
If it was not for the Bible we would never have heard of the Kingdom of God. It is the original and only source of true information about that and all aspects of God’s purpose.
31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; 32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 8
Freedom from what? Let the Apostle Paul tell us.
1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8
The birth of the Kingdom of God. [Old Testament]
God invited the people of Israel when he brought them out of slavery in Egypt to be his Kingdom.
1 In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai. 2 … and there Israel camped before the mount. 3 And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; 4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself. 5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: 6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. Exodus 19
So Moses called all the people together and told them of God’s marvellous offer.
8 And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD. Exodus 19
Now, for that Kingdom to exist four things are needed,
8 Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them. Deuteronomy 1
Regettably, the people did not keep the promise they had made – “All that the LORD hath spoken we will do”, nor, were they satisfied with the way in which their nation was being run, and asked, through Samuel their faithful, God appointed, leader and prophet, for a mortal King of their choosing.
4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah, 5 And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. 1 Samuel 8
They wanted a handsome, imposing man to lead them, especially into battle. So, God gave them such a King, warning them he would lay such heavy burdens on them they would complain to Him but, when they did, He would not listen to them.
Kish, the son of Abiel,2 … had a son, whose name was Saul, a choice young man, and a goodly: and there was not among the children of Israel a goodlier person than he: from his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people. 1 Samuel 9:2
Saul made a good start but the power went to his head and he was soon disobeying God and proved totally unsuitable to be King of God’s people.
28 And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou. 1 Samuel 15
So, God sent Samuel to Bethlehem to a man called Jesse who had a large family. But as it usually meant trouble if a prophet came unannounced to a city they were worried. But Samuel reassured them that he came peaceably,
5 … I am come to sacrifice unto the LORD: sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice. 6 And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the LORD’S anointed is before him.7 But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart. 1 Samuel 16
Jesse brought seven sons before Samuel,
10 And Samuel said unto Jesse, The LORD hath not chosen these. 11 … … Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither. 12 And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the LORD said, Arise, anoint him: for this is he.
The one chosen was David who, when he came to the throne as directed, received a God given remarkable promise through the prophet Nathan from God. it is in 2 Samuel 7 and we quote just a few verses.
9 And I was with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies out of thy sight, and have made thee a great name, like unto the name of the great men that are in the earth. 10 Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as beforetime. … 12 And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. 2 Samuel 7
So, God made David a great man in the earth and his family Kings by descent for ever. He confirmed that Israel would have their own land and that the nation he ruled would be God’s people. That made Israel the Kingdom of God
However, from that time forward this Kingdom had a very erratic history, being made-up of human beings many of who did not want to follow God’s laws. Consequently, they had periods of faithful service to God with God fearing kings and many examples of faithless kings who led their peoples away from God and His laws. During those kings reigns they lost God’s protection and were conquered by their enemies and several times carried off from their land into periods of captivity until some 1,000 years after the death of David when under Roman rule an Angel appeared to Mary, the mother to be of Jesus, who told her …
31 … behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. 32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Luke 1
Thus, this was to be a miraculous conception through God’s power making Jesus the Son God, his birth and growth in Mary giving him human nature like all men and women.
Jesus, at the age of 30, set about preaching to the Jews, to bring them back to God and give the people the hope of escape from sin and death, …
14 …, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. Mark 1
What did Jesus mean by “the Kingdom of God is at hand”? Simply this! The disciples watched Jesus at the end of his ministry on Earth, ascend to heaven. At that time an Angel told them,
11 … Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. Acts 1
And what will he do when he returns? The apostle Paul told Timothy, and us too, through his epistle to Timothy.
1 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; 2 Timothy 4
So the next time Jesus will be seen on the earth will be at the time of judgement when he chooses those who shall receive eternal life and many other wonderful blessings. So, for those who believe “the Kingdom of God is at hand”, Jesus could return any day and as he warned us:-
37 … as the days of Noe (Noah) were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. … 42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. Matthew 24
The Kingdom of God in the Future
So, when and how will it happen? Jesus predicted that the world’s troubles would be so severe before he appears that: …
Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. 27 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Luke 21
But this will not be the first appearance of Jesus at his return to the earth as he will have to deal with a World War centred on Israel and he will need help with that in the form of the faithful of all past ages. That means he will first need to come secretly to the world to appear before those who know God’s plan of salvation.
27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. Matthew 16
We do not have the space here to describe the war, which will be centred on Israel, and how Jesus and the faithful, named the Saints, will save the Jews from a terrible defeat.
9 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. Zechariah 12
But Israel will be amazed to find their very powerful attackers are suddenly miraculous destroyed and will be emotionally affected by the coming of Jesus Christ and the Saints to save them. For they will thereby see before them proof that he whom they rejected, is the Messiah and God’s son, all as predicted through the prophets including Zechariah,
10 And I will pour upon the house And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.
Not having the space to describe this amazing conquest we give you an overview of the first step – a huge one at that – of the achievements of Christ and the Saints at his return.
13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man† came … 14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. Daniel 7
† the host supporting Christ will be like him in the sense that they will have the same untouchable eternal nature and commitment to bring about God’s purpose, plus they share the desire to serve the Lord Jesus as their king.
27 And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him. Daniel 7
So let’s conclude by outlining from the Scriptures some of the many blessings coming to those who assist Christ in setting up the Kingdom of God here on Earth as the incentive for us to believe in God’s message now while we have opportunity.
Resurrection
28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 29And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. John 5
A new body
20 We look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: 21Who shall change our vile body†, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself. Philippians 3
† a couple of translations tell us the Greek literally means “transform the body of our humility.” (New English Translation & Youngs Literal Translation)
A new life without distress
4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Revelation 21
Given the power and wisdom of God
To enable them to help rule, teach, and direct the mortal population who don’t join the war, or who surrender and accept Christ as their king. To direct them in the work of cleansing an rebuilding the world.
26 he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: 27And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father Revelation 2
6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people. Revelation 14
The removal of wickedness and sin
20The Lord preserveth all them that love him: but all the wicked will he destroy. Psalm 145
… he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: 4But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. Isaiah 11
Peace and harmony for all
And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. Isaiah 2
The earth will be bountiful and beautiful
The wilderness end the solitary place shall be glad . . . 2 and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing. the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon. Isaiah 35
Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed, and the mountains shall drop sweet wine. Amos 9
The natural world restored to the peace of Eden
6 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. 7 And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den. 9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
The human population shall be greatly blessed
5Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert/. Isaiah 35
20 Shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed. † Isaiah 65
†Hebrew literally means “to be (make) light, literal (swift, small, sharp, etc.) or figurative (easy, trifling, vile, etc.); Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary.- i.e. indicating most mortal people will live much longer
All to have the same language and belief
9 For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent. Zephaniah 3
The mortal population eager to learn “THE TRUTH”
2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. 3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. Isaiah 2
Our closing thoughts
What a marvellous prize is promised for the faithful.
54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. 55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? 56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15
Does life across the world today raise many questions in your mind that you would like answered with certainty? Questions like the ones above and man’s unwillingness to treat the environment responsibly and his inhumanity to other people. We have invited you to join us to investigate how to find reliable answers to these and some of your questions. That is, if you give us any questions to answer.
If at any time you want to ask a question anonymously, just type it in this box and press send. We will then give our answer within a day or two at the end of this article.
If you want a personal answer, then please include your e-mail, phone number, or address as you choose for our answer. Again, we will then give you our answer within a day or two.
So, how do we recommend we answer the questions at the head of this article. Many of our readers will know! It is like this.
Why is the Earth here?
1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Genesis 1
How the earth came into being? It is His creative work. Not a mystery, a matter of chance, or out of nothing through a ‘Big Bang’. It is as the Bible tells us many, many times.
28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. Isaiah 40
This immediately leads to more questions that we will answer from the Bible. But some of our readers will possibly say something like, “Wait a minute. Many experts, scientists notably, tell us the Bible is not a reliable authority, especially for scientific questions like the origin of the earth. You might then ask, “Why should we believe the Bible””. Well, that is a very reasonable question. We will show you a couple of the many answers to it.
Why should we believe the Bible?
We need to know the Bible is true because the all wise, all powerful Creator and Sustainer of all life has caused the Bible to be written for our guidance and benefit.
11 Thus saith the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me. 12 I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded. Isaiah 45
God even invites us, through the apostle John, to test the messengers who bring His words to us to make sure they are His genuine messengers.
1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. 1 John 4
The way God proves the Bible is His word is by the prophecies He has revealed and that have been reliably fulfilled. Let us give you an example. It concerns the birth of Jesus but we won’t go into detail about the context here as it is not our subject.
Just after Jesus Christ had been born, although those involved did not know of his birth at the time, the High Priest was called by Herod to answer a question.
4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. 5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, 6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. Matthew 2
If you turn to the Old Testament, that is what the prophet Micah, who historians tell us lived at least 700 years before Christ, foretold us in the Old Testament.
2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. Micah 5
So, the key question is, were these and many other prophecies about Jesus Christ in the Old Testament certainly written well before his birth?
An amazing sequence of events that proves this is true began in 1947 when a young Arab shepherd was collecting his flock and saw one of his goats up on the rocks.
He did not want to climb up the rocks to try and retrieve the goat, so he picked up some stones and started to throw them ahead of the goat to try to direct him down. One of these stones went into a cave ahead of the goat, and the shepherd heard a crash from inside that sounded like something breaking.
This puzzled him and he decided to clamber up the rocks to see what was inside the cave.
There he found some large clay pots, like the ones in the picture below. His stone had broken one of the pots, inside which were some parchment scrolls, again, a bit like the one inset on the left. The account of what happened next is a long and detailed one.
Let a few facts from the Wikipedia online encyclopedia summarise the significance of these scrolls.
“The Dead Sea Scrolls are ancient Jewish religious manuscripts that were found in the Qumran Caves in the Judaean Desert.”
We learn 981 texts (scrolls) were discovered in 11 caves, but not all of them are of the Bible.
“There are 225 Biblical texts of the Hebrew Bible included in the Dead Sea Scrolls. That is around 22% of the total”. The youngest of the Hebrew Bible manuscripts is dated at 150 BCE.
“Scholarly consensus dates these scrolls from the last three centuries BCE and the first century CE. The texts have great historical, religious, and linguistic significance because they include the second-oldest known surviving manuscripts of works later included in the Hebrew Bible.” (Old Testament). “The Dead Sea Scrolls contain parts of all, but one, of the books of the Tanakh, or the Hebrew Bible.” The book of Esther is the only one not represented.
You may be surprised to know that this is not the only external proof the Old Testament existed before Jesus was born.
How is your history? Have you heard of the Alexandria library in Egypt? We go again to Wikipedia, but all the well known encyclopaedias will tell you the same for both these subjects.
We can read in Wikipedia … … “The Great Library of Alexandria in Alexandria, Egypt, was one of the largest and significant in the ancient world. … … It may have been proposed by Demetrius of Phalerum, an exiled Athenian statesman living in Alexandria, to Ptolemy I Soter, who may have established plans for the Library, but the Library itself was probably not built until the reign of his son Ptolemy II Philadelphus. The Library quickly acquired many papyrus scrolls, due largely to the Ptolemaic kings’ aggressive and well-funded policies for procuring texts. It is unknown precisely how many such scrolls were housed at any given time, but estimates range from 40,000 to 400,000 at its height.”
The reason we are interested in this Egyptian library is because the emperors there wanted to create a library of all the world’s books of knowledge and learning in Greek, including copies of the Hebrew scriptures, called the Tanakh, known to us as the Old Testament. So let us return to Wikipedia again, this time to the article on a book called the … …
“The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint … … from the Latin: septuaginta, lit. ’seventy’; often abbreviated 70; in Roman numerals, LXX, is the earliest extant Koine Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. … … ‘The Translation of the Seventy’ derives from the story recorded in the Letter of Aristeas that the Hebrew Torah was translated into Greek at the request of Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285–247 BCE) by 70 Jewish scholars or, according to later tradition, 72: six scholars from each of the Twelve Tribes of Israel.” “Modern scholarship holds that the Septuagint was written from the 3rd through the 1st centuries BCE. … … The translation process of the Septuagint and from the Septuagint into other versions can be divided into several stages: the Greek text was produced within the social environment of Hellenistic Judaism, and completed by 132 BCE. … … “
Thus the Septuagint version’s importance is also because it was completed well before the birth of Jesus Christ and many prophecies in the Old Testament were fulfilled in New Testament and later times.
Now you will see why we wanted you to know, if you don’t already, about the Dead Sea scrolls and the Septuagint version of the Bible. Many scholars and scientists, Christian and non-Christian are agreed that there is overwhelming evidence that the youngest books of the Old Testament were written at least 150 years before Jesus was born, and that there are many manuscripts of earlier books that are older than that.
This means that, certainly, there is a God Who is in control of this world because no man or woman could have known about the birth and life of Jesus before it happened except by reading God’s Word in the Old Testament. Notably, there are many other prophecies about people, nations, and events, that happened after The Old Testament was completed. Therefore, logic tells us all the words that God instructed the Hebrew prophets to write about Himself and His purpose are absolute truth. We go to Isaiah 45 again
5 I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me: 6 That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else. 7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things. … … 18 For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else. 19 I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth: I said not unto the seed of Jacob*, Seek ye me in vain: I the LORD speak righteousness, I declare things that are right. Isaiah 45 *One of the forefathers of Israel
What is more, as God created the universe and controlled the writing of His words, we can be sure that He has preserved its truth through the centuries. Historians give us fascinating details of efforts of the enemies of Bible truth to destroy God’s words and the amazing measures that were taken to protect it by the Jews who wrote and copied the manuscripts as they wore out because God says,
2 Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you. Deuteronomy 4
So having confidence in the truth of the Bible makes it easy to answer the questions we posed at the beginning, and many, many more.
Why are we here?
11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. Revelation 4
But, how can we give God pleasure?
27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. Luke 10
This, of course, means doing what he asks us to do!
1 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD. 2 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. 3 They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways. Psalm 119
Why is there so much injustice?
You may be surprised to be told that injustice exists because God wants men and women to love Him! Let’s go back to the beginning of Genesis and God’s last act of creation.
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. Genesis 1
This means that He needed thinking beings that able to understand Him. The word ‘image’ in the original Hebrew צֶלֶם means ‘similar’, not identical to God and the similarities He gave men and women included a mind that could think, reason, and have emotions in the same way as God, and be able to communicate with Him.
Above all He wanted the more perceptive of human beings to grow to love Him and obey him as best they can. God told his people of Israel through Moses,
19 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live: 20 That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them. Deuteronomy 30
So love involves a matter of choice. to choose to love, obey and be blessed with life, or to choose not to love and disobey, be cursed, and lose your life. And disobedience will be loving self and not God. That is why Paul warned all followers of Jesus so we come to a closely related question why is there so much killing … …
19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Galatians 5
So we come to a similar question … …
Why is there so much killing?
1 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? 2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. 3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. 4 … …, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. James 4
Sadly so many people today do not want to be responsible to God.
2 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness. … 11 The LORD will give strength unto his people; the LORD will bless his people with peace. Psalm 29
Too many people want live their life their own way. They want things that aren’t theirs and they want power over others like Putin today in Ukraine, and many leaders throughout history who invade other nations lands and take them. But these are not profitable or encouraging subjects for us to discuss. Surely we want to know … …
Will peace ever come to the Earth?
Fortunately, we have seen that there is a God who created the earth for a wonderful and beneficial reason. As He tells us through the prophet Habakkuk … …
2:14 For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
It is probably difficult to imagine the Earth without any of the desecration that man has spread far and wide, with the climate perfectly balanced, and the animal Kingdom at peace,
11 The LORD will give strength unto his people; the LORD will bless his people with peace. Psalm 29
3 For the LORD shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody. Isaiah 51
1 The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. 2 It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God. Isaiah 35
It is hard to imagine having a new eternal body free from sin and death,
42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: 43 It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. . 1 Corinthians 15
Hard to visualise all the world’s people’s minds and bodies free from pain and suffering physical and mental, reflecting only matters relating to God’s glory and purpose.
4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Revelation 21
The animal Kingdom at peace together as it was in the Garden of Eden.
6 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. 7 And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8 And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den. Isaiah 11
There is so much more to know about God’s coming Kingdom fat, that is only a start to the good things promised for when Jesus will reign over all the earth, but that will have to be for another time. We hope that the wonders we’ve already shown you are such amazing truths, totally beyond any experience we have ever had are to come for those who trust in God and faithfully follow His son with the best of our ability – a glorious Earth, the animal Kingdom at peace, and all the people living in harmony with a new eternal body, free from sickness, sin, sorrow, and sadness, with their mind filled with wisdom, totally in tune to the wishes of their Heavenly Father. This is the priceless nature of the reward God offers, compared to the worthlessness of what the world can offer.
44 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. Matthew 13
This phrase, often heard in modern times, was first recorded over 2000 years ago by a Greek doctor. He was travelling with friends in Asia Minor. They had been thrown in prison for preaching the Gospel. A Roman soldier was the jailer and is depicted in this painting of the scene just after an earthquake ruined the jail in Philippi ! There we see the jailer asking our headline question! Why did he ask it?
The earthquake had released all the prisoners in the jail and the jailer anticipated most, if not all, of the prisoners would have escaped. He knew the penalty for any soldier who lost his prisoners was death and was about to kill himself when one of the prisoners called out, “Do yourself no harm: for we are all here.”
You can hardly imagine the wave of relief that swept over the jailer. He rushed to the prisoner that had just spoken and immediately recognised him as the man who had been preaching the way to salvation in the city. It is apparent he had spent some time listening to the preaching and been so impressed with the message he heard that he fell on his knees before the Apostle Paul and asked him, “What must I do to be saved?”
What was the message the Jailer heard that had so impressed him? We promised the readers of the Rugby Register if they came to this website we would tell them, and of course, anyone else who joins us.
However, Paul’s preaching was interrupted by a young woman with mental health problems that followed Paul around shouting.
16 And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: 17 The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. Acts 16
This young woman was disrupting Paul’s ability to preach so he cured her mental illness. Some local men had been making money by using her to tell fortunes and now they had lost their source of income had Paul and Silas thrown into prison. This, of course, completely stopped their ability to preach, but we learn from a letter that Paul wrote to the community of Philippian believers what he had established before he was interrupted.
3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 4 Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, 5 For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; 6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: Philippians 1
Yes, Paul and Silas had been teaching them about the gospel for which Jesus gives us its full title.
14 … Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, Mark 1
And he did not stop there, but continued,
15 … The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
This fits in very well with the Apostles answer to the jailer.
31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. Acts 16
And we will soon see that to be saved we too must “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ”. This is what John records that Jesus said.
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3
What a wonderful reward – eternal life! We suggest that such an offer certainly needs careful consideration. Clearly, the word ‘believe’ Is very important. What does a dictionary say it means?
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Believe – verb
be·lieve | \ bə-ˈlēv \ believed; believing
Definition of believe
1a: to accept something as true, genuine, or real
b: to have a firm or wholehearted religious conviction or persuasion : to regard the existence of God as a fact
2: to have a firm conviction as to the goodness, efficacy, or ability of something
3: to hold an opinion
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The Bible attaches great meaning to the word believe. In the Greek it is …
Believe: πίστις; pistis (root) meaning: to have faith (in, upon, or with respect to, a person or thing), i.e. credit; by implication to entrust (especially one’s spiritual well-being to Christ) :- believe (-r), commit (to trust), put in trust with. [from Strong’s Greek Dictionary ref: 4102].
And here are two more aspects of “believe” and “faith”, for both the English words (and their derivitives) are covered by the one Greek family of words from the above root “pistis” .
1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Hebrews 11
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Hebrews 11
Let’s pause and take stock of what we have found. The Christian message that Paul, Jesus, the apostles and all believers down to the present day spread, is “the gospel of the Kingdom of God”. As evidence of our belief we too need to repent. That does not just mean feeling regret, as in English these days, but also to give evidence by changing our way of life as Peter told a huge crowd on the day of Pentecost.
19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; Acts 3
Converted, as we know, means to be changed. It’s the Greek word
ἐπιστρέφω (epistrephō) meaning “to revert, convert or turn” as in this example
20 But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance. Acts 26
Here, Paul is explaining his mission was to teach men and women to turn away from the world and turn to obeying God by following Jesus.
So, let us return to the jailer to whom Paul had explained that the way to be saved is to, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ”, and see what happened next.
32 And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. Acts 16
We have already suggested it would appear that the jailor had heard the teaching of the apostles on the streets of the city, and can anticipate that others in the household may have too. Whether that was so or not, Paul and Silas, maybe in two different groups, set about teaching the whole household until they were ready, and desired, to be baptised. What that involves we can learn from others who went through this process.
Here is a nice simple example taken from when the apostle Philip was sent to help an Ethiopian, not a Jew, who nevertheless was reading his Bible and was endeavouring to understand it’s message. We will join Phillip as he was answering all the Ethiopian’s questions …
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. 36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? 37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. 38 And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. 39 And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing. Acts 8
Every example of baptism, including those by John the Baptist were by immersion. And you will see here that is clearly described. They went down into the water, and came up out of the water. This is because baptism is the important seal of the covenant between Jesus and the person being baptised. A Christian could not have the hope of salvation without baptism. Jesus explains this to a Pharisee who was a believer in secret amongst Pharisees who hated Jesus and wanted to get rid of him
1 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. John 3
But Jesus wanted him to know that there is more to following him than just acknowledging him.
3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?
But, Jesus did not mean a second natural birth, he meant a spiritual rebirth.
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
The apostle Paul writes of the spiritual armour God has provided for the faithful followers of Jesus in a letter to the Ephesians.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Ephesians 6
God by His Holy Spirit puts into the minds of the men who wrote the scriptures the message He wants recorded. So readers are filling their minds with Gods spirit word which becomes their defence against the world and critics. Thus, we must be born of water – baptised, and born of the spirit – reshaped in character by God’s spirit word.
Let us show you diagrammatically how baptism is the necessary confirmation between the one being baptised and the Lord Jesus, so that we know and understand the covenant we are making with the Lord Jesus, when we are baptised in accordance with the teaching of scripture.
There is a true saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words”, so we are going to use some to demonstrate that there are four principles involved that must be understood and therefore can only apply to an adult mind and full immersion.
Note: All the ‘action’ indicated in the ‘B’ (blue) column takes place in the mind of the candidate in making his or her covenant vows in the water.
We hope that all who have read this article carefully will appreciate that Bible baptism, as preached by Jesus and the apostles, must be by total immersion as no other way can be an effective seal of the covenant the candidate needs to make with the son of God. Here is a summary of the four steps
Life following Jesus will have it’s good times and it’s difficult times, but will include the companionship, comforts, help and opportunities to help others in the community of brothers and sisters on the same journey to Zion as you. Plus, if through God’s mercy and grace we are deemed faithful and forgiven our sins and failures, we will be blessed with the most wonderful, joyful, and glorious life in the kingdom of God; free of sin, death, suffering, and wickedness; in a beautiful, peaceful, and troublefree world with lovely companions; that we hope to tell you about on other occasions when you have time and opportunity to peruse our pages.
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When planning our lives we need to use our time well. May we suggest you check our Article Index (here) for other articles on many subjects relevant to life in our day and age.
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We wish you well in your Bible reading and study
We would like to tell you of another queen of many years ago whose courage and commitment, at great risk to herself, saved her people from destruction. It was a marvellous achievement brought about in an amazing way that can give direction and certainty to our life. The queen we want to recommend as an example to us, had such an impact on the life of her people, that a number of our readers are likely to know who she was. She is introduced to us in the Bible in the book of her name, when she was an orphan in a foreign country, in this way:-
5 Now in Shushan the palace there was a certain Jew, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite; 6 Who had been carried away from Jerusalem with the captivity which had been carried away with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Esther 2
Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away. And he brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle’s daughter: for she had neither father nor mother, and the maid was fair and beautiful; whom Mordecai, when her father and mother were dead, took for his own daughter.
The forces of Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, and his ruthless and powerful army had previously conquered the cities of Benjamin and Judah, broken down the walls of Jerusalem, the capital city, and captured and carried off many thousands of Jews scattering them to many parts of the Empire. Included at this time was a young man Mordecai with others in his family. King Ahasuerus, a powerful king at the head of the Persian Empire had conquered the Babylonians some 40 years later, and now ruled over them; Mordecai had settled with his family in Shushan (also called Susa, and later Shush), the capital city of the Persian Empire (now Iran). Clearly, whilst there, Esther had been born. Sadly, her father Abihail and his wife, had died sometime after, at which time Mordecai took on the upbringing of Esther.
He cared for her like his own daughter and when she is introduced to us, she was growing into an attractive young lady.
Persia had laws that made the King’s edicts final. Vashti, the Queen had disobeyed the King, and was totally banished; thus, the king needed a replacement Queen. So the King’s servants came to him, and said :-
3 And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom, that they may gather together all the fair young virgins unto Shushan the palace, to the house of the women, unto the custody of Hege the king’s chamberlain, keeper of the women; and let their things for purification be given them: 4 And let the maiden which pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king; and he did so. Esther 2
Even if you don’t know you can probably guess what happened next!
8 So it came to pass, when the king’s commandment and his decree was heard, and when many maidens were gathered together unto Shushan the palace, to the custody of Hegai, that Esther was brought also unto the king’s house, to the custody of Hegai, keeper of the women.
Hegai recognised that Esther was not only beautiful, but her demeanour and character was far superior to any of the other young women and took particular care of Esther. An aspect of Mordecai’s guidance of Esther is very significant as was his concern for her.
10 Esther had not shewed her people nor her kindred: for Mordecai had charged her that she should not shew it. 11 And Mordecai walked every day before the court of the women’s house, to know how Esther did, and what should become of her. Esther 2
Again, in the circumstances, it’s not difficult to anticipate what happened. The preparation of these young women to meet the King was very involved and long but, eventually the day came when Esther was presented to him.
17 And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
Meanwhile, Mordecai daily positioned himself at the King’s Gate, from where he was able to keep contact with his niece; while here, he learned of a plot against King Ahasuerus by two of His Chamberlains; this was to prove to be an important development in future events.
21 In those days, while Mordecai sat in the king’s gate, two of the king’s chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh, of those which kept the door, were wroth, and sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus. 22 And the thing was known to Mordecai, who told it unto Esther the queen; and Esther certified the king thereof in Mordecai’s name. 23 And when inquisition was made of the matter, it was found out; therefore they were both hanged on a tree: and it was written in the book of the chronicles before the king. Esther 2
Not seemingly connected, but this was to form a turning point in the fortunes of both Mordecai and Queen Esther.
A little later the king promoted one of his Princes, Haman the Agagite, above all other Princes, commanding that he should be reverenced.
2 And all the king’s servants, that were in the king’s gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman: for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence.
When it was noticed Mordecai did not fall down before Haman, he explained to the King’s servants that he was a Jew, and only worshipped the true God and not men. They told Haman what he had said.
5 And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was Haman full of wrath. 6 And he thought scorn to lay hands on Mordecai alone; for they had shewed him the people of Mordecai: wherefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews that were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even the people of Mordecai. Esther 3
Haman believed in the supernatural and it was a year before he thought the omens were right for him to go to the King with the evil plan he had devised.
8 And Haman said unto king Ahasuerus, There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of thy kingdom; and their laws are diverse from all people; neither keep they the king’s laws: therefore it is not for the king’s profit to suffer them. 9 If it please the king, let it be written that they may be destroyed: and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver to the hands of those that have the charge of the business, to bring it into the king’s treasuries. 10 And the king took his ring from his hand, and gave it unto Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the Jews’ enemy. 11 And the king said unto Haman, The silver is given to thee, the people also, to do with them as it seemeth good to thee. Esther 3
You you may have noticed in that quotation that Haman the Agagite is described as “the enemy of the Jews”. Many Bible scholars think the Agagites were descendants of King Agag of the Amalakites who fought a battle with King David in which they were almost totally destroyed and this is why Haman so hated the Jews.
Haman lost no time in getting the necessary documents prepared and distributed throughout the huge empire where Nebuchadnezzar had previously scattered the Jews.
The effect on the Jews was devastating.
1 When Mordecai perceived all that was done, Mordecai rent his clothes, and put on sackcloth with ashes, and went out into the midst of the city, and cried with a loud and a bitter cry; … 3 And in every province, whithersoever the king’s commandment and his decree came, there was great mourning among the Jews, and fasting, and weeping, and wailing; and many lay in sackcloth and ashes. 4 So Esther’s maids and her chamberlains came and told it her. Esther 4
Esther, shut away in the palace had no idea what was going on. So she could not understand what her servants told her was happening. She sent Hatach, her chief chamberlain to speak to Mordecai.
7 And Mordecai told him of all that had happened unto him, and of the sum of the money that Haman had promised to pay to the king’s treasuries for the Jews, to destroy them. 8 Also he gave him the copy of the writing of the decree that was given at Shushan to destroy them, to shew it unto Esther, and to declare it unto her, and to charge her that she should go in unto the king, to make supplication unto him, and to make request before him for her people. 9 And Hatach came and told Esther the words of Mordecai.
Esther was horrified at this suggestion, and sent back this message:-
11 All the king’s servants, and the people of the king’s provinces, do know, that whosoever, whether man or woman, shall come unto the king into the inner court, who is not called, there is one law of his to put him to death, except such to whom the king shall hold out the golden sceptre, that he may live: but I have not been called to come in unto the king these thirty days.
Mordecai was concerned at her reply and uttered those memorable words quoted in the header for this article.
13 Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king’s house, more than all the Jews. 14 For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?
Esther accepted, as she always had, that Mordecai was right on important matters and like him, put her faith in their Heavenly Father. She instructed Mordicai … …
16 Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish. Esther 4
She was not the only one who has had to face such a situation. Three captives, many years before,who had refused to obey Nebuchadnezzer and bow in worship, were condemned to burning in a furnace by that King of Babylon who had proudly declaired..
15 Who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? Daniel 3
Shadrac, Meshach and Abednego, who stood before him then, replied with confidence…
17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. 18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. Daniel 3
Reading Daniel chapter 3 tells of their courage and how they walked from the furnace untouched by the flames. We are confident when they said, “He will deliver us out of thine hand”, it was because they believed God had the power to resurrect and reward the faithful.
Now Esther knew that the servants of God have to plan wisely so it was surely with much prayer that she began her approach to the King.
2 And it was so, when the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, that she obtained favour in his sight: and the king held out to Esther the golden sceptre that was in his hand. So Esther drew near, and touched the top of the sceptre. 3 Then said the king unto her, What wilt thou, queen Esther? and what is thy request? it shall be even given thee to the half of the kingdom.
She didn’t rush things. She needed to prepare the King and simply invited the King and his chief Prince, Haman, to a banquet. All went well and at the banquet the King said to her:-
6 … What is thy petition? and it shall be granted thee: and what is thy request? even to the half of the kingdom it shall be performed. 7 Then answered Esther, and said, My petition and my request is; 8 If I have found favour in the sight of the king, and if it please the king to grant my petition, and to perform my request, let the king and Haman come to the banquet that I shall prepare for them, and I will do to morrow as the king hath said.
Soon we will see how God had been backing this faithful pair, Esther and Mordecai from the beginning had planned the way events would unfold. But firstly we are told of the effect being invited to the Queen’s banquet had on proud self- seeking Haman.
9 Then went Haman forth that day joyful and with a glad heart: but when Haman saw Mordecai in the king’s gate, that he stood not up, nor moved for him, he was full of indignation against Mordecai.
He went home and boasted to his family.
11 … Haman told them of the glory of his riches, and the multitude of his children, and all the things wherein the king had promoted him, and how he had advanced him above the princes and servants of the king. 12 Haman said moreover, Yea, Esther the queen did let no man come in with the king unto the banquet that she had prepared but myself; and to morrow am I invited unto her also with the king. 13 Yet all this availeth me nothing, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king’s gate. Esther 5
Zeresh his wife and friends solution was to have a gallows made 50 cubits high (over 25ft or 8 metres), and ask the King’s permission to hang Mordecai; this pleased him and he looked forward to the next days banquet with a merry heart. That very night the king could not sleep …
1 … and he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles; and they were read before the king. b And it was found written, that Mordecai had told of Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s chamberlains, the keepers of the door, who sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus. 3 And the king said, What honour and dignity hath been done to Mordecai for this? Then said the king’s servants that ministered unto him, There is nothing done for him. Esther 6
Meanwhile, Haman was excitedly waiting in the outer court to arrange Mordecai’s hanging. The king asked who was in the outer court…
5 And the king’s servants said unto him, Behold, Haman standeth in the court. And the king said, Let him come in. 6 So Haman came in. And the king said unto him, What shall be done unto the man whom the king delighteth to honour? Now Haman thought in his heart, To whom would the king delight to do honour more than to myself?
This arrogant self opinionated man answered delightedly …
8 Let the royal apparel be brought which the king useth to wear, and the horse that the king rideth upon, and the crown royal which is set upon his head: 9 And let this apparel and horse be delivered to the hand of one of the king’s most noble princes, that they may array the man withal whom the king delighteth to honour, and bring him on horseback through the street of the city, and proclaim before him, Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delighteth to honour. 10 Then the king said to Haman, Make haste, and take the apparel and the horse, as thou hast said, and do even so to Mordecai the Jew, that sitteth at the king’s gate: let nothing fail of all that thou hast spoken.
How wonderfully the hand of God works for His people and His faithful servants. Haman did as the King commanded but returned home with a heavy heart. His superstitious family showed him no sympathy.
13 … Then said his wise men and Zeresh his wife unto him, If Mordecai be of the seed of the Jews, before whom thou hast begun to fall, thou shalt not prevail against him, but shalt surely fall before him 14 And while they were yet talking with him, came the king’s chamberlains, and hasted to bring Haman unto the banquet that Esther had prepared. Esther 6
Meanwhile Esther, probably oblivious of all this, was overseeing the preparation for her next banquet with Haman and the King.
Let us read the dramatic description of what transpired from the scriptures.
Esther 7
2 And the king said again unto Esther on the second day at the banquet of wine, What is thy petition, queen Esther? and it shall be granted thee: and what is thy request? and it shall be performed, even to the half of the kingdom. 3 Then Esther the queen answered and said, If I have found favour in thy sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be given me at my petition, and my people at my request: 4 For we are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be slain, and to perish. But if we had been sold for bondmen and bondwomen, I had held my tongue, although the enemy could not countervail the king’s damage. 5 Then the king Ahasuerus answered and said unto Esther the queen, Who is he, and where is he, that durst presume in his heart to do so? 6 And Esther said, The adversary and enemy is this wicked Haman. Then Haman was afraid before the king and the queen. 7 And the king arising from the banquet of wine in his wrath went into the palace garden: and Haman stood up to make request for his life to Esther the queen; for he saw that there was evil determined against him by the king. 8 Then the king returned out of the palace garden into the place of the banquet of wine; and Haman was fallen upon the bed whereon Esther was. Then said the king, Will he force the queen also before me in the house? As the word went out of the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face. 9 And Harbonah, one of the chamberlains, said before the king, Behold also, the gallows fifty cubits high, which Haman had made for Mordecai, who had spoken good for the king, standeth in the house of Haman. Then the king said, Hang him thereon. 10 So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then was the king’s wrath pacified.
What a wonderful deliverance of the Jews from the hands of a wicked man. Then Esther told the King what Mordecai was to her and the King gave his ring to Mordecai setting him above all other Princes in place of Haman.
3 And Esther spake yet again before the king, and fell down at his feet, and besought him with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite, and his device that he had devised against the Jews. Esther 8
As a result of her pleadings Mordecai was given authority to write a new edict to be sent throughout the vast empire giving the Jews authoritiy to protect themselves and making death the penalty for anyone who threatened a Jews life.
The rejoicing amongst the Jews was huge and the work of Esther and Mordecai is still celebrated by the Jews today at the feast of Purim in early March.
So we come to the whole purpose of drawing your attention to these events and particularly Queen Esther, and her fathers uncle, Mordecai, who took such great care of Esther.
It demonstrates the way in which God works for those who strive to the best of their ability and even to the limits of their strength to please Him and fit their life to His purpose, whatever the risks and however difficult it may be. It is interesting to see how God does this. The apostle Paul, speaking of the superiority of Christ, reveals the purpose of angels and says…
… of the angels … 14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation? Hebrews 1
We find throughout the scriptures that the angels, more often unseen than seen, oversee the lives of those who place themselves in God’s care. this applies even today. As the scriptures say…
7 The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. 8 O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. Psalm 34
It shows that when someone is striving to serve God faithfully, they will come under God’s providential care and He will overturn events as happened in Esther and Mordecai’s case for
11 … he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. Psalm 91
Jesus promises he will protect and guide his disciples everywhere, and in every age, who work for him by caring for others….
20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. Matthew 28
Paul,writing to both Gentile and Jewish believers, wrote,
9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Romans 10
It is time to conclude our article, but if you want to know more about how to share in the salvation that Esther and Mordecai believed in, here are some articles you might like to read.
The Truth about the Resurrection
Last month we used our message here in the Rugby Register, together with the with the associated article on our website,
http://www.searchthescriptures.co.uk, to find out what the purpose of the Bible is and how a genuine seeker of knowledge about God and His plans for our future can find reliable answers to important questions.
So we are now ready to consider the Bible’s message to mankind and the good news it contains relating to the purpose of life 
and God’s solution to the many problems that afflict the world at the present time; a purpose that includes great reward for those who seek God’s Word and follow it’s 
teaching.
Note: Bold Green text is a link to its description
We have given ourselves two tasks. First to show you that God does care and has a plan for the world, men and women, and second how to investigate it yourself.
Taking the first task it is a fact that reading the Bible carefully, regularly, and extensively shows very clearly that God created the Earth and we have published two articles demonstrating the Bible is a book of truth. So, we are not going to repeat that here.
However, proof that the Bible is true is a fundamental question and if it is currently a more important subject for you, we suggest you go and read at least one of the following articles. Hopefully, when convenient, you will then be ready to return to this article.
How can Israel be God’s witnesses? – April 2021
Who knows the future? – February 2021
Here we will continue to demonstrate why God says He has created the Earth and everything on it.
He directed the prophet Isaiah to present Him to Israel like this.
11 Thus saith the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me. 12 I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded. Isaiah 45
And this revelation to Israel is equally relevant to all humanity as is shown throughout scripture. Here, for example, is a description of God by the Apostle Paul.
15 …, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; 16 Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen. 1 Timothy 6
We are sure it won’t surprise you to know that the Creator is all wise and powerful since the whole universe is His work. Furthermore, it is wholly logical that the Creator would have some object in mind in doing so great a work which, He declares through the prophet Habakkuk this time,
14 For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. Habakkuk 2
So He created the planet Earth to be full of glory and beauty for His satisfaction, but He wanted more than this. God wanted it to be “filled with the knowledge of” His glorious work. That clearly means He wanted people to exist that would see and appreciate His work. What sort of creatures did the Creator design? He tells us from the start that He had decided they should be like him in many respects calling them ‘man’ as he confirmed in his word.
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. Genesis 1:27
So what was it that God wanted men and women to do in response to the knowledge of His work and purpose?
29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: 30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. … …
It did not stop there for the next verse goes on …
… … 31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. Mark 12
God wanted the Earth to be filled with men and women that have read His word, understood His purpose, seen His creative work in the world, and grown to love Him and want a place in it. Aah, you say, then He has miserably failed. But wait a minute. Think about this. What must go with love for it to exist? It requires free will. For love is a person’s response; they need to be able to choose and therefore they must be to free not to love. Free to reject others, to hate one another, to be unkind, to be selfish, and much more as well as to exhibit the good attributes that are love. The contrast between love and the uninhibited freewill of man in action, called in the scriptures “the works of the flesh” are clearly to be seen in the world today and plainly described in the scriptures. For example,
19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Galatians 5
The “works of the flesh” can be very ugly in the extreme as can be seen today in the many trouble spots around the world, and, if we are honest, are in evidence in some measure, in all of us. But when men and women listen to the “Spirit” through the words of God, the teaching of the Lord Jesus, and the example of faith men and women in the Bible, we see a total contrast.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. Galatians 5
Thus we see that men and women at large have a choice. They can live a life focused on their own will, guided by their own judgement, or they can look around at the amazing natural world from the tiniest creature to the vast universe and be moved by the wonder of it all as was the Apostle Paul to live as God wanted us to live according to His wishes.
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse. Romans 1
The Great, all-powerful, wise God is invisible to us and we cannot see His power. But His work of creation, when seen by an unbiased mind, is the evidence that He is there and His amazing mind and wisdom designed and created everything; setting the unchanging myriad of rules that enable the Earth to support the multitude of life forms, amazingly dependent upon one another, so that men and women can live there and fulfil His purpose.
We rejoice that God cares for those who recognise there is a God having learnt from the Bible His desire and purpose, and strive to please Him and has instructed the Angels to support them.
6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. 7 The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. 8 O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. Psalm 34
However, there is a big BUT. God, of course, knew the battle those who strive to please Him have to fight against their nature of flesh would be a huge struggle.
9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? 10 I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings. Jeremiah 17
We can see from the scriptures that God clearly understood the kind of creature He was creating in man. He knew also that He had the power and wisdom to finally free the Earth of wickedness and evil and fill it with His glory, at the same time raising those men and women who love Him and the works of His hands to glorious eternal life.
38 But the transgressors shall be destroyed together: the end of the wicked shall be cut off. 39 But the salvation of the righteous is of the LORD: he is their strength in the time of trouble. Psalm 37
The faithful followers of Jesus can look forward to the day that Jesus promises …
4 … God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Revelation 21
As you have been reading this article you may have been aware that not all churches and chapels, religious groups teach and believe these things. That is why in our last article we have been emphasising the need to be sure our beliefs are what is taught in the Bible and we give you many quotations from the Bible in these articles. Here are a few of the reasons the things you read in these articles differ from what some ‘Christians’ may tell you.
The information below (in brown) was collected from various church websites, and is what they believe and teach. Have a read down the column.
The faithful go to Heaven >>
John 3:13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. from God
Soul lives on at death >>
Ezekiel 18 : 4 The soul who sins shall die
Baptism guarantees eternal life >>
2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
Hell is a place of suffering >>
Ecclesiastes 9:5-6 … the dead know not any thing, either have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
Jesus Christ is God >>
John 14:28 … I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.
Now go back to the first brown and click on it and compare it with the quotation in blue from the Bible (King James translation) – other genuine translations, not paraphrases, would be similar. Now go down the brown list clicking on them and comparing them with the quotation in blue. You may find them surprising even disturbing and you can see why we say read your Bible regularly and keep it handy for checking what you read and hear.
But you may find difficult to follow the Apostle Paul’s advice on dealing with checking what people say the Bible teaches.
13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 1 Corinthians 2
However, searching can be done with the help of a concordance, which for most 
people is not as challenging as it sounds. You can also seek the help of a trusted fellow Bible reader and work together.
If you are not familiar with a concordance, it is a kind of index to the Bible. In book form it looks like this.
There are various Bible concordances – Strong’s is the most used. You can usually borrow or refer to one in a well-stocked library, buy one from a large or Christian book shop, or order one from a smaller book shop.
This book contains all the words (except words like ‘a’, ‘the’) in the Old and New Testaments in English in the front part of the book and the Greek and Hebrew from the original writings at the end.
Or you can go to the website https://biblehub.com/
And you can type in a word and it will list all the verses in the Bible where it occurs, or type in a book, chapter, and verse and it will bring it up for you.
So many people these days have smart phones and use them for all sorts of tasks. You can even download on your smartphone a concordance quite easily, especially if you’re familiar with the way these phones work. Just follow these instructions.
On your smartphone go to Google Play Store and type in the search bar “Grace Bible Apps” and you should get a page like (A) below Then select and click the first item to get this page (B).
On (B) above select and click ‘INSTALL’ in the green box to bring up (C) below. Finally, click the green ‘OPEN’ button and you will arrive at access to the concordance as follows in (D).
You now have a simple access to Strong’s Concordance. You can type in the search box a book and verse number anywhere in the Bible and it will come up. You can type a word in the search box and it will find it wherever it is in the Bible. We typed “gospel” and here is the list rom the pages of a concordance of the verses where (E) ‘gospel’ occurs. You will see that you get the whole verse giving you the the context of the use of the word. There are many more instances than can be seen on the small mobile phone screen so you scroll down to see the rest.
This is the result of searching the Bible for the number of times the word ‘gospel’ appears helpfully showing the whole verses in which it is to be found. Above the quotations we are told that ‘Gospel’ appears 98 times in the Bible. You can scan up and down using your finger on the text to bring up whichever QUOTATION you want. Furthermore, if you tap on a verse that interests you it opens up the Bible at that point and you can study the whole context.
You will always have a screen with the familiar search symbol there for you to start again with a new word or quotation.
That is the easiest way to be ready to read and search the scriptures and test any Bible or Christian teaching or doctrine you receive from any source.
So the safest place to do your reading is of course the Bible. But to do that on your own is not the easiest task and can be very slow. So a good Bible reading plan can help greatly especially if reading is shared it with others so the portion read can be discussed. A reading plan containing reliable Notes can be a great aid to Bible Study.
As we are a group who study their Bible we can offer both. The reading plan is easiest since we can provide that almost immediately. And anyone interested in a reading group can let us know the area where they live and we can check if there is one available nearby for them.
