A four-alarm fire destroyed a church in Elizabeth, New Jersey overnight, officials said. 

Fire officials received a call reporting the blaze at Shiloh Baptist Church in Elizabeth around 3:15 a.m. Sunday.

At one point, the church was fully engulfed in flames, video from the scene shows. A building next door was evacuated as a precaution, officials said.

Church Pastor William Ingram was visibly shaken as he spoke to reporters at the scene of the blaze.

“I don’t have any idea [what happened]. It was fine yesterday evening, so, I don’t know what happened,” he said. “This was a shock, when I got the call this morning.”

“We were anticipating waking up this morning coming to church to worship… and you wake up to this. [But] that’s the nature of life, and you know, that’s why we have faith,” he added.

SOURCE: NBC New York

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Holden Matthews, the 22-year-old son of a sheriff’s deputy with alleged ties to satanism who was charged last year with torching three historically black churches in Louisiana, pleaded guilty to his crimes Monday and confessed that he was trying to raise his profile as a “black metal” musician.

A release from the Justice Department said Matthews pleaded guilty to three counts of violating the Church Arson Prevention Act, as well as one count of using fire to commit a federal felony.

Mount Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church in Opelousas was the third historically black church over 100 years old that Matthews burned to the ground in a span of 10 days last spring. St. Mary Baptist Church in Port Barre was the first reported church fire on March 26, 2019, while Greater Union Baptist Church in Opelousas went up in flames a week later.

Matthews admitted to setting the fires because of the religious character of these buildings in an effort to raise his profile as a black metal musician by copying similar crimes committed in Norway in the 1990s, the Department of Justice said.

He also admitted that after he set the third fire, he posted photographs and videos on Facebook that showed the first two churches burning. He further revealed that he took the photographs and videos in real time on his cell phone while watching the churches burn.

“The Department of Justice will remain unwavering in its protection of the freedom to practice religion without the threat of discrimination or violence,” Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division said in a statement. “Matthews admitted to setting fire to three churches because of their religious character. His disgraceful conduct violated the civil rights of the churches parishioners and harmed their communities.”

U.S. Attorney David C. Joseph of the Western District of Louisiana said, “Today, the defendant has taken responsibility for the burning and destruction of three of our churches. The freedom to safely congregate and worship in our churches is a fundamental right of all Americans and will be vigorously protected by my office and our law enforcement partners.”

SOURCE: Christian Post, Leonardo Blair

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A Christian humanitarian organization has announced a new campaign to provide aid to Chinese families in cities that have been deemed high risk for the deadly coronavirus as the death toll rises above 1,000. 

World Help, an organization serving the physical and spiritual needs of people in impoverished communities around the world, announced that it’s partnering with pastors on the ground to distribute emergency relief in the provinces surrounding Wuhan.

The aid will include protective face masks and food for those living in areas where the coronavirus is spreading.

“The situation in the areas surrounding Wuhan is critical. Our partners tell us people feel helpless — they don’t know if they are going to be the next person to get infected. Worst of all, they can’t find or afford the supplies they need to protect their families and keep them healthy,” said Vernon Brewer, founder of World Help. “They’re scared. And they need our help.”

The death toll from the coronavirus  — a respiratory illness with pneumonia-like symptoms — is continuing to climb, Chinese officials said on Tuesday. By the end of Monday, 1,016 people had died from the coronavirus — an increase of 108 from the previous day, the government said.

The number of confirmed infections in China also skyrocketed to at least 42,638 from about 40,000 a day earlier. Most of the infections are in Hubei.

The rapid spread of the coronavirus has resulted in police-enforced quarantines and lockdowns across the country. Increasing demand has created a shortage of protective face masks, and food supplies are running low as prices continue to rise.

According to World Help, $20 will provide a week’s worth of food and a protective mask to one person.

“Thankfully, many brave Christians and pastors are still visiting their sick neighbors and congregation members,” Brewer said. “They are ready and willing to pass out the lifesaving aid that supporters make possible so people in China can experience the love of Christ. As Christians, we have a responsibility to show the love of Christ to our neighbors in crisis — whether they live next door or around the world.”

“Please stand with these Chinese families in their darkest hour,” said Brewer. 

SOURCE: Christian Post, Leah MarieAnn Klett

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Welcome to the Covenant and the Cross Podcast. This is episode #113. I am your host, Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International. This podcast is designed to help you better understand the Word of God — both the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament is the story of the Covenant which God made with His chosen people Israel. And the New Testament is the story of the Cross which signifies the fulfillment of the Old Covenant with Israel and the formation of a New Covenant with redeemed people from many nations.

We always like to start out with the Word of God, and today’s passage of Scripture is from Joshua 6:12-15 which reads: “And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord. And seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord went on continually, and blew with the trumpets: and the armed men went before them; but the rereward came after the ark of the Lord, the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets. And the second day they compassed the city once, and returned into the camp: so they did six days. And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early about the dawning of the day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven times: only on that day they compassed the city seven times.”

Regarding this passage, Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown wrote in their commentary: “The second day’s procession seems to have taken place in the morning. In all other respects, down even to the smallest details, the arrangements of the first day continued to be the rule followed on the other six. On account of the seven circuits they had to make that day. It is evident, however, that the militia only of the Israelites had been called to the march–for it is inconceivable that two millions of people could have gone so frequently round the city in a day.”

Today’s quote about the Bible is from Johann A. Bengel. He said: “Apply yourself wholly to the Scriptures, and apply the Scriptures wholly to yourself.”

Our topic for today is titled “The Best of Times, the Worst of Times, Part 6” from the book, “The Promise and the Blessing” by Dr. Michael A. Harbin.

In the narrative account of the battle, we are told only that Sisera and his army (including nine hundred chariots) were routed. In Deborah’s victory song, however, we learn that God intervened in the form of sending sudden rain on the battlefield. With the battle clearly lost, Sisera fled on foot, ending up in front of the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber, a Kenite. She invited Sisera in, because at the time, the Canaanites and the Kenites were on friendly terms. When Sisera asked for some water to assuage his thirst, she gave him milk (which would have been warm, for there was no refrigeration) and covered him with a rug. After he had fallen into a deep sleep from exhaustion, she took a tent peg and drove it through his skull, killing him. When Barak, who was pursuing Sisera, showed up, Jael showed him the dead general. Thus, when Deborah wrote her victory song, it was Jael who received the credit for killing the Canaanite general.

Following this battle, the Israelites were able to overthrow the rest of the Canaanite forces. Apparently Hazor was burned again and this time remained unsettled for several hundred years, probably until the time of Solomon.

DEBORAH’S SONG
In the battle against Sisera’s army, according to the Song of Deborah, “the clouds poured down water” and the “river Kishon swept them away”. This sudden rain seems to have turned the soil into mire, bogging down the chariots and making them easy targets for the Israelites who were on the slopes above. Judges 5 is ancient poetry and somewhat difficult to understand, but there are interesting expressions within it. For example, verse 20 talks of how the stars fought from heaven. This language seems to suggest involvement of angelic beings, but that allusion is not clear. Another interesting point is how Deborah condemned the other tribes for not participating in the conflict. These words may indicate that all the tribes (or at least the northern ones) were asked to participate but that God had known in advance that only two would do so.

WHO WERE THE KENITES?
Jael’s husband, Heber, is identified as a Kenite. The Kenites were the relatives of Moses’ father-in-law. A number of them joined the Israelites as they came into the land. Judges 1:16 tells of how they settled in the land, although the area they chose was in the south, near Arad. Jael’s heroic deed occurred about 160 years later

Lord willing, we will continue this topic in our next broadcast.

Let’s Pray —

***

Before we close, dear friend, I want to remind you that the most important thing you should know about the Bible is that it is the story of God working to save humanity from sin and the consequences of sin. He did this by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for our sins and take the punishment that we deserve on Himself. Romans 5:8 says, “God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, and you want to get to know Him today, here’s how.

All you have to do is believe “that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” and you will be saved. The Bible states in the book of Romans 10:9, 13: “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Pray and ask Him to come into your heart and He will.

Until next time, remember the word of God is the foundation to a successful life. God bless.

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A recent spike in Coronavirus infections in China prompted more alarm, more lockdowns, and more coverage.

A change in the way health officials report new infection cases makes the situation seem even more dangerous. The latest numbers, coupled with reports that some cities enacted extreme measures by banning residents from leaving their homes, worry government officials throughout Asia.

Official quarantine response aimed to prevent new infections, yet new infections continue to surface. To ease stigma associated with the illness, the World Health Organization this week named it COVID-19.  It stands for Coronavirus disease 2019.

The worst part of this outbreak is that COVID-19 carries so many unknowns. Trans World Radio global content officer Jon Fugler says, “We speak hope to the world, and here is an opportunity to do that. There is a lot of fear. People have uncertainty. They’re wondering, ‘how can I keep from getting this? Is it going to spread into my family?’”

The threat of the virus is unnerving, and so is the economic impact on those closest to the outbreak. Financial experts like Moody’s Analytics and Barclays say the epidemic will have a substantial effect on China’s GDP growth, and likely the world economy.  The World Bank released a study estimating that a severe pandemic could trigger a near .3% drop in global GDP.

SOURCE: Mission Network News, R.B. Klama

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This is Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International with the Whyte House Family Devotional Reading of Charles Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening podcast. This is Episode #30.

Charles Spurgeon was a prominent English Particular Baptist preacher. He was very influential among the Christians of various denominations during his age and even today, and is commonly called the “Prince of Preachers”. After some time of alternately searching for God and running from God, he had a powerful encounter which led him to give his life to Christ. Spurgeon was only 16 when he preached his first sermon and he began publishing books shortly afterward. At the time of his death, he had preached nearly 3,600 sermons and published 49 volumes of commentaries, sayings, anecdotes, illustrations and devotions. Spurgeon said, “encouraging thoughts are like honey to the heart”, and wrote this devotional in hopes that its uplifting messages for each day of the year would bring comfort and refreshment to our walk with God. He was inspired by Isaiah 50:4 which reads, “He wakeneth morning by morning. He wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned” and Psalm 63:5-6 which says, “My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips; when I remember Thee upon my bed, and meditate on Thee in the night watches.”

Psalm 109:4 reads: “For my love they are my adversaries: but I give myself unto prayer.”

Lying tongues were busy against the reputation of David, but he did not defend himself; he moved the case into a higher court, and pleaded before the great King himself. Prayer is the safest method of replying to words of hatred. The Psalmist prayed in no cold-hearted manner, he gave himself to the exercise—threw his whole soul and heart into it—straining every sinew and muscle, as Jacob did when wrestling with the angel. Thus, and thus only, shall any of us speed at the throne of grace. As a shadow has no power because there is no substance in it, even so that supplication, in which a man’s proper self is not thoroughly present in agonizing earnestness and vehement desire, is utterly ineffectual, for it lacks that which would give it force. “Fervent prayer,” says an old divine, “like a cannon planted at the gates of heaven, makes them fly open.” The common fault with the most of us is our readiness to yield to distractions. Our thoughts go roving hither and thither, and we make little progress towards our desired end. Like quicksilver our mind will not hold together, but rolls off this way and that. How great an evil this is! It injures us, and what is worse, it insults our God. What should we think of a petitioner, if, while having an audience with a prince, he should be playing with a feather or catching a fly?

Continuance and perseverance are intended in the expression of our text. David did not cry once, and then relapse into silence; his holy clamour was continued till it brought down the blessing. Prayer must not be our chance work, but our daily business, our habit and vocation. As artists give themselves to their models, and poets to their classical pursuits, so must we addict ourselves to prayer. We must be immersed in prayer as in our element, and so pray without ceasing. Lord, teach us so to pray that we may be more and more prevalent in supplication.

PRAY.

Thank you for listening to the Morning and Evening podcast. If you do not know the Lord as your Savior, here is how you can be saved from Hell and walk with the Lord morning and evening until you go to that wonderful place called Heaven when you die:

First, accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”

Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”

Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 18:8: “Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”

Now that is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.

Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the Cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your Salvation today, please pray with me this simple prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. I am sorry for my sins, and today I choose to turn from my sins. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. I trust Jesus Christ as my Savior and I choose to follow Him as Lord from this day forward. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.

If you believed in your heart that Jesus Christ died on the Cross, was buried, and rose again, allow me to say, congratulations on doing the most important thing in life and that is accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour! For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”

If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior today, please email me at [email protected] and let us know. There is some free material that we want to send you. If you have a prayer request, please e-mail that to us as well, and we will pray for you until you tell us to stop.

God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.

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As the protests in Iraq continue, Christians, once enthusiastic backers, are starting to move on.

Samuel, with Redemptive Stories, says “Part of it is we have seen change occur in relationship to the prime minister in Iraq . . .I think that the church is seeing good things occur, and they want to just still be able to be effective at those good things.”

Christians in Iraq couldn’t do many things while the government was unstable, but now things are shifting, they want to get back to the work of building Christ’s kingdom.

“For instance,” Samuel says, “we’ve had the various projects that we’ve been trying to do with some church partners there, but they always hit this roadblock of ‘Okay, well, we can’t do anything until the government gets settled.’ So there’s kind of this desire to bring some semblance of order back to society.”

The protesters, Samuel says, are mostly 18-25-year-old men, often college students or graduates, who are frustrated with the lack of opportunity in their country.

“It’s kind of like Occupy Baghdad,” Samuel says. “They just sit there and they continue to sit there because they don’t believe in the parliamentary system that is governing their country currently.”

After months of negotiating, Iraq finally has elected a new prime minister, but the protestors see him as part of the problem-creating establishment. “And so, the protesters of Occupy Baghdad feel like this is just going to continue to propagate the same system that was there before and that they will continue to have strong ties to Iran. They will continue to not be able to provide jobs, not look to the West in order to bring in companies.”

SOURCE: Mission Network News, Kevin Zeller

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“What does a short-term mission trip to northern Baja, Mexico, look like?”

Strong Tower Ministries and Kids Around the World are hosting an interactive ministry open house in San Clemente, Calif., on Saturday, Feb. 22, that will help those attending answer the above question and many more questions about how to help the US neighbors just south of the border.

“A week or so in the missions field frequently becomes a defining experience for many of the people participating,” said DJ Schuetze, president of STM and author of Reciprocal Missions – Short-Term Missions That Serve Everyone. “When it does work well, short-term missions, like marriage, can be an incredible gift from God that changes the lives of those involved for the better. It’s worth all the effort.”

At the open house to be held in San Clemente, leaders from Strong Tower Ministries and Kids Around the World plan to teach those attending how to show love in “lots of big and small ways” by participating in actions such as food packing, woodworking, and playground installations.

They will also discuss various serving trips to Baja to interact with families, orphanages, migrant communities, and other mission-minded destinations.

SOURCE: Assist News, Alex Murashko

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Solomon once said that of the writing of books, there is no end. The sheer number of books available online today is overwhelming, and there’s nothing worse than wasting time or money on a terrible book. A helpful clue to reveal the quality of a book is whether or not it has stood the test of time. Another indicator, though not nearly as reliable, is how many have sold.

On both of these counts, the book Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions by my friend Greg Koukl, passes with flying colors. In fact, since it’s sold so well for so long, Tactics is now available in an expanded and updated 10th anniversary edition.

I have long regarded the original edition of Tactics as one of the best resources ever produced to equip Christians to engage in tough conversations with skeptics and unbelievers. While plenty of books tell us what to say on tough topics, this book is training on how to have the conversation. The title says it all: Tactics.

The expanded tenth anniversary edition, with several new chapters and updated examples that take into account the ways our culture has changed since 2009, means that this edition supplants the old one as one of the best resources ever produced to equip Christian to engage in tough conversations with skeptics and unbelievers—and, by the way, even with fellow believers who might be fuzzy on the key teachings of our faith.

According to Koukl, “representing Christ in any era requires three skills.” First, we need a “basic knowledge necessary for the task.” This means knowing the central message of God’s kingdom and “knowing something about how to respond to the obstacles [believers will] encounter on their mission.”

By itself, however, knowledge isn’t enough. “Our knowledge must be tempered with the wisdom that makes our message clear and persuasive.” As Greg puts it, “we need tools of a diplomat, not the weapons of a warrior.”

Finally, we must not forget that this knowledge and wisdom “are packaged in a Person.” If we don’t embody the virtues of Christ, we will undermine our message and attempts to share it.

SOURCE: Christian Post, John Stonestreet and Roberto Rivera

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