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Christian Biblical Church of God
Post Office Box 1442
Hollister, California 95024-1442
(831)-637-1875
Fred R. Coulter
Minister
Printer Friendly - PDF
July 17, 2008
Dear Brethren,
The new Bibles have all
been mailed out to those living in the USA! In fact, the last copies were mailed out on Thursday, July 10.
Most of you will have received your Bible(s) by the time this
letter arrives--or shortly thereafter. Because of shipping
arrangements, Australia and New Zealand received their copies
first--as they are closer to China. South Africa received their
bulk shipment on Friday, July 11, and began mailing copies out
to the brethren on the following Monday. However, just as some
will get their copies first, some will get theirs last. Because
of the distance to Canada, the United Kingdom and certain parts
of Africa, those areas will get their shipments last--but don't
worry, they are coming! As you will see, it will be well worth
the wait!
It is indeed a beautiful Bible--featuring a genuine handcrafted lambskin cover. When
we began to examine various samples of leather and vinyl for the
cover, we immediately found vinyl to be unacceptable. The
printer also sent us samples of cow and pig leather. Like the
vinyl, the cowhide failed to meet our expectations--and whoever
heard of a pigskin Bible! Imagine the pure, clean Word of
God wrapped in unclean swine's skin--unthinkable! My wife,
Dolores, suggested, "Why not lambskin? The Bible is about the
Lamb of God, so why shouldn't it be bound in lambskin?" That
sounded perfect--and indeed the lambskin covers are elegant, soft
and smooth. The gold-stamped lettering of the title, The Holy
Bible In Its Original Order--A Faithful Version With Commentary--plus
the large logo of an open Bible reading "Your Word is the
Truth," John 17:17--is
indeed exquisite.
With 1410 pages, the new Bible is
amazingly only 1-3/8 inches thick. The paper is high-quality
French Bible paper (40 gsm)--with gold gilded edges. The
pages are easy to turn and do not stick together. The new
Bible also features wide margins for note-taking, and a center
column with selected references, word definitions and alternate
renderings for various key words. Such details are all quite
fitting for the Word of God--the "God-breathed" Scriptures
translated into English--showing the way to eternal life!
The highly durable presentation
box is beautifully adorned with original artwork. On the
back of the box is an answer to the question, "Why This Bible?" It reads: "You hold in your hands an extraordinary
Bible--unique in two ways. First ... it is the only complete Bible ever published that accurately follows
the original God-inspired manuscript order of all the books
of the Old and New Testaments. In addition, once the
original order of the 49 biblical books has been restored, the
Seven Divisions of the Bible are also re-established: The Old
Testament contains: 1) The Law, 2) The Prophets, and 3) The
Writings. The New Testament contains: 4) The
Gospels and Acts, 5) The General Epistles, 6) The Epistles of
Paul, and 7) The Book of Revelation. With this
restoration, God's purposeful design of the Scriptures begins to
unfold, revealing His divine inspiration.
"The Holy Bible is not a collection of mythological fables conceived by human minds.
Rather, `holy men of God spoke [and wrote] as they were moved by the Holy Spirit' (II Pet. 1:21). As Paul wrote, `All Scripture is God-breathed'--and thus
reflects the mind of Almighty God, Creator of heaven and earth.
It is the truth of God from the God of Truth, Who cannot lie; it
is His personal revelation to mankind--the pinnacle of His
creation--whom He made in His own image. From Genesis to
Revelation, God reveals His awesome, eternal plan and purpose
for those who love and obey Him.
"Second, this version is a
new translation--A Faithful Version--that reflects the true
meaning of the original Hebrew and Greek with fidelity and
accuracy, showing the unity of the Scriptures between the Old
and New Testaments. Today, in the face of rampant
religious confusion, those who read and study the English Bible
deserve an excellency of translation that can be trusted.
Reviewer Dan Decker of Bible Editions and Versions (June
2005) writes of this Faithful Version of the New
Testament: `It [is] an excellent translation for those
desiring a literal one.' Likewise, the Old Testament
rendition faithfully conveys the clear meaning of the Hebrew
text.
"Included are vital commentaries
providing accurate accounts of the history and preservation of
the books of the Bible: Who wrote them? When were they written?
When were they canonized and by whom? Other Commentaries and
Appendices answer critical questions such as: When was Jesus
Born? How did Jesus Christ fulfill the Law and the Prophets?
When was Jesus crucified? How long was He in the tomb?
When was He resurrected? What does it mean to be born again?
What are works of law? What are the true teachings of the early
apostolic New Testament Church that Jesus founded? Also,
biblical and historical chronologies show an accurate timeline
from the creation of Adam and Eve to the present. There are
detailed footnotes and marginal references explaining
hard-to-understand passages of Scripture."
In addition to these features, this Bible is the only Bible in the world that upholds the
duality of God--the two Jehovahs of the Old Testament
and the two Lords of the New Testament--God the Father and
God the Son, Who was God manifested in the flesh. The technical
aspects of the Hebrew and Greek supporting this biblical
revelation are included in various appendices. This teaching is
important because, in rejecting the two Jehovahs of the Old
Testament, the Jews cling to a false, monotheistic doctrine of
God and reject the New Testament--while the world's
"Christianity" holds to a false triune version of God.
An additional thought about
the new Bible: Helmut Berger, our office manager in South Africa, e-mailed this
most interesting thought about the Bible and the contrasts
between the OT and the NT: "The other day, thinking about
the coming Bible and about the fact that it is in [the] original
order, both OT and NT, and the importance of that fact taken by
itself, I took down my Hebrew Bible, and whilst reminding myself
of the original order of the OT, the fact just struck me: In its
original order, the OT ends with the four books that describe
the story of the kings of God's people and their pathetic
efforts to reign. (Obviously, some of them really tried, David,
for instance.) Nevertheless, the whole system of kings was
Israel's carnal wish which God granted.
"When you have the whole Bible in
its original order (and this is what struck me as wonderful),
when you turn the page over from II Chronicles to Matthew, what
follows is the history of the birth, life, crucifixion, death,
resurrection and everlasting life of the King of kings and Lord
of lords--God's way versus man's way! IT STARTS DIRECTLY AFTER
THE HISTORY OF THE MISERABLE FAILURE OF CARNAL MAN'S CARNAL KINGS. So one could
say that Matthew and the other Gospels could be called III
Kings, King of kings--a natural continuation after Kings and
Chronicles. How absolutely wonderful! Praise God for He is
great! Just a thought that I had to share with someone.
With Christian love, Helmut"
Economic News: Friday, July 11, was a landmark disastrous day for US
financial/mortgage bankers. Just when many pundits were
predicting that the economic condition in America was beginning
to improve, they were proven wrong. Maybe it will get far
worse--and perhaps quickly. On June 28 the Dutch Financial
Telegraph reported that Fortis, the European branch of
Merrill Lynch, is "expecting a complete breakdown of the
American financial markets within days or weeks," and indicated
that Europe would likewise have great financial distress.
Apparently, Fortis has a handle
on the problems with the American financial system.
Exactly two weeks later, on July 11, the Federal Reserve and the
Treasury Department seized Indymac, a major mortgage bank in
California. Because of comments made by New York Democratic
Senator Chuck Schumer, there was a run on Indymac for the
withdrawal of funds to the tune of 1.5 billion dollars over just
two days. This is why the Feds had to step in immediately and
take over the bank. Television reports said that Indymac
accounts of less than $100,000 were fully secure and account
holders could operate as normal. Those who had more than
$100,000 would receive the full amount of the first $100,000,
but would only receive 50% of anything over $100,000. So, if a
person had $200,000 in the bank, they would only receive
$150,000--an instant 25% loss of $50,000.
It was also reported on Friday
that the two largest federally-backed wholesale mortgage lenders
in the USA--FANME and Freddie Mac--nearly collapsed as their stock
dramatically fell to about $1 per share. Reacting swiftly, the
Federal government announced it would not allow the two lenders
to go bankrupt, promising to provide liquidity to the tune of
billions--perhaps hundreds of billions of dollars. This all comes
on the heels of the recent congressional passage of a mortgage
bailout bill for homeowners. Things are so bad that President
Bush has no other alternative but to agree to these federal
bailouts.
What is even more chilling is the
report that an additional 90 banks are on the Federal Reserve's
"watch list" as being vulnerable to massive withdrawals of funds
which could lead to their collapse. If that were to occur, it is
conceivable that the entire American economic system could
collapse, resulting in a depression more severe than that of
1929.
The effects of such a collapse
would quickly spread around the world. The only solution would
be a completely new "worldwide monetary system." While it would
not usher in the "Mark of the Beast," such a system would surely
move the world closer to that prophetic milestone. Perhaps
a one-world currency would be instituted. Such a move may be
necessary in order to stop all the currency and commodity
speculators who have been driving most, if not all, of the wild
speculation in the financial and commodities markets. Such
speculation is largely responsible for the price of oil recently
reaching $150 a barrel. It is readily acknowledged that the cost
of oil is behind the current runaway inflation, which ranges
from 50-200% or more and affects the prices of everything people
need just to live.
At the present rate of oil
importation, the USA is transferring $746 billion to foreign
countries annually, many of whom are our enemies or are hostile
to America. This is the greatest transfer of wealth in
the history of the world. Even some of our Islamic allies,
while professing to be friendly to the USA, may be our enemies.
Some of these countries are using the monies we send them as
payment for oil to turn around and buy American
assets--companies, lands, banks, stocks and bonds, etc.
If such a financial collapse
occurs and does not spread to the whole world, then
perhaps the Amero would be introduced to replace the currencies
of the USA, Canada and Mexico in an attempt to temporarily solve
the crisis. Perhaps this would be the first step toward the full
implementation of the North American Union--MexAmeriCana--in a
2009-2011 time frame.
In such a scenario, it will
undoubtedly be proclaimed that the USA, Mexico and Canada will
maintain their sovereignty--functioning much like the nations of
European Union. However, the EU is taking more and more
sovereignty away from their member countries and consolidating
those powers into the hands of the EU central government in
Brussels, thus reducing the
sovereignty and freedoms of the member nations. A future North
American Union would likely follow the same pattern.
When all of these events and circumstances are added up, we can
only come to the conclusion that God's prophesies against modern
Israel are coming to pass--not only in the USA, but in the UK as
well. Notice what God said through Moses 3500 years ago: "The stranger dwelling among you shall get up above you very
high, and you shall come down very low. He
shall loan to you, and you shall not loan to him. He shall be the head, and you shall be the tail.
And all these curses shall come on you, and shall
pursue you and overtake you, until you are destroyed
because you did not obey the voice of the Lord your God to keep His commandments and His statutes which
He commanded you. And they shall be on you for a sign
and for a wonder, and on your seed forever. Because you
did not serve the Lord
your God with joyfulness and with gladness of heart for the
abundance of all things" (Deut. 28:43-47).
While these things are not pleasant to see happening or to
report, we need to realize that the prophecies of the Word of
God are sure! Yes, we live in the end times, and many brethren
are excited that they may live to see the return of Jesus
Christ. However, we must also be prepared to experience
some extremely difficult times--actually the worst times in
history, affecting all levels of society around the world.
Jesus Himself forewarned us of these days in Matthew 24: "And as He was sitting on the
Mount of Olives, His disciples came to Him alone, saying, `Tell
us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the
sign of Your coming, and of the completion of the age?'
Then Jesus answered and said to them, `Be on
guard, so that no one deceives you. For many shall come in
My name, saying, "I am the Christ"; and they shall deceive many.
" `And you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you do not let these things disturb you. For it is
necessary that all these things take place, but
the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and
kingdom against kingdom; and there shall be famines and
pestilences and earthquakes in different places. Now all
these things are the beginning of sorrows' " (Matt.
24:3-8)
We are not told how long the "time of sorrows" will last, but it
appears to be an extended period of sickness, disease, crime,
severe weather upheavals, revolutions, death and destruction.
The "time of sorrows" will affect everyone.
As Jesus said, true Christians will begin to face more and more
religious persecution. The legal ground work is already
being laid through the enactment of "hate crimes." Undoubtedly,
these will become more and more restrictive and the arrests will
begin: " `Then shall they deliver you up to affliction, and
shall kill you; and you shall be hated by all nations for My
name's sake. And then shall many be led into sin, and shall
betray one another, and shall hate one another; and many false
prophets shall arise, and shall deceive many; and because
lawlessness shall be multiplied, the love of many shall grow
cold. But the one who endures to the end, that one
shall be saved' " (verses 9-13).
Although these events will impact our lives in varying degrees,
we need not become discouraged. Consider Jesus' admonition: "
`But when these things begin to take place, look up, and lift up
your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.' Then
He spoke a parable to them: `Observe the fig tree, and all the
trees. When they have already begun to bud, and you look at them, you yourselves know that summer is near.
In the same way also, when you see these things coming to pass,
know that the kingdom of God is near.
" `Truly I say to you, there
is no way that this generation shall pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth shall pass
away, but My words shall never pass away. Watch yourselves,
lest your hearts be preoccupied with high living and drinking
and the cares of this life, and that day come
upon you suddenly. For as a snare it shall come upon
all those who dwell on the face of the earth. Watch
therefore, and pray at all times that you may be
accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to
pass, and to stand before the Son of man' " (Luke 24:28-36).
As we witness such prophetic events, we need to be "harmless as
doves, but wise as serpents." It would be wise to lay in
store some extra food, water, candles, etc., in order to carry
us through some of the roughest times when they first hit. As
difficult as it may become, there will be a short period during
which the financial system will rebound and things begin to
improve again. Ultimately, we will all have a much lower
standard of living than we have been used to. We need to claim
the promises of God that He will see us through these difficult
times. While we realize that inflation is hitting everyone, we
must claim the promises of God that He will provide for us as we
continue to love and honor Him, regardless of circumstances.
Brethren, we know you will enjoy your new Bible--the fruit of
much work by many in serving you by providing the best Bible
possible. It is also the fruit of your love, prayers and
continued support with your tithes and offerings. We always keep
in mind that you love us and pray for us daily, so likewise we
love you and pray for you day and night. Although we are a small
church with many scattered brethren meeting in homes--and
although we are the weak of the world--remember that God the
Father personally loves each one of us. Jesus Himself personally
loves you; He died for you to forgive your sins and was raised
from the dead so that you may have eternal life with all the
saints at His return. Keep this uppermost in your hearts and
minds and be encouraged in spite of all that is happening in the
world.
With love in Christ Jesus,
Fred R. Coulter
FRC
Important Feast of
Tabernacles Note: For the Cartersville, GA, feast site--at The Lodge at Red
Top Mountain State Park--Bob Hunnicutt and His
wife Elaine will be there. Bob is one of our elders and will be
happy to serve you in any way. Bob will be the festival elder
and Daral Arbogast will be the host.
Additional Feast Site in
the Northeast: We have an additional Feast site in the state of Maine.
With this site it will reduce the miles that the brethren have
to drive as far to keep the Feast:
Village by The Sea
1371 Post Road
Wells, ME 04090
Call for information on the room
prices. Tell them you are with the CBCG in order to get
the reduced rate. The phone number is: 1-800-444-8861 or
1-207-646-1100
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