The Update

Update 1213

When Nations Come Together / America and God’s Church – Astonishing Parallels

On July 4 2026, Michael Link will present the sermonette, titled, “When Nations Come Together,” and Norbert Link will give the sermon, titled, “America and God’s Church – Astonishing Parallels.”

The live services are available, over video and audio, at http://eternalgod.org/live-services/ (12:30 pm Pacific Time; 1:30 pm Mountain Time; 2:30 pm Central Time; 3:30 pm Eastern Time; 8:30 pm Greenwich Mean Time; 9:30 pm Central European Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

Back to top

Two Hundred and Fifty

by Kalon Mitchell

On July 4, 2026, America celebrates 250 years of independence. Speeches will be made. Flags will be waved. Politicians from every persuasion will congratulate the nation and promise a brighter future. The word freedom will be repeated until it almost loses its meaning.

America was founded on revolutionary ideals. The Declaration proclaimed that all men are created equal, endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights — life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The Constitution and Bill of Rights sought to preserve those liberties by limiting the power of government.

Yet 250 years later, an uncomfortable question remains. What has become of that freedom?

Regardless of political affiliation, few would argue that Americans today enjoy the same level of liberty, privacy, trust in institutions, or confidence in their future as previous generations did. The government has grown. Division has deepened. Citizens increasingly look to political leaders to solve problems that politics has never been able to solve.

Christians however must view this milestone differently. We are not called to place our hope in political movements, elections, constitutions, or governments. Jesus Christ plainly stated that His Kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36). Our citizenship is in heaven (Philippians 3:20). While nations rise and fall, the people of God are commanded to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.

That knowledge allows us to ask a question few will ask during America’s 250th celebration.

Is there another 250 in the Bible that serves not as a reason for celebration, but as a solemn warning?

Numbers 16 records another group of 250. They were not ordinary Israelites. They were “leaders of the congregation, chosen from the assembly, men of renown(verse 2). They were influential, respected and trusted.

Yet these men united themselves with Korah in challenging the authority God had established through Moses and Aaron. Their argument sounded reasonable enough: “All the congregation is holy” (verse 4). Why should Moses and Aaron occupy positions of authority over everyone else?

It was an appealing argument. It appealed to equality. It appealed to fairness. It appealed to the belief that no one should possess authority over another.

But Moses exposed the real issue. “Therefore you and all your company are gathered together against the LORD” (Numbers 16:11).

Their rebellion was never really against Moses. It was against God. That same pride, the conviction that we know better, that we get to decide what’s right—that is the same attitude we can observe today in America and in many other nations. 

Scripture identifies the modern English-speaking nations: America, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and their kin are the descendants of ancient Israel, specifically of Joseph and the “lost ten tribes.” That identity carries weight. Not the weight of pride, but of responsibility. God has specifically warned that nations carrying this identity will experience national consequences for this exact pattern of pride and self-rule. While America may be enjoying its remaining freedom now, what is coming is predictable and yet entirely avoidable, if people would wake up and pay attention.

Deuteronomy 28 lays out the blessings (vs. 1-14) and the curses (vs. 15-68), tied to obedience or disobedience to God’s laws. When Israel lost her way and turned from God, notice the progression that God tells us would happen. It intensifies step by step: confusion and frustration (v. 20), disease and economic collapse, foreign oppression (vs. 43-44), military defeat (vs. 25, 49-52), siege and captivity (vs. 64-68).

In Leviticus 26, God repeats the same warning again and again: “If you will not obey me…” Again, each refusal deepens the consequence. The broad arc is pride, then broken national strength, then famine, then invasion, then desolation and finally scattering among the nations.

The 250th anniversary of America should be less a celebration of past greatness or coming greatness and instead be a more sober reminder that national blessings are taken away when a people turn away from God.

Proverbs 14:34 holds no punches: “Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a reproach to any people.” It doesn’t matter who people think they are in their own eyes. When their actions become so consistently unrighteous that the pattern itself becomes a verdict, there is a problem.

People today do not want to know what sin is. And when they do know, they still don’t want to fully obey God’s law in keeping the Ten Commandments. People speak constantly about defending freedom. Far fewer ask what freedom is actually for. Biblical freedom was never freedom from God. Rather, it is freedom to obey Him, which in the end gives true freedom from sin and the penalty of sin—death! 

Modern society has redefined freedom as the right to determine morality, to decide what is right and wrong, what marriage is, what life is worth, what Truth is, and ultimately who has authority over us. Yet, this is not a modern philosophy. It is the oldest Satanic lie in history: “You will be like God” (Genesis 3:5). 

Satan’s “promise” was never that mankind would become like God in character. The temptation was that mankind could replace God as the ultimate authority, determining good and evil on its own terms. That lie has driven every major rebellion against God, including the one staged by Korah, and it persists to the present day. Korah’s rebellion was just another expression of the same spirit. That spirit is alive today. It is celebrated as progress. It is praised as freedom. It is defended as personal autonomy. But Scripture plainly calls it rebellion.

The 250 men who stood with Korah believed they knew better than God. They rejected the authority He had established while convincing themselves they were pursuing justice and equality. Their rebellion became a warning, preserved for every generation. The ground opened and swallowed them.

America now celebrates 250 years of independence. Scripture reminds us about the 250 men who died. One celebration remembers the birth of a nation. The other remembers the destruction of men, and their families—of those who rejected God’s authority. One is marked with fireworks. The other was marked with fire from heaven.

The lesson is not merely that America has reached 250 years, but what America has become along the way. God is not impressed by military strength, economic prosperity, or patriotic celebrations. He is looking for people willing to humble themselves, repent, and obey Him.

Will America and the other modern descendants of Israel heed God’s warning before it is too late?

Back to top

By Norbert Link

The fighting between America and Iran continues, even though a ceasefire had been “agreed upon.” The Sanhedrin condemns Donald Trump for his actions (so does Tucker Carlson, and so does Germany). While John Bolton pleads guilty to a politically motivated charge, defiant Anthony Fauci is subpoenaed to testify about his conduct leading to and during the coronavirus pandemic. The US Supreme Court renders irresponsible decisions regarding immigration and harmful pesticides, contributing to the sickness and destruction of the USA.

Trump threatens the EU; Russia claims that Trump breaks the “Alaska agreement” with Putin; Britain provokes Russia; and the question is posed: What IF Putin were to attack Europe?

Finally, strong earthquakes rattle the planet almost simultaneously, but scientists tell us it’s not connected and all normal.

Please view our new message, titled, “America’s Internal and International Destruction — Comments on News and Prophecy June 27, 2026.”

Please view our new StandingWatch program, titled, “Trump’s Bizarre Interaction With a Ghost”

Back to top

Fighting Continues

The Independent wrote on June 27:

“Iran has said it has struck targets linked to US forces, as each side continued to accuse the other of violating last week’s agreement meant to end the four-month-old war. Iran’s foreign ministry did not identify the locations of its ‘defensive’ attacks, which it said were a response to US strikes on its coastal surveillance facilities. Later, Bahrain,  which hosts the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, condemned what it said was an Iranian drone attack on its territory as a flagrant violation of its sovereignty. A tanker also reported being struck by an unidentified projectile in the Strait of Hormuz…

“The US military had carried out strikes on Iranian missile and drone storage sites in the wake of Donald Trump accusing Iran of a ‘foolish violation’ of the ceasefire agreement, claiming Tehran fired at least four kamikaze drones at ships in the Strait of Hormuz… He did not name the ship, but it came hours after a Taiwanese-operated ship was fired on by Iran…”

Daily Mail had reported earlier on June 25:

“Iran launched an explosive-laden suicide drone at a cargo ship transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, endangering the regime’s fragile truce with the US after Donald Trump had declared the waterway safe for oil tankers.  US officials told the Washington Post that a Singaporean ship was attacked by an Iranian Shahed drone on Thursday evening… Prior to the attack, Iran issued warnings through regime media to oil tankers, cautioning that routes through the strait were restricted and that other routes were ‘completely dangerous.’…

“Although the President has said the strait is reopened following the ceasefire, only 50 vessels passed through the waterway on Wednesday.”

Tolls for Strait of Hormuz?

The Wall Street Journal wrote on June 25:

“Iran is pushing to make billions of dollars from the Strait of Hormuz as the regime positions itself to manage the global oil artery it severed at the start of the war. 

“The Islamic Republic estimates that charging for security, safety and environmental services in the strait would bring in $40 billion a year in revenue for states involved, according to officials familiar with the matter. The idea, if implemented, would bring Tehran cash flow and control that it didn’t command before the war.”

So, Iran is still determined to charge for tolls, in spite of Trump’s repeated “warnings.”

Talks Off Again Amidst Ongoing Fighting

CNBC wrote on June 28:

“Talks to end the war in Iran are on hold after the U.S. struck Iranian military targets in retaliation for Tehran’s latest strikes on shipping vessels in the Strait of Hormuz…. The diplomatic freeze comes after the exchange of fire prompted U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday to again threaten Iran with annihilation following U.S. attacks on Iranian military targets in retaliation for Tehran’s latest strikes on shipping in the strategically vital waterway. Iran’s neighbors, Kuwait and Bahrain, reported incoming missiles and drones overnight.

“The U.S. military attacked a number of Iranian targets after a commercial tanker in the Strait of Hormuz was reported to have been struck by a projectile on Saturday….  The ship was transiting the strait with more than two million barrels of crude oil…”

Subsequently, both parties agreed once more to halt strikes ahead of Tuesday (June 30) talks. These “agreements” become a shame and a farce.

Sanhedrin: Iran Deal Will Cost America Dearly

Israel 365 News wrote on June 24:

“On 7 Tammuz 5786, June 23, 2026, the nascent Sanhedrin, the Jewish court reconstituted in Israel after a 1,600-year absence, issued a formal ruling addressed to the American people, warning that the US-Iran memorandum of understanding signed in Switzerland is built on illusion and places the United States in existential danger… The message: America is making one of the greatest strategic miscalculations in its history…

“The Sanhedrin does not limit its concern to the Iranian threat alone. The court warns that China, Russia, and North Korea are watching American decision-making with interest, and what they see is weakness… The court further warns that the imaginary peace carries an internal American dimension. It predicts that armed militia groups operating within the United States will see the instability created by this agreement as a signal to act

“The Sanhedrin’s ruling concludes with a direct call to every Jew in America to make aliyah, the Jewish return to the Land of Israel, immediately, before the situation deteriorates beyond recovery. 

“The nascent Sanhedrin, reestablished in 2004, has not achieved universal acceptance within the Orthodox world. Its authority is contested. But its warnings have a way of landing in the middle of real events… Whether or not one accepts the court’s halachic standing, its geopolitical reading is not easily dismissed…”

Also, Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem has said that the Israel-Lebanon framework agreement signed in Washington is “null”, a “humiliation” and a surrender of sovereignty…”

There Is Nothing to Celebrate, Mr. Trump!”

Bild Online wrote on June 28:

“Four months ago today, US President Donald Trump began the war against Iran… Iran is trumpeting the claim that the agreement documents the USA’s defeat! The terrible thing, I fear, is that the mullahs are right. Of course, Trump is celebrating himself for ending the war he unleashed himself. But what has he actually achieved in these four months? Nothing. Nothing for the people of Iran, who have been subjugated by the mullahs’ terror regime and murdered by the thousands.

“Tehran’s rulers still have their highly enriched uranium; they still have their vast arsenal of missiles and drones; the Revolutionary Guards are more firmly in the saddle than ever. Sanctions are set to be lifted, and frozen assets released. And the Strait of Hormuz—a shipping route vital to the global economy—is controlled by Iran. The fact that the ‘Supreme Mullah’ Khamenei was eliminated by the Americans on the very first day of the war is certainly no cause for jubilation. Now, the ‘Junior Mullah’—his son—is simply in charge.

We are all paying the price for Trump’s resounding defeat—at the gas pump, at the supermarket, everywhere. Inflation has risen, and the economy is even weaker than feared. This is the ‘Horror of Hormuz’: supply chains are disrupted, insurance premiums are climbing, oil facilities are damaged, and cargo ships (along with nearly 11,000 seafarers) are stranded. Goods worth nearly $125 billion have recently been backed up in the strait. And the question remains whether Iran will demand transit fees in the future.

“I call this—since everyone is currently caught up in World Cup fever—an own goal of historic proportions. Of course, Trump can claim that the US wasn’t defeated militarily. But neither was Iran. And there are no draws in war…

“I simply ask myself: What was it all for? Since February 28, 2026, the world hasn’t become a whit safer, but it has definitely become more expensive. The man who so desperately wanted the Nobel Peace Prize (but only received the ‘Mickey Mouse’ version from FIFA boss Infantino) was determined to make history. Now he has a story: the 80-year-old looking out the window and realizing he doesn’t like the world he sees. Thanks for nothing, Mr. Trump.”

The author is right. Trump’s war has been a terrible defeat and humiliation for the USA of unparalleled proportions.

Trump a Liability For Right-Wing European Parties

Politico wrote on June 23:

“For Europe’s populist right, U.S. President Donald Trump’s embrace was once seen as a political asset. Not anymore…

“Even as the Trump administration’s leading figures have thrown their weight behind Europe’s nationalist parties, the U.S. president’s embrace has become a ‘poisoned gift,’ said Jean-Yves Dormagen, president of the Cluster17 polling institute. ‘Trump is really creating a problem for these leaders,’ he stated. While their electorates are divided over Trump, they increasingly see him as a threat, he added….

“In a POLITICO poll conducted by Public First in June, only 31 percent of AfD voters… agreed that the U.S. is ‘a reliable ally.’… In the U.K., Trump has become a liability for Nigel Farage’s right-wing populist Reform UK party… Meanwhile, in Germany, the Iran war has aggravated a crisis of confidence between Trump and the far right, which had already been building before the conflict.”

Nobody likes Trump.

Bolton Pleads Guilty to Politically Motivated Charge

Daily Mail wrote on June 26:

“President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser John Bolton… pleaded guilty on Friday to a single charge of retaining classified information…  Prosecutors said Friday that Bolton ‘abused his position of trust’… by sharing roughly 1,000 pages of classified information in the form of ‘diaries’ with his wife and daughter. Bolton then retained the documents related to national defense at his home in Montgomery County, Maryland, after leaving the White House…

“The investigation into Bolton’s handling of classified materials moved forward in part during the Biden administration, and career prosecutors in the US attorney’s office signed off on the charges…”

So Bolton is guilty? Guilty of sharing unclassified documents with his wife and his daughter… not to a foreign power! And retaining them? What about Trump and Biden who all retained unclassified documents illegally? What about Hillary Clinton who destroyed unclassified documents? When will they be held accountable?

Fauci Subpoenaed to Testify

Chemistry World wrote on June 26:

“Anthony Fauci… has been subpoenaed by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee’s chairman Rand Paul. Fauci… is being accused of manipulating intelligence on the origins of the pandemic and lying to Congress to cover up alleged wrongdoing at the agency. He is expected to testify before the committee in July….

“‘Fauci was the behind-the-scenes adviser who, with his hand-picked experts, pushed the [intelligence community] to endorse a natural, animal origin to hide his dangerous research,’ Gabbard’s office stated. In a statement, it said that the NIH, under Fauci’s leadership, provided millions in funding for gain-of-function research on bat coronaviruses at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China, falsely claiming that it ‘is now widely viewed as the source of the unintentional lab leak that sparked the pandemic’….

“To protect Fauci and other officials from political persecution by the incoming Trump administration President Biden took the unusual step of granting them pre-emptive, ‘full and unconditional’ pardons… before he left office in January 2025.”

The legality and constitutionality of such preemptive pardons is being widely questioned. However, the real origin and source of the virus spreading the disease is still up for debate.

Tucker Carlson Attacks Trump

Daily Mail wrote on June 26:

“[Tucker Carlson] compared Trump to a boxer who was all talk and taunting but ‘you don’t have to worry about’ when they make threats, before sending him a blunt message… Carlson appears to have defected from Trump in the months since the war began. In an April 15 clip from the Tucker Carlson Show, which is the former Fox host’s popular independent podcast, Carlson became biblical in his criticism.  

“’Here’s a leader who’s mocking the gods of his ancestors, mocking the god of gods, and exalting himself above them,’ Carlson said in the clip.  ‘Could this be the Antichrist?’ he then said. ‘Well, who knows?’…

“Carlson’s stark abandonment of Trump has poured kerosene on the fire already engulfing right-wing circles.”

Trump’s Bizarre Interaction With a Ghost

Daily Mail wrote on July 1:

Trump’s bizarre interaction with dead president shocks viewers…Donald Trump interacted with an AI-powered ghost of Theodore Roosevelt, sparking immediate concern online over the surreal encounter… The President… asked if the fake AI-Roosevelt believed building the Panama Canal his ‘greatest achievements.’ ‘The canal stands as one of my proudest battles, no question. But greatness is a strange thing,’ the AI-powered ghost told Trump

“Trump has often compared himself to Roosevelt, and notably threatened to seize the Panama Canal during the early days of his second term. Speaking at the Roosevelt Library, Trump reaffirmed his commitment to expanding US control of the waterway…”

Weird, shocking and frightening. Who knows with whom Trump was communicating?

Slimy Trump Deals

The California Post Editorial Board wrote on June 29:

“It was bad when the Bidens did it, and it’s just as bad when the Trumps do it. Insider deals, finders’ fees and backdoor introductions to family members are business-as-usual in Third World banana republics, but these slimy practices have now been normalized in the White House, to the shame of the nation…. Eric and Donald Trump Jr., sons of President Trump, and Kyle and Brandon Lutnick, sons of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, are tied to a billion-dollar tungsten mining deal that the US government is financing in Kazakhstan…. The Trumps sons… are part-owners or investors in companies neck-deep in a key defense contract to mine tungsten reserves in Central Asia. It stinks to high heaven.

“If a president’s family making bank from obscure resource companies in the former Soviet Union sounds familiar, maybe that’s because Hunter Biden’s lucrative connection to Burisma — a Ukrainian gas company — was a major scandal in the 2020 election and beyond. Republicans, including Donald Trump, were justifiably outraged at the obvious influence-peddling…. True, no one thought of Trump & Co. as unblemished saints, but who would’ve thunk that he, his kin and associates were going to use the Biden family template — virtually backing up the truck and stealing the carpets and silver — as a model of ethical behavior?…

“Democrats in Congress are pressing for an investigation into Trump sweetheart deals. If they take the House in the midterms, these hearings are surely coming.”

Incredible Decision on Pesticides

The New York Times wrote on June 25:

“The Supreme Court on Thursday sided with the manufacturer of the weedkiller Roundup, overturning a jury award for a Missouri man who claimed the widely used herbicide caused cancer in a decision that could have sweeping impacts on thousands of other Americans who similarly claim the product sickened them… Justice Kavanaugh wrote that the Missouri case would ‘require a cancer warning on Roundup’s label,’ which would directly conflict with the label required by the federal Environmental Protection Agency. Because of this conflict, he wrote, federal law ‘expressly pre-empts’ the Missouri man’s claim.

“The dispute focused on a single case, a $1.25 million award for John Durnell, a gardener in St. Louis who had used Roundup for decades and claimed that years of exposure to the product led him to develop non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a blood cancer. Mr. Durnell claimed that the company had failed to warn consumers of the dangers of the product. The ramifications of the decision could be enormous, potentially jeopardizing thousands of lawsuits pending in state and federal courts against Bayer, the German company that acquired Roundup’s original maker, Monsanto, in 2018…

“The Environmental Protection Agency, which is in charge of labeling pesticides throughout the country, has determined Roundup is safe. Bayer claims that the finding, which allows Roundup to be sold without a warning label, should override claims by Mr. Durnell and others that under state laws, they were injured by the product. The Trump administration joined the case on Bayer’s side, reversing the position taken by the Biden administration. The Trump administration’s support for the Roundup manufacturer has been controversial among the Make America Healthy Again movement, whose activists had largely supported the president’s political rise…

“Roundup, which was created by Monsanto in the 1970s, is one of the most popular weedkillers in the world. But concerns over one of its active ingredients — a chemical called glyphosate that is absorbed by plants, traveling into their roots and blocking an enzyme used for their growth — have prompted one of the biggest waves of class-action lawsuits in U.S. history.

“Evidence in lab animals, along with more limited evidence in humans, has shown a link between glyphosate and cancer, and a 2015 report by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer classified it as ‘probably carcinogenic in humans.’”

The Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to determine that Roundup is safe, is perceived to be wrong. Still, the Supreme Court thinks it is bound by a wrong decision! Everybody knows (or should know) that these pesticides are harmful. The stupidity of man is just mind-boggling.

“Trump’s Most Ruthless Immigration Weapons Unlocked as Supreme Court Hands Him Stunning Double Victory”

The Daily Mail wrote on  June 25:

“The Supreme Court on Thursday handed Donald Trump two rare wins in a huge victory for his strict immigration agenda. The Court cleared the way for Trump to revoke temporary protections for hundreds of thousands of Haitian and Syrian nationals living in the United States – siding with the president on one of the most closely watched and consequential immigration cases this term. And the Justices also decided to give Trump more authority to limit asylum seekers in the US coming from Mexico.

“The court ruled 6-3 to grant Trump administration’s request to revive a controversial ‘metering’ policy that allows federal immigration officers to turn away asylum seekers at the US-Mexico border. The high court ruled 6-3 that the courts cannot review the Haitian and Syrian nationals’ non-constitutional claims, because the TPS statute bars judicial review. ….

“Justices ruled in both cases along ideological lines, and, in a rare move, Justice Sonia Sotomayor responded to the asylum case by reading aloud a summary of her dissent from the bench…. Thursday’s ruling… could make hundreds of thousands of individuals in US suddenly eligible for deportation, including many who have been living and working in the country legally for years.”

Bad decisions by a conservative majority strictly along ideological lines. Why would a nominally independent Court act this way?

Bad Consequences For America of Supreme Court Decision

The Huffington Post wrote on June 27:

“In the hours since the Supreme Court announced it would allow the Trump administration to end temporary protected status [TPS] for immigrants from Haiti and Syria, the potential consequences have ricocheted through American communities… Without further intervention from lower courts, about 400,000 Haitians and Syrians, or about a third of the 1.3 million total people with TPS, will have just about three months before they are eligible for deportation — three months to figure out what to do with the lives they have built in the United States, whether to leave behind U.S.-born children or bring them along to dangerous nations…

“But the impact will also be felt by the nation as a whole… There are at least 740,000 TPS holders in the U.S. workforce, with many holding jobs in critical fields like healthcare, childcare and elder care… More than 20% of Haitians in the nation work in healthcare… Many TPS holders, Yoon said, are in the ‘direct care’ sector, like those who provide long-term care services to people with disabilities and the elderly…

“These fields are already facing a massive workforce shortage which will only be exacerbated by the loss of a swath of workers…

“TPS holders contribute over $29 billion annually to the American economy, and that they pay almost $8 billion in federal, payroll, state and local taxes. Haitian and Syrian TPS holders alone contribute $4.4 billion to the U.S. economy annually… Some cities may be decimated if TPS holders are forced to leave the U.S.”

The decisions are plain stupid and inhumane.

Supreme Court Upholds Constitutional Birthright Citizenship

ABC News wrote on July 1:

“President Donald Trump brushed off his loss after the Supreme Court rejected his attempt to end birthright citizenship– rooted in the 14th Amendment — on Tuesday, saying the decision is ‘too bad for the Country’ and insisting that he can ‘easily make it up in Congress through Legislation.’

“The court ruled in a 6-3 decision to reject Trump’s executive order that he issued on the first day of his presidency, with Chief Justice John Roberts writing for the majority, ‘Citizenship, then and now, was the right to have rights — to freely participate in our political community. The Framers of the Fourteenth Amendment extended that promise to every free-born person in this land. We keep that promise today.’

“Trump responded to the court’s decision with a post on his social media platform, writing, ‘The Supreme Court upheld Birthright Citizenship, which is too bad for our Country, but we can easily make it up in Congress through Legislation, with the support of the President, that has now been determined during this process,’ he wrote on his social media platform.

Birthright citizenship is rooted in both the Constitution and 1940 federal citizenship law. But even if the law were to be changed, this would likely be challenged in court on constitutional grounds with the possibility of the issue making its way back to the Supreme Court…

“House Speaker Mike Johnson… acknowledged a constitutional amendment would be ‘very complicated’ and a ‘many-years-long process,’ but said he thought it was likely the only way forward.  Amending the Constitution would take a two-thirds majority in both chambers of Congress [or] ratification by three-quarters of the states.”

This will never happen. Trump lost this case for good.

Unfounded MAGA Anger

“Amy Coney Barrett, taking office in 2020, was the final of three justices appointed by the President during his first term. But she sided with Chief Justice John Roberts, also a Republican appointee, and the Court’s three liberals to overrule the dissent of justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch. 

“Justice  Brett Kavanaugh, Trump’s second appointee, concurred with the judgment but disagreed with the majority’s argument.”

We feel that the Supreme Court decision was right. Three conservatives sided against Trump. The ruling is a major defeat for Trump. Any MAGA anger is unjustified.                                          

US Threatens to Cut Gas Supplies to EU

Big News Network reported on June 26:

“The US has warned the EU that American liquefied natural gas (LNG) could be diverted elsewhere unless Brussels eases planned methane emissions regulations…

“The EU replaced much of its Russian pipeline gas with American LNG following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022 and the imposition of sanctions on Moscow. The shift made the US the bloc’s largest external gas supplier and was hailed by EU leaders as a step toward greater energy security. Europe’s energy crisis has worsened since then, with gas and electricity prices soaring to record highs….

“US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said American exports would ‘flow somewhere else’ if the EU refused to change the rules, which are due to take effect in 2027…. The US has joined Qatar, Algeria and Nigeria in urging the EU to amend or delay the legislation. Exporters argue there is no practical way to comply…

“EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen rejected calls to weaken the legislation, insisting the bloc would not compromise its environmental standards despite pressure from suppliers…”

Brussels’ environmental regulations ARE ridiculous to a large extent. The relationship between the USA and Europe will never recover.

No Alaska Agreement?

Pravda wrote on June 26:

“Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has criticised US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for saying that no agreements on ending the war in Ukraine were reached during the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin in Anchorage…

“The Russian foreign minister also said he wanted to clarify the US role in efforts to resolve Russia’s war against Ukraine following Rubio’s remarks. In this context, Lavrov claimed that ahead of the Anchorage summit, US envoy Steve Witkoff had brought Moscow a proposal from President Trump for a settlement to the war…

“‘In Anchorage… Putin, looking at Witkoff, who was also present, began going through the American proposals point by point. After each point, in the presence of Trump and Secretary of State Rubio, he asked Witkoff whether he had correctly presented the ideas he had brought to Moscow before the Anchorage meeting. Each time, Witkoff answered in the affirmative,’ Lavrov said… ‘If one side – in this case the United States – puts forward proposals on a settlement and on how to approach this crisis, and the other side agrees with those proposals, then saying there was no agreement seems, frankly, not very sophisticated,’ Lavrov added.”

Witkoff is not considered to be a sophisticated negotiator either. He is certainly no match for Putin, nor has he (or Jared Kushner) been a match for Iran.

England’s New PM?

The Daily Mail wrote on June 30:

“Andy Burnham insisted Britain needs to go back to the 1970s today as he put the ‘wealthy’ South on notice for his Downing Street takeover. Delivering his first big speech in Manchester, the PM-in-waiting… argued that ‘trickle down’ economics must be ditched and replaced with a Left-wing concept of ‘good growth’. That included more state ownership

“He suggested his Government would copy German post-reunification legislation dictating that all states must have ‘equivalent living standards’ [which turned out to be a colossal fiasco]…

“The presumptive PM has already had to conduct a series of humiliating U-turns. They include dropping a promise of £10billion compensation for so-called Waspi women within hours, and admitting he will not try to rejoin the EU

“In a worrying sign for Mr Burnham, YouGov research released today showed his popularity already dropping. Some 43 per cent had a negative view, against 32 per cent who were positive. That is seven points worse than immediately after his by-election victory…

“Mr Burnham has previously backed a property tax that will punish those with more valuable homes, as well as an increase in capital gains tax and a new ‘death tax’ to fund social care… Analysis has found that a ‘wealth tax’ being pushed by senior Labour figures would actually wipe billions of pounds off Treasury revenues…”

Pure Madness: Britain Tests Long-Range Missile For Ukraine to Bombard Moscow

Uncut-News wrote on June 23:

“Ukraine is making it clear that it aims to ‘take the war to Russia’—and that is precisely what lies behind the recent series of massive Ukrainian drone attacks on Moscow, which have caused devastating damage, particularly to energy processing facilities and regional air traffic. The fact that… NATO supports such actions against a nuclear-armed superpower is madness.

“Beyond covert support for target acquisition, the United Kingdom is now adopting a more open stance, having reportedly just tested missiles with a range of 300 miles that are slated for delivery to the Ukrainian military. The British missile platform has the capability to deliver a 500-pound warhead all the way to Moscow…

“The Ministry of Defence (MoD) called on companies to develop long-range weapons capable of flying at speeds exceeding 370 miles per hour, costing around £400,000 apiece, and capable of being produced at a rate of 20 units per month…

“The open and blunt admission that these future systems could soon be deployed to directly attack the Russian capital would represent an insane escalation by NATO. Once NATO and Western systems begin destroying buildings in Moscow, direct military retaliation by Russia against Europe suddenly becomes a much more imminent reality. Once again, this is a case of sheer madness and insanity on the part of some of Europe’s most aggressive political leaders.”

Europe is provoking Russia needlessly. It shows that Europe IS willing to go all the way. Does Europe really want “total war”?

What If Putin Were To Invade Eastern Europe?

The Guardian wrote on June 27:

“A nightmare scenario has been playing on eastern European minds with increasing intensity since Donald Trump returned to the White House: what if Russia attacks and the US does not join the fight?…

“The problem, which would continually undermine such positivity, is that in the world of Trump, a firm promise today can be undone by a Truth Social post tomorrow….

“This is the uncertainty that sits at the core of European concerns about American reliability. For as long as Trump is in the White House, it creates… a state of ambiguity over whether the US is in or out, which will continue until a hypothetical moment of truth arrives.”

That moment arrives when Europe decides to attack the USA militarily.

Israel Is Dependent on Europe

Jerusalem Post wrote on June 27:

“Israelis like to say that Europe is ‘finished’ – an aging, divided, weak continent, increasingly Muslim and hostile to Israel. Polls show only about a third of Israelis hold a positive view of the European Union, while roughly half describe Israel-Eu relations as poor. This narrative is not entirely accurate – and certainly unwise. Israel actually depends on Europe more than on any other global actor except for the United States.

“Europe is Israel’s largest trading partner, is central to Israeli research and innovation, is an important investment source, and is home to partner academic institutions. It is also the region from which the modern Jewish state largely emerged…

“Many Europeans underestimate the threats from Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran and apply standards to Israel that are not applied to others… Many Israelis have convinced themselves that as long as America supports their approach, Europe doesn’t matter.

“As is now evident, even President Donald Trump has grown weary of the bloodshed, realizing that US public opinion is shifting. European public opinion has shifted even further, and that is serious… When Israelis say Europe is ‘finished,’ they often mean it is becoming a Muslim continent. Yet Muslims account for only about 7% of the combined population of the EU and Britain, and no serious demographic forecast suggests a future Muslim majority…

Israel simply cannot afford to treat Europe as a secondary concern or a lost cause. Losing Europe would be devastating, and Israelis need to understand this and recalibrate.”

Israel will seek help from Germany, but won’t get it.

A Red Heifer Born?

Israel 365 News wrote on June 30:

“A red heifer born last month in the hills of the Galilee, sired by imported American semen and born to a black-coated mother, has reignited a coordinated national campaign among Israeli rabbis, breeders, and educators to restore the lost laws of ritual purity to the Jewish people.

“The campaign arrives at a moment when public appetite for Temple-related preparation appears to be surging: a recent survey found 55 percent of Israeli Jews now support rebuilding the Holy Temple on the Temple Mount, and a report published this week put the number of men enrolled in Temple service training at 150,000, out of a planned 200,000.”

Even though a “red heifer” is not biblically required, many Jews believe it is.

Vatican Excommunicates Bishops of St. Pius X Society

ABC News wrote on July 2:

 “The Vatican responded aggressively Thursday to a traditionalist society that consecrated bishops without the pope’s consent, declaring the Society of St. Paul X in schism, excommunicating its bishops and priests and warning its faithful they too face the harshest sanctions in the Catholic Church…. The society, known by its acronym SSPX, celebrates the ancient Latin Mass and opposes the modernizing reforms of the Catholic Church, which it considers to be rife with heresies and errors…

“French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre founded the SSPX in 1970 in opposition to the modernizing reforms of the Second Vatican Council… Lefebvre consecrated four bishops without papal consent in 1988. The Vatican promptly excommunicated Lefebvre and the four bishops and declared the consecrations a ‘schismatic act.’ Pope Benedict XVI in 2009 lifted the excommunications as part of his yearslong outreach to the group.”

Earthquake Cluster Rocks Venezuela, California and Japan Within Seven Hours

Daily Mail wrote on June 25:

“Harrowing footage has revealed the extent of the damage and chaos inflicted on Venezuela by a pair of massive earthquakes last night. The back-to-back 7.1 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes struck near the coast, sending terrified residents racing out from swaying apartment blocks as walls collapsed and clouds of dust rose over the capital.

“’High casualties and extensive damage are probable and the disaster is likely widespread,’ the US Geological Survey said, ‘with an initial death toll estimate likely between 10,000 and 100,000.’… The quakes are among the strongest to strike Venezuela in more than a century…”

IBT added on June 25:

“Just seven hours earlier, USGS reported a notable quake with a magnitude of 5.6…. north of Redwood Valley, California…. Less than an hour after reporting the twin quakes, USGS again noted a Magnitude 6.9 earthquake… east-northwest of Kuji, Japan… (Allegedly,) the quakes were not related as they occurred on separate fault systems and plate boundaries…”

Not related? Maybe God sees it differently?

Even though the death number is still climbing (on June 28, about 1,500 were reported), more than 51,000 people are reported missing, and “nearly 7 million may be impacted”(Deutsche Welle, dated June 28).

Also, a magnitude 6.1 quake struck Afghanistan on June 27, and a magnitude 5.4 quake struck Pakistan on the same day.

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer:

These Current Events are compiled and commented on by Norbert Link. We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of news articles from our readership. The publication of articles in this section is not to be viewed as an endorsement or approval as to contents or accuracy of the selected articles, but they are published for the purpose of pointing at worldwide developments in the light of biblical end-time prophecy and godly instruction. Our own comments are provided in italics.

Back to top

What does it mean when we read that God repents?

In other translations of the Bible, this word “repents” in the Authorized Version and in the New King James Bible can be read at times as: relented, regretted, was sorry, was very sad and had sorrow.

The first mention of this in the Word of God can be found in Genesis 6:6-7, in the Authorized Version, in regard to the people living before the Flood:

“And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.”

In the Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, we read:

And it repented the Lord … grieved him at his heart. This is a strong instance of what is called anthropomorphism, an expression descriptive of human emotion or action ascribed to Jehovah… Such expressions have often given rise to superficial criticisms, depreciatory of Holy Scripture, on the part both of those who are ignorant of Oriental literature, and of those who assume that the Books of Holy Scripture must be free from the literary characteristics of the writers’ age and nationality. In this verse Jehovah is represented as intensely grieved at the frustration of His purposes for the human race. The description is given in the childlike simplicity of the language of an early age…”

In Wordnik, we read that “anthropomorphism” is described as “The ascription of human attributes tosupernatural or divine beings; in theology, the conception or representation of God with human qualities and affections, or in a human shape.”

Continuing with the comments from the Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges:

“In other passages, e.g. Numbers 23:19, 1 Samuel 15:29, it is asserted that Jehovah is not, like man, capable of repentance. There are two representations in Holy Scripture of the Divine Nature: one, which, as here, makes the Divine Purpose fluctuate, in reflexion, as it were, of man’s changing experiences; the other, which depicts the Divine Purpose as uniform, changeless, and unvarying, cf. James 1:17.”

Before addressing the false interpretation of the Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges regarding God’s repentance, let us review the passages in Numbers and 1 Samuel, referred to above. (We will talk about the passage in James later).

In Numbers 23:19, it states (in the Authorized Version; the New King James Bible; and in the Luther Bibel 1984):

“God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good.”

1 Samuel 15:29 reads in the New King James Bible: “And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor relent. For He is not a man, that He should relent.” The Authorized Version says “repent,” and so does the Luther Bibel 1984.

We see the context: God has said something, and He will not repent or relent from doing so. But even then, as we will see, He may give a prophecy which He might not carry out, depending on human conduct.

The huge problem of the false perception of the Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges lies in a complete misunderstanding of God, in using the wordanthropomorphism” in describing God—as they put it, “the use of human “descriptions of the God being with ‘childlike simplicity,’” concluding that the description of God and His actions and emotions are not to be taken literally. For instance, anthropomorphism postulates that God cannot move from one place to another and that He has no form and shape—no hands, feet, a head, a mouth etc, thereby totally ignoring the biblical fact that man was created in God’s image and according to His likeness.

We state in our Q&A, “Does God travel?”:

“God HAS form and shape. God said that Moses saw the glorified ‘form’ of the LORD (compare Numbers 12:8). God, when creating man, said that man was to be made in accordance with the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26-27; 9:6). God is described as having a head, arms, a body, feet, eyes and hair, among other aspects. Man is made in the physical form of God–he is a physical reflection, if you please, of the Spirit Beings, God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son. Please also note that Christ is described as the [Spirit] image of God the Father (2 Corinthians 4:4). He looks like God the Father; that is why He could say, even when He was here on earth in human form, ‘He who has seen Me has seen the Father’ (John 14:9). In that same way–on a physical level–man is made in the image of God.

“… This is why we read that God came down from heaven to walk on earth; that Jesus Christ, after His resurrection to a Spirit Being, ascended to heaven; that He was brought before God the Father in heaven to receive kingship and power; and that He will return to this earth, in power and glory, to rule all nations. Of course, we must also understand that God CAN ‘travel’ from one place to another within a ‘split second’… [W]hen God is at a certain place, at that very same moment, He cannot be–as a Person–at a different place at the same time…

“David did not conclude that God’s miraculous omnipresence was due to God being everywhere like a form- and shapeless blob; he knew better than that… God the Father and Jesus Christ are both Spirit beings. They both have form and shape, composed of Spirit. But the Holy Spirit is NOT a being–rather, it is the power emanating from God (compare Micah 3:8; Luke 4:14). It is through the POWER of God’s Holy Spirit that things are created. And God’s Holy Spirit does not have form and shape–God’s Holy Spirit does not exist in a bodily form… God, a Spirit being, who has form and shape, is everywhere through His Spirit…

“Turning… to Genesis 3:8-11, we find that God–actually in the Person of Jesus Christ, as no man has ever seen the Father (John 1:18; 6:46)–‘walked’ in the Garden of Eden. That must be understood quite literally. At that moment in time, Christ appeared to Adam and Eve in a physical manifestation, but through His Spirit, He was still everywhere. [Later, we find that Christ appeared to Abraham and Sarah, together with two angels, manifesting themselves ‘as’ humans, to eat and to speak with them about their future son and to warn Abraham of the impending destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (compare Genesis 18:1-2, 13, 16-33; 19:1).]…

“We read Christ’s words to Abraham in Genesis 18:20-21: ‘Then the LORD said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.”’… Some commentaries tell us that this wording [of God coming down and seeing how bad it was] is ‘anthropomorphic’ (applying human characteristics, traits or attributes to God) or a figurative way of speaking, allegedly ‘proving God’s omniscience or all-embracing knowledge.’

“Of course, most commentaries do not believe that God has form and shape, and that man was made, in a physical way, after the spiritual likeness of God. Nor do they believe that God travelsgoing from one place to another.  But the Bible clearly teaches both…

“A similar conclusion can be gleaned from the account about the Tower of Babel. We read in Genesis 11:5-8: ‘But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. The LORD said, ‘If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.’ So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city.’

“This passage implies that Christ came down, apparently in response to a report by His angels, to see what was really happening at Babel, and after having analyzed the situation, both the Father and Christ determined to go down to confuse the languages…”

The same false concept of anthropomorphism is being used when trying to deny that God can “repent,” saying this is just a human expression applied to God in figurative ways. For instance, we clearly read that God has wrath; that He can get angry. These are not just anthropomorphic expressions.

We state in our Q&A, “Does God know anger?”

“God’s wrath—both of the Father and of the Son—is also vividly described in the Book of Revelation…. 

“We read in Psalm 7:11 that ‘God is a just judge, And God is angry with the wicked every day.’… God judges and has to be ‘judgemental.’ There is nothing wrong with being angry as long as it is righteous anger – and with God that must always be the case as He is perfect.”

Addressing godly repentance, we always need to look at the context of the particular passage.

There are a number of instances where God repented or “relented, regretted, was sorry, was very sad and had sorrow.”  Let us review a few of these.

In the Authorized Version of 1 Samuel 15:11, we read: “It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night.” The Luther Bible1984 renders it the same: “I repent,” or “Es reut mich…” However, in the New King James Version, the word repenteth is translated as “greatly regret”.  God was not repenting of any sin He would have committed–that would be ludicrous, but He greatly repented of or regretted His action in setting up Saul as king over Israel (this is repeated in verse 35). God repented of setting up Saul due to Saul’s rebellious conduct. It shows how much our Creator was grieved at the actions of His people.

In Jeremiah 18:8-10, we read in the Authorized Version: “If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.  And at what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it; If it do evil in my sight, that it obey not my voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them.”   The same rendering is used in the Luther Bibel 1984. In the New King James Bible, the word used is relent.

Matthew Poole’s Commentaryobserves the above text as follows: “I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them; I will also turn from the methods of my severe providence which I had resolved in case of their impenitency to proceed in against them. There is a difference betwixt repentance in man, and repentance as it is attributed to God; repentance in man must be, not only a change in action, but a change of heart; repentance as attributed to God never signifieth a change of heart, or purpose, or counsels, but only a change in action, all alteration of the course of his providence.”

This distinction between man and God is clearly wrong. As man can and does change his heart or mind by thinking differently, so can and does God. And even though God’s overall purpose or master plan never changes, He is most certainly willing to make changes within His master plan, based on man’s conduct. When the Israelites built a golden calf, God repented that He had made them and He was willing to destroy all of them, while using Moses to makehim a great nation and leading them into the Promised Land. So, we could say that God changed His mind towards the Israelites.

The same can be attributed to Amos 7:3, 6 which states in the Authorized Versionthat “The Lord repented for this: It shall not be, saith the LORD.”   Also, the Luther Bibel 1984. In the New King James Version, the word is “relented,” as it is in Jonah 3:10 and 4:2.

We know from Malachi 3:6 that God does not change: “For I am the LORD, I do not change”. Another verse that shows the unchanging nature of God is found in Hebrews 13:8: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” In James 1:17, we read: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”

These Scriptures show that His nature and character do not change. They do NOT alter the fact that He cannot decide to change His conduct due to the behaviour of human beings. Neither do they show that God cannot repent or relent of what He had originally planned, and that He could not change His plan in that regard, but all are subject to the fulfilment of His master plan.

The confusion with regard to the word “repent,” when applied to God, might stem from the idea that repentance, when applied to humans, is normally, but not always, associated with sin, which needs to be “repented” of. God never sins—He cannot sin—so, as the argument goes, the word “repent” could not possibly be used to refer to God. But that is faulty human reasoning, as the word “repent” does not necessitate sinful conduct.

The Hebrew word for repent in Genesis 6:3, “nacham,” can have a variety of meanings. Strong’sdefines it as “to sigh; to be sorry; to avenge; repent.” It simply means, ‘to feel sorry for something you have done.” It can also include a change of mind or behavior.

In our booklet God’s Teachings on Sexual Relationships, we read the following on pages 6-8:

“God Can Change His Mind on Temporary Matters.

“There are a number of examples where God DID change His mind, so how do we explain that? Let us look at some of these examples…

“Genesis 18:26–32 relates Abraham’s negotiation with God over how many righteous in Sodom would be needed in order to save the city from destruction. First of all it was 50, then God agreed to 45, then 40, then 30, then 20 and finally 10. We note quite a few changes of mind there because of Abraham’s pleading.

“Numbers 14 tells the story of Israel refusing to enter Canaan, and instead of entering the land immediately, God changed this by deferring their entry for 40 years.

“In 2 Kings 20 we read that King Hezekiah was ‘sick and near death’ (verse 1), and the king prayed about this matter (verse 2–3) and God changed His mind and added another 15 years to his life (verses 5–6).

“Jonah was sent out on a mission to Nineveh but Jonah tried to opt out of this task. Eventually he did deliver the message that in ‘forty days… Nineveh shall be overthrown’ (Jonah 3:4). However, the Ninevites repented and ‘God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it (verse 10).’ Again, a change of mind by God.

“We can see from these examples that God did change, but none of these changes involved alterations to His unalterable spiritual Law. God does not change, nor does He compromise with regard to His plan for mankind, a plan which is revealed through the meaning of His Holy Days. (For more insight, please read our free booklets, The Meaning of God’s Spring Holy Days, and The Meaning of God’s Fall Holy Days, where His plan of salvation for ALL people is revealed, including those who, at this present time, are disobedient to the Truth and Way of Life that God has shown His called-out ones.)

“God does not change with regard to keeping His Law—the Ten Commandments. It is interesting that the Roman Catholic Church has defied God and ‘replaced’ His seventh-day-Sabbath with Sunday. They also observe the paganized holidays, such as Christmas and Easter (and other days), while ignoring and rejecting the Holy Days that God says are His. Leviticus 23:1–2 clearly states: ‘And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘The feasts of the LORD, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts.’”’ God then gives details about the Sabbath and all of His annual Holy Days.

“The Church of God has long understood that if one part or passage in the Bible is contradictory, then God’s Word could not be trusted. If God went back and forth about His spiritual Law for mankind, then how could we trust Him? How could we possibly build a relationship with Him?

“We know from God’s Word that He is perfect in all His ways, and we know that the Father and Jesus Christ are one (see John 10:30 and 17:11)—unified and with singleness of purpose.

“We are truly blessed that God is constant and that His integrity is intact so that we can fully trust the great Creator God of the universe. This is confirmed in Proverbs 3:5–6: ‘Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding.’

“God Does Not Change His Eternal Truths Nor His Character.

“God does NOT change when it comes to the eternal truths that He has made clear in His Word. God has perfect character, which cannot change. So then, we must have the spiritual insight and understanding to comprehend this principal and learn to apply it.”

Repentance is a word that we use when we have sinned and need forgiveness (compare for example Acts 2:38).  That is at the human level but when used in connection with God and, therefore, it most certainly is not to do with any failure or sin, rather that the master plan of God is not altered though the means and initial steps to achieve it may be modified, based on human conduct.

Lead Writers: Brian Gale (United Kingdom) and Norbert Link

Back to top

Preaching the Gospel and Feeding the Flock

Compiled by Norbert Link

“Trump’s Bizarre Interaction With a Ghost” is the title of a new StandingWatch program, presented by Evangelist Norbert Link. Here is the summary:

Recently, Donald Trump communicated with an AI-powered ghost of Theodore Roosevelt. Harmless fun, or dangerous activity? With whom, exactly, did Trump speak? The Bible clearly warns us not to engage in such demonic practices. And why this fascination with UFOs, aliens, and other unexplained phenomena? Could it be that a sinister and deceptive plan is behind all of it?

“Trumps bizarrer Kontakt mit einem Geist“ is the title of a new AufPostenStehen program, presented by Norbert Link. This German program covers the same topic as described above.

A new member letter has been written, posted on our Website, and sent out to our subscribers. In the letter, Rene Messier discusses the Work which God the Father gave Jesus Christ to do, and how this relates to us today. 

Norbert Link’s sermonette, titled, “America’s Internal and International Destruction — Comments on News and Prophecy, June 27, 2026,” has been posted. Here is a summary:

While Jesus told His disciples to make peace and oppose war, America is doing the exact opposite. On the international scene, the Iran war is ongoing, and even “attempts” to end the fighting virtually guarantee their continuance. In the process, America’s “allies” are running away. True faith in God and His power are basically nonexistent in the USA. Domestically and internally, recent US Supreme Court decisions help destroy America from the inside.

Kalon Mitchell’s sermon, titled, “When Everything Accelerates,” has been posted. 

Here is a summary:

The world is accelerating and nobody knows how to stop it. God told us this was coming. Underneath all the technology, capability, and noise, the same ancient problem is surfacing that has always surfaced when humanity gains more power, we want to be like God, on our own terms, without going through Him.

Norbert Link’s German sermon was posted with the title Amerika und Gottes Kirche—erstaunliche Parallelen“. Title in English: “America and God’s Church—Astonishing Parallels.”

Johann Schell’s German sermonette, “Liebe ist Arbeit” (“Love is Work”) from last Sabbath has been posted. 

Christoph Sperzel’s German sermon from last Sabbath has been posted, titled, “Schach, ein Gleichnis für den geistlichen Kampf“ (“Chess, a Parable for the Spiritual Battle”). 

Back to top


How This Work is Financed

This Update is an official publication by the ministry of the Church of the Eternal God in the United States of America; the Church of God, a Christian Fellowship in Canada; and the Global Church of God in the United Kingdom.

Editorial Team: Norbert Link, Rene Messier, Brian Gale, Johanna Link, Eric Rank, Michael Link, Anna Link, Kalon Mitchell, Manuela Mitchell, Dawn Thompson

Technical Team: Eric Rank, Shana Rank

Our activities and literature, including booklets, weekly updates, sermons on CD are provided free of charge. They are made possible by the tithes, offerings and contributions of Church members and others who have elected to support this Work.

While we do not solicit the general public for funds, contributions are gratefully welcomed and are tax-deductible in the U.S. and Canada.

Donations can be sent to the following addresses:

United States: Church of the Eternal God, P.O. Box 270519, San Diego, CA 92198

Canada: Church of God, ACF, Box 1480, Summerland, B.C. V0H 1Z0

United Kingdom: Global Church of God, PO Box 44, MABLETHORPE, LN12 9AN, United Kingdom

©2026 Church of the Eternal God
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.