Dear Brethren and Co-Workers in Christ:
Greetings from Grover Beach, California (where now our ceilings have to be replaced because of water damage related to the tornado that hit earlier this month).
So far, we have received no further information from cities in Texas where we are considering hold the Feast of Tabernacles for the USA yet.
We received another 20 translations of our English booklet titled The Gospel of the Kingdom of God this week. The work of reaching the world with a witness of the good news of the Kingdom of God (Matthew 24:14) continues.
Trip to Mozambique
Last Friday, Pastor Radson Mulozowa sent the following photo of the local maize crop and report:
I have just arrived from Mozambique and the trip was so encouraging in the way that I met some brethren who has just joined the church recently
Dr Bob let me report that the work in Mozambique is growing miraculously and the only problem I encountered was that there is dry spells in the way that the maize is drying due to lack of rainfall as the same in MalawiBut had it been the rain come this week thing could at least be better. Join with us in Praying for the rainfall to come since the situation is worse as the price of maize has gone up to extent of 1 dollar is buying one under kg of maize and even commodities price has gone up.When we were at the funeral we had brethren from Nasiyaya who traveled far away using bicycles but they couldn’t get any food to eat so that they can get strength to go back as a result I gave them some funds to assist them on their way back to Nasiyaya so that tomorrow they can keep Sabbath with brethrenIn my life I have never seen this dry spells like this one happening nowDeacon James Rabson reported that the main problem is that no where to get a job so that brethren can survive as they were depending on farming as source of income .Another problem is that last season brethren did not harvest well because of cyclone The encouraging news is that though the Muslims and Pentecostal churches are distributing food to their members every month but our members are not shaken to join them but are still following the true gospelLet me request your prayers so that God can intervene in this bad situation I know is the only answer to this problem The leader who passed away his name is Amos Misomali of Nagaga congregationTomorrow I will keep Sabbath in zomba
Best regards
Radson
The hunger situation in parts of Mozambique is real and is severe. We sent some funds on Monday to assist with the hunger situation there as well as in parts of Malawi.
We are also looking at some irrigation options so those in Mozambique will be able to grow more of their own food during this difficult time.
COGwriter Site was Down
Our internet hosting service sent a message last Thursday that we had to update certain files or they eventually would crash. So, I consulted with several and found someone who had worked for us before who said he could fix the issues.
Then he said that it looked more complicated than he thought, but that he could still fix the issues.
Well, late Friday afternoon apparently he upgraded something that was not compatible with some of the content of the home page of COGwriter.com–but he did not realize that. Later, people emailed me showing the following:
Since many people find our sermons, etc. from the COGwriter.com pages, this was a greater than usual problem.
So, I telephoned our son Brian, who was able to fix that and bring the COGwrtiter.com page back up.
In the meantime, before it was clear whether or not he could fix it, I added the sermonette and more about the sermon at ccog.org in case people looking for those messages tried to go there.
That said, the links in last week’s Letter to the Brethren still worked, so people wanting to watch the sermons were still able to do so from those links.
We apologize for the difficulties the COGwriter.com site being down this caused many of you.
Suggested Sabbath Day ServicesHere 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 titled: Russia, Sanctions, Transnistria, Europe & Prophecy. 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: CCOG Q&A: Nimrod, the ‘Little Book,’ Scythians, and more! 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 mobile 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
For the past couple of months, there have been unofficially-confirmed rumors that King Charles III is planning on abdicating the throne in favor of Prince William (see ‘Secret plan’ for King Charles III to abdicate in favor of Prince William?). I have long believed that Charles felt that his mother should have abdicated in his favor many years before she did. It is likely that Charles does not want William to have to wait so long–plus, with his cancer issues, Charles is seeing signs of his own mortality. The Bible shows that Jesus will sit on the throne of David (e.g. Luke 1:31-32)–and currently that physical throne is occupied by King Charles III–who may soon be replaced by one of his sons, like William. A succession list from King David to King Charles III is shown in the post titled: ‘Secret plan’ for King Charles III to abdicate in favor of Prince William?, as well as in the free online book: Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America?
LGBTQ+ issues keep popping up in the news. A new study debunks the nonsense that surgerically-altering ones genitalia does not save lives (see A new study debunks transgender ‘affirming surgeries’ save lives). Pope Francis’ and the Greek governments pro-homosexual marriage positions have been causing objections from the Russian and Greek Orthodox churches (see Pope Francis continuing to fuel talk of schism. Russian Orthodox conclude Vatican blessing same-sex unions is an immoral departure). It is not good to be nor condone LGBTQ+ behavior according to the word of God (cf. Romans 1:18-32).
The Prime Minister and his staff of the Palestinian Authority resigned this week. Many Palestinians oppose them, plus oppose what has been called the ‘two-state solution,’ as have many supporters of Israel–even the Sanhedrin has gotten publicly involved opposing it, yet the EU and USA take the opposite view (see Sanhedrin warns Britain against Palestinian – Israeli ‘two-state solution’ and PA government resigns). It will likely take an expanded war in the region for the Israelis and Palestinians to make a deal, but biblically we know one will come per Daniel 9:27. It may come, or at least possibly be proposed and confirmed, later this year.
Concluding Comments
The Book of Ruth begins with the following:
1 Now it came to pass, in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem, Judah, went to dwell in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. 2 The name of the man was Elimelech, the name of his wife was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion — Ephrathites of Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to the country of Moab and remained there. 3 Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons. 4 Now they took wives of the women of Moab: the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth. And they dwelt there about ten years. 5 Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died; so the woman survived her two sons and her husband.
6 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she might return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that the Lord had visited His people by giving them bread. 7 Therefore she went out from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. 8 And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each to her mother’s house. The Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me. 9 The Lord grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband.”
So she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. 10 And they said to her, “Surely we will return with you to your people.”
11 But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Are there still sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? 12 Turn back, my daughters, go — for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope, if I should have a husband tonight and should also bear sons, 13 would you wait for them till they were grown? Would you restrain yourselves from having husbands? No, my daughters; for it grieves me very much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me!”
14 Then they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.
15 And she said, “Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.”
16 But Ruth said:
“Entreat me not to leave you,
Or to turn back from following after you;
For wherever you go, I will go;
And wherever you lodge, I will lodge;
Your people shall be my people,
And your God, my God.
17 Where you die, I will die,
And there will I be buried.
The Lord do so to me, and more also,
If anything but death parts you and me.”18 When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she stopped speaking to her. (Ruth 1:1-18)
Orpah decided to pick the easier way which seemed best to her.
Ruth could have taken the easy way out, like her sister-in-law, particularly when it was even offered.
Instead, unlike Orpah, Ruth not only pledged her loyalty, she lived it–even doing the hard physical work of gleaning the fields like other poor people did (Ruth 2:2).
Ultimately, Ruth was rewarded with a husband of wealth, and she became the great-grandmother of King David (Ruth 4:13-17). Ruth, was not an Israelite. She, and no other woman, is specifically named (Matthew 1:5) in the genealogy of Mary’s husband Joseph (Matthew 1:1-16). Plus, as can be discerned from Luke’s account (Luke 3:23-32), Ruth is in the genealogy of Jesus. Hence, a person who no Israelite would have probably thought could have any relationship to the coming Messiah, ended up being one of Jesus’ progenitors.
Do not give up nor sell yourself short–God has even greater rewards ahead for His Philadelphian faithful (cf. Revelation 3:7-13).
Brethren, in this Laodicean-dominated age, instead of sticking with Philadelphian government (which is also discussed in the article: The Bible, Peter, Paul, John, Polycarp, Herbert W. Armstrong, Roderick C. Meredith, and Bob Thiel on Church Government), some believe they are taking an easier way that they prefer (or otherwise have wrongly convinced themselves they are right about).
Yet, those that reject biblical Philadelphian government will lose the related crown (Revelation 3:11).
Do not be like them.
Hold fast (Revelation 3:11) and endure to the end (Matthew 24:12-13) like Ruth.
Sincerely,
Bob Thiel
Pastor and Overseer