Jan-Feb-11

"LET THERE BE LIGHT" Ministries

January - February, 2011

"There are many precious truths contained in the Word of God, but it is 'PRESENT TRUTH' that the flock needs now." Early Writings, p 63.

Elder: robert sessler

...AND GOD SPOKE THESE WORDS

In parts 3 and 4, we discovered that the last time in which the Lord God Michael had personally spoken to any of His people at Sinai was when He called Moses to the top of the Mount and personally revealed to him His glory. He declared: “The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation” (Exodus 34:6-7).

Thus the Lord God Michael audibly declared to Moses 9 different aspects of His glorious character. In part 3 we examined the first 7 of these aspects of the glory or way or character of the Lord God Michael, in part 4 we examined the 8th aspect, and now we will examine the 9th and last aspect.

#9 – The Lord God Michael will be “visiting the iniquity of the fathers” upon their children and grandchildren “unto the third and to the fourth generation”. We have discovered that the Lord God Michael is fully and completely just and fair in all of His dealings with His creation, even declaring that “The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin” (Deuteronomy 24:16). As this is true, then how can the Lord God Michael not attribute sin and its punishment of death upon the children of sinful fathers, and yet at the same time be visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon their children to the 3rd and 4th generation?

The Hebrew word for “visiting” used here is “paqad”, which translates and means “to visit with hostile intent, to oversee, appoint, bestow, lay up, punish, reckon, set over” (Strong’s, word #6485). So it was not that the children would be held guilty for the iniquity which their father committed, but that their father’s own iniquity would be laid up for, reckoned and appointed to, visited upon and set over his children and their offspring for years to come. In other words, whatever iniquitous habits the father developed before his children were born would be genetically bestowed upon or inherited by all of his offspring, and thus they would be more susceptible to developing these same sinful habits in their own lives. God is pictured as overseeing this genetic transference process with hostile intent, meaning that He will not intervene or work a miracle to prevent any of these sinful habits from being passed on through the father’s genes to all of his offspring down to the 3rd and 4th generation.

But just what type of iniquitous habits were sure to be passed on through the father’s genes and inherited by several generations of his offspring? The Hebrew word for “iniquity” used here is “avown”, which translates and means “perversity, moral evil, fault, iniquity, mischief” (Strong’s, word #5771). So any fault in character due to the indulgence of any sinful habits, especially those habits dealing with sexual perversity, immorality, sensual pervasiveness, adultery, and any other improper sexual behavior, would become so ingrained into the genetic makeup of the father that he would pass on to his children these same sinful tendencies, as well as through their genes to their children and children’s children, and especially is this the case dealing with sexual evil! This is because lack of sexual control in any area directly affects the body as no other sin can do, since “Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication (unlawful sexual actions) sinneth against his own body” (1 Corinthians 6:18).

Now, when the full realization of what this genetic transference actually means begins to dawn upon each and every father, then they will understand that if any of their posterity should commit the same kind of sinful faults or engage in the same kind of improper sexual behavior which they did, then that father will know that he is held partially responsible for those sins occurring in his posterity. And this would hold true even though that father may have already died before the 3rd or 4th generation of his offspring committed those sins!

With this solemn reality being the case, it behooves all men to make sure they avoid developing any sinful faults, but especially those dealing with any kind of improper sexual behavior, or at least overcome all of these evil habits, BEFORE deciding to get married and have any children. That way the genetic legacy you give to your offspring for generations to come will be upon a much higher and holier scale, thus making it easier for them to overcome sin and become the true followers of God, and not upon a low and evil scale, thus making it much more difficult for them to overcome and be saved.

But knowing this, we fathers can also try and make the best of it. If we realize what sinful habits our fathers, or grandfathers, or even great grandfathers had and therefore passed on to us, then we have an advantage which will allow us to diligently begin guarding ourselves from being led to indulge in these same sinful areas. Or, if we see our own children developing any sinful habits, then this should also lead us to carefully examine our own lives to see if we are guilty of committing the same sins. If we finally see that we have the same sins to overcome as our children do, then this would especially lead us to be humble, gentle and loving when correcting our children for these same faults.

Now, for all of us who have already inherited the evil tendencies passed on to us through the genes of 3-4 generations of fathers, let us not fret or become discouraged and overwhelmed by all this extra baggage. But let us remember that there are no evil tendencies, and there are no sins or evil habits however strong, that cannot be overcome through the strength and grace freely given us by our Lord God. In our own strength we are doomed to fail, because the Lord God says “without me ye can do nothing” (John 15:5). But on the other hand, “with God nothing shall be impossible” (Luke 1:37) to overcome, and thus together with God we have the firm assurance that “all things are possible to him that believeth” (Mark 9:23).

So even though we have been led into committing all kinds of sins, have also hurt the heart of God in numerous ways, and may have even gone so far away from Him as to deny He really exists, yet He still reaches out to save us all from destruction. This shows us plainly that the love of the Lord God Michael for us “is not easily provoked” (1 Corinthians 13:5), nor does it “behave itself unseemly” (1 Corinthians 13:5), and truly it “envieth not” (1 Corinthians 13:4) and refuses to hold grudges or hot feelings of malevelance towards or against us. But the infinite love of the Lord God Michael is freely manifested towards us to lead us to understand that if we choose to give up our sins and unite ourselves with Him, then through His divine power working in us there will be no sins or character defects that together we cannot overcome!

So, we have now examined all 9 of these different aspects, and exactly what was the way or character of the Lord God Michael that was revealed to Moses? He is merciful and full of tender compassion because He loves us and longs to fondle or tenderly hold and comfort us in His strong arms. That even though Michael is our mighty God and Creator, yet He willingly and graciously bends and stoops down to favor us with His blessings, and bestow upon us His love and merciful kindness. The Lord God Michael is longsuffering towards sinful humanity, patiently enduring all our faults, mistakes, sins and dullness of mind, in the loving hope that soon we will wake up and be saved. Michael is abundant in goodness and provides His creation with sufficient and plenteous blessings to prove over and over again exactly how much He loves us and is actively working for our ultimate and eternal good, and thus is wooing us to return to Him as our God. Michael is abundant in truth and never deviates from truth; He is not double-minded, nor hypocritical, but whatever He says can be trusted as being necessary and best since He will never lead any of His followers astray. The Lord God keeps mercy for thousands because He sees mankind as truly being His creation made in His likeness and image, and thus He courteously tilts or nods His divine majestic fatherly head towards every human being in recognition of the fact that they are His children and thus equal with Him in dignity, worth, and importance. He willingly forgives all iniquity, transgression and sin, no matter how evil and heinous its character, if the sinner would only confess, repent and forsake them all, because He understands that we are doomed to destruction without His divine help. But even though the mighty Lord God Michael is willing to forgive all types of sin, yet He will not acquit, make blameless, or clear the guilty wicked should they refuse to admit or confess that they have indeed sinned. Although He will warn and even allow some punishment to come to sinners in hope of awakening them to return to Him and repent, yet in the end He not allow any determined and unrepentant sinner to go free without being destroyed by being fully punished for each of their unconfessed sins found recorded in the record books of heaven. And finally, Michael will visit the iniquity of the fathers upon their children to the 3rd and 4th generation, meaning that He will not work a miracle to prevent any of the sinful habits of fathers from being passed on through their genes to all of their offspring. Yet God does not forsake any of these offspring in having to deal with this extra burden alone, but lovingly and gently leads us to understand that all things are possible to overcome through faith in Him and through His divine strength being freely given to and working in us.

Thus the character of the mighty Lord God Michael is clearly seen to be something that is truly beautiful and lovely to behold. His character is seen to be only and truly righteous without the slightest bit of evil mixed in. His character also did not reveal any hatred towards those who had broken His law and committed sin, but instead revealed a longing and patient hope that they would accept Him as their Saviour and God and thus escape from sin and death.

But there is one common principle seen to interweave itself throughout all 9 of these glorious characteristics of the Lord God Michael. That principle was love: pure, tender, kind and compassionate love. And since the character of the Lord God Michael did not reveal any hatred, then it clearly showed to all that He was, and is, only and truly love.

In fact, if you examine all that the Lord God Michael had personally done for mankind since creation, you will find that it was all done from love! It was the Lord God Michael’s love that prevented Adam and Eve from instantly being destroyed when they chose to sin; it was His love that led Him to become the Substitute and Sacrifice in making the plan of salvation possible for all mankind; it was His love that allowed 120 years of warning messages of a coming flood to be given so all had plenty of time to make their own decisions to be saved or lost; it was His love that chose, watched over, protected, prospered and guided Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and all his posterity while among the heathen and wicked nations; and it was the Lord God Michael’s love for His people that led Him to work all of His wonders and miracles in delivering and redeeming every one of them all from their bondage and captivity to the Egyptians! All this was done because of the great love which the Lord God Michael had for His people!

“The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: But because the Lord loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the Lord brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.” Deuteronomy 7:7-8.

So all that the Lord God Michael had done for His people and followers, and all the many miracles and wonders He performed in delivering them all from their bondage and captivity to Egypt, in defeating their enemies, feeding and protecting them in the wilderness, was all because of His great love for them. Even though many of the Israelites did not even know if He really existed and thus did not love Him in the beginning of their deliverance, yet the Lord God Michael still showered upon them all these miraculous blessings in order to prove that He really did love them. And even further beyond this, as true “Love covereth all sins” (Proverbs 10:12), then because the Lord God Michael truly loved His followers, then He would mercifully and freely forgive every sin of all who would come to Him in repentance, thus sparing and delivering them from the penalty of sin which is death!

So this love which the Lord God Michael possesses and revealed is a love that is absolutely true and not false or pretending in any fashion. Michael showed a love which is willing to suffer long and is kind; a love that envied not; a love that did not vaunt or puff itself up, and neither sought its own wishes; a love that did not behave unseemly or mistreat others, and was not easily provoked. The Lord God Michael revealed a love that thought no evil against others, rejoiced not in iniquity, but rejoiced instead in the truth; and a love that truly beared, believed, hoped and endured all things. Michael plainly showed to all that His love would not fail or allow Him to become discouraged in seeking the ultimate welfare and eternal good of others.

But exactly what kind of specific love does the mighty Lord God Michael manifest towards each and every human being? His love for humanity is expressed at least 21 different times in the Old Testament scriptures through 4 different Hebrew words: “ahab”, “ahabah”, “chaba” and “chashaq”. Now “ahab” translates and means “to have affection for, to love” (Strong’s, word #157); “ahabah” translates and means the feminine form of “to have affection for, to love” (Strong’s, word #160); “chaba” translates and means “to hide in the bosom, to cherish with affection and love” (Strong’s, word #2245); and “chashaq” translates and means “to cling to or join, to love, to delight in, to deliver” (Strong’s, word #2836).

So the type of love that the mighty Lord God Michael manifests towards each and every human being is a love that is full of affection; a love that moves Him to cling to or join with or embrace us in His strong arms and hide us in His bosom, because He delights in us, He cherishes us, and He longs to deliver us from sin and destruction! And this marvelous, cherishing and affectionate love of the Lord God Michael for each human being is not lacking or failing in any area, because His love for us is in both the masculine and feminine form. In other words, it is not that the Lord God Michael is both a male and female in one Being as the pagans believe, but since the masculine form of love is more of a tough, firm love, and the feminine form is more of a tender, soft love, then the type of love that the mighty Lord God Michael manifests is one that embraces both forms, thus making His love for us rich, full, perfect and wonderfully complete.

Yet not only this, but because the Lord God Michael is no respecter of persons, is impartial and treats everyone the same irregardless of position, rank, cast, wealth or poverty, then His rich, full, perfect and complete love towards us is unpretending and is unreserved. And further, because the Lord God Michael is the same yesterday, today and forever, then His rich, full, perfect, complete, unpretending and unreserved love towards us is not something that is here today and then gone tomorrow, but it is permanent, unchanging and never ending.

“The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love...” Jeremiah 31:3.

But is this great everlasting, affectionate and perfectly complete love of the Lord God Michael just kept for and manifested towards His people alone? No, because in Deuteronomy 10:17-18 it plainly tells us that even though the Lord God Michael is “God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward:...[who] doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow”, yet He also “loveth the stranger”.

So this great and mighty Lord God Michael, this God of gods and Lord of lords, does not just manifest and keep His amazing and great love only for His followers alone, but also freely manifests it towards all strangers, or foreigners or sojourners, irregardless of whether they were heathen and pagans, or even non-religious. But even more than this, because this great Lord God further commanded all of His followers to also “Love ye therefore the stranger” (Deuteronomy 10:19). So His people were not just to be the recipients of God’s love without also sharing this love with others, including with those who did not love and serve their God.

Yet why would this great and mighty Lord God Michael manifest love towards all strangers and those who did not love or follow Him, and then further command all of His followers to also manifest love towards them as well? Because it was not just for the salvation and deliverance of His followers from everlasting destruction that the Lord God Michael was working, but also for the salvation and deliverance of each and every human being, and one way of manifesting this love to them was through those who professed to be His followers.

As the Lord God Michael’s love for humanity already existed, and before any human manifested love to Him, He chose to freely manifest His love in actions towards all. This was all done in the hope that His unreserved love would awaken in each of humanity a desire to learn more about such a loving God, hoping that by observing “these things, even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the Lord” (Psalms 107:43), and in turn begin to fall in love with Him. As their continued searching would finally lead them to the realization that in this loving God alone was their salvation to be found, their growing love for Him would lead them to choose to enter into a covenant relationship with Him by accepting Him as their God and Saviour, and they His followers. Thus their choice to serve God would be done out of love, and not out of fear or from force. And Michael’s love for them would keep Him true to His covenant promise to be their God and save them from everlasting death, and their love for Him as their God and Saviour would keep them true to their covenant promise to keep His commandments and live in them.

Obviously this saving knowledge of the truth that only the Lord God Michael could save anyone from everlasting destruction was not to be kept hidden away for the benefit of His followers alone, but was to be given out to all who would listen and believe. It was for this purpose that the Lord God Michael had chosen Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and all their Israelite posterity above all other people of the earth so that they could be His witnesses to all other nations. By blessing His people above all other peoples on the earth, in miraculously defending them from all their enemies, working mighty wonders in their behalf, and in manifesting such great and infinite love for them, all other nations could not help but take notice that this Lord God of Israel was vastly different from all other known deities. Thus all other peoples would become curious to want to know more about this different God. And as they would ask questions and take the time to search out more about this Lord God of Israel, they would be led to understand that the Lord God Michael was earnestly reaching out to them personally with the knowledge of the truth that He alone could save them from everlasting destruction, and that He was willing to freely save them simply because He really and truly loved them.

As this was true, then what kind of flag or banner was the Lord God Michael unfurling before all the world through all the mighty blessings, miracles and tender dealings with His people? “His banner over me was love” (Song of Solomon 2:4). And what proved this fact to be indeed true was because this mighty Lord God Michael “hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back” (Isaiah 38:17).

This amazing, everlasting, unpretending and unreserved love of the Lord God Michael for each and every human being was leading all who realized it to come unto Him in repentance in order to find deliverance and redemption from sin and death. And once such deliverance and redemption from sin and death was so freely provided without cost, even though it was purchased at such a great expense and sacrifice, how could the recipients of such a free gift possibly avoid also falling in love with such a merciful Giver? It was exactly this kind of responding love which was pure and unpretending, and was willingly and freely given from a heart full of gratitude, that the Lord God Michael was seeking from His people, because “He that covereth a transgression seeketh love” in return (Proverbs 17:9).

Thus the mighty Lord God Michael was freely showering His great love and affection upon all of His followers; freely forgiving and covering all of their transgressions, iniquities and sins; freely delivering and redeeming them from death, because He truly loved them and was also seeking their willing love and affection in return. So the Lord God Michael was actually drawing people to Him through manifesting His great love for them. The Lord God Michael “drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love” (Hosea 11:3), and admits that “with lovingkindness have I drawn thee” to Me (Jeremiah 31:3).

Therefore the big question which all the people of the earth was faced with then, and will continue to be faced with until the end, was and is: How will you personally respond to such amazing love which the mighty Lord God Michael has already manifested for you? Will you choose to spurn this amazing love, resist its drawing power and remain hard-hearted and unfeeling towards the Lord God Michael? Or will you choose instead to accept His love, and in turn fall in love with Him and become connected with Him?

Many at that time chose to accept the great love of the Lord God Michael into their lives, and indeed fell in love with Him. They lived the experience listed in Song of Solomon 3:2, 4, and decided that they “will rise now, and go...seek him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not.” Yet they did not give up their search, but continued on, and “It was but a little...[while later that] I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go...” This plainly declares that each person must individually “seek ye the Lord while he may be found” (Isaiah 55:6), and you are not to quit searching until you find Him. Once you find Him whom your soul loveth you are to hold onto Him and not let Him go, thus becoming fully His, and He yours, in a mutual loving bond and covenant agreement that will keep you both faithful to each other forever!

“And ye shall seek me and find me when ye shall search for me with all your heart, and I will be found of you, saith the Lord: and I will turn away your captivity (or free and save you from all of your sins and death), and I will gather you from all the nations (or separate you away from all groups who have given their affections to Lucifer)...and I will bring you again into the place [of the promised land].” Jeremiah 29:13-14.

This picture of the character of the Lord God being love was indeed something beautiful and glorious to behold. And as the Lord God Michael is a representative to mankind of the Almighty Lord God of heaven, then the character that Michael manifested to mankind is exactly the same character which the Almighty God has! So as we have clearly and plainly seen the true loving, tender and merciful character of the Lord God Michael, then we have actually clearly and plainly seen the very character of the Almighty God being marvelously revealed to us! In fact Their characters stand alone in comparison with the represented characters of any of the pagan gods/goddesses or deities of any nation – especially the character of Lucifer.

All the characteristics of the pagan deities were represented as being a mixture of good and bad, sometimes doing righteous actions and other times committing evil. Thus the pagan followers came to believe that as long as they mixed some good deeds into their lives then they could be as evil as they wanted to be the rest of the time. They also came to believe that there would really be no dire consequences for any of their evil actions, because they were just imitating the character of their supreme deity.

But the character which the mighty Lord God Michael revealed was strikingly different. He revealed a character that was good, righteous and truly lovely at all times, one that frowned upon evil and punished bad deeds as sinful actions that had broken His righteous law. And even though He punishes sinful actions – especially in the lives of those who have chosen to serve and follow Him as their God, yet the punishment is not done in a hateful manner or from a heart filled with revenge. But is done in a tender, loving manner designed to correct, and from a loving heart yearning for all to do better and come up to a higher level of character. Thus the Lord God Michael was seeking to lead all of His followers to live a better life that would bring true and lasting happiness; a life that was in perfect harmony with His written holy law, and to help them accomplish this He had already revealed in His own actions towards them all such a holy life as a living example which they could all look up to and imitate.

So the mighty Lord God Michael did in fact “make all my goodness pass before” Moses (Exodus 33:19); He did in fact “proclaim the name of the Lord before thee” (Exodus 33:19); He did in fact make all “my glory” to pass by (Exodus 33:22), and Moses was indeed clearly shown the “way” of the Lord God (Exodus 33:13) so that he might “know thee” (Exodus 33:13), fall in love with Him, and then correctly represent Him to others. All these things were clearly revealed first hand to Moses, and he clearly saw that this goodness, glory, the way and the name of the mighty Lord God Michael all pertained to His glorious, loving character.

After seeing this amazing and lovely image of the mighty Lord God Michael, Moses realized as never before that to know the Lord and be able to proclaim His name to others, was not to know a literal Hebrew or Aramaic name to call Him, but it was to know His beautiful character! Thus to see the way or course of action of the Lord God Michael, to be able to know His name and understand Him and His glory, was to discover and understand His character. And God’s character was pure love, pure righteousness, and pure holiness without the slightest bit of evil or wickedness.

Thus it was God’s righteous character that was His glory – it was His honor, and the reason God’s glory was depicted as devouring fire was because since sin is not a part of His character at all, then it cannot remain in His holy and divine presence without being completely consumed and utterly destroyed.

So what would of happened if the Lord God Michael were to appear in all His glorious splendor from the clouds of heaven that were shielding Him from the view of all the sinful people gathered below Mount Sinai? They would be instantly destroyed by the fiery brightness and sin-consuming splendor of His glory! And so what will happen to all sinners at the end of time who have refused to allow His love to draw them to Him and accept the Lord God Michael or Jesus Christ as their God and Saviour from sin? They will be destroyed by the fiery brightness and sin consuming splendor of His glory when He comes again!

So dear one, with this glorious and yet solemn picture of truth plainly staring you in the face, will you choose a loving God to be your Saviour and Redeemer from all sin and death, and cling to Him regardless of the cost? Or will you reject Him and spurn His great love, and instead choose to cling to your sins, allowing the author of all sin – or Lucifer – to continue to be your god, as well as your savior and redeemer from all righteousness and eternal life?

When the Lord God Michael or Jesus Christ comes again will you be heard declaring “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the Lord; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation”? (Isaiah 25:9). Or will you be found vainly trying to escape from being destroyed “with the brightness of his coming” (2 Thessalonians 2:8) by running “into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty” (Isaiah 2:19), and be heard calling “to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?” (Revelation 6:16-17).

Dear precious soul, What is your decision going to be? I hope that this short series has led you to choose the Lord God Michael/Jesus Christ, and in doing so gain everlasting life!

This Ministry has crossed another mile-stone in the area of publishing. As of the month of February 2011, just under 16 million pages of present truth have been printed through this Ministry! May God be praised and exalted through all these silent preachers being distributed and read all over the world! Our current total is 15,964,865 pages. Please also keep in prayer for these materials to be translated into the various languages of the world. We already have some of our materials translated into these following languages: Afrikaans, Chinese, Dutch, Fijian, French, Indian (Tamil, Hindi, Kannadam dialects), Kenyan, Papua New Guinean, Philippine (Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilonggo dialects), Romanian, Spanish, Tanzanian, Ugandan, Zambian, and Zimbabwean. Lord willing, more languages and materials will be translated soon.

The Lord is continuing to bless our TrueChurchofGod.info website. In the month of November we had 11,364 hits, which were generated by 1,358 visitors. In these Visitor Sessions, 4,470 documents of Present Truth were viewed, and over 387.6 million bytes of information were downloaded.

In the month of December we had 9,591 hits, which were generated by 1,175 visitors. In these Visitor Sessions, 3,630 documents of Present Truth were viewed, and over 264.4 million bytes of information were downloaded.

So for these past 2 months, over 652 million bytes of information were downloaded from our Gospel Truth website by over 2,500 visitors!

The Lord is also abundantly blessing our LightMinistries.com website! In the month of November we had 132,110 hits, which were generated by 20,152 visitors. In these Visitor Sessions, 36,280 documents of Present Truth were viewed, and over 18.25 billion bytes of information were downloaded.

In the month of December we had 124,335 hits, which were generated by 19,898 visitors. In these Visitor Sessions, 35,163 documents of Present Truth were viewed, and over 16.61 billion bytes of information were downloaded.

So for these past 2 months, over 34.8 billion bytes of information were downloaded from our Gospel Truth website by over 40,000 visitors! MAY GOD'S HOLY NAME BE INDEED PRAISED!!

We would like to encourage our readers to check out a website that is dedicated to providing a “voice” to the people who have joined the separation movement out of the SDA church, as well as out of all the other churches of Babylon. The website is www.SDRVoice.org. This site also publishes an excellent Magazine called “The Seventh-day Remnant Voice”. On the site you can view past articles of interest, and can also request to be added to their mailing list to receive future copies through your e-mail account for free.

For those who are not able to have a home church to attend and who miss the benefit of fellowshipping together with others of like faith, there is an on-line Home Church which meets every Sabbath at 12:00 noon Central Time. This is a live broadcast of one of our separated Home Churches in Indiana which is pastored by brother Nicholas Patula. Please feel free to come and fellowship with others of like faith and enjoy the spiritual uplifting experience. You can also stay after the church service and be able to chat with brothers and sisters, as well as visitors, from around the world. Many come away with their questions answered, their hearts uplifted and filled with gratefulness for all that God has and is doing for His people! If you would like to fellowship with us, go to www.RemnantofGod.org/pogmchat.htm.

"Let There Be Light" Ministries is committed to the spreading of the full present truth gospel message worldwide, and has been doing so since 1986. This Ministry has operating expenses covering the areas of: printing, publishing, and writing of present truth books, booklets, tracts, and other literature; DVD, video and audio taping, production, and distribution; supporting several ministers and workers in foreign Countries; mail order – both domestic and foreign; traveling to hold meetings – both locally, nationally, and internationally; answering correspondence and questions regarding the message of truth; offering National and International Bible studies; sending free present truth literature to contacts in many poor Countries; etc.

Your gracious prayers and support is greatly appreciated and needed. Without the Lord's guidance, blessings, and your support, this Ministry could not continue to reach out worldwide with the precious message of Revelation 14:6-12 & 18:1-5.

May our God and Saviour continue to lead and guide all those who have helped us reach souls who sit in darkness with the precious light of gospel truth. May our supporters remember that they share in each and every soul who has been reached by this Ministry and converted to the Lord and His present truth!

GENERAL FOREIGN MISSION WORK NEEDS

We are currently supporting several workers in many different Countries on a monthly basis. We check into the economy of each area and supply a base support which is adequate depending on their situation, but not extravagant. This base support is to ensure that the monthly needs of each worker and family is met for that month so that the worker may devote full time to the ministry work. In addition to this, we are sending extra materials for evangelism, and money for printing, publishing, holding meetings, traveling, and other necessary areas in spreading the Present Truth in their Country. And as the work extends, especially will the expenses for evangelism expand. Whatever you can send to help in this necessary and vital area is greatly appreciated.

The work of spreading God's present truth is not to be limited, but must extend world-wide to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people before our Saviour can come (Matthew 24:14). What better way of spreading the Present Truth Gospel than by having workers who speak the native language, who reside in that particular Country, who can live and preach the truth, visit the interests in their homes, and spread the printed truth translated into their native language!

"Our publications should be printed in other languages, that foreign nations may be reached. Much can be done through the medium of the press, but still more can be accomplished if the influence of the living preacher goes with our publications....The Lord has moved upon men of other tongues and has brought them under the influence of the truth, that they might be qualified to labor in His cause." Testimonies, vol 3, p 204-205.

Please financially help us to continue supporting our current ministers and workers on a consistent basis, so that the spreading of the truth will not be interrupted but can quickly lighten this dark world with the glory of God.

"Every opportunity should be improved to extend the truth to other nations. This will be attended with considerable expense, but expense should in no case hinder the performance of this work. Means are of value only as they are used to advance the interest of the kingdom of God. The Lord has lent men means for this very purpose, to use in sending the truth to their fellow men." Testimonies, vol 3, p 208.

SPECIFIC MONTHLY FOREIGN MISSION WORK NEEDS

M Printing and mailing expenses for booklets and tracts to Fiji.

M Printing of booklets and tracts in Fiji.

M Cartons of KJV Bibles and Spirit of Prophecy books.

KENYA, East Africa:

M Printing and mailing expenses for booklets and tracts to Kenya.

M Printing of booklets and tracts in Kenya.

M Projector, screen, and evangelistic film for non-SDA outreach.

M Cartons of KJV Bibles and Spirit of Prophecy books.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA:

M Printing and mailing expenses for booklets and tracts to PNG.

M Printing of booklets and tracts in PNG.

M A small portable speaker system for street preaching.

M Cartons of KJV Bibles and Spirit of Prophecy books.

M Clothes to pass out to naked villagers.

PHILIPPINE Islands:

M Cartons of KJV Bibles and Spirit of Prophecy books.

M Printing of booklets and tracts in Philippines.

M Printing and mailing expenses for booklets and tracts to Philippines.

M Printing 100,000 tracts in Philippines--$1,450.

UGANDA, East Africa:

M Printing and mailing expenses for booklets to Uganda.

M Printing of booklets and tracts in Uganda.

M Printing 100,000 tracts in Uganda--$1,600.

M Cartons of KJV Bibles and Spirit of Prophecy books.

ZAMBIA, Central Africa:

M Monthly operating expenses for the publication work already established there.

M Start up costs to open a Health Center and Herbal Store--$6,000.

M Donations of any amount to help with construction of a home–$12,000 total cost.

M Cartons of KJV Bibles and Spirit of Prophecy books.

M Donations of any amount to help purchase a vehicle–$6,000 total cost.

ZIMBABWE, Africa:

M Printing and mailing expenses for booklets and tracts to Zimbabwe.

M Printing of booklets and tracts in Zimbabwe.

M Donations of any amount to help with construction of a home–$12,000 total cost.

M Cartons of KJV Bibles and Spirit of Prophecy books.

M Donations of any amount to help purchase a vehicle–$6,000 total cost.

Please be sure to mark all donated monies for any of the above Ministry or Foreign Mission needs. 100% of all donated monies will go where specified. Unspecified donations will go where needed. Thank you very much for making this evangelistic work possible, and may God's richest blessings attend you and yours.

LETTERS to "LET THERE BE LIGHT" Ministries

Christian Greetings!

This is ____ of the Philippines.

I have been informed by ____ and ____ on Facebook that the SOP of today is not 100% pure truth. They also said that the ____ Ministers in America believes it is not 100% pure truth.

They gave me a quotation on AA 33.3, saying it conflicts with the Bible truths.

"As in the typical service the high priest laid aside his pontifical robes and officiated in the white linen dress of an ordinary priest; so Christ laid aside His royal robes and garbed Himself with humanity and offered sacrifice, Himself the priest, Himself the victim. As the high priest, after performing his service in the holy of holies, came forth to the waiting congregation in his pontifical robes; so Christ will come the second time, clothed in garments of whitest white, ‘so as no fuller on earth can white them.’ Mark 9:3. He will come in His own glory, and in the glory of His Father, and all the angelic host will escort Him on His way."

I'm worried that if this matter is not handled well it might result in this: The Last Deception of Satan:

“Satan is...constantly pressing in the spurious--to lead away from the truth. The very last deception of Satan will be to make of none effect the testimony of the Spirit of God. ‘Where there is no vision, the people perish’ (Proverbs 29:18). Satan will work ingeniously, in different ways and through different agencies, to unsettle the confidence of God's remnant people in the true testimony.-- Letter 12, 1890.” {1SM 48.3}

“There will be a hatred kindled against the testimonies which is satanic. The workings of Satan will be to unsettle the faith of the churches in them, for this reason: Satan cannot have so clear a track to bring in his deceptions and bind up souls in his delusions if the warnings and reproofs and counsels of the Spirit of God are heeded.-- Letter 40, 1890.” {1SM 48.4}

Which is the quotation brother ____ gave me when I asked him about this issue.

Thank you, B.E., Philippines.

(Editor’s Reply:) Dear brother ____,

Thank you for your e-mail and for coming directly to me with your question.

I know of several individuals and groups that claim that the testimonies of the Spirit of Prophecy have been altered to the point that they cannot be trusted, and thus claim that we are to stick with the Bible and the Bible only.

Among these particular individuals and groups claiming such things are those who believe that the Father is the only God, and Jesus and the Holy Spirit are not Gods as well. As these very testimonies of the SOP state that both Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are Gods as well, thus plainly contradicting their own beliefs, then it is very convenient for them to claim that you cannot trust the SOP. This claim allows them to justify ignoring the testimonies that contradict their beliefs and thus do away with the need to conform their beliefs to inspiration, and it also allows them to lead believers in the SOP to throw her writings away and follow their erroneous doctrines instead!

Regarding the AA 33 quote where it states that Christ was both priest and victim while on earth: this is correct. I am guessing that ____, and the others such as ____ and ____ ministers believe that this testimony directly contradicts the text in Hebrews 8:4:

"For if he [Jesus Christ] were on earth, he should not be a (officiating) priest, seeing that there are (already) priests that offer gifts (officiating in behalf of others before God) according to the law."

But there is no contradiction between the Bible and the SOP in this issue. The difference is between whether Christ officiated as a priest in behalf of others before God on earth or not.

Almighty God had declared that Jesus was "a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek" (Psalms 110:4; Hebrews 7:17), and He therefore was a priest while on earth. But because there were already priests legally officiating in behalf of others before God through the current old covenant, then Jesus did not officiate in behalf of others as a priest before God while on this earth. What Jesus did do was to offer Himself as the victim and sacrifice for sin and then died on the cross.

This great act brought the current old covenant, along with its officiating priesthood, to completion, thereby cancelling and doing away with it, and in its place was brought in a new covenant that was established upon better promises. Then when Jesus was resurrected and ascended to heaven, He began legally officiating in behalf of others before God as our High Priest in the heavenly sanctuary through this new and better covenant.

As this is true, then there is no contradiction between the Bible and the SOP in this issue. This also shows that there is misunderstanding of the truth by those individuals and groups claiming you cannot trust the SOP.

But regarding changes in the SOP: In all my efforts of searching for alterations of the SOP, I have not found a single one that would jeapordize anyone's salvation. In comparing the original testimonies with the published testimonies, the vast majority of all the changes or alterations I noticed in the SOP have been grammatical and in sentence structure. Other lesser changes I noticed have been changing of people's names from literal to figurative (like brother A, etc.), and sentence or paragraph moves into different parts of the same testimony, or even outright removing of whole sentences or paragraphs from the testimony altogether. Although these lesser changes can tend to obscure the full impact of what sister White was stating, yet the truth is still there.

So even if one were to put all of these changes together on one side of the scale, they would weigh absolutely nothing at all towards discrediting the inspired truth contained in the total SOP testimonies. As this is true, then there is no justification for the claim that you cannot trust the SOP 100%.

Since there is seen to be perfect harmony between the Bible and the SOP, then this plainly tells us that the SOP can be 100% trusted as teaching the same truths of the Bible. I pray that you, as well as all other of my precious brothers and sisters, will not give the slightest tendency to believe anyone who comes to you claiming that you cannot trust the SOP. As brother ____ correctly pointed out, all such deceived souls are disguised agents of Satan sent by him in these last days "to unsettle the confidence of God's remnant people in the true testimony" (1SM 48).

If you have any further questions or comments, please feel free to contact me again.

May God bless you with His Spirit and truth.

Numbers 6:24-26, elder robert.

CORRESPONDENCE FROM FOREIGN WORKERS

FROM FIJI ISLANDS

I greet you once again in this wonderful name [of God’s] and may His peace love and joy be with you always.

I want to say Bula Vinaka! again from Fiji, and thank you so much for the support and prayers, but mostly want to apologize for the delay in sending my reports.

I was able to have printed our 2,000 copies of the translated tracts (True Church of God) and copies sent out to ____...

No ministry is allowed to operate in ____ without being registered, and I know we were blessed that the Ministry has been registered by the late ____ before he passed away. The system is here and what God has told us about history which has already occurred, is presently reoccurring again.

I pray to God to give us strength and the will to give out [to] the people the message of the “Present Truth” which we are doing through mail, or even walking down or by transport to town and houses by the roadsides, and sometimes weather is not on our side but we give it to the Lord, to be on His own time.

Well, right now I have few boxes of tracts and booklets left, and in God’s will we shall give out to the people who are really searching for the truth, [which] are our prayers.

Thank you so much for being a source of blessing to us.

Matthew 26:41, S.K., Fiji Islands.

FROM THE PHILIPPINES

Hi! bro Bob. How are you? I hope and pray that you are fine and in good health through the guidance of our Lord. We too are fine. I just came back from my missionary trip. I went to ____ and ____. We stayed there for long. We also visited our brethren there and encourage them.

I thank God that He's always there, especially in helping us in our work. Thank God that our brethren are getting stronger in the faith even though they pass through severe trials.

I also spend Sabbath in ____ an island of ____. And from there we ride in a boat and walk for an hour just to meet our brethren who live in a country [place]. There I met a lady who are [is] very interested in hearing the message. For the whole Sabbath she joined us in our study.

Bro Bob, we planned for a workers/counsel meeting and youth gathering which will be a part of our training and encouragement for our youth, which will be held in ____ this coming Dec 22-Jan 1. There [we] will also have a camp meeting of our brethren in the whole region of ____.

You know bro Bob, for almost a year, the rate of peso went down. For the regular support that I'd been receiving from you, it decreased almost to 3,000 pesos unlike before when the peso rate is more than 50. Compare to basic needs, everything goes up (foods, fare in public transportation, everything). That’s why bro Bob, I am asking for assistance from you this time if you will.

Since ____ [we] are [heading for] another Island far from ____ and going to ____ from our place needs to take 7-8 hours travel in a bus from here going to ____, and from ____ it will need to take a boat for 2 days or a plane for an hour: [so] it really need and takes extra budget. By the way bro Bob, I know that you too had a hard time and I really want to thank you for your continued support. And I thank God for all of this. Although bro Bob, that things are getting very tough nowadays but I know that in God is our dependence. Whatever is the providence of God we'll go with it.

Just pray for us here. We'll be praying for you too especially for your ministry.

God bless! in Christ, s.b., Philippines.

FROM ZAMBIA, CENTRAL AFRICA

Greetings and thankings to you all for the prayers. I am now able to walk after three weeks of being down by 2000 mps. I have [been] on quinine injections, plus christerpain on iv with more than 7 drips. This was very bad with me especially that it was the first time in life.

Am just recovering and I need a lot of juices. Please, please, please I will appreciate any dollar to help me buy these fruit juices and other supplements for immunity. My brethren help me to gain strength again.

Your brother in pain, B.W., Zambia.

FROM ZIMBABWE, SOUTH AFRICA

It’s quite a pleasure once again to meet you this time of the year. I continue to keep in touch with you. However, the work of a minister is congested with difficulties on the right hand as well as on the left hand. On the other hand it’s such a work which carries with it the approval of a merciful God.

To my fellow ministers out there, I wish to share with you some of the skills that will help you to make your work full of success.

"Christ's method alone will give true success in reaching the people. The Saviour mingled with the men as one who desired their good. He showed His sympathy for them, ministered to their needs, and won their confidence. Then He bade them, ‘FOLLOW ME.’ There is need of coming close to the people by personal effort. If less time were given to sermonizing, and more time were spent in personal ministry, greater results would be seen. The poor are to be relieved, the sick cared for, the sorrowing and the bereaved comforted, the ignorant instructed, the inexperienced counseled. We are to weep with those that weep and rejoice with those that rejoice. Accompanied by the power of persuasion, the power of prayer, the power of the love of God, this work will not, cannot, be without fruit.

"We should ever remember that the object of the medical missionary work is to point sin-sick men and women to the Man of Calvary, who taketh away the sin of the world." MH p 143-144.

"To reach the people, wherever they are, and whatever their position or condition, and to help them in every way possible,-this is true ministry. By such effort you win hearts, and open a door of access to perishing souls." MH p 156.

The Lord has been blessing me a lot these past two months, especially by providing me a faithful companion in this field of labour who is my brother. It took more than six years for this brother of mine to understand our message and was brought back from South Africa miraculously by the working power of the Holy Spirit. And now we are working together.

I only managed to contact my brethren in ____ once and have also received calls from our brothers in ____ for help. Very few opportunities opened up for me to present the truth to others, but those few were most impressive.

One lady, a charismatic, saw the light on the Sabbath of the seventh day, and is currently struggling to leave her church.

It has been very difficult for me to travel, print, photocopy, and even give a call to edify others. Two brethren from ____ home church backslided back to their former churches, six also apostatized into spiritualism. But amid all these sad and demanding situations, I have continued steadily forward the work of translation. (Editor’s Note: Praise God for your faithfulness and determination to carry forward the work no matter how discouraging the circumstances! Keep looking forward and up!) Soon I shall be sending to you the two almost completed booklets.

I have finally failed to hold yet another evangelistic meeting for this year due to various reasons. But as I speak right now as I have been waiting to hear from you. I have been visiting brethren in and around ____. Thanks for the support that I have just received.