Characteristics of the Surrendered Life
by Mike FuhrerHuman governments can be astonishingly cruel, especially autocratic and totalitarian regimes. It has been this way since the earliest days of humanity. Some of these extraordinarily wrong-headed ...
25-Mar-22
The Leaven of Double-Mindedness
by Joshua MontgomeryAs the return of Jesus Christ nears, the need for us to prepare becomes more critical than ever. While witnessing the world winding down the path to destruction, we find that Christ alone is our ...
18-Mar-22
Pre-Passover Traditions
by Richard T. RitenbaughThe life of a Christian revolves around the annual holy days that God instructs His people to observe in Leviticus 23. While most nominal Christians do not celebrate the biblical holy days, except for a version ...
11-Mar-22
Overcoming Doubt
by John ReissIt can be a shock to look at the headlines these days. Some of the events happening here and abroad can make one wonder about the times in which we live. Are we truly at the leading edge of the end time? ...
04-Mar-22
Controlling Our Thoughts
by Gary MontgomeryPlanet Earth currently sustains nearly eight billion people, each of which has different hopes, desires, dreams, and thoughts. Each one reasons that he or she can determine right from wrong. Every day, humans ...
25-Feb-22
What Does "Discerning the Lord's Body" Mean? (Part Three)
by David C. GrabbeThe apostle Paul tells the Corinthians in I Corinthians 11:29 that, when it came time to take the Passover, they were in danger of eating and drinking judgment to themselves. Why? It was not that they were somehow ...
18-Feb-22
What Does "Discerning the Lord's Body" Mean? (Part Two)
by David C. GrabbeIn considering the circumstances of the Corinthian believers, we might be inclined to consider the infractions the apostle Paul reports as occurring at their congregational meals as a minor thing ...
11-Feb-22
What Does "Discerning the Lord's Body" Mean? (Part One)
by David C. GrabbeIn Paul’s instructions to the Corinthian church on observing Passover, he leaves no doubt about the gravity of our approach to taking it. In I Corinthians 11:29-30, he writes: "For he who eats ...
04-Feb-22
Dead Prophets' Society
by Mike FuhrerMany mainstream churches, including various Lutheran, Methodist, Anglican, and Catholic denominations, publicly state that they do not believe the Bible to be literally true. Some use only the New Testament ...
28-Jan-22
Use Words Carefully
by Gary MontgomeryHuman nature possesses an aspect that causes people to alienate themselves from family, friends, and coworkers. It is a more destructive issue than many believe it to be. In any relationship with others ...
21-Jan-22
Be a Good Neighbor
by John ReissMy wife and I have a friend whose life has been hit with a series of crises. Through no apparent fault of her own, trials on multiple fronts have confronted her. Our friend’s predicament has moved ...
14-Jan-22
Another Look at the Prosperity Gospel
by Mike FuhrerAt one time or another, we have probably heard a preacher quoting scriptures that guarantee prosperity through God’s largesse. One huckster I saw some time ago said he needed three hundred ...
07-Jan-22
Concupiscence
by Richard T. RitenbaughThe word of the day is concupiscence. It is an archaic English noun taken directly from a Latin verb that literally means “with desiring,” that is, “to yearn” or “to long” for. “Concupiscence” gets little ...
31-Dec-21
The Rare Virtue of Self-Mastery
by Richard T. RitenbaughJanuary 1 is just hours away, which means New Year’s Eve celebrations are likewise imminent. Millions will be gathering in parties large and small to kick the old year to the curb and toast the incoming year’s promise. ...
24-Dec-21
Loving the Body of Christ (Part Two)
by John ReissDisunity among the brethren in the church can occur for many reasons. In his first epistle to the Corinthian church, the apostle Paul addresses several severe problems within the congregation, troubles that were ...
17-Dec-21
Loving the Body of Christ (Part One)
by John ReissWe all realize the level of sickness and death that has recently occurred in the greater church of God. Dozens of members have contracted COVID this year in Church of the Great God alone, and the disease affected many ...
10-Dec-21
Inventing Goddesses and Demons (Part Three)
by David C. GrabbeParts One and Two in this series covered the ancient Babylonian myth of the demon goddess Lilith, who became enmeshed in Jewish folklore with her companion, Samael. Lilith was imagined in the ...
03-Dec-21
Inventing Goddesses and Demons (Part Two)
by David C. GrabbePart One introduced Lilith, a demon goddess of the night and the reputed first wife of Adam, who found her way into Jewish folklore from the ancient Babylonians. Lilith and her companion, Samael ...
26-Nov-21
Inventing Goddesses and Demons (Part One)
by David C. GrabbeWhat if I were to tell you that Adam’s first wife was not Eve but a goddess named Lilith? What if I were to mention that the Bible contains a reference to lilith? Who was Lilith? If you were aware of ...
19-Nov-21
Making the Right Choice
by John ReissA quotation recently struck me as timely: “Your journey is not the same as mine, and my journey is not yours, but if you meet me on a certain path, may we encourage each other." God says to His people in Deuteronomy ...
13-Nov-21
Benefits of Thanksgiving
by Gary MontgomeryIt is that time of year when we Americans celebrate Thanksgiving. These days, it seems like it exists as “Opening Day” to the Christmas retail sales season when shoppers can find discounts up to 70 percent off ...
05-Nov-21
Wasted Energy
by John ReissI will admit something that will probably not surprise a single person who knows me: I like to read FOX News on my phone; scroll through post after post on Twitter; watch videos of Scott Adams, Dennis Prager, ...
29-Oct-21
High Places Left Standing
by Gary MontgomeryWhen God brought the children of Israel to the Jordan River, the land they were about to invade contained high places for pagan worship. Through Moses, God told the people to destroy all the pagans’ sacred sites ...
22-Oct-21
Do We Know God?
by Pat HigginsJesus tells us in John 17:3 that eternal life is to know God and Jesus Christ. “Know” in this verse does not suggest mere intellectual knowledge but goes far beyond it—to having a close, intimate relationship ...
15-Oct-21
'Before the Foundation of the World' (Part Two)
by John ReissIn Ephesians 2:20, the apostle Paul writes that God’s chosen people, the Body of Christ, have been built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. Most of us are not ministers or deacons or occupy some ...
08-Oct-21
'Before the Foundation of the World' (Part One)
by John ReissIt may sound shocking or too simplistic to hear a minister say, “The receiving of God’s Holy Spirit is salvation. Yet, it is a true statement. In one of his booklets, Herbert Armstrong explained that “salvation ...
10-Sep-21
Seeds and Seasons (Part Two)
by David C. GrabbeIn Part One, we learned that God teaches His children important lessons through the seasons of the year, particularly in the harvest seasons during which He has placed His appointed times . . .
03-Sep-21
Seeds and Seasons (Part One)
by David C. GrabbeOne of the tragedies of modern life is how far removed we are from the splendor and intricacies of the natural world. God’s physical creation, a traditional source of insight, is steadily disappearing—if not in actuality, ...
27-Aug-21
Are We Laodiceans?
by Pat HigginsMost would agree that we live in the fullness of the Laodicean attitude of God’s church, and because we are alive now, it is safe to assume that we all have strong Laodicean proclivities. ...
20-Aug-21
Faith and Contentment (Part Two)
by John ReissIn Part One, we began to consider an aspect of God’s purpose by using a metaphor of a tree in a forest. We saw that faith is the trunk of our figurative tree, and one of its attributes is ...
13-Aug-21
Faith and Contentment (Part One)
by John ReissRomans 1:20 tells us that we can learn a lot about God by what He has created. Nature, Paul tells us, testifies of the attributes and character of God, and a metaphor from nature—a tree in a forest ...
06-Aug-21
A Peaceful Spirit
by Gary MontgomeryWe live in a world that is constantly changing. One day things are chaotic, and the next, things seem peaceful. Sometimes people are cordial and pleasant, but before you know it, they are angry and hostile. Such animosity ...
30-Jul-21
Coveting and the Roots of Sin
by Richard T. RitenbaughWatching toddlers play together in a room full of toys can be instructive. For a short while, the children check out the toys strewn about the room, noting the bright colors, touching them, putting ...
23-Jul-21
The Lack of Love in Lying
by Richard T. RitenbaughA vein of dishonesty runs at the heart of the world’s recent troubles. We can easily spot this malignancy in modern journalism, which no longer reports news but publishes opinion pieces disguised ...
16-Jul-21
The Way of Get
by Richard T. RitenbaughIt is in no way shocking to claim that people own things. It is a fact of human existence. People possess money, land, homes, businesses, vehicles, jewelry, stocks and bonds, precious metals, collectibles, ...
09-Jul-21
Purifying the Heart
by Richard T. RitenbaughTo talk about adultery these days is to risk ridicule. Back in 1976, then-presidential candidate Jimmy Carter faced public scorn when - in a Playboy magazine interview no less - he agreed with Jesus ...
02-Jul-21
The Value of Life
by Richard T. RitenbaughGod’s command in Exodus 20:13 and Deuteronomy 5:17, “You shall not murder,” seems to be a universal tenet in every nation’s code of law. Does any culture not have some kind of rule regulating ...
25-Jun-21
The Honor Due to Parents
by Richard T. RitenbaughHonor is a word that often fails to receive its due in this casual age. Its modern sense tends to lean toward “recognition” and “celebration”—for instance, the Kennedy Center Honors or even the ...
18-Jun-21
Remember the Sabbath Day
by Richard T. RitenbaughThe fourth commandment is not only the longest of the Ten Commandments, but it also begins differently from the other nine. The other nine start with “You shall” or “You shall not.” ...
11-Jun-21
Taking God's Name in Vain
by Richard T. RitenbaughMother gave Jimmy a hard look. ...
04-Jun-21
Does God Forbid All Images?
by Richard T. RitenbaughYears ago, the church received a question about idolatry from a pious American woman of uncertain religious affiliation. She asked about our understanding of the second commandment, particularly ...
28-May-21
Identifying Our Idols
by Richard T. RitenbaughIdolatry. It is not a subject that we think about a great deal in this secular world. The word itself suffers abuse in the modern vernacular, referring not to the premier sin of the Ten Commandments ...
21-May-21
Pentecost's Two Leavened Loaves (Part Five)
by David C. GrabbeIn terms of differences that affect service and labor, the New Testament mentions numerous pairs of diverse types of people. In his epistles, the apostle Paul addresses barbarians and Scythians, ...
14-May-21
Pentecost's Two Leavened Loaves (Part Four)
by David C. GrabbeWe can readily find the themes of the Pentecost offering in the church, going all the way back to Christ’s ministry. ...
07-May-21
Pentecost's Two Leavened Loaves (Part Three)
by David C. GrabbeThe Pentecost grain offering contains leavening, while the typical grain offering does not. ...
30-Apr-21
Pentecost's Two Leavened Loaves (Part Two)
by David C. GrabbePart One introduced the unique offering on the Feast of Weeks that had, as its centerpiece, two loaves. In Scripture, the number two signals a difference, often one with incomplete harmony or ...
23-Apr-21
Pentecost's Two Leavened Loaves (Part One)
by David C. GrabbeIn the preface to his book, The Law of the Offerings, Andrew Jukes refers to the Bible’s sacrifices as “the inspired parables of the Old Testament. ...
16-Apr-21
Appeasement (Part Two)
by John ReissPart One introduced the concept of appeasement—“granting concessions to potential enemies to maintain peace”—and provided a few examples of the policy at work before World War II and during the more recent Antifa riots in Portland, Oregon. ...
09-Apr-21
Appeasement (Part One)
by John ReissThe Free Dictionary gives us a definition of appeasement: “The policy of granting concessions to potential enemies to maintain peace.” An Internet search for examples of political appeasement ...
02-Apr-21
Pentecost: A Test?
by Pat HigginsFor doctrine, who is your authority? For some, it is Herbert W. Armstrong. But he warned us, “Don’t believe me—BELIEVE YOUR BIBLE—BELIEVE GOD!” Yes, rather than any man or church, the authority for ...
26-Mar-21
Joshua and the Gibeonites (Part Three)
by David C. GrabbeParts One and Two examined the deception of the Gibeonites in securing their place in Israelite society. They also touched on some of the later effects of the Gibeonites’ continued presence ...
19-Mar-21
Joshua and the Gibeonites (Part Two)
by David C. GrabbeIn Part One, we began considering the Gibeonites, the people of a large city in what would become the land of Benjamin, who misrepresented themselves to Joshua and the Israelites for the sake of a covenant of peace. ...