Standard Broadcast

[The text below represents an edited transcript of this Tomorrow’s World program.]

Introduction: Are You a Slave?

The word Prom in North America refers to an important high school dance at the end of each school year, but “proms” has a very different meaning on the other side of the Atlantic. The Henry Wood Promenade Concerts (better referred to simply as, “the Proms”) are held over an eight-week period each summer, but controversy was stirred up regarding the BBC Proms this past September over the British patriotic anthem, Rule Britannia. Why? There is more to this story than meets the eye, and the implications go far beyond the British Isles and touch every living person on planet earth. What is it that virtually everyone is missing? What is the real story behind Rule Britannia that you will not read in your daily papers? My friends, you need to know!

On today’s Tomorrow’s World program, I’ll explain what this controversy is all about, and what it means for you, no matter where you live.

Rule Britannia!: Britain’s Past and Future Hopes?

A warm welcome to all of you from those of us here at Tomorrow’s World. On today’s program, I’ll be explaining a controversy that emerged this past summer that few outside of Britain even know about, and I’ll show how it’s significant for everyone in America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, and it will touch all lives far beyond these nations. And I’ll be offering you a free DVD, “The Rise and Fall of Britain and America.”

These daily classical music concerts referred to as the proms, are sponsored by the BBC and broadcast to millions at indoor and outdoor settings around the world, but most notably at the Royal Albert Hall in London, where Rule Britannia and Land of Hope and Glory are sung with great fanfare on the last night—not so in 2020. How fitting for a year that has seen so much controversy and conflict.

As it turned out, both WERE played AND sung by a limited, self-distancing orchestra and choir. The usual Royal Albert Hall audience was missing, but not elsewhere, where it was beamed live to millions. Nevertheless, some controversy was stirred over whether these patriotic anthems are suitable for Britain. As The Guardian wrote:

“The core of the story is: the Sunday Times reported that some people at the BBC held discussions about whether both Rule, Britannia and Land of Hope and Glory… could be played as part of Last Night of the Proms. After some very mild consideration, the BBC announced that yes, they could” (“This phoney war over Last Night of the Proms is everything we deserve,” The Guardian, August 25, 2020).

The coronavirus was the reason given for possibly dropping both anthems from the program, but many suspect there was far more behind it. While extremely popular among most Brits, others want Rule Britannia silenced forever, seeing it as representing Britain’s former slave trade and colonial past. Of course, it was Britain who ended slave trade.

Rule Britannia began as a poem co-written by James Thomson and David Mallet, and later set to music by composer Thomas Arne in the year 1740.

“The song has military connections, particularly with the Royal Navy, made evident by the words ‘Britannia, rule the waves’. However, according to Classic FM, when the piece was first written it was not celebrating naval success but instead ‘a cry for help’ as the Royal Navy at that time did not have much control over the seas, while other countries were establishing empires. The song became more patriotic in the 1800s when the British Empire expanded across more of the world” (“Rule Britannia lyrics: The meaning and origins of the song, and the controversy over the Last Night of the Proms explained,” Inews.co.uk, September 12, 2020).

The article goes on to explain a subtle change from Thomson’s poem, “Rule, Britannia! Rule the waves” (expressing a hope to do so), to the later “Rule Britannia! Britannia rules the waves” (expressing mission accomplished as Britain grew in power). Another change is found in the second line of the refrain. Thomson’s poem was written: “Britons never will be slaves,” but was changed to “Britons, never, ever, ever, will be slaves,” and still later to the current version:

Rule Britannia!
Britannia rule the waves
Britons never, never, never shall be slaves

And then the refrain is enthusiastically repeated:

Rule Britannia
Britannia rule the waves.
Britons never, never, never shall be slaves

This reference to never being slaves is open to interpretation in our politically correct environment. Britain was involved with the slave trade, and some interpret the last line to mean that, while Britons traded in slaves, in contrast, they would never become as those slaves. But this can be understood totally apart from the slave trade as though Britain would never be conquered by other powers. For example, in the modern context, when you see Nigel Farage lustily singing those words, you have little doubt that he means Britons never, never, never shall be slaves of the European Union.

You don’t have to be British to be emotionally stirred by the patriotic strains of “Rule Britannia!” The grandeur of the refrain is moving and plays to the human desire for greatness and independence. Words on paper fall woefully short of stirring the emotions to the degree the same words do when set to music, but either way, words should be weighed and understood.

It’s not the purpose of this Tomorrow’s World program to take sides on the Prom controversy. We’ll leave that to the Sunday Times and the British tabloids. Instead, I’ll explain what you will never read in the papers and what no one else is seeing.

Sin as the Ultimate Enslavement

We’re looking at the significance of the patriotic song itself. What is it that journalistic opinion will never tell you? What is it that you need to know about this anthem no matter where you live?

As explained in the previous portion of this program, the following line is repeated twice in the refrain:

Rule Britannia!
Britannia rule the waves
Britons never, never, never shall be slaves.

There’s no doubt that Britain ruled the waves during the nineteenth and first half of the twentieth centuries. It was through their dominant navy and the armies it transported that they controlled so many lands and peoples that it could be rightfully stated that the sun never set on the British Empire—an amazing feat for a group of small island nations off the northwest coast of Europe.

However, the part of the refrain, “Briton’s never, never, never shall be slaves” belies the truth. Britons have been and currently are slaves. And so are Americans, Canadians, Filipinos, and all other peoples. How so, you may ask?

As with Britain and our whole world, we can read of another nation that was blind to their servitude. The account is found in that book of all books, where Jesus told the Jews of His day,

“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” [They answered Him…] “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?” [Jesus answered them…] “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin’” (John 8:32–34).

Jesus introduced a concept so foreign to those of His day that they could not comprehend it. It’s no different today. Britons are every bit as much slaves as the Jews of Jesus’ day, and they’re not alone. Our whole world is blind to the bondage in which we are held.

What did Jesus mean when He spoke those words? What is the relationship between sin and slavery?

The epic movie, “The Ten Commandments,” plays every year on television around the time the world knows as Easter. The logic behind this is obvious in that it was at this time of year when Moses led the children of Israel out of Egyptian slavery. Easter is never mentioned in the movie as it has nothing to do with the Exodus and is nothing more than the name of a pagan fertility goddess. This explains the association of that holiday with eggs, rabbits, and lilies—all fertility symbols. The word Easter is only found in the King James Version of the Bible and only once, and it’s agreed upon by all scholars that it is a mistranslation of the word for Passover. The true Biblical story, as portrayed in the movie, was about Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread.

The Exodus was the time when a slave people were set free from harsh bondage. They were protected by the blood of a lamb surrounding the doors of their homes when death passed over them. But they were not free from slavery until they did their part by walking out of Egypt, something that took seven days and the miracle of the Red Sea. During that seven- day escape from Egyptian bondage, they didn’t have time to let their bread rise, but ate unleavened, or flat, bread. The Bible shows that leavening typified sin and Egypt was a symbol of both sin and bondage, thus making the connection between sin and bondage, but today, instead, we call it addiction.

Addiction comes in many forms. Sexual behaviors outside of marriage quickly become bad habits from which it is difficult to free oneself, even though the results are often diseases (some of which are life threatening), unwanted pregnancies also, and broken marriages that leave spouses devastated and children confused and often in poverty.

Addicted to Sin, Slaves to Unrighteousness

Britons proclaim they “never, never, never shall be slaves” but as we’re seeing, they already are slaves to sin, and sin truly is bondage. The tobacco industry once portrayed smoking as something that cool people do, but what is the result? People shortly become addicted to nicotine and are enslaved to a nasty habit that offers a variety of cancers, emphysema, heart disease, wrinkled skin, stained teeth, and nasty breath. Millions who think they can quit anytime find it difficult to break the enslaving habit, and many die miserable deaths as a result. Smoking today has diminished in our Western world, only to be replaced with vaping—something that is also addictive and not without risks.

Many Britons, Americans, Australians, Canadians, and people of all nations are slaves of alcohol, recreational drugs, a lack of self-control, telling lies, stealing, and gossiping. These are all addictive behaviors with negative consequences. Again, instead of calling these actions bondage, we refer to them as bad habits and addictions. It’s human nature to think we are in control of our lives. Just as the Jews of Jesus’ day could not see they were in bondage, so people today are blind to who and what controls them.

The biblical Apostle Paul equated sin with slavery and death in Romans 6:16:

“Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?” (Romans 6:16).

But what is sin? Many agree that using enslaving recreational drugs and dabbling in pornography are sins, but why? Who determines the definition of sin? Is it not God? And if not God, then who has the authority to determine what is and what isn’t sin? Do you know God’s definition of sin? It’s found in 1 John 3, verse 4:

“Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness” (1 John 3:4).

[Or as the older King James Version puts it…]

“… sin is the transgression of the law.”

This broadens the definition of sin beyond drunkenness, sexual immorality, or murder. It’s not difficult to see that some sins are harmful addictions, but other sins bring about more subtle, but not less painful, enslavement.

The first four of the Ten Commandments define our relationship with God and when they are violated, they enslave us to painful doctrines and ideas. If we substitute other gods for the true God, if we limit His power by shaping Him with cheap plastic or even precious stones, if we disrespect His name and character, or if we rebel by choosing our day of worship over the day He set aside; we open ourselves to a host of wrong ideas.

For example, is believing that a lost loved one is currently suffering in hellfire any less mentally enslaving than suffering from an incurable disease? Not knowing the true God of creation, most people live only for today and do little to prepare for eternity. And instead of knowing God’s wonderful plan for mankind through His ordained Holy Days, people substitute pagan days and slap Christ’s name on them. These sham celebrations, no matter how sincerely held, leave people in the dark about God’s Plan for mankind.

That the days people observe come from heathen origins and therefore obscure the truth, is without question. These compromises open the door to a host of wrong doctrines. As Eerdman’s Handbook to the History of Christianity explains:

“When in 321 Constantine made the first day of the week a holiday, he called it ‘the venerable day of the Sun’ (Sunday)…. The Christian church took over many pagan ideas and images. From sun-worship, for example, came the celebration of Christ’s birth on the twenty-fifth of December, the birthday of the Sun. Saturnalia, the Roman winter festival of 17-21 of December, provided the merriment, gift-giving and candles typical of later Christmas holidays” (p. 131).

Few people understand how contrary to true doctrine these compromises with paganism truly are and how empty they leave one in the end. The erroneous doctrines the Jews were steeped in during Jesus’ day were different from professing Christianity, but both are equally enslaving. How many comprehend Jesus’ declaration,

“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).

Mankind’s ideas of freedom are deceptions. How many professing Christians maintain that to keep the law of God is bondage? And yet, James calls it the perfect law of liberty that we will be judged by, and John tells us,

“For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:3).

And Peter warns against those who give a false hope of liberty:

“While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into bondage” (2 Peter 2:19).

Conclusion: How Can You Be Made Free?

As we have seen on today’s program, not only the British, but all nations and races are enslaved by sin. Yet there is another more traditional kind of slavery on the horizon that the British descended nations such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, along with the United States, need to be aware of. The refrain, “Briton’s never, never, never shall be slaves” is sadly untrue, nor is America going to be great again. We have forgotten our heritage. We no longer know our roots and we have forgotten our God. As the prophet Isaiah records in chapter 1,

“The ox knows its owner and the donkey its master’s crib; but Israel does not know, My people do not consider.” Alas, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who are corrupters! They have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked to anger the Holy One of Israel, they have turned away backward (Isaiah 1:3–4).

Because we have forgotten our God, our God will forget us. Many prophecies show that the British descended peoples will indeed be slaves, as explained in today’s free DVD—“The Rise and Fall of Britain and America.”

Notice this remarkable prophecy for both Israel (that is ten of Jacob’s twelve sons and their descendants) and Judah (that is the Jews). The time is at the time when Christ returns, as seen in the reference to David being resurrected:

“‘For behold, the days are coming,’ says the LORD, ‘that I will bring back from captivity My people Israel and Judah,’ says the LORD…. Now these are the words that the Lord spoke concerning Israel and Judah…. ‘For that day is great, so that none is like it; and it is the time of Jacob’s trouble, but he shall be saved out of it. “For it shall come to pass in that day,” says the LORD of hosts, “that I will break his yoke from your neck, and will burst your bonds; foreigners shall no more enslave them. But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up for them. Therefore do not fear, O My servant Jacob,” says the LORD, “nor be dismayed, O Israel; for behold, I will save you from afar, and your seed from the land of their captivity”’” (Jeremiah 30:3–4, 7–10).

This is clearly speaking of these days. As verse 24 explains,

“… In the latter days you will consider it” (Jeremiah 30:24).

It’s difficult to understand how the English and American peoples can be physically enslaved in our current context, but don’t dare think it cannot happen. Twice in the last century these nations were knocked back on their heels. We have witnessed in 2020 just how fast our world can change and the Bible describes greater natural disasters, disease pandemics, and divisions within nations that can change circumstances overnight. What God has prophesied will come to pass. The patriotic refrain, “Briton’s never, never, never shall be slaves” is simply wrong. And the slogan “Make America Great Again” is equally wrong. We are already slaves to our sinful ways, and we will be physical slaves in the not very distant future unless we repent, unless we turn around and go another direction.

But there is good news as the previous passage of scripture shows. We will be saved out of it. As God explains through the prophet Hosea,

“I will return again to My place till they acknowledge their offense. Then they will seek My face; in their affliction they will earnestly seek Me. Come, and let us return to the LORD; for He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up” (Hosea 5:15; 6:1).

And for the other nations of the world, don’t think that these future events will happen in a vacuum. The whole world is in for a very rough time until we learn a very painful lesson. Yes there is good news in the end, but how much better if all people everywhere were to turn to God. But sadly, we do not see that happening, but each of us individually can turn to God wholeheartedly while there is still time.

Thank you for watching! Remember to subscribe so you don’t miss another Tomorrow’s World video, and if you would like a copy of our DVD, “The Rise and Fall of Britain and America” for free, click the link in the description. See you next time.

[The text below represents an edited transcript of this Tomorrow’s World program.]

A New Age of Idolatry

Many believe that the age of religion and superstition is over—that mankind has finally moved past its days of worshipping gods, lists of commandments, and condemnations of sin.

They would be wrong. Welcome to the world of “New Gods” and “New Sins”—a world we’ll explore on Tomorrow’s World, right now!

Religious Devotion to Secular Causes

Greetings and welcome to Tomorrow’s World, where we help you make sense of the world through the pages of your Bible. We’re delighted you’re here.

In this episode, we’re going to discuss the world of “New Gods” and “New Sins” that surrounds us today. We’re also going to offer you one of the most powerful and relevant DVDs I believe we have ever sent to our viewers: “A World Gone Mad.” As always, this DVD is completely free for the asking. Watch your screen for the details you need to get your DVD.

Now it might sound strange to speak of “New Gods” and please don’t misunderstand me. What Jesus Christ told His disciples on that Passover evening 2,000 years ago is still true today: “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the ONLY TRUE GOD, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3).

But the more you examine the world around you, increasingly you see a wilderness of new religions growing up like weeds. These aren’t the traditional religions of the past, focused on the ancient gods of, say, the Greeks, or the Egyptians, or Norse mythology. Yet, their followers are every bit as fiercely passionate as those ancient pagans may have been. And their devotion to their deities every bit as complete.

The sort of “gods” we’ll discuss today are reflected in the words God spoke to the prophet Ezekiel in his condemnation of ancient Israel—a condemnation that rings just as true today. Ezekiel wrote, “And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their hearts, and put before them that which causes them to stumble into iniquity…’” (Ezekiel 14:2–3).

“They have set up IDOLS IN THEIR HEARTS.” It’s easy to think of idols as statues of stone or gold—or even as engravings, icons, and other artwork. And such items often DO violate the Second of the Ten Commandments, to be sure!

Yet God reveals here that idol worship goes FAR BEYOND what we create with our hands! Man is particularly adept at creating idols in his HEART—false gods, to which he devotes himself religiously, submitting his mind, his actions, his morals, and his conscience.

And, my friends, today we are living in a virtual PANTHEON of idols of the heart: POLITICAL PHILOSOPHIES, SOCIAL CAUSES, IDENTITY ISSUES, NEW WORLDVIEWS… the world around us represents a growing collection of “New Gods,” ready for you to become their follower—and ready with lists of enlightened “New Doctrines,” “New Dogmas,” and “New Sins” for you to agree with and embrace as your own.

More than that—the followers of these “New Gods” are increasingly ready to wield power to FORCE belief in their faith upon the world and ready to PUNISH those who will not fall into line.

Unlike biblical Christianity, which from the beginning sought to win people’s hearts and minds through sound words and good example, the acolytes of these “New Gods” are more like what is seen in the apostate Christianity that followed: willing to do whatever it takes to forcibly compel either confession or compliance.

Whether it is the power of the courtroom, the power of the legislature, the power of the markets, or the power of the media, the faithful acolytes of these “New Gods” seek to punish anyone who dares defy the faith to which they have devoted themselves so fully.

In a moment, we’ll begin our look at several of these “New Gods”—including one that, I freely admit, truly breaks my heart.

Scientific and Environmentalist Fanaticism

Let’s take a look at some of the philosophies, worldviews, and mindsets of man that have been elevated to the status of “godhood” in our society today.

The first we’ll consider is SCIENCE. This one breaks my heart because I love science. Proverbs 25:2 tells us, “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter,” and, to me, the practice of science demonstrates one of the best examples of searching out a matter.

Through the scientific method, human life has been greatly enhanced, and many sources of human disease, discomfort, and distress have been addressed. We’ve learned some of the secrets of the universe, and our understanding of our world is richer for it.

Yet science isn’t God. It doesn’t tell us right from wrong. The theories and experiments that revealed the secrets of the subatomic world also allowed us to build the weapons that would devastate Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, killing thousands.

No matter. When one is kicking God out of civilization, something has to take His place, and those who don’t understand the limitations of science (or don’t care) are happy to build altars to its name and declare it one of the “New Gods.” And like any other god, the religion its worshippers create has its orthodoxies, dogmas, and sins. As if invoking the name of their God, people seek to win arguments by claiming they have the “SCIENCE” on their side—regardless of whether, in reality, scientific studies give support to the other position, too.

Scientists are treated like priests, delivering the word of God—and the view of the majority of scientists is considered canonical truth, such that those who dare to DISAGREE with that canon are considered heretics to be “burned at the stake”—even if they are scientists, themselves.

Think that is harsh? Real-life experience says otherwise. The website “Free Science” lists the names of several scientists who have experienced virtual excommunication for their willingness to dissent from the dogma of evolution. They have faced the loss of positions, the loss of jobs, investigations by their departments, cancelation of their courses… In one case, that of double-PhD biologist Richard Sternberg, even the United States Office of Special Counsel concluded in its investigation, “It is… clear that a hostile work environment was created with the ultimate goal of forcing you out of the SI [that is the Smithsonian Institute]” (“Richard Sternberg,” Free Science, FreeScience.today). All because he had allowed a peer-reviewed paper, sympathetic to evidence of design in life instead of evolution, to be published in a science journal.

Because when Science is elevated to the status of false god, even a hint of disagreeing with evolution is a heresy, and heresy is not to be tolerated.

Another “New God” that many lump in with Science—though not at all exactly the same—is the “New God” of CLIMATE CHANGE.

And let me be up front. It makes good sense to be good stewards of the earth. Man wasn’t made for the earth, but the earth was made for man, and it makes sense to wisely manage our resources. And I’m not here to argue about whether global climate is actually changing, or whether mankind is the chief cause of that change.

Those things are beside the point, because once Climate Change has been elevated to the status of “godhood,” all things are thrown out of perspective. No other good matters next to serving the divine desires of Climate Change, and moral good and evil become determined by nothing more than their environmental impact.

Destroy a nation’s productive capacity, economic systems, and social structures to achieve a Green New Deal and save the environment. No problem. For the “New God” of Climate Change, the ultimate moral good is caring about the earth—or at least APPEARING TO OTHERS as though you care about the earth.

Political science professor Michael Munger made this point in a 2019 article for the American Institute for Economic Research. Upon giving a presentation at a recycling conference about how recycling glass is actually bad for the environment, given the pollution involved, the carbon costs, expense, etc., he expected pushback from the attendees, all of whom were die-hard recyclers. What he received, instead, surprised him. He writes:

One fellow was perfectly forthcoming: “Oh, we all know it makes no sense to recycle glass. The economic case is easy. But people should still recycle, because it’s simply the right thing to do. IT’S NOT ABOUT THE ACTUAL ENVIRONMENT. It’s about enlisting people to care about the SYMBOL of the environment. Overall, recycling is still worth doing, regardless of its effects.”

A young woman piped up: “It’s okay to say that sort of thing here, because we are insiders. But it’s better not to talk about the economics of things to the general public. We need to help TRAIN THEM to care about the environment, and recycling is one of the best ways to do that.”…

The message I had worried about, and expected to be controversial, was old hat to the industry folks. But it was beside the point, because recycling was for them a MORAL imperative. Once you begin to think of recycling as a symbol of RELIGIOUS DEVOTION rather than a pragmatic solution to environmental problems, the whole thing makes more sense (“For Most Things, Recycling Harms the Environment,” American Institute for Economic Research, AIER.org, August 14, 2019).

Going meatless because you are concerned about the cattle industry’s impact on global warming, deciding not to have children so as to reduce humanity’s “carbon footprint”—such steps are small prices to pay to ensure one satisfies the demands of the “New God” of Climate Change. But eat a burger, have a large family, or fail to recycle that soda bottle, and be prepared to be called out as a “sinner.”

Sexual Immorality and Even Thought Control

We’ve examined two of the “New Gods” of the modern age. Our next “New God” is SEXUAL ANARCHY.

When it comes to sex, the biblical model is simple: Humanity was created male and female, categories obvious in their biology. And they were created for each other, so that when man and woman committed to each other before God in marriage, then the benefits of marriage were available to them, including sexual intimacy and the children that would follow.

Yet, the “New God” of Sexual Anarchy dictates that sexuality and sexual nature is not bound by any rules, or constraints, or natural laws, at all.

In the eyes of devotees of this “New God,” the list of sins is long and detailed, but they can be summarized fairly simply: Anyone claiming to believe in biblical concepts of gender, sexuality, and marriage is to be labeled, at best, a prude, and at worst, a bigot. Such ideas are considered far too “restrictive” by the worshipers of Sexual Anarchy. And as the word “anarchy” implies, everything is up for grabs.

Sex is no longer confined to marriage. And marriage itself has been redefined to include any two people, regardless of their gender. In fact, even gender has been redefined—no longer correlating to the two sexes, male and female, but freed to move fluidly along a spectrum of possibilities—a spectrum without rules, constraints, or boundaries.

Each year, many children are sacrificed to this “New God” of Sexual Anarchy. Children not considered old enough to vote, serve in the military, or drive a car, are allowed to make fundamental and far-reaching decisions about changing their gender that will change their lives forever.

Even the courts have recently recognized at least some of the problems in such a position. On December 1, 2020, the BBC reported on a case brought against the UK’s National Health Service by several individuals, including a young woman who had been prescribed hormone blockers as a teenager to help her irreversibly prevent puberty, in line with her then-desire to be a male. The claimants won the case, arguing that children simply do not have the capacity to make decisions like that. In the words of one of the judges, “It is highly unlikely that a child aged 13 or under would be competent to give consent to the administration of puberty blockers. It is doubtful that a child aged 14 or 15 could understand and weigh the long-term risks and consequences of the administration of puberty blockers”.

But don’t expect the true believers in Sexual Anarchy to abandon their faith after one small setback. They will continue to seek to punish those individuals who believe biblical sexuality and morality is best for society—and sacrifices will continue to be made, as they march their faith forward.

In fact, faith in the “New God” of Sexual Anarchy is only one sect in a host of “New Religions” that fall under a broader “New God”—much like the gods of Ancient Greece were under Zeus, or the gods of the Romans under Jupiter. This larger “New God” could be dubbed SOCIAL REVOLUTION.

Part of the power of this “New God” is its ability to be cast in the image of the worshipper. If you believe sexual and gender norms are the Great Satan preventing society from progressing, then Revolution centers around that. If you’re a women’s studies major at an Ivy League university and believe that the world won’t be safe until the Patriarchy is destroyed, then the “New God” of Social Revolution is prepared to bless your cause. If you believe capitalism is the real bane of society, no matter how many lives it has helped, then the God of Social Revolution is ready with placards, signs, and even Molotov cocktails to help you press for socialism, communism, or even anarchy, if you prefer. And if the dream of Martin Luther King Jr., that his children would be judged by the content of their character instead of the color of their skin, seems “not quite enough,” then the god of Social Revolution is ready to arm you with Critical Race Theory—arming you for battle on social media and indoctrination in schools and workplaces.

“New Gods” bring “New Sins,” and for the god of Social Revolution, the greatest sin is increasingly ThoughtCrime, taken right out of the pages of George Orwell’s 1984. Those who think differently than the worshippers of Social Revolution must be canceled, sanctioned, and publicly disavowed. University professors are threatened with job loss, prestigious and successful writers, such as J.K. Rowling, are threatened with boycotts, and other media figures find their livelihoods endangered by discoveries of past Tweets or comments to the media, as Inquisitions examine every public statement to ensure their thinking is pure. Sometimes, after paying penance through very public apologies or social media posts in which they recant their former positions and declare fidelity to the new faith, individuals may be forgiven—though they tend to remain tainted.

The “sin” of wrong thinking is simply not to be tolerated.

Freedom from Sin?

Welcome back.

In a sense, these “New Gods” act more like the “Old Gods” of ancient mythology than they might seem. Like the stories of the Greek gods bickering back and forth in jealousy and spite, these false gods do the same from time to time. For instance, scientific studies that disagree with the conclusions of sexual anarchists are deemed hateful and inaccurate—not on factual grounds, but ideological. And even within the individual faiths generated by these “New Gods,” there is internal strife and conflict. Some of the most passionate and ugly debate that you will find on the Internet takes place between feminists and gender-identity advocates.

But, these “New Gods” are older than they appear for far deeper reasons. Each of them is simply a manifestation of a very different sort of false god, one who has reigned here on earth for quite some time: Satan the Devil.

Referring to him as “the god of this age”—or, in the King James, “the god of this world”—the Apostle Paul explains how Satan uses tactics like these false gods and idols of the heart to distract people from the truth that the REAL GOD OF THE BIBLE would have them understand;

“But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do nnot believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them” (2 Corinthians 4:3–4).

Since the devil enticed Eve to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and gave to her husband to eat with her, mankind has trusted in his own philosophies, systems of government, and explorations of the world around him instead of the God who made him and who has a purpose for him. These “New Gods” are simply the latest in a long line of manifestations of a deceived mankind’s misplaced trust in his own foolishness.

But, thankfully, God has not abandoned us to our foolishness.

He will send Jesus Christ back to this earth, to restore all things and to usher in the Kingdom of God, the only true hope for humanity. In the light of that Kingdom, the “New Gods” will be judged, just as the gods of Egypt were when the Almighty freed the children of Israel.

Science will be returned to its natural place, as a tool for exploring the creation. Sexual anarchy will be replaced by peace of mind by the one who created sex. The environment will be healed, and mankind will be taught balanced ways of maintaining it for the good of humanity. And the ultimate social revolution will have taken place—all of society will look to God for His guidance, wisdom, and love.

May Christ soon return and save us from the day of “New Gods” by pointing the world to the True One.

[The text below represents an edited transcript of this Tomorrow’s World program.]

There Is A Real God

In recent years, atheists and materialists have mounted attacks on various religions. They have attacked the very idea of a God who created the universe and life itself. Such individuals view human reason as the pinnacle of importance. Some even hold the view that only science is the ultimate truth and reality. But how do they explain the origin of the universe? How do you explain scientifically the impossibility of creating life from non-life?

We live in an awesome universe. The Hubble Telescope has given us amazing views of galaxies and supernovas. The shapes and sizes and dimensions are astounding, and at the same time display incredible beauty. The Hubble Telescope has revealed so many galaxies previously unknown that astronomers now estimate the universe to consist of more than two TRILLION galaxies.

When you consider the vastness of the universe and its almost limitless expanse, can you deny that the creation demands a Creator? But what vast powers does God control? What is His purpose? Can you PROVE He even exists? There is overwhelming evidence you need to consider. My friends, there is a powerful purpose and inspiring future for all nations, the earth, and the universe! There is a real God who created the universe, life, and your very potential for eternal life. Do you believe in a Creator God? Can you prove that God exists, and that He knows you and your every thought? You need to know and prove the God of Creation and the amazing reality of His purpose and plan for you personally. You need to know and prove the Real God! Who is the Real God?

Stay tuned!

Many Gods, or One All Powerful Creator? Can You Know?

Warm greetings to all our friends around the world!

On today’s program, we’re asking and answering the question: Who is the Real God? The world is full of false gods. It seems as if there is no end of images and ideas to worship. Ancient Greeks worshiped twelve Olympian gods including Apollo and Zeus. In 50 AD, the Apostle Paul confronted the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers in Athens. He addressed the Athenians at the Areopagus and told them, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you” (Acts 17:22-23).

The Greeks at the Areopagus worshiped several gods. But who and what is your god? If you are an atheist, is your personal philosophy or human reasoning the real god in your life? Or do you look to physical things? In our modern age, some cultures and societies dedicate their lives to pride, power, position, and possessions. The advertising world promotes success as having material possessions: such as expensive autos, fine jewelry, large mansions, and yachts. But electronic toys, buildings, and cars do not produce lasting happiness. In essence these vain pursuits are false gods.

Can even religion become a false god? The late evangelist and producer of Tomorrow’s World, Dr. Roderick Meredith, stated this: “One of the most common forms of modern idolatry is making an idol out of one’s church or society. For many people, this world’s society—its dictates, customs and traditions—becomes a literal god. Many people are desperately afraid of doing anything that might be regarded as different or ‘odd.’ They feel they must conform to this world and its ways. But God commands: ‘And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind’ (Romans 12:2)” (The Ten Commandments, p. 17).

With so many false gods in this world, how can you discover the Real God? On today’s program we’ll discuss two major proofs of the Real God.

My friends, let’s be honest. I know it takes courage, but ask yourself if you have any false gods. Could it be your intellect? Your career? Your family? Your investments? Your possessions? Your philosophy of life? Or even your false religion?

If any of you are dedicated to those false gods, you need to repent of them. That means you need to reject them and embrace the real God of Creation. Where do you start and how do you prove the reality of God? One of the promises in your Bible will help. It’s a promise I have claimed and received. On Tomorrow’s World, we encourage you to prove from your own Bible what is true and what is false. The prophet Isaiah gave this real promise and exhortation. Isaiah 55:6, “Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.”

Yes, there is a way to turn your life around and to experience abundant living. In fact, that’s one of the promises the Messiah gave in your Bible. John 10:10. Jesus of Nazareth stated, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they [might] have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

We all need the assurance of God’s plan for humanity.

Creation Was No Accident!

My friends, I hope you stand in awe at the expanse, design, and glory of the universe. When we contrast the awesome creation around us, compared to the mundane false gods of human nature, we should humble ourselves and seek the God of Creation. Human nature exalts the self and vanity. So much so, that ancient King David stated under inspiration in Psalm 14:1, “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” That’s repeated in Psalm 53:1.

In the remainder of this program, let’s consider two major proofs of God.

Proof Number One: Creation Demands a Creator. In many modern societies, we live in concrete and steel skyscrapers. In some of the most densely populated cities in the world, it seems as if we live in a jungle of towering file cabinets. Many cannot even see the stars at night because of light pollution. But consider the universe. There are an estimated two TRILLION galaxies, with more than an estimated 100 million stars in the average galaxy. Consider also, that galaxies are moving millions of miles per hour out into space in our expanding universe. Consider also the beauty of the heavens. As ancient King David wrote in Psalm 19, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork.”

The predictable motions of the planets and astral bodies did not come about by random chance! Consider just this one example: In recent years, we’ve seen PERFECT solar eclipses. Consider a cosmic phenomenon that requires absolute precision. Is this kind of precision by chance or design? On August 26, 2017, the United States experienced its first total eclipse in 99 years. Consider this question: How is it that a total eclipse occurs with such precision that the moon perfectly blots out the sun but allows a corona, light emanating from the rim of the sun in a total eclipse? This is called a perfect eclipse. NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) explains it this way: “Solar eclipses occur when the moon blocks any part of the sun. Total solar eclipses, however, are ONLY possible on EARTH because of a cosmic quirk of geometry: The sun’s diameter is 400 times wider than the moon’s, but it is also 400 times farther away. The result is that the sun and the moon appear to be the same size from our perspective. When they line up just right, the moon can obscure the sun’s entire surface, creating a total solar eclipse.” (“Preparing for the August 2017 Total Solar Eclipse,” NASA.gov, December 4, 2016).

Are we to attribute the absolute precision of a perfect total eclipse to “a cosmic quirk of geometry”? One astronomy organization commented: “The sun is 400 times bigger than the moon and 400 times further away making a perfect solar eclipse. A chance so small it could be UNIQUE in the Universe”.

Yes, the precision of the creation is not by random chance. It is unique in the universe and it is not just a “cosmic quirk of geometry.” The Apostle Paul wrote in the book of Romans: “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse” (1:20).

My friends, Creation demands a Creator. The universe and all life forms display the awesome power, intricacy, beauty, design and purpose of the Creator. God is not only the Creator of the physical creation we see around us, but He is actively creating in another dimension. In the Bible study guide we’re offering today, Dr. Winnail gives us the inspiring perspective: “Scripture repeatedly refers to God as the Creator of the physical earth and universe (Genesis 1; Isaiah 40:28; Mark 13:19; Revelation 4:11). However, the real God is concerned with far more than just the physical creation. The Bible also reveals there is also an ongoing spiritual dimension to God’s creation” (p. 10).

We’ve documented these spiritual dimensions on several tomorrow’s World telecasts. I encourage you to access them on our Tomorrow’s World website.

The Power and Proof of Prophecy

We’ve discussed one major proof of the Real God. We’ve taken a glimpse of the awesome creation. Scientists have determined that there are about two trillion galaxies. Perhaps you have viewed photos of galaxies and other astral bodies on the NASA website. There is the Sparkling Whirlpool Galaxy; M81 Galaxy is Pretty in Pink; The M77 Spiral Galaxy; unusual ring galaxy that NASA cannot explain; the Messier 104 (The Sombrero Galaxy); and many other fascinating astral bodies. Planet Earth is a part of the Milky Way Galaxy, and is a place UNIQUE in the universe to support human life. Edgar Mitchell, Apollo astronaut, saw the earth as a JEWEL in space: “Suddenly, from behind the rim of the Moon, in long, slow-motion moments of immense majesty, there emerges a sparkling blue and white jewel, a light, delicate sky-blue sphere laced with slowly swirling veils of white, rising gradually like a small pearl in a thick sea of black mystery. It takes more than a moment to fully realize this is Earth…home”

We thank God for His great creation and the purpose He’s given us for life. As we saw earlier, God is also creating a spiritual dimension. Ancient King David pondered his place in the cosmos and asked the question: “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit [or care for] him?” (Psalm 8:3-4).

The answer to David’s question is revealed in our amazing Bible study guide, The Real God: Proofs and Promises. Be sure to order your free copy. It will show you seven proofs of the Real God. In the remainder of this program, we’ll briefly discuss one more of those proofs: Fulfilled Prophetic Promises.

The Creator of the universe has a master plan for all human beings. That plan is revealed through the prophecies in your Bible. The gospel prophecy reveals a future new world government. It’s called the Kingdom of God. It is also called the gospel of the Kingdom of God. That message was preached almost two thousand years ago by the prophesied Messiah, Jesus Christ of Nazareth. That prophecy will transform every human being and every nation on planet earth. Notice what message Jesus preached. Mark 1:14, “Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.’”

That prophecy was later confirmed in the book of Revelation, or Apocalypse in your Bible. Referring to the prophetic Day of the Lord, the heavenly announcement confirms a new world government in the future. Revelation 11:15, “Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!’”

My friends, you need to study the prophecies in your Bible. Dr. Winnail writes on page 20, “Another series of remarkable prophecies concerns specific promises about the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. These prophecies were recorded many centuries before Christ was born. The first two chapters of Matthew quote prophecies that Jesus was to be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14), in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). He would have to flee to Egypt (Hosea 11:1). Before His death, he would ride into Jerusalem on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9). In death, His hands and feet would be pierced (Psalm 22:16), and lots would be cast for His garments (Psalm 22:18). David prophesied that the Christ would be resurrected (see Psalm 16:10). Here again, the real God of the Bible predicted specific future events and brought them to pass—to the letter!”

You’ve probably heard of Daniel’s famous image. The prophet Daniel was called before king Nebuchadnezzar, and proceeded to describe the great image in the king’s dream. DANIEL 2:31. “You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces.”

What empires or kingdoms did this image symbolize? Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar that the head of gold represented him and his empire, the Babylonian empire. This empire was replaced by the Medo-Persian Empire represented by the chest and arms of silver. The belly and thighs of bronze represented the Greco-Macedonian Empire of Alexander the Great. And the two legs of iron represent the Roman Empire from 31 BC to 476 AD. Finally, the ten toes on two feet of iron mixed with ceramic clay represent a future revival of the Roman Empire.

The stone in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream represented the prophesied Kingdom of God. Daniel explained to the king: “And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.” (Daniel 2:44).

My friends, Bible prophecy outlines in advance the major kingdoms in world history. History has proven the accuracy of those fulfilled prophecies. And there are five more proofs in this inspiring Bible study guide: The Real God: Proofs and Promises. The world has followed false gods, and God calls those who reject the reality of a loving, personal god, “fools.” Psalm 14:1, “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” My friends, even many religious people take God for granted and become susceptible to accepting a false god. But when you take God’s challenge to prove Him by the evidence, you can come to know Him personally, 1 Thessalonians 5:21 states: “Test all things; hold fast what is good.’ Or, as in the KJV: “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.”

All Human Beings Have Potential To Be Part Of God’s Family!

We look forward to the coming Kingdom of God prophesied in your Bible. By now, you know WHO the real God is. But you and I must continually seek Him, as we read in Isaiah 55:6. He has revealed the master plan of creation and His purpose for us as human beings. He’s revealed a new world to come, tomorrow’s world, which will be ruled by the King of kings and Lord of lords as it tells us in Revelation 19:16. God is called the “Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named” (Ephesians 3:14-15). God wants you to be a part of His family. Notice 2 Corinthians 6:18, “I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”

Earlier in the program, we saw that the Apostle Paul confronted the Greek Athenians who had an altar to the Unknown God. Paul declared to them the real God in Acts 17:23, “Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you: God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’”

All human beings on earth have an AWESOME potential to be a part of God’s family for all eternity. Those who are faithful shall inherit eternal life, as it tells us in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

My friends, read your Bible and claim its wonderful promises. Those promises include inheriting the earth, as it tells us in Matthew 6:10. Under the King of kings, the Prince of Peace, the earth will be renewed and the deserts blossom like the rose as it tells us in Isaiah 35:1. God also promises that we will inherit “all things.” Revelation 21:7, “He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.” The “all things” includes the universe, all that is seen and unseen.

My friends, draw near to God and He promises He will draw near to you (James 4:8). Take the challenge to prove the Real God and He will bless you abundantly.

Thank you again for watching! Remember to subscribe to our channel so you don’t miss another one of our videos. Also, to get our booklet, “The Real God: Proofs and Promises” for free, click here.

[The text below represents an edited transcript of this Tomorrow’s World program.]

Three Commonly Asked Questions About the Bible

Those who read and study the Bible find their lives enriched and enlightened by the divine guidance they discover within its pages. But that doesn’t mean they don’t trip up on a question or two now and then. Today, we’re going to take a look at a few questions we often receive about the Bible and show you how to determine solid answers, straight from God’s word. So, stay right here for today’s program, “Your Questions, the Bible’s Answers!”

Biblical Truth—You Can Find It!

Greetings, and welcome to Tomorrow’s World, where we help you make sense of the world through the pages of your Bible!

If you are a regular viewer of our program, you know that we base everything we teach on God’s word, the Bible. When Jesus Christ prayed to God the night before His crucifixion, He asked His Father to set His followers apart from the world around them, saying, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth” (John 17:17).

God’s word is THE TRUTH. No other source of knowledge reflects the very mind of the Creator like the Bible, and the answers to life’s greatest questions are found in its pages.

But that doesn’t mean that every part of it is easy to understand! In fact, some things we read in the Bible can be confusing. But the answers ARE THERE, waiting for the diligent student, with God’s help, to find them. Today, we’re going to tackle a potpourri of three Bible questions that students of God’s word sometimes ask, and we’re going to show you the Bible’s own answers to those questions.

As for today’s “Bible Q&A,” here are the questions we will address:

1. Does Jesus Christ command Christians to hate their family members?
2. Exactly how did Judas Iscariot die?
3. And, why are there souls under the altar in the book of Revelation?

First, let’s begin by reading a passage that generates questions among many and see what the Bible has to say about it. If you have a Bible handy, turn to Luke 14:26, where Jesus is teaching a great multitude. He tells them,

“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.”

Reading this verse, many have asked: “Does Jesus really command Christians to hate their family members?”

Of course, the idea that Jesus is literally commanding His followers to hate their mother, father, and others would INDEED be contrary to many of His other teachings. Whenever you come across an apparent contradiction like this in the Bible, it should always grab your attention, because the Bible—including Jesus’ teachings—never contradicts itself. Christ makes this point, Himself, in John 10:35, reminding the Jewish leaders in His audience that the “Scripture cannot be broken.”

So, just what is He saying here in this passage? In understanding the Bible, it’s important to understand the context surrounding the verse, instead of just reading the isolated verse. When we do this in the case of Luke 14, it is clear He is explaining the high standards His followers must meet. Rather than a “come as you are” policy, Jesus demands that people change in order to follow Him and that they commit their lives to Him fully. In verse 27 of that chapter, for instance, Jesus explains that one must be willing to bear his own cross to be one of Christ’s disciples—not a literal cross, but bearing the burden of persecution, difficulty, discomfort, and trial—even to death—just as Christ did. He says in verse 33 that His followers must be willing to forsake ALL that they possess—willing to give up anything else in their lives, and even their own lives, themselves, for His sake—or else they cannot be His disciples at all.

These passages give context for the message Jesus is trying to convey. He is telling the multitudes, and us, that we must consider HIM the most important part of our lives, versus all of the natural loves, comforts, and possessions we otherwise have.

He is NOT commanding His disciples to literally “hate” their family members. Consider earlier in the book of Luke, in chapter 6, where He commands Christians to love even their enemies:

“But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you” (vv. 27–28).

Why would Jesus command us to love our enemies and those who would seek to do us harm while commanding us to hate our family members? Of course, He wouldn’t.

The phrasing here in Luke 14:26 is one of CONTRAST, not objective hate. Jesus is saying that, to be His disciple, one must be willing to put Jesus Christ first before even one’s most natural affections—toward, parents, spouse, or children. We see this even more easily by applying another principle of understanding the Bible: Look at multiple witnesses to the same event or teaching. For example, this same teaching is worded in a clarifying way by the gospel writer Matthew in Matthew 10, verse 37:

“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.”

In fact, those who DO give their lives to Jesus Christ, find that they don’t love their families LESS than they did before. Instead, they love them MORE. They discover that putting God as the highest priority in your life helps set all other priorities right.

So, no, He is not literally commanding us to hate our families. But He is warning us that we must love Him more—more even than our families, and even more than our very lives.

Context Matters, Especially for the Word of God

Our next question is one that puzzles many when they read the accounts of Jesus’ death and the beginning of the biblical Church: “Exactly how did Judas Iscariot die?”

You might recall that Judas Iscariot was one of Jesus’ twelve apostles who betrayed Him for thirty pieces of silver. And on first glance, the Bible’s comments about Judas’ death might seem to be contradictory. Let’s take a look at two key statements and see if we can make sense of them.

In Matthew 27, we read that after Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver, he was remorseful and tried to give the money back to his conspirators, but the priests would not accept. Verse 5 tells us,

“Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself.”

The priests felt the money was tainted as “blood money” and would not accept it, presumably leaving it in Judas’ name and, Matthew says, applying it sometime later to buy a field in which strangers could be buried.

However, while Acts 1 and verse 18 speaks of the field purchased with Judas’ money, it seems to describe a different fate for the traitor:

“Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out.”

The field’s being purchased with Judas’ money is consistent, but falling headlong and bursting in the middle does not sound like a hanging. How do we reconcile the accounts?

As we’ve noted before, any time we see what appear to be different accounts of the same facts or circumstance in the Bible, there is no need to assume a contradiction—indeed, Jesus tells us that the inspired word of God does not contradict itself. Rather, the multiple accounts act as multiple witnesses, each adding its own detail to the overall picture.

For instance, consider the sign that was nailed above Jesus’ head while He was crucified. Depending on which of the four gospels you read, you get a different report concerning what the sign said.

• Matthew says the sign reads “This is Jesus the king of the Jews” 27:37).
• Mark writes that the sign reads “King of the Jews” (15:26)
• Luke reports that it reads “This is the King of the Jews,” and was written in Greek. Latin, and Hebrew (23:38).
• Finally, John writes that Pilate’s sign read “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews” (19:19).

Do the gospel writers contradict each other? Not at all! In fact, not only do they say essentially the same thing, but also when we put all of them together, we get A FULLER picture—one of a sign reading, “This is Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.”

Similarly, the accounts of Judas’ death are not in contradiction when they are read as two accounts that work TOGETHER to make for a fuller picture. Judas did, indeed, hang himself out of guilt and shame. But as his body hung there, his corpse did what corpses do and began to decompose. Eventually, it fell from the rope, struck the ground, and burst open—a terrible, loveless end for the traitor who betrayed the Messiah.

Again, when you understand that the Bible does not contradict itself, but it DOES give multiple witnesses to provide a larger picture, the problem resolves itself.

Biblical Symbols Explained

For our next question, let’s look at Revelation 6, starting in verse 9. Here, in John’s vision of God’s realm in heaven, we read an odd description:

“When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?’ Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.”

So, many ask: Why are these mysterious souls under the altar in John’s vision? After all, does this mean that people will live, in heaven, under an altar, until Jesus’ return? That would certainly seem a very odd afterlife! “Thank you for your faithfulness and sacrifice in the name of Christ! Here is your apartment—under an altar!”

To understand this portion of John’s vision, we need to first understand that the book of Revelation is a mixture of literal description and symbolism. For instance, Revelation 8 verses 6 through 13 describe ecological disasters that will come upon the earth before Christ’s return. That is plain and literal. Yet chapter 6 describes events such as religious deception, war, famine, and pestilence depicted as four horsemen riding horses of different colors—clearly a symbolic picture.

In this case, the symbolism of the souls under the altar would be easily understood by those familiar with the first century sacrifices in Herod’s temple in Jerusalem—as the Apostle John surely was.

When an animal was sacrificed on God’s altar, the blood of the sin sacrifice would be poured at the base of the altar and pool there. We actually read a description of this design in Leviticus 4 and verse 7:

“And the priest shall put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of sweet incense before the LORD, which is in the tabernacle of meeting; and he shall pour the remaining blood of the bull at the base of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.”

So, the souls seen in John’s vision occupy the same place at the altar as the blood of animals, sacrificed for sins. And, indeed, Revelation 6 and verse 9 tells us that the voices represented innocents whose blood had been spilled because of their faithfulness to God’s word. Their slaying is a part of a terrible time of suffering still to come on the earth—the prophesied Great Tribulation.

To complete the symbolism, consider the tale of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4. After wicked Cain slays his innocent brother, Abel, God confronts him, saying, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground” (v. 10).

Just as the spilled blood of innocent Abel cried out to God, the spilled blood of God’s saints in the tribulation to come will cry out for vengeance, symbolized here as coming from the base of the altar. So, no, the Bible does NOT teach that the souls of martyrs somehow consciously live on in some sort of underground apartment complex under an altar in heaven.

We want to conclude today with some broader lessons we’ve learned through these questions and look at how we can apply them in our Bible study going forward.

Conclusion—Truly Knowing the Bible

There is a great comfort in seeing the Bible as a reliable source of truth, trustworthy in all it says. Because it has so much more to say than any history book or philosophy book that mankind has ever created. It answers the deepest questions of life, provides the only true hope of our lives, and points us to the very source of life: Our Creator God.

On today’s program, we’ve answered three common Bible questions.

First: Does Jesus Christ command Christians to hate their family members? The answer? Absolutely not. He’s teaching that we need to put Him first, even above those who are closest to us, but if anything, putting Him first, we end up loving them more.

Secondly: Exactly how did Judas Iscariot die? We’ve discovered that when you put the scriptures together, they paint a larger picture. That he did indeed hang himself in remorse, and then eventually his corpse fell and burst asunder.

And then third: Why are there souls under the altar in the Book of Revelation? We looked into the book, and noticed that parts of it were literal and parts of it were symbolic. And we actually tied in other scriptures that described the altar in the temple in Jesus’ day, and looked at the practices and looked at other examples, such as how the blood of Abel called out to god, in that sense figuratively. We found that that picture made so much sense, and it’s simply the lives of the martyrs and their deaths that call out to God asking for vengeance on their behalf.

But actually when you look at it, we’ve done more than that. In going through these three questions, we’ve also illustrated a number of principles that will help you get more out of your Bible and begin making sense of this book, which too many seek to dismiss.

We’ve seen that answering Bible questions involves understanding the context around a verse, such as the larger passage, and not just the verse in isolation. We’ve seen that it helps to understand that there is an additive nature to multiple biblical witnesses, in which different statements work together to give us a fuller picture and to clarify the confusions that human teachers sometimes create. And we’ve seen that we should strive to examine other scriptures on a related topic, seeking to allow the Bible to explain itself.

The Apostle Paul wrote to his young evangelist friend Timothy, reminding him about the power of God’s word in the life of one who believes in the message of Jesus Christ. He points out to him that…

“…from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:15–17).

We should note that the New Testament we have today did not yet exist when Paul wrote those words, so he had in mind primarily the Old Testament. We really do need the whole word of God, both Old and New Testaments—so don’t let anyone ever tell you otherwise.

A friend of mine was once explaining his appreciation for a preacher he highly admired, and he gave him one of the greatest compliments I think I’ve ever heard. He said the man knew His Bible as one would know a good friend with whom he had spent much, much time.

You can have a relationship with your Bible like that, as well.

[The text below represents an edited transcript of this Tomorrow’s World program.]

Confusion in Christ?

Have you ever wondered WHY there are so many Christian denominations? Why isn’t there just one Church on which everyone can agree? An April 2017 Pew Research report found that there are about 2.3 billion professing Christians around the world. That’s 31 percent of planet Earth’s population at the time (“The Changing Global Religious Landscape,” PewForum.org, April 5, 2017). Listen to this amazing fact: The World Christian Encyclopedia identifies at least 33,000 Christian denominations, with 9,000 of those classified as “Protestant” and 22,000 as “Independents” (Vol. 1, Oxford: University Press, 2001, p. 10).

WHY are there so many Christian denominations? The answer is found in the Olivet prophecy in your Bible, and in many other prophecies as well. When Jesus’ disciples asked Him about the end times, He gave them several key signs. But what was the FIRST sign He gave them? Matthew 24:3, “‘Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’ And Jesus answered and said to them: ‘Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.’”

Yes, many DO come in His name, calling their religion Christianity and saying that Jesus is the Christ, but at the same time deceiving many. There are a few imposters around the world claiming to be Christ Himself, but what Jesus REALLY said was that many would proclaim Jesus as the prophesied Messiah, the Christ or the anointed one of God, yet preach against His true teachings.

Did you know that Jesus and the New Testament Church He established did not keep Sunday as the day of worship? Did you know that the original first-century Church of God did not keep Christmas or Easter? How can there be such a vast difference between original Christianity and the so-called Christian traditions we see today? My friends, what happened to original Christianity? Wouldn’t you want to be a part of the Christianity revealed in your Bible? What happened to the Christianity of Christ?

Stay tuned!

The First Century Church, Gone?

Warm greetings to all our friends around the world!

If you were living in Jerusalem when Christ’s apostles were preaching, would you be observing Christmas and Easter? Would you be meeting on Sunday morning for church services? As shocking as it may seem, the answer to both questions is NO! So, how did today’s popular Christianity add so many strange customs and doctrines that Jesus Himself never knew or taught? We’ll answer that question on today’s program, and we’ll be offering you our inspiring free study guide Restoring Original Christianity. This booklet reveals the little-known history of the early Christian Church and how compromisers and conspirators brought into it pagan and licentious practices that Jesus condemned! Be sure to write down the contact information to request your free copy. Be sure to request Restoring Original Christianity.

My friends, do you know where God’s true Church is today? Can you find it among the thousands of denominations claiming to be Christian? The World Christian Encyclopedia identifies at least 33,000 Christian denominations, with 9,000 of those classified as “Protestant” and 22,000 as “Independents” (Vol. 1, Oxford: University Press, 2001, p. 10).

Today, we’ll consider the practice, doctrine, and traditions of the early New Testament Church. For example, did the Apostles observe Easter? Celebrations of Easter Sunday vary around the world. Easter customs include the coloring of eggs and the popular Easter egg hunt. We all know that rabbits do not lay eggs, but parents share these fables with their children anyway.

Some traditionally celebrate the day with a new set of clothes and display the fashion of an Easter bonnet or a creative hat. Obviously there were no bunnies or eggs at the resurrection. But was it even a Sunday resurrection, as so many claim? NO! How do we know that? Remember that Mary Magdalene went to Christ’s tomb Sunday morning. Did she see a sunrise resurrection? If you have your Bible, turn to John 20:1. What did Mary see? John 20:1, “Now the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, ‘They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.’”

Our Lord was not resurrected Easter Sunday morning, according to your Bible. He had fulfilled the sign He gave to the scribes and Pharisees to prove His Messiahship. Do you realize, my friends, that a traditional Friday crucifixion and an Easter Sunday morning resurrection deny the very sign Jesus gave in Matthew 12:39, the “sign of Jonah”? My friends, Jesus was resurrected Saturday evening just before sunset, exactly 72 hours, three days and three nights, after He was placed in the tomb before sunset on Wednesday evening, just before the beginning of an annual Sabbath. As the Apostle John recorded, “Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.” That’s John 19:31).

The “high day” was an annual Sabbath or Holy Day observed that year from Wednesday at sunset until Thursday at sunset. Jesus did fulfill the sign of Jonah. And there was no Sunday resurrection to celebrate as Easter! So, what Holy Day did Christians observe? Some are confused because the King James Version of the Bible uses the term Easter in Acts 12:4. But LISTEN to this. The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia explains: “EASTER (AV Acts 2:4). An anachronistic mistranslation of the Gk. pascha (RSV, NEB, “Passover”), in which the AV followed such earlier versions as Tyndale and Coverdale. The Acts passage refers to the seven-day Passover festival (including the Feast of Unleavened Bread). It is reasonably certain that the NT contains no reference to a yearly celebration of the resurrection of Christ” (Vol. 2, p. 6).

Notice what the Apostle Paul wrote to Corinthian brethren who were abusing the sacred observance. “Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” That’s in 1 Corinthians 5:6-8.

My friends, the original New Testament church founded by Jesus Christ and led by His trained and ordained apostles never observed Easter Sunday, but they did observe the annual memorial of our Lord’s death, the New Testament CHRISTIAN Passover following the example of Jesus Christ Himself.

The Sign of Jonah

Jesus was in the heart of the earth, the tomb, for exactly three days and three nights, 72 hours, just as He said. You can read about the sign of Jonah in Matthew 12:39-40.

Did the Christianity of Christ observe Sunday as its weekly day of worship? We already saw that Jesus was resurrected on a Saturday evening, not on Sunday morning. Then how did the masses of professing Christianity start observing Sunday? Did the Apostle Paul teach the Gentiles to avoid the so-called Jewish Sabbath and encourage them to observe Sunday as the Christian day of worship? Let’s look at what day the Gentiles actually observed as they followed Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles.

If you have your Bible, turn to Acts 13:42. In the first century AD, Paul preached on the Sabbath in the Antioch synagogue. Notice that his audience included BOTH Jews and Gentiles. After the Jews left, the Gentiles made a request. Now, this was YEARS after Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. Surely, if Christians were to keep Sunday, these Gentiles would have met with Paul the very next day, Sunday. But did they? Acts 13:42, “So when the Jews went out of the synagogue, the Gentiles begged that these words might be preached to them….” WHEN? The next day, Sunday? No! Verse 42: “The Gentiles [not the Jews] begged that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath.” Read that again in your own Bible. “The Gentiles begged that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath,” NOT SUNDAY!

Read it in your own Bible! Acts 13:44: “On the NEXT SABBATH almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God.” Paul met with Gentiles, not on Sunday, but on the Sabbath. New Testament Christians observed the seventh-day Sabbath. The first and second century Christian churches consistently observed the seventh day Sabbath! It was not until the second and third centuries AD that we find a tiny hint that some churches began to observe Sunday as a day of worship. Yet it was much later, in the fourth century AD, when the Emperor Constantine ENFORCED Sunday worship throughout the Roman Empire. Constantine had been a pagan sun-worshipper. He gave the following edict in 321 AD, “Let all magistrates and people… REST on the venerable day of the sun” (“Roman Legislation for Sunday,” Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, Volume XI, p. 147).

Just a few years later, the Roman church passed a startling decree in the Council of Laodicea. They declared: “Christians shall not Judaize and be idle on Saturday, but shall work on that day; but the Lord’s day they shall especially honour, and, as being Christians, shall, if possible, do no work on that day. If, however, they are found Judaizing, they shall be shut out from Christ” (A History of the Councils of the Church, Vol. 2, p. 316). In other words, Christian Sabbath-keepers who followed the example of Christ and the Apostles were declared to be heretics.

But on what authority did the Roman church make this change? The noted Catholic theologian, James Cardinal Gibbons, wrote this bold statement: “But you may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. [Listen to this!] The Scriptures enforce [the] religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never sanctify” (The Faith of Our Fathers, 1917, pp. 72-73). That’s a quote from Gibbons’ The Faith of Our Fathers, first published in 1876.

In other words, Gibbons is saying, if the Bible is your authority, you have NO basis for observing Sunday. The Scriptures, as he states, “enforce the religious observance of Saturday.” We agree with his statement. Do you? But his church rejected the divine authority of the Bible!

My friends, the original Christianity of Christ emphasized obedience to the Holy Scriptures, not the later traditions, many of them pagan, that were contrary to the Scriptures. The noted historian Will Durant comments on the transition from original Biblical Christianity to the professing traditional Christianity we see about us today: “Christianity did not destroy paganism; it adopted it” (Will Durant, The Story of Civilization, Vol. 3, p. 595).

But what about the so-called “Reformation”? If you really want to know how the Protestant Reformation failed to reform traditional Christianity, I urge you to read [the late] Dr. Meredith’s series on our website at TomorrowsWorld.org. Just go to the search bar and type in the title of that series, “The Plain Truth About the Protestant Reformation.” You will be amazed at the depth of research and the shocking historic developments that rejected the Christianity revealed in your Bible. You will find many answers to the question posed by this program: What Happened to the Christianity of Christ?

A Kingdom Here on Earth!

We’ve seen major changes from first-century Christianity to its modern corruption that includes traditions and doctrines that were even condemned by Christ. Let’s summarize a few of these changes.

The original Christians, Jews AND Gentiles, observed the New Testament Passover. Today, mainstream Christianity observes a pagan-inspired Sunday Easter. Original Christianity embraced the only sign of Jesus’ Messiahship, His statement that He would be in the heart of the earth (or the tomb) for three days and three nights. Mainstream Christianity today denies Jesus’ sign with the false idea of His spending Good Friday to Sunday in the grave. The original Christians observed the original seventh-day Sabbath before the Roman church enforced Sunday worship in the fourth century AD.

My friends, you need to study your Bible and history. Do you want to follow the Jesus Christ of the Bible and His original teachings and Way of life? He stated in Luke 4:4, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.” Jesus said this when the New Testament was not yet written. He was talking about what we call the Old Testament. Yes, if you are going to live by every word of God, you need to read and obey the WHOLE Bible, Old and New Testaments!

What other changes were deceptively made to the practice of original Christianity? Jesus and His apostles observed the annual Sabbaths, biblical festivals and holy days. They did NOT observe the day of Jesus’ birth--they did NOT observe Christmas. Most any reputable encyclopedia documents the original pagan celebrations surrounding December 25. One of the major festivals celebrated throughout the Roman Empire was the Saturnalia, in honor of Saturn, god of agriculture. The Encyclopedia Britannica states that “… the Saturnalia… became the most popular of Roman festivals, and its influence is still felt throughout the Western world. Originally on December 17, it was later extended to seven days. It was the merriest festival of the year: all work and business were suspended; slaves were given temporary freedom to say and do what they liked; [Notice!] certain moral restrictions were eased; and presents were freely exchanged. The influence of the Saturnalia upon the celebrations of Christmas and New Year have been direct” (“Saturn,” The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Micropaedia, Volume VIII, p. 916).

Most scholars will admit that Jesus was not born in the winter, but in the fall, in September or October. And just WHY was He born? The commercial, pagan customs surrounding the winter holiday obscure the very purpose for the Messiah.

What purpose was revealed to Mary, Jesus’ mother? LUKE 1:30, “Then the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; [and the] Lord God will give Him the THRONE of His father David. And He will REIGN over the house of Jacob forever, and of HIS KINGDOM there will be no end.’”

The angel Gabriel told Mary that Jesus would be a KING! He was born to be King of a Kingdom that would never end! About 30 years later, Jesus began His public ministry. He began preaching a specific gospel! Turn in your Bible to the book of MARK. MARK 1:14, “Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching [and what did He preach?] the GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.’”

There is another major difference between original Christianity and the modern counterfeit: The original Church preached the gospel of the Kingdom of God, the Kingdom that will rule on earth for a thousand years under the King of kings and Lord of lords before the White Throne Judgment (Revelation 19:16; Revelation 20:4). Yet at least one major denomination believes IT is NOW the Kingdom of God on earth. My friends, if you’ve been following our regular Tomorrow’s World programs, you know the King’s earthly rule over all nations will NOT be proclaimed until the seventh trumpet of Revelation 11:15: “Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!’”

My friends, most people have overlooked the true gospel Jesus preached. He will return to this earth as King over all nations on earth! The angel Gabriel proclaimed in Luke 1:33, “Of His kingdom there will be no end.”

Real Original Christianity: Straight from the Bible

On today’s program, we’ve seen how pagan changes from Jesus Christ’s original Christianity led to the popular modern faith we see around the world today. During the first century after Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, the Church He established grew rapidly under the apostles. But deceivers and infiltrators later influenced Christians to compromise and follow false doctrines. The Apostle Paul warned the church at Thessalonica; “For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work…” (2 Thessalonians 2:7). That same lawlessness is taught in many of today’s churches; that supposedly Christ did away with the Ten Commandments and since we are under grace, we can practice lawlessness! My friends, grace does not permit you to murder, lie, commit adultery, or steal! Jesus told the young rich man who was seeking eternal life: “But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments” (Matthew 19:17). Jesus then mentioned several of the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments reflect the two great commandments: to love God and to love your neighbor.

Here’s a short excerpt from today’s free literature offer: “In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus certainly did not ‘do away’ with God’s spiritual law (Matthew 5:17). Rather, He ‘magnified’ the Ten Commandments. He explained that we must not only refrain from killing other human beings, we must not even look on them with contempt or hatred (vv. 20–23), as that is the ‘spirit’ of murder. We are not to ‘hate’ even our enemies. As Jesus said clearly: ‘But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.’ (v. 5:44).” That’s on pages 17 and 18. Be sure to order your free copy today!

Original Christianity is a way of love and a Way of life. Jesus stated, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).

My friends, which will you choose, the Christianity of your Bible? Or a false religion promoting pagan holidays and lawlessness? You need to seek the truth. Check up on the references we give you on this program. Prove for yourself, from your own Bible, what is the truth!