Below are this week's Articles of Interest as compiled by Mr. Van Baker. This collection of articles is cultivated by Mr. Baker with the goal of highlighting some of the trends, upheavals, and things to watch for in our society. These articles are not necessarily the express views of the United Church of God, Mr. Baker, or me as the pastor, but they are informative of what is occurring in our nation and culture. In accordance with Christ's warning to correctly discern the times (Matthew 16:1-4), it is wise to be aware of what is going on around us. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Study: Young Adult Mortality 70% Higher Than Expected – Young Americans are dying at unprecedented rates, with a new study showing a surge in mortality driven by drug poisoning, alcohol-related deaths, and emerging health challenges. Young adult deaths in 2023 were 70 percent higher than they would have been if pre-2011 trends had continued. “One surprising thing about the increases in these causes of death are that these are causes of death that primarily kill people at much older ages,” Elizabeth Wrigley-Field, study author, told The Epoch Times.
https://www.offthepress.com/young-adult-mortality-70-higher-than-expected-study/

Metaphor of the Boiling Frog – Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) didn’t come out of nowhere. It was 20 to 30 years in the making, and it captured key institutions in our society.
https://legalinsurrection.com/2025/02/dei-and-the-metaphor-of-the-boiling-frog/

The Bible Is Not Just a Book – Holy Scripture is not written as a text to be swiftly consumed and digested; you cannot “have read” Holy Scripture, but must always be in the process of reading, rereading, and chewing it over. The skills and habits this reading requires might not only be unfamiliar to many of us, but might often run against the grain of habits that have become second nature to us.
https://www.plough.com/en/topics/faith/bible-studies/warning-the-bible-is-not-just-a-book

Did Jesus Lie to His Brothers? Jesus committed no sin during His 33 years on this earth. He had to be the perfect man, the sinless sacrifice, in order to cover all the sins of those who accept Him as Lord and Savior. But hold on there, cry skeptics. [what about]John 7:8-10 where we are told Jesus declared: “You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come.” After saying this, he remained in Galilee. But after his brothers had gone up to the feast, then he also went up, not publicly but in private. Uh oh, that’s pretty clearly a contradiction, either by Jesus in consecutive sentences or by the author, John. So how could Jesus be sinless?
https://www.hillfaith.org/contradictions/contradictions-wait-a-minute-did-jesus-lie-to-his-brothers/c

Behind the Code: Unmasking AI’s Hidden Political Bias – A new study confirms what many suspected— ChatGPT favors left-leaning views, often avoiding or restricting conservative perspectives. Researchers found AI-generated text and images systematically leaned left, with right-leaning prompts frequently blocked over so-called “misinformation concerns.” This raises major questions about fairness, free speech, and AI’s influence on public debate.
https://scitechdaily.com/behind-the-code-unmasking-ais-hidden-political-bias/