News and Events
Could you manage your money better?
Anxiety about money matters takes an enormous toll on an individual’s mental and physical health and general well-being. As the world’s economy runs its typical cycles of booming prosperity followed by painful recession, millions struggle to survive economically.
Whatever the cause, many find themselves mired in debt and worrying about the future. Regardless of the state of the economy, there are steps you can take to alleviate money problems. There is a place you can turn for simple, practical guidelines to help manage your personal finances. The Bible offers advice about wealth and our attitude toward it. Is money really the root of all evil? Do you know what God thinks about bankruptcy? What does the Bible say about charitable contributions? What are financial black holes, and how can we avoid them? Be sure to read our booklet Managing Your Finances to discover biblical answers to these important questions and more.
https://www.ucg.org/learn/bible-study-aids
Events in Iran and Israel
Discover the prophetic significance behind the Israel–Iran conflict, and learn how Bible prophecy reveals the deeper spiritual realities shaping today’s world events. Israel’s “Rising Lion” operation and rising tensions with Iran have captured global attention – but what does it all mean in light of Bible prophecy? In this BT Daily episode, host Steve Myers explores how ancient scriptures, including Daniel 11 and Revelation 16, reveal a divine perspective on today’s Middle East turmoil. From the role of Iran as the “king of the South” to the coming global confrontation at Armageddon, the Bible provides insight and warning.
It’s not about fear – it’s about faith. Now is the time to seek God, understand His plan, and prepare spiritually for the days ahead. Don’t miss the message behind the headlines.
Church attendance increasing – will biblical knowledge follow suit?
According to The Times, Bible sales are increasing as Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) are turning to spiritual ideas (“Bible sales soar as spiritual Gen Z seeks some good news” 15 March 2025).
In the book of Jude, the author wrote “I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (verse 3). Sadly, so much of what is claimed to be taught from the Scriptures cannot be found in them and amounts to human ideas (Mark 7:7).
To help with personal Bible study, our free 12-lesson study course is designed to walk you through the basic themes of the Bible. It will explain why it is true, show you how to study effectively, and answer some of life’s greatest questions. You will receive one lesson every month until you finish the course. You may also find our study aid You Can Understand the Bible helpful.
Eighty year on
The eighth day of May 1945 heralded the end of the Second World War in Europe. VE Day was celebrated as a victory not only by Britain and the Commonwealth, but by the rest of the democratic world. By the autumn of the year, it was all over in Asia as well. It was a costly conflict with huge military and civilian casualties on both sides, with the Jewish populations in Europe singled out for annihilation by a most evil regime.
After more than five long and costly years, the war was over. The large crowds in The Mall leading to Buckingham Palace, with Winston Churchill and King George VI on the balcony, will remain firmly embedded in the minds of those who remember the original VE Day eighty years ago.
Although World War II was over, the world experienced an uneasy peace, referred to as the Cold War, for decades to come. At that time, the desire for peace among Europeans exceeded the yearning for war.
We are grateful to those who sacrificed so much for making the last 80 years relatively peaceful in the UK and Western Europe. That sacrifice is not forgotten.
Gerhard Marx
Editor’s comment: Whilst few are left who can recall these events first hand, such memorials are perhaps an appropriate occasion to consider the coming kingdom of peace Christ preached and how one might enter it.
That good news – the Gospel – continues to be preached today. To learn more, please request or download The Gospel of the Kingdom and Christ’s Reign on Earth: What It Will Be Like.
What in the world is going on?
As God in the flesh, Jesus Christ provided His disciples with signs to look for as the end of the age approached. Those pointers didn’t happen then because other prophecies first needed to be fulfilled. Thus the warnings still apply today. One major indicator was, “And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold” (Matthew 24:12).
Of late, growing disregard for law appears to be on the rise, whether in references to “broken Britain.” knife crime (a term used for a specific method of murder), gang-based violence, and the alleged cover-ups of the appalling treatment meted out by abusers of children over decades.
Some areas of the country are claimed to be no go areas. Shoplifting and other thefts go virtually ignored. Truly lawlessness does abound and frustration at the suspicion of cover-ups is creating a generally less trusting populace. So it would seem that justice is turned back and truth is fallen in the street (Isaiah 59:14).
Add to all that instability in Europe, potential for war in various places, and natural disasters such as the devastating fires in California (the losses sometimes compounded by looters) and freezing weather in the British Isles, the latter exacerbating pressure on the NHS and energy suppliers. One wonders if the next major crisis might cause society to break down completely.
Christ’s disciples need to know there is a better world beyond the troubles of today. More importantly everyone needs to understand how God instructs us to attain to that better world. To learn more, please request our booklets:
Are We Living in the Time of the End?
Forgiveness Is Possible
https://www.ucg.org/learn/bible-study-aids
The quest for immortality
According to a recent report in Newsweek, Russian scientists have been told to develop treatments to halt the declining life expectancy of the nation’s populace (“Russian Scientists Told to Develop Cure for Aging”, 3 September 2024). Mikhail Kovalchuk, a physicist close to President Vladimir Putin lobbied for this project and a Kremlin source claims he “raves about eternal life and the ‘Russian genome.'”
Over millennia many have sought everlasting life. The ancient Chinese tried to ensure their immortality and thwart death, and like the Egyptians before them, employed meticulous methods in that quest. Tombs still laden with wealth testify to their belief that they could take their possessions with them into the afterlife.
Despite going to great lengths to hold onto life, no one can forestall for long the divine decree recorded in the creation epic: “For dust you are, and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:19).
Conversely, the Creator defined a way to attain everlasting life, backed up by His own Word. This opportunity is available as a gift to all, not just to a select few.
Who is a candidate for eternal life? What must one do to live forever? Anyone who accepts Jesus Christ’s offer of the gift of eternal life (Romans 6:23) must live by the code of conduct he expounded (Matthew 19:17-19). The Commandments serve as the foundation of God’s law showing how to express love to our fellow human beings and how to love God. Merely acknowledging the name of Christ will not suffice (Luke 6:46; Matthew 7:21).
Ancient peoples preserved the physical body in a futile attempt to achieve eternal life. Our quest for immortality can be fulfilled, but only if we walk as Jesus walked (1 John 2:6; 1 Peter 2:21). God alone provides us with the way to eternal life. Nobody else.
To learn more, please request our booklets:
Transforming Your Life
The Ten Commandments
Or download from:
www.ucg.org/bible-study-tools/booklets.
Beyond the storms and perils of today
The world is in turmoil. Growing louder daily are murmurings about a possible Third World War, the prospect of the fall of NATO and an expected swing to the far right in some European countries, with resulting civil unrest, some sources even suggest civil war. Ongoing situations in the Middle East and sabre-rattling elsewhere seem to reinforce this sense of foreboding.
Division is rife, with those holding one viewpoint, it seems, no longer able to argue their case calmly and logically, but instead attack, or “cancel”, those with a different opinion.
Shortly before His crucifixion, Jesus spoke of dangerous times that would come before His prophesied return, warning of false religious teachers, wars and rumours of wars, famines and seismic disturbances (Matthew 24:3-8). At this time the message of His soon-coming Kingdom would be preached around the world (verse 14).
He also spoke of the time beyond these troubles when He would reign over the earth. He told the disciples that they would reign under Him over the twelve tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:27-28). We can find more detailed prophecies of that glorious and peaceful reign in the Old Testament. Scriptures like Isaiah 2:1-4; 11:1-9; Amos 9:13-15; Micah 4:1-5; Zechariah 14:9, 16-21 and so many more.
As part of the Gospel message, eternal life is also promised to those who truly follow Christ and fulfil His instructions. To learn more please request our booklets:
The Gospel of the Kingdom
Christ’s Reign on Earth: What It Will Be Like
Or download from:
www.ucg.org/bible-study-tools/booklets.
Why the Bible is relevant today.
Often misquoted, misrepresented and marginalised in today’s world, the Bible claims to contain the very words of God, and outlines His plans for humanity.
An Old Testament prophet spoke of a time when the Holy Scriptures would no longer be freely available – there would be a famine of hearing the word of God (Amos 8:11). Currently it is still possible to study God’s words, but for how much longer? Some would like to see the Bible become a banned book and Christians prevented from explaining their beliefs to others, or even praying for them.
Our free 12-lesson Bible Study Course is designed to walk you through the basic themes of the Bible. It will explain why the Bible is true, show you how to study more effectively, and answer some of life’s greatest questions. You will receive one lesson every month until you finish the course.
Please request our Bible Study Course or download at: www.ucg.org/bible-study-tools/bible-study-course
Festivals: A case of mistaken identity?
As the northern hemisphere emerges from the mid-winter festivals created by mankind millennia ago, it is worth considering why so many partake of them. Non-biblical celebrations are deeply rooted in paganism, and while professing to be Christian, participants are worshipping gods of human imagination. There is no understanding that the issues continually plaguing the world are the result of breaking God’s laws. Indeed, we live in a difficult time and in a troubled world that is on a collision course with its own destruction.
In contrast, the feast days that God declares to be His are outlined in Leviticus 23. These start with Passover in the spring, representing the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and culminate in autumn with the Feast of Tabernacles and the Eighth Day. Each of these Holy Days is ordained by God and show the stages of His awesome plan to rescue from death all human beings who are willing to obey Him. To study God’s Holy Days and their meaning for all humanity, please request or download our booklets God’s Holy Day Plan: The Promise of Hope for All Mankind and Holidays or Holy Days: Does It Matter Which Days We Observe?