Ships of Tarshish (~10.5 MB) - Moriel Ministries

Thank You from the AdministratorFrom the Office of the Administrator"MoRIel"GOD IS MY TEACHERDear Friends:Greetings in Jesus name. I can’t thank you all enough for your prayersand support. I love this time of year when you send in your renewalsand you insert little thank you notes, words of encouragement, andhow you enjoy the Quarterly. I read them all.New Antichrist Book by Jacob ComingWe have been working on Jacob’s newest book this year and wehope to have Shadows of The Beast, Understanding The Antichristout for his upcoming tour in late January through mid March. Pleasepray we can get this together and finish this book. I think this isgoing to be a great book for understanding what the Bible informsus about the Antichrist. Jacob wanted it to be a comprehensive aspossible on the subject. We are also hoping to finish work on TheDilemma of Laodicea. These two books should really help equipChristians for the times we live in.Upcoming Tour to IsraelThe tour is filling up fast so if you are considering coming with usto Israel make your reservations soon. You can find comprehensiveinformation on the tour at the website. Going to Israel is a trip and ahalf with Jacob. It is always fun and informative.Tax ReceiptsTax receipts for your offerings and gifts will be sent out in mid tolate January. If you have moved or have not received your tax receiptsmake sure you update your information with us.Quarterly RenewalsDecember is the the last Quarterly you will receive unless you renewyour free subscription. We want to be good stewards of themonies we receive, and as such we want to continue to give awaythe Moriel Quarterly. So, we ask that you contact us with your addressand your continuing interest in the Moriel Quarterly. We feelthat if we send it only to those that want it we can continue to give itaway for free. So, renew now! May the Lord bless you all and again,thank you for your prayers and support.In Peace,David December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

Feature Article – Continuedthe Bible the term for “idolatry” is avodahzarah. However it’s literal meaningis “strange worship” or “strange service.”like burning strange fire. As far as God isconcerned, idolatry and unbiblical worshipof the true God are the same sin.Let’s say that Canada represents openidolatry. If you were to head north onHighway 81 you might go through the Adirondacksand as far as Lake Champlain orLake George. But you would be on the roadto Montreal. As far as God is concerned,by virtue of the fact you’re on that road,if you don’t turn around you’ll wind up inCanada. Once you get into unbiblical worshipit’s inevitable you’ll wind up in idolatryunless you repent. The Roman CatholicChurch and the Greek-Orthodox Churchdid not begin with necromancy and prayingto the dead; they did not start in idolatry,using icons and such. They began byworshiping the true God in the wrong way.The people did not begin worshipingMolech or Baal on these high places; thatcame later. They began worshiping Yahwehthere, but in an unbiblical way.Now there was one high place that Godordained for true worship Great is theLORD, and greatly to be praised, Inthe city of our God, His holy mountain.Beautiful in elevation [a high place]the joy of the whole earth, Is MountZion in the far north, The city of thegreat King. (Ps. 48:1-2)No Doxology withoutTheologyThere is no doxology without theology.If the doctrine is wrong, it is not trueworship. God doesn’t accept it. Jesus saidthe Father wants to be worshiped in Spiritand in truth (Jn. 4:23).Now some of the Calvary Chapels abouta year ago began singing a spiritual songabout true worship: “I’m going back to theheart of worship,” with words to the effect,“Forgive me, Lord, for the mess we madeof it, it’s about You.” Well, they’re right.In Nashville, Tennessee, we no longerhave Christian “music ministry”; we havea Christian music industry based in Nashvillewith pop charts, with pop stars, witheverything that mimics the world. MostChristian recording companies and radiostations are owned by secular conglomerates.There is no longer a Christian musicministry apart from small, local groups. Byand large we have today a Christian musicindustry. It’s a business – a racket. It’sthe worship of “worship”; it’s entertainment.When the song, “When the SaintsGo Marching In” is sung it’s just a happysong about getting drunk in New Orleanson Bourbon St. That began as a Christianhymn. People don’t think about it that way.But if there is no proper doxology, there’sno proper theology. It’s no longer scriptural.Today we have much avodah zarah.We have what a friend calls “7-11 choruses”– they sing the same seven wordseleven times. People are getting their doctrinenot from the exposition of Scripture,but from mindlessly singing choruses repetitiously,often ignorant that what they’resinging may not be biblical.Jesus warns about heaping empty,repetitive phrases as the heathen do (Mt.6:7). When you sing a verse over and overand over, it has a mesmerizing effect. It becomesa “mantra.” This form of worshipcomes from Hinduism; it is not biblical. InHinduism one empties one’s self and just“receives.” But what spirit is he receiving?I’ve heard people such as John Arnottin Canada and Rodney Hoard Browneteaching the same thing. They are essentiallyteaching Hinduism. The biblicalhymns were the Psalms. They were notrepetitive. There were refrains, but it’s notthe same thing.David (nee Paul) Yonggi Cho wrote abook called The Fourth Dimension. In ithe said your subconscious imagination isyour spirit. No it isn’t; the Bible doesn’tteach that. Your spirit is distinct from yourimagination. The imagination is a functionof the soul. But eastern religion is like psychology,it confuses the soul and the spirit.Cho also said you visualize what youwant using the Kenneth Copeland/KennethHaggin Word-Faith formula – you speak itinto being by faith. He gives credence tothese teachings by saying that Hindus andBuddhists have known this for centuries;now Jesus Christ has shown it to him.Well, what he was teaching, of course,was shamanism; he was teaching mysticalBuddhism, he was teaching Hinduism,but calling it “Christian.” There’s nothing“Christian” about it. This is unbiblical worship.It will inevitably lead you into idolatry.But let me tell you how this works.It Begins with UnbiblicalWorshipRemember that the high priest’s sonswere priests also. They began to apostatizeby burning strange fire – unauthorized worship(Lv. 10:1-2). They didn’t burn strangefire to false gods, they burned it to Yahweh.If you burn strange fire to Yahweh today,you’ll be kneeling down saying the Rosarytomorrow. God will not give His glory toanother (Is. 42:8). This is how it works.Look in the telephone book of a largecity. How many people named “RobertJones” do you suppose you will findthere? Several hundred? Because twopeople have the name, “Robert Jones,”does that make them the same person?Mormons say, “We’re the Church of JesusChrist, Latter-day Saints.” Just becausethey incorporate the name “Jesus Christ”into their institution’s name doesn’t meanthey are referring to the Jesus Christ ofthe Bible. The Jesus Christ of the Bible isthe only-begotten Son of the Father. Their“Jesus Christ” is the half-brother of Satan.That’s what the LDS church teaches.Is it the same “Jesus”?“Allah” is both the proper name ofIslam’s god and a generic term for “god”in Arabic – a generic term. Because He’scalled “god” does that make Him theGod of the Bible? No, it doesn’t. “Manywill come in My name” (Mt. 24:5). Onceyou succumb to unbiblical worship it’sinevitable that you’ll fall into idolatry.Even worship of the Holy Spirit isstrange fire. Our faith is “Christocentric”– it’s focused on the Lord Jesus Christ.The Holy Spirit always points people toChrist, never to Himself. Not one time inthe Bible is the Holy Spirit ever prayed to.He points people to Christ, never to Himself(John 15:26). See also John 16:26-28.What we have today – “Come, HolySpirit, let Your fire fall,” “Good morning,Holy Spirit” – is not biblical. An alienspirit may well get in and counterfeit theHoly Spirit.The fruit of the Spirit in Greek is egkrateia– “self-control.” If an alcoholicgets saved and he begins going into a barand drinking heavily, is the Holy Spirit incontrol of him? No, because the man isnot in control of himself. If someone isnot in control of himself, the Holy Spiritis not in control. God’s Word says thatthe fruit of the Spirit is self-control, notthe lack of it (Gal. 5:22-23; 2 Tim. 3:3).But you’ll see people who went toPensacola, Florida, doing crazy things,saying, “I couldn’t control it! I couldn’tstop it! I knew it was God because Icouldn’t control it!”By virtue of the fact they could notcontrol it proves it’s not God.“When the Spirit comes on me I haveto prophesy!”The spirit of the prophets is subject tothe prophets (1 Co. 14:32). The fact that you“have” to do it proves it’s not the Holy Spirit!In ancient Israel the people got intounbiblical expressions of worship (strangefire) and fell into idolatry. The samething is happening today in the churches.Going After LeadersWhen a good king makes a bad mistakehe doesn’t begin by doing something underthe Law. When a good pastor (remember, December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

Feature Article – Continueddoes. We might lose customers.I’ve known many pastors – Baptists,Anglicans, Pentecostals – they knew theToronto/Pensacola thing was not biblical.But the people were craving for it. So thosepastors began to compromise.“This far, and no further. We’re notgoing to let his sailors into the same shipswith our guys. We’ll just take out the goodthings.”The high places, however, were not removed;the people had not yet directedtheir hearts to the God of their fathers.A good pastor can point people in theright direction but he cannot turn theirhearts to God. His own heart may be righttowards God, and he can point people towardsGod, but he can’t make them obeyGod. Now a bad pastor, a bad leader, willinevitably lead the people away from God.A good pastor cannot necessarily push thepeople to God; he can just show them theway. Remember, sheep are “led,” goats are“driven.” Today we have so-called Purpose-Driven Christians. Sheep are not driven.…the people had not yet directed theirhearts to the God of their fathers.Now a good pastor will keep a churchfrom going off doctrinally and ethically,but he cannot turn the people’s hearts towardsGod. He can only point them in theright direction.God Doesn’t Allow ItNow the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat,first to last, behold, they are written in theannals of Jehu the son of Hanani, which isrecorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel.After this Jehoshaphat king of Judah alliedhimself with Ahaziah king of Israel. He actedwickedly in so doing. So he allied himselfwith him to make ships to go to Tarshish,and they made the ships in Ezion-geber.Then Eliezer the son of Dodavahuof Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphatsaying, “Because you haveallied yourself with Ahaziah, the LORDhas destroyed your works.” So the shipswere broken and could not go to Tarshish.God will not allow one of his servantsto go there. Not a Jonah, not a Jehoshaphat,not an Isaiah. God does not want His peopleto go on these ships to Tarshish.Now understand what Jehoshaphat did.In Kings it says the king of Israel wantedhis sailors to get into the boat. “Well, we’renot going to have all of it; we’re just goingto have some of it.”“We’ll take out the good bits fromPurpose Driven; we’ll take out the goodbits from Alpha Courses; we’ll take outthe good bits from Pensacola; we’ll takeout the good bits from Promise Keepers.We won’t really get them in here to do thewhole thing; we’ll just take out the certainbits. We’ll try to sanitize it.”That’s what they say. You may not lethis sailors in your ship, but you should notbe sailing in the same fleet.What is it that drives these people towant to get on a ship to Tarshish? Nowthese are not bad men, not bad leaders.Normally they would be good leaders. ButI’ve known many good leaders who’vemade the same mistake. They make thesealliances with the sons of Jezebel.The Sons of JezebelWho is this Jezebel? Jesus spoke of herin Revelation 2, “She beguiles my servants,she seduces them” (Rev. 2:20). Jesus usesJezebel as a metaphor for the spirit of falsereligion, of spiritual seduction.Sons of Jezebel are those who have thesame spirit. Rick Warren is a son of Jezebel.Benny Hinn is a son of Jezebel. I hada confrontation with Hinn in Hawaii oneday. I was in a Borders bookstore waitingfor a friend when along came Benny Hinnwith his body guard and his sidekick. Hinnoften appears on TV making a big deal ofhaving been born in Israel. I went to himand I spoke in Hebrew.“Excuse me?” he replied.“On TBN you said you can speak Hebrew.You mean you don’t speak Hebrew?”“Not really.”I said, “I’ve got a list this long of all thefalse prophecies you’ve made in the nameof the Lord that never happened. To beginwith read Deuteronomy 18:20; you’re afalse prophet. Jesus warned about peoplelike you. You ought to repent and get out ofthe ministry; let Him deal with it.”The sons of Jezebel continue to seduceotherwise good leaders today. So what dothese leaders say? “We’ll take only someof it; we won’t take all of it.”They do the same thing described in theBook of Kings. The king of Israel wantedhis servants to get into the same ship withthose of the king of Israel. 2 Kings 22:49:Then Ahaziah the son of Ahab said toJehoshaphat, “Let my servants go withyour servants in the ships.” But Jehoshaphatwas not willing.He went only so far with it. But thenhe later succumbed to Ahaziah’s plea foralliance:Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat,first to last, behold, they are writtenin the annals of Jehu the son of Hanani,which is recorded in the Book ofthe Kings of Israel. And after this Jehoshaphatking of Judah allied himselfwith Ahaziah king of Israel. He actedwickedly in so doing. So he allied himselfwith him to make ships to go toTarshish, and they made the ships inEzion-geber. (2 Chr 20:34-36)Some of It Is Good?I read the Promise Keepers’ book, TheMasculine Journey, authored by RobertHicks. Promise Keepers gave out tens ofthousands of copies to men at stadium ralliesto help them be better husbands andfathers. When challenged about it they issuedan 8-1/2 page defense of it. Eventuallythey had to withdraw it. Shortly after, theywent bankrupt. This book instructs fathersthat when their teenage son or daughterloses their virginity, or comes home drunkor stoned on drugs for the first time, theyare to be congratulated for being “human.”It is to be seen as a rite of passage in life.Suppose your daughter comes homeHIV-infected the night she loses her virginity.Or suppose your son comes homein a body bag because he OD’d on drugs.I was a cocaine addict before I got saved;thank God my kids weren’t into drugs.This is Promise Keepers’ own book withtheir own seal on it containing the slogan,“Men of Integrity.”“Men of integrity?” The book saysJesus Christ was tempted to have sex withother men.Then there is their workbook for theirmen’s Bible studies which says that othermen have the right to question you, whatyou do in the context of marital intimacywith your wife sexually.It’s nobody’s business what you dowith your wife, sexually or otherwise.It’s between you, her, and God – nobodyelse. Unless you’re a Promise Keeper.This book isn’t for men of integrity; it’sfor filthy perverts.“Oh, but there’s some good in it!”I live in England. When I came fromIsrael one year I gave the late Beatle JohnLennon a copy of The Chronicles of Narniawhile trying to witness to him. I sawhim one time after that. He remained aNew Ager until his death.One time I gave George Harrison thebook, Death of a Guru, by Dave Hunt.Harrison was a Hare Krishna devotee. Hethrew the book.Paul McCartney’s sister-in-law, a missionaryto Italy, is a friend of mine. She hastried to witness to Paul McCartney manytimes. He remains totally New Age.Yet James Ryle, the pastor of PromiseKeepers’ founder Bill McCartney, says theBeatles were God’s prophets!I know people who’ve tried to witnessto the Beatles. I’ve tried to witness to the December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

Feature Article – Continued“The good old days” were never that good.In Ecclesiastes we’re told it’s not fromwisdom people that say this. God says tofind meaning you have to look forward.Get back on the ancient path, get back onthe right road, but look forward for yourmeaning. Look for the return of Christ;hasten His coming (2 Peter. 3:12). Wedon’t look back, we look forward.This idea of looking back comes fromShintoism and eastern religions. The Japanesehave a nebulous view of the future sothey look to their ancestors for spiritualmeaning. You’ll find the same thing in Africa– the ancestors. This is not a biblicalconcept; it’s a pagan concept. We find oursolace not looking to the past but lookingto the future. God does not want His peoplegoing to Tarshish.Jehoshaphat thought, “If I can only getback there, things will be right again.” “Ifwe can just get back the way it used to be,things will be right again.” So he beganmaking alliances with the son of Jezebel.We’ll go down the Ecumenical road;we’ll have the Promise Keepers; we’ll havethe Purpose Driven; we’ll have the AlphaCourse; we’ll have the Toronto Blessing.Today’s pastors make alliances with theson of Jezebel the way Jehoshaphat did.Good motives, good men, shallow corruptedwisdom. But God does not want theships to go to Tarshish.God Doesn’t Want Ships toArrive in TarshishWhen Jonah tried to make it to Tarshishthe ship did not arrive with him on it becausehe was a good man. When Jehoshaphattried to get on a ship to Tarshish the shipnever arrived in Tarshish. In Kings the shipnever arrived in Tarshish. Isaiah said, “Woeto the ships of Tarshish!” Psalm 48 saysthe Lord will destroy the ships of Tarshish.Don’t go to Tarshish; don’t get on thatship; don’t make an alliance with the sonof Jezebel. Keep away from that stuff! Ifyou are a good person the ship will neverarrive. If it does arrive, woe to you!Did Promise Keepers bring the promisedrevival? No, it did not. God will not allowHis people to get on a ship for Tarshish.Did the Toronto Blessing bring thepromised revival with all its big talk? No itdid not; the ship never arrived in Tarshish.Did Pensacola bring the promised revival?No, it did not; the ship did not arrivein Tarshish.Did Alpha Courses bring the promisedrevival? No, it didn’t; the ships don’t makeit to Tarshish.“The Prayer of Jabez – that’s it!” No,the ship will not arrive in Tarshish.“Oh, we’ll get the ‘God Chasers’!”No, that ship didn’t arrive in Tarshish.None of these things delivered thegoods so they continue looking for anothership to Tarshish. God does not wantHis sons making alliances with the sons ofJezebel. Jonah did not arrive in Tarshish;Jehoshaphat did not arrive in Tarshish; andthose that love the Lord Jesus will not arrivein Tarshish.But there’s something worse than aship not making it to Tarshish. What isworse than the ship not arriving in Tarshish?When, God forbid, the day comes thatit does. And that day is coming.Psalm 481Great is the LORD, and greatly tobe praised in the city of our God,in the mountain of his holiness.2Beautiful for situation, thejoy of the whole earth, is mountZion, on the sides of the north,the city of the great King.3God is known in her palaces fora refuge.4For, lo, the kings wereassembled, they passed bytogether.5They saw it, and so theymarvelled; they were troubled,and hasted away.6Fear took hold upon them there,and pain, as of a woman intravail.7Thou breakest the ships ofTarshish with an east wind.8As we have heard, so have weseen in the city of the LORD ofhosts, in the city of our God: Godwill establish it for ever. Selah.9We have thought of thy lovingkindness,O God, in the midst ofthy temple.10According to thy name, O God,so is thy praise unto the ends ofthe earth: thy right hand is fullof righteousness.11Let mount Zion rejoice, let thedaughters of Judah be glad,because of thy judgments.12Walk about Zion, and go roundabout her: tell the towersthereof.13Mark ye well her bulwarks,consider her palaces; that yemay tell it to the generationfollowing.14For this God is our God for everand ever: he will be our guideeven unto death.E b y o w nC h i l d r e n ’ s V i l l a g eDear friends,MORIEL MISSIONSNEEDED VOLUNTEERQUALIFIED NURSE / MEDICALMISSIONARY TO CHILDRENPlace: Ebyown Children’s Village,South Africa. The village has now becomea registered children’s home witha real sense of family and not institution.We aim to provide a loving teamenvironment centred on Christ and aredeveloping our skills base as we grow.Job description: The nursing careof special needs children. Administrationof medicines. Recording of medicalinformation. Maintaining all aspectsof first aid. The training of carestaff on an ongoing basis. The counselingof patients in a wide variety ofhealth situations. Ordering of medicalsupplies and equipment. Coordinatingmedical appointments for children.A British standard nursing qualificationis recognized in South Africa.We can offer: Return air ticket, accommodation,food and many otherbenefits.Time Period: Must be able to givea minimum of one yearThe person: Must love the Lord,Love children and display a compassionatenature. Must be able to gel withour team here and be self motivated.Please Contact:Dave and Lyn Royle at:mailto:moriel.david@gmail.comor moriel.david@gmail.com,Tel +27 (0) 823739297Psalm 68:5-6If anyone is interested in supportingthe Ebyown Village, e-mail Dave Royle atebyown.cv@mweb.co.za December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

Danny Isom Guest Author“ W O R S H I P ”“ W O R S H I P ”IN THE21 ST CENTURY“ W o r s h i p ” I n T h e 2 1 st C e n t u r yIN THE 21 STCENTURY“You shall fear only the LORD yourGod; and you shall worship Him andswear by His name.” Deuteronomy 6:13Worship the LORD with reverenceAnd rejoice with trembling. Psalm 2:11“God is spirit, and those who worshipHim must worship in spirit and truth.”John 4:24Therefore I urge you, brethren, by themercies of God, to present your bodiesa living and holy sacrifice, acceptableto God, which is your spiritual serviceof worship. Romans 12:1I may have crossed that inevitable linefrom young, free-spirited thinker to oldfashionedcurmudgeon, because I’ve becomedeeply concerned at how often theword “worship” as applied to the 21st Centurychurch in the Western civilized worldhas somehow come to mean “music”. Howcan you possibly infer from these and themany other scriptural instances of “worship”that it has anything to do with music?There are 2 main Hebrew words usedin the Old Testament which are translatedas “worship”: “shachah” (shaw-KHAW)and “abad” (aw-BAD). Shachah literallymeans to bow down or to fall down,to prostrate one’s self before the object ofone’s worship. It’s describing one’s attitudein the course of worship, to completely ridone’s self of any vestige of pride or honorin one’s self and be completely and totallysubmissive to that which is greater. Abadmeans to serve, a word that brings with it avery clear understanding of who is the Masterand who is His servant. It describes howthe attitude induced by shachah is appliedto our personal behavior regarding worship.I don’t know the exact day and timethat it happened, but at some point overthe past 30 or so years the word “worship”has become synonymous with “music”.A typical church bulletin listing the orderof service will typically show the heading“Time of Worship” followed by thesongs that will be sung. Perhaps a bit ofprayer will be thrown in with it. Or theworship team will announce to the congregation,“Are you ready to worship?”as they launch into their “set”. I’m notconvinced that the tool of music, which isused occasionally in the Bible as a supplementto worship, is fulfilling the wholeand true biblical definition of “worship”.The Greek words used in the NewTestament don’t justify a redefinition of“worship” either. (And if you haven’tnoticed, the New Testament has far lessreferences to music than the Old.) It uses“proskuneo” (pros-koo-NEH-o) – to fallupon the knees and touch the ground withone’s forehead; “sebomai” (SEB-om-ahee)– to fear or to honor; “eusebeo” (yoo-seb-EH-o) – to act piously or reverently; and“latreia” (lat-RI-ah) – to perform servicesfor or to serve. I’m not sensing any “new”aspect to worship but an affirmation thatit is an absolute throughout the whole ofScripture and unchanged from end to end.Perhaps the most telling informationcomes from looking at each instanceof the word’s use throughout Scriptureand noting what is taking place,what attitudes are present, what commonreactions occur so as to identifywhat it means to undertake “worship”.Then the man bowed low and worshipedthe LORD. Genesis 24:26So the people believed; and whenthey heard that the LORD was concernedabout the sons of Israel andthat He had seen their affliction,then they bowed low and worshiped.Exodus 4:31So David arose from the ground,washed, anointed himself, andchanged his clothes; and he cameinto the house of the LORD andworshiped. Then he came to hisown house, and when he requested,they set food before him and he ate.2 Samuel 12:20All the sons of Israel, seeing thefire come down and the glory of theLORD upon the house, bowed downon the pavement with their faces to theground, and they worshiped and gavepraise to the LORD, saying, “TrulyHe is good, truly His loving kindnessis everlasting.” 2 Chronicles 7:3While the whole assembly worshiped,the singers also sang and the trumpetssounded; all this continued untilthe burnt offering was finished. Nowat the completion of the burnt offerings,the king and all who were presentwith him bowed down and worshiped.2 Chronicles 29:28-29Then Job arose and tore his robe andshaved his head, and he fell to theground and worshiped. Job 1:20After coming into the house they sawthe Child with Mary His mother; andthey fell to the ground and worshipedHim. Then, opening their treasures,they presented to Him gifts of gold,frankincense, and myrrh. Matthew 2:11And those who were in the boat worshipedHim, saying, “You are certainlyGod’s Son!” Matthew 14:33And they left the tomb quickly withfear and great joy and ran to reportit to His disciples. And behold,Jesus met them and greetedthem. And they came up and tookhold of His feet and worshiped Him.Matthew 28:8-9And he said, “Lord, I believe.” And heworshiped Him. John 9:38And the four living creatures kept saying,“Amen.” And the elders fell downand worshiped. Revelation 5:14And all the angels were standing aroundthe throne and around the elders andthe four living creatures; and they fellon their faces before the throne andworshiped God, saying, “Amen, blessingand glory and wisdom and thanksgivingand honor and power and might,December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

Two Callings, One Voice – Continuedbe to our God forever and ever. Amen.”Revelation 7:11-12And the twenty-four elders, who siton their thrones before God, fell ontheir faces and worshiped God, saying,“We give You thanks, O LordGod, the Almighty, who are and whowere, because You have taken Yourgreat power and have begun to reign.Revelation 11:16-17Do you see what is actually takingplace? Even in the one instance where musicis present – and the vast, vast majorityof the appearances of “worship” throughoutScripture have no immediate referencesto music – it’s not the focal centerpiece,but an adjunct.You get the same picture if you lookat all the instances in the Bible describingfalse worship. What people do in thecourse of worshiping the wrong thing explainsthe specific actions which identifyworship, even when its focus is wrong.“They have quickly turned aside fromthe way which I commanded them.They have made for themselves a moltencalf, and have worshiped it andhave sacrificed to it and said, ‘Thisis your god, O Israel, who broughtyou up from the land of Egypt!’”Exodus 32:8They rejected His statutes and Hiscovenant which He made with their fathersand His warnings with which Hewarned them. And they followed vanityand became vain, and went afterthe nations which surrounded them,concerning which the LORD had commandedthem not to do like them. Theyforsook all the commandments of theLord their God and made for themselvesmolten images, even two calves,and made an Asherah and worshipedall the host of heaven and served Baal.2 Kings 17:15-16Therefore at that time, when all the peoplesheard the sound of the horn, flute,lyre, trigon, psaltery, bagpipe and allkinds of music, all the peoples, nationsand men of every language fell downand worshiped the golden image thatNebuchadnezzar the king had set up.Daniel 3:7they worshiped the dragon becausehe gave his authority to the beast; andthey worshiped the beast, saying, “Whois like the beast, and who is able towage war with him?” Revelation 13:4At it’s most basic, the act of worship iscoming to the humble knowledge and admissionthat “You are God and I am not”.It’s an attitude of submission, an offeringof service to the Master. It’s possessing aright heart. And it has far more to do withthe prayers and praises of our lips thanengaging in the physical act of singing.I can’t help but wonder what the spiritualcondition of the church would be if itonly devoted half of its currently allottedtime to music to instead worship accordingto biblical guidelines. I can’t help butwonder if our devotion to music is distractingus from actually engaging in true worship,the acknowledgment of who Christ isand how we might enter into His service.The fact is that worship in the 21st Centurydoesn’t need to be “new and improved”,but “business as usual” according to theage-old practices established in His Word.In His Love,Danny IsomDanny Islom “mailto:Servant@Walk-WithTheWord.org” \o “http://www.walkwiththeword.org/” \o “The Walk with theWord web site.” WalkWithTheWord.org isdedicated to personal and small group Biblestudy by teaching the basics of the InductiveStudy Approach in concert with aweekly Bible HYPERLINK “http://www.walkwiththeword.org/Plans/2008_Plan.html” \o “The 2008 Walk with the Wordreading plan.” reading schedule. The ultimategoal is to apply God’s Word personallyto the point that it becomes evident inour changed relationships with others sothat the preeminent command of Scripture,to love others, is visibly fulfilled.whatif...Ever wonder what would happen if wetreated our Bible like we treat our cellphone?What if we carried it around in our pursesor pockets?What if we flipped through it several timea day?What if we turned back to go get it if weforgot it?What if we used it to receive messagesfrom the text?What if we treated it like we couldn’t livewithout it?What if we gave it to kids as gifts?What if we used it when we traveled?What if we used it in case of emergency?This is something to make you go....hmm...where is my Bible?Oh, and one more thing.Unlike our cell phone, we don’t have toworry about our Bible being disconnectedbecause Jesus already paid the bill.Author: UnknownCell phonevs. THE Bible10 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

Mike Oppenheimer Guest AuthorDid JESUS identify himself asGod?By Mike OppenheimerLet Us Reason Ministriesletusreason.orgThere is no prophet other than Jesusthat could dare say “He who believesin Me (or abides in Me) has eternal life”(Jn.6:35,47;11:25; Jn.15), or could ask thepeople to “Follow Me” (Mt.19:21;10:21;Lk. 18:22). Nor could any other prophetstate that there are massive consequencesfor not believing who he said he is. Thereis probably no more important statementthan when Jesus said to the people, “For ifyou do not believe that I Am, you will diein your sins” (John 8:24).Jesus is recorded as saying, “I Am” 23times in the Gospels. Seven times He specificallystates this to identify His being Godin John’s Gospel (John consistently usesthe number seven throughout his writings).John’s entire Gospel concentrates onJesus’ deity, and we begin to understandfully what Jesus meant when He applied thename that God gave to Moses at the burningbush. Jesus makes seven important “I Am”statements about Himself that are spreadover his three years of earthly ministry.1) John 6:35: “... I AM thebread of life”This is the first of the “I AM” proclamationscontained in the book of John.This was said in the discourse which followedthe feeding of the multitude. Duringthe discourse, Jesus tells the crowd, “Donot work for food that spoils, but for foodthat endures to eternal life, which the Sonof Man will give you” (John 6:27).As He seeks to elicit faith in Himself,He is met with a challenge to “demonstrateHis credentials.” They ask him, “What signdo you do that we may see and believe?”To this they add, “Our forefathers atemanna in the desert, as it is written: ‘He gavethem bread to eat’” (v.31), referring to whenMoses gave them the manna supernaturally.Jesus corrected their misunderstandingby saying, “I tell you the truth, it wasnot Moses who gave you the bread fromHeaven, but it was My Father” (v.32). Tothat He adds, “My father gives you the truebread from Heaven. For the bread of God isHe who comes down from Heaven” (v.33).Jesus reminded them that God gave sustenance,but now He Himself is “the breadof God come down from Heaven” (v.33).They were not asking for this breadfrom heaven, they were hungry and werethinking carnally, so their understandingis lacking until the conversation continuesto develop.In response to their request, Jesusmakes the claim, “I AM the bread of life;he who comes to Me will never go hungry,and he who believes in Me will never bethirsty” (v.35).“Shall not hunger” – Strong double withfirst aorist (ingressive) active subjunctive,“shall not become hungry.” “Shall neverthirst” - the future active indicative insteadof the aorist subjunctive as above, an evenstronger form of negation (from Robertson’sWord Pictures in the New Testament.)He that comes to me is reflective of thepsalmist Ps 42:1-2: “As the deer pants forthe water brooks, So pants my soul for You,O God. My soul thirsts for God, for theliving God.” It is the same principle answerJesus gave to the woman at the well. “Everyonewho drinks this water will be thirstyagain, but whoever drinks the water I givehim will never thirst. Indeed, the water I givehim will become in him a spring of waterwelling up to eternal life.”( John 4:13-14).“he is to the soul what bread is to thebody, nourishes and supports the spirituallife” (from Matthew Henry’s ConciseCommentary)In their sojourn with Moses, the Israelitesin the desert had two constant complaints:hunger and thirst. But here, Jesuswas not speaking of the physical, but thespiritual. He was saying that He is the answerto the needs of the human heart; Healone is our source of spiritual nourishment.Since bread is a basic food universally,His statements claim that He fulfills thisrole for everyone. He is the Savior of theworld, and gives life to the world (v.33).Jesus alone is the Bread of Life. After eatingall other bread, one will hunger again.The manna in the wilderness was good forthe day it was given, but not for the nextday. It would sustain their hunger; oncethey tasted it they would be satisfied. Asthe Psalmist writes, “Taste and see theLord is good.”Jesus identified Himself as the sustenanceman needs to survive – to be preservedfrom death. He used Scripture on theDevil when he was tempting him to eat andto prove he was actually the Son of God.:Now when the tempter came to Him,he said, “If You are the Son of God, commandthat these stones become bread.” ButHe answered and said, “It is written, ‘Manshall not live by bread alone, but by everyword that proceeds from the mouth ofGod.’” (Matthew 4:3-4)This verse is a quote of Deut. 8:2-3where Israel was led by God through thewilderness and hungered. It was God whofed them manna for their survival, “thatHe might make you know that man shallnot live by bread alone; but man lives byevery word that proceeds from the mouthof the LORD.”John 6:51: “I am the living bread whichcame down from Heaven. If anyone eats ofthis bread, he will live forever.”When Jesus said, “I AM the bread oflife,” “The true bread from Heaven.” “Thebread of God is He who comes down fromHeaven,” He was making His heavenlyorigins known.2) John 8:12: “I AM the lightof the world”Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying,“I AM the light of the world. He whofollows Me shall not walk in darkness, buthave the light of life.”This is spoken in the first person, “I,”showing He alone has possession of thistitle.At the beginning of creation there wasonly darkness, and as the first activity toearth God brought light to divide the darkness:“Then God said, Let there be light;and there was light. And God saw thelight, that it was good” (Genesis 1:3-4).Light is often used throughout theScriptures in reference to God’s word astruth. The Word of God, (the law of God)is as a light to guide the path of those whofollow righteous instruction.Psalm 119:105: “Your word is a lampto my feet and a light to my path.”God’s Word, the Bible, is frequently representedas light to enlighten and guide thebeliever in a world of darkness (John 1:5).Echoing John 8:12 and its allusion towalking in the light of life, John writes in1 John1:7, “But if we walk in the light asHe is in the light, we have fellowship onewith another. This is a reference to an admonishmentof the prophet Isaiah ( 2:5):“O house of Jacob, come and let us walk inthe light of the LORD.”To not walk in His ways is to walk inDecember 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 11

Did Jesus Identify Himself As GOD – Continueddarkness, meaning one walks in ignoranceand sin. To not walk in truth means they aresevered from their communion with God.God’s light is seen in his revelation(Ezek. 1:4,13, 26-28), and salvation(Hab. 3:3-4).Job 29:3: “When His lamp shone uponmy head, and when by His light I walkedthrough darkness.”Psalm 43:3: “Oh, send out Your lightand Your truth! Let them lead me.”The Psalmist also declared, “The Lordis my light and my salvation” (Psalms 27:1).Light is also used as a symbol of holinessand purity.Psalm 44:3: “…it was Your right hand,Your arm, and the light of Your countenance,because You favored them.”The arm of the lord is symbolic of theMessiah – His activity on earth.Light also represents goodness, andGod’s redemptive work. It is juxtaposedwith darkness, which symbolizes sin, evil– the works of Satan.An example of light used for the Wordof God is Isa. 8:20: “To the law and to thetestimony! If they do not speak accordingto this word, it is because there is nolight in them.”John introduces us to Jesus as both thelight and life. In his Prologue, the IncarnateWord is “the life,” “the life was thelight of men”.In the beginning of his Gospel, Johnstates, “All things were made throughHim, and without Him nothing was madethat was made. In Him was life, and the lifewas the light of men. And the light shinesin the darkness, and the darkness did notcomprehend it” (John 1:3-5).Darkness is representative of what isfallen – ignorance or sin.Speaking of John the Baptist, Johnsays, “He was not that Light, but was sentto bear witness of that Light. That was thetrue Light which gives light to every mancoming into the world” (John 1:8-9).John is telling us Jesus is the revelationof truth and salvation for everyonewho ever lived.The Word visited men as light beforeHe was incarnated (John 1:9; 9:5), and theLight accompanied the incarnation (John3:19-21; 8:12; 12:46) was full of graceand truth.In his first epistle, John again picks upthe light metaphor and expands on what hehas previously said in his Gospel: “Thisis the message which we have heard fromHim and declare to you, that God is lightand in Him is no darkness at all” (1 John1:5). This affirms that Jesus is the truelight, the light of men.John 3:19-21: “And this is the condemnation,that the light has come into theworld, and men loved darkness rather thanlight, because their deeds were evil…Buthe who does the truth comes to the light,that his deeds may be clearly seen, thatthey have been done in God.”Psalm 107:10-11: “Those who sat indarkness and in the shadow of death, boundin affliction and irons…because they rebelledagainst the words of God, and despisedthe counsel of the Most High.”The expressions to not walk in darkness,and to walk or live in light, are consistentlyused in the Old Testament.Micah 7:8: “When I sit in darkness, theLORD will be a light to me.”Isaiah 50:10: “Who walks in darknessand has no light? Let him trust in the nameof the LORD and rely upon his God.”1 John 1:6-7: “If we say that we havefellowship with Him, and walk in darkness,we lie and do not practice the truth. But ifwe walk in the light as He is in the light,we have fellowship with one another, andthe blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleansesus from all sin.”John 8:12: “Then Jesus spoke to themagain, saying, “I am the light of the world.He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness,but have the light of life.”In the beginning of his Gospel, Johninforms us of Jesus being the light of theworld (which is a reference to Genesis).Here John states that Jesus makes the claimout loud (John 9:5; 12:35-36, 46) in thetemple courts at the Feast of Tabernacles.The backdrop to the Feast of Tabernacles isimportant. Two major symbolic ceremoniestook place. The first was the outpouring ofwater on the steps by the Levitical priestsas the choir sang the Great Hallel (Psalms113-18). The second was the lighting of severallarge candelabras (Menorah) which litup the temple so it could be seen for miles.Jesus took the opportunity of using thesetwo ritualistic symbols to illustrate Histeachings and person (John 7:37-38; 8:12).The Tabernacle was made to host thepresence of God over the Ark which residedin the Holy of Holies. But before the highpriest could enter he would go through theholy place which had the lamp stand – theonly natural light in the tabernacle.Exodus 35:14-15: “also the lampstandfor the light, its utensils, its lamps, and theoil for the light; the incense altar, its poles,the anointing oil, the sweet incense, andthe screen for the door at the entrance ofthe tabernacle (also Exodus 39:37-39). Thelamp stand was made of pure gold, the mostexpensive material on earth at that time.Exodus 27:20: “And you shall commandthe children of Israel that they bringyou pure oil of pressed olives for the light,to cause the lamp to burn continually. Thepure oil came from pressed olives whichwere for the light, “to make the lampsburn continually.”Jesus spoke His words about being thelight of the world in the Court of the Women,the most public part of the temple. Fourgolden candelabra stood there, each withfour golden bowls, and each filled fromoil. These were lit on the first night of theFeast of Tabernacles (in reference to thememory of the pillar of cloud by day andof fire by night). The figure, drawn fromprophecy and tradition, was familiar to theJews. According to Hebrew tradition, Godis light and “Light” was one of the namesof the Messiah (Isa 9:1; 42:6; 49:6; 60:1-3;Mal 4:2; Luke 2:32).John 8:12: amidbar Rabba: “The Israelitessaid to God, O Lord of the universe,thou commandest us to light lampsto thee, yet thou art THE LIGHT OF THEWORLD: and with thee the light dwelleth.”With this as the background, Jesus’exclusive claim of being the light of thewhole world (repeated in John 9:5 was aproclamation of Himself as the fulfillmentof their faith given to them by God.The light metaphor is found in OldTestament events and typology. The glory(the presence of God) in the cloud led theHebrews to the Promised Land (Exodus13:21-22), and protected them from theirenemies (Exodus 14:19-25).The Israelites sang, “The LORD is mylight and my salvation” (Psalms 27:1).Isaiah the prophet tells us that the Servantof the LORD (Messiah) was given as alight to the Gentiles so that He might bringsalvation to the ends of the earth (Isa. 49:6).The coming Millennial Age will be atime when the LORD Himself will bethe light of His people (Isa. 60:19-22;Rev. 21:23-24).Jesus’ declaration at the Temple madeit clear who He is. He is not the light ofthe Jews only, but “the light of the world.”His reference to being the light of everyman is saying that those who reject Himreject God – that a person’s eternal destinydepends on the acknowledgement and acceptanceof who He claims to be.One cannot praise God in truth anddeny the deity of the Son of God. God isdescribed as light, or clothed in light.Isa. 60:19: “The LORD will be to you aneverlasting light, and your God your glory.”Psalms 104:2: “Who cover Yourselfwith light as with a garment, who stretchout the heavens like a curtain.”Jesus is called by Paul in 1 Cor. 2:8, the“Lord of glory,” a term of deity because itrefers to God’s shekinah – His light.Halfway through his ministry Jesuspersonally revealed this to His three closestdisciples.Matthew 17:2: “And He was transfig-12 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

ured before them. His face shone like thesun, and His clothes became as white asthe light.”Luke 9:29: “the appearance of His facewas altered, and His robe became white andglistening.” Verse32: “When they (the apostles)were fully awake, they saw His glory.”In 2 Peter 1:17-19 Peter calls this the“holy mountain.” Verse19: “And so wehave the prophetic word confirmed, whichyou do well to heed as a light that shines ina dark place, until the day dawns and themorning star rises in your hearts.”This is reminiscent of when Mosescame to Horeb, the mountain of God.Exodus 3:1-5: “And the Angel of theLORD appeared to him in a flame of firefrom the midst of a bush.”God called to him from the midst ofthe bush and said in verse 5, “Where youstand is holy ground.”John 12:46 “I have come as a light intothe world, that whoever believes in Meshould not abide in darkness.”But to those who reject Him and Hismessage, the Bible says, “whose minds thegod of this age has blinded, who do notbelieve, lest the light of the gospel of theglory of Christ, who is the image of God,should shine on them” (2 Cor 4:4).The gospel is considered light becauseit is focused on the one who is the lightof the world.2 Corinthians 4:6: “For it is God whocommanded light to shine out of darkness,who has shone in our hearts to give thelight of the knowledge of the glory of Godin the face of Jesus Christ.”2 Timothy 1:10: “Has now been revealedby the appearing of our SaviorJesus Christ, who has abolished deathand brought life and immortality to lightthrough the gospel.”1 Timothy 6:15-16: “Which He willmanifest in His own time, He who isthe blessed and only Potentate, the Kingof kings and Lord of lords, who alonehas immortality, dwelling in unapproachablelight, whom no man has seen or cansee, to whom be honor and everlastingpower. Amen.”Jesus is the King of Kings and lord ofLords (Rev.17:14).3) John 10:9 “I AM the door.”“I AM the door. If anyone enters byMe, he will be saved, and will go in andout and find pasture.”The next “I AM” saying of Jesus isfound within a number of “figures ofspeech” (v.6), which consists of someprominent metaphors. For example, “sheeppen” (10:1), “shepherd” (v.2), “watchmen”(v.3), “door” or “gate” (v.3). The door isthe entry into a house.A shepherd has to be constantly vigilantto keep the safety of his sheep. In biblicaltimes shepherds would lie in front ofthe only way in or out of the sheep pen toguard the flock. Jesus begins his discourseby saying in verse1, “Most assuredly, I sayto you, he who does not enter the sheepfoldby the door, but climbs up some other way,the same is a thief and a robber.”They must come through the shepherdwho guards the doorway to enter the pen.The wilderness tabernacle had all thetribes of Israel camped around it. Whenit was erected it had only one way in –through the Tribe of Judah. Jesus is of thetribe of Judah. This is what Jesus meant bybeing the door.Thus in answer to our question, we seethat Jesus is saying that He Himself, andno other person, is the means by which thesheep may enter into the promised fullnessof life.John 10:9-11: “I am the door. If anyoneenters by Me, he will be saved, and will goin and out and find pasture. The thief doesnot come except to steal, and to kill, and todestroy. I have come that they may havelife, and that they may have it more abundantly.I am the good shepherd. The goodshepherd gives His life for the sheep.”To be “saved” means having “eternallife.” As the other I AM sayings, this onealso emphasizes deity.4) John 10:11 “I AM theGood Shepherd”The next I AM saying of Jesus is foundin the same discourse of Him being thedoor. In John 10:1, Jesus speaks of “theshepherd.” He now adds an adjective tothe word shepherd, and makes the claim “IAM the good shepherd” (verse 10). Hereagain, Jesus is contrasting Himself withthe religious leaders to whom He is speaking.They were not good shepherds but,as they are called in the passage, “hiredhands” (vv.12-13). He is referring to thePharisees as hirelings in verse 13, for thehired hand is “not caring for the sheep.”When Jesus used the term, “the goodshepherd”, He was speaking of His intrinsicgoodness, His moral nature and beauty. Inusing the term “shepherd,” He was speakingof His position over the people. He isthe shepherd of the sheep, He is the onewho protects, leads, guides and nourishesthe sheep. The sheep are utterly defensiveand totally dependant upon the Shepherd.It is hard not to see an allusion to Psalm23, where David said, “The LORD is myShepherd,” who protects, leads, guides andnourishes His sheep. Jesus is also referringto His mission. On at least three occasionsDid Jesus Identify Himself As GOD – ContinuedHe spoke of “laying down” His life for thesheep (John 10:15,17,18). The Shepherd,who protects the sheep, protects them tothe point of death. The Shepherd is also thesacrificial “lamb of God” (John 1:29, 35),who willingly lays down His life for thesheep. The death of Jesus was appointedfor salvation not just for the “lost sheepof the house of Israel,” but also for the“other sheep” (John 10:16), the Gentiles.The shepherd of the Old Testamentis found to be both a leader and a companionto his sheep (1 Samuel 17:34-37), David protecting his sheep. Heknows his flock and is gentle with them(Proverbs 27:23; Mt.11:28). He carriesthem in his arms (Isaiah 40:11). He rescuesthem from danger (Amos 3:12).Isaiah 53: “Like sheep we have all ofus wandered away.”The shepherd seeks after the lost sheep(Ezek. 34:12; Luke 15:4-7).He is making one flock, united andwatched over by one Shepherd (John10:16).How can the death of one man be the redemptionof so many unless he is more than man?Christ is called the Good Shepherd(John 10), the Chief Shepherd (1 Peter 5:48),the Great Shepherd (Hebrews 13:20-21).It was Jesus who it is written of in Matthew9:36: “But when He saw the multitudes,He was moved with compassion forthem, because they were weary and scattered,like sheep having no shepherd.”He was the one who opened the gate toallow the sheep to go in and out; the wolveswould have to get by Him guarding the flock.Micah 5:2 not only tells us where Jesuswill be born, but who He is: “But youBethlehem-Ephratah, in the land of Judah,for out of you will come a ruler whowill be called the shepherd of my people”Jesus refers to himself as the shepherdpeople are to follow (John 12:26): “If anyoneserves Me, let him follow Me; andwhere I am, there My servant will be also.”Jesus makes it clear that those who followGod will follow Him.John 10:26-30: “But you do not believe,because you are not of My sheep,as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice,and I know them, and they follow Me.And I give them eternal life, and they shallnever perish; neither shall anyone snatchthem out of My hand. My Father, who hasgiven them to Me, is greater than all; andno one is able to snatch them out of MyFather’s hand. I and My Father are one.”Notice the sheep belong to Jesus;they hear His voice; they are in His handsand the Father’s, and He gives them eternallife. If one does not follow Jesus, itis because he is not His sheep. No mancould ever claim this much, less do it.There is only one shepherd from theDecember 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 13

Did Jesus Identify Himself As GOD – ContinuedOld Testament continuing in the New Testament.(Ezekiel 34:23; Zechariah11:4-14;13:7). Christ claimed to be the fulfillmentof these prophecies (John10:8,11,14).It is the Son who is to guide and leadone to green pastures and still waters.John 10:14-16: “I am the good shepherd;and I know My sheep, and am knownby My own. As the Father knows Me, evenso I know the Father; and I lay down Mylife for the sheep. And other sheep I havewhich are not of this fold; them also I mustbring, and they will hear My voice; andthere will be one flock and one shepherd.”Revelation 7:17: “For the Lamb whois in the midst of the throne will shepherdthem and lead them to living fountains ofwaters. And God will wipe away every tearfrom their eyes.”5) John 11:25 “I AM theResurrection and the Life”Jesus said to her, “I AM the resurrectionand the life. He who believes in Me,though he may die, he shall live.”This is the hope of mankind: not todie permanently but to live again. This IAM statement was made to Martha, whosebrother Lazarus had recently died. Jesuspurposely postponed getting to Lazarusuntil the fourth day after his death. WhenJesus told Martha that Lazarus would riseagain, she understood this as “the resurrectionof the last day” (11:23-24). It is atthis point that He makes this astonishingclaim, “I AM the resurrection and the life;he who believes in Me, even if he dies, hewill live, and everyone who lives, and believesin Me will certainly not die” (11:25-26). This claim was proven by Jesus’ raisingof Lazarus from the dead (verse 44).John said in his Prologue that Jesus(the Word) was life (John 1:4). Jesus wasnot simply stating that He imparts life, butthat He Himself is resurrection and life.He being the resurrection means that evenif death finds one first it will not be final,or permanent.John 2:19-21: “Jesus answered andsaid to them, ‘Destroy this temple, and inthree days I will raise it up (speaking of thetemple of His body).’”John 10:17-18: “Therefore My Fatherloves Me, because I lay down My life that Imay take it again. No one takes it from Me,but I lay it down of Myself. I have powerto lay it down, and I have power to take itagain. This command I have received fromMy Father.” Jesus is telling us that He willraise his own dead body up again. It is onething to raise others who are dead; it is anotherthing to raise oneself from the dead.Jesus’ claim to be “the resurrection”shows us that he has power over evenHis own death, which no man or prophetcould ever claim. Every human who livedends with death and we cannot changethat. John writes about Jesus, a man called“Lord,” who can have control over life anddeath. He has such power that even deathmust release its grip. This cannot be said ofany other man, but can only be spoken ofsomeone who is more than just a man, butdivine, and He proved what He said.6) John 14:6 “I AM the way, thetruth, and the life”Jesus said to him, “I AM the way, thetruth, and the life. No one comes to the Fatherexcept through Me.”This is associated with the previousstatement, “I AM the Resurrection and theLife.” It is being explained to those whohave committed to following Jesus. Thisencompasses many of the other statements.It is a three-in-one statement.On the eve before our Lord’s crucifixion,Jesus participated in the Passover,the Lord’s Supper, and announced His approachingdeparture (John 13:33, 36; 14:2-3). He told His disciples, “You know theway to the place where I am going” (14:4).Thomas is puzzled and responds, “Lord,we do not know where you are going, sohow can we know the way?”Jesus replied, “I AM the way and thetruth and the life,” and explained, “No onecomes to the Father except through Me”(14:6). Jesus is revealing three distinctthings about Himself: He is 1) “the way”;2) “the truth”; and 3) “the life.” All are facetsof the one God and His grace for mankindto be reconciled.First, Jesus is “the way.” He refers togoing to His Father’s house and says that ifyou want to follow, “I AM the way”; thatway is through Me (v.6). The way of salvationleads to the Father. Jesus is not one ofmany ways to God that we can choose, but“the” ONLY way. This claim eliminatesall others and asserts His uniqueness. Weshould have no other ways of approachingGod. Jesus’ substitution – His atoningdeath – is the only way.The first act after he died was to openthe way into the temple, showing that theNew Covenant is established. Now it isonly through His death that sinners arereconciled to God.Second, Jesus is “the truth.” Thisspeaks of absolute assurance and reliabilityin what He says and does. Whatever theFather gave Him to say and do, He did perfectly.All that He has said and done can betrusted in, not simply because He tells thetruth, but because He is the truth incarnate(1:1,14). The complete revelation of Godis found in Him, and He is properly called“God” (1:1, 18; 20:28). He is God’s revelation,His “Word” made flesh (1:14).Third, Jesus states that He is “the life.”By saying, “I AM the resurrection and thelife,” He means that He is able to give lifeeven to those who died – that He is selfexistentlike the Father (5:16). He is thelife and the source of life to others (3:16).“For as the Father raises the dead and giveslife to them, even so the Son gives life towhom He will” (John 5:21).This is a claim exclusive to Jesus. Heis the one way to God; He is thoroughlyreliable, and he stands in a relation to truththat no one else does.When Jesus used the “I AM” constructionby itself or attached to an Old Testamentexample, He was indicating Hisdivinity. John is communicating this invarious manners to show who the Messiahis from the Old Testament background.7) John 15:1 “I AM the truevine, and My Father isthe vinedresser.”Now we come to the final I AM statementthat was given in the upper roomdiscourse. Jesus declares twice that He is“the vine.” On the first occasion He linksHimself with the Father when He says,“I AM the true vine, and my Father is thegardener” or “vinedresser” (15:1). Ton thesecond occasion He links Himself with thebeliever when He declares, “I AM the vine;you are the branches,” and explains howwe will bear fruit because of the indwellingof the Savior to those who believe andreside in him (15:5).In the Old Testament the vine whichwas planted is God’s vineyard (symbol ofIsrael). Psalm 80:8-9: “You have broughta vine out of Egypt; You have cast out thenations, and planted it. You prepared roomfor it, and caused it to take deep root, and itfilled the land.”Verse14-15 “Return, we beseech You,O God of hosts; Look down from heavenand see, and visit this vine and the vineyardwhich Your right hand has planted, and thebranch that You made strong for Yourself.”Verse17 identifies the branch as a certainindividual: “Let your hand be on the manof Your right hand, upon the Son of manwhom You made strong for Yourself.”The vineyard is Israel, the Branch isChrist (Zechariah 6:12-13) but the vine “isburned with fire” (Psalm 80:16), symbolizingjudgment. The nation of Israel hasfailed in God’s calling for being “a light forthe Gentiles” (Isaiah 49:6), to bring God’ssalvation “to all the ends of the earth.”So before Jesus leaves He gives thismission to individuals who follow Him: belights in this world as He, being the true14 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

light, leaves. In contrast to the vine whichhas been judged because of its disobedience,Jesus is “the true vine” – the obedient Sonwho fulfills the purpose of Israel’s calling.Through Him the world would be reached.Genesis 12:2-3: God says to Abraham,through whom the Messiah would come,“I will make you a great nation; I will blessyou and make your name great; and youshall be a blessing. I will bless those whobless you, and I will curse him who cursesyou; and in you all the families of the earthshall be blessed.”Galatians 3:8: “And the Scripture, foreseeingthat God would justify the Gentilesby faith, preached the gospel to Abrahambeforehand, saying, ‘In you all the nationsshall be blessed.’”We are sent into the world as representativesof Jesus, to carry the Gospeluntil He comes. Jesus’ saying, “I am thevine; you are the branches,” has a two-foldmeaning: 1) to exhibit qualities of Christ’scharacter reflecting the one in whom weabide (Matt. 3:8; 7:20; Rom. 6:22; Gal.5:22); 2) to bless the world and bring fruitinto His kingdom.John 15:5: “He who remains in Me, andI in him,” says Jesus, “this man bears muchfruit. Apart from me you can do nothing.”John 15:16: “But I chose you and appointedyou that you should go and bearfruit, and that your fruit should remain”Colossians 1:10: “…that you may havea walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasingHim, being fruitful in every good workand increasing in the knowledge of God.”The transformation of the believer’scharacter into Christ-likeness takes placeby the work of the indwelling Spirit ofChrist (Romans 8:9). This I AM saying,like the others, indicates His deity, for onlyGod can indwell all the people.Conclusion of the ScriptureJesus explained “And the Father himself,who sent Me, has borne witness ofMe. You have neither heard His voice atany time, nor seen His shape” (John5:37).Jesus gives the source of His commission,which is from the Father personally.It is the Fathers voice and form they havenot seen, yet Christ has stated “No one hasseen God at any time. The only begottenSon, who is in the bosom of the Father, Hehas declared Him” (John 1:18). Jesus hasperfectly revealed God’s nature to mankind.John 14:1: “you believe in God, believealso in Me.”John 14:9: “He who has seen Me hasseen the Father”John 12:44-45: “Then Jesus cried outand said, ‘He who believes in Me, believesnot in Me but in Him who sent Me. AndDid Jesus Identify Himself As GOD – Continuedhe who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.’”Christ is called the exact image of theinvisible Father (Hebrews 1:1). He is thevoice that the people heard; He is the onethey saw living in front of them. He saidto them, “You search the Scriptures for inthem you think you have eternal life, butthey testify of Me”(v.39).Are we to believe that the Scripturestestify of only a human being, and not GodHimself? In the end of the discourse Jesussays in vs.46-47, “If you believed Mosesyou would believe Me; for he wrote aboutMe. But if you don’t believe his writings,how will you believe My words?”When did Moses write of Him?Deut.18:15-19: “The LORD your Godwill raise up for you a Prophet like me fromyour midst, from your brethren. Him youshall hear, “according to all you desired ofthe LORD your God in Horeb in the dayof the assembly, saying, ‘Let me not hearagain the voice of the LORD my God, norlet me see this great fire anymore, lest I die.’And the LORD said to me: ‘What they havespoken is good. I will raise up for them aProphet like you from among their brethren,and will put My words in His mouth,and He shall speak to them all that I commandHim. And it shall be that whoeverwill not hear My words, which He speaksin My name, I will require it of him.’”Jesus claimed to be the prophet Mosesspoke of. Notice that it says they did notwant to hear the voice of the Lord anymoreor see His glory in Horeb. Then God saysHe will put His words in a future prophet’smouth. If they do not listen to His words,then God will require it of him. This verything Jesus said of Himself in John 8:23-30. And He said to them, “You are frombeneath; I am from above. You are of thisworld; I am not of this world. Therefore Isaid to you that you will die in your sins;for if you do not believe that I am, you willdie in your sins.”In the Book of Exodus, Moses askedGod what His name is. God responded toMoses by saying, “My name is I AM,” – theSelf-existent One. This I AM in the Hebrewis the name of God (YHWH), from wherewe get “Yahweh.” The Hebrew of Exodus3:14 is hayah asher hayah: “I am that IAm.” Ego eimi is the LXX (Septuagint, theGreek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament)translation of Exodus 3:14. Egoeimi is applied to “the one who is I AM.”Jesus used all the examples to showwho He is. The I AM sayings are with apredicate; the Greek words ego eimi usedby John are distinct, and are applied only toJesus. “I AM the Bread of Life.” “I AM theLight of the World.” “I AM the good shepherd.”“I AM the door.” “I AM the Way andthe Truth and the Life.” “I AM the resurrectionand the life.” “I AM the True Vine.”These last two “I AM” statements(without the predicate) are explicit andhave the intent of revealing His personhoodto His hearers.When we read all this in context we understandthat Jesus is saying that He camefrom Heaven to earth; He is not just a man,but the Word of God incarnate. He statestwice that they will die in their sins if theydo not believe He is the I AM from above.“The phrase egoo (NT:1455) eimi(NT:1491) occurs four times in John(8:24,28,58; 13:16). Jesus claims absolutedivine being as in John 8:58 (from Robertson’sWord Pictures in the New Testament).It is evident that Jesus was declaringHis deity, even to the point that men becomesinful if they refuse it. For no mereman finds his origin in Heaven. John haspreviously stated that the Jews tried to killJesus for the same reason: He was callingGod His own Father, making Himselfequal with God (5:18).”Then they said to Him, ‘Who areYou?’ And Jesus said to them, ‘Just whatI have been saying to you from the beginning’”(John 8:25).To make the point again: in His statement,“Before Abraham was, ‘I Am” (John8:58), He is saying, “Yahweh is My name.”He was making a definitive statementthat before Abraham came into existence orwas born, He (Jesus) was there. He existedbefore all ages, before anything was created.It speaks of an eternal existence withoutrespect to time, which only God can claim.Psalm 90:2: “From everlasting to everlastingthou art God.”“John 8:58: Before Abraham wasbrought into being, I exist.The statement, therefore, is not thatChrist came into existence before Abrahamdid-as Arians affirm is the meaning: it isthat He has existed eternally; He never hada beginning, but existed before Abrahamhad a being. Which, of course, was as muchas to say that He existed before all creation,or from eternity, as in John 1:1 (from Jamieson,Fausset, and Brown Commentary.)Hence, Abraham “came into being, orwas born” genesthai (NT:1086). But Jesus’life was from and to eternity. Hence, theformula for absolute, timeless existence, “Iam” egoo eimi.Jesus claims eternal existence with theabsolute phrase used of God. The contrastbetween genesthai (entrance into existenceof Abraham) and eimi (timeless being) iscomplete. (from Robertson’s Word Picturesin the New Testament)We can come only to the conclusionthat the “I AM” statements of Jesus wereintentional, communicating what the Jewswere familiar with from Old TestamentDecember 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 15

Rambling Rose – Continuedbor and restaurants. Our Pam and Vic wentup to look after him and, knowing Pam, hewould have been well taken care of in thefood department.In the Harbor City he was the guest ofPastor Allan Hodge and his wife Gaye atthe Sutherland C/F. The folks there put ona wonderful luncheon – thank you all foryour hospitalityNo longer had he finished in Sydneythan he flew off to Port Macquarie on thenorth coast of New South Wales where hewas the guest of Mark and Maree Ryan.Mark did an incredible job of inviting thepastors and many others from that regionto come to the meeting. So much so, thatwe will look into taking other speakersthere in the future. Thank you, also, to thepastor and people at North Haven BaptistChurch who very kindly gave us the use oftheir premises. (See some of the picturesof Calvin’s tour in the photo supplement inthe center of the magazine.)Cal then went on to Adelaide as theguest of Pastor Kevin Bickle and his wifeKerry of Hectorville Christian Fellowship.This was the last leg of his tour, which wasjust as well as he was missing Kaye andthe children tremendously. His appearancethere brought more great preaching,food, and friendships. Darling Kelly Ashby(daughter of Pastor Kevin and wife ofRod Ashby) raced out to the airport in thewee hours of the morning to see Calvin offto Perth then home to the UK, taking himgifts and chocolates. He was so touched. Itwas such a lovely surprise.Calvin was thrilled at the response thathe got from the young people wherever hewent – he found the hunger for the Lord inthem most encouraging.As I said earlier, Pam and Vic went upto Sydney to look after Calvin so I arrangedaccommodations very near the airport, arented vehicle with GPS, and the good oldtrusty Melways. Vic was to do the drivingwith Pam navigating, but it seems they allgot a little further stressed, and our dearVic was tossed into the back seat whilePam took up the driving and Calvin navigated.I would love to have been a fly onthe wall, so to speak. Apparently they didonly a couple of mystery tours (got lost) sothat was pretty good.We are all back in the office now, tryingto catch up on orders and new materials,and finding places for everything. I mustshare with you that when Calvin was herein Trafalgar for a couple of days he asked ifhe could use my computer. Of course I saidyes, but I told him to disregard the messand untidiness. “No worry,” he says, as heheads off up the passage, “nothing could beworse than mine.” Well, one glance aroundand he said, “I take that back. This is farworse than mine!”So with that, I figure some drastic changeshave to be made. At least, that is my plan.Very special birthdayNovember 5 th saw our dear brother DennisLyth of Napier, New Zealand, celebratehis 80 th birthday. What a milestone! HappyBirthday, dear Denn. May the Lord blessyou, and give you many more years with us.The agony of losing unsavedloved onesI had been feeling quite chipper beforeI got word in October that my darling sister-inlaw had passed away (from cancer).Then I truly feel devastated. When we losesomeone that is in the Lord we miss themdreadfully, but there is a peace within aswe know they are with the Lord and wewill see them again one day. But when theyare not in Christ, sadness just washes allover you, doesn’t it? So many beautiful,caring, generous, and dear people leavethis earth without their salvation. It breaksone’s heart. Hopefully in my case it willgive me the boldness to speak out.Well, I’d better give you a wee gigglebefore I close, so here is some gorgeous biblicalHumor sent by some of the children.Q: What kind of a man was Boaz beforehe married Ruth?A: Ruthless!Q; Who was the greatest female financierin the Bible?A: Pharaoh’s daughter. She went downto the bank of the Nile and drew out a littleprophet!Okay, okay, it’s time to draw this to aclose.My love to you all. I pray you all havea safe holiday season. And for our dearbrothers and sisters in the USA, whileyou are shoveling snow to get down yourdriveway, we here Downunder will be sippingcool lemonade on a wonderful beachsomewhere, waiting for our huge shrimpsand steaks to cook on the Barbie!Isn’t that mean? No, not really. Ofcourse there is one small drawback – wehave to fight the flies and mosquitoes to getto the great feast. Oh well, we can’t haveit all!In Christ,MargThe water of life is the Word from GODNote:‘Hebrew is read from right to left’The Characteristics of theHebrew AlphabetBy Jeff A. BennerIn our modern English Alphabet eachletter represents a sound. Each letter inAncient alphabets represented much more,pictograph (picture), syllable (name), mnemonic(meaning) and phonetic (sound).This unique relationship between the characteristicsof the Hebrew letters are usedto assist in reconstructing the original Hebrewalphabet and in turn will assist in rootand word definitions and relationships.Pictograph:Each letter is a picture representingsomething concrete. The Ancient Hebrewpictograph represents a mouth.Mnemonic:The mnemonic meaning of a pictographis the extended meanings relatedto the pictograph. For example, the pictographhas the extended mnemonicmeanings of speak, blow and open. Thesemnemonic meanings most often are relatedto the pictograph by their function ratherthan appearance.Syllable:Each pictograph is associated witha single syllable of two consonants. Thissyllable is also the name of the pictograph.The name of the pictograph is “peh”and is also the Hebrew word for “mouth.”Phonetic:The first letter of the syllabic nameprovides a singular sound for the purposeof forming words and sentences. The phoneticvalue of the pictograph is “p.”Copyright © 2006Ancient Hebrew Research Center,http://www.ancient-hebrew.orgNote: ‘Hebrew is read from right to left’18 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

Margret GodwinMoriel AustralianAUSTRALIANnewsAustralian Report – December 08Greetings dear family, in the Name ofOur Lord and Savior.It is almost beyond my comprehensionthat another year is rapidly drawing to aclose – but here we are.Calvin’s visitWe have had a most hectic year (orso it seems to me) this year in Moriel Oz.Apart from the tours with Jacob Praschand Dave Royle (details in last issue),we have now concluded with yet another.This time was with Dr Calvin Smithfrom the UK. Calvin is the Dean of MidlandsBible College. We were so blessedby his time with us here. Everywhere hewent he was warmly received and all werethrilled with his teaching. The requests forhim to visit each of the locations (of thisyear) for 2009 have been coming in thickand fast, which is most encouraging. Yetagain, Australia has worked its magic incaptivating a first-time visitor. However,I must tell you that Calvin is somewhatfickle as first it was Melbourne which wasthe best place, then it was Tasmania, thenSydney, then Adelaide. I suspect howeverthat Sydney may have won his favor – especiallyafter he dined at the world famousDoyles Restaurant overlooking the harbor.Suffice to say we cannot wait to havehim here again next year. Next time in conferencewith Jacob (July 09).I do feel so for these wonderful menwho come all the way to Australia to ministerto us, when they have to leave theirfamilies at home. It must be very hardfor them, but when the Lord has a call onyour life there is no peace in ignoring it.Of course, it must be just as hard for thefamilies at home, too. We must always rememberto keep them in our prayers.Another welcome visitorI was thrilled to have the opportunityto catch up with Pastor Bill Randles whenhe was the guest of Pastor Lionel Letcher(Cornerstone C.F., Frankston, Victoria.I took Aunty Shirley Anning with me tosee Bill. It was quite an arduous journeyas Shirl can no longer walk and has to goin a specialized electric wheelchair. Thisnecessitates a Maxi Cab (some two hourseach way), but for all the agony to her bodythere was no way she was going to missPastor Bill. Needless to say, there were lotsof hugs from them both. Bill’s church andmany of their people (Cedar Rapids, Iowa,USA) keep in touch with Shirley, so messageswere flowing to and fro. Of coursethe greatest thrill was Bill’s teaching, itwas strong and wonderfully encouraging.Praise the Lord.Pastor Dave Royle andMoriel Missions South AfricaWe are delighted to tell you we willhave Dave back here Downunder in May,2009. There will be a full schedule in theMarch issue of the Moriel Quarterly. UInthe “Mission Report” you will read Dave’saccount of all that is happening over there.Don’t miss it!Holiday SeasonJust before I draw this to a close Iwould like to give you a small reminderabout something that is dear to my heart– the elderly, the widows and widowers,and those alone. The Lord called us to lookafter these brothers and sisters, and I believethis is the worst time of the year whenpeople alone see others off to their families,planning huge get-togethers and so forth.So I encourage you to think on this, andif you feel so led, invite someone home toshare your joy with them. I am remindedof those in nursing homes who perhaps donot have any family – maybe they are unableto leave the home – think about takingyour entire entourage to them. Almost anyof the homes I know of are only too happyfor this to happen. In the nursing home inmy town, while they go to great lengths todecorate (they have trees, candles, and thestaff dressed up as Santa’s or elves), thereis no Christian content. Very few hymns orchoruses – just the endless “Jingle Bells.”For those who don’t hold with Christmas,make it a joyous Christ-centered fellowship.Anyway, that is just something topray about. I know that whatever you do inHis name, your family will be so blessed,and the joy you bring to your guest willmelt the coolest heart.Well, my dear family, it is time to drawthis to a close. Thank you for all your lovingsupport during the past year. We lookforward to the path the Lord would have usfollow for 2009.May the Lord bless you over the festiveseason. May He be the center of yourcelebrations. May He bless you with travelingmercies. May our every utterance bein Praise of Him, and may we seek Him inall our works.My love to each and every one of you.In Christ.MargQuotes of the QUARTER !A committee can make a decision that isdumber than any ofits members. - David CoblitzThere is no monument dedicated to thememory of a committee. - Lester PourciauA conference is a gathering of importantpeople who singly can do nothing, buttogether can decide that nothing can bedone. - Fred AllenDecember 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 19

Moriel South AfricaDavid RoyleMoriel MissionsDear Friends:Lyn and I have just come back froma month in the UK where we shared atdifferent churches up and down the country.It was also an opportunity to spendtime together, and to rest and recharge ourbatteries. As ever, we are thankful for thehard work put in by Dena in arranging thevenue, and for the invitations from variouschurches who gave us great hospitality. Itwas also a time where we could catch upwith family. Lyn had not seen her dad fora year, and even though his dementia isevident, he was in good spirits, had puton weight, and was in a happy mood.It was also good to spend time with myson Anthony, his wife Liz, and our grandsonLevi. We enjoyed seeing their preparationsfor their new child due in January.Aaron and his fiancé, Erin, are also busypreparing for their wedding on March28, 2009. We had a blessed time withthem at Conway, and sharing at AinsdaleEvangelical Church where they worship.But at last we had to come home. Timepasses so quick when you’re having fun.So what did we do when we arrivedhome? Well as usual, we hit the floorrunning. Our new child Lisa was present,so we had to introduce ourselvesto her and make sure she is settled in.Please pray for her, as she has some reallydeep-rooted behavioral problemsthat will need a lot of work to overcome.The kids in general though are prettywell and obviously missed us. We wokeup early to a surprise breakfast organizedby Prudence of muffins, pancakes,and other delicacies. It was really nice.We had arranged for a bouncy castleto be rented for Baden’s birthday on October5. But since he didn’t know aboutit we just put it off to Friday the 17th.Well it was a birthday plus a welcomehome party. And our friend in Australia,who I won’t embarrass by naming,sent money for the event. We had a greattime as you will see by the pictures.David Lister asked me to share aboutEbyown’s future. To be honest, that’s theeasy part as there is so much to do. Butof course the flesh and day-to-day worriesget into your head, and to be frankwe have a few concerns. First of all, theworldwide down turn in economies is affectingEbyown. The Rand as we typeis over R17 to the pound and R10 to theUS dollar. This means imports are dearer,commodities go up, etc. Along with this,there has been a downturn in giving assponsors also struggle with their incomes,whether it’s from business or salaries. Soover the last few months there has been aworrying trend. Along with this, now thatwe are registered we have extra expendituressince we must meet salaries fora social worker as well as six paid staff.And, of course, we have just increasedby two more special-needs children. Soplease pray for our finances, that the Lordwill meet our daily needs as a mission.One thing that gives me hope though isthe Gypsy folk. I had the honor of sharingwith them in Dartford, Kent, and in Iverin Buckinghamshire. I looked at the missionwork that their leaders are conductingand I was most impressed. I really feltthey should be sharing their mission withme, rather than the other way around. Onething the Lord taught me through them iszeal. They are so zealous for the Lord, theyare so Christocentric in their mission, andthis overflows in their love and compassionand the willingness to see souls saved andlives changed. To say that they put a skip inmy step when I left them is an understatementbecause, while we often see churchesplaying at mission, the Gypsy people areliving it as though it is their lifeblood. TheOld and the New Testament speak of zealfor the Lord, and people were commendedfor their zeal. God had changed these Gypsyfolk, and now they zealously serve Him.Unfortunately, with our battles againstthe world, the flesh and the devil, apathycan creep in. Hearts that were once zealousfor the Lord are now involved purelyin church maintenance, keeping the statusquo, and just fitting in meetings betweensecular obligations. My own apathy disappearedwhen I saw how the Gypsies areitinerating all over the former communistblock countries, and yet God has giventhem room in their hearts to love the childrenat Ebyown. The lovely thing is this:if you are at a point of apathy where servingthe Lord has been placed on the backburner, where missions is not even considered,then God can once again breathe intoa lukewarm heart and set it on fire again.You can still invest in His kingdom ratherthan in this world where recent eventshave shown us that moth and rust decay.So what are our short, medium, andlong-term plans? Well first of all wemust add the words “God Willing.” Atthe moment we have a vision, but thatcounts for nothing if it isn’t Gods will.Secondly, I don’t want to presume anythingregarding the future as the Lordcould come, or take anyone of us home.Short term: We are trying to stabilizethe running of Ebyown now that we area registered home. The practicalities willalways be the same. A child will come,receive a family, and be nurtured back tohealth, and they can develop in the Lord,but some things have to change. By law,we have to employ our own social worker,which we have done with Yvonne.Even as I type this article, we are lookingfor a nurse, which is also required bylaw. House mums have to be identifiedand trained (this brings additional pressureboth financially and on our homelife), and we must integrate new workersinto the Ebyown mindset that is based onPsalm 68:5-6 and not on institutionalism.Medium term: We are desperate fora mobility bus. By its nature, Ebyown receiveschildren that nobody wants. Thesehave been HIV positive, CP, and otherchallenges. Hence children who are nonwalkerscome, and this makes hospitalvisits a challenge for our Ford Fiesta. Amobility bus has been estimated at the momentat $38,000, and we would dearly liketo save our shekels and head for this target.20 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

Medium term: also sees Di and Salmoving to pioneer a work in Kwazulu.If God wills, next September or Octoberwill see them embark on a new episodein their lives with a mission establishedamong the Zulu people in the heart of their“homelands.” Of course, this will needplanning, sponsoring, and some financing.It will also mean an opportunity fora missionary couple to replace them herenear Kwazenzele, so we are actively lookingforward to recruiting another couple.Long term: As the children get olderthey need to be prepared for life as adults.That in itself is a reason for praising theLord, as most of our children have usuallycome with a limit on their life expectation.Now with new drugs beingdeveloped we pray that they will havea full life. This needs to be prepared forwith the building of a halfway house inthe next six years. We also need a trainingcenter for skills, and a new schoolfacility. All of this requires people, skillsand investment. But God is good, and ifthis is His will there will be no problem.Our final long term goal is this: Lookingafter widows. Many elderly widows areneglected in South Africa, living in povertyand often abused. My heart, and I believeGod’s heart, is the fulfillment of Psalm 68.I also have seen projects where go “gos”(grandmas) and youngsters bring joy toeach other. Wouldn’t it be great to see theloneliness and despair experienced by bothyoung and old healed by the love of Yeshua?Another side to this, which is very selfish,is that now that Moriel leadership isgetting older, we need to think about whatwe will do with David Lister, Jacob andothers in a few years. Or maybe I’ve saidtoo much already? LOLGod BlessDave and Lyn RoyleEditor’s note: Dave was speaking forhimself about getting older. David ListerDavid RoyleOur super heroes Baden and LukeSome of our teamThe Royle FamilyZak, Sal and DiTANZANIA & KENYA(written in October)On November 5, I will be flying toNairobi in Kenya, and Kilimanjaro in Tanzania,to visit Moses and Norbert. With mewill be representatives from ICMFI, theminister’s fellowship that I have my ministerialcredential with, along with JacobPrasch and David Lister. Jim and Johnare looking to expand the work to ministersin these countries, so it’s my pleasureto introduce them. I will also be lookingat the recently purchased land for MorielMissions in Kenya and speaking to leaders.In Arusha, Tanzania, I will be meetingwith leaders and surveying the landfor our new Ebyown Children’s Villagethat has been sponsored by Moriel supporters.It’s going to be a blessed time,and yet I believe challenging, as we meetthe needs of the mission field. Please prayfor Jim Cottingham, John Burston, andme, as we travel and seek the Lord’s will.WE NEED YOU!!!That’s right. As we pioneer into Kwazulu,God willing next year we will needa missionary couple to lead our work ontoKwazenzele across the road from Ebyown.If you are interested, please e-mail me atmoriel.david@gmail.com or msindisi@gmail.com and chat to Salvador as well.We also need a nurse for Ebyown. Retiredwould be great, but we need a dispensinglicense. So a nurse or a nurse with ahandyman husband? (There’s hoping LOL.)If you are interested, please contact meASAP and we can begin to chat.We are looking for LONG-TERMcommitment in these posts.PRAYERMoriel South Africa• For our daily bread, may the Lord neversee us arrogant but ever relying on Him;• For the Love of the Lord to be displayedin our lives as we serve Him;• For renewed enthusiasm as we serve Himl long-term. Let’s remember this is a marathonand not a sprint;• For the health and walk with God of allwho work at Moriel;• God knows the things we need; we prayGod’s people would come alongside us;• Pray for all the churches that support thework and love us. May the Lord add fruitto your ministries;• For Sal and Di as they, and we, seekGod’s will for Kwazulu;• For Zak as he prepares for marriage (Nov2nd).Psalm 68:5-6Moriel MissionsDecember 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 21

Israel UpdateRuth NessimfromCJFM Report October 2008Hi Everybody!If I have been out of touch with you, it is because I have just returned from a 19 day trip to England where a team of five Israelis,comprising three Arabs, the Russian Jewish fiancée of one of them, and I were invited to speak at a conference arranged by CFI England.The aim of our trip was to call for prayer for the Arabs of this region, not from those who hate Jews, but from those who alreadylove and pray for Israel. We thank God for every one who has a heart for the Jewish people, but at the same time are mindfulof the fact that almost twenty percent of the population of Israel is Arab, and most of these also need to hear the Gospel. The Arabchurches are growing as well as the Messianic Assemblies, and we are much more aware of each other and the need to work together.Many Moslem’s are also coming to believe in Yeshua, (Yasua), and we need Jews to take the good news to Moslems, and Arabs tobring the good news to Jews! We believe that the conference was a blessing also for us, and rejoice at the response of the people. Severalhours each day,I was translating for the other four Israelis, which is quite strenuous, but it was also very enjoyable, and we all laughed alot and cried a lot, as we recounted how the Lord had brought us all together from different backgrounds through the death of my belovedAlbert, and the shooting of a Hamas member(by the Fatah) which landed him in the next bed to Albert. God’s ways are mysterious.We were all hosted by Kath Hall, who sends out the English letter by mail, and at the conference I shared a room with Fiona Lindsay.Pat Smith also came to see us. We were all trained at Redcliffe College, so it was very special to meet up together.A few days after my return, the annual Jewish-Arab picnic was held in the Lavi forest near Tiberias. Again there were about a thousandArabs and Jews together, and we were joined by Ethiopians and Sudanese refugees. Even some Moslems came and joined in theproceedings. Both Jewish and Arab pastors spoke, but I have to confess that the Arabs sang much better that the Jewish groups. I sat withthem for a while and at one point I could not stop crying, A number of Arabs greeted me by name as we have been friends for years. Alsoamong the group representing the Nahariya Assembly there were two Lebanese ladies, two Arabs from one of the villages who come toour meetings, and one Arab lady from Cfar Yasif who is not a believer, but knows she should be! We also had two non-believing Jewishfriends as well as the others. Things are changing, and even the Jewish non-believers accept the Arab believers. Pray on friends for amighty harvest.Today was Yom Kippur, the day of Atonement. It was one of the quietest days I can remember, with almost no traffic. Most ofthe believers would have been praying for the Jewish people today, and also alongside them, that they will indeed have their eyesopened to the true Atonement. Times are very serious with both threats of economic disaster and war hanging over our heads.After the Jewish holidays, Pastor Najeeb is going to try to get ABDM a visa to visit Israel for further teaching and a visit. Please praythat God will make the impossible possible. He is hoping to visit him in Bethlehem shortly. Also please pray for Shoshana, whom I ammeeting for lunch in a few days. She is 85, knows the truth, loves us much but is as stubborn as ever, Cindy is also holding out, though shecomes frequently to the meetings, as is also Tammy who is serious but not yet committed. Maya and Ariela, seem to understand little tonothing! However, they come! Dina, our local Jehovah’s Witness, came to see us before I left. She was glad to see us and told us she lovesus,and we will see her again shortly because Elisabeth from Holland is going to spend three weeks with us, and Dina loves her dearly!Avi and Esther moved into their own apartment at the end of September, but they are not far away, and we shall continue our worktogether by God’s grace. Avi has taken over he treasury(!) and continues to teach on Wednesday, and mow we have an Arab brother whowill help with the mid-week Bible Studies. Maarten continues on alternate Shabbats, but we hope to start a second Shabbat meeting sothat we will be meeting every Shabbat. We are meeting to discuss this on the coming Shabbat.We thank all those who have prayed for us, and give to the work, We are supporting some desperately needy families, and more arein need than we can give.God bless you all, and keep on praying for the Peace of Jerusalem.With our warm greetings in Yeshua,Avi, Esther and RuthTel: +972 4 9826932 • Cell:+972 544 914 017 from Israel 0544 914 017 • P.O.Box 269, 22102 Nahariya, Israel22 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

Ronnie CohenIsrael Update60 Years Young– UPDATEIsrael is now 60 years old. The Jewish population has grown from630,000 in 1948 to nearly 6,000,000 today. For nearly 6 monthsbefore the declaration of Independence it still wasn’t sure whatthe name of the new Jewish nation would be: a few of the ideaswere Ziona, Zion, Judea, Ivriya. But until the actual reading of thedeclaration was the name publicly known...Israel! It was a goodchoice, “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “That I willraise a branch to David a branch of righteousness; A King shallreign and prosper, and execute judgement and righteousness in theearth. In His days will be Judah will be saved. And Israel will dwellsafely; now this is His name by which he will be called. (Jeremiah 23:5)From the moment Ben Gurion declared independence on May 14,1948, the city of Jerusalem was put under siege by Arab forces and,until today, they still find themselves at a state of war althoughwe may have a “Peace” treaty with 2 Arab nations; Jordan and Egypt,our relations are still cold and we’re still officially at a state ofwar with the rest of the Arab world and have no relations withnon-Arab Moslem nations. From the moment Israel was acceptedas a member nation of the United Nations, most of all the UN declarationswere against Israel besides the fact that Israel has neverbeen allowed to serve on any of the UN councils. Five times theArab world has declared war against Israel in order to “wipe heroff the map” but unfortunately for them...we’re still here.Today, Israel still has nations who are publicly proclaiming theirintentions of having her totally destroyed. Rockets still rain onthe city of Sderot and the surrounding areas by Hamas in the Gazastrip, we hear the daily rhetoric coming from Iran and the threatsfrom Syria, the Palestinians and Hezbollah. But don’t think fora second that the people of Israel have been abandoned. God hasplans for the future of Israel and has never and shall never forsakeHer, Therefore your gates shall be opened continually; Theyshall not be shut day or night...For the nation and kingdom whichwill not serve you shall perish, And those nations shall be utterlyruined. (Isaiah 60:11)MorielMinistriesDecember 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 23

Letters & CommentsYour Letters andCommentsDear Moriel Australia,Congratulations for yet another timelyexpose in your September 2008 Quarterly.May all well-meaning servants of JesusChrist note on page 33, the reality of:“ On the Paul McGuire Show heasked former White House Press SecretaryTony Snow if there were plans for aNorth American Union and a merger ofCanada, Mexico and the U.S. Snow deniedit. Yet just months later, Paul Martin, thePrime Minister of Canada, openly talked ofthe merger on television - as did the formerPresident of Mexico, Vincente Fox.”MANY months ago, I alerted a Christianin a leadership position to the pendingNorth American Union (NAU) about whichthere has been much written for years.The dear chap rejected my alert, writingback to the effect of “’Snopes’ say it isnonexistent, therefore you are disseminatingrubbish.”Sadly for Australians who badly needa wake up to where we are on God’sclock, he is evidently ignorant that theglobal media has seemingly been in thehands of Kings of the Earth since WW1.As the Founder of the Trilateral Commissionsaid 17 years ago:“We are grateful to The WashingtonPost, The New York Times, TimeMagazine and other great publicationswhose directors have attended ourmeetings and respected their promisesof discretion for almost forty years. Itwould have been impossible for us todevelop our plan for the world if wehad been subject to the bright lightsof publicity during those years. But,the work is now much more sophisticatedand prepared to march towardsa world government. The supranationalsovereignty of an intellectualelite and world bankers is surely preferableto the national autodeterminationpracticed in past centuries.”David Rockefeller, (founder of the TrilateralCommission), in an address to ameeting of The Trilateral Commission,in June, 1991.Please thank David for his “INTRO toPaul McGuire”.May they both keep up their greatwork warning those with eyes to see andears to hear.Keep safe in His service.Geoff PickeringResponse:Dear Geoff,On behalf of Moriel we thank you foryour kind remarks. May the Lord continueto give us all discernment for the times welive in.In Peace,David ListerDear Jacob,@ @@ @I have read your website over recentmonths and been encouraged at the standyou have made against the modern heresiesthat have deceived so many.However, I was saddened to read thatyou have included John Stott ( http://www.moriel.org/articles/discernment/church_issues/delusional_world_of_mark_stibbe.htm ) in your “blacklist” ofAnglicans. If you have read Stott’s commentaries,his work on sexuality and otherissues, you will find him biblical and totallyGospel oriented. He has spoken out againsthomosexuality and written about it too.See here a resume of his booklet “Same-Sex Partnerships? A Christian Perspective”http://www.layman.org/layman/Archive1/amendment-o/a-synopsis-johnstotts-booklet.htmHis commentary on Romans 1 (IVP) isbrilliant, and clearly denounces homosexualbehavior. See also http://www.religioustolerance.org/hom_marj_c.htmAmazon critique of his booklethttp://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0800756746/ontarioconsultanA/I hope you can reconsider this afterreading what he has written.I do not deny that there is awful confusionin the Anglican Communion re theseissues, but there are faithful, Bible believingAnglicans who are standing for the truthand who do not believe homosexual practiceto be in God’s plan.Best wishes.T (Pastor)Response:Dear Brother T,Greetings in Jesus and thank you foryour e-mail.I do not deny that John Stott opposeshomosexuality. He is so opposed to it that hestaunchly remains in a church that ordainsthem instead of following the command ofJesus to believers in false and corrupt religioussystems (Revelation 18:4).John Stott’s book promoting annihilationism,his recent book with Stephen Sizeragainst Israel attacking Christians supportiveof God’s prophetic purposes for Israel,and his very recent lauding of the absolutelyapostate Emergent Church, all speak forthemselves. His annihilationist position andendorsement of emergence place him outsideof the parameters of biblically Evangelicalorthodoxy.With respect I am unable to agreethat John Stott’s commentary on Romans1 is “brilliant’. For it to be described thatway would demand a comprehensive perspectiveof the Book of Romans as a wholeletter. As you know chapter divisions donot appear in the original Greek text and anEpistle is authored under divine inspirationto be read as a literary unit as any other letterwould be read.If Stott were really to understand Romansit would also need include a propergrasp of Romans chapter 6 and he wouldnot for instance practice and promulgatethe unbiblical and damaging practice of infantbaptism as he does at All Souls LanghamPlace. If he understood Romans 9-11he would grasp that ‘election’ is to do witha nation chosen as an instrument and is notin exegetical context a doctrinal foundationfor his misplaced Calvinism and contrabiblicalreplacement theology.While respecting your right to differ,in my own estimation the doctrinal writingsof John Stott contain so much rubbishbecause so many of the doctrines of JohnStott themselves are mainly rubbish. Fromhis infant baptism, to his erastianism, to hisreplacement theology, to his annihilation-24 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

ism - the facts substantiate the he is a ratherdodgy figure theologically and alwayshas been. Martin Lloyd Jones never trustedhim, and for good reason.Concerning your comments regardingthe bible believing Anglicans you mention ,I would refer you to Fox’s Book of Martyrs.The simple, honest, and I dare say undeniablefact is that the founders of EvangelicalAnglicism who were martyred fordoing so - Ridley, Latimer, Hooper,Tyndale,and Cranmer would be out the door of TheChurch England today even faster than theywere out the door of the Church of Rome inthe 15th Century.They followed the direct commandof The Lord Jesus in Revelation 18:4 andcame out. But Stott and his ilk stay in. Tothis very day even the harlot Church ofRome does not officially at least bless homosexual& lesbian ordination.Your are entitled to your position, butI find it unsupportable on the basais of factor more crucially on the basis of Holy Writ.I hope you will not take this responseas a personal attack. It is not intended thatway. But the issues we are facing withoutexaggeration or hyperbole have to do withthe very survival of English Christianity(and Western Christianity generally).Sincerely In Christ,Jacob Prasch(Philippians 1:6)Dear David,I met you briefly at the Winnipeg BibleProphecy {Conference}when I was purchasingmany of Jacob’s CDs and DVDs.I have gone back to Maries’ and purchasedmany more. I am enclosing a list of the CDsand DVDs I picked up from her along witha draft in American funds to cover theircost. We are enjoying the CDs and DVDsimmensely. I feel like I am attending thebest Bible school in the comfort of my ownhome!Yours in Christ,Judith K.Response:Dear Judith,Thank you for you kind words and Iwill pass this note along to Jacob. More oftenthan not, we get letters the opposite ofyours attacking our messages. So, it is alwaysencouraging to hear that God’s peopleare getting fed and studying to show themselvesapproved workmen unto The Lord.We also want to thank you for your finicalsupport by buying the various media. Thesepurchases go to support Moriel’s day to dayoperations, The Moriel Quarterly and mostimportantly the mission field. We would askfor one thing, please pray for Moriel as firstand foremost it is our most important need.Hi Jacob,Greetings in JesusI’m not sure if you remember a questionposed to you by a little old lady during yourvisit to PE this year regarding the apparentunfulfilled prophecy pertaining to Zebulun.Gen 49:13 Zebulun shall dwell at the havenof the sea; and he shall be for an haven ofships; and his border shall be unto Zidon.If I recall the question correctly it hadto do with the area of Zebulun not being ahaven for ships as it was not located on thecoastline.I’ve run into this dear old lady againand the first thing she asked was whether ornot I had received a reply from you, so I’msorry to bring it up at this late stage but itseems this is really bothering her.In Peace,AlanResponse:Greetings in Jesus,@ @@ @@ @@ @Plainly, Zevulun never reached eitherThe Mediterranean Sea or Sea of Galilee.As best I recall I attempted to explainto this sister the variant and more precisemeaning of the original Hebrew text:Zevulon L’hof yamim yishkon -v’huL’hof oneot - v’yarkato al Tsidon1. Zevulon l’hof Yamim yishkon = ‘towards’the coast of seas, (not the sea); thereis also a Hebrew word-play here as the rootof Zevulun is the Hebrew term for “dwelling”.Jacob of course was giving this predictiveprophecy in Goshen (Eastern NileDelta) from a distance so he spoke in termsof general areas in a distant direction, notflat borders per se.a) The fact that the term is ‘yamim’ =‘seas’, not ‘the sea’ suggests the situationof Zevulun was to be (as it was) betweenthe Mediterranean and The Sea of Galilee;yamim is plural requiring two seas. TheEnglish translations are usually ‘the seashore’ which is not too accurate.b) The linguistic key is that term can bevery correctly translated ‘towards’ as in ‘inthe direction of’ and not ‘at’.2. v’hu l’hof oneot = and he towards thecoast (or shore) of sailing vessels.a) The Kishon river, (about 20 ft. deepin dryer seasons, torrential in rainy winterseason - today very polluted around Haifa)is still navigable (up to the modern dam,although its upper source regions today aredrained off for irrigation in the Jezreel valleyagricultural belt). The Kishon was theLetters & Commentssouthern border of Zevulon and flows fromZevulon ‘towards’ the Mediterranean.b) In biblical times the mouth of theKishon would have been the natural harbor/haven off of the ‘mifratz’ or Bay ofHaifa. Later in New Testament times Acco(biblical port of Ptolomei) on the northwestedge of the ‘mifratz’ would have been themain port throughout the crusader era anduntil the early 19th century. In the 20th centurythe modern port of Haifa on the Southwestedge was constructed by the Britishand expanded by the Israelis. But in oldtestament times the Kishon estuary flowingfrom Zevulon (or as Genesis 49 says -flowing from Zevulon towards the sea) wasthe natural haven.c) There is no word “haven” howeverin the original Hebrew text; that wordwould be ‘namal’ which does not occurin the original Hebrew and can lead to amisunderstanding if you do not know theHebrew. Zevulon having a port or haven isalien to the original and is a translationalinterpolation not found anywhere in the actualbiblical text. The term ‘namal’ is notin there.What is important is to understand themeaning is more accurately ‘towards’ as in‘direction of,’ this is re-enforced from theterm ‘yarkato’ for ‘flanking’, again meaning‘towards’ or ‘flowing towards’ or ‘sloppingtowards’ (as follows).3. v’yarkato al Tzidona) The term here is ‘yarkato’ not meaningborder but ‘thigh’ or ‘flank’. The Kishon’smouth at the sea would have flankedthe Phoenician coast, an area generally referredto as the region of Sidon at certaintimes in biblical history composing the areafrom Sidon south through Tyre and down tothe mifratz. The Phoenicians of course beingthe Vikings of the ancient near east asa sea faring people who would later helpSolomon and David and provided commercialbenefit by virtue of proximity.When read in the Hebrew there is noproblem saying the prophecy was literallyfulfilled. Complications emerge from relyingon translations. I checked out my linguisticswith my wife who although a mathteacher has an additional degree in Hebrewlanguage and Jewish history from Hebrew& Haifa Universities in Israel.Additionally however, as a premillenialist,I cannot rule out someexpanded future fulfillment of this prophecyduring the Millennial reign of Christ.But this of course is another matter.I trust this helps. The dear lady appearsto be hung up on this thing for some reason.In Jesus,Jacob(Philippians 1:6)December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 25

Intelligence ReportBerit KjosIS ISLAM really TOLERANT?7th GRADE TEXTBOOKS SAY SO!By Berit KjosSpreadingthrough Christian & Public Schools“Medieval and Early Modern Times captures each student’s imagination by starting every chapter with a story.” TheMcDougal-Littell Website“While seventh-grade textbooks describe Islam in glowing language, they portray Christianity in harsh light.... Islam is featured as amodel of interfaith tolerance....” The American Textbook Council, [2,p.19]“When the sacred months are over slay the idolaters wherever you find them.”[3] Qur’an [Sura] 9:5Our friend Tom* enrolled his seventhgrade son in a local Christian school thisyear. But he felt a bit uneasy when he sawthe new history text. And as he leafedthrough the pages of World History: Medievaland Early Modern Times (a standardnationwide textbook), his concern grew.The dramatic images, evocative suggestionsand interesting group assignmentswould probably prevent boredom, but whatwould his son actually learn? How accuratewere the lessons? And most important:What kinds of values would they instill?Page 4 (in the section on “Strategies”)told students to “Try to visualize the people,places, and events you read about.”[4]With all the inspiring stories and pictures,that should be easy! Group dialogue andpeer consensus would help seal those biasedimpressions! This was not what Tomexpected from a Christian school!The first unit dealt with the RomanEmpire. It had nothing nice to say aboutChristianity – not a word about the courage,commitment and charity of the persecutedChristians.The second unit covered “The Growthof Islam.” It began with an inspirationalstory that built a positive context for therest of the chapter: Thirteen-year-old Ayeshaand her family went on a hajj [pilgrimage]with “nearly 100,000” fellowMuslims (“a gross exaggeration”[2,p.19])to Mecca back in 632 A.D. After the long,hot journey, “Ayesha tells [her brother]Yazid that the trip has been very hard, butit was also satisfying. They agree withtheir parents that being near Muhammadwas especially meaningful.”[4,p.83]This warm introduction to Muhammadwas followed by stirring descriptionsof Islam’s miraculous beginnings, noblebeliefs, vast conquests, amazing scientificdiscoveries, and exceptional tolerance towardunbelievers. But were they true?The actual facts are far less flattering.Back in the 7th century, large Muslimarmies fanned out in different directions,forcing their way through the Middle East,Central Asia, northern Africa and southernEurope. Resisters were massacred orenslaved, while the vast “unbelieving”masses became taxpaying subjects at themercy of Muslim rulers. Jews and Christians[dhimmis] were held captive to therestrictive and demeaning rules of dhimmitude[“protection’]. Here’s a brief explanationfrom The Myth of Islamic Tolerance,“Jews and Christians are termed‘People of the Book’ in the Qur’an—that is, communities that have receiveda genuine revelation from Allah. That’swhy they’re offered this ‘protection’ inan Islamic state. However, the Qur’analso teaches that both Jews and Christianshave incurred the curse of Allah(Sura 5:60 and others) for their refusalto receive Muhammad as a legitimateprophet and his Qur’an as abook from Allah.... In fact, the Shariadictates that such a ‘protection’ agreement...‘is only valid when the subjectpeoples follow the rules of Islam...”[5]Those rules included special dhimmiclothing that shows the Christian’s low socialstatus, a ban on proselytizing or buildingnew churches, showing humble submissionto Muslims everywhere, and manyothers. The constant threat of punishment(i.e. loss of “protection” which often meantdeath or slavery) -- along with the crushingtax for “unbelievers” -- broke downresistance to Islamic conversion. In vastregions around the Mediterranean, Christiancommunities were virtually wiped out.Yet the textbook tells students thatthe conquered masses were generally impressedby Islam and willingly converted:“For more than 20 years, Muhammadhad spread the word of Allah acrossthe Arabian peninsula. He had begunto establish a Muslim Empire. ... Islambrought order, justice, and hope ofheaven into their lives.”[4,p.99]“There was much blending of culturesunder Muslim rule. Over time,many peoples in Muslim-ruled territoriesconverted to Islam. They were attractedby Islam’s message of equalityand hope for salvation.”[4,p.101]To make sure students don’t miss thatlast point, it’s repeated on page 105:“By 661, the Muslim Empire hadbeen expanded to nearly four timesits size by Muhammad’s successors.It then included all of Southwest Asiaand stretched into North Africa....Many conquered people becameMuslims. They found Islam’s messageof equality and hope attractive.”Tom was stunned! Why this idealizationof Islam? There was no such supportfor “Christianity.” [See note] In the sectionon the Crusades (to retake the “HolyLand”), Christians were presented as violentattackers. The fact that Jerusalem wascentral to both Jewish and Christian historywas ignored. While most Crusaders tendedto be mercenaries rather than “Christians,”such bias against semblance of “Christianity”is striking.References to slavery were just as misleading.“While Christian belligerence ismagnified, Islamic inequality, subjugation,and enslavement get the airbrush,” wroteGilbert T. Sewall in an excellent reporttitled “Islam in the Classroom: What thetextbooks tell us.” After examining the sixmain World History texts for junior highstudents, he and The American TextbookCouncil concluded that--“Textbooks mention Islamic slaveryonly obliquely... or not at all. EnslavedAfricans and Slavs were transportedto Muslim lands from the eighth26 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

century on. Slaves were accumulatedthrough conquest, tribute, and sale....“Muslim enslavement went onfrom the Balkans to Africa and CentralAsia, and the estimated fourteen millionslaves taken captive by Muslimrulers all over the world was a largerpopulation than the eleven million Africansexported to the New World before1850. In the holy cities of Meccaand Medina, in the late nineteenth century,an estimated twenty-five thousandslaves were traded annually.”[2,p.23]In the chapters on “European Renaissanceand Reformation” the light of politicalcorrectness shone briefly on the ProtestantChurch. To help students internalize anew view of Christianity, the text includeda story about Martin Luther – an excerptfrom a biographical children’s book by thenotoriously liberal pastor, Harry EmersonFosdick. Dr. Fosdick led Manhattan’s largeinterdenominational Riverside Church builtby John D. Rockefeller, Jr. No wonder hisexcerpts misrepresented the courage andconvictions behind Luther’s battle againsttheological corruption. Missing were Luther’sfamous words, “Here I stand, I can dono other, so help me God.” [4,p.467-469]In contrast to the negative and confusingtreatment of Christianity, the “Five Pillarsof Islam” got plenty of positive attention.This set of basic rules was repeatedseveral times throughout the book. Page 95explains their significance:“Muslims try to connect their personaland religious lives. They livetheir religion and serve their communityby following the Five Pillars of Islam.These are the five duties all Muslimsmust perform to demonstrate theirsubmission to the will of God.”“Muslims believe the Quran is theword of God as revealed to Muhammad.Jews and Christians also believethat God’s word is revealed in theirholy books. But Muslims believe thatthe Qur’an is the final book. Theyalso think that Muhammad is the lastprophet.”[4,p.95]Since Muhammad was the “lastprophet,” his teachings supposedly supersedethe teachings of Jesus. And in spiteof the textbook’s assurances of hope andtolerance, Islam’s global aims and militantthreats are every bit as real today as in theseventh century. Whether living in the Eastor the West, its leaders still envision globalIslamic dominion and religious supremacy– and the Qur’an still calls Muhammad’sfollowers to jihad:“And fight with them until there is nomore persecution and religion should beBerit Kjosonly for Allah.” (Sura 2.193, 8.39)“Fight those who do not believe in Allah....” (Sura 9.29)“Surely Allah loves those who fight inHis way...” (Sura 61.4)“...surely the unbelievers are your openenemy.” (Sura 4:101)“...take not from among them friendsuntil they fly in Allah’s way; but if theyturn back, then seize them and kill themwherever you find them...” (Sura 4:89)[3]This recent article from the BritishTimes Online illustrates this ongoing threat:“The first brick was thrown throughthe sitting room window at one in themorning, waking Nissar Hussein, hiswife and five children with a terrifyingstart.... The victim of a three-yearcampaign of religious hatred, Mr. Hussein’scar has also been rammed andtorched.... His car, walls and windowshave been daubed in graffiti: ‘Christianbastard’....“Mr. Hussein... is one of a growingnumber of former Muslims in Britainwho face not just being shunned byfamily and community, but attacked,kidnapped, and in some cases killed.There is even a secret undergroundnetwork to support and protect thosewho leave Islam.... For police, religiousauthorities and politicians, it isan issue so sensitive that they are accusedby victims of refusing to respondto appeals for help....“Muslims who lose their faith faceexecution or imprisonment, in linewith traditional Muslim teachingin many Islamic countries includingSaudi Arabia, Pakistan, Egypt and Yemen.In the Netherlands, the formerMuslim MP Ayan Hirsi Ali had to gointo hiding after renouncing her faithon television....“Yasmin [another convert toChristianity] has helped to set up aseries of support groups across England,who have adopted a method ofoperating normally associated withdissidents in dictatorships, not democracies....The family of an 18-year-oldgirl whom Yasmin was helping foundthat she had been hiding a Bible in herroom, and visiting church secretly. ‘Itried to do as much as possible to helpher, but they took her to Pakistan ‘onholiday’. Three weeks later, she wasdrowned...”[6]Why? How can this be happening inEurope! What has happened to Westernobjectivity, conviction and freedom?The American Textbook Council helpsIntelligence Reportanswer that question. After a thoroughexamination of the primary US textbooksand their publishers, it concluded that--“Textbook editors try to avoid anysubject that could turn into a politicalgrenade. Willingly, they adjust the definitionof jihad and Sharia or removethese words from lessons to avoid inconvenienttruths that the editors fearactivists will contest. Explicit factsthat non-Muslims might find disturbingare varnished or deleted....Terrorismand Islam are uncoupled and theultimate dangers of Islamic militancyhidden from view.“None of this is accidental. Islamicorganizations, willing to sow misinformation,are active in curriculumpolitics. These activists are eager toexpunge any critical thought about Islamfrom textbooks and all public discourse.They are succeeding, assistedby partisan scholars and associations.It is not remarkable that Islamic organizationswould try to use ready-madeAmerican political movements suchas multiculturalism to adjust the historycurriculum to their advantage. Itis alarming that so many individualswith the power to shape the curriculumare willfully blind to or openly sympatheticwith these efforts.“Multiculturalists are determinedthat social studies curricula do nottransmit ‘Eurocentric’... presuppositionsabout Western history and society.Middle East centers on campusespromote an uncritical view of Islam,often with a caustic anti-Westernspin. Historians actively interested intaking world history curricula in thisdirection are prominent in textbook authorship.Encouraged to do so by reputableauthorities, textbook publisherscourt the Council on Islamic Educationand other Muslim organizations—or atleast try to appease them.”[2,p.9]In this context of planned change,“Christians” such as Harry Emerson Fosdickfit right in. Like Muslims, he acceptedthe reality of a “Jesus” but denied Hisdeity, resurrection, and miraculous birth.No wonder he was favored by the Rockefellers.He was no threat to their vision ofsocialist unity.Though Islam is incompatible with thevision of multicultural solidarity, it’s stillone of the world’s most effective weaponsin its battle against absolute Truth. It providesglobalist change agents with (1) anenergizing crisis, (2) the diversity and tensionneeded to stimulate the dialectic process,and (3) an active partner in the waragainst Biblical Christianity.December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 27

Intelligence Report – ContinuedWhy is this important?A spiritual war is raging! And the primarytarget in today’s march toward a NewWorld Order is Biblical Truth. It’s no accidentthat the European media describesChristians as “hardliners” and “fighters”[7]but hardly dare mention the violentpower behind the rising Muslim establishment.Or that the British government nowallows Muslims to impose Sharia in theircommunities.[8] Or that countless criticshave been assaulted or killed for their convictions.Or that “Hate Crime” laws maysoon silence American dissenters.[9]Let me repeat two Scriptures that Ioften quote these days. We can’t afford toignore them:“Put on the whole armor of God,that you may be able to stand againstthe wiles of the devil. For we do notwrestle against flesh and blood, butagainst principalities, against powers,against the rulers of the darkness of thisage, against spiritual hosts of wickednessin the heavenly places. Thereforetake up the whole armor of God, thatyou may be able to withstand...” Ephesians6:10-12“Do not be discouraged... For the battleis not yours, but God’s.” 2 Chronicles 20:15Endnotes:* Not his real name. We changed it toprotect him from recrimination.** Explaining our references to “Christianity:In the textbooks, as well as inour culture, Christianity means differentthings. While the references to Islam referto a religious and political system basedon the Qur’an, the historical meaning ofChristianity varies. It may mean “culturalChristianity,” politicized Christianity, orBiblical Christianity. See Biblical versusCultural Christianity1. The McDougal-Littell Website atwww.mcdougallittell.com/ml/ss.htm?lvl=4&ID=1005500000030749#2. Gilbert T. Sewall, Islam in theClassroom: What the textbooks tell us,American Textbook Council, 2008, pp. 19and 11. http://www.historytextbooks.org/islamreport.pdf3. The Holy Qur’an, Electronic TextCenter, University of Virginia Library.http://etext.virginia.edu/etcbin/toccernew2?id=HolKora.sgm&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed&tag=public&part=all4. World History: Medieval and EarlyModern (McDougal Littell, 2008.)5. The Myth of Islamic Tolerance:How Islamic Law Treats Non-Muslims,edited by Robert Spencer (PrometheusBooks, 2005), p. 535.6. Anthony Browne, “Muslim apostatescast out and at risk from faith andfamily,” Times Online, February 5, 2005.http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article510589.ece7. Wolfgang Polzer, “Germany: EvangelicalsPortrayed as Dangerous Elements,”Christians in Crisis, September30, 2008. http://www.christiansincrisis.net/content/view/2553/1178. Richard Edwards, “Sharia courtsoperating in Britain,” Telegraph, September16, 2008. www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2957428/Sharia-law-courts-operating-in-Britain.html9. “Why “Hate crime” laws wouldban Biblical Christianity,” www.crossroad.to/articles2/007/hate-crimes.htmEphesians 6:10-12(King James Version)10Finally, my brethren,be strong in the Lord,and in the powerof his might.11Put on the wholearmour of God, thatye may be able to standagainst the wiles ofthe devil.12For we wrestle notagainst flesh and blood,but against principalities,against powers, againstthe rulers of thedarkness of this world,against spiritualwickednessin high places.Watch Jacob Prasch &Friends On WebcastInternet TVJacob & Friends can also be seen atGodlyConferences.com &Radio Free TVJacob’s USA TourJanuary 2009CC Tri-City Annual ProphecyJan 29 - Feb. 1Calvary Chapel Tri-City2334 East Southern Ave.Tempe, AZ 85282February 2009Saturday 7th Feb -Teaching DayProphecy - Times to followSunday 8th Feb - Regularservice 10:30 AMCalvary Chapel of Hope803 County Line RoadNorth Amityville, NY 11701631-789-4837Sunday Feb 15, 2008 10:00 AMTuesday thru ThursdayFeb 17-19th 7:00 PMBeth Hebron60 Bellvidere Crafton, PA 15205412-321-6154Sunday Feb. 22, 2008(9AM and 11 AM Services)Phillips Temple Church3620 Shiloh Springs RoadPO Box 26489Trotwood, Ohio 45426-0489March 2009Friday thru Sunday,March 6th - 8thThe Spanish Assembly of God69220 Victoria DrCathedral City, CA 92234(760) 324-1471Speakers: David Hocking,Jacob Prasch, Yoel Ben David,Jews for Jesus LiberatedWailing Wall Music TeamFriday Through Sunday,March 13h - 15thProphecy ConferenceVision Porterville Calvary Chapel1900 West Olive Ave.Porterville, CA 93257Phone: 559-310-0543Thursday thru Sunday,March 19 through 22Red River Prophecy ConferenceFargo ND28 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

A m e r I C a n N e w sM O R I E L A M E R I C ADear Friends:Today as I go about in my“coming ins and going outs”, Irun into so many people who areso afraid of the future. They areafraid because of the financialcrises that is gripping the world,they are afraid because Obamawas elected. The housing crises,they are a fearful people. I havealso run into a number of Christianswho express this same typeof thinking. But, I have alsofound that this time is a greattime to witness to people aboutwhy I am not afraid for the future.My God is in control. Also,that my God has taught me somuch through His Word.In the Christian life you’reeither an overcomer or you’reovercome, a victor or a victim.After all, God didn’t save us tosit in the pews, live comfortablelives or float on clouds playingharps. No, He saved us to makesoldiers out of us and move usforward by faith to claim our richinheritance in Jesus Christ. Mosessaid it perfectly: “He broughtus out … that He might bringus in” (Deut. 6:23). Too manyof God’s people have the mistakenidea that salvation—beingdelivered from the bondage ofEgypt—is all that’s involved inthe Christian life; but salvation isonly the beginning. Both in ourpersonal spiritual growth and inour service for the Lord, “thereremains very much land yet tobe possessed” (Josh. 13:1). Weneed to remember that a soldierslife is a sacrificial, tough and oftena separated life.Christians who are weak infaith or don’t live in God’s Wordsay, “Let’s go back to where it’ssafe”; but faith compels us tomove forward to where God isworking (Num. 14:1-4). Fortyyears before, Joshua and Calebhad assured the Jews, “Let usgo up at once, and possess it; forwe are well able to overcome it.”David ListerThat’s faith! But the people said, “We arenot able!” That’s unbelief, and it cost themgreatly. “And this is the victory that hasovercome the world—your faith” (I John5:4). We are to live by faith and that faithin Jesus.I love to read Christian biographies,or short stories about missionaries and themen and women God has used—and is using—tochallenge the church and changethe world. These faithful believers were alldifferent in their backgrounds, their training,their personalities, and their ways ofserving God; but they had one thing incommon: They all believed God’s promisesand did what He told them to do. Theywere men and women of faith, and Godhonored and used them because they believedHis Word.God hasn’t changed and His principleof living by faith hasn’t changed. Whatseems to have changed is the attitude ofGod’s people: We seem to no longer believeGod and act by faith in His promises.We have to remember His promises neverfail (Josh. 21:34; 23:14; 1 Kings 8:56).Today, I see too many of us not livingby the grace of God and this causes us tonot receive all that He has promised forus (Heb. 3:7-19; 12:15). Again, God has“brought us out that He might bring us in,”but too often we fail to “enter in because ofunbelief”(Heb. 3:19).So what is the solution? The first isto remember God’s promises. We rememberGod had promised Moses, “My Presencewill go with you, and I will give yourest” (Ex. 33:14). When the nation hadmarched through the wilderness, the arkhad gone before them (Num 10:33); andMoses would say, “Rise up, O Lord! MayYour enemies be scattered; may Your foesflee before You” (Num. 10:35). God hasnot changed. He is always with us and Hewatches over His Word to perform it. Godis defeating our enemies and He is goingahead of us and He wants us to follow Him,even if there is a battle ahead. Today withthe current political climate, there verywell maybe hardship ahead for true Christians.But this will not prevent God fromworking out all things for good for thosewho love Him and are called according toHis purposes. Besides what is the worstthat can happen to us? We lose our lives inthis world, and we get to go be with Jesus!Paul says it is better that we go. While Iam not saying we are to look forward topersecution, but we are certainly not to livein fear of it. We have great opportunity togrow in our faith, to grow in the Lord andto please Him as we live by faith. Also, ourwitness during stressful times in our livesgive rise to occasions for others to see thewe have a living faith and by seeing that inMoriel Americaus, others will want to know what the hopeis that we have in us.Second, Scripture tells us that Israel isour example, that the saints of old help us toguide us in our walk. We learn from them.One of the best examples was Joshua whowas an early riser (like me -- see Joshua6:12; 8:10), who spent the first hours of theday in communion with God (Josh 1:8).Joshua probably learned this from Moses(Ex. 24:4; 34:4), also David was an earlyriser Ps. 57:8), also Hezekiah (2 Chron.29:20), and our Lord Jesus Christ (Mark1:35) all started their day with the Lord.It’s impossible to live by faith and ignorethe Word of God and prayer (Acts 6:4);for our faith is nurtured by worship and theWord. Spending time with Him.One of the great test of faith for Israel,and an example for us, was whenthey were camped in enemy territory,just a few miles from Jericho (Josh.5). Sowhat did they do once they were in enemyterritory? They temporarily disabledevery male in the nation, including everysoldier in the army by circumcisingthem! Now this was a great opportunity forthe enemy to attack and wipe them out. Butit took faith for Joshua and the people toobey the Lord, and that obedience to HisWord and His Law were the secret of theirsuccess (Josh. 1:7-8). In their weaknessthey were made strong; and through faithand patience they inherited the promises(Heb. 6:12). So even if The Lord is movingus into the enemies territory or allowingthe enemies of God to encroach uponour nations, our job is to obey, to followHim for we know He will give us graceand protection when we are at our weakest.We also have to remember that Godwill test us for our own good, He will allowus to go through trials. Do we rememberhow Israel when they departed fromEgypt, God tested them at Meribah; andthey failed the test (Ex. 17:1-7)? Again, weremember the test of Israel and God commandingthe men to be circumcised; andthey passed the test. The people had faithto obey God, and this act gave evidencethat they would obey His orders as theymarched through the land. They wouldobey Him for the future battles and trials.So, is God giving His people marchingorders to move forward in their faith,to trust Him as difficult times are comingupon the world and His people? Yes, butwe are soldiers and He will never leaveus or forsake us. I believe the times aheadwill give God’s people unprecedented opportunitiesto witness to the unsaved, andto those who are not as strong in their faith.So let us not fear what is coming, but letus remember what God has said, let us rememberHis Word that has prepared us forDecember 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 29

Ministry ReportBy the time you read this we will have pushed out the first redesign of the Moriel website in many, many years. This is going to takeawhile to complete 100%, so for a time most of the pages will look “new” but a lot of unconverted pages will continue to look exactlythe same. Everything should basically work regardless. Here are the highlights of what you can expect:• You can finally listen to sermons online again! Yeah.• Articles and postings are being organized into a searchable database so you can retrieve all the articles for a particular category (e.g.,“ecumenism”, “Benny Hinn”, etc.) with a single mouse click.• You’ll be able to use news readers to be automatically notified of new content on the website. You won’t have to always personallycheck to see if something new has been posted. (In Geek-speak this is called “RSS” -- :”Really Simple Syndication”.)• All transcribed sermons are in the process of being reformatted to make them easier to read online and made available for download inthe PDF format. (This is ALL sermons in ALL languages.)• We’ve now added the Moriel Glossary to provide our definition of terms, movements, and personalities.Now I know some of you are probably saying, “It’s about time!” You have to understand that we’re dealing with a number of trickyissues, the first of which is that we’re an all-volunteer organization. As with just about any ministry, people come and go with varyinglevels of participation and the fact is that the original authors of the website are no longer with us. It’s been a struggle to coax out intothe open the inner workings so we could understand how to proceed. (Try going back to the island the treasure was buried on without theguy who remembers where it’s buried and you get a sense of our situation.)Secondly, web design has significantly changed over the past 10 years. How we approach things today is not how they were approachedin the past. So part of the difficulty is not that anyone did anything “bad” or “wrong”, but is again an extension of being anall-volunteer organization. Most websites as popular as ours have a full-time staff to keep things current and on pace with technologicalchanges – we obviously don’t and have had to play “catch up”.The Good News: Links Still WorkOur biggest concern is the fact that literally thousands of web pages out on websites throughout the Internet are linked to articles andsermons on the Moriel website. If we just rename and moved everything, those links break and no one can easily find those articles andsermons any more. So we’ve had to carefully implement a strategy whereby we could do both at the same time.When you go to a page, article, or sermon that’s been moved, you’ll get a message telling you so and suggesting you update yourbookmark and then you’ll be automatically re-directed to its new location. So everyone’s existing links and bookmarks should continueto work properly. If you come across anything that appears “broken”, please bring it to the attention of, morielcarol@yahoo.comNew StuffThe Moriel Archive: This is the new database into which all articles are being organized. This not only allows us to categorize andindex all the articles for fast and easy retrieval, but uses the aforementioned RSS technology to “push” notification of new articles outto your news reader. You’ll be able to search by major categories (e.g., “Church Issues”), by sub-categories (e.g., “Ecumenism”, “FalseTeachers”, etc.), and even all articles by a specific author (e.g., “Jacob Prasch”, “Jackie Alnor”, etc.).The Moriel Glossary: Who is “Gerald Coates”? What exactly do theological terms like “Triumphalism” or “Dominionism” mean? Aseach online sermon is converted to the new format we are hyper-linking such terms to the Moriel Glossary. When you mouse over a termlike “Dominionism”, Moriel’s definition of that term/movement/person is displayed. The entire glossary can be viewed alphabeticallyas well. We’ve become aware of the need to precisely define such terms because a lot of people use the same word or phrase to describecompletely different things. (Go into a crowded room-full of Christians and just shout, “Calvinism!” and see what happens.)Verse Linking: Throughout the site now whenever a Bible verse is referenced, simply hovering over it will cause a pop-up box todisplay the verse or verses in the NASB. This way you can check the verse without having to leave the actual page.The FutureWe’re not doing this because we simply wanted to change the color scheme. We’re providing a framework for specific expansionplans. Over the coming year our intention is to:• Revamp the Moriel online stores. A significant change will be the ability to purchase and download sermons (both audio and video)directly to your computer.• Transcribe and publish a greater number of sermons to be read or downloaded online.• Customize each country’s main page. We want to give each local arm of Moriel greater latitude to communicate what is going on locally.• Stream video sermons online. Jacob’s so handsome I have no idea why you’d merely want to listen to him when you can experience theeye candy of his personal appearance on screen.As always we thank you for your patience as this is obviously a work in progress. We view the website as a tool of ministry whosegoal should be the quick and orderly dissemination of information, not some kind of technological monument. Hopefully the changeswe’re making will facilitate the message far more than the messengers.Thanks for your continued support, The Moriel Internet Team32 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

Ministry ReportINTERNATIONAL STATE OF MORIEL 2008/2009(Hebrew Year 5769)J.Jacob Prasch (Rev) – DirectorAs we approach 2009 and come to anend of 2008, as always it is a time for reflectionand seeking The Lord for the futureand also of thanking The Lord for Hisgoodness and provision. It is also a time forthanking our brethren for their much neededprayers and generous support, especiallyfor missions & evangelism as Moriel entersinto its fifteenth year by The Lord’s grace.2008 has indeed been a year ofgrowth with increases in mission activitiesand attendance at meetings and openingif new venues, especially in NorthAmerica. Growth has been steady, but ata much smaller pace than in the USA &Canada then in most of the rest of theworld although there have been noticeableincreases in Britain & Ireland, Australia& New Zealand, and in South Africa.Despite battles with frail health, MargGodwin in Australia and Nigel Nicholsonin New Zealand both labor on in The Lorddoing an excellent job for which we are allgrateful. These countries are scantly populatedin contrast to America, Britain andAsia and are geographically remote fromthe rest of Moriel yet growth has been consistent.We owe a particular note of thanksto our Australia council members PeterDanzy, Kevin Bickel, John Philips, MichaelShafton, Same Mule, and John Kidd.Although there has been growth, Asiaremains more difficult to quantify as Morielaffiliates there (and will continue to doso in some countries) without a branch ofour own. However, Moriel Asia/Japan willbe opening based in Osaka in 2009.The real growth however has been inour missions and there is continued growthof our website in terms of unique visitorsand hits and with the BE ALERT electronicnews bulletin. Over the last few years, theInternet growth has been exponential.As more people visit the website andsubscribe to BE ALERT, printed newslettersubscriptions have neither grown (exceptvery slowly) nor have they declined (exceptby intentional culling) but are largelystatic with more people preferring updatedon line material. The exception would bein the USA where the periodical subscriptionsare increasing conspicuously. Onlineordering of materials has long overtakencatalogue orders through the Moriel Quarterlyin the USA.Neither I (Jacob Prasch) nor anyoneelse profits from the sale of recorded materials.All proceeds and royalties are donatedto the ministry to cover operating costs.Neither do I, nor most of our team receivea salary (apart from those in full time foreignmissions service and a very few fulltime support staff that keep the websiterunning). There are no pensions and fewbenefits even for full time staff. All of theadministrative work remains in the handsof volunteers, and all donations designatedfor missions go directly to missions withnone going to administrative costs.This has been both Moriel’s blessingand Moriel’s continual financial struggle.Year by year our financial intake have increased,but most of the contributions aredesignated for the mission field and areplaced directly into missions and evangelism,always leaving us a short fall anddeficits for operational costs such as telecommunications,petrol, etc. Still, TheLord honors our priorities and provides.For this we are indebted to Him, and toyou our partners. Money however, whilealways needed by ministry, as with anyhonest ministry it has never been our singlebiggest need. Our biggest need is prayer,and the need to see souls saved and taughtThe Word of God. Our other huge needof course is for the health of our orphanchildren, most of whom are HIV + and ourneed for dedicated mission staff and the resourcesto sponsor them.MORIEL MISSIONSMost people know Moriel as a teachingministry, others as an evangelistic ministryto the Jews, and others know it as adiscernment ministry. Many people knowit as an Internet ministry and a number ofpeople attend congregations planted byand/ or affiliated with Moriel.While all of these things are indeedtrue, internally within Moriel, the brethrenon our teams in various countries ratherknow and view Moriel more as missionsorganization. This is the area where weinvest our hardest work, our most manhours,and most of our money.Moriel missions are two fold. One areministries with both a humanitarian andevangelistic mission we support (in Israeland India), and others which we operateourselves (Africa).Moriel has outreaches, humanitarianaid and evangelism run by Sal and Dianne,and newly married Zak. Lyn, Dave andChris Royle run Ebyown and Alan and SueWells have an affiliated work called Bezaleel.In Tanzania, Norbert and his crewhandle our work and Moses and his teamplant churches and have an orphan programin Kenya. Dave Royle oversees allwork in Africa.Moriel operates somewhat differentlyfrom other Christian orphanages in Africa.Bezaleel is an associate facility run as ahome and Ebyown is a children’s villageregistered with child welfare but run notas an orphanage but as near to a home settingas possible and concentrating on specialneeds children (we have acquired landfor a second Ebyown in Tanzania. Most ofour activities in Zimbabwe have had to beterminated due to the Mugabe regime andfinding financially honest local co-laborersin Kenya is a huge problem.We differ from most in at least twoareas. First, we operate as a family environmentnot as an institutional one, emphasizingJesus, missionaries as parentfigures, as well as the usual emphasis onhygiene, nutrition and anti retro viral pediatricmedical care. Secondly, our childrenare either AIDS babies or extremely ill orhandicapped demanding an intensive levelof supervised medical care. We thereforedo not have hundreds of babies and childrenbut dozens due to the kind of care andmedical treatment they require. We onlytake the clinically worst cases of babiesand small children who would otherwisein effect be more or less abandoned to die,or who have been abandoned to die. Theseare our children whom The Lord has entrustedto love with His love.2008 has been a difficult year first becausewe lost a baby girl named Angel whois the granddaughter of Patience. Althoughnot an Ebyown child, Angel was loved byall of us. The death of a little one is terribleand it never gets any easier and particularlytakes a heavy toll emotionally and spiritually.Because of the tight health regime weDecember 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 33

Ministry Reportcan thank God that in its 9th year of operatingEbyown has not lost one child underour care. This year has not been good,but The Lord has been. We know thesechildren go to be with Jesus away fromthe ugly world into which they were born.We have recently taken on another cerebralpalsy child and HIV baby. Our pressingrequirement now is for more volunteermedical staff.The death of children is however painful,something we have learned to anticipatethe possibility of this sad fact. But,what transpired in Tanzania however issomething for which we were unprepared.Moriel houses sick and handicappedbabies and small children. However, thereare countless thousands of orphan childrenat older ages in Tanzania whose parentsdied usually from AIDS related disease.We operate a school for such orphan girls.But we learned that pagan tribesmen fromother villages had raped a number of ourgirls on their way to or from our schoolleaving them socially ostracized in theirtribal culture, 3 pregnant, 3 HIV+, and 5with STDs. Local police wanted bribes tofind the perpetrators (which we would notpay). This left us with quite a dilemma.Due to the prayers and generosity ofour friends we are now building rondevalsto house the girls (ages 13-17) on theschool grounds and the victims are gettingmedical and ante natal treatment asrequired. We will also be helping themto care for their babies. I cannot describehow difficult this ordeal has been and wecontinue to covet your prayers. We cannotdo enough to thank all of those individualsand those churches that contributed sogenerously without us even asking anyoneexcept The Lord.In 2008, we expanded our support inIsrael to include another congregation inGalilee. In 2009 we are planning to take onsponsorship of another new congregationnear Jerusalem and to increase our supportbudget for another congregation we alreadysupport in Galilee in addition to ourongoing support of the National EvangelismCommittee. Due to security reasonswe cannot place specific details in the publicdomain but we can inform our supportersprivately as to locations, identities etc.Our sponsorship of the orphanagework in India is proceeding as usual.Problematically, adjacent areas of Indiaare experiencing increased persecutionby fundamentalist Hindus. Pastor Chancydoes a fantastic work. Most of this supportoriginates with Moriel Australia.Discernment MinistryWhile Moriel is not a political organization,we do see a prophetic significance inthe contemporary events in The MiddleEast and we stand with Israel and the persecutedbelievers in the Moslem world.The vicious spiral of factually distortedand unbelievably biased attacks on Israelby figures such as Stephen Sizer and DavidRushworth Smith has left us to respondto this challenge. Predictably, after agreeingon TV to debate me, Mr. Sizer backeddown. The unbelievable maelstrom oftwisted revisionism published by ‘EvangelicalsNow’ in the UK by RushworthSmith was horrific. Moriel and Jacob Praschare the continual targets of anti Israel‘Christians’ who, as in the case of Sizer,even teamed up with terrorist Iran to denounceIsrael even as Iranian Christianswere being martyred by the same regimewho televised Sizer.Moriel also was among the first to warnof the fiasco at Lakeland, Florida (imitatingthe failed Toronto and Pensacola revivals).With the moral collapse of Todd Bentley,the tattooed wonder boy of C. PeterWagner, Bill Johnson, Wendy Alec, MarkStibbe, John Arnott, and Rick Joyner, whokicked elderly ladies in the face, the bubblefortunately burst quickly leaving the promulgatorsof that sham publicly embarrassedand looking like the religious fraudsmany would say they are. With little doubt,Satan will have other lies in store for 2009,which he will perpetrate against the biblicallyignorant and undiscerning. Lord willing,Moriel and our sister ministries will beready to respond.Moriel will continue to partner withothers in Discernment ministries aware ofthe issues challenging biblical orthodoxyand threatening The Body of Christ atthese perilous times such as Sandy Simpson,Mike Oppenheimer. Jewell Van derMerwe, Bill Randles, Dave Hunt, RogerOakland, Philip Powell, Jan Markell, StuartDool, Tony Pearce, Deb Dembrowski,Jackie Alnor, and multiple others upholdingscriptural truth in an age of apostasy,emergence, money preaching, ecumenism,and purpose driven lies.Friends & PartnersOur partner ministry in Singapore, 2Timothy 2 led by Jeff Loh, Esther Goh,and Cecilia Perh all continue to serve TheLord faithfully and fruitfully. The ChristianMinisterial Fellowship International(CMFI), with whom most Moriel preachershold credentials, continues to grow. Ourparticular thanks to Paul Sherbird, TomChacko, John Angliss, Bruce Shimwelland Jim Cottington. CMFI was establishedby moderate Pentecostals & Charismaticswho were compelled by The Lord to leavemovements such as The Assemblies ofGod and Elim due to various doctrinal andethical considerations.2008 has also been a difficult yearsfrom some of the ministries with whichwe align ourselves. Dave Hunt and RogerOakland have both struggled with majorhealth issues. We also ask those who prayto be mindful of the health of the wives ofArnold Fruchtenbaum and of David Hocking,two brothers from the more sane axisof the Messianic movement.Please also remember to pray for theprotection of brother Walid Shoebat, a formerterrorist, as the Moslems have a fatwahon him for his death for accepting Christand preaching the truth about Islam.Women’s Ministry2008 also saw Moriel’s first women’sconference in California and another is beingplanned for 2009. 2008 also howeversaw the birth of Moriel’s women’s ministryin the UK, Zarephath Ministries ably ledby Julie Edensor.Evangelism & Home MissionWe have by God’s grace seen a numbersaved in 2008, Jew and Gentile. We havealso witnessed many believers leaving unscripturalchurches after being exposed tothe teaching material The Lord gives us. Ahighlight of 2008 was the Utah outreach tothe Mormon cult by our American branchled by David Lister. A host of ministriesjoined with us, including many ex Mormonsand we saw 12 people saved out ofMormonism at an outreach in Manti, Utahat what is called the Mormon Miracle Pageant.The year was not without its blessings.2008 has also witnessed the spiritualand numerical growth of our newest congregationin Pittsburgh, PA near our mainAmerican base. Moriel is cautious aboutplanting churches however. If there is asolid biblical congregation in an area ourpolicy has always been that we wouldmuch rather stand by, help, and encouragewhat already exists than begin somethingnew. As The Lord leads however, we willexplore new church plants.Teaching MinistryA variety of new teaching titles havebeen released in 2008 including: Amos7&8, Reductio Ad Absurdum, ‘Thou ShaltNot Ask’, The Children of The Harlot,Jehoida The Priest, and What The SpiritExplicitly Says. We also released the firstseries of ‘on site’ DVD teachings filmedin Israel and Greece. Please pray The Lordwill give us more grain for 2009 in thistime of famine for the hearing of His Word.34 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly

5 DVD Set & 1 MP3 CD/ $69.00 – Product Number DVDSET18 http://www.moriel.org/assets/images/Store/mormonScrapbook.jpghttp://www.moriel.org/assets/images/We are hoping to get the on site SevenChurches in Revelation DVD’s edited forrelease in 2009 and more on site teachingfilmed in Israel.MORENEW NEW TOPICS TOPICSorg/assets/images/Store/mormonScrapbook.jpghttp://www.moriel.http://www.moriel.org/assets/images/Store/mormonScrapbook.jpgResourcesInternet Ministry & MediaScot Brisk has as usual performedbrilliantly and with blessing in editingBE ALERT.By early 2009 Danny Isom, CarolChampion our web mistress, John Dunn,and Greg Kaloutsis will have completelyredesigned the Moriel website. From Internetradio & TV to the on line the new websiteshould Lord willing prove much moreefficient and varied.We are meeting with Revelation TV inthe UK concerning televising Jacob Praschas Tom Chacko already has a program onthat award-winning channel with HowardCondor.Stewart & Deb Menelaws are also continuingto expand GVTV 24/7.We also are praying that Radio FreeTV & Godly Conferences with whom weare linked will become fully operational in2009.On the American side, we want tothank the Achey’s as they continue to fulfillthe American media orders along withmany of the international orders, also theNelson’s for their work on the Moriel Quarterly.The layout improvements has beenappreciated. A thank you to Al Dager forhis sacrificial work in editing and printing.A big thank you to Darren and Allisonfor their hard work in editing the new onsite messages and on the tours. Also, theirongoing work with Moriel UK.Once again, we thank our missionarystaff, our volunteers whom The Lord hasblessed us with, and above all The LordHimself. Not least of all we once againthank you for your prayers, help, and support.2009 promises to be a busy year forall of our preachers, Dave Royle, DavidLister, Tom Chacko, Skip Gillespie, andJacob Prasch etc.May The Lord bless you, your families,and your churches in the forthcoming yearand beyond. In the meanwhile, we covertyour prayers. Please pray for our countriesand their leaders, for our children in Indiaand Africa, and please pray for Israel andfor the salvation of Abraham’s descendents– the Jews and Arabs, and please rememberMoriel.With Much Love & Gratitude in Jesus,J. Jacob Prasch(Director)NEW !!Individual CD’s . . . . $5.00 eachCDJP260 Thou Shalt Not Ask - The counter apologeticfor today’s environment with its scientificworld view.CDJP261 The Belt Of Truth - Jeremiah 13 in Light ofEphesians 6. An explanation of how BiblicalTruth is necessary to have the righteousnessof ChristCDJP262 The Judgment Of SatanCDJP263 The Nature Of Laodicea Revelation - 3:14-22CDJP83 Hosea 1 & 2 (Change to Children of the Harlot,Rev 2 & Hosea 1 & 2)CDJP84 Jehoida the Priest - When the Clergy ‘know God’and ‘when they don’t’CDJP85 Amos Chapter 8 - Past, Present & FutureCDJP86 What the Spirit expressly says Concerning theLast Days. Part 1- (Revised Version) Exegesisfrom the Greek Text of 1 Timothy 4.CDJP87 What the Spirit expressly says Concerning theLast Days. Part 2CDJP90 The Order of Melchizedek & The Royal Priesthood - Who is this curious figure and whatdoes Melchizedek mean for believers today?CDJP91 Redicion Ad Absurdum - “God hath not said’;Absurd doctrinal presuppositions result inabsurd conclusions. Induction, Deductionand reductionCDJP92 Leviticus 21 - ‘The Living & The Dead’A typological exposition from Leviticus 21dealing with relationships as believers withunsaved people.Individual DVD’s – $10.00 eachIndividual CD’s –$5.00 eachIndividual DVD’S . . . . $10.00DVDJP12 The Judgment Of SatanDVDJP15 What the Spirit Expressly Says ConcerningThe Last Days - Part 1&2 - (Revised Version)Exegesis from the Greek Text of 1 Timothy 4DVDJP23 The Day of The Lord is NearDVDJP24 Strength of the Ox - Proverbs 14 in the Light ofthe New TestamentDVDJP25 Shadows of the Beast Part 1DVDJP26 Shadows of the Beast Part 2DVDJP37 The Belt Of Truth - Jeremiah 13 in Light ofEphesians 6. An explanation of how BiblicalTruth is necessary to have the righteousnessof ChristDVDJP42 Hosea 1 & 2 - Children of the HarlotDVDJP43 Jehoida the Priest - When the Clergy ‘knowGod’ and ‘when they don’t’DVDJP44 The Death of Absalom - A message aboutcoping with the death of an unsaved loved oneStore/mormonScrapbook.jpgDVD009 The Lost Book of Abraham - $15.00Investigating a remarkable Mormon Claim.NEW !!Free ShippingAll Orders are made to:Moriel USA, P.O. Box 100223Pittsburgh, PA. 15233MOREDecember 2008 • Moriel Quarterly 35

5 DVD Set & 1 MP3 CD/ $69.00 – Product Number DVDSET18 http://www.moriel.org/assets/images/Store/mormonScrapbook.jpghttp://www.moriel.org/assets/images/Store/mormonScrapbook.jpgResourcesMOREHOT TOPICS TOPICSHOThttp://www.moriel.org/assets/images/Store/mormonScrapbook.jpg http://www.moriel.org/assets/images/Store/mormonScrapbook.jpgRed River Bible and Prophecy Conference“Are we living in the last days?” – “Is there hope in these perilous times?MORESpeakers:Conference topics include:Jacob PraschDavid HockingDave HuntRoger OaklandJohn HigginsGary KahCarl Teichrib• “Faith Undone”— Roger Oakland• “Global Spirituality”— Gary Kah• “Who is the Messiah?”— David Hocking• “Perilous Times”— Dave Hunt• “The Last Revival”— Roger Oakland• “The Cross”— John Higgins• “Global Religion”— Carl Teichrib• “Looking for that blessed hope, and theglorious appearing of the great God andSaviour Jesus Christ.”— Titus 2:128 Studies on 9 DVDs plus one MP3 audio CD (with all 27 Bible Studies with Q & A)9 DVD Set plus 1 MP3/ $100.00 – Product Number DVDSET26MP3Set / $25.00 – Product Number MP3SET26Apocalypse: The Future of Planet Earthof Calvary Chapel Chino HillsSpeakers:David HockingJames WashingtonDerald SkinnerPaul McGuireJack HibbsJacob PraschWalid ShoebatNEW !!2008 Prophecy Conference Set $50Calvary Chapel Chino Hills AugustCDSET27/14 CD’s Apocalypse: The Future of Planet Earth 2008Only Available in Cd formatConference topics include:• “What will Happen to Planet Earth? - What is theApocalypse?” – David Hocking• “Moral and Spiritual Breakdown! - The Need ofRepentence” – James Washington• “Is There Any Hope? - When the Messiah Comes!”Derald Skinner• “What’s Happening to the Church? - Globalism andthe Last Days!” – Paul McGuire• “Can Israel Survive? - A New World is Coming!”Jack Hibbs• “Judgment Day is Coming! - Do Not Be Deceived”Jacob Prasch• “ Armageddon is Coming! - Why I left Jihad!”Walid ShoebatSpeakers:TA McMahonChuck MisslerWarren SmithDavid HockingJacob PraschArnold FruchtenbaumJohn HigginsThe Great Lakes Prophecy Conferenceof Calvary Chapel of AppletonNEW !!CDSET28 /13 CD’s – $65.00DVDSET28 - 8 DVD’s /1 MP3 – $100.00MP3 28 – $25.00Conference topics include:• “The Gospel and Works”, Apostasy Update – TA McMahon• “Russia Update” – Chuck Missler• “The Church in a New Age” – Warren Smith• “What Israel Now Faces - Don’t Be Troubled - Behold I ComeQuickly” – David Hocking• “What the Spirit Explicitly Says - The Belt of Truth” – Jacob Prasch• “Arab States in Prophecy” – Arnold Fruchtenbaum• “The Rapture - Jesus and the Power of the Holy Spirit” – John Higgins• Questions & Answers36 December 2008 • Moriel Quarterly