Friday Church News Notes
Volume 24, Issue 03 - January 20, 2023
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.
BIBI: MY STORY (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - Benjamin Netanyahu’s autobiography (Bibi: My Story), published in October, is fascinating, entertaining, challenging, and highly educational on many levels, especially for Bible-believing Christians who are interested in the state of Israel. The book is an education in Zionism, Israeli and American politics, the military, economics, the United Nations, cutting-edge technology, Mossad, and a great many other things. Netanyahu’s speeches before the U.S. Congress and United Nations, which he recounts first hand, are jewels. Recently elected to his third term of Prime Minister (December 2022), he represents the conservative side of the state of Israel. I like Netanyahu as a leader, and I’m glad to see him back in power. He is a Bible student but not a believer in Jesus as the Christ. He doesn’t understand that Israel today is in apostasy and is preparing for the coming of the Antichrist. But he loves the state of Israel and wants to prosper and protect it. He has long wanted to destroy Iran’s nuclear program. He has done a lot of good for Israel. He has served over 15 years as Prime Minister (1996-1999 and 2009-2021) and about 10 years as minister of Science and Technology, Foreign Affairs, Finance, and others. He had a major role in converting the nation from socialism to free market and removing government obstacles to business that have done much to make Israel the dynamic economic, technological, and military power that it is today. Netanyahu also had a major role in developing Israel’s now extensive economic relationships with nations all over the world. His family roots are deep in the Jabazinsky (non-socialist) side of the Zionist movement. His paternal grandfather was a rabbi and Zionist. His father immigrated to Israel before statehood. Born in 1949 in Tel Aviv, Benjamin spent part of his youth in the States (1956-58, 1963-67, 1972-76) and was educated at MIT. He and his two brothers were members of Sayeret Matkal, one the most elite Israeli military units. He participated in the Six-Day War of 1967 and took a break from MIT in 1973 to fight in the Yom Kipper War. His older brother, Yanatan (Yoni), was killed in 1976 in the raid on Entebbe that resulted in the rescue of more than 100 Israelis. Netanyahu gives an insider’s perspective of this raid. He writes with firsthand knowledge about Israel’s wars against the Muslim nations and the war on terror within Israel’s own borders. He describes his relationship with American presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. It is clear that Israel is still living in the Times of the Gentiles, meaning she is under Gentile control to some extent. Also interesting are Netanyahu’s longstanding relationship with Vladimir Putin. The fact that Netanyahu is so viciously hated by the left in Israel and the States is a plus in our view. He has been constantly hounded and slandered by the press. Since the 1990s, multiple indictments for corruption have produced nothing of substance against Netanyahu and his wife and obviously have not destroyed his popularity with the Israeli people, who put him back in power in December 2022. In Bibi: My Story, there is considerable bragging about Israel’s chutzpah. There is a vague reference to the rebirth of Israel being a miracle, but God Himself, by name, gets no credit for Israel’s preservation. The book ends with these words: “Through three millennia we never gave up on our dream to live as a prosperous and free people in our homeland, the land of Zion. Having restored our independence, we cannot, we will not, let anyone bring an end to this miracle. We need not fret about the future. ... The Book of Samuel says, ‘The eternity of Israel will not falter.’ Throughout our journey, including in the tempests and upheavals of modern times, this has held true. The People of Israel Live!” So Bibi mentions “the eternity of Israel” but not the eternal God of Israel. Our prayer is that he will wake up to a true understanding of the Bible he reads. Some of Israel’s worst days are still ahead in “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (Jeremiah 30:7).
ANOTHER COURT RULES AGAINST VACCINE MANDATES (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from “Appeals Court,” PJMedia, Jan. 13, 2023: “The Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati on Thursday affirmed a lower court’s ruling that the vaccine mandate for federal contract workers is unconstitutional. The majority opinion stated that a broad interpretation of the mandate could provide the president ‘nearly unlimited authority to introduce requirements into federal contracts.’ ... The courts have largely upheld the vaccine mandate for healthcare workers, but for all other Americans--including the OSHA ‘vaccine or test; mandate--all courts so far have ruled the Biden administration overstepped its authority. ... This successful fight against a coercive, oppressive government policy is a rare victory for individual liberty in an age that has seen government power grow at the expense of individual liberty.”
ISRAEL’S HEN THAT ONLY LAYS FEMALE EGGS (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from “Golda, the Israeli Hen,” Israel21c.org, Dec. 28, 2022: “Every year, the global egg industry ‘culls’--suffocates or grinds to death--six to seven billion male chicks. The males are commercially useless because they cannot lay eggs and aren’t the right breed for meat. Though many countries have pledged to find alternatives to this gruesome practice, proposed solutions are not always cost effective and often require egg producers to purchase, install and learn how to use new equipment. ... Now offering a different approach is the Israeli molecular biology company Huminn: a hen named Golda that produces only female chicks, thanks to genetic editing. When Golda hen eggs are exposed to blue light for several hours, the edited DNA is activated to stop the development of any male embryos while leaving female embryos intact. Everything else about Golda hens and their chicks is identical to other laying hens. The unique technology was developed by animal science researcher Yuval Cinnamon from the Volcani Center Agricultural Research Organization in conjunction with the UK-based animal welfare organization Compassion in World Farming (CIWF).”
FIRST “NON-BINARY” PRIEST IN CHURCH OF ENGLAND (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from “First Non-Binary,” The European Conservative, Jan. 5, 2023: “The Church of England now has its first ‘non-binary’ priest in its ranks. Originally trained in the Diocese of Durham and ordained in 2020, Vicar Bingo Allison has since joined the Diocese of Liverpool. Allison has praised the diocese’s openness and welcoming attitude: “it does so much to support and empower LGBT people.” Allison, 36, grew up in a family of deep faith in which homosexuality, in accordance with biblical teaching, was considered a sin. Seven years ago, however, Allison reportedly had an ‘epiphany’ after reading Genesis: ‘There’s space in God’s creation for change and transformation, just because you’re created one way doesn’t mean that you can’t live another.’ ... Self-identifying as ‘gender-queer’ and using the pronouns they/them, the vicar is married to a woman and has three children. Allison admits that this ‘revelation’ seven years ago was not very easy for his wife. ... Today, Allison uses social media for activism by wearing heavy makeup and using the slogan ‘Jesus loves sparkly eyeshadow’ in videos.”
JUDGE UPHOLDS WEST VIRGINIA LAW PROHIBITING TRANSGENDER ATHLETES FROM COMPETING IN GIRLS’ SPORTS (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from “Judge Upholds,” Christian Headlines, Jan. 6, 2023: “A federal judge on Thursday upheld a West Virginia law prohibiting biological boys from playing on girls’ teams in a decision that one legal group called a ‘win for reality.’ In a 23-page decision, Judge Joseph R. Goodwin wrote that transgender-identifying students deserve respect but that the state of West Virginia had a legitimate government interest in adopting the law, which defines ‘female’ according to an individual’s biological sex. The law prohibits biological males from participating in female sports. An 11-year-old student who was born male but identifies as female had sued the state seeking to overturn the law. ‘While some females may be able to outperform some males, it is generally accepted that, on average, males outperform females athletically because of inherent physical differences between the sexes,’ Goodwin wrote. ‘This is not an overbroad generalization, but rather a general principle that realistically reflects the average physical differences between the sexes. ... The legislature's definition of girl as being based on biological sex is substantially related to the important government interest of providing equal athletic opportunities for females.’ ... Goodwin referenced events in Connecticut, where two biological boys who identify as girls won multiple state track titles in the female division. ‘The question before the court is whether the legislature’s chosen definition of girl and woman in this context is constitutionally permissible,’ he wrote. ‘I find that it is.’”
ANOTHER MIRACLE OF SIGHT (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is from CreationMoments.com: “The eye is a chemical and technological wonder. It would take thousands of carefully directed mutations for an eyeless creature to develop sight. And since a partial eye doesn’t provide sight, each of these thousands of mutations would offer no advantage to the creature. The fact is, of course, that mutations don’t happen this way. All the true mutations we know about have harmed rather than helped the creature with the mutation. This fact places the thought of thousands of positive mutations in a row outside the realm of scientifically reasonable consideration. In addition, neither living nor known fossil animals show any evidence of gradual development of eyes. Therefore, the most reasonable scientific conclusion is that there is a Creator Who designed and created the eye. The lens of the eye is a marvel of chemistry. It is made up of a concentration of protein molecules inside water-lined cells. When scientists learned this, they were amazed. Protein molecules in water are not transparent, as the lens must be. After more research, they discovered God’s secret. The high concentration of protein molecules in the lens of the eye causes the proteins to pack together something like the molecules of window glass. As a result, the normally opaque protein solution in the lens becomes transparent. The eye does more damage to ideas about origins that leave out God than almost any other feature of the creation because it allows us to see the Creator’s fingerprints all around us! Notes: I. Peterson. 1983. ‘Why the Eye Lens is Transparent,’ Science News, April 16.”
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).
ANOTHER COURT RULES AGAINST VACCINE MANDATES (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from “Appeals Court,” PJMedia, Jan. 13, 2023: “The Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati on Thursday affirmed a lower court’s ruling that the vaccine mandate for federal contract workers is unconstitutional. The majority opinion stated that a broad interpretation of the mandate could provide the president ‘nearly unlimited authority to introduce requirements into federal contracts.’ ... The courts have largely upheld the vaccine mandate for healthcare workers, but for all other Americans--including the OSHA ‘vaccine or test; mandate--all courts so far have ruled the Biden administration overstepped its authority. ... This successful fight against a coercive, oppressive government policy is a rare victory for individual liberty in an age that has seen government power grow at the expense of individual liberty.”
ISRAEL’S HEN THAT ONLY LAYS FEMALE EGGS (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from “Golda, the Israeli Hen,” Israel21c.org, Dec. 28, 2022: “Every year, the global egg industry ‘culls’--suffocates or grinds to death--six to seven billion male chicks. The males are commercially useless because they cannot lay eggs and aren’t the right breed for meat. Though many countries have pledged to find alternatives to this gruesome practice, proposed solutions are not always cost effective and often require egg producers to purchase, install and learn how to use new equipment. ... Now offering a different approach is the Israeli molecular biology company Huminn: a hen named Golda that produces only female chicks, thanks to genetic editing. When Golda hen eggs are exposed to blue light for several hours, the edited DNA is activated to stop the development of any male embryos while leaving female embryos intact. Everything else about Golda hens and their chicks is identical to other laying hens. The unique technology was developed by animal science researcher Yuval Cinnamon from the Volcani Center Agricultural Research Organization in conjunction with the UK-based animal welfare organization Compassion in World Farming (CIWF).”
FIRST “NON-BINARY” PRIEST IN CHURCH OF ENGLAND (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from “First Non-Binary,” The European Conservative, Jan. 5, 2023: “The Church of England now has its first ‘non-binary’ priest in its ranks. Originally trained in the Diocese of Durham and ordained in 2020, Vicar Bingo Allison has since joined the Diocese of Liverpool. Allison has praised the diocese’s openness and welcoming attitude: “it does so much to support and empower LGBT people.” Allison, 36, grew up in a family of deep faith in which homosexuality, in accordance with biblical teaching, was considered a sin. Seven years ago, however, Allison reportedly had an ‘epiphany’ after reading Genesis: ‘There’s space in God’s creation for change and transformation, just because you’re created one way doesn’t mean that you can’t live another.’ ... Self-identifying as ‘gender-queer’ and using the pronouns they/them, the vicar is married to a woman and has three children. Allison admits that this ‘revelation’ seven years ago was not very easy for his wife. ... Today, Allison uses social media for activism by wearing heavy makeup and using the slogan ‘Jesus loves sparkly eyeshadow’ in videos.”
JUDGE UPHOLDS WEST VIRGINIA LAW PROHIBITING TRANSGENDER ATHLETES FROM COMPETING IN GIRLS’ SPORTS (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is excerpted from “Judge Upholds,” Christian Headlines, Jan. 6, 2023: “A federal judge on Thursday upheld a West Virginia law prohibiting biological boys from playing on girls’ teams in a decision that one legal group called a ‘win for reality.’ In a 23-page decision, Judge Joseph R. Goodwin wrote that transgender-identifying students deserve respect but that the state of West Virginia had a legitimate government interest in adopting the law, which defines ‘female’ according to an individual’s biological sex. The law prohibits biological males from participating in female sports. An 11-year-old student who was born male but identifies as female had sued the state seeking to overturn the law. ‘While some females may be able to outperform some males, it is generally accepted that, on average, males outperform females athletically because of inherent physical differences between the sexes,’ Goodwin wrote. ‘This is not an overbroad generalization, but rather a general principle that realistically reflects the average physical differences between the sexes. ... The legislature's definition of girl as being based on biological sex is substantially related to the important government interest of providing equal athletic opportunities for females.’ ... Goodwin referenced events in Connecticut, where two biological boys who identify as girls won multiple state track titles in the female division. ‘The question before the court is whether the legislature’s chosen definition of girl and woman in this context is constitutionally permissible,’ he wrote. ‘I find that it is.’”
ANOTHER MIRACLE OF SIGHT (Friday Church News Notes, January 20, 2023, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is from CreationMoments.com: “The eye is a chemical and technological wonder. It would take thousands of carefully directed mutations for an eyeless creature to develop sight. And since a partial eye doesn’t provide sight, each of these thousands of mutations would offer no advantage to the creature. The fact is, of course, that mutations don’t happen this way. All the true mutations we know about have harmed rather than helped the creature with the mutation. This fact places the thought of thousands of positive mutations in a row outside the realm of scientifically reasonable consideration. In addition, neither living nor known fossil animals show any evidence of gradual development of eyes. Therefore, the most reasonable scientific conclusion is that there is a Creator Who designed and created the eye. The lens of the eye is a marvel of chemistry. It is made up of a concentration of protein molecules inside water-lined cells. When scientists learned this, they were amazed. Protein molecules in water are not transparent, as the lens must be. After more research, they discovered God’s secret. The high concentration of protein molecules in the lens of the eye causes the proteins to pack together something like the molecules of window glass. As a result, the normally opaque protein solution in the lens becomes transparent. The eye does more damage to ideas about origins that leave out God than almost any other feature of the creation because it allows us to see the Creator’s fingerprints all around us! Notes: I. Peterson. 1983. ‘Why the Eye Lens is Transparent,’ Science News, April 16.”
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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