"These all died in faith, not having received the
promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and
embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on
the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a
country. And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from
whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.
But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore
God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them
a city."
Hebrews 11:13-16
"For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come."
Hebrews 13:14
"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the
first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more
sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God
out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a
great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with
men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God
himself shall be with them, and be their God."
Revelation 21:1-3
"When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn."
Proverbs 29:2
In this issue of the Last Trumpet Newsletter, we will
examine the corrupt nature of this present day world. At this present
time, those of us who live in the United States of America realize all
too well what it is like to live in a country that suffers from immoral
leadership. The deeds of our president, Barack Obama, have frustrated
most conservative Americans with his numerous executive orders, his
climate change agenda, his promotion of Planned Parenthood, and his
unwavering support of same-sex marriage. The promotion of such liberal
values sometimes prompts folks to consider moving out of the United
States entirely and seek a country where such ungodliness does not
abound. Yet, we live in a corrupt world that is continually growing
worse. To find such a country could prove to be a rather difficult
endeavor.
It is not uncommon to hear frustrated Americans
threaten to migrate to our neighboring country to the north, known as
Canada. However, the nation of Canada is not a bastion of conservative
values either, and the recent election of a new prime minister suggests
that liberal principles will be guiding the country for the foreseeable
future. On October 19, 2015, Justin Trudeau, who is the leader of the
Liberal Party in Canada, was elected as prime minister of Canada. The 43
year-old, who is the son of former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, (1)
is a viciously liberal man who supports same-sex marriage and absolutely
loves abortion. In fact, Trudeau's support of abortion is so extreme
that he believes unlimited abortions should be available to women up
until the time of birth. (2) He has also decreed that when it comes to
abortion, all members of his Liberal Party must be "pro-choice." "I have
made it clear that future candidates need to be completely
understanding that they will be expected to vote pro-choice on any
bills," Trudeau said in 2014. (3) In March 2015, Trudeau made a similar
statement and was quoted as saying, "The Canada we know today is
unimaginable without widely available birth-control and the legalization
of choice. Let's be clear on this. For Liberals, the right of a woman
to control her body is more important than the right of a legislator to
restrict her freedom with their vote. MPs (members of parliament) who
disagree with that have other choices. They can sit as independents or
as Conservatives." (4) Regarding the homosexual lifestyle, Trudeau said
in a video published in July 2013, "The Liberal Party believes that the
advancement of LGBTTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, two-spirit,
and queer) rights is a priority and we hope you will join us in
continuing this vital work. Here in Canada, our record as a leader in
LGBTTQ rights is recognized globally and Liberals are proud of our
contributions." (5) Amazingly enough, Justin Trudeau has even expressed
admiration for the communist dictatorship in China. Speaking on November
15, 2013, Trudeau said, "There is a level of admiration I actually have
for China, because their basic dictatorship is allowing them to
actually turn their economy around on a dime and say we need to go
green, we need to start, you know, investing in solar." (6) Perhaps his
fondness for communist dictatorship is not that surprising, considering
the fact that Justin's father, the late Pierre Trudeau, maintained a
lifelong friendship with Cuba's former dictator, Fidel Castro. (7)
Oddly enough, the elder Trudeau's views on abortion
were quite different from those of his son. Although Pierre Trudeau was
very liberal and did much to expand abortions in Canada, comments he
made in the past suggest that he had mixed feelings on the subject and
knew that abortion is wrong. "You know, at some point you are killing
life in the fetus in self-defense - of what? Of the mother's health or
her happiness or of her social rights or her privilege as a human being.
I think she should have to answer for it and explain. Now, whether it
should be to three doctors or one doctor or to a priest or a bishop or
to her mother-in-law is a question you might want to argue. You do have a
right over your own body - it is your body. But the fetus is not your
body; it's someone else's body. And if you kill it, you'll have to
explain," said Pierre Trudeau in 1972. (8)
Without a doubt, the rise of Justin Trudeau is bad
news for conservative people living in Canada. It is also interesting to
note that he is a Jesuit-trained Roman Catholic. On October 20, 2014,
Trudeau said, "As someone who was raised Roman Catholic and who attended
a Jesuit school, I understand that it is difficult for people of deep
faith to set their beliefs aside in order to serve Canadians who may not
share those beliefs. But for me, this is what liberalism is all about.
It is the idea that private belief, while it ought to be valued and
respected, is fundamentally different from public duty." (9)
As we look around in this world, it quickly becomes
evident that every country has its own unique set of problems. Those who
seek a perfect country will never find it here on earth. Yet, in
Hebrews 11 we are told of many faithful servants of God who sought a
better country. Hebrews 11:16 tells us, "But now they desire a better
country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called
their God: for he hath prepared for them a city." In Revelation 21:1-3
we are told more about this wonderful city in a better country. These
verses tell us, "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first
heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of
heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a
great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with
men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God
himself shall be with them, and be their God." The people who inhabit
this city, the new Jerusalem, will be those who love God and obey His
Word. If you would like to dwell in a better country, I urge you to
dedicate your life to God and give him your heart.
Will The United States Improve After The 2016 Election?
There has been a lot of frustration here in the United
States, particularly amongst conservative people, since January 2009
when Barack Obama began his first term as president. Since that time
many people have anxiously awaited his departure in the hope that his
successor will bring about welcomed change and improvements to America.
After all, how could anyone be worse than Barack Obama as president?
Yet, when I scrutinize the current batch of potential presidents for the
2016 election, I must say, those who are considered the top four
candidates do not inspire confidence.
The current frontrunner for the Republican Party is
none other than famed business mogul and reality television star Donald
Trump. According to a recent poll published on October 25, 2015, by the
Associated Press, Trump is considered to be the most electable candidate
with 7 out of 10 Republican and right-leaning voters saying he could
win the election. (10) Yet, I believe there are good reasons to doubt
that Donald Trump is even a conservative. In the not too distant past,
Trump was a registered Democrat who claimed he was pro-choice, "very
liberal" when it comes to healthcare, and a supporter of prominent
liberal politicians such as Hillary Clinton. (11) In fact, Trump has
donated money to Clinton on numerous occasions, including a 100,000
dollar donation to the Clinton Foundation. (12) When questioned about
such donations, Trump defended his actions by saying that such donations
were reasonable because "everyone is Democratic" in the state of New
York. "So, what am I going to do, contribute to Republicans? Am I going
to contribute to, I mean, one thing I'm not stupid. Am I going to
contribute to a Republican for my whole life when they get, they run
against some Democrat. And the most they can get is one percent of the
vote," Trump stated. (13) On another occasion, when speaking to rival
candidate Rand Paul, Trump declared that his political donations to
Democrats enabled him to extract favors from them. "Hillary Clinton, I
said be at my wedding, and she came to my wedding. She had no choice
because I gave to a foundation," Trump declared. He later went on to
say, "I gave to many people before this. When they call, I give. And you
know what? When I need something from them two years later, three years
later, I call them. They are there for me." (14) At this point we
should ask ourselves if this sounds like a man of integrity, or rather a
man who is willing to support anyone in a position of power if it means
he can use them to gain favor and get ahead in life.
In current polls the second ranked Republican
candidate at this time is former neurosurgeon Benjamin Carson. Without a
doubt, Carson is a brilliant man, and he has at times said things that I
agree with. However, I find it disheartening that Dr. Carson believes
vaccinations should be mandatory for all. According to a report
published by CNN in February 2015, Dr. Carson stated that there should
be no religious or philosophical exemptions for vaccinations, despite
the fact that most states do allow such exemptions at this time. (15)
The doctor further explained his position in an article published by The
Washington Times on February 10, 2015. "I am a small government person,
and I greatly oppose government intrusion into everything. Still, it is
essential that we distinguish between those things that are important
and those things that are just intruding upon our basic privacy. Whether
to participate in childhood immunizations would be an individual choice
if individuals were the only ones affected, but as previously
mentioned, our children are part of a larger community. None of us live
in isolation. Your decision does not affect only you - it also affects
your fellow Americans." (16) Regardless of how one might feel about the
efficacy of vaccinations, every parent and every adult should have the
right to accept or decline to be immunized. If the government can force
us to receive immunizations, what might be next? What if they declared
that every American should receive a microchip in their right hand or
forehead for the good of society? Furthermore, it is a verifiable fact
that aborted fetal cells were used in the development of many vaccines.
In fact, the origin of one of the cell lines used to develop vaccines
was described by man named Dr. Stanley Plotkin who said, "This fetus was
chosen by Dr. Sven Gard, specifically for this purpose. Both parents
are known, and unfortunately for the story, they are married to each
other, still alive and well, and living in Stockholm, presumably. The
abortion was done because they felt they had too many children. There
were no familial diseases in the history of either parent, and no
history of cancer specifically in the families." (17) Clearly, there is a
legitimate ethical reason not to receive vaccinations.
Unfortunately, it is a very real possibility that the
next president of the United States could be none other than Hillary
Rodham Clinton. The current frontrunner for the Democratic presidential
nomination is heavily supported by liberal people far and wide despite
the fact that she has shown herself to be a deceitful and wicked woman.
In one statement, which I had previously quoted in an earlier issue of
this newsletter, Hillary Clinton said, "Laws have to be backed up with
resources and political will. And deep-seated cultural codes, religious
beliefs and structural biases have to be changed." (18) Keeping this
quote in mind, there is no question that she would seek to inflict her
will upon the people if she should become president.
Evidence also shows that the former Secretary of State
is a habitual liar. In the aftermath of an attack by terrorists on the
United States Embassy in Benghazi, Libya, on September 11, 2012, Hillary
Clinton lied about the cause of the attack and stated that it was
prompted by the publishing of an anti-Islamic video on the video sharing
website known as YouTube. Yet that very night of September 11, 2012,
Clinton sent an email to the Egyptian Prime Minister which stated, "We
know that the attack in Libya had nothing to do with the film. It was a
planned attack, not a protest." This violent attack claimed the lives of
American Ambassador Christopher Stevens, Navy SEALs Tyrone Woods and
Glen Doherty, and Information Management Officer Sean Smith. (19) On
another occasion, Clinton lied about the so-called financial struggles
that she and her husband endured after Bill Clinton left the White House
in 2001. Speaking during an interview with Diane Sawyer on ABC, Clinton
said, "You have no reason to remember, but we came out of the White
House not only dead broke, but in debt. We had no money when we got
there, and we struggled to piece together the resources for mortgages
for houses, for Chelsea's education. It was not easy." (20) It should be
noted, however, that the Clintons purchased a home in Chappaqua, New
York, for 1.7 million dollars in 1999. In the following year of 2000,
they purchased an additional home in Washington, D.C., for 2.85 million
dollars. (21)
Another individual who is seeking the presidential
nomination from the Democratic Party is a man by the name of Bernie
Sanders. Although he is technically an independent, this Senator from
the state of Vermont caucuses with the Democratic Party. As it turns
out, he is also a socialist, a fact that he openly admits. In fact, a
report published on October 18, 2015, claims that Sanders is planning to
give a "major" speech on democratic socialism to explain his political
doctrine to the people. "I think there are a lot of people who, when
they hear the word 'socialist' get very, very nervous," Sanders said. He
later went on to say, "What we're probably going to do to begin with is
hold a major speech in the not-to-distant future to define exactly what
I mean by democratic socialism. To me democratic socialism means
democracy. It means creating a government that represents all of us, not
just the wealthiest people in the country." Sanders then suggested
that the United States needs to emulate socialistic systems found in
nations such as Norway, Denmark, and Sweden. "They may not be familiar
with some of the very positive policies that those governments have
developed for the middle class and working families. So I think that's a
discussion we have to have," Sanders stated. (22) One fact that Sanders
neglects to tell people, however, is that socialistic governments have
extraordinarily high taxes. In fact, the Scandinavian nation of
Denmark's top personal income tax rate is a whopping 60.2 percent. This
rate applies to all incomes which exceed what would be the equivalent of
55,000 United States dollars. (23) Amazingly enough, Bernie Sanders has
garnered a significant amount of support, particularly from young
people who have been led to believe that socialism is good. However, I
would rather not have the government take care of me, and I do not want
the government to control the means of production in my country, which
is exactly what happens in a socialistic society.
Thankfully, as God's children we understand that it is
far better to put our faith in God rather than man. For as it tells us
in Psalm 118:8, "It is better to trust in the Lord than to put
confidence in man." Ultimately, regardless of who is elected, God is
still on the throne and He will never disappoint us.
A Migrant Crisis In Europe!
In this world we live in today, it seems there is
always a crisis of some sort. At this present time, what has come to be
known as "the migrant crisis" is causing great difficulty in Europe. As
of this writing, 705,251 refugees and migrants have crossed the
Mediterranean Sea and arrived in Europe this year. (24) Of these
migrants, 53 percent have come from the war-torn nation of Syria, 18
percent have arrived from Afghanistan, and 6 percent have arrived from
Iraq. (25)
As large camps of migrants spring up all over Europe,
many locales are struggling to find adequate housing for them. This
includes the town of Calais in France where 6,000 migrants are now
living in tents. Although 750 police officers have been assigned to the
camp to keep order, the mayor of the town has suggested more security
personnel may be necessary. "Maybe the army should come to watch over
the place," said Mayor Natacha Bouchard. (26) Meanwhile, the influx of
migrants to the nation of Sweden has been unprecedented. "The current
refugee situation lacks an equivalent in modern times. We see people
literally walking through Europe," said Anders Danielsson who is
Director-General of the Swedish Migration Board. It is estimated that
190,000 migrants will arrive in Sweden this year with another 170,000
following in 2016. (27) Germany, too, has become a home for many
migrants with an estimated 42,000 people still living in tents even as
winter draws closer. This has become a cause for great concern to
officials in Germany. "Absolutely, we can manage this. But you can
envision a worst case scenario where we have rioting over the winter.
And that could shape the mood," said an official who remained anonymous.
(28)
Much of the migration to Europe has been spurred by
the ongoing civil war in Syria. As would be expected, most of these
people are Muslims. Because of this fact, the Islamic population in
Europe will rise exponentially in the coming days and has the potential
to cause significant changes to the cultural landscape in that region of
the world. In fact, the nation of Saudi Arabia has offered to construct
two hundred mosques in Germany for the refugees who have arrived there.
(29) Warnings have also surfaced which indicate that some of the
migrants arriving in Europe are members of the terrorist group known as
the Islamic State or ISIS, which has been wreaking havoc in Iraq and
Syria. "You may have, let's say, two percent that are radicals. That is
more than enough," stated Elias Bou Saab, the education minister in
Lebanon. He further went on to say, "When the Lebanese army were
kidnapped in Lebanon the people who kidnapped them came out of the
camps. They kidnapped the soldiers and they took them to the mountains."
(30) Here let it be noted that the Obama Administration plans to allow
10,000 Syrian refugees to come to the United States. Such an endeavor
could prove to be dangerous, and American government officials have
warned that there is no foolproof way to ensure that some of those
refugees are not arriving with hostile intent. "The good news is that we
are better at [vetting] than we were eight years ago. The bad news is
that there is no risk-free process," said Homeland Security Secretary
Jeh Johnson. He further went on to say, "We may have someone who is not
on our radar and someone may choose to do something bad after they get
here. We can only query against what we have collected, so if someone
hasn't made a ripple in the pond, we can check our databases until the
cows come home but we have no record of that person." (31) It has become
clear that we live in a period of time that is fraught with danger on
every side. We must continue to watch and pray.
More Foolishness From The Scientific Community!
In Psalm 14:1 we find the following declaration, "The
fool hath said in his heart, there is no God." Amazingly enough,
scientists in recent days have performed a study which included
experiments that were performed on individuals to see if their belief in
God could be diminished. The experiments, which were performed by
scientists from the University of York in the United Kingdom and the
University of California in Los Angeles, involved the use of magnetic
force aimed directly at the posterior medial frontal cortexes of their
participants' brains. After performing the experiments, it was
determined that belief in God among their participants was reduced by
32.8 percent. (32) One of the scientists responsible for the study
described their procedures. "We wanted to find out whether a brain
region that is linked with solving concrete problems, like deciding how
to move one's body to overcome an obstacle, is also involved in solving
abstract problems addressed by ideology. We decided to remind people of
death because previous research has shown that people turn to religion
for comfort in the face of death. As expected, we found that when we
experimentally turned down the posterior medial frontal cortex, people
were less inclined to reach for comforting religious ideas despite
having been reminded of death," stated Dr. Keise Izuma of the University
of York. (33) One can only wonder why scientists would be inspired to
perform such experiments in the first place. I find it interesting that a
procedure which intentionally disrupts a human brain's natural
impulses, or in other words, causes temporary brain damage, can result
in a loss of belief in God.
In closing, I urge every reader of this newsletter to
keep your focus on God. In him we will find strength and a refuge from
all the sin and wickedness in this world. For as we read in Psalm
62:5-8, "My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from
him. He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not
be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength,
and my refuge, is in God. Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour
out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah."
Thank you all for your generous support of this
ministry. We appreciate your kindness and pray that God will bless you.
If you have any prayer requests great or small, please do not hesitate
to send them our way. Each prayer request we receive is always given
individual attention, and our intercessors will carry your petitions
before the throne of the Almighty. Grace and peace be unto you in the
name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Acknowledgements
01. CNN, October 20, 2015, By Euan McKirdy, http://cnn.com.
02. Life News, October 20, 2015, By Steven Ertelt, http://lifenews.com.
03. Life News, May 16, 2014, By Steven Ertelt, http://lifenews.com.
04. Life Site News, October 20, 2015, By Lianne Laurence, http://lifesitenews.com.
05. Ibid.
06. Ibid.
07. National Post, December 19, 2014, By Elizabeth Payne, http://nationalpost.com.
08. Life Site News, June 24, 2014, By Pete Baklinski, http://lifesitenews.com.
09. Life Site News, October 20, 2015, By Lianne Laurence, http://lifesitenews.com.
10. Associated Press, October 25, 2015, By Steve Peoples and Emily Swanson, Washington, D.C.
11. The Washington Post, July 9, 2015, By Hunter Schwarz, http://washingtonpost.com.
12. Politico, June 16, 2015, By Nick Gass, http://politico.com.
13. Ibid.
14. ABC News, August 7, 2015, By Erin Dooley, http://abcnews.go.com.
15. CNN, February 4, 2015, By Eric Bradner, http://cnn.com.
16. The Washington Times, February 10, 2015, By Ben S. Carson, http://washingtontimes.com.
17. Right to Life of Michigan, http://rtl.org.
18. The Daily Caller, April 23, 2015, By Kerry Picket, http://dailycaller.com.
19. Townhall.com, October 22, 2015, By Katie Pavlich, http://townhall.com.
20. Politifact, June 10, 2014, By Jon Greenberg, http://politifact.com.
21. Ibid.
22. Reuters News Service, October 18, 2015, By Reuters News Service, Iowa City, IA.
23. CNN Money, April 1, 2013, By Jeanne Sahadi, http://money.cnn.com.
24. The UN Refugee Agency, October 26, 2015, By The Un Refugee Agency, http://unhcr.org.
25. Ibid.
26. RT.com, October 20, 2015, By Rt.com, http://rt.com.
27. Bloomberg Business, October 22, 2015, By Amanda Billner, http://bloomberg.com.
28. Reuters News Service, October 18, 2015, By Michelle Martin, http://reuters.com.
29. The Independent, September 21, 2015, By Loulla-Mae Eleftheriou-Smith, http://independent.co.uk.
30. The Independent, September 15, 2015, By Alexandra Sims, http://independent.co.uk.
31. Fox News, October 21, 2015, By Fox News, http://foxnews.com.
32. The Telegraph, October 16, 2015, By Helena Horton, http://telegraph.co.uk.
33. Ibid.
