News Brief - Contact: Peter Eddington, (513) 576-9796 media1@ucg.org
Church plans second series of Kingdom of God seminars to show humanity’s future from a biblical view
United Church of God will host second series of special presentations in January 2012
CINCINNATI, Ohio – Have we lost an important and practical focus of the Bible? Quoting Jesus Christ and the original apostles, the New Testament records more than 100 direct and powerful references to a literal Kingdom of God. Reflecting an unusual 21 st century paradox, the biblical Kingdom of God is rarely emphasized today, despite the frequency and importance it holds in the pages of the Bible.
“Jesus powerfully taught the Kingdom’s importance for His followers, and what He taught concerning this literal Kingdom has direct impact on all living on the earth today,” said Dennis Luker, president of the United Church of God, an International Association .
To help people understand the vital and personal significance of this Kingdom taught by Jesus Christ, the United Church of God is hosting a second series of special presentations across the United States and other countries in January 2012. More than 100 presentations took place across America in the original series presented in September 2011. As was done in the first series, the critical nature of the Kingdom of God and its personal meaning will be explained free of charge.
“From the beginning, the Kingdom of God was the focus of Christ’s own ministry,” Mr. Luker explained. “As recorded in the book of Mark in the New Testament, the Bible declares: `Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel”’ (Mark 1:14-15). We see multiple dozens of references to this gospel – the ‘good news’ – of the Kingdom of God in the teachings of Jesus, yet we rarely hear it explained today.”
The Church’s president noted that these continuing presentations represent the first time that the United Church of God will make this broad type of simultaneous outreach to the public through its ministry. “We produce the Beyond Today television program, which airs Sunday mornings on WGN-TV and other television stations, but this is the first time we have done something of this nature on this scale,” he said. “We are excited about the Kingdom of God and it is an equally exciting moment for us to bring this knowledge to the public in this way.”
A special Web site – www.kogseminars.org – contains additional information about the January 2012 presentations.
“Anyone who is interested in learning more about what Jesus and the Bible teach about the Kingdom of God and how critically relevant that is to daily life is welcome to attend,” said Mr. Luker. “No one will be asked to join a church or religious organization, nor will there be any attempts to collect money or fund-raise – we in the Church simply want to make this critically important information available to all.”
A critical topic that will be discussed includes the fact that many global crises of economic, political and physical natures will take place shortly before Jesus Himself returns to set up the Kingdom of God. Jesus was very plain that no man can know exactly when this Kingdom will be established. But He did teach that certain specific events would herald that this Kingdom was near.
What Jesus and Bible teach about the Kingdom of God is that God is definitely not planning to destroy humanity, but that He is planning to save it through direct intervention by Jesus Christ Himself. The Bible shows that left unchecked, humanity will come perilously close to destroying itself before Christ intervenes.
The special Kingdom of God Bible Seminars will include biblical information on how to form a direct, close, practical and loving relationship with both God the Father and Jesus Christ. This direct relationship will improve an individual’s life and add depth and meaning in an important way.
“The Kingdom of God – the core outcome of the Gospel as taught by Jesus – represents the central story of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation,” said Mr. Luker. “We hope that many will take advantage of this free opportunity to learn more without any obligation and commitment to join anything.”
Numerous locations across the globe will host these free Kingdom of God seminars, and more information about times and locations can be found at www.kogseminars.org . Those interested in attending can register online at this site.
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About the United Church of God, an international association Basing its beliefs on the biblical practices of the original 1 st Century Church, the United Church of God maintains congregations in more than 40 countries around the world. Following the recorded example of Jesus Christ and the first apostles, the Church observes the seventh day Sabbath and the annual Holy Day seasons as outlined in the Old and New Testaments. The main offices of the Church are located in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Church produces the Beyond Today television program and publishes the Good News magazine. For more information about the Church and its activities, please visit www.ucg.org.
