To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - EU enlargement chief warns Russia not to interfere
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 09:02:11 -0400

EU ENLARGEMENT CHIEF WARNS RUSSIA NOT TO INTERFERE
TALLINN -- The European Union's Enlargement Commissioner Guenter
Verheugen on Friday warned Russia not to interfere with the 15-nation bloc's
expansion into eastern Europe.

http://www.russiatoday.com/news.php3?id=147811&text

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To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - (Fwd) TNS -- WE: 1 April 2000 / 25 Adar II 5760
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 09:13:04 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: "Lee Underwood" <fyi@tzemach.org>
Organization: Tzemach News Service
To: tns@tzemach.org
Date sent: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 03:50:11 -0400
Subject: TNS -- WE: 1 April 2000 / 25 Adar II 5760
Send reply to: tns@tzemach.org
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Tzemach News Service
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A weekly update of news and events regarding the nation and people of
Israel

Week Ending: 1 April 2000 / 25 Adar II 5760

"But the L-rd is the true G-d; He is the living G-d and the everlasting
King. At His wrath the earth quakes, and the nations cannot endure His
indignation." (Jeremiah 10.10)

SUPREME COURT: ARABS ALLOWED TO RETURN TO MAON: The
Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the Arabs who lived in the "range
of fire" of an Israel Defense Force (IDF) base near Maon should be
returned to their homes. They were removed from their homes after the
Maon farm had been previously evacuated and destroyed ostensibly
because it was in a firing range. The Yesha (Judea, Samaria, and Gaza)
Council now demands, in light of the voiding of the "firing range" clause,
that the Jews of Maon be returned to their homes immediately. The IDF,
however, has said it will not allow a wholesale return of Arabs to the
area near Maon. The army says that only those who can prove that they
actually lived there will be allowed to return. In general, the Arabs do not
live there more than a few weeks a year, and only during the sheep-
shearing season.

Yehoshafat Tor the destruction of whose farm was the catalyst for the
parallel eviction of the Arabs has set up a tent nearby, and is waiting to
be allowed to return to the original site of the farm he built together with
Dov Dribben. Dribben was murdered by neighboring Arabs in April 1998.
Tor told ARUTZ-7, "We knew all along that Barak's firing-range claim
was a lie. First of all, the army never trained there, and second of all, it
was full of Arabs. ... and now we see that our houses have been
destroyed, all that we built, nothing is left".

Last November, the IDF moved in on Maon in the middle of the night and
destroyed the houses that had been built by the settlers. The army
removed all of the residents of the Maon farm and have not allowed them
to return. Exclusive video films of the uprooting of the Maon farm in
November can be seen on ARUTZ-7's website <www.a7.org>.

FREEZE CONTINUES IN YESHA: Yesha Council leaders maintain that
in light of the government's freezing of zoning plans in Judea and
Samaria, almost all construction is gradually coming to a stop in all
Yesha communities. Council spokesman Yehoshua Mor-Yosef
explained that the freeze has been ongoing for a while, "and the
government kept on promising that it would soon be taken care of but
we see that nothing has changed." As if to emphasize the severity
situation, Yossi Vardi, Barak's advisor on settlement affairs, instructed
the Yesha Civil Administration this week to immediately stop
construction of the new neighborhood in Har Gilo, just 200 meters (220
yards) south of the Jerusalem city line. Haggai Huberman reports that
Barak yielded to threats by Yasser Arafat that if the construction south
of Jerusalem was not stopped, the Palestinian delegation would walk
out of the talks in Washington. Mor-Yosef said that if construction does
not resume by Monday, "we will begin a full-scale protest campaign."

Sha'ul Goldstein, head of Gush Etzion Regional Council of which Har
Gilo is a part provided some background on the community: "It is not a
new town about 30 years old, 1.5 kilometers (.9 miles) south of Gilo,
with some 90 families, and a field school with a military high school that
comprises another 650 people.

Yesha Council leaders lunched with IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Sha'ul
Mofaz Tuesday, who informed them that two or three Hamas terrorist
cells are operating in various areas of Yesha. Mofaz said that he has
told the political echelons above him of the great significance he
attributes to the by-pass roads, but that in the meantime, no action
towards paving them or towards enforcing construction regulations upon
the Palestinians are being taken.

If you are interested in keeping apprized of events in Yesha, you can
join the Yesha electronic bulletin board. The bulletin board is being used
as a vehicle for many Yesha residents and supporters to stay in touch
with the day-to-day events, problems and functions in communities
located throughout Judea, Samaria and Gaza. To subscribe to the
Yesha Communities Bulletin Board list, send a blank email message to:
<44830-subscribe@listbot.com>.

CLINTON BOMBS IN GENEVA: The summit between US President Bill
Clinton and Syrian President Hafez ended without a decision to renew
the stalled Syrian-Israeli peace talks. Syria blamed Washington's
weakness in the face of an extremist Israel for the failure of the Clinton-
Assad meeting to revive the talks. Assad reportedly replied that Syria
was willing to wait for generations. If Israel wants peace, Syria is ready,
Assad said. [Editor's note: Clinton's problem is that, while he needs a
peace agreement between Israel and Syria to upgrade his place in
history, Assad will not tarnish his life-long fight against Israel by "giving-
in" to a peace agreement he does not really want in the first place.]

Meanwhile, Syria has warned Russia that it will turn toward an alliance
with the US unless Moscow provides Damascus with advanced
weapons and upgrades. Israeli intelligence sources said Assad wants
Moscow to agree over the next few weeks to a huge arms deal that
would include such advanced weapons as the S-300 anti-aircraft
system, regarded as having missile interception capability superior to
that of the US Patriot. Syria also seeks T-80 tanks, bombers and
upgrades of numerous systems. Last year, negotiations for an arms
deal between Syria and Russia failed over a demand by Damascus for a
long-term repayment scheduled. Russian leaders demanded cash on
delivery for weapons. But the intelligence sources said Russian
President Vladimir Putin is reconsidering this approach. They said Putin
is concerned that the US might succeed in wooing Assad, and
particularly his heir, Bashar, with the pledge of massive economic and
military aid.

RABBI YOSEF TO BE INVESTIGATED: Attorney-General Elyakim
Rubenstein decided Monday to order the opening of a police
investigation against Rishon Letzion Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef, the spiritual
leader of the Shas party. Rabbi Yosef will be investigated over harsh
remarks he made last week against Minister Sarid, likening him to
Haman, terming him "cursed," and expressing hopes such as "may his
name and memory be erased." Attorney-General Rubenstein
enumerated, in a ten-page document, three offenses that he suspects
Rabbi Yosef may have committed: insulting a public servant, slander,
and inciting to terrorism.

The following is IMRA's translation of the transcript prepared by the
Israel Police of the words of Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef broadcast on 18
March 2000 as reported in the decision of the Attorney General Elyakim
Rubenstein: The entire quotation, as excerpted in the decision, follows:
". . . the Holy One Blessed Be He presented us in order to test us.
Brought us Yossi Sarid -this is Satan. Let his name and memory be
erased! How can we continue restraining ourselves, how much will we
suffer? We suffer from this evil! God will uproot him as he uprooted
Amalek, so He will uproot him. Cursed be Haman! Cursed be Yossi
Sarid! Where are his brains, what does he want to do? Want by
Mahmoud Darwish. That is his sense. Where is his sense. It doesn't
pain him that the secular do not know Torah. Don't know a sentence
from "Shma Yisrael". It pains him that they don't know who Mahmoud
Darwish is. God will overturn his recommendations and ? ["?" in original]
his thoughts. He should get his comeuppance. As we saw in the death
of Haman. The vengeance that was done on Haman, so will be done
vengeance on him. And when you say cursed be Haman after the Book
of Esther, also say cursed be Yossi Sarid. . ."

In the days that followed, Rabbi Yosef issued a series of statements
explaining that no one should harm any other person -including Yossi
Sarid, but continuing with his criticism of Sarid.

CLASHES ON 'LAND DAY': Clashes and protests erupted on Thursday
as thousands of Palestinians and Israeli Arabs stage rallies across
Yesha to mark 'Land Day'. This is the 24th year they are
commemorating the confiscation of land from Arab communities in
northern Israel. In some cases, the demonstrations turned violent, with
Palestinians hurling stones at Israeli troops who fired tear gas and
rubber-coated bullets. At least 20 demonstrators were injured in the
clashes. One large protest took place near Shechem where
demonstrators set fire to vehicles and threw stones at Israeli security
forces, who responded with tear gas and rubber bullets. The IDF
subsequently closed the site of Joseph's tomb near the city to Jewish
worshipers for the day. In Beit Lechem (Bethlehem), masked Fatah
activists marched down the main street, chanting slogans before firing
their guns into the air. And in the neighborhood of Ras el-Amud, in east
Jerusalem, hundreds of demonstrators erected barricades on the main
street. In Gaza, close to 400 protesters carrying Palestinian flags and
banners, blocked the Gush Katif intersection - which leads to Jewish
settlements.

MK Hashem Mahmeed, who has been cited for various incendiary
statements against Israel in the past, outdid himself this week. At a
rally protesting Israeli expropriation of lands in the Israeli-Arab town of
Baka el-Garbiye, east of Hadera, Mahmeed said, "Israeli-Arabs must
learn from Hizb'Allah how to fight for their lands, in the same way that
Hizb'Allah forced Israel out of Lebanon." The crowd responded with wild
cheers and applause. Mahmeed is a member of the Knesset Foreign
Affairs and Defense Committee.

FAITHFUL DEMONSTRATE AGAINST POPE: On the morning of 26th
March, 2000, the Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement
demonstrated against the meeting between the Pope and the agents of
the terrorist, Yasser Arafat, on the holy Temple Mount. The
demonstration was held on the lookout position on the steps leading
down from the Jewish Quarter to the Western Wall plaza. From there
the Temple Mount and the location of the temple are clearly seen. The
demonstration took place while the Pope was on the Temple Mount.
Complete details can be found on the Temple Mount Faithful's website
located at: <www.templemountfaithful.org>

SNEH DENIES NEUTRON MINE REPORT: Deputy Defense Minister
Ephraim Sneh Sunday flatly denied a report in THE SUNDAY TIMES of
London that Israel plans to lay nuclear mines on the Golan Heights to
prevent a Syrian attack after it withdraws. "THE SUNDAY TIMES is
ignoring the fact that Purim has passed and it's not yet April Fool's
Day," Sneh said, indicating that the paper may have fallen for a hoax.
The paper said the neutron mines were specially developed in Israel and
the plan to lay them was named "David's Sling." "'David's Sling' is a
pretty name for plans and operations, but this report is truly stupid. The
person who wrote it not only doesn't know, but is also doesn't
understand anything," Sneh told ISRAEL RADIO.

SYRIANS TROOPS IN SOUTH LEBANON? Lebanese Defense Minister
Ghazi Zaiter said yesterday that if Israel withdraws unilaterally from the
Security Zone, "this raises the possibility to the Lebanese government
to ask Syria to send its troops to the south with the Lebanese Army."
"The aim of such a request is not to make Syria protect Israeli northern
borders, but to put Tel Aviv in the range of the Syrian rockets," he said.
Zaiter said he wanted to make it clear that this statement is just his
personal opinion and not Lebanon's official policy.

SECURITY ISSUES: Iran has given instructions to Hizb'Allah to build an
infrastructure for carrying out attacks within Israel, General Security
Service chief Ami Ayalon said Tuesday. In his last appearance before
the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Ayalon termed
Iran's aim to operate terror in Israel as a "strategic development."

On 29 March 2000, a senior IDF official convened a press conference for
the foreign media based in Israel, in which he stated that the PA/PLO
had given Hamas what he described as a "yellow light" for terror. There
had been a clear understanding between Hamas and the PA/PLO not to
operate out of Gaza. However, the IDF official pointed out, no such
understanding for the Hamas not to operate out of Yesha.

Israeli security forces averted an imminent terror attack on Jerusalem's
popular Ben-Yehuda Pedestrian Mall on Monday night. Israel border
police stopped and arrested three Arab males for a routine inspection.
What they were discovered was a stash of homemade weapons and
ammunition which they later admitted was intended for an attack on
"settlers."

On Friday and again on Tuesday, Palestinian Authority policeman
pointed their guns at Jewish motorists on the road to Negohot. In both
incidents, drivers were ordered at gunpoint to remove an Israeli flag from
their vehicle, in violation of agreements with Israel. [Negohot was
recently abandoned by the Barak administration -- ed]

The condition of Menachem and Shmuel Ofen, two brothers who were
shot by terrorists on Purim night, has improved "miraculously,' and they
are now out of danger. The two, together with five other Chabad
members, were on their way to help soldiers celebrate the Purim
holiday, when a car occupied by Arab terrorists overtook their vehicle
and fired several shots at them.

ISRAEL TO PROTECT SLA MEMBERS: Israel announced on
Wednesday that it would shelter South Lebanon Army militiamen who
fear fatal revenge following an Israel Defense Forces pullout from
southern Lebanon by July, HA'ARETZ reported. Danny Yatom, Chief of
Staff of the Prime Minister's Office, said that "SLA personnel and civilian
aid workers who are Lebanese citizens whose place is, of course, in the
villages of south Lebanon will decide whether they are staying in south
Lebanon. If they request it, we will help them find a different place of
residence in Israel, or in lands across the sea."

Meanwhile, the Kibbutz Artzi movement has called on its members to
take in supporters of the SLA. The kibbutzim are ready to provide
shelter for the families of SLA supporters who want to live in Israel, until
they are able to find work, the movement's secretary-general said.

The IDF was instructed by PM Barak to prepare for a possible pullout
from Lebanon by late May, a month and a half before the previous
deadline. Military sources say that the reinforcements, fences, and
outposts along the border with Lebanon will not be completed by late
May. The sources say the army would make up for this "shortage" by
increasing the number of troops along the border and installing
electronic equipment. A senior source said this week that the IDF would
pull out of Lebanon "within a few weeks, probably after May 10,
Independence Day and will deploy on the new international border."

IN THEIR OWN WORDS: Arafat's Land Day Speech (Excerpts): "Our
forefathers, the Canaanites and Jebusites, ruled the cities, and built the
city of Ur Salim, the holy city of Jerusalem . . . Our legitimate right is to
be in our land Palestine, and in our independent Palestinian state with
Jerusalem for its capital. It is also the right of our refugee people who
are in the refugee camps and in Diaspora to return to the homeland to
build their future and life in this blessed land that is drenched with the
blood of our martyrs throughout the years. Together, we will march side
by side to Jerusalem, the capital of our independent Palestinian state.

From the official Syrian daily TESHREEN: "At the same time that Israel
is engaged in organizing international conventions to commemorate the
Holocaust, and Zionists are trying to gag the world and prevent it from
stating the truth on the subject, Israel is itself pursuing a 'Holocaust
policy' against Lebanon.

Editorial by TESHREEN Editor-in-Chief Mohammed Hir el-Wadi,
February 21, 2000: "Israel - which presents itself as the heirs of the
victims of the Holocaust - has committed, and continues to commit
crimes which are even more horrible and heinous than those committed
by the Nazis."

From the official Syrian daily AL-THAWRA: "Israel has revealed itself as
a entity steeped in racism, hate, and state-sponsored terrorism, which
has surpassed even the Nazis in its criminal acts of murder, destruction
and devastation, and in its disdain for humanity."

[It seems the government of Syria has adopted the motto of Joseph
Goebbels, Nazi propaganda minister: "Lie, and keep on lying, some of
your lies shall no doubt take roots in the people's minds." ed]

SPEAKING OF ANTI-SEMITISM: The war against hate on the Internet is
heating up. Two major online booksellers agreed this week to post
disclaimers about a 19th-century forgery that claims there is an
international Jewish conspiracy to rule the world. AMAZON.COM and
BARNESANDNOBLE.COM both had listed THE PROTOCOLS OF THE
ELDERS OF ZION under categories such as "Religion and Spirituality"
[AMAZON.COM] and "Judaism" [BARNESANDNOBLE.COM]. The note
on AMAZON.COM reads: "Please note that Amazon.com does not
endorse the views expressed in this book or those in the publisher's
book description below." "The book is considered a forgery,"
BARNESANDNOBLE.COM spokesman Gus Carlson was quoted as
saying. "In a situation where there is concern over the legitimacy of the
book, it is our job to make certain facts clear." In addition to their own
disclaimers, the two companies are posting a rebuttal to the book
provided by the Anti-Defamation League: "THE PROTOCOLS OF THE
LEARNED ELDERS OF ZION, circulated by the Czarist secret police at
the turn of the 20th century, is plainly and simply a plagiarized forgery.
The PROTOCOLS has been a major weapon in the arsenals of anti-
Semites around the world, republished and circulated by individuals,
hate groups and governments to convince the gullible as well as the
bigoted that Jews have schemed and plotted to take over the world."
Abraham Foxman, national director of the ADL, emphasized that his
group just wants potential customers to know what the book really is.
"We are not in the business of banning books, no matter how
reprehensible or indefensible they are," he said. Marc Stern, the co-
director of the American Jewish Congress' legal department, said that
what distinguishes this case from other works that many would find
objectionable is that by purporting to be written by Jews, the "Protocols"
is not honest about its origins. "It really is a case of truth in advertising,"
he said.

Contrary to popular belief, the origins of the PROTOCOLS can be traced
to France, not Russia. It was a collaborative effort of French intellectual
anti-Semites and Russian anti-Semites within the czarist secret police.
But the PROTOCOLS was never published in France. Its debut actually
came in Russia, around 1903. In America, perhaps the prime purveyor
of the PROTOCOLS was auto magnate Henry Ford. Hitler cited it
prominently in his MEIN KAMPF [listed on the PA/PLO "top ten best
sellers" in September 1999 --ed] and made it a centerpiece of Nazi
propaganda. In recent decades, the PROTOCOLS spread beyond
Europe and America, popping up in Japan, South America and the Arab
world.

THIS WEEK IN JEWISH HISTORY: 26 March 1979: Peace accord
between Israel and Egypt is signed by Menachem Begin and Anwar
Sadat.

30 March 1218: Henry III of England enforced the "Yellow Badge Edict".
The badge was a piece of yellow cloth in the shape of the Tablets of the
Law and was worn above the heart by every Jew over the age of seven.

31 March 1492: The Edict of Expulsion (Spain): Since professing that
Jews were not under the jurisdiction of the Inquisition, the Church
leveled a ritual murder accusation against them in Granada and was
thus able to call for the expulsion of both Jews and Marranos from
Spain.

A short note about April: Many of the worst massacres in Jewish history
took place around Pesach (Passover). They were part of the infamous
blood libels and ritual murder accusations in which Jews were charged
with using Christian blood for the making of Matzos. Others were due to
the instigation of local priests on Easter Sunday.

April 538: Orleans: The third Synod (council) of Orleans declared that
Jews aren't permitted to be seen during "Passion Week" (the week
before Easter) because "their appearance is an insult to Christianity."

1 April 1890: Nathan Birnbaum, in his journal SELBSTEMANZIPATION
coined the term Zionism.

This material has been adapted from BEYOND TIME AND HISTORY by
Eli Birnbaum

GUEST COMMENTARY: The following is a commentary by Charles
Krauthammer of the WASHINGTON POST

RED CROSS SNUB Friday, March 24, 2000; Page A23

"Irving Kristol once pointed out that one of the virtues of the Organization
of American States is that it "is a kind of mini-United Nations where we
can be voted down in only three languages, thereby saving translators'
fees." At the United Nations, we get denounced in six languages and
shell out a disproportionate share for translators' fees, as well as for
everything else.

Happily, however, the abuse of American largess and long-sufferance in
international bodies has its limits. One person to draw the line is Dr.
Bernadine Healy.

Healy, former head of the National Institutes of Health and now
president of the American Red Cross, made a simple plea for decency
and justice last November at an unlikely place: a meeting in Geneva of
the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

She pointed out that the federation is pledged to universality, and indeed
is composed of 176 member societies from every corner of the earth.
One exception: Israel. Israel's Red Cross--the Magen David Adom--is
denied admission. It is relegated to observer status.

Here is a body that grants full and honored membership to everyone,
including such benefactors of humanity as North Korea, Afghanistan
and Iraq. But it deliberately excludes Israel's MDA which, for example,
sent emergency workers to our bombed-out embassies in Kenya and
Tanzania.

Why? The excuse is the MDA's symbol: Israel's society uses not a red
cross or (as do Muslim societies) a red crescent, but a red Shield (or
Star) of David. To admit the Israeli society, says the federation (and its
associate body, the International Committee of the Red Cross), would
lead to a proliferation of other symbols.

What nonsense. First of all, the red cross was not intended at its
founding to be a religious symbol at all. It was drawn from the Swiss
flag, as a symbol of neutrality and as homage to its Swiss founders. In
deference to the sensibility of Turkey and Egypt and other Islamic
countries, Muslims were permitted to substitute the red crescent. There
was no great concern about proliferation of symbols then. Nor when Iran
was granted permission to use the lion and sun.

Why not then the Shield of David? The reasons are obvious, crass and
political. The Arab states don't want it and the rest of the world is too
craven to cross them. Excluding the MDA is part of their larger
campaign to ostracize Israel worldwide.

Isn't there supposed to be a peace process? Aren't these barriers of
prejudice and exclusion supposed to be set aside as Israel makes
painful sacrifices in the name of peace? Dream on. Behind the happy
handshakes and soothing speeches, the Arab states continue their
relentless campaign against Israel in every international body they can.

Israel, for example, is the only U.N. member nation that cannot sit on
the Security Council. It is the only nation that belongs to no regional
(geographical) grouping at the United Nations. Asia won't have it. Africa
won't have it. Europe won't have it. So, Israel dwells alone.

Healy can't do anything about that. But she is trying to do something
about the outrageous exclusion of Israel from the community of Red
Cross federations. And she has met with the usual reaction: hostility
and anger from a cozy club not accustomed to having its mendacity and
cynicism challenged. Particularly upset was Cornelio Sommaruga, then
president of the ICRC. In a private meeting after her speech, and in the
presence of several witnesses, he said to Healy: "If we're going to have
the Shield of David, why would we not have to accept the swastika?"

Given this kind of reaction, what can the American Red Cross do? First,
symbolism: Leave the federation as a member and take up observer
status in solidarity with Israel. If a legitimate and humane society that
the United States has recognized as a sister Red Cross is to be given
only observer status, our place is with the wronged, not with the
hypocrites.

Second, money. They take our money; they scorn our principles. Fine.
Withhold the $5 million annual dues we give the federation for overhead.
And withhold our contribution to the ICRC for its headquarters in
Geneva. This is not disaster relief; this is maintenance--high
maintenance--for the Geneva bureaucrats who run these outfits. A bit of
penury might encourage them to ponder the difference between the Star
of David and the swastika." Copyright 2000 The Washington Post
Company

(Sources: ARUTZ-7, AP, WORLD TRIBUNE, JERUSALEM, POST,
ICEJ, AP, TMF, HA'ARETZ, ISRAEL RESOURCE NEWS AGENCY,
WASHINGTON POST)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tzemach News Service
"For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace,
and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest" Isaiah 62:1

Tzemach News Service is a ministry of Tzemach Institute for Biblical Studies <http://www.tzemach.org>

'TNS.' may be reproduced & distributed in any form. Please give proper credit.

Send comments to Lee Underwood at: tns@tzemach.org

To subscribe/unsubscribe, please go to our webpage at:
www.tzemach.org/fyi or email us at: newslist@tzemach.org

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Beware false prophets
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 19:00:01 -0400

                     A Voice in the Wilderness
Issue 070 April, 2000

                   " P.S. -Beware False Prophets "
                            - Romans 16 -

Greet the saints. Receive them into your house. Fellowship with them.
The greeting of society, the kiss, let it be holy. (vs16) If you hug,
let it be holy. And a whole list of -names- is given. Individuals.
Groups associated with those individuals. Believers. And if we remember
that in Acts they went "house-to-house" in fellowship, partaking bread
and exhortation; notice that a "church" [assembly, gathered for
meetings] existed at Priscilla and Aquila's -house-. (vs5) While the
Jewish missionaries would always seek out synagogues, first, when coming
to a new place, and thus fulfilling Jesus' command starting "in
Jerusalem" to Jews (Acts1:8); when they spread out to people of the "end
of the earth" (Gentiles), we never hear of 'building programs'.

"For you are a temple of the living God, even as God said, "I will"
dwell in them and "walk among them, and I will be their God, and they
shall be My people." (2Cor6:16) Years ago when my father was still
alive, he and a couple of his siblings met for a reunion, and my wife
and I were invited to visit. At one point I happened to be sitting next
my uncle's wife, and she said, "We got a new church since you were there
last..." (Years earlier I had sung one of my concerts there.) Not
thinking what she meant, but knowing what I understood the word "church"
to mean, I responded back asking something like, "Oh, what church are
you fellowshiping with now?" And a couple words from her, it was then
obvious she meant that her church had built a new -building-.

The church is not the "building". St.Peter's is a building. The Mormon
temple is a building. The Dome of the Rock mosque is a building.
Hollywood depicts the "quaint" concept of the "little Baptist church
down the road" as a building. In various places there are little tiny
buildings, barely big enough for 2 people to sit... "wayside chapels" or
"prayer chapels". Buildings. And sadly, for most (nominal) "christians",
when they hear the word "church" they think of that -building- they go
to. They -go-to- church. They -have- church. Church -starts-. Church
-ends-. Churches are -places- to be married and buried. [Ed: that last
sentence spawns a witticism in my mind, from which I will refrain at the
moment!]

"..that He might present it to Himself as the glorious church, not
having spot or wrinkle, or any such things, but that it be holy and
without blemish." (Eph5:27) The Church is the worldwide group,
collectively, of Believers. PEOPLE. Those that Jesus has redeemed with
His Own blood when He loved her and gave Himself for her. (Rev1:5,
Eph5:25) The Church is that living, breathing, mutually caring "Body"
in/of Christ. (Rom12:5)

Paul speaks of "not having spot or wrinkle". Jude speaks of "hating even
the garment having been stained from the flesh." (vs23) John speaks of
the "purity" which results from the one anticipating Christ's return at
which time we become "like" Him. (1Jn3:2-3) Jude's vigilance is
expressed as, "snatching them out of the fire."

Jesus warns, "See that not any leads you astray. For many will come in
My name..." (Mt24:4-5) "If anyone says to you, Behold, here is the
Christ! Or, Here! Do not believe. For false christs and false prophets
will rise up. And they will give great signs and wonders, so as to lead
astray, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I tell you beforehand."
(Mt24:23-25)

Peter exhorts us -how- we should be careful. "Be sensible, watch,
because your adversary the devil walks about as a roaring lion seeking
someone he may devour; whom firmly resist in the faith.." (1Pt5:8-9)

But, while the devil may be likened to a "roaring lion" in his
-mission-, he doesn't appear to us that way in his -methodology-. His
workers are "deceitful workers transforming themselves into apostles of
Christ." (2Cor11:13) Satan didn't appear to Eve as a grotesque dragon
with pitch fork. He came as the most beautiful creature in the garden.
If Satan can "marvelously transform himself into an angel of light...it
is not a great thing (no big deal) if also his ministers transform
themselves as ministers of righteousness.." (vs14-15)

As we say repeatedly, if Satan came through the "obvious" avenues of
heathenism, occult, witchcraft...he would not win many. Satan comes
-through- the church. His methods appear to be "christian". That's why
it's called "deception". It -looks- like the real thing, but is not.
Notice that Paul says they transform themselves into "apostles of
Christ".

Dear Believer: Are your eyes open? What is the current push? "Apostles"
are rising up all over. And they operate in the realm of "signs and
wonders". Notice that Paul names their -label-, and Christ gave their
-methods-. What did Jesus say their goal is? IF POSSIBLE... to deceive
the elect. While, in a most prophetically/historically stringent sense
"elect" refers to Israel, in a broader sense in other passages it also
refers to Believers. Who is satan after? The world? Not hardly! He's
already GOT them! But the ones he doesn't have are the Faithful. And he
would certainly like to have them, too.

And for you who still believe that "Eternal Security" (Rom8:33-39) is
the same thing as "Once save-Always saved", think again. If there were
no possibility for a Believer to "draw back" (Heb10:38-39), why would
there be so many warnings about being deceived?

But notice that Paul warned "Because of this watch, remembering that I
did not cease admonishing each one with tears night and day for three
years." (Acts20:31) Notice, "WITH TEARS"! He says, "because of this".
What is "this" that he is referring to?

Near the end of his missionary journeys, Paul gathered the Asia Minor
church leaders...and after all those years of ministry, his primary
message on that occasion was "warning" against the "wolves" (Act20:29)
He says "take heed to yourselves and to the flock". (vs28) "Take heed"
means to be vigilant, be on the lookout, stand guard, be careful, be
alert. And as he is speaking to the leaders he warns them to watch out,
not only for themselves...but also "to the flock".

There are some today who rebel against the concept of -a- "leader" in an
assembly. But notice Paul says that "the Holy Spirit placed you as
overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased through His
own blood." (vs28) Notice that these are not people the church "voted"
for through their democratic process. It was the Holy Spirit who give
the authority. And notice the nature of the flock. They are -precious-
because Christ "purchased" each one of them with His own blood when He
died on the cross as our Passover Lamb. Since they are under His blood,
when God goes out in Judgment, He 'passes over' them and does not judge
them. [Ed: again; 'pre-trib' Rapture] And so, the overseer's duty is an
awesome one.

And Paul tells -where- the deception will come from. "Grievous wolves
will come IN AMONG.." the assembly. (vs29) How do these wolves get in
there? Well, sadly, in most cases in recent years, they have been
"invited" in by the Believers. The excuse given is that they want to
"win souls". But when these people make a "profession" it is false. They
then get into leadership. In other cases, they are invited to assist in
worship, even though they have never made a profession of Faith. Leaven.
The "unholy". And of course, people in leadership tend to be "heard".
When this happens, what do wolves beget? Sheep? No. More wolves. "..and
out of you yourselves will rise up men speaking perverted things.."
(vs30)

Now, also notice... he says "out of you yourselves.." He was speaking to
supposed "Believers". Those whom he had, in many cases, personally
appointed as leaders. How could this be? We have two scenarios: Some
would be "drawing back" (Heb10:38-39) and would not be "[continuing] in
the Faith" (Col1:23). And others would manifest themselves to HAVING
BEEN unbelievers all along, and their departure would be proof that "but
they left so that it might be revealed that they all are not of us."
(1Jn2:19)

And so Paul ends Romans with more warnings. Notice -how- the wolves
operate. They "make divisions and causes of stumbling contrary to the
doctrine which you learned.." (vs17) In ch14 we considered the
"stumbling" caused to a fellow-believer in the "gray areas". This is one
thing we have seen over the past decades. The World has been brought
into the assembly; from their not-so-'gray' Rock music, to nearly-naked
women performing on stage, sensuously/provocatively gyrating as the
world does; and the list is endless. These kinds of things have caused
-many- to stumble and to be led away from Truth.

And once the senses were titillated with the flesh, of course the Bible
had to "support" what they were doing. So they twisted the Scriptures
(2Pt3:16) "to their own destruction", and the destruction of those
following them.

And most recently they are totally -abandoning- Doctrine! They are busy
"uniting" everybody (like Babel) with the methodology of "tearing down
walls" (of Doctrine). They are taking God's Word and throwing it out the
window. The new "apostles" do not proclaim from God's Word. When I've
read prophetic utterances, whenever somebody sends me one, I have yet to
see -any- Scripture in them. And what little 'hints' there are, are out
of context and misquoted. Their "dreams" are not from God... "The
prophets prophesy lies in My name. I did not send them and I have not
commanded them, nor did I speak to them. They prophesy to you a false
vision, and a worthless divination, and the deceit of their heart."
(Jer14:14) ...but from themselves. Just like their master, "by smooth
speaking and flattering they deceive the hearts of those [of simple
understanding]" (vs18)

PLEASE NOTE THIS WELL! These who -claim- to be "uniting" everybody are
actually the ones -CAUSING- the "divisions". What "division" is this?
Dividing people AWAY FROM God's Word. Away from God's Doctrine.
Doctrine
is what brings "unity" to Believers. (1Cor1:10) So when they throw God's
Doctrine out the window, they are dividing God's people. According to
John ch17, which they all love to recite, the unity among Believers
happens when Believers are "one" with God. (Jn17:21,23) When they
ravenously rip and yank Believers away from God by seeking to destroy
God's Word with their perversions which they call the "Bible", and
further, by totally ignoring doctrine, they also cause divisions amongst
Believers. DO NOT BE DECEIVED!

What is the Believer to do regarding them? Engage in 'dialogue' with a
view to come to 'concensus' over the "broad doctrines we can agree on"?
Agree on what are the "essential" doctrines, and agree-to-disagree on
the "nonessentials"? Paul says, "..TURN AWAY FROM THEM". (vs17b) Do
NOT become "united" with them. Do NOT work together in "joint"
evangelistic campaigns. When they are "wolves" their evangelism does not
produce "sheep". It produces more wolves.

In conjunction with his firmness, notice Paul's tenderness. As though to
say, 'Now be careful... there's a good chap!' He says, "..your obedience
reached to all..." (vs19) Everybody has heard of your faithfulness and
obedience to God's Word. And he says, "I rejoice over you." This is
wonderful..

But we daresn't let our guard down. While you're doing well, and you
have a good testimony, don't be complacent. "But I desire you to be
truly wise as to good, but simple toward evil." There are many so-called
"discernment ministries" who concentrate on everything evil. They send
out every bit of scrap of perversion of God's Word they can to their
mailing lists. Some jump up and down with glee when they find yet
another instance of rottenness. But Paul says, "be simple toward evil".
Don't spend all your time with it. When bankers train to recognize
counterfeit money, they don't spend a lot of time looking at
counterfeits...but on the Real Thing. That way, when the counterfeit
comes along, they know it does not match the real thing.

In the same way, we as Believers should be engrossing ourselves in God's
Word. Getting to "know Him [Jesus Christ] and the power of His
resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, having been
conformed to His death." (Phil3:10)

It is "the God of peace" Who will "bruise satan under your feet shortly.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen." (vs20) The
mysteries from eternal times is "made plain..by prophetic Scriptures".
All we need to know is found in the Scriptures. (2Tim3:14-17) It results
in "obedience of faith" for all people. (vs26)

"..to the only wise God" and "Jesus Christ...be the glory forever."
(vs27)

Amen!

    *** Scripture quotes are from Green's Literal Translation ***

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A Chinese boy who wanted to learn about jade went to study with a talented
old teacher. This gentle man put a piece of the precious stone into his hand
and told him to hold it tight. Then he began to talk of philosophy, men,
women, the sun and almost everything under it. After an hour he took back
the stone and sent the boy home. The procedure was repeated for several
weeks. The boy became frustrated. When would he be told about the jade?
He was too polite, however, to question the wisdom of his venerable teacher.
Then one day, when the old man put a stone into his hands, the boy cried
out instinctively, "That's not jade!"

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