Harder Than it Looks - page 3Harder Than it Looks - page 3Living the Ten Commandments - page 5Living the Ten Commandments - page 5The Faith of Isaac Newton - page 12The Faith of Isaac Newton - page 12

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used.❖ The New King James Version iscopyrighted by Thomas Nelson.

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133rd Year 1596A monthly magazine published by the Christadelphians (brothers and sisters in Christ) andavailable throughout the world.

Acknowledgements

Photographs:

Cover: Punting in Cambridge, UKVicki Newman, Photographvie

Pgs. 3, 4: Simon Collard;

pgs. 7, 8, 9: Wikipedia Commons;

pgs. 16, 17: Pexels.com

All others: Clipart.com

E17

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Publisher: The Glad Tidings Publishing Association A registered charity – Number 248352

Harder Than it Looks...............3

Living the Ten Commandments..............5

The Balfour Declaration..........6

A Librarian’s View of the Bible .................................10

The Faith of Isaac Newton....12

God’s Truth = Justice .............16

A Christadelphian’s Confession of Faith ..............18

Its objectives are – to encourage the study of the Bible as God'sinspired message to mankind; to call attention to the Divineoffer of forgiveness of sins through Jesus Christ; and to warnmen and women that soon Christ will return to Earth as judgeand ruler of God’s world-wide Kingdom.

ContentsContents

133rd Year 3

learn the basic rules to life, and putthem into practice. The Bible gives usthe rules for living and these instruc-tions come from the God who createdus and understands us better than weknow ourselves. Think about theseexamples:

Fear God and keep His command-ments, for this is man's all. For God willbring every work into judgment, includ-ing every secret thing, whether good orevil (Ecclesiastes 12:13–14).

Do not worry, saying, ‘What shall weeat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or‘What shall we wear?’... For your heav-enly Father knows that you need allthese things. But seek first thekingdom of God and His righteous-ness, and all these things shall beadded to you (Matthew 6:31–33).

All things work together for good tothose who love God, to those who arethe called according to His purpose(Romans 8:28).

Through the Bible, God is telling usto get our priorities right and focus onHis purpose, in which case He will lookafter our eternal well-being.

One of the great experiences of visitinga river town is a boat trip. Each year,more than 400,000 people visit thefamous English town of Cambridge(our cover picture), and many will atsome stage enjoy time on the riverCam in a flat-bottomed boat called apunt. It can be restful and enjoyable,especially with a commentary explain-ing the colleges and beautiful gardensthat can be seen so well from the river. But punting is not as easy as it looks,

as many have found out! For a start,the river varies greatly in depth, beingso deep in places that you can lose thewhole length of your pole and still nottouch the bottom. In other places, theriver bed is very muddy and the polecan get stuck fast. Many a novice hasended up in the river while trying toretrieve a pole. One of the first lessonswith punting is that the pole is not justfor propulsion, it is also used to steer.That’s the clever bit. If you don’t under-stand that, the punt will go around incircles carrying everything and every-one in its wake!It is fair to say that life can be very

much like this. In the uncharted watersof our future, we benefit greatly fromgood instructions; we need to practise;and it gets easier as we accept help.

Instructions

Ideally to be successful on the riveryou need some instructions and plentyof practice! There will be many timeswhen we think progress is slow. Wemay often lose our pole or hit the bankor another boat.This is rather like our lives. Life is

never as easy as it looks. We need to

Harder Than it LooksHarder Than it Looks

4 Glad Tidings

and enjoy the scenery, the magnificentbuildings and beautiful gardens thatslip past our gaze. In life, we all find it hard to steer our

course and really need someone withus in our boat to guide us through sothat we can get safely to our destina-tion. If our lives are being steered byGod, we can start to appreciate all Hehas done and listen to His instruction.This is the Gospel message, whichmeans salvation to anyone who is pre-pared to take the time to listen. The Bible tells us that if we trust in

God He will steer our course throughlife and bring us to His Kingdom.

If God is for us, who can be againstus? He who did not spare His own Son,but delivered him up for us all, howshall He not with him also freely giveus all things?… In all these things weare more than conquerors throughHim who loved us (Romans 8:31–37).

Editor

Practice

Once we have found the instructions,then we need to practise them until weget more proficient. Back on the river,if you have had a bit of practice youmay feel you are making reasonableprogress until you come across scoresof other people in their punts eachtrying with difficulty to control theirmovement. At times the river becomesa tangled mass of boats, poles andpeople all going in different directions.It takes considerable skill to steer acourse through this entanglement,anticipating the speed and direction ofall the other boats. Life can be just like this. We will

often feel we have made a mess ofthings, but that is no reason to give up.The Bible tells us to keep on trying, notto get discouraged, but to practisedoing the right things:

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhorwhat is evil. Cling to what is good. Bekindly affectionate to one another withbrotherly love, in honour giving prefer-ence to one another; not lagging indiligence, fervent in spirit, serving theLord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribu-lation, continuing steadfastly in prayer(Romans 12:9–12).

Let us not grow weary while doinggood, for in due season we shall reapif we do not lose heart (Galatians 6:9).

Through His writers, God is telling usnot to get downhearted or give up ondoing the right things, but to carry onand trust His plans for us.

Letting God Take Control

Only when we are in a punt that isproperly in control can we relax a bit

editor@gladtidingsmagazine.org

Do get in touch with your questions

or comments

133rd Year 5

Over the last few issues we have com-pleted our survey of the TenCommandments, what they meantwhen they were given and, in particu-lar, how they apply to us in the 21stCentury. We have seen that they areall important, and how they expressthe behaviour that God expects of us ifwe are trying to please Him. Jesus was asked about the com-

mandments:

“Teacher, which is the great com-mandment in the law?”. Jesus said tohim, “‘You shall love the Lord your Godwith all your heart, with all your soul,and with all your mind.’ This is the firstand great commandment. And thesecond is like it: ‘You shall love yourneighbour as yourself’” (Matthew22:36–39).

We could see the first part of Jesus’answer as a summary of the first ofthe Ten Commandments. But for the second part, he chose a

tiny commandment tucked away inLeviticus 19:18. If we really treat ourneighbour as we would treat our-

selves, we would never steal his cow,because we would hate to be deprivedof our milk supply if he did that to us.Instead, if we learned our neighbourhas no milk for his children to drink,and for that reason he was tempted tosteal our cow, we would give him ourown milk, because that is what wewould like to happen to us if we were inthe same position. The Apostle Paul sums it up neatly

like this:

Owe no one anything except to loveone another, for he who loves anotherhas fulfilled the law… Love does noharm to a neighbour; therefore love isthe fulfilment of the law (Romans13:8, 10).

If all the nations of the world lived bythis commandment, there would be noplace for war, no poverty or crime, andeveryone would be happy. One day, inthe Kingdom of God, Jesus will teachall the nations that this is the way tolive. We have the opportunity, in God’s

love, to be there too; even to beamongst the teachers that Jesus willsend out to tell the world: “This is theway, walk in it” (Isaiah 30:21).To seize that opportunity, we must

believe God’s promises, be baptisedand live lives that practise loving Godand loving our neighbour NOW.

David M. Pearce(Concluded)

The Ten Commandments in the 21The Ten Commandments in the 21stst Century - 8Century - 8

Living the TenLiving the TenCommandmentsCommandments

6 Glad Tidings

Thus says the LORD, the King of Israeland his redeemer, the LORD of Hosts: “Iam the first and I am the last; besidesme there is no God… Fear not nor beafraid; have I not told you from of oldand declared it? You are my witnes-ses” (Isaiah 44:6–8).

The Bible is clear: the existence of thepeople of Israel – the Jews – makesthem witnesses to the existence ofGod. Hence, whilst Christadelphiansdo not support Israel politically, theyhave a keen interest in them.This small nation, which was almostdestroyed by the Romans in AD 70,has survived the ravages of time. Infact, despite the wickedness of anti-Semitism over many centuries,culminating in the Nazi holocaust, theJews have not been wiped out but haveseen a modern day revival. Israel isnow a nation again after nearly 2000years of stateless wandering amongstmost of the countries of the world.The Bible prophesied that they would

be scattered and that one day theywould return to the land God had pro-mised them:

Hear the word of the LORD, O nations…He who scattered Israel will gather himand will keep him as a shepherd keepshis flock. For the LORD has ransomedJacob and has redeemed him fromhands too strong for him (Jeremiah31:10–11).

This is clearly an important sign forthe world today, and so this series ofarticles will look at some of the stepsthat have led to the formation of the

modern State of Israel, as we findthem foretold in prophecy, and canread them for ourselves. 2017 marks the centenary of the

statement issued by the British Gov-ernment known as the BalfourDeclaration (named after Foreign Sec-retary, Arthur Balfour) and it isreproduced in full opposite. A numberof reasons have been put forward as tothe British Government’s motivation,and some are considered below.

British Self-Interest

By November 1917 the First World Warhad been raging for three years. Whilemany people focus on the carnage onthe Western Front, significant fightinghad been taking place in the MiddleEast. Strategists considered thatknocking Turkey (Germany’s ally) out ofthe war would open up the “soft under-belly of Europe”.Attempts to do this in the Dar-

danelles (Gallipoli) and inMesopotamia (modern Iraq) hadfailed. The Prime Minister David LloydGeorge was insistent that there shouldbe another attempt by crossing theSuez Canal and invading Palestine. Heconsidered that this would be anencouragement to the British peopleand wanted to give them Jerusalem asa gift by Christmas 1917. Furthermore, the Suez Canal was

the main artery of British Trade to andfrom India. Britain controlled Egypt atthe time and wanted to settle peopleon the canal’s East bank that would befavourable to them. So, who betterthan the Jews?

Steps to the State of Israel - 1Steps to the State of Israel - 1

The Balfour DeclarationThe Balfour Declaration

133rd Year 7

movement, some wanting to take upthe offer, the rest refusing to settle foranywhere other than Palestine, theirancient homeland. In the end this offercame to nothing and it was not until1917 that Britain was in a position tomake an offer of a homeland in Pales-tine itself.

Reward for Helping the WarEffort

A key figure at this time was a Jewishémigré to Britain called Chaim Weiz-mann. He met Arthur Balfour (thenPrime Minister) in 1906 in a privateinterview and convinced him that Jewswould not accept anywhere to settlebut their ancient homeland of Pales-tine. When he was not furthering the

Zionist cause, Weizmann was aresearch chemist at the University ofManchester and he had discovered a

The Plight of the Jews

Persecution of the Jews was not a newthing, but it was evident in the late19th Century that such anti-semiticsentiment was reaching a new intensi-ty. The trial of a French Jew, CaptainAlfred Dreyfus, on trumped-up chargesof treason, highlighted the degree ofhatred there was for the Jews not onlyin France but across the whole ofEurope. This resulted in the formation of a

Jewish movement called Zionism, ledinitially by a Viennese newspaperreporter called Theodore Herzl. Hisbook “Der Jüdenstaat” (the JewishState) acted as a clarion call to Jews toconsider forming their own state. Herzl approached many govern-

ments and found a sympathetic ear inBritain. In fact the British offered theJews a tract of land in Uganda in theearly 1900s. This split the Zionist

way to make acetone by fermentation.At the time this was considered afailed experiment, but in the heat ofthe First World War, when there was aserious shortage of acetone for themanufacture of munitions, Weiz-mann’s invention came to the fore. Itwas Lloyd George who put forward theidea that the Declaration was a rewardto Weizmann for his acetone process.

Propaganda Coup

Another rationalisation for the Declara-tion is that it would favourablyinfluence the Jews of Russia andAmerica, who would persuade theirgovernments to pursue the Alliedcause in the First World War.

The Real Reason

No doubt all these motivations playedtheir part. However, there was a farmore significant influence at work inthe minds of the decision-makers ingovernment in 1917. This was theEnglish Bible. Most of these people had been

brought up to read and learn the Bibleand consequently they were very

favourably disposed to the Jews: thePeople of the Book. When talkingabout Palestine, Lloyd George hadsaid that place names kept cominginto the conversation that were“more familiar to me than those ofthe Western Front”. Balfour’s biogra-pher stated that his interest inZionism stemmed from his boyhoodtraining in the Old Testament underthe guidance of his mother. In his book “Trial and Error” Weiz-

mann recounts his second meetingwith Balfour, then First Lord of theAdmiralty, who told him “I believe thatwhen the guns stop firing you mayget your Jerusalem.”

Balfour and Weizmann

One of the remarkable aspects of thisstory is the unlikely friendship thatarose between Zionist Chaim Weiz-mann, and statesman Arthur Balfour.Weizmann was born in Russia to a

relatively poor Jewish family whowere involved in the timber trade. Hetrained as a chemist and worked inresearch for many years, as well astaking a leading role in the effort topromote Zionism. Balfour was froman aristocratic family: his uncle LordSalisbury was Prime Minister in thelate 1800s. Balfour held high officefor over 20 years. Yet both men hadgrown up to read and learn the OldTestament scriptures and as a resultwere greatly influenced by it, regard-ing the Jews as God’s people.In 1925 Balfour was invited to

Jerusalem to lay the foundation stoneof the Hebrew University on MountScopus. By that time he was theChancellor of the University of Cam-bridge and he wore his official robesfor the occasion, as we can see in thepicture opposite.

8 Glad Tidings

Chaim Weizmann

133rd Year 9

Five years later, the last non-familymember to visit Balfour on hisdeathbed was Chaim Weizmann. Weiz-mann lived for another 27 years andbecame the first president of the newlyfounded State of Israel.

God at Work

The events in this article could be totalcoincidence, from a purely humanpoint of view. However, when you readBible prophecy, it becomes very appar-ent that God has always been at workdirecting people and nations to bringabout the purpose He had from thebeginning:

But you, O mountains of Israel, shallshoot forth your branches and yieldyour fruit to my people of Israel, forthey will soon come home (Ezekiel36:8).

It is an interesting fact that whilepeople make their own decisions,often for reasons of self-interest, Goduses this to further His purpose. In factmost often the people concerned willnever realise that they were part ofGod’s plan.The Declaration of November 2nd

1917 and the subsequent liberation ofJerusalem from Turkish rule onDecember 8th of that year were impor-tant steps in God’s plan.However, while the land had been

liberated, much was yet to happenbefore Israel could become a nationagain. We shall consider these nextsteps in the following instalments.

Simon Collard

10 Glad Tidings

As Deputy Librarian at Cambridge Uni-versity Library during the 1980s, RegCarr was fascinated to trace thelibrary’s connections to the Bible.Even in such a prestigious collection ofbooks, the Bible stands above othertexts because of its enduring valueand fascinating history.

The city of Cambridge and its world-famous university is proud of itsintimate association with the Bible. Inprinting, translation and preservation,this connection has been built overmany centuries.

Printing

The Cambridge University Press wasfounded in 1584, and was printingBibles in English as early as 1591. Thiswas when the University Printer, JohnLegate, published an edition of theGeneva translation of the Bible. Thispopular Bible was published in anunsuccessful attempt to break themonopoly of the London-basedQueen’s Printer, Christopher Barker.This was the first complete Bible to

be printed in Cambridge, and it pre–dated the King James Version by some20 years. Today, the University Pressstill publishes a wide range of Bibles,and these quality products continue tosell in large numbers all over theworld.

Translation

Not long after James I came to thethrone of Great Britain after the death

of Elizabeth I in 1603, he ordered thata new translation of the Bible shouldbe undertaken. We know this today asthe King James, or Authorised Version.This is believed to be the most widelyread work in English of all time.On the advice of the Archbishop of

Canterbury, Richard Bancroft, the Kingcommanded that the translation workshould be divided between six compa-nies of scholars, two of which were inCambridge. Of the 48 men appointedby the Crown, 14 were members of theCambridge companies. There werealso a few ‘Cambridge’ men whoworked in the London translation com-panies, including Bishop John Overall,a former Master of St. Catharine’sCollege, and Bishop LancelotAndrewes, who had been Master ofPembroke College.As recently as 2014, the work of

these scholars has had further lightthrown on it. In the archives of SidneySussex College, a notebook was dis-covered, which contained the work ofone of the translators, Samuel Ward.The significance of this commentary isdescribed by Jeffrey Miller, the scholarwho identified it: “It points the way to afuller, more complex understandingthan ever before of the process bywhich the King James Bible… came tobe.”

Preservation and Collection

The Cambridge University Libraryhouses one of the most extensive andvaluable collections of Bibles in theworld. Since 1984 it has been home to

A Librarian’s View of theA Librarian’s View of theBibleBible

133rd Year 11

the library and archives of the Britishand Foreign Bible Society, which con-tains at least 40,000 Bibles. The Library’s own Bible collection is

full of rare and interesting items, and ithas been strengthened over the yearsby many generous gifts, such as the150 Bibles donated in 1933 by ArthurYoung. This endowment included afine copy of the Gutenberg Bible ofc.1455, the first book ever printed bythe use of movable type. More recently, too, in 2013–14, the

Library was fortunate enough to beable to mount a successful £1.1mfundraising campaign to secure theCodex Zacynthius, a 7th Century Greekmanuscript version of the text of partof Luke’s Gospel. From time to time, items from the

Bible collection are publicly exhibited.This makes a very worthwhile visit foranyone interested in the Bible.

Real Value

However, the real value of the Biblelies not in its monetary cost, its literaryqualities, or even its history. Its worthlies in the nature of its author, andwhat it can do for those who read itand believe it.The Bible makes a very clear state-

ment, that it was inspired by God, andthe people who wrote it down werewriting God’s words, not their own:

No prophecy of Scripture is of anyprivate interpretation, for prophecynever came by the will of man, but holymen of God spoke as they were movedby the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:20–21).

The Bible provides ample evidencefor this claim, which is often thesubject of articles in Glad Tidings. Thekey proof is that it contains material

which could not have been known bythose writing it down. This includesboth highly accurate prophecies aboutfuture events, and scientific or geo-graphic facts. We also read that, if we believe the

Bible and decide to obey what Godasks of us, we share the hope of faith-ful men and women throughout itspages: to live for ever in the Kingdomof God:

Having been set free from sin, andhaving become slaves of God, youhave your fruit to holiness, and theend, everlasting life. For the wages ofsin is death, but the gift of God iseternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord(Romans 6:22–23).

The saints of the Most High shallreceive the kingdom, and possess thekingdom forever, even forever and ever(Daniel 7:18).

These are life–changing truths. Ifyou want to consider how God caresnow for those who follow Him, thenread Romans 8:28–39. This is the realvalue of this remarkable book.

Reg Carr

To access previous editions of ‘GladTidings’ please visit our website:www.gladtidingsmagazine.org

12 Glad Tidings

In this article, we explore the faith ofIsaac Newton – the man many consid-er to be the father of modern science.A great deal has been written abouthim over the centuries since his death,but more recently, scholars have beenable to publish a fascinating insightinto his personal beliefs. It was only relatively recently that the

majority of his private manuscriptsbecame available for study. As a con-sequence, major strides in ourunderstanding of Newton’s beliefshave been made over the last 20years.Incredibly, Newton understood from

the Bible that the Jews would berestored to Israel. This was hundredsof years before the re-establishment ofthe State of Israel in 1948, anddespite the land being firmly underOttoman rule for the whole ofNewton’s life. For Newton, this was to

be a sign that soon his beloved LordJesus Christ would return to set upGod’s kingdom.

A Man of Faith

One of Cambridge University’s best-known scholars, Isaac Newton isrevered by many for his prodigious con-tributions to the study andunderstanding of maths and science.Indeed some 374 years after his birth,his theories remain essential know-ledge for High School and Universitystudents alike. His best-known contri-butions are perhaps his gravitationaltheory and the three laws of motionthat bear his name to this day. In addi-tion, he discovered importantgeometric formulae; set the corner-stone for modern differential calculus;is said to have given birth to the fieldof optics; and made great strides inastronomy by providing mathematicalexplanations for the circuits of theplanets and making key contributionsto the invention of the reflecting tele-scope.

The Faith of Isaac NewtonThe Faith of Isaac Newton

133rd Year 13

Far less well known is the fact thatNewton wrote significantly more aboutmatters of faith than on science –although he is unlikely to have madethat distinction himself. Instead, hewould have included both topics under“Natural Philosophy”, dedicating ThePrincipia (pictured overleaf, regardedas his greatest work, and perhaps thegreatest single work of the ScientificRevolution) to faith in God:

When I wrote my treatise about ourSystem I had an eye upon such Princi-ples as might work with consideringmen for the belief of a Deity andnothing can rejoice me more than tofind it useful for that purpose.

At his death on 20 March 1727,Newton left behind a treasure trove ofmanuscript material, including threemillion words on theology, churchhistory and biblical prophecy. So whyare Newton’s thoughts on matters offaith not more widely known?

Beliefs Held Privately

The answers lie in the non-mainstreambeliefs Newton embraced, the age ofintolerance in which he lived, and thefact that his unpublished manuscriptswere not available for study until veryrecent times. Since his death manyunfounded assertions have beenmade about Newton’s beliefs, byorthodox and atheist alike. These cannow be examined by careful review ofthese manuscripts, which revealNewton’s true faith.For example, from his study of the

Bible, Newton wrote down what heunderstood to be its true teaching. Heconcluded that, despite Church historyand orthodox Church teachings, thefollowing are true:

❖ The Father alone is the one trueGod, and Jesus Christ is His son

❖ Man is mortal, with hope of anafterlife resting only in bodilyresurrection

❖ Christ will return to the earth toestablish a global kingdom ofpeace for one thousand years

❖ Christ’s return will be preceded bythe return of the Jews to historicIsrael

❖ Believers are to be baptized asbelieving adults.

Had he proclaimed these things pub-licly Newton would certainly have beenbranded a heretic. He was rejectingorthodox Church teachings on theTrinity, the immortality of the soul,heaven as the place of man’s reward,the rejection of the Jews as God’speople, and infant baptism.Newton was known to have been

averse to disputes, and he understoodfrom the Bible that only a few wouldbelieve the truth. He therefore choseto preach his Bible-based beliefs onlyquietly through a trusted network offriends.Hence proper study of his beliefs

depends on Newton’s unpublishedmanuscripts – with these having falleninto private collections and been dis-persed around the world via auction,after his death. Happily, in recentdecades the majority have found theirway into libraries and public collec-tions (one of the most important beingthe Keynes collection at King’sCollege, Cambridge). Then in 1991the majority of Newton’s manuscriptswere released on microfilm, and in1998 the Newton Project broughtabout unprecedented access toNewton’s private manuscripts throughonline publication. All of these are

14 Glad Tidings

leading a scholarly revolution, which ischanging the way we view IsaacNewton and his beliefs.

The Restoration of the Jews

One of the most remarkable points ofNewton’s beliefs was his confidentprediction of the restoration of theJews to the land of Israel. This wasbased on his keen reading of Bibleprophecy, and is worthy of a moredetailed exploration.Newton was incredibly interested in

prophecy and he recognised the Jewsas “God’s people the Jews”. In a timewhen the Jews were scattered acrossthe world, and the land of Israel (orPalestine) was firmly in the grip of theOttoman Empire, Newton believed theJews would be restored to their ownland of Israel. In a late 17th Century paper, he com-

ments that the conversion and thereturn of the Jews are described in“almost all ye Prophets” as well asrecognising the promises made toAbraham. We find these promises inGenesis, the first book of the Bible.

The LORD had said to Abram: “Get outof your country, from your family andfrom your father's house, to a land thatI will show you. I will make you a greatnation; I will bless you and make yourname great; and you shall be a bless-ing. I will bless those who bless you,and I will curse him who curses you;and in you all the families of the earthshall be blessed” (Genesis 12:1–3).

And the LORD said to Abram, after Lothad separated from him: “Lift youreyes now and look from the placewhere you are – northward, south-ward, eastward, and westward; for allthe land which you see I give to you

and your descendants forever. And Iwill make your descendants as thedust of the earth; so that if a mancould number the dust of the earth,[then] your descendants also could benumbered. Arise, walk in the landthrough its length and its width, for Igive it to you” (Genesis 13:14–17).

Newton strongly believed that thefoundations of the Jewish and Chris-tian religions were upon theAbrahamic covenant: “God's covenantwith Abraham when he promised thathis seed should inherit the land ofCanaan for ever.''He claimed that “on this promise

covenant was founded the Jewish reli-gion as on that is founded theChristian; and therefore this point is ofso great moment that it ought to beconsidered and understood by all menwho pretend to the name of Chris-tians.”Newton recognised the importance

of a permanent return of the Jews to

133rd Year 15

their land, not just the temporary onefollowing their return from captivity inBabylon in round 500 BC. He wrote thefollowing as a commentary on this:

'Tis in ye last days that this is to be ful-filled & then ye captivity shall return &become a strong nation & reign overstrong nations afar off, & ye Lord shallreign in mount Zion from thenceforthfor ever, & many nations shall receiveye law of righteousness fromJerusalem, & they shall beat theirsword into plow-shares & their spearsinto pruning hooks & nation shall notlift up a sword against nation, neithershall they learn war any more; allwhich never yet came to pass.

We can read the Old Testament forourselves and see that Newton wasusing the prophet Micah as a basis forhis conclusions. In fact he was to alarge extent quoting from this prophetand similar words which we can find inIsaiah:

Now it shall come to pass in the latterdays that the mountain of the LORD’Shouse shall be established on the topof the mountains, and shall be exaltedabove the hills; and peoples shall flowto it. Many nations shall come and say,“Come, and let us go up to the moun-tain of the LORD, to the house of theGod of Jacob; He will teach us Hisways, and we shall walk in His paths.”For out of Zion the law shall go forth,and the word of the LORD fromJerusalem. He shall judge betweenmany peoples, and rebuke strongnations afar off; they shall beat theirswords into plowshares, and theirspears into pruning hooks; nationshall not lift up sword against nation,neither shall they learn war anymore(Micah 4:1–3).

Prophecy Fulfilled

It’s incredible to think how the Biblerevealed these events to Newtonbefore they happened, just because heread it with a mind which was keen tounderstand it. It is no different for us,although we may lack his genius,because God has preserved His wordso that we can all read and learn fromit.The Allied Forces under General

Allenby freed the land from the grip ofthe Ottoman Empire during the FirstWorld War, and the Jews were drivenback to the land following the terribleevents of the Second World War –leading to the establishment of theState of Israel in 1948.The Bible tells us that this is a sign

that the return of Jesus is near, andthis is what Newton believed too. Wecan look forward to this with hope andconfidence if we too read our Bible andrespond to God’s invitation.In the meantime, we do well to heed

Newton’s warning advice. He warnedhis readers not to rely on “the judg-ment of ye multitude, for so thou shaltcertainly be deceived. But search thescriptures thy self.”

Mel and Matt Brady

For more insight into Newton’s beliefs,please refer to the following:

Isaac Newton: His Science and Reli-gion, Stephen D. SnobelenIsaac Newton, heretic: the strategiesof a Nicodemite, Stephen D. Snobelen“The mystery of this restitution of allthings:” Isaac Newton on the return ofthe Jews, Stephen D. Snobelenhttps://isaacnewton.ca

16 Glad Tidings

matism is unpopular. In 2016 theOxford Dictionaries ‘Word of the Year’was ‘post–truth’, referring to situationsin which emotion and personal beliefare more influential in shaping opinionthan objective facts.Doubts about truth are not new,

however. Some 2000 years ago, at thetrial of Jesus, Pontius Pilate asked(probably cynically) “What is truth?”This was in response to Jesus’ empha-tic statement:

You say rightly that I am a king. For thiscause I was born, and for this cause Ihave come into the world, that I shouldbear witness to the truth. Everyonewho is of the truth hears my voice(John 18:37).

The Bible repeatedly claims thatthere is absolute truth in religiousbeliefs. Jesus also said:

If you abide in my word, you are my dis-ciples indeed. And you shall know thetruth, and the truth shall make youfree (John 8:31–32).

I am the way, the truth, and the life. Noone comes to the Father exceptthrough me (John 14:6).

Seventy years ago, Cambridge Univer-sity passed a momentous resolution.Much later than London and Oxford,they decided to admit women as fullmembers of the University. Prior tothis, women had been allowed to sitexams, but were not eligible for theaward of degrees.

Injustice

There was one famous woman forwhom this was most unjust. In 1890Philippa Fawcett gained the highestmarks in the mathematics exam finals,but it was the man with the nexthighest marks who got the covetedtitle of ‘senior wrangler.’ Philippa didnot even get a degree. Her family was familiar with causes

for women as her mother had been asuffragist. Attitudes were very differentthen. In the Victorian era there werestrong beliefs that women had inferiorbrains and could not cope with aca-demic subjects. Philippa was whatmathematicians would call a ‘counterexample’ – something that broke thesupposed rule and so showed it to befalse.

Absolute Truth

In mathematics, your working andreasoning are either right or wrong.If you cannot solve an equation youcannot get any credit by merely‘describing’ or ‘discussing’ it; eitheryou can solve it correctly or youcannot. In maths, there is most defi-nitely ‘truth’; opinion matters little.It is not fashionable nowadays to

talk about absolute truth, and dog-

God’s Truth = JusticeGod’s Truth = Justice

133rd Year 17

These are strong statements abouttruth and faith. The context shows thatJesus was referring to freedom fromthe destructive curse of death. Theword ‘if’ shows that we can get itwrong, and the terms ‘no one’ and‘except’ leave no room for manoeuvre.So according to Jesus, belief in bothhis words and his actions is the onlyway we can be saved.In the first century, the apostles

were convinced that the inspiredmessage of the Gospel, as given byGod, could not be altered by anyone.

Even if we, or an angel from heaven,preach any other gospel to you thanwhat we have preached to you, let himbe accursed (Galatians 1:8).

The Bible text has an originalmeaning which is not subject to privateinterpretation. Consequently, the mes-sages preached by the prophets andapostles are not a matter of personalopinion or choice (see 2 Peter 1:20,2:1–2). This means that departingfrom Bible truth can put us back on theroad to destruction.

Real Justice

God’s offer of life is conditional on ourfaithful response, but it is not unfairlydiscriminatory. The offer has alwaysbeen equally open to men and women,irrespective of status. There is no sug-gestion in the Bible that womencannot comprehend the word of God.Men and women have exactly thesame opportunity and responsibility.

For you are all sons of God throughfaith in Christ Jesus. For as many ofyou as were baptized into Christ haveput on Christ. There is neither Jew norGreek, there is neither slave nor free,

there is neither male nor female; foryou are all one in Christ Jesus (Gala-tians 3:26–28).

The important thing is to be ‘inChrist’, which is achieved by belief, fol-lowed by baptism, then a changed lifeof dedication to the ways of God.Being the ‘senior wrangler’ was a

prestigious achievement. But it palesinto insignificance compared with thehope of eternal life. The divine gift isoffered to all men and women. Philippa was disadvantaged in what

is now considered an unfair system.Many centuries before, Jesus Christdied a humiliating and excruciatingdeath, an unfair punishment forcrimes he never committed. But he didso to give us hope of everlasting life. For many years, women were denied

university degrees, and even nowa-days, for many people this type ofeducation is not an option. In contrast,the Gospel message does not requireacademic achievement (1 Corinthians1:20–28). It is for anyone, and offersfar more than any university. Let ustherefore do as the apostle Paul urgedand:

Be diligent to present yourselfapproved to God, a worker who doesnot need to be ashamed, rightly divid-ing the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15).

Anna Hart

18 Glad Tidings

If you asked a Christadelphian what heor she believed, this is the type ofanswer you might receive:

My faith is not just a set of Bible doc-trines which I believe in theory. It is afaith to be lived as I try day by day tofollow the example of the Lord Jesus.My greatest desire is for the LordJesus to return to earth so that I mightglorify God, with Jesus, in his everlast-ing, worldwide kingdom here on earth!

1. The BibleI believe the 66 books of the Bible arethe Word of God, all directly inspired byHim. My faith and beliefs are basedentirely on the Bible.

2. GodI believe there is only one God, theFather, who created all things. He isthe eternal king, all wise and all power-ful, everywhere present by His power,the Holy Spirit. God is righteous, just,compassionate and gracious, slow toanger, abounding in love and faithful-ness, and forgiving sin. Yet He doesnot leave the guilty unpunished.

3. JesusI believe the man Jesus of Nazareth isthe only begotten Son of God, born ofthe virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit. Hewas sent by God to be the anointedking and “righteous one” predicted bythe prophets. Although sinless, he suf-fered, was crucified and died, yet didnot decay but on the third day rose toeverlasting life and then 40 days laterascended to heaven.

4. Sin and DeathI believe sin is disobedience to Godand it results in death. Death is a stateof unconsciousness as a body decays.

5. PromisesI believe God has selected peoplethroughout history (such as Abraham,Isaac, Jacob, David and Mary) andmade promises to them. In this way,God promised possession of the landof Israel, and blessings for all nationsthrough a special son who will rule onthe throne of David for ever. Thesepromises have only been fulfilled inpart and are to be completely fulfilledin Jesus when he returns.

6. IsraelI believe God chose the nation of Israelbecause of His love for their ancestors,and to provide a witness to humankindof His existence. God gave them Hislaw, prophets, promises and the landof Israel, and cared for them throughtheir history. Jesus was sent first to thenation of Israel, which rejected him, asprophesied. Despite this, God has notrejected Israel, but people from allnations may be part of God's familyand heirs of the promises.

7. The Hope of BelieversI believe that Jesus died as a sacrificeso that my sins can be forgiven and Ican be made right with God. By thegrace of God in Jesus – salvation, res-urrection and eternal life in God’skingdom are offered as fulfilment ofGod’s promises to all people on earthwho will believe.

A Christadelphian’s A Christadelphian’s Confession of FaithConfession of Faith

133rd Year 19

8. Kingdom of GodI believe that Jesus will return to earthto raise the dead, and judge them. Thewicked will perish, but those who havelived their lives for God will receive theblessing of eternal life in God’sKingdom. Jesus will rule from Jeru-salem with justice and peace. Hiskingdom will extend over the wholeearth. Eventually all enemies, inclu-ding suffering and death, will bedestroyed. He will then hand over thekingdom to God Who will be “all in all”.

9. Requirements of Believers I believe God commanded me torepent of my sins and to be baptised(by total immersion in water) in thename of Jesus. I should worship Godsincerely in faith and obedience.

10. Prayer and FellowshipI believe I should constantly seekGod’s help and forgiveness throughprayer, offering Him thanks and praise.I try to read the Bible every day, tolisten to God's wisdom. When possible,I meet regularly with other believers,so we can encourage each other andshare bread and wine in memory ofJesus’ death and resurrection.

11. Way of Life I believe that God asks me to showlove, joy, peace, patience, kindness,faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I must stop sinful behavioursuch as jealousy, pride, temper, sexualimmorality, violence, drunkenness,gossiping, greed and materialism.

12. Marriage I believe marriage is the lifelong part-nership between a man and a womanwhich is intended to provide lovingcompanionship. Children are a giftfrom the Lord and must be cherished

and nurtured. Husbands are to lovetheir wives as Jesus has loved us, andwives are to love and submit to theirhusbands. Sexual relations outsidemarriage are forbidden. I believe Ishould marry a fellow believer.

13. Dealing with PeopleI believe that in all my dealings withpeople I must maintain godly conductand show love to my neighbour. I willbe judged in the same way that I judgeothers, so showing mercy and under-standing is very important.

14. Money I believe I must avoid loving money, butbe content and responsible with what Ihave, relying on God to provide for myneeds. I must be generous, giving will-ingly and cheerfully to those in need.

15. Law and ViolenceI believe that I must obey the laws ofthe country where I live, provided theydo not contradict the commandmentsof God. I refuse to participate in poli-tics, industrial action, violence or war.

In summary, my aim is to be like Jesus,and to try to follow him throughout mylife. I recognise that I may not live up tothe ideals of my faith and realise myconstant need for the mercy and for-giveness of God and the Lord JesusChrist. Because of my awareness ofmy need for God’s mercy, I know that Ishould not condemn others, butforgive them as I have also been forgiv-en, and try to show them the samelove which the Lord has shown to me.

Sarah Joiner

Contact ‘Glad Tidings’ if you wouldlike the list of Bible references

which show these truths.

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