News and Views- Current Events

September 1, 2015

2015-September/October  Religious Religion has a robust following among China’s younger generation despite the country’s rule by the officially atheist Communist Party. Islam has the largest proportion of young followers, with 22.4 percent of those queried for the annual China Reli­gion Survey, which was conducted by the National Survey Research Center at Beijing’s Renmin Uni­versity. Catholicism was the second-most-practiced religion among those under 30. Unsurprisingly, re­ligions traditionally practiced by Chinese like Bud­dhism and Taosim, still remained popular among religious worshippers at least 60 […]

Anti-Semitism and Israel

September 1, 2015

2015-September/October A Present Problem Anti-Semitism and Israel “Jehovah builds up Jerusalem; He gathers the outcasts of Israel” (Psalms 147:2 NAS). Leonard Griehs In September, 2014, anti-Israel rallies and anti-Semitic attacks broke out across Europe. Angela Merkel, Prime Minister of Germany, observed: “Not a single Jewish institution in [Germany] can go without police protection today.” The Arab-Jewish conflict in Israel has caused tension between Muslims and Jews everywhere. Anti-Semitic chants and threats have marred pro-Palestinian protests in France, Germany, and Italy. A July 30, […]

Numbering the People

September 1, 2015

2015-September/October Numbering the People Mistake and Punishment “And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number the people” (1 Chronicles 21:1). What was King David’s grave sin that caused great pain to many people? What first comes to mind is the story of Bathsheba and how David caused her husband, Uriah, to be killed in battle so he could take Bathsheba as his own. But David committed another great sin which resulted in the death of 70,000 men. 70,000! The account […]

Lessons from Solomon’s Temple

September 1, 2015

2015-September/October A Picture of the Church Class “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16). David Stein The history of Israel has brought many wonderful lessons to the New Creation. Solomon’s Temple is an example of how God used ancient Israel to point to greater realities. The temple was one of the most beautiful structures of ancient times. King David himself gathered the raw materials to build the temple […]

A Heritage to His People Israel

July 1, 2015

Israel’s Original Inheritance “To you I will give the land of Canaan As the portion of your inheritance” (Psalms 105:11). (All scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible unless otherwise noted.) Ernie Kuenzli Listen to audio: As descendants of Abraham, Israel expected to inherit the promises given by God to Abraham. To a large extent, that was true. To Jacob, God repeated two portions of the Abrahamic covenant. These would become Jacob and Israel’s inheritance. First, God would give them the […]