Letters to the Editor - Hardcover

Arno Froese

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0937422495 ISBN 13: 9780937422496

Publisher: The Olive Press, 2000

Synopsis

Letters to the Editor is a topical arrangement of carefully compiled and categorized letters that Midnight Call Ministry has received over the last several years. Midnight Call Editor Arno Froese has tackled a great many challenging questions in the magazine's most popular feature. Readers have enjoyed the opportunity to write in and pose various questions and concerns relative to the Body of Christ, and have benefitted from Arno's concise scriptural responses on topics such as the Rapture of the Church, globalism, the Ecumenical Movement, false religions, eschatology, general Scripture explanations and much more. Each answer is thoughtful, carefully researched and answered based on what the Bible teaches.

Where else can you find such a wide variety of subjects responded to and available all in one place? Chances are, questions that may have bothered you for years have been asked and addressed in this book.

Letters to the Editor contains a detailed table of contents to help the reader find exactly what they are looking for!

Wisdom, knowledge, discernment and a mastery of the Scriptures has enabled Arno to assist individual believers in the Body of Christ in virtually every aspect of their walk with the Lord and their understanding of the Scriptures.

Find out for yourself why the "Letters to the Editor" column is the number one feature of Midnight Call magazine!

About this title

About the Author

Arno Froese is the Executive Director of Midnight Call Ministry and Editor of the critically-acclaimed prophetic magazine, Midnight Call, which is internationally distributed in German, Dutch, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Hungarian, Romanian, Russian, Korean, Bengali, and English. He has authored a number of well-received books including The Great Mystery of the Rapture; How Democracy Will Elect the Antichrist; Saddam's Mystery Babylon; and When Y2K Dies, among others, which have enjoyed a wide readership and are internationally distributed in several languages. Froese has sponsored over 50 prophecy conferences in the United States, Canada, and Israel. His extensive travels have contributed to his keen insight into Bible prophecy as he sees it from an international perspective.

From the Inside Flap

Letters to the Editor is a book that is true to its title, and one which I consider the voice of the Church. Because our letter writers are not only national, but international, we can assume that virtually all churches and denominations are represented. Therefore, opinions and views will vary due to the influence of denominational guidelines. However, it is fair to say that a large percentage of our writers are concerned readers who have been motivated to respond, in agreement or disagreement, to certain issues that have been addressed in our Midnight Call magazine. Thus, we have taken great pains to publish virtually all letters in their entirety. Thus, the largest contributors to this book are our letter writers, a voice that will be heard throughout these pages.

Although we have changed the names and initials of the writers to protect their privacy, all letters are original, with minor editorial revisions having been made only when necessary for clarity or grammatical purposes.

The variety of letter writers representing many different backgrounds and nationalities is what makes this book so unique. With this in mind, I would like to thank those who wrote for being my teachers. This is important to emphasize becase it was the letter writer who caused me to search the Scriptures and find answers to numerous questions. They prompted me to refine my answers, seek additional scriptural proof and ground my understanding in the eternal Word of God. The way they responded to my answers enriched me with their views.

Of the thousands of letters I have received since I entered the minisrty in 1968 under the leadership of the late Dr. Wim Malgo, this book represents only a small fraction; however, the letters selected represent a unified voice of the Church expressing various opinions.

I am humbled to admit that in some cases my answers may come across as impolite, sarcastic, or somewhat self-righteous. However, this was never the true intention of my heart. Rarely have I ever replied to someone without revising my response before putting it in the mail. The motive behind all my answers, as well as that behind my life and ministry, is to proclaim the truth of the Bible to the best of my knowledge and ability. I have done my utmost to base my answers on the simplicity of Scripture, the ultimate authority for all Christians.

As mentioned earlier, the letters published in this book have been selected from several years of letters which have appeared in Midnight Call magazine. We have attempted to categorize them according to subject matter and content. Although a number of letters deal with the same subject, each letter has been answered on an individual basis, without reference to, or comparison with previous answers.

My response to each question or opinion has not been based on the framework of certain seminaries or popular schools of thought, but, as already mentioned, I have attempted to let the Bible speak for itself. The knowledge I have gained since entering the ministry by answering thousands of letters is really quite impossible for me to comprehend. One thing is absolutely clear: I have learned a great deal from my readers, friends and foes alike, who have often caused me to change my view on certain subjects at certain times, and at others, who have helped me to gain a deeper insight by further intense study. However, I have never changed my mind regarding the truth of Scripture; it is plain and clear in context and in no need of interpretation or further analysis.

Although according to Bible prophecy, knowledge is being increased and the speed of accumulating scientific knowledge, particularly in electronics, is explosive, I have adhered to the motto of Midnight Call Ministry founder, Dr. Wim Malgo, "The Bible is the best commentary to the Bible."

In conclusion, I must highlight one more important point, namely, the uniqueness of each person as created in the image of God. This uniqueness enables us to see various things from different perspectives. Therefore, we shouldn't expect to agree on everything. Even members of the first church and the apostles amongst themselves did not always agree on all matters at all times. We know that Paul had to correct Peter and bluntly told him that he was in error. When reading the book of Acts, we notice that Paul and Barnabas "...had no small dissension and disputation: with certain disciples from Judea. Verse 7 says, "...there had been much disputing." On this occasion, the apostle James took the lead and said, "Simeon hath declared God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name. And to these agree the words of the prophets; as it is written" (Acts 15:14-15). Thus we see that the answer to the disputation was "the words of the prophets," the writ! ten Word of God. Even great co-workers in the kingdom of God such as Paul and Barnabas had a difference of opinions, "And the contention was so sharp between them, that they departed asunder one from the other: and so Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto Cyprus" (verse 39). Therefore, living together in peaceful harmony at all times is not necessarily required and this truth is clearly shown to us in the example given in Scripture.

We may have differences of opinions, and our interpretations of difficult Scriptures will vary; however, regardless of our differences as believers, the direction of our unity must never be solely on a person-to-person level. Instead, the direction we must take in order to arrive at perfect unity must be vertical. We are one in Him and only in Him are we one.

Addressing the church, Paul made the following statement, "Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God" (Romans 15:5-7). It is absolutely essential that our desire for unity is centered on one person, "likeminded one toward another with one mind receive ye one another" and is built upon the foundation "as Christ also received us to the glory of God." Jesus made this unity of the Church clear in His high priestly prayer, "that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one" (John 17:22-23). Therefore, unity in Jesus must be the goal of our lives, the Church, our ministry and this book.

I pray that the pages of this book will contribute to fulfilling Paul's admonition to his spiritual son Timothy, "reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine" (2nd Timothy 4:2).

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

CREATION/EVOLUTION

Genesis Contradiction?

Mr. Froese,
Considering that you believe in the infallibility of the Scripture, I want to prove that Genesis chapters 1 and 2 are contradictory, and [were written] by two different authors. The first chapter states that animals were created before man, but chapter 2 reads that animals were created after man. It should be apparent that these creation accounts can't both be right.

All versions of the Bible, with the exception of the NIV, include two contradictory stories of creation. I have enclosed a portion of the Hebrew-English NIV [translation] of Genesis 2. The English version is a deception. In Genesis 2:19, this version inserts the word "HAD" to give the reader the idea that the creation of animals took place earlier than the creation of man. If you read Genesis 2:19 in the Hebrew, from right to left, it clearly states "NOW HE FORMED," which means that right then and there animals were formed so Adam (the man) could find a help-mate for himself (Genesis 2:18), which also is ridiculous if you think about it.

In closing, its hard to believe that the whole Bible is "inspired" when it can be shown that there are hundreds upon hundreds of contradictions such as the ones above.

Any comments?
-R.T., Buffalo, NY

Edition details

• Publisher: The Olive Press
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0937422495
• ISBN 13: 9780937422496
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 438