Millions of people all over the
world claim the Holy Bible as
their sacred guide to
understanding themselves and the
world around them.
Yet, most of them ignore
one-fourth to one-third
of that Bible:
The portion made up by prophecy.
You might wonder why God
placed prophecy in the Bible
in the first place.
Can't we just ignore all of
those weird chapters in
Revelation, Isaiah, Daniel, and
other books of the Bible and
just focus on the parts we find
easy to understand?
In short, no.
If we want to be people who
follow Jesus Christ in word and
deed, and if we want to benefit
from the entirety of God's word
and the full store of
instruction and blessing that He
has prepared for us, then Bible
prophecy needs to be on the menu
of our spiritual diet.
Join me right now on Tomorrow's
World, where together we will
answer the question, "Why Does
God Use Prophecy?"
♪
Greetings, and welcome to
Tomorrow's World where we help
you make sense of the world
through the pages of the Bible.
I'm glad you're here.
Today, we're going to answer the
question, "Why Does
God Use Prophecy?"
We'll also be offering you one
of our most popular free DVDs,
"The Power of Prophecy."
This DVD contains four programs
that are designed to help you
finally begin to understand
this challenging but
vital part of the Bible.
Like everything we offer on
Tomorrow's World, there's no
cost, so watch for how to get
your copy of this resource.
And let me be clear
here at the beginning:
When I say, "God uses
prophecy," I'm not talking about
the modern-day proclamations of
many who go around claiming
themselves to be Christians and
calling themselves "Prophet
This" or "Prophetess That."
I guarantee you, they are no
prophet in the sense of
the biblical title.
I know that may upset some,
but here at Tomorrow's World,
we're not here to make people
happy--we're here to clear away
the fog of confusion and shine
the light of God's word
in a world darkened by
the Devil's deceptions.
No, I'm here to talk
about Bible prophecy.
Many preachers and teachers
ignore it, and you don't
hear Bible prophecy proclaimed
and explained from the giant
stages of the megachurches of
the world--at least not in any
meaningful or significant sense.
And many study guides claim to
"explain" prophecy, but they do
more to "explain it away,"
and minimize the vital
impact it should have on our
everyday life today.
And we need to be honest with
ourselves: How many of us make
reading and studying Bible
prophecy a significant part of
our spiritual diet?
After all, so many other parts
of the Bible seem so much more
straightforward and beneficial.
Uplifting even.
But Revelation--with its weird
images of multi-headed monsters,
blood-drinking harlots, and
other strange sights and
descriptions--seems almost
out-of-place and unnecessary for
living the "Christian" life,
doesn't it?
And when you wander from the
stories of the lion's den and
the fiery furnace, the book of
Daniel just seems to get weird,
with visions of strange statues,
monstrous beasts,
and vague references to
Kings of the North and South...
Yet, think about it...
It's estimated that one-fourth
to one-third of the
Bible is prophecy.
So, pick up a Bible and estimate
how much one-fourth
of that Bible would be.
In this Bible, here, if you
look at the first fourth,
it would be about this much.
Imagine ignoring or cutting out
and throwing away that much of
your Bible--in this case, you
would be cutting out Genesis,
Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers,
Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges,
and 1 Samuel--possibly
some of 2 Samuel, too.
Or take the final fourth.
Now, you're cutting out the last
four books of the Old Testament
and the entire New Testament.
Can you imagine cutting out all
of that and throwing it
away or burning it?
Yet, if you never read and study
Bible prophecy--at least
one-fourth of your Bible--that
is essentially what you're
doing--that 25-percent may as
well not even be in there.
In 2021, I wrote an article for
the Tomorrow's World magazine
detailing how many elements of
today's cancel culture are
working overtime to "cancel" the
Bible, one idea at a time,
removing the words of
Scripture from our lives in
whatever ways they can.
But my friends, if you and I
don't even bother to read
one-fourth to one-third of our
Bible's pages, we've effectively
"canceled" those parts of the
Bible, ourselves.
And, frankly, we violate the
teachings of Jesus Christ and
are robbing ourselves of the
benefit of His instruction when
we avoid prophecy.
Look for yourself in
Matthew 4 and verse 4.
When fighting against Satan's
temptations at the beginning of
His ministry, the Savior shot
back at the devil...
My friends, "every word"
means "every word,"
not "3 out of every 4" or "2 out
of 3"--"Every word"
includes the recorded words
of biblical prophecy.
When you think about it,
Christians should be the
most motivated people in
the world to read and
study biblical prophecy.
Revelation 19:10 says that...
And the very beginning
of the book of Revelation,
the very first verse
of the very first chapter,
tells us that Jesus Christ
revealed the contents of that
book under God's instructions...
And just two verses later, God
gives us a promise...
My friends, prophecy is
important, and God places it in
the Bible for good reason.
In fact, in the remainder of
today's program, we are going to
detail four reasons God uses
prophecy in the Bible.
But before we look at Reason #1,
I need you to give you the
opportunity to receive a free
DVD that will do more
than help you understand why
prophecy is important.
It will start you on the
road to understanding
prophecy for yourself.
"The Power of Prophecy"
is one of our most popular free
resources, with four Tomorrow's
World programs that answer a
host of vital questions about
Bible prophecy, including:
What is the mysterious
Beast of Revelation?
What are the Five Keys to
Understanding Prophecy?
What are the Six Greatest Perils
facing the United States?
What does the Bible say about
the future of the EU, Russia,
China, Iran, and other nations?
How can I personally prepare for
what is to come and
protect my family?
And how can I escape the
Great Tribulation?
Understanding Bible prophecy
adds a vital dimension to
our lives that leaves a
person changed forever.
Request your free copy of
"The Power of Prophecy," and I
will be right back to give you
the first reason God Almighty
uses prophecy in your Bible.
For today's free offer call...
Or go to...
This clear and straight-forward
resource will help you
understand this vital truth--
straight from the
pages of the Bible.
If you're calling for the first
time, you will also receive a
free annual subscription to
Tomorrow's World magazine.
Ten inspiring issues discussing
news, science, and modern
culture will help you make sense
of your world from
a biblical perspective.
Call today and join millions
around the world who are turning
to Tomorrow's World for truth,
prophecy, and hope in these
confusing times.
Call now!
Or go to...
Welcome back.
Today, we're answering
the question,
"Why Does God Use Prophecy?"
by giving you four reasons.
The first of those
reasons is this:
Most of you viewing today's
program at home or on your
computer or smartphone
probably look at today's
world and feel like I do:
Something is very wrong.
At the most fundamental of
levels, the very fabric of
civilization is tearing asunder.
The Bible explains in clear
detail why we are coming apart:
Sin.
The world is increasingly
turning its back on
everything God commands,
and we are suffering the
consequences--consequences that
will climax in the most horrific
time the world has ever known or
will ever know: The Great
Tribulation, followed by the
Day of the Lord.
We read of the times prophesied
to come in Matthew chapter 24,
beginning in verse 21...
Those times are coming due
to man's accumulating
sin against his Creator.
Frankly, biblical prophecy tells
us that suffering will begin
with divine punishment on the
United States and Great Britain
and those nations around the
globe that have descended in
one way or another from
the British people.
Yet, God the Father and Jesus
Christ do make a way
of escape available.
In Ezekiel 33 and verse 11, God
tells us that He has no pleasure
in the death of the wicked.
He would rather that the wicked
see what is coming and repent!
Change to avoid it and accept
the opportunity for escape.
Turn earlier in the book of
Ezekiel to read His passionate
words to Israel--words that I
assure you are meant for nations
and peoples today.
We begin in verse 30...
In the free DVD we will send you
today, "The Power of Prophecy,"
we'll explain that one of the
keys to understanding prophecy
is to be able to identify modern
nations in the prophetic
words of the Bible,
and the identity of those
nations is not always clear.
When you do understand that,
then you understand this warning
is for many nations of the
world--and you understand why we
here on Tomorrow's World are
unrelenting in our constant
admonition to the nations of the
world to cease their sins,
repent, and turn and dedicate
themselves to Jesus Christ and
His Father, lest all that is
prophesied to take place
come upon them.
Now--before we move to Reason
#2, we have to be honest with
ourselves about Reason #1, about
human nature, and about our
nations and their leadership.
Personally, I'm an American, and
let me be frank with you about
my country: With every day that
goes by, I see nothing in my
nation's government, its
politics, its culture, its
educational systems, or my
fellow citizens at large that
gives me any real hope that the
United States, as a whole, will
repent, turn, and embrace
Jesus Christ and the
commandments of God.
I'm not trying to be a
pessimist, and believe me,
I--as well as all of us here at
Tomorrow's World, the members of
the Living Church of God, and
the many around the world who
voluntarily support us--all
of us are throwing all
we have into reaching
the whole world with
God's warning and Christ's
Gospel of the coming Kingdom.
And we pray like Paul did,
that God might use us to save
some from the times to come
as many as He will.
But we also know
that some will go into
punishment and captivity.
And when they do,
we see the second purpose of
prophecy come into play:
We see this hope of God
concerning prophecy in passages
such as Deuteronomy 4.
There, God speaks to Israel in
words that today's free DVD
explains have great meaning for
many of today's nations as well.
He tells them of the punishment
they will receive for their
national sins and how they will
respond then in a way
they did not before.
Let's look beginning in
verse 27...
God's words and prophecies will
serve as a witness to those
being punished in captivity, who
will remember--and will begin to
seek God in a way they did not
before their punishment.
For those of our viewers today
who will not turn to God and
change their lives and who will
find themselves under the
punishment of the Great
Tribulation, it is our prayer
that you will remember these
things and remember to seek God
with all of your heart,
with all of your strength,
and with all of your soul.
Cry out to Him when that time
comes--with a sincere
and willing heart--and
He will hear you.
Ironically, the third reason God
uses prophecy is ignored by most
who claim the name of Christ
today, even as it explains why
His disciples, above all people
of the earth, should care
passionately about prophecy.
We'll cover that in a
moment--but first, let me pause
to remind you how to
get your free DVD,
"The Power of Prophecy."
This collection of
four Tomorrow's World programs
is a must have for anyone who's
been confused or intimidated
by prophecy before but
long to understand it.
God inspired prophecy
to be understood.
Don't regret missing out on the
life-changing information
in this DVD.
Order yours now, and I'll be
right back to discuss reasons
three and four--don't go away.
This clear and straight-forward
resource will help you
understand this vital truth--
straight from the
pages of the Bible.
Call now!
Or go to...
We've covered two reasons
God uses prophecy in the Bible.
He desires to warn nations so
that they will repent and escape
punishment, and he wants those
who do go into punishment to be
encouraged to change their ways.
The third reason should matter
most to all who claim the
name of Jesus Christ,
but sadly it matters to
relatively few of them:
Many think Jesus only came with
a message about how all can be
forgiven their sins by accepting
Him as their Savior.
But, my friends, that belief
is an incomplete and shallow
one that denies the rich full
message God sent His Son to
bear to mankind concerning the
coming Kingdom of God and God's
plan to transform this world and
mankind for all eternity.
And focusing as it does on
future events, that message of
the Kingdom of God and
the glorious return of
Jesus Christ is inherently
a prophetic message.
In fact, many, many, many
prophecies of both the Old and
New Testaments point us to the
beautiful times of restoration
to come under the reign of Jesus
Christ and His glorified
saints--that is, under the
Kingdom of God!
For instance,
Revelation 20 speaks of the
1,000-year removal of Satan the
devil and proclaims that
glorified, faithful Christians
will reign alongside Jesus
Christ during that time.
Zechariah 14 explains how all
the nations of the world will be
required by God to assemble in
Jerusalem each year for the
Feast of Tabernacles.
Isaiah 11 speaks of the
transformed nature of the animal
world, while Isaiah 35 tells of
the transformed and beautified
earth, and the healing of all
who are blind, deaf,
and unable to walk.
Zechariah 8 tells of how
both the elderly and
small children will be safe to
play in the streets.
Honestly, there is too much to
encompass in one program.
Read the prophecies
for yourself.
There is a reason the Apostle
Peter called the prophetic reign
of Jesus Christ...
Of course, if you are a longtime
viewer of Tomorrow's World, you
know that the prophesied Kingdom
of God is a frequent topic of
ours, as we are commissioned by
Jesus Christ Himself to boldly
preach that Kingdom
to the world--without
apology or compromise.
And let there be no doubt: The
Gospel message is a prophetic
message, and ignoring the
prophecies of the Bible is like
cutting out vast portions of the
message of Jesus Christ.
Finally, we come to the fourth
reason God uses prophecy:
We see this inspiring purpose
reflected in the awesome words
God inspired the prophet Isaiah
to record for us in
chapter 46 of his book.
Read them there, beginning in
verse 9...
My friend and fellow presenter
Richard Ames frequently
emphasizes a powerful truth,
that our predecessor in this
Work, Herbert W. Armstrong,
described as the most
important fact in the entire
universe--a fact stated
in three simple words:
"God reigns supreme."
And if you have noticed
Mr. Ames' passion and intensity
on this program over the years,
you can know it is rooted
in this vital truth.
And God uses prophecy to help
teach us that truth: Declaring
the end of things from the
beginning so that we may
see and understand.
Understand that He is faithful
and can be trusted.
Understand that all of human
history represents simply the
unfolding of His plan
for all mankind--indeed,
for all of reality.
Seeing God prophetically
proclaim the outcome of affairs
in the world before they've
even taken place helps us to
have confidence in the promises
of God and provides an eternal
perspective on the one who
inhabits eternity.
The Apostle Paul found such
comfort in that perspective, as
he illustrated at the beginning
of his letter to Titus...
Yes, when we read of the
commands of God or the promises
of God, we must always remember
that He is Eternal and Almighty.
--the one who has the power to
call those things which do not
exist as though they did, as
Paul says in Romans 4:17.
Prophecy teaches us that there
is One who not only has the
power to proclaim His will in
the world, but the power to
guarantee that what He
proclaims will happen.
My friends, when we consider
these four reasons God uses
prophecy, we see that there is
a purpose He intends to work in
our lives through His
written prophetic words.
We'll discuss the impact He
desires to make in your life
through prophecy in the
conclusion of our program.
First, let me take advantage of
this last break to encourage you
to order today's free DVD,
"The Power of Prophecy."
We don't just want you
to understand that
prophecy is important.
We want you to
understand prophecy.
This free DVD will help
get you on your way.
One of the four messages on this
DVD is "Five Keys to
Understanding Prophecy," and it
will begin to explain how to
take the often intimidating
symbols and messages of
Bible prophecy and make
their meaning plain.
It's long past time for
one-fourth to one-third of your
Bible to be unlocked to
your understanding.
Take the opportunity to begin
your journey with our free DVD,
"The Power of Prophecy."
And I'll be right back to review
and to help us see what all of
this should mean.
For today's free offer call...
Or go to...
This clear and straight-forward
resource will help you
understand this vital truth--
straight from the
pages of the Bible.
If you're calling for the first
time, you will also receive a
free annual subscription to
Tomorrow's World magazine.
Ten inspiring issues discussing
news, science, and modern
culture will help you make sense
of your world from
a biblical perspective.
Call today and join millions
around the world who are turning
to Tomorrow's World for truth,
prophecy, and hope in these
confusing times.
Call now!
Or go to...
Today, we've discussed
four reasons God uses
prophecy in the Bible.
They are:
[And]
God wants those who read His
word to understand that He is a
God who is acting in the
world--and in their lives.
As a God who loves us, He wants
us to take His commands
seriously, as the life and death
matter they truly are.
For those who refuse to respond
to His warnings, He wants them
to have the witness of His
prophetic word in their
punishment, so that they may
remember, and respond to that
punishment with repentance.
He wants those who love His Son
to commit themselves to
spreading the message of His
glorious reign to come and the
prophesied wonders that Jesus
Christ will bring at His return.
And He wants us to see that He
is a God who can be
trusted with our lives.
He wants us to see that, yes, He
demands our absolute faith and
obedience--but also that He is
worthy of that absolute faith
and obedience, because He
truly does reign supreme.
His use of prophecy in His
word helps to accomplish
all these purposes.
And now, it's in your hands.
Will you set a quarter or more
of your Bible aside,
to be neglected?
Or will you allow God to work in
you through what He reveals?
The moment you decide to act,
we here at Tomorrow's World and
our sponsor, the Living Church
of God, are ready to help.
Getting today's free DVD is a
great way to start.
I hope you will order
your copy today.
And I hope you'll come
back next time.
Gerald Weston, Richard Ames, Rod
McNair, and I will be right here
waiting for you--ready to share
with you the unadulterated truth
of your Bible, the powerful hope
of the future Kingdom of God,
and the life-changing teachings
of Jesus Christ, the Son of God
and coming King of Kings.
Until then, take care.
For today's free offer call...
Or go to...
Call today and join millions
around the world who are turning
to Tomorrow's World for truth,
prophecy, and hope in these
confusing times.
♪
The preceding program is
produced by the
Living Church of God.