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In the present age Satan has been allowed access to humanity. He has used that access to undermine and interfere with human being's development into fully spirit born children of God. Humans are guilty of allowing Satan's influence to lead them into disobedience towards God... but Satan' guilt is unique... it is not shared with any other... no one led him astray... His rebellion against God was of his own imagination.When Jesus Christ returns to administer the rule of God on earth His first executive action is to depose Satan and confine him so that he has no ability to access or influence humanity for 1,000 years. The source of deception and evil thinking will be removed and the earth will experience what it is like to live without Satan for that 1,000 years.Satan’s role in introducing sin into our world will be addressed. The binding of the strong man will  happen.Keep Reading »

Satan & The Power of DeathThe central message of the NT is salvation from death and the means whereby it happens. Christ's sacrificial death, His moral instruction, prophecies of a coming kingdom... are all meaningless if there is no salvation from death. We may leave the world better or worse that we found it...  You may have morally improved your soul... but who cares if there is no future hope of conscious being?Hebrew 2:14-15 Christ saves us from the power that Satan, the devil, has over us. Today we are going to look into the power he has over us, how he got it, how he uses it, and how we might be saved from it.Get our free booklet Is There Really a Devil?Keep Reading »

The Church of God teaches and proclaims a coming 1,000 year millennial rule of Christ on earth. We consider it an important phase of God's plan of salvation and spiritual birth into His family. This fall we will celebrate the biblical festival called the Feast of Tabernacles. That celebration will include plenty of talk and instruction about this interesting 1,000 year time period called "the millennium".Christ’s return is spoken of throughout the bible. The specifics of a 1,000 year earthly rule is built upon a reading of Revelation 20:1-6.Pointing believers towards the expectation of a 1,000 year millennium may seem like an obscure interpretation of prophetic verses particular to the modern age. Not so, the millennium has been part of the teaching of the Church from the very beginning.However, teachings concerning the millennial rule of Christ have been systematically suppressed over the centuries and classified as heresy. Yet, the church of God not only teaches about a millennial rule but considers it essential to sound biblical proclamation of the kingdom of God.📚 Dig deeper into your bible with this helpful bible study guide: https://www.ucg.org/bible-study-tools/booklets/christs-reign-on-earth-what-it-will-be-like Keep Reading »

How Should We Worship God?A great way to answer this is to quote Jesus Himself who says "worship God in spirit and in truth". Lots of information is packed into that short phrase. Let's investigate more closely and see what we find. One day Jesus was travelling through a region in Judea known as Samaria. The region of Samaria roughly aligned with the region once occupied by the 10 northern tribes after they split away from the rest of Israel. The people who lived in this region of Samaria had a curious collection of beliefs and practices that were similar to what the Jews practiced but definitely not the same.Keep Reading »

The biblical ideal of love is so big and all-encompassing that no single word in any language can fully communicate the revelation of love we find in God's word.The English word love is too vague and used in too many different ways to be adequate. With the same word we say " I love ice cream", "I love my boy friend", "God so loved the world". BUT… The bible does not try to teach us what we need to know about the love of God through a vocabulary lesson... be it English, Greek, Hebrew, or Chinese.We are going to build a biblical definition of love: with love that takes place in the mind of a personthen love that shows itself in actions of a personlove that flows back and forth from person to person. Love is Your Top Priority1 John 4:7-8 your present purpose is to put on the mind of God. So, understanding Godly love is worth your time and energy.📚 Dig deeper into your bible with this helpful bible study guide: https://www.ucg.org/bible-study-tools/booklets/who-is-godKeep Reading »

Pride is a way of thinking which leads to bad results:· Pride is a source of tension with our fellow human beings· Pride puts us in conflict with the living God· Pride leads us into temptation and sin· Pride tricks us into leaving the pathway to eternal lifeUnless it is your goal to actively reject God's gift of eternal life you should be engaged in a spiritual battle with pride. To spin it from the other direction you should be actively seeking to develop humility. Our goal is not only to empty our self of proud thinking and proud action... but to fill that empty space with a spirit of humility… and the works of humility.Many scriptures  tell us we should... "seek humility"... "clothe our self with humility" ... "humble our self before God". These point us toward the goal but not necessarily the methods we use to get there. What does humbling myself look like?Free booklet offer 📖 Transforming Your LifeKeep Reading »

God's commandments tell us to rest on the 7th day of each week. But the Sabbath rest is more than just a "day off". It is a day for spiritual instruction and fellowship with other believers. In addition to being a day of rest from our regular work, the 7th day is a day we are commanded to gather together for a “holy convocation”, see Leviticus 23:3. If you would like to learn more about the 7th day Sabbath found in the bible request our free booklet Sunset to Sunset: God’s Sabbath Rest: https://www.ucg.org/bible-study-tools/booklets/sunset-to-sunset-gods-sabbath-rest Locate a United Church of God meeting near you: ➤ http://ucg.org/congregations/ Popular Playlists:1️⃣ The Purpose of the First Four Commandments https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlHrYqLEsi04x0eu3p3Erq1BnJuRaXllG2️⃣ Heaven & Hell: What the Bible Really Says https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlHrYqLEsi06EXMCnqEfCYeids3jCUTAK3️⃣ Remember the Sabbath Day https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlHrYqLEsi05EzhV6rXCUbqHRUtnYXMwi4️⃣ Where is the Church Jesus Established? https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlHrYqLEsi05pOIcCZBB4S9-qZ-taNhjJ

  Voluntary fasting is recorded in both the old and new testament. In addition to general references to fasting, scripture specifically mentions that David fasted, Jesus fasted, and Paul fasted.What does the scriptures say about how biblical fasting can help us grow in grace and knowledge?Booklet offer: https://www.ucg.org/bible-study-tools/booklets/what-happens-after-death

The bible is not a long list of do's and dont’s... that is a popular misunderstanding of scripture’s purpose. Listing and condemning all the possible ways a person can sin would have tens of thousands of entries... and then the human mind would simply dream up some more. How could the bible have explained the problem of addiction to prescription drugs, or cyber-crime, to people living 3,000 years ago?Your Creator is more interested in helping you get at the root causes of sin... problematic ways of thinking that do not change over time.... then it is up to you to figure out how it applies to your situation, or your era in time. Our purpose today is to discuss the root sin of LUST and its antidote, self control. First, by defining what it is and is not, second by looking at four ways lust can lead to sin: sex, drunkenness and gluttony, and laziness….finally by recommending its antidote: SELF CONTOL The spirit must train itself to rule over the flesh… with God’s help and guidance.Lust of the Flesh - A Root Cause of Sin and EvilKeep Reading »

A bad tree yields  bad fruit… good fruit comes from a good tree… out of the abundance of the heart so a person speaks… and so they act. Jesus words tell us that sin happens because of bad thinking which leads to bad behavior. The big culprits are lust of the flesh, covetousness, and the pride of life.Today we are going to look at pride. We'll try to define pride, we’ll explore 5 areas where pride sprouts up, and 5 of the forms it takes... finally considering how a realistic self image can help us combat pride. Request our FREE bible study guide - Transforming Your LifePride: A Distorted View of RealityKeep Reading »