Letter to the Brethren: December 19, 2019

Dear Brethren and Co-Workers in Christ:

Greetings from Grover Beach, California.

We hope and pray you are all doing well.

Got a jury duty notice last week. For the first time in this area, now you have to go online to request to be excused. So, I did that and am expecting a response from the government. Year ago, I spoke to the County of San Luis Obispo about this and explained since my situation will never change that they would save funds by not mailing out notices and then have to process my (and, when applicable, my wife’s) requests to be excused. But they said that their system would not allow for such. So, yes, we still get notices here. However, the County has (thus far) always granted our requests for excusal.

I got laryngitis Friday and was not sure that I would be able to give a sermon and sermonette last Sabbath. But I prayed about it, and was able to do both–but my voice will definitely sound affected.

Flipboard and BNP Radio

Shirley Gestro, from New Zealand, sent the following statistics related to our reach on Flipboard and BibleNewsProphecy Radio:

Bible News Prophecy internet radio

https://www.biblenewsprophecy.net/

Radio streaming server statistics for last 60 days (14 Oct 2019 to 16 Dec 2019)

Listening hours: 4,985

Listeners: 9,322

Top countries: USA, Canada, Australia, UK and France

TuneIn App: 1100 added to favourites

Radio website: 85,500 page views

Listening Options:

Through TuneIn you can listen on:

  • Amazon Alexa, Amazon Echo, Google Assistant/Google Home
  • Sonos, Bose SoundTouch, Roku Wireless Speakers
  • iPhone, Android Phone
  • Android Auto and Apple CarPlay
  • Smart Tv’s
  • Google Chromecast, Roku, Amazon Fire Tv

Bible News Prophecy on Flipboard

Magazine news app, also available on desktop.

Our RSS feeds are approved as a publisher, meaning articles are automatically submitted into specific magazines.

Statistics for 16 Dec 2019

Articles: 13,131

Page flips: 310, 052

Viewers: 24,286

Followers: 3,954

Popular articles:

  • BIN: Descendants of Gog & Magog Join Russia, Iran in Joint Military Drill and Erdoğan’s Top Adviser Calls for ‘Islamic Army for Palestine’: Threatens to Bomb Israel;
  • BibleNewsProphecy: Pachamama: Pope Francis declares Black Madonna holiday
  • ‘The Real St. Nicholas – Not Fat and Not Very Jolly Either’
  • COGaIC interview related to Marcion Pontus

Bible News Prophecy Radio on Pinterest

https://www.pinterest.nz/biblenewsradio/

Statistics for last 90 days (18 Sept 2019 – 16 Dec 2019)

Impressions (number of times our pins were seen): 145.6k (Up 41%)

Total audience: 109.82K  (up 38%)

Top Pins:

  • Last Great Day: God is impartial and has a plan for all
  • Exodus 25: Ark of the Covenant and the Mercy Seat
  • ‘This Is Your Brain on Exercise’
  • Latin America in Prophecy
  • Superbugs, Antibiotics, and Vaccines
  • Mysteries of God’s Plan

Bible News Prophecy on Ello.co

https://ello.co/biblenewsprophecy

Items are added periodically.

20k views

Popular items: 19 Items to Watch in 2019, and Orwell’s 1984 by 2024?

So, via support from New Zealand, we continue to reach many we may not reach other ways.

Youth Camp

Our youth camps are now going on in Kenya. Evangelist Evans Ochieng sent the following photo today from one of them:

He said that the camps were going well. Thank all of you for your prayers.

World News Items

Former US President Barack Obama proposed having men step aside and have women rule as a way to make the world a better place (see Barack Obama says having women rule over the nations is the solution; COGwriter: The Bible teaches the good news of the Kingdom of God). The Bible essentially warns against that (cf. Isaiah 3:12), but instead teaches that the Kingdom of God is the solution.

Speaking of US Presidents, last evening, on a mainly partisan vote, Donald Trump was impeached by the US House of Representatives (see House of Representatives votes to impeach US President Donald Trump: A house divided?). There is more and more division in the USA (cf. Matthew 12:25).

There have been protests in the Arab world against various governments (see ‘Protesters in Arab world’s newest uprisings’ will ultimately lead to the King of the South). Ultimately, we will see a reorganization in the Middle East and North Africa which will become a confederation to be ruled by one the Bible calls “the King of the South” (Daniel 11:40-43). But that will not end well (see also Ezekiel 30:1-8).

While biblically, we can be certain that the King of the South will be defeated (Daniel 11:40-43), something else that will seemingly not end well is the genetic experimentation that many scientists are engaged in. Currently, some California scientists are excited that they may be able to edit genetics to make bacteria more susceptible to antibiotics (see ‘New CRISPR-based system targets amplified antibiotic-resistant genes’). Although they may well have some successes this way, the reality is that scientists cannot possibly do sufficient tests to prove there is no risk from such experimentation. Last Summer, for example, we learned that a plan to genetically-alter mosquitoes to make them easier to kill resulted in mosquitoes that were actually a bit harder to kill (see Scientists confirm COGwriter GMO mosquito warning). Jesus warned of famines and pestilences (Luke 21:11), and genetic engineering may well lead to some of that.

Suggested Sabbath Service

Here is a suggested Sabbath service for this week:

Note: If you have a slow internet connection, you can watch these by starting the video, then below it (and towards the right) look for an outline of a gear–if you click on that, it will allow the YouTube video to be played with lower video quality, but at least it will not stop often–you can select a quality as low as 144p. If your internet connection is still too slow (as my home one is) and/or you prefer audio messages to audio-visuals ones, go to the YouTube link for the message, click on SHOW MORE related to the description. You will then see something that says, “Download MP3.” Below that is a link to an MP3 file. Most computers (and even some cellular telephones) will allow MP3 files to be downloaded and played. This is an option we have made available (but we are also looking into ways to improve that as well)–and, of course, we have written article options. Some people have found that if their internet connections are not fast enough, that they can simply listen to the messages that are found at the Bible News Prophecy online radio channel.

IN CASE YOU DO NOT RECEIVE A ‘LETTER TO THE BRETHREN’ FOR ANY WEEK, REMEMBER THAT THERE ARE MANY SERMON MESSAGES ON THE ContinuingCOG channel AND MANY SERMONETTE MESSAGES ON THE Bible News Prophecy channel. There are also some messages at the CCOGAfrica channel.

Concluding Comments

The Apostle Paul wrote:

14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will dwell in them
And walk among them.
I will be their God,
And they shall be My people.”

17 Therefore

“Come out from among them
And be separate, says the Lord.
Do not touch what is unclean,
And I will receive you.”
18 ‘I will be a Father to you,
And you shall be My sons and daughters,
Says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)

Brethren, this time of year many wish us to draw in with them in their non-biblical Christmas observance.

While we should try to live as peaceably as we can with others (Romans 12:18), we also are not to compromise with the world and its religions.

Sincerely,

Bob Thiel
Pastor and Overseer

Posted in Letters to the Brethren
About CCOG
The Continuing Church of God, which attempts to represent the most faithful remnant of the Philadelphia (Revelation 3:7) portion of the Church of God, bases its beliefs on the Holy Bible. Read CCOG's statement of beliefs for more information.