In the 80’s, a co-worker told me that he liked going down to the Vancouver airport to watch planes take off from the perimeter road located to the south of the runway, going north and south.

Planes departing in this direction fly over a body of water, and from the road one can get a really good view of the take-offs. One hot summer day, he was watching a Boeing 747 taking off. He was aware that there is a point on a runway called the point of no return. Pilots know about it, even though it is not marked by a big sign and pointing arrow. When that point is reached, the pilot can still abort the takeoff safely in case of an emergency, without running out of runway. Once this point is passed, he must attempt the take off.

My co-worker observed that the Boeing 747 was lumbering down the runway, not gaining much lift due to the hot summer air which is thinner than cold air, and it passed the point of no return. The plane was not lifting off and was running out of runway. It slowly gained a bit of elevation, but with the wheels still down, he thought the wheels would hit the perimeter barbwire fence around that part of the airport. This would have caused the plane to crash into the water of the Bay.

The pilot retracted the wheels way before he normally would do, and the plane cleared the fence. Once over the water, the air being a bit cooler and more dense, the plane slowly began to get more lift, but it seemed that it took forever to gain enough altitude to make its turn towards its destination.

This episode may remind us of our experience with sin, because there is a point of no return that we should be aware of. This process is outlined in the book of James:

“Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death” (James 1:13-15).

First we are drawn away by our own desires or tempted by our desires and enticed; that is, sin doesn’t look so bad, in fact, it looks good. Notice, once the desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, so the time to put on the brakes is before it conceives because by then one may be in danger of passing the point of no return. After conception, our desires give birth to sin—not to immortal life, but to sin—and when sin is fully grown, it brings forth death. It is like a little leaven which grows until the whole body is leavened. Likewise, the end result of sin is death from which, if not repented of, there could be no return. That is why it is important to control our desires and to resist sin early on.

We know that Christ was tempted in all things, yet He never sinned. Hebrews 4:14-15 tells us:

“Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

Christ never passed the point of no return—for Him, it was never a close call. He never allowed desires to take hold of or conceive and settle in His mind, and He never allowed them to give birth to sin. Since He could overcome temptation, we can do likewise, when Christ lives in us, helping us to attain that state of being free from sinful behavior. Let us never lose sight of the fact that with Christ’s help, we can overcome temptation and abort actions leading to sin, and if desires have conceived and have given birth to sin and death, we must quickly repent by “retracting the wheels” and attempting the lift-off from and rising above sin, so as to avoid going beyond the point of no return.

Over the years in the church we get to see various types of individuals who start attending Church services with us. One in particular is what I call a “Flash in the Pan.” People who have cooked have at times experienced this and that is when oil in a pan, unattended for whatever reason, reaches its flash or ignition temperature and catches fire. These are usually small fires, easy to extinguish.

There are some individuals who are this way. When we first meet them, they are bubbling over with enthusiasm and are all fired up about the new truth they are learning. Later their enthusiasm wanes, usually when facing a trial in regard to obeying God or perhaps some persecution from family members, so they begin to waffle a bit.

Christ warned us about some of the problems we would encounter. They are outlined in Matthew 13:3-8:

“Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”

The flash in the pan is described in verses 20 -21:

“But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.”

Notice, they endure for a little while, and like a jet when it flames out, crashes and burns, they are suddenly gone. We have to have a certain degree of toughness and ability to endure in order to stay true to the course. When we have to make those tough decisions in regard to obeying God, we must do the right thing, and God will support us.

I remember so well how happy I was when I came to the knowledge of the Sabbath. What did not dawn on me at first was that I could not work or earn a living on that day.

What was I to do? I had a government job that required me to work on the Sabbath on a rotating basis, and there was no practical way around it. I had two children and one on the way, and a mortgage to pay. I was working in a prison hospital at the time on the second floor, by myself, pacing back and forth, realizing I could not work on the Sabbath coming up in a few days.

I decided then and there that I was not going to work that Saturday, regardless of the consequences. In less than ten seconds my boss came up the stairs and told me that a fellow worker who was scheduled to work that afternoon phoned in sick and that I could work a double shift that day to cover for him. I immediately said I would if I could have Saturday off, which he agreed to give me.

I later had to resign my job and I worked for several months at several jobs before I eventually got a good job–a month after I was baptized. I worked at that company for more than 38 years, until my retirement in 2007.

I reflect on this incident at times and it reminds me of what Christ said about never forsaking us. If we step up to the plate with faith, not wavering, we can hit a home run. When we are called, we are called for the duration and Christ never said it would be a slide downhill into the Kingdom. If we endure to the end, we will be saved and receive the reward.

The one thing we don’t want to be is a “Flash in the Pan.”

Now that the Feast of Tabernacles is over, we face a long stretch before the Spring Holy Days are upon us. Our spiritual batteries should be fully charged to carry us to the spring.

It is encouraging to see growth in the Church’s membership with seven baptisms performed at the Feast in Germany this year, to the joy of everyone there. But we must also bear in mind that growth comes in two forms.  One is growth within the membership; the other is growth in grace and knowledge of Christ, which is very important.

Our stance on not being willing to compromise may seem to hinder magnificent growth in numbers, yet we must always bear in mind that we can accomplish more with ten zealously committed and truly converted individuals than with one hundred or even one thousand lukewarm and unmotivated social “followers.”

We have a command from God to move forward in the preaching of the Gospel of the Kingdom, which is the only hope for mankind, and to do it with zeal.  God has no pleasure in an individual who looks back, once he has put his hand to the plough (compare Luke 9:62).

The world needs to hear the good news of the coming Kingdom of God, and the sinning nations of the House of Israel, namely the USA, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa, need to hear the Ezekiel warning message of coming disaster and slavery, which must occur before Jesus returns.

God’s Church must preach the Gospel with boldness, without shrinking back. Because of man’s foolishness, all flesh on this planet would be destroyed, if Christ was not to intervene, and hopefully, some who will hear the warning will respond and become Spirit-begotten members of the Family of God.

The Feast of Tabernacles has been an opportunity to charge up our batteries and energize ourselves for the push to get the Gospel message out to the world.  Individually, we must stay close to God in order to be useful instruments in His hands and according to His divine Will.

It’s onward and forward without looking back, since the time is nearer than it was last year, and we need to work hard to get the job done. Then the end of the present evil age will come. This world’s madness will cease, and Christ will establish a wonderful world of peace and harmony which is what the Feast of Tabernacles pictures. At that time, we will assist Christ in bringing mankind their opportunity for eternal salvation.

Let’s not lose sight of that goal, and let us remain firm in our commitment to God to get the task done soon.

In the 1980s, I was involved in a management  training session which developed our abilities to properly prioritize things from the essential to the non-essential; the  most important to the less important; and the crucial to the insignificant. The purpose was to help us become effective managers in any company.

We had to imagine that we were isolated in the wilderness, with no help from anybody, and we had thirty items to choose from. Some of these items were of vital importance for our survival; others were trivial. To be able to survive, we had to list the items in the order of most important to least important; so it was essential to make wise choices. 

I don’t recall who provided the most correct answers according to the experts who had designed the list, but I do remember choosing correctly seven items out of the ten first ones, and I had also placed the first three in the correct order.

This reminds me that in this life we have to make choices and prioritize things so that we don’t waste time on frivolous and trivial pursuits while the crucial matters are being neglected.

Set forth below are examples of goals and objectives which Church members and non-Church members pursue in their lives. They include:

–Craving for material goods and buying all kinds of  toys  in an effort to keep up with friends and neighbours.

–Getting involved in local politics,  perhaps even running for the office of mayor, to make the community a better place.

–Getting involved in national political campaigns and propaganda, and voting for governmental candidates for the office of governor, senator, president, chancellor or prime minister.

–Being involved and  actively engaged in the process of preaching and publishing the gospel of the Kingdom of God to the world as a witness in whatever capacity God sees fit for us. This would include the fact that we have the potential to become members of the very God Family in the future, and also, to give a warning message now to the modern houses of Judah and Israel, namely the white Anglo Saxon nations, as well as to all the nations on this globe, to announce to them impending doom as a result of their sins, coupled  with the hope of a coming better world when Christ returns and establishes the government of God on the earth.

–Seeking to do everything  physically possible to make sure we will be protected from the Great Tribulation at the place of safety; thereby focusing foremost on preserving our own life.

–Being involved in local outreach programs for the community and in missionary work in third-world countries in an effort to bring individuals to Christ and to be seen as shining lights, craving for recognition and glory from man; usually, but not always,  with the proclamation of a wrong gospel message and a false Jesus Christ.

–Joining the military and the armed forces since we feel it is our duty to defend our country from enemies, domestic and foreign.

–Growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ so we can answer any questions in regard to the hope that lies within us.

–Seeking the pursuit of wealth and riches, realizing that a twisted concept of the golden rule applies so often in this world; namely, that those with gold rule; and we want to be part of that group.

These are just some of the pursuits that people get involved with. In regard to your spiritual salvation, how would you prioritize these pursuits? And which pursuits would you identify as the only two, which true Christians should and must engage in today?

The choice is ours. Let us ensure we make the right choices in the correct order.

Jesus tried to explain the fact to Nicodemus that one must be born again to enter the Kingdom of God.  We read about this in John 3:1-7:

“There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, ‘Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.’  Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ Nicodemus said to Him, ‘How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?’ Jesus answered, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, “You must be born again.”’”

Nicodemus missed the whole point and was only thinking in physical terms, while Christ was speaking in spiritual terms. Since Nicodemus did not have God’s Spirit at that time which would have helped him to understand spiritual concepts, he just did not get it, which is made obvious by his response in verse 4 (“How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?”).

When it comes to human reproduction, the human egg is incomplete. It must be fertilized by the sperm of a man. Then, an embryo will grow in the mother’s womb. In time, the embryo becomes a foetus which is fed and protected in the womb. It grows to full term until it is born into this world.

While in the womb, the baby exists in darkness, but it is protected and nourished. Once in the world, the baby has entered a realm of light, but it still needs to be fed and taken care of.

God gives each baby a spirit at the time of conception. But even with the human spirit within him, a man is still incomplete.  In order to be able to ultimately enter the spirit realm and become a Spirit being, he must first receive God’s Holy Spirit upon repentance, belief and baptism. At that time, he becomes a begotten child of God; he is not born yet. But even with the receipt of the Holy Spirit as a “down payment,” the spiritual mother–the Church of God–has still the responsibility to feed God’s begotten children spiritually and to protect them from the negative influences of the god of this world, Satan the devil. But it is also important that God’s begotten child is willing to be nourished by his or her mother.

Once  a person has achieved the necessary level of spiritual maturity, as determined by God, he can enter into the Kingdom and Family of God as a born-again child of God at the time of Christ’s return, not prior to that. He will be changed into a Spirit being and enter the spirit realm. For those who are called in this day and age and have received God’s Holy Spirit, their transformation and change will occur when Christ returns. Others will be called after Christ’s return to obtain the same opportunity.

That is our human potential.

The transition into the spirit world will be much more dramatic than at the time when a baby is born into the physical world. We will enter a world of light with opportunities that we can hardly imagine. What a glorious future lies ahead for those who remain faithful to the end! As Paul stated, the trials of this world are nothing in comparison to the glory that awaits us in the Kingdom of God.

Let’s ensure we keep our eye on the goal and remain faithful to our calling. 

Having just gone through the Passover and Days of Unleavened  Bread,  what lies ahead for us? The next holy day is Pentecost, which is some fifty days away and pictures the church receiving the Holy Spirit for the first time. We understand that some few received it in Old Testament times in order to fulfill God’s purpose, but it was generally not available until given to the Church on Pentecost in 31 AD.

Unleavened bread helped us to focus on the necessity of getting leaven, that is sin, out of our lives. Failing to do so can and would be detrimental to our future positions in the kingdom of God and even being in God’s Family. Sin, like leaven, if not dealt with will grow and eventually completely overcome a person. If not removed with the help of God’s Spirit in us, this can lead to the unpardonable sin and our destruction. Satan as the god of this world is very subtle and usually doesn’t attempt a major overhaul in our thinking but rather puts seeds of doubt, resentment or jealously in our hearts. If we are not careful to put them out in the early stages of their growth, it could be our undoing.

The society we live in is held captive by Satan:

“…whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them” (2 Corinthians 4:4).

Satan is seeking prey—and that includes us:

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

We can overcome Satan:

“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).

Notice, we must submit to God, which implies effort on our part in order for the devil to leave us alone. We must put our trust in God to help us.

Remember, also, that we must be diligent in our effort to get the good news of the Kingdom of God out to this world!  The return of Jesus Christ is the only true hope for mankind. At the same time, we must continue to be vigilant in keeping sin out of our lives and in drawing close to God so that He can and will draw near to us:

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded” (James 4:8).

We can be assured that if we follow this admonition we will be successful in fulfilling our calling, and we will thus be guaranteed a position in the glorious kingdom of God. That is our hope; that is our destiny—-let’s ensure that we do not let down, but rather go on to glory in the future God has promised!