Dear Brethren and Co-Workers in Christ:
Greetings from the Five Cities Region of California.
On Monday, we received two dozen more translations of our English language booklet The Gospel of the Kingdom of God –we continue to take steps aligning with prophecies such as shown in Matthew 24:14 and Revelation 7:9.
That said, there are many holy days this month.
The first is the Feast of Trumpets which will be from sunset September 15th through sunset September 16th.
The holy day after that is the Day of Atonement that runs from sunset September 24th through sunset September 25th.
The Feast of Tabernacles runs from sunset September 29th and continues until sunset ending the Last Great Day which is October 7th in 2023.
For information on our sites around the world, go to the article: Feast of Tabernacles’ Sites for 2023.
Back in 387 A.D., one of the world’s best unscriptural orators that claimed Christianity, Bishop John of Constantinople (most commonly referred to now as John Chrysostom, meaning John with the golden mouth/voice/throat) preached against Christians keeping God’s holy days.
The recommended sermon for this Sabbath goes into that: John Chrysostom and Holy Days.
Site for Feast Services in Canada and New Zealand
Herb and Gisele Haddon sent the following email:
We have finalized the rental of the venue. Services will be held at Tweedside Hall, situated at 570 Tweedside Road. From Fredericton it is about 45 minutes from the venue. From our home we are about 20 minutes away. The facility has a full kitchen which is at our disposal should we need it. Nadjia is bringing all kinds of vegetables, meat including lamb. We will not be lacking in food. Herb and I made requests for special cuts at the butcher. We may gain a few pounds…We have a day planned for making apple juice from scratch and a BBQ. Our neighbor has a couple of big workhorses and we may be able to ride. We will have to confirm. Other activities are also planned.
Certain matters had to be handled because of Herb’s health matters. But despite severe health issues, he is intending to be at the Feast.
There was a change of location for the site in New Zealand. The new location is Westport, New Zealand.
For additional information, contact Ritchie White, email aerotriker@gmail.com
Information on the sites around the world for 2023 can be found at the following link: Feast of Tabernacles’ Sites for 2023.
YouTube Strikes Again
Satan wants the true Christian message discredited.
YouTube is one of the platforms that Satan, the prince of the power of the air (cf. Ephesians 2:2), has influenced to try to do that.
In August 2023, we noticed a new way that YouTube is trying to discredit us. Related to a video we made in late 2020 titled, Interfaith movement pushing LGBTQ+ agenda, YouTube put up the following:
Context
Conversion therapy, sometimes referred to as “reparative therapy,” is any of several dangerous and discredited practices aimed at changing an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
It is dangerous NOT to allow “conversion therapy,” yet YouTube is pushing a lie that the opposite is true.
Conversion therapy is NOT scientifically discredited. It is mainly “discredited” by those who oppose what scripture teaches.
YouTube has throughout the years put up false “context” or other “warnings,” which, to me at least, look like preludes for more censoring.
Anyway, I saw an article last Sabbath on what is being called the Censorship Industrial Complex, which I posted about last Sunday (see YouTube censors and removes ‘New Transgender Study’ as the ‘Censorship Industrial Complex’ expands).
After sunset Saturday, I learned that YouTube has just censored and removed another one of our videos and given us another one of its “strikes.”
The reason from YouTube?
Terms and policiesThis video has been removed because of inappropriate content.
Inappropriate content?
The video pointed out facts and conclusions from a University of Florida connected study along with some scriptures. Yet, that is so “inappropriate” that YouTube removed it.
Anyway, since we do not rely fully on YouTube for online videos, here is the same video that we also had up on our BitChute channel:
14:34
New Transgender Study
A new study on the side effects of transgender sex change surgeries was conducted by researchers at the University of Florida and the health non-profit Brooks Rehabilitation. The study found that 81% of those who had undergone sex change surgeries in the past five years reported experiencing pain simply from normal movement in the weeks and months that followed — and that many other side effects are manifesting themselves as well. How do Russia and the USA handle the transgender issue? What does the Bible say? What does science show? Does the Bible warn about children being oppressors and leaders causing people to err? Are God’s people supposed to, “Tell My people their transgression, And the house of Jacob their sins” (Isaiah 58:1)? Dr. Thiel and Steve Dupuie go over these topics.
Here is a link on BitChute to that video: New Transgender Study.
Sadly, we continue to see more and more censorship from what can be called the Censorship Industrial Complex.
The Apostle Paul warned “against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18).
YouTube has once again done that.
That said, there are still reach and technical advantages to YouTube, but because we have not trusted them, we are on several other platforms:
The Continuing Church of God has some animations to teach aspects of Christian beliefs. Also available at BitChute COGAnimations https://www.bitchute.com/channel/coganimations/
We have produced hundreds of videos for the BibleNewsProphecy channel. Other than on YouTube, you can find them on Vimeo at Bible News Prophecy https://vimeo.com/channels/biblenewsprophecy as well as on Brighteon Bible News Prophecy https://www.brighteon.com/channel/ccogbnp and Bitchute Prophecy https://www.bitchute.com/channel/prophecy/, on Rumble https://rumble.com/c/biblenewsprophecy and also on DailyMotion https://www.dailymotion.com/dm_e24c8ac0050c5e7445cd5573711869c6/videos
We have produced video sermons for this channel: BitChute COGTube https://www.bitchute.com/channel/cogtube/Note: Since these are sermon-length, they can take a little longer to load than other videos. Here is a link to a short intro: ContinuingCOG Channel.
We have an African channel at BitChute COGAfrica https://www.bitchute.com/channel/cogafrica/
We do not give up when we face difficulties. If one proclamation door is closed, or partially blocked, we strive to go through others (cf. Revelation 3:7-8), as the lists of other platforms above help demonstrate. Of course, that is also part of why we use other forms of media, such as radio (see also the Continuing Church of God Multimedia page).
Anyway, because of the “strike” from Youtube, we cannot upload the latest BNP video on YouTube yet. Therefore, so the suggested sermonette for this Sabbath will need to be a repeat–How to Be More Hopeful.
That said, we have also been trying to work with Google regarding our campaign with them. This is still unresolved and our campaign is still on hold. Please pray that God’s will will be done on this.
CCOGAfrica Channel
CCOGAfrica
As mentioned in the Letter to the Brethren: August 31, 2023, there are a lot of videos that those in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo put up at https://www.youtube.com/@ccogrwanda2493
After contacting Moise Nshimiyimana of Rwanda about this, I asked Bill Wedekind if he could copy them and also put them on the CCOGAfrica channel. He was able to do that yesterday. So, do not be surprised that we now have a lot of videos just uploaded there with no views. While they had views elsewhere, they are now new to the CCOGAfrica channel.
Related to Africa, please pray that we will be able to better assist those in Africa keep the Feast of Tabernacles this year as we have encountered certain technical and financial difficulties.
Suggested Sabbath Day Service
Here is a suggested Sabbath day service for our scattered brethren and other interested people:
- 2-3 hymns (our songbook, The Bible Hymnal, contains the materials from the 1974 Bible Hymnal from the old WCG with new covers, plus ten additional hymns; there is also some Choral Accompaniment online).
- Opening prayer.
- The suggested sermonette is: How to Be More Hopeful. Other sermonettes are available at our Prophecy channel on BitChute https://www.bitchute.com/channel/prophecy/
- Announcements (if any; though for many it will be this letter) and one hymn.
- The suggested sermon, which for most who receive this letter via email will be: John Chrysostom and Holy Days. Other sermons are also available at the COGTube channel on BitChute https://www.bitchute.com/channel/cogtube/
- Final hymn.
- Closing prayer.
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. There are also messages in the Spanish language at the CDLIDDSermones channel.
World News Items
More scientists seem willing to publicly conclude that COVID-19 likely came from a laboratory (see ‘Japanese Scientists Find that Covid-19 and all of the variants are Laboratory creations: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse Have Been Released Upon Us’). That was something I concluded in January of 2020 when it was still called the “novel coronavirus” (watch Biological Warfare and Prophecy). It appears likely that humans will produce biological entities and/or biological weapons that will be a factor in the ride of the fourth horseman of the Apocalypse (watch Biological Weapons and the 4th Horseman of the Apocalypse).
Severe and extreme weather remain in the news. The unexpected flooding at the hedonistic ‘Burning Man’ gathering stranded thousands (see ‘Burning Man’: Debauchery, Temple, and Tower of Babel?). Some are asserting that the Summer of 2023 is (or will be) the hottest on record (see CBS: Earth just had its hottest summer on record, U.N. says, warning “climate breakdown has begun”). The reality is that the Book of Revelation warns of even higher scorching heat that will happen before Jesus returns (Revelation 16:8-9). So, to quote an American cliche, “you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
More are seeing that the USA’s dollar dominance of international trade payments is reducing (see ZH: “The Endgame Is Clear” – Gold’s Role Rises As Dollar Hegemony Falls). Others see that the USA, itself, may collapse within 5 years (see Ed Dowd Says a “Mad Max” Scenario Is Unfolding for USA Collapse in Five Years). The end of the Anglo-American order and the rise of the final times of the Gentiles is getting closer (see Brazil exporting more corn and soy than the USA–the times of the Gentiles is close). While the USA still has major economic and military strength, without massive repentance it is doomed.
Changes are taking place in Europe. France took another step against Muslim dress, whereas Germany’s AfD “anti-migrant” party is making gains (see First they banned burqas, now abayas and the AfD is making gains–change is going to happen in Europe). Europe is prophesied to reorganize (cf. Revelation 17:12-13) and developments in Europe are moving in that direction.
Concluding Comments
The Apostle Paul wrote:
12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:12-14)
Brethren, because God loves us, He sent His Son to die for us, and forgive us our sins, in order to be in His glorious Kingdom.
That Kingdom is coming sooner than most believe.
Sincerely,
Bob Thiel
Pastor and Overseer