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Letter to the Brethren: December 7, 2023

Letter to the Brethren: December 7, 2023

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Dear Brethren and Co-Workers in Christ:

Greetings from the Five Cities Region of California.

We received another 25 translations of our English booklet titled The Gospel of the Kingdom of God this week as we strive to help fulfill Matthew 24:14 and prepare for aspects of the short work of Romans 9:28 (see also  Preparing for the ‘Short Work’ and The Famine of the Word). We now have the Gospel of the Kingdom translated into close to 1100 different languages and dialects.

Sabbath Meeting in Kisii

Last Sabbath, evangelist Evans Ochieng visited Kisii in Kenya. Here is a photo and a report I was sent from our minister there, Ezekiel Oanda:

These are the pictures and videos I took on Sabbath. God is blessing the work in Kisii congregation. Every Sabbath we do receive new brethrens. On Sabbath people were more than 300 including those who left for hope of Israel are now back with me here. The stones were throwing to me I gathered them and used to build God’s church. That is why you always hear me saying we have a week Of prayer. We have a lot to do here. I thank evangelist Evans who visited the congregation on Sabbath. He was surprised and happy when he met a huge cloud of people praising God. I wish you were near you could have enjoyed with praising our lord of mercy. Thank you for your assistance and support that you always give. Keep up the good work and God bless you.

As Ezekiel Oanda mentioned, he also sent some videos, but they do not embed well in WordPress (which is the software the online version of this weekly letter uses).

Anyway, it is great that we continue have the fruits of growth in Kisii (as well as many other places).

Letter from Arthur Topos

This morning I received the following totally unexpected and totally unsolicited email from pastor Arthur Topos of Lodwar, Kenya:

TO THE CCOG WORSHIPPERS AND OTHERS

CARE OF

BOB THIEL, COG WRITER,

CCOG

AMERICA’S  CCOG OFFICE

 

Dear the  called people of God (John 6:44,65) and others

REF: CCOG IS THE CONTINUING PHILADELPHIAN CHURCH

I have come from a long journey in my spiritual journey from Sunday, SDA churches of God , the general conference church, and finally the continuing philadelphian church (CCOG).

I was confirmed by God that I am a called servant in a dream that I was shown in Micah 7:8 .Prayer has really assisted me for I have been praying for a true church .All the churches have entered have not given me peace

I have been meeting very proud and arrogant leaders. As a professional teacher the lord humbled me to the extent of being fed by God. After preaching I was used to get money being on my way then I collect and use with my family .I have come to learn that the plan of God is good ,the purpose is clean and the program is mysterious .I had become fed up with the leadership of the churches of God I had encountered ,I have been ordained two times in cogmers and the general conference but have had no peace in them .My conscience was not comfortable in this churches .i like reading the bible so much and this is what has helped me to be on the safe side in confronting heresis . I love prayers.

When I was tired in these churches ,I continued in prayer for a true church .it happened that when I was in our main town (Lodwar) I entered one of the cybers  where I told the worker to google for me Church of GOD and the spirit of God led me to CCOG  where I got the history and the teachings of God which made me to learn a lot including  dreams.I downloaded and went home to read deeply and out of discernment I came to learn this was the true church

I communicated and I was welcomed according to the will of God our God can never forsake any  prayerful person. I now call upon all my friends in the name of our lord Jesus Christ that the church of the current age is  CCOG under Bob thiel.Since I entered CCOG,I have undergone dreaming of success in preaching.My younger daughter of Grade 5 dreamt of Bob thiel coming to my home,slept there and went with the daughter to see her school and she was given scholarship and she bid farewell to us.My wife  when I was sitted with her in a room one of the afternoons told me that to my surprise,that CCOG is the true church and I learnt that God was confirming to me about the CCOG which was the Philadelphian church.I am comfortable to be under Bob Thiel.Bob Thiel is always ready to answer anyone despite of class.

Comparing Bob thiel and the leaders of other churches I have come across,Bob thiel is an humble servant of God .

He  is paul of the current age. I hail from a minor pastoralist people from northern part of Kenya who were said to be very primitive and vulnerable but I thank God for remembering me to be under the leadership of Bob thiel. The spirit in me tells me that Bob thiel  is the man to give direction at the current age.

I call upon the doubting Thomases to put their pride aside and support the servant of God.

-I pray for the ladies who participated in prayer in the birth of CCOG.

-I also pray for all the worshippers of CCOG in the world. We also in need your prayers.

-Pray for the people living in dry areas like us and God to open for the true church(CCOG) reach our neighbors and unreached

-I pray for all who support CCOG and I also pray God to call many to come and support God’s work,in Africa,Asia and other parts of the world.

-May God bring all his remnants to CCOG.

-I also welcome all the called to listen to the true word of God.

 

God bless you all,

Yours in Christ,

ARTHUR TOPOS LOPETA

(THE SERVANT)

P/NO-0708915024

Email;arthurtopos@gmail.com

Arthur Topos had been in the Church of God, 7th Day, and he and about 250 others with him came to the Continuing Church of God earlier this year (see Letter to the Brethren: March 16, 2023).

We have had a lot of growth in Kenya in 2023.

12th Speculative Prediction about Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg Confirmed?

There were a couple of articles in the German press that I recently noticed about Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg that were of interest (see Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg is to become a ‘media brand’? Another COGwriter speculative prediction confirmed?).


Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg (photo by Michael Lucan)

My earliest recollection of Baron Guttenberg was from an article in 2009, published by the Ottawa Citizen which stated:

For the first time Europe speaks with one voice, the low-key Flemish of President Herman Van Rompuy. … Given the realities of geoeconomics it is not inconceivable that a far more dynamic leader such as German Economics Minister Karl Theodor von und zu Guttenberg might one day be in charge.

Is the past key to the future? … Europe suddenly came together under the leadership of the young dynamic Habsburg Charles V, who ruled from Belgium. Charles sought to halt the expansion of Islam, defend European civilization, unite the continent and forge a Latin American empire. (Moore K, Lewis D. The decline of America. Ottawa Citizen, Canada – Dec 24, 2009 https://ottawacitizen.com/news/the-decline-of-america).

The idea that a Habsburg may once again lead Europe had been a teaching of the old Worldwide Church of God (WCG):

The House of Habsburg will play a leading role in European affairs for centuries to come. The ideal of universal rule — unity under a single authority — is by no means dead. (Stump KW. THE HISTORY OF EUROPE & THE CHURCH Part Five THE FIRST REICH. Plain Truth, November-December 1983).

WCG also indicated that the Beast could be Habsburg/Hapsburg descendant.

For a time, WCG watched Otto von Habsburg as a possible candidate (e.g Hogberg GH. Otto von Habsburg MAN WITH A MISSION. Plain Truth, March 1984; Stump KW. THE HISTORY OF EUROPE & THE CHURCH Part Ten THE FINAL UNION. Plain Truth, June 1984). But Otto von Habsburg died July 4, 2011, so obviously he was not the Beast.

While not a direct descendant of the late Otto von Habsburg, the fact that Baron zu Guttenberg’s mother (Christiane zu Eltz) is a Habsburg means that Herr Guttenberg is also a Habsburg (http://www.william1.co.uk/h13.htm accessed 05/14/18). Baron Guttenberg’s grandmother, Princess Rose-Sophie Caroline Gabrielle von Arenberg (http://www.william1.co.uk/h13.htm accessed 11/27/23)–the House of Arenberg used to be prominent among the Habsburgs of the Netherlands.

Anyway, in February 2010, after a leader from my former COG noticed that I had made a post in 2009 about Baron zu Guttenberg, he asked me some questions and had me prepare a paper about him, which ended up going to their Council of Elders.

I had previously read several books on Greco-Roman Catholic prophecies and certain things about Herr Guttenberg seemed to tie in with several of them as well as several biblical prophecies.

In addition to posting articles at COGwriter, back then I was also a paid freelance journalist for an online publication called The Examiner. At both websites I occasionally had articles about Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg. In time, several things I speculated about him came to pass. Enough so, this caught the attention of some German blog that linked to one or more of my articles in the Fall of 2011.

Shortly thereafter, a major news magazine publication in Germany called Focus had its New York correspondent contact me in late November 2011. Focus was intrigued that I had been writing about Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg PRIOR to him getting notoriety related to his plagiarism scandal as well as the accuracy of some of my speculative predictions. Here is some of what was in the initial email from the Focus correspondent:Hi Bob,How are you? I work as a journalist for the German newsmagazin Focus, a magazine that sells 650000 copies each week.I came across your writings about Karl von Guttenberg and how you expect him to be the “King of the North”.I wonder how you came across him and what makes you so certain?How many people are in the Church of God. Is it a large movement?

Anyway, the correspondent and I spoke several times and she said they would publish an article.

However, she eventually told me that although I had proved that I made several speculative predictions about him that were confirmed AND that she wanted her article published, she told me that the editors in Germany found the idea that I predicted various items in advance was so incredible–too sensational–that they decided against publishing the story.

Although the Bible teaches to not despise prophecies (1 Thessalonians 5:20), it also warns that scoffers in the last days would dismiss them (cf. 2 Peter 3:3-9).

Anyway,  there are biblical reasons to consider Karl Guttenberg in possible relation to the coming European Beast:

  1. Baron Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg is a leader from middle Europe and has a Franco-German/Assyrian bloodline. (cf. Isaiah 10:5-11; Daniel 7:24)
  2. He has a military background and often promotes European/German military development. The Beast of Revelation 13:1-4 is shown to be a military political leader.
  3. He is considered to have some economic expertise. (cf. Daniel 8:25; 11:24; Revelation 13:16-17; 18:3)
  4. He has been an extremely popular politician (he was the most popular in Germany in early and late 2010). (Revelation 13:4,8)
  5. He is considered an expert on foreign policy. (cf. Daniel 11:27)
  6. He was “Minister of Defence” for Germany and has military expertise. (cf. Revelation 13:4; Daniel 11:39-43)
  7. He is some type of Roman Catholic. (cf. Revelation 17:7-11)
  8. Because he is married to a Lutheran (and she apparently did not convert prior to marriage), he apparently is not super strict about being Roman Catholic (some other news reports I have seen also seem to confirm this in other ways as well). (cf. Revelation 13:4,8; Daniel 11:36-38)
  9. His wife also has political connections, and has made several public “morality statements.” Hence suggesting that the Guttenbergs represent the moral high ground in Germany. (cf. Revelation 13:4,8)
  10. He seems to have ecumenical tendencies, and that is what the “Great Monarch” of Greco-Roman Catholic prophecies and the final Beast of Revelation would likely have. (cf. Revelation 13:4,8; Daniel 11:36-38)
  11. He is a descendant of the Habsburg line of rulers (Emperors of the Holy Roman Empire were from the Habsburg line–and they claimed to be descendants of the 4th century Emperor Constantine). (cf. Isaiah 10:5-11; Revelation 17:9-11)
  12. He may be considered to be entitled to use the “King of Jerusalem” title that Otto von Habsburg held. (cf. Daniel 11:31)
  13. Charlemagne was a Frank-German leader and “Holy Roman Emperor.” Certain Greco-Roman Catholic prophecies indicate that the “Great Monarch” will be a descendant of Charlemagne. Bible prophecies seem to point to the resurrection of an empire that has revived in the past (Revelation 13:1-3; 17:9-11)
  14. His blood line crosses into various countries in Europe (at least Germany, France, Austria, Liechtenstein, Netherlands, and Croatia). So did the Roman empire. (cf. Daniel 9:26-27)
  15. He has the right to select the priest for his parish. Hence, the idea that political leaders should be involved with religion is something he was raised up believing. A leader combining church and state is prophesied in Daniel 11:37-38 and Revelation 13.
  16. The understanding that his title means “Baron of the Holy Roman Empire” is interesting as the Book of Revelation describes a power that would resemble a re-emergence of “the Holy Roman Empire” and Roman Catholic prophecy specifically tells of a time when “The Great King will be crowned Holy Roman Emperor by the reigning Pope” (Birch DA. Trial, Tribulation & Triumph: Before During and After Antichrist. Queenship Publishing Company, Goleta (CA), 1996,, p. 555). Baron is a title of nobility, but not one of technically accepted royalty in Germany as Germany no longer let’s any have “the honor of royalty.” (Daniel 11:21)
  17. The fact that he has been the most popular political leader in Germany suggests that he has a certain charisma that would be consistent with that which is expected for the final Beast leader (cf. Daniel 7:20,11:21-24,31; Revelation 13:3-5).
  18. He is believed to careful cultivate his public image, which seems consistent with the cunning (Daniel 8:25) and other practices of the final Beast leader (Daniel 11:36-38).
  19. Because a Roman Catholic monarchist relative (Karl Ludwig Freiherr von und zu Guttenberg) of his was involved in a plot against Hitler in 1944 (and killed for it in April 1945), he may be perceived as less of a threat than others with a German background. (cf. Daniel 8:23-25; 11:24)
  20. He is considered to be a smooth talking attractive leader. (cf. Daniel 8:25; 11:21)
  21. Some of his entertainment actions suggest that beneath his exterior he may have certain “vile” tendencies (cf. Daniel 11:21). His past plagiarism scandal seems consistent with this as well.
  22. He reportedly has a problem with arrogance and vanity (Daniel 11:36-37).
  23. He was in a type of self-imposed exile and the last king of the North is supposed to have a period of exile. (cf. Daniel 8:23-25; 11:21-23)
  24. He had risen to powerful positions quite quickly. And may do that again. (Daniel 8:23-24; 11:21-23)
  25. He has been ridiculed and rejected by many. (Daniel 11:21)
  26. He has a certain expertise when it comes to computers and surveillance. (cf. Revelation 13:15-18; Daniel 8:23).
  27. He has a certain expertise in electronic currencies, and hence has some knowledge about how to regulate/control buying and selling (Revelation 13:15-18).
  28. He has referred to himself as a type of political beast and the Bible warns about one rising up it calls the Beast (cf. Revelation 13:1-10).

I believe that if he is the one, he will re-emerge in European politics (which he is now doing, but not in a conventional way), though he may have some future setbacks first.

Anyway, I saw an article in the German press related to Herr Guttenburg. It was titled, „KT“ soll zur Medienmarke aufgebaut werden: Warum die Insolvenz der Looping Group jetzt auch Ex-Verteidigungsminister Guttenberg betrifft (URL: https://www.businessinsider.de/wirtschaft/looping-group-warum-die-insolvenz-jetzt-auch-ex-minister-guttenberg-betrifft/).

Since I do not read the German-language, I machine-translated the German into English, which is as follows:

“KT” is to be developed into a media brand: Why the insolvency of the Looping Group now also affects ex-Defense Minister Guttenberg

24 November 2023

It should be a brilliant comeback. A purified Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg should rise from the ashes like Phoenix. With a new image, new appearance and completely new sound. Less hubris, more personal failure.

In order to reinvent his self and the corresponding storytelling, the ex-minister, who had the image of a dazzler after his plagiarism scandal in 2011, founded a company in the spring of last year, “Open Minds Media GmbH”. Business Insider has the shareholders’ agreement. The company is intended to build Guttenberg into a media brand. According to the business idea, the man should from now on act as a TV presenter, speaker, book author and podcaster and become his own “brand”. 

That article was interesting to me because it reminded me of something I had posted in the Summer of 2022:

A supporter in Europe tipped me off to the following article (originally titled Der Fernsehkonzern RTL nimmt den früheren Verteidigungsminister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg unter Vertrag. Er führt im Streamingportal RTL+ durch zwei Unterhaltungsdokus.  URL: https://www.sueddeutsche.de/bayern/fernsehen-koeln-karl-theodor-zu-guttenberg-bei-rtl-unter-vertrag-dpa.urn-newsml-dpa-com-20090101-220627-99-817625) which I machine-translated into English several hours ago:

Cologne (dpa) – Ex-Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg (50) is now under contract with the television company RTL. He should lead as a moderator through streaming documentaries. This was reported on Monday by RTL Germany. They are working together on “high-end documentaries for the streaming offer RTL +”, it said in the message from Cologne. “Zu Guttenberg will act as moderator and interviewer through two 90-minute docutainment programs. These will be included in the program later this year.” RTL did not initially reveal any details about the content. 06/27/22

I responded to the supporter who mentioned this that perhaps Barron Guttenberg was setting himself up like Donald Trump did.

Of course, Donald Trump was not known as a political commentator, but more of an entertainer and celebrity.

Few would have thought one with a background like Donald Trump would actually become the President of the United States–but he did.

It is not just in the USA that name recognition and publicity can help one politically.

Could Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg be laying a media foundation that he may later build upon?

Yes.

(Thiel B. Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg: The Next ‘Donald Trump’? COGwriter, June 29, 2022)

So, the media article basically confirmed that speculative prediction.

I have made at least a dozen speculative predictions related to Herr Guttenberg that have been at least partially fulfilled.

After items were posted, he and/or the news media later confirmed the following:

  1. He would advocate for more European military cooperation.
  2. He would become unpopular for a time (and still is among many).
  3. He would, for a time, be outside of political office.
  4. He would be out of the limelight for a while.
  5. He would go into exile (in his case, it was self-imposed).
  6. His exile would be to a humid location.
  7. People would laugh at him.
  8. He would partially re-emerged in European politics.
  9. He would call for Germany to consider being a leader in data protection.
  10. He would get a beard (he did not when I first began to write about him).
  11. He became involvemed with Ripple, blockchain, and AI which could be setting him up to help fulfill Revelation 13:15-18.
  12. He would make himself some type of a media personality.

More details on what I speculated as well as the confirmations of the above can be found in the article: Might German Baron Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg become the King of the North?

Now just because he at least partially fulfilled those does not prove that Herr Guttenberg must be the final King of the North. But they certainly give me reasons, combined with biblical and other prophetic sources, to consider that he could fulfill that role or at least aid the one who will have it.

Although it is not absolutely certain at this date who will be the final Beast leader (AKA King of the North), Baron zu Guttenberg is a candidate of interest. Notice that he even has referred to himself as a type of a beast:

“There’s no doubt whatsoever that I’m a political animal, a ‘zoon politicon’,” he told Die Zeit newspaper in what appeared to be a carefully orchestrated comeback after eight months away from the spotlight.   http://in.reuters.com/article/2011/11/24/idINIndia-60716820111124

“For Aristotle’szoon politikon there are no persons beyond the walls of the city; outside the city there exist only beasts or gods.” (George F. McLean, John Kromkowski. Urbanization and values, CRVP, 1991, page 169)

If Karl zu Guttenberg becomes the King of the North (Daniel 11:36-40), he would also be the final Beast of Revelation. Interestingly, a comedic spoof of Karl zu Guttenberg was premiered on March 4, 2013 (see Baron Guttenberg does not show up for premier spoofing him). A line that was supposed to be in it was as follows:

“I carry myself with the thought, a zoon politikon to be,” says the film-Guttenberg, who is here from Franz Ferdinand and Thunder Mountain and in Berlin shaking the fence of the Chancellery.

„Ich trage mich mit dem Gedanken, ein Zoon Politikon zu werden“, verkündet der Film-Guttenberg, der hier Franz Ferdinand von und zu Donnersberg heißt und in Berlin am Zaun des Kanzleramts rüttelt.

http://www.focus.de/kultur/diverses/komoedie-ueber-kapitel-der-deutschen-politik-guttenberg-film-auf-den-spuren-von-schtonk_aid_824451.html

Thus, various ones in Germany, at least, realize that the Baron called himself a type of political Beast. Many will be surprised if he does turn out to be the Beast warned against in biblical prophecy.

Let me also add that another item of interest related to Herr Guttenberg is that he came out early against Donald Trump. In December 2015, the Baron called Donald Trump “that blonde lunatic named Donald” (Guttenberg KT. Wish List or Reality? Digital Trends in 2016 | Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg | hub conference. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgdZUA96UBU. Posted December 11, 2015). Since then, more and more in Europe have had major concerns about Donald Trump, and KT Guttenberg’s comments that far back may resonate with many in the future.

To close this, another thing I speculated about him is that Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg would become involved with religion. Herr Guttenberg may very well be in, found, or otherwise support a new order or some type of group that will, for a time, be associated with the Roman Catholic Church.

Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg remains one to “Watch” (cf. Mark 13:37).

Gold Price Record

As mentioned in the Letter to the Brethren of July 27, 2023 (see Letter to the Brethren: July 27, 2023), we received and mailed out the print edition of the book, Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America?

On page 293 of the print edition and page 317 of online version of my book is the following statement:

Gold will set records in U.S. dollar terms.

This occurred on Sunday, December 4, 2023 and then Monday December 4, 2023:

Gold has never been this expensive

Gold prices hit an all-time high Monday, buoyed by growing expectations of interest rate cuts among investors, a weaker dollar and geopolitical tensions.

Prices for the yellow metal jumped as much as 3% in Monday trade to reach $2,135 per ounce, rising above the previous record of $2,072 notched in August 2020. Prices later fell on the day to trade at $2,023 by 11.57 a.m. ET. https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/04/investing/gold-price-rise-all-time-high/index.html

Spot gold briefly traded above $2,100 an ounce on Sunday evening in New York, setting a new all-time high. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/12/04/gold-prices-set-for-new-highs-amid-economic-geopolitical-uncertainty.html

Now this does NOT mean that gold will only go up in value. Experience teaches us that gold can also go down in value, so investors should always be cautious.Gold will have ups and downs and probably will drop in value once associated with the temporary peace deal that Daniel 9:27 alludes to (see also The ‘Peace Deal’ of Daniel 9:27).Yet, we who truly believe the Bible know that gold will have value after the USA dollar has collapsed because of prophecies in Daniel 11:39-43, Zechariah 14:14, and Revelation 18:12,16.

Lat me add that gold will, for a time, be considered less than worthless as the prophet Ezekiel warned:

19 They will throw their silver into the streets,
And their gold will be like refuse;
Their silver and their gold will not be able to deliver them
In the day of the wrath of the Lord;
They will not satisfy their souls,
Nor fill their stomachs,
Because it became their stumbling block of iniquity. (Ezekiel 7:19)

Now the above does not happen until well AFTER the Great Tribulation begins and the USA (and its dollar) are gone. But it is also a warning to not put trust in gold.

And we should have even less trust in the value of the USA dollar.

Suggested Sabbath Day Services

Here is a suggested Sabbath day service for our scattered brethren and other interested people:

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

Apparently both the UK Guardian and European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen believe that the United Kingdom will end up in the European Union again (see Guardian says that the UK will go back on Brexit to rejoin European Union like Ursula von der Leyen suggested). While that could be remotely possible, the biblical reality is that the UK will one day be under dominance of the European Beast power because it will not repent of its sins per Hosea 11:3a, 5b-6.

That said, more is coming out about the use of rape by Hamas against Israel (see VOA: ‘Widespread’ Sexual, Gender-Based Crimes Committed During Hamas Attack, Israeli Officials Say). Such acts of hate are horrendous.

In the USA, there has been a trend for some to use Artificial Intelligence and other software to post nude faked pictures of teenage women (see AI Deepfakes, KISS, and Teenage Girls). This is hateful and wrong.

In yet another type of immorality, the State of California is mandating that beginning 1 January 2024 larger retails stores and chains selling children’s items establish a “gender-neutral” section. These stores will be forced to offer an area where a “reasonable selection” of children’s items are offered in what the State considers to be a “gender-neutral” way (see ‘California to Mandate Gender Neutral Sections in Stores Selling Children’s Items’ ‘Woke Disney’s New Kids’ Christmas Film Features Homosexual Parents, Sexually Charged Dialogue’).

The Bible is clear:

5 A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the Lord your God. (Deuteronomy 22:5)

Sadly, the State of California will not adhere to biblical principles on this and many other matters.

Concluding Comments

The Apostle Peter taught:

17 ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your young men shall see visions,
Your old men shall dream dreams.
18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days;
And they shall prophesy. (Acts 2:17-18)

19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies. 21 Test all things; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil.  (1 Thessalonians 5:19-22)

Brethren, despite divine confirmation, most end time Christians do not accept that God’s Spirit is working through dreams (see Dreams, the Bible, the Radio Church of God, and the Continuing Church of God) or prophets in the 21st century (see Church of God Leaders on Prophets).

Do not be like them.

“Test all things; hold fast what is good” — see also: Does the CCOG have the confirmed signs of Acts 2:17-18?

Now in his letter to us and the public, Arthur Topos pointed to the Continuing Church of God representing the Philadelphian remnant at this time.

Let me state here that when the old Worldwide Church of God was Philadelphian, Herbert W. Armstrong taught that there would be a future fulfillment of Acts 2:17-18, yet most Laodicean Christians do not really accept that.

Also, Herbert W. Armstrong taught that God led him to restore at least 18 truths to the Philadelphia era of the Church of God that had been lost by those he knew in the Sardis era. In a sermon on that topic (see 18 Truths Restored to the Churches of God: Mission of the Philadelphia Church Era), he mentioned church government towards the beginning as well as later in that sermon as one of the truths restored to the Philadelphian portion of the Church of God (see also The Bible, Peter, Paul, John, Polycarp, Herbert W. Armstrong, Roderick C. Meredith, and Bob Thiel on Church Government). Let me add that ALL of the 18 truths that Herbert W. Armstrong said God had him restore to the Philadelphian era are part of the official Statement of Beliefs of the Continuing Church of God, which anyone with interest can verify. The CCOG may be the only group that has done so using Herbert W. Armstrong’s actual list. Most other groups either do not teach all of the 18 truths or they use the Tkach list, which was not the correct one (see The 18 Restored Truths: Do You Know What the First Changes the Tkach Administration Made?).

Anyway, while not all groups that claim proper hierarchical church governance are Philadelphian, by Herbert W. Armstrong’s definition, no group that opposes hierarchical church governance can possibly be Philadelphian or represent the Philadelphian remnant.

Hold fast to the truths of the Bible and the Philadelphian portion of the Church of God as Jesus taught you should do in Revelation 3:7-13.

In the Continuing Church of God, the gospel of the kingdom of God is being preached, we have divine confirmation of the signs of Acts 2:17-18, and we teach ALL the truths restored to the Philadelphian portion of the Church of God as we strive to prepare for the short work of Romans 9:28 (see Preparing for the ‘Short Work’ and The Famine of the Word) and teach all things that Jesus commanded (Matthew 28:19-20; see also Continuing Church of God, Elijah, and Restoring All Things).

Do not let naysayers and accusers of the brethren convince you otherwise.

Sincerely,

Bob Thiel
Pastor and Overseer