Friday Church News Notes
Volume 23, Issue 40 - October 7, 2022
The Friday Church News Notes is designed for use in churches and is published by Way of Life Literature. Unless otherwise stated, the Notes are written by David Cloud. Of necessity we quote from a wide variety of sources, though this does not imply an endorsement.
Residents inspect the damage to a marina in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers, Florida, on Sept. 29. Photographer: Georgio Veira
LESSONS FROM A HURRICANE (Friday Church News Notes, October 7, 2022, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - Hurricane Ian, a Category 4 storm of massive proportions, devastated part of the Florida Gulf Coast, particularly the Fort Meyers and Naples area, and caused widespread flooding in other parts of the state. Born and raised in Florida, I have a lot of experience with hurricanes. At age 10, I was staying over with my grandparents in 1960 when Donna destroyed and severely damaged 6,000 homes. Hurricane Ian reminds us of many Bible lessons: First, this is a world under judgment. When the first man sinned, God cursed the ground for his sake (Genesis 3:17-19). The Bible well says, “the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now” (Romans 8:22). The Florida Gulf Coast is one of the most beautiful places on earth, but there is no paradise in this fallen world. Sorrow, trouble, pain, and death are everywhere. “Yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward” (Job 5:7). “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). Second, God is in control of the weather. “... the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet” (Nah. 1:3). The God who made the world is in control of the world. He created natural forces, but He has not left the earth to “nature.” He upholds all things, and by Him all things consist (Col. 1:17; Heb. 1:3). Third, God’s mercy is operating in this fallen world. “The earth, O LORD, is full of thy mercy” (Psalm 119:64). Mankind has willfully sinned against God and doesn’t deserve any blessing, yet God is merciful. At great cost, by His Son God purchased salvation for sinners and is offering salvation as a free gift to those who repent and exercise saving faith in Jesus Christ. This is an act of unimaginable mercy and grace for those who have eyes to see. Fourth, God answers prayer. One of my sisters informed me of the approaching storm a couple of days before landfall and we began praying for God’s mercy. Though they were in the very path the hurricane took across the peninsula, they were largely unaffected. The electricity didn’t even go out. I heard from other friends that their prayers were answered, and the governor of South Carolina credited prayer for helping his state. Fifth, it is important to heed warnings. Sufficient warnings were given to evacuate the areas that were hardest hit, but some people stayed put and were killed. In 1980, Harry R. Truman famously refused to evacuate his home near Mt. Saint Helens in Washington state and died in the volcanic eruption. The most important warning to heed is the one issued by Jesus Christ: “except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3, 5). Sixth, Ian reminds us that we had better live lightly on this earth and be ready to go at any moment. Many people were quoted by the media saying they had lost everything in a day that they had worked for over their entire lives. They were shocked and confused. It is truly amazing that men and women can live in this world, knowing that their lives are uncertain and brief at best, and yet make no clear plan for eternity and act surprised when death and destruction come. Seventh, the really big “destructive nature events” are yet future. “And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. ... And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great” (Revelation 16:18-21). One-fourth of the world’s population will perish in the very first part of the coming Tribulation (Revelation 6:8). The world’s emergency and health-care systems will be utterly overwhelmed.
UNITED NATIONS/WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM CLAIM TO “OWN SCIENCE” (Friday Church News Notes, October 7, 2022, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from “Who Owns Science?” Powerlineblog.com, Oct. 3, 2022: “Science is a method that can, in principle, be practiced by anyone. So no one can ‘own’ it. But don’t tell that to the United Nations and the World Economic Forum. The following is chilling: ‘Melissa Fleming, Under-Secretary for Global Communications at the United Nations at [World Economic Forum] Disinformation’ event: “We partnered with Google,” said Fleming, adding, “for example, if you Google climate change, you will, at the top of your search, you will get all kinds of UN resources. We started this partnership when we were shocked to see that when we Googled climate change, we were getting incredibly distorted information right at the top. So we’re becoming much more proactive. We own the science, and we think that the world should know it, and the platforms themselves also do.” ... Fleming also highlighted that the UN worked with TikTok on a project called Team Halo to boost COVID messaging coming from medical and scientific communities on the Chinese-owned video sharing platform. “We had another trusted messenger project, which was called ‘Team Halo’ where we trained scientists around the world and some doctors on TikTok, and we had TikTok working with us,” she said’ (Watts Up With That? Oct. 2022). ... There is nothing accessible from Google’s front page of search results other than global warming propaganda. ... It seems remarkable that, after just about everything the public health establishment said about covid turned out to be wrong, these people have not acquired the slightest bit of humility. ... This, from a professor of Global Economic Governance (!) at Oxford, is telling, and reflects a remarkable lack of self-awareness: ‘The good news is the elites across the world trust each other more and more ... The bad news is that in every single country they were polling, the majority of people trusted their elites less.’ There is a lesson there, but it is one that those who purport to rule the world would rather ignore.”
TENNESSEE GOVERNOR SIGNS “DAY OF PRAYER” PROCLAMATION (Friday Church News Notes, October 7, 2022, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from Christian Headlines, Sept. 26, 2022: “Tennessee's governor has signed a proclamation declaring Friday, September 30, a ‘day of prayer, humility, and fasting.’ He added that the state needs ‘God's guidance’ for the future. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican who is in his first term, signed the proclamation last Friday and posted a picture of the document on his social media account, tweeting that he and his wife Maria ‘invite Tennesseans to join us in this tradition to thank God for his many blessings, seek His wisdom in all circumstances, and ask for His continued grace & favor in the days ahead.’ ... Following is the full text of the proclamation: ‘WHEREAS, we acknowledge God’s sovereignty and the need for God’s grace over our state and our nation; and WHEREAS, we walk humbly together with God in hope so that we may act with justice, kindness and love, no matter the circumstance; and WHEREAS, we seek forgiveness for our many transgressions so that our hearts and our minds may be renewed; and WHEREAS, Scripture tells us that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord, and the Lord gives wisdom freely to those who ask for it; and WHEREAS, the people of Tennessee acknowledge our rich blessings, our deep transgressions, the complex challenges ahead, and the need to pause, to humble ourselves and to seek God’s guidance for the days ahead; NOW, THEREFORE, I, Bill Lee, Governor of the State of Tennessee, do hereby proclaim September 30, 2022, as a voluntary Day of Prayer, Humility, and Fasting.’”
RAPTURE ANXIETY (Friday Church News Notes, October 7, 2022, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - A CNN report in September warned of “rapture anxiety.” The report cites networks of “exvangelicals” “who have removed themselves from what they now view as the damaging beliefs of some evangelical, Pentecostal and Baptist churches” (“For some Christians,” CNN, Sept. 27, 2022). CNN warns of “traumatic religious experiences that can last for years--even a lifetime.” One of these is “rapture anxiety,” which is “recognized by some faith experts and mental health professions as a type of religious trauma.” The whining, easily-offended exvangelicals talk of “being tricked by church leaders into watching violent rapture-themed films or crying themselves to sleep thinking about people and pets that would be left behind.” Rapture anxiety is even credited with causing a fear of heights! The CNN report claims that “the rapture ... is scantly mentioned in the Bible” and “only dates back to the 1800s.” Neither of these claims is true. The Rapture is plainly described in the Bible in two prominent passages (1 Corinthians 15:50-58 and 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). It was first taught in the apostolic churches 2,000 years ago and has been believed by Christians throughout the church age. (See “When Was the Pre-Trib Rapture First Taught?” www.wayoflife.org.) As for “rapture anxiety,” it is a malady for the unsaved. For the born again, the Rapture is comfort, encouragement, and godly challenge. The major passages on the Rapture, emphasize this. “Wherefore comfort one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:18). “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:57-58).
OUR BACTERIA FRIENDS (Friday Church News Notes, October 7, 2022, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is from creationmoments.com, July 13, 2020: “Scientists are beginning to get a better picture of how digestion works and have identified 500 to 1,000 different kinds of bacteria that live in our large intestine. The human body actually works in a symbiotic relationship with these bacteria--we are their host and provide them with a warm environment while they work to benefit us, including digestion of our food. These bacteria carry out many jobs. Some protect our digestive system from bad bacteria. Others specialize in helping to break down food. One of the most common bacterium breaks indigestible complex carbohydrates down into easily digested sugars. It also produces vitamins and other nutrients our body can absorb. Researchers now believe that this busy bacterium also turns-on some of our genes, so that more blood is able to absorb food. Laboratory mice bred to be germ-free must eat 30 percent more food than regular mice because they lack this bacterium. What’s more, when there is little sugar to work with, the bacteria prompts intestinal cells to make sugar. Yet another bacterium makes proteins that manage sugar production. Scientists now believe that most bacteria benefit us. They are part of God’s creation, designed for the good of the creation. God always has our good in mind, our greatest good being our salvation that He has prepared for us in Jesus Christ. Ref: Science News, 5/31/03, pp. 344-345, John Travis, ‘Gut Check.’”
CONCLUSION: The Friday Church News Notes is designed for use in churches and is published by Way of Life Literature’s Fundamental Baptist Information Service. Unless otherwise stated, the Notes are written by David Cloud. Of necessity we quote from a wide variety of sources, but this obviously does not imply an endorsement. We trust that our readers will not be discouraged. It is God’s will that we know the times (1 Ch. 12:32; Mat. 16:3) and that we be as wise as serpents and harmless as doves. The News Notes remind us that the hour is very late, and we need to be ready for the Lord’s coming. Are you sure that you are born again? Are you living for Christ? “And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof” (Rom. 13:11-14).
UNITED NATIONS/WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM CLAIM TO “OWN SCIENCE” (Friday Church News Notes, October 7, 2022, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from “Who Owns Science?” Powerlineblog.com, Oct. 3, 2022: “Science is a method that can, in principle, be practiced by anyone. So no one can ‘own’ it. But don’t tell that to the United Nations and the World Economic Forum. The following is chilling: ‘Melissa Fleming, Under-Secretary for Global Communications at the United Nations at [World Economic Forum] Disinformation’ event: “We partnered with Google,” said Fleming, adding, “for example, if you Google climate change, you will, at the top of your search, you will get all kinds of UN resources. We started this partnership when we were shocked to see that when we Googled climate change, we were getting incredibly distorted information right at the top. So we’re becoming much more proactive. We own the science, and we think that the world should know it, and the platforms themselves also do.” ... Fleming also highlighted that the UN worked with TikTok on a project called Team Halo to boost COVID messaging coming from medical and scientific communities on the Chinese-owned video sharing platform. “We had another trusted messenger project, which was called ‘Team Halo’ where we trained scientists around the world and some doctors on TikTok, and we had TikTok working with us,” she said’ (Watts Up With That? Oct. 2022). ... There is nothing accessible from Google’s front page of search results other than global warming propaganda. ... It seems remarkable that, after just about everything the public health establishment said about covid turned out to be wrong, these people have not acquired the slightest bit of humility. ... This, from a professor of Global Economic Governance (!) at Oxford, is telling, and reflects a remarkable lack of self-awareness: ‘The good news is the elites across the world trust each other more and more ... The bad news is that in every single country they were polling, the majority of people trusted their elites less.’ There is a lesson there, but it is one that those who purport to rule the world would rather ignore.”
TENNESSEE GOVERNOR SIGNS “DAY OF PRAYER” PROCLAMATION (Friday Church News Notes, October 7, 2022, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from Christian Headlines, Sept. 26, 2022: “Tennessee's governor has signed a proclamation declaring Friday, September 30, a ‘day of prayer, humility, and fasting.’ He added that the state needs ‘God's guidance’ for the future. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican who is in his first term, signed the proclamation last Friday and posted a picture of the document on his social media account, tweeting that he and his wife Maria ‘invite Tennesseans to join us in this tradition to thank God for his many blessings, seek His wisdom in all circumstances, and ask for His continued grace & favor in the days ahead.’ ... Following is the full text of the proclamation: ‘WHEREAS, we acknowledge God’s sovereignty and the need for God’s grace over our state and our nation; and WHEREAS, we walk humbly together with God in hope so that we may act with justice, kindness and love, no matter the circumstance; and WHEREAS, we seek forgiveness for our many transgressions so that our hearts and our minds may be renewed; and WHEREAS, Scripture tells us that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord, and the Lord gives wisdom freely to those who ask for it; and WHEREAS, the people of Tennessee acknowledge our rich blessings, our deep transgressions, the complex challenges ahead, and the need to pause, to humble ourselves and to seek God’s guidance for the days ahead; NOW, THEREFORE, I, Bill Lee, Governor of the State of Tennessee, do hereby proclaim September 30, 2022, as a voluntary Day of Prayer, Humility, and Fasting.’”
RAPTURE ANXIETY (Friday Church News Notes, October 7, 2022, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - A CNN report in September warned of “rapture anxiety.” The report cites networks of “exvangelicals” “who have removed themselves from what they now view as the damaging beliefs of some evangelical, Pentecostal and Baptist churches” (“For some Christians,” CNN, Sept. 27, 2022). CNN warns of “traumatic religious experiences that can last for years--even a lifetime.” One of these is “rapture anxiety,” which is “recognized by some faith experts and mental health professions as a type of religious trauma.” The whining, easily-offended exvangelicals talk of “being tricked by church leaders into watching violent rapture-themed films or crying themselves to sleep thinking about people and pets that would be left behind.” Rapture anxiety is even credited with causing a fear of heights! The CNN report claims that “the rapture ... is scantly mentioned in the Bible” and “only dates back to the 1800s.” Neither of these claims is true. The Rapture is plainly described in the Bible in two prominent passages (1 Corinthians 15:50-58 and 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). It was first taught in the apostolic churches 2,000 years ago and has been believed by Christians throughout the church age. (See “When Was the Pre-Trib Rapture First Taught?” www.wayoflife.org.) As for “rapture anxiety,” it is a malady for the unsaved. For the born again, the Rapture is comfort, encouragement, and godly challenge. The major passages on the Rapture, emphasize this. “Wherefore comfort one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:18). “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:57-58).
OUR BACTERIA FRIENDS (Friday Church News Notes, October 7, 2022, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is from creationmoments.com, July 13, 2020: “Scientists are beginning to get a better picture of how digestion works and have identified 500 to 1,000 different kinds of bacteria that live in our large intestine. The human body actually works in a symbiotic relationship with these bacteria--we are their host and provide them with a warm environment while they work to benefit us, including digestion of our food. These bacteria carry out many jobs. Some protect our digestive system from bad bacteria. Others specialize in helping to break down food. One of the most common bacterium breaks indigestible complex carbohydrates down into easily digested sugars. It also produces vitamins and other nutrients our body can absorb. Researchers now believe that this busy bacterium also turns-on some of our genes, so that more blood is able to absorb food. Laboratory mice bred to be germ-free must eat 30 percent more food than regular mice because they lack this bacterium. What’s more, when there is little sugar to work with, the bacteria prompts intestinal cells to make sugar. Yet another bacterium makes proteins that manage sugar production. Scientists now believe that most bacteria benefit us. They are part of God’s creation, designed for the good of the creation. God always has our good in mind, our greatest good being our salvation that He has prepared for us in Jesus Christ. Ref: Science News, 5/31/03, pp. 344-345, John Travis, ‘Gut Check.’”
CONCLUSION: The Friday Church News Notes is designed for use in churches and is published by Way of Life Literature’s Fundamental Baptist Information Service. Unless otherwise stated, the Notes are written by David Cloud. Of necessity we quote from a wide variety of sources, but this obviously does not imply an endorsement. We trust that our readers will not be discouraged. It is God’s will that we know the times (1 Ch. 12:32; Mat. 16:3) and that we be as wise as serpents and harmless as doves. The News Notes remind us that the hour is very late, and we need to be ready for the Lord’s coming. Are you sure that you are born again? Are you living for Christ? “And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof” (Rom. 13:11-14).
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Distributed by Way of Life Literature., publisher of Bible Study Materials and reports for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. Established in 1974, Way of Life Literature is a fundamental Baptist preaching and publishing ministry based in Bethel Baptist Church, London, Ontario, of which Wilbert Unger is the founding Pastor. Brother Cloud lives in South Asia where he has been a church planting missionary since 1979. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY (REPORTS AND FRIDAY NEWS) IS NOT DEVOTIONAL. IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR.
David Cloud, Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org
The Way of Life Literature preaching and publishing ministry is based at Bethel Baptist Church, London, Ontario, of which Wilbert Unger is the founding Pastor. A mail stop is maintained in Port Huron, Michigan.
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