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mas, New Year's, Easter, and oth–
ers- "which God hateth"! Many
know and confess that these are
pagan- but they argue, "We don' t
observe these in worshiping the pa–
gan gods; we use their customs in
worshiping Christ and the true
God."
That is the way that "seemeth
right" to people. They may not
mean any wrong: They are de–
ceived. A deceived man doesn't
know he is wrong. He thinks he is
right. He may be as sincere as
those who bave found God's way
and obey it. Yet God says he will
not accept that kind of observance
or worship. It is an abomination to
him- "which he hateth."
But it is those who have been
deceived, whose eyes God will open
to bis truth when Christ returns to
rule alf nations of mortals still left
alive.
All Wlll Keep God's Festivals
People will no longer be blinded
and deceived in regard to God's
commands and ways. Tben he will
enforce obedience to his customs.
Go back to the 14th chapter of
Zechariah:
"And it shall come to pass, that
"Christian" mmtsters taught that
God's Festivals were "part of the
old Mosaic system- not for us to–
day." The clergy deceived and
prejudiced the people. The people
were deceived into believing that
Cbristmas, New Year's, Easter,
etc., were days Christ ordained.
But now Christ is returning to
earth to restore God's ways-in–
cluding God's Festivals. Those who
rebelliously won't keep God's Holy
Days now- who sneer at them in
scathing contempt- will observe
them when Cbrist returns. Notice
what this scripture says:
"And it sball be, that whoso will
not come up of all the families of
the earth [including gentile na–
tions] unto Jerusalem to worship
the King, the Lord of hosts, even
upon them shall be no rain. And if
the family of Egypt go not up, and
come not, that have no rain; there
shall be the plague, wberewith the
Lord will smite the heathen that
come· not up to keep tbe feast of
tabernacles. This shall be tbe pun–
ishment of Egypt, and the punish–
ment of all nations that come not
up to keep the feast of tabernacles"
(Zech. 14:17-19).
These passages give us the
method by which Christ
will "rule witb a rod of
iron"--of how he will use
supernatural force to
emember, God is the
Supreme One who
bring people of all nations
to his right ways-ways
that are the cause of real
blessings.
is love-who gives-he
will rule for the highest
good of the people.
The Perfect Government
Yes, Jesus Christ very
soon is going to return to
this eartb. He is coming
in power and glory. He is
every one that is left of all the
nation s which carne against
Jerusalem [that is, those who were
not in the armies supernaturally
destroyed] shall even go up from
year to year to worship the King,
the Lord of hosts; and to keep the
feast of tabernacles" (verse 16).
This Feast of Tabernacles is one
of the seven annual Festivals God
commanded bis people to observe.
But ancient Israel rebelled. They
rejected God's Festival s, and
turned to pagan festivals. The Jew–
ish people, after Ezra and Ne–
hemiah, observed them. But false
October 1986
coming to
rule
all nations!
But be is not going to do tbis
ruling, supervising, all alone, by
bimself. He is coming to set up
world government.
It
will be a
bighly organized government.
There will be many positions of
authority.
Right here, it is time we stop to
explain the mechanics of this per–
fect form of government.
First, it is the government of
God-not human government.
Man won' t acknowledge it yet, but
man ·has demonstrated by 6,000
years of inefficient, bungling,
wasteful efforts of human govern–
ment that mortal man is utterly
incapable of rigbtly governing him–
self.
As for man being qualified to
rule and administer government,
God says of government officials
today: "None calleth for justice,
nor any pleadeth for truth: they
trust in vanity, and speak líes; they
conceive mischief, and bring forth
iniquity.... Their feet run to evil,
and they make baste to shed inno–
cent blood : their thoughts are
thoughts of iniquity; wasting and
destruction are in their paths. The
way of peace they know not; and
there is no judgment in their go–
ings: they have made them crooked
paths: whosoever goeth therein
shall not know peace."
Then the people, under this hu–
man mis-government, say: "Tbere–
fore is judgment far from us, nei–
ther doth justice overtake us: we
wait for light [solution of civil, per–
sonal, national and world prob–
lems] , but behold obscurity; for
brightness, but we walk in dark–
ness. We grope for tbe wall like the
blind, and we grope as if we had no
eyes: we stumble at noonday as in
the night; we are in desolate places
as dead men" (lsa. 59:4, 7-10) .
Then, in this cbapter foretelling
our time, the final solution is given:
"And the Redeemer shall come to
Zion ..." (verse 20). And, contin–
uing: "Arise, shine; for thy light is
come, and the glory of the Lord is
risen upon thee" (Isa. 60:1).
The only hope of justice--of
peace-of truth--of right solutions
to all this world's problems- is the
coming in power and glory of
Christ to set up world government.
Right government. The govern–
ment of God!
In this, and many other passages,
God shows in his Word to mankind
how utterly helpless man is to gov–
ern himself and his fellows. Now
6,000 years of human experience
have brought mankind to the very
brink of world suicide.
So, in other words, the first
6;000 years of God's 7,000-year
plan were allotted to allow Satan to
labor at his work of deceiving the
world, followed by 1,000 years
(one millennial day) when Satan
shall not be allowed to do any of
bis "work" of deception. Put an-
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