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INCREASE Y O U R
B 1 B L E
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The PLAIN TRUTH, in conjunclion wilh lhe Ambassador College Bible
Correspondence Course, presents brief excursions into lhe fascinating study
of the Bible. You simply lurn lo and
read in your Bible each verse
given in
answer lo the queslions. You'll be amazed al the new understandi ng gained
each mon th from these short sludies!
At Stake: Human Survival
W
orld-renowned sta tesmen and
·
scientists- too numerous to quote
n this brief study- speak fearfully
the END of human civilization!
Men like the late President John F. Kennedy
and U.S. General of the A rmies Douglas MacAr–
thur warned that man now possesses the means of
committing c osMOCIDE- suicide of the whole
human race!
These men realized something totally unforeseen
mus t occur to
s top
the trend o f world events-or
humanity
would
finally destroy itselP.
Man's
only hope
for survival was referred to in a
leading U.S. newsmagazine a number of years ago.
This appraisal indicated that the prevail ing view
among government officials was that tensions and
world problems were fas t becoming too deep-seated to
be solved except "by a strong hand from sorne–
place."
That strong hand will come-but from a sou rce
most people least expect ( Isa. 40:10).
Predlcted Centur ies Ago
Today's sad state of world affai rs was predicted centu–
ries in advance. More than 1,900 years ago, the
greatest newscaster the wor1d has ever known foretold
today's chaotic world condit ions! He foresaw the direc–
t ion of today's scientific discoveries and technological
advancements. And he foresaw the outcome of it all.
He knew that men would produce the destructive
forces that now threaten cosmocide! This famous
newscaster warned: "And except that the Lord had
shortened
those days, no flesh should be saved
(ALIVE) "
(Mark 13:20).
This great newscaster was J esus Christ of Naza–
reth- the same Jesus Christ who is coming again to
inte rvene at the last moment to save this world from
itselP. What he foretold has been recorded in the Bible
all these centuries. No other book is as up-to-date as
your Bible!
So why not begin a ministudy of these basic
September
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October 1982
prophecies to learn exact ly what the world's g reatest
newscaster foretold for our end time?
l. Did Jesus clearly foretell a time of great trou–
ble on earth just before his return ? Matt. 24:21. What
did he declare would happen to mankind if these days
were aJlowed to continue? Verse 22. But will that
terrible time be cut short? Same verse.
COMMENT: The Moffatt translation renders this
verse clearer as " nota soul would be saved al ive." This
verse is not referring to being saved spiritually, but to
being saved from physical death!
2. Has there ever been a time of trouble such as
will occur just before Chris t 's return? Matt. 24:2 1;
Ma rk 13:19. Were a ny of the Hebrew prophets
inspi red to foresee this same time of worldwide peril?
J er. 30:7; Dan. 12:
J.
COMMENT: Since each of these four prophecies
reveal that the future per iod of crisis will have no
equal, they can only be referring to
one
great climactic
period of worldwide trouble!
3. How did the prophet J oel symbolica ll y
describe the horrible events to take place at the close
of this age? Joel 2:
t
-3.
COMMENT: Joel's God-inspired prophecy pictures
the very
same
time of trouble prophesied by Christ,
Jeremiah and Daniel. This prophecy refers to events soon
to occur at this end time, for only in this age of nuclear,
chemical and biologica l weapons has such destruction
and the extinction of human life been possible!
4. Could the symbols in Revelation 9:2-1
O,
16-19
indicate radiation sickness and mass death resulting
from the use of modero weaponry?
COMMENT: John described what he saw in a vision
that God miracu1ously revealed to him. It was a mys–
terious, frightening spectacle! The creatures he saw
were obviously
symbolic
of weapons God knew man
would be capable of inventing in the end time-just
before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ! The time
when men would have at thei r d isposal the
power to
erase all life from this earth!
A Sign of Christ's Comlng?
Jesus' disciples asked him for a "sigo" that would
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