Important Takeaways:
- Congress revoked an additional $20 billion from the Internal Revenue Service last week when lawmakers averted a government shutdown, a cut that may undo many of President Joe Biden’s efforts to improve customer service at the tax agency and train fresh scrutiny on wealthy tax cheats.
- Biden and congressional Democrats gave the IRS $80 billion in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, but Congress rescinded $20 billion as part of a 2023 budget deal. Shortly afterward, Republicans vowed they’d be back for more IRS cuts.
- And because of the way lawmakers extended government funding into March, an additional $20 billion in cuts came automatically.
- When Congress approved a stopgap funding bill, called a continuing resolution, all the existing policy from the previous fiscal year was carried forward unless new text was specifically added to the bill to change it.
- There was no language in the bill to undo last year’s cut, so it repeated in the new law.
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Important Takeaways:
- God’s truth is reaching new eyes, with Bibles reportedly flying off shelves this year.
- In fact, Bible sales are up 22% this year through the end of October when compared to last year’s sales during the same time period, making for “a golden age of Bible publishing,” according to The Wall Street Journal.
- And here’s why this figure matters. U.S. book sales were up less than 1% during that same period, meaning the Bible’s growth in sales far outpaced what was happening more generally in the print literary space.
- In the first 10 months of 2024, 13.7 million copies were sold, with still two months left to count.
- So, why the increase, you ask? It seems chaos and uncertainty in the world, among other factors, could be turning people back to the Lord.
- One bookstore manager told the outlet she’s seeing many first-time buyers come in looking for the Scriptures — people she said are on a quest for “hope.”
- Young people, in particular, could be looking for answers to some of life’s tough questions, especially as cultural confusion grows.
- And nearly half of Gen Z said the Bible has transformed their lives. Among older Gen Z adults aged 18-21, 49% reported this transformation, with 52% of those aged 22-26 stating the same.
- “They’re leaning into the Bible,” Plake said. “They’re really trying to engage in their faith and they are kind of a bright hope for us as a young generation of American adults.”
- Other recently released data shows the full power a regular connection with God can have on a young person’s life. It will be interesting to see if the trend continues in 2025 — and beyond.
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Important Takeaways:
- Wild Felid Advocacy Center in Shelton is working closely with public health officials to monitor workers and animals after the presence of bird flu (HPAI) was confirmed in some big cats at the sanctuary, per a statement on its website.
- The center confirmed in a Friday Facebook post that the virus had killed five African servals, four bobcats, four cougars and two Canada lynx. One Amur/Bengal tiger, a Bengal cat, an African caracal, a Geoffroy’s cat and a Eurasian lynx also died of bird flu.
- “We are heartbroken to share that animal health officials have confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) among over half of our wild felids as of December”
- The cause of the outbreak was not immediately known, but the center noted on Facebook that bird flu “spreads primarily through respiratory secretions and bird-to-bird contact and can also be contracted by carnivorous mammals that ingest birds or other products.”
- Cats “are particularly vulnerable to this virus, which can cause subtle initial symptoms but progress rapidly, often resulting in death within 24 hours due to pneumonia-like conditions,” the post added.
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Important Takeaways:
- Police said the incident was related to a family dispute.
- Phoenix police said the evening shooting happened at around 9:45 p.m. at an airport restaurant that is outside the security checkpoints in Terminal 4.
- An adult female and two adult males were shot, leaving the female with injuries police describe as life-threatening. The two men were in stable condition and expected to survive, police said in a statement. The man hospitalized with at least one stab wound was in stable condition.
- The group of people all knew each other and had a physical fight that led to one of them to pull a gun, police said.
- “I do believe that this was a family dispute that escalated,” Phoenix police Sgt. Mayra Reeson told reporters.
- After the gunfire, a man and a girl were detained in an airport parking garage nearby.
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Important Takeaways:
- The Israeli strikes followed several days of Houthi launches setting off sirens in Israel.
- The strikes, carried out over 1,000 miles from Jerusalem, came a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “the Houthis, too, will learn what Hamas and Hezbollah and Assad’s regime and others learned” as his military has battled those more powerful proxies of Iran
- The Israeli military in a statement said it attacked infrastructure used by the Iran-backed Houthis at the international airport in Sanaa and ports in Hodeida, Al-Salif and Ras Qantib, along with power stations, asserting they were used to smuggle in Iranian weapons and for the entry of senior Iranian officials.
- Israel’s military added it had “capabilities to strike very far from Israel’s territory — precisely, powerfully, and repetitively.”
- Israeli airstrikes in Yemen on Thursday targeted the Houthi rebel-held capital and multiple ports, while the World Health Organization’s director-general said the bombardment occurred nearby as he prepared to board a flight in Sanaa, with a crew member injured.
- “The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge — just a few meters from where we were — and the runway were damaged,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said
- Israel’s army later told The Associated Press it wasn’t aware that the WHO chief was at the location in Yemen.
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Important Takeaways:
- Prison director said officer Andrew Lansing “made the ultimate sacrifice.”
- Officer Andrew Lansing was attacked Wednesday at the Ross Correctional Institution (RCI) in Chillicothe
- The inmate suspected of killing Lansing was not immediately identified by prison officials, who said he had been transferred to the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility, a maximum-security prison in Lucasville, Ohio.
- “The loss of a staff person is difficult, but to lose a family member on Christmas Day at the hands of someone in our custody is a tragedy beyond comprehension,” Annette Chambers-Smith, director of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, said in a statement. “Instead of going home after his shift to be with his family on this holiday, Officer Lansing made the ultimate sacrifice, and our agency will never be the same.”
- The prison, which houses more than 2,000 inmates, has been put on lockdown as the Ohio State Highway Patrol investigates the homicide.
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Important Takeaways:
- President Biden on Wednesday denounced Russia’s large-scale Christmas Day attacks on Ukraine that damaged critical energy infrastructure and vowed to continue a U.S. surge in weapons deliveries to Kyiv.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on X called the attacks “inhumane,” while Russia’s Defense Ministry said the “long-range precision weapons and strike drones on critical energy infrastructure facilities” in Ukraine had achieved the goal of Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s forces.
- “The purpose of this outrageous attack was to cut off the Ukrainian people’s access to heat and electricity during winter and to jeopardize the safety of its grid,” Biden said in a statement.
- “I have directed the Department of Defense to continue its surge of weapons deliveries to Ukraine, and the United States will continue to work tirelessly to strengthen Ukraine’s position in its defense against Russian forces.”
- Trump’s pick for special envoy for Ukraine and Russia also criticized the assault. “Christmas should be a time of peace, yet Ukraine was brutally attacked on Christmas Day,” Retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg said on X.
- “Launching large-scale missile and drone attacks on the day of the Lord’s birth is wrong. The world is closely watching actions on both sides. The U.S. is more resolved than ever to bring peace to the region.”
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Important Takeaways:
- Azerbaijan Airlines Flight J2-8243 came down on Wednesday near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan after diverting from an area of southern Russia in which Moscow has used air defense systems against Ukrainian drone strikes in recent days.
- The Embraer (EMBR3.SA), opens new tab passenger jet had flown from Azerbaijan’s capital Baku to Grozny, in Russia’s southern Chechnya region, before veering off hundreds of miles across the Caspian Sea.
- It crashed on the opposite shore of the Caspian after what Russia’s aviation watchdog earlier said was an emergency that may have been caused by a bird strike.
- Officials did not explain why it had crossed the sea, but the crash occurred after Ukrainian drone strikes this month hit Chechnya. The nearest Russian airport on the plane’s flight path was closed on Wednesday morning.
- Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister Qanat Bozymbaev said he could neither confirm nor deny the thesis that Russian air defenses downed the plane.
- The Kremlin said that an investigation was ongoing and that it would be improper to comment until the inquiry came to its own conclusions.
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Important Takeaways:
- After days of Houthi missile launchings against Israel, the leader of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, David Barnea, has advocated a strike on Iran. However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is said to prefer a more cautious approach in consultation with the U.S. and other allies.
- An Iranian-made hypersonic missile hit the town of Jaffa south of Tel Aviv on Saturday, injuring at least 16 people.
- According to Israeli officials quoted in Ynet News, Barnea addressed a weekend security meeting suggesting that Israel should “Go for the head, Iran.”
- Netanyahu pledged that his government will deal strongly with the Houthi threat from Yemen, noting, “Just as we have acted forcefully against the terror arms of Iran’s axis of evil, so too will we act against the Houthis.”
- The prime minister added that it has allies in the fight. “In this case, we are not acting alone,” he said. “The U.S. and other nations see the Houthis as a threat not only to international shipping but to the global order.”
- U.S. forces in the Red Sea struck Houthi targets in Yemen on Saturday, shortly after the attack on Israel. Early Sunday, two U.S. pilots were shot down in what officials called “an apparent case of friendly fire,” when gunners on the USS Gettysburg fired at the pilots. Both were rescued.
- Netanyahu urged war-weary Israelis to continue to abide by the government’s instructions from the Home Front.
- “What I ask of you, citizens of Israel, is to be patient, to continue showing the same resilience that you have shown up until now, and to strictly follow the [IDF] Home Front Command directives,” he stated.
- Using increasingly sophisticated missiles and other weapons provided by Iran, the Houthi rebels have succeeded in disrupting life for hundreds of thousands of Israelis living in and around Tel Aviv, in the nation’s major population cluster.
- Netanyahu prefers to follow the advice of the Israel Defense Forces Military Intelligence officials to attack Houthi positions in Yemen now, rather than take Barnea’s advice of a direct hit on Iran in the near future, according to a report in The Jerusalem Post. The thinking behind that is that an attack on the Iranian regime would be more advisable after President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated on January 20, 2025.
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Important Takeaways:
- The Old Testament contains a great many messianic prophecies. Jesus fulfilled forty-eight specific predictions during His first visit to the earth. A much greater number of biblical texts refer to the end times, Jesus’ appearing, the seven-year Tribulation, Christ’s Second Coming, and eternity.
- The fulfillment of Messianic prophecies began with Gabriel’s visit to Mary to announce the birth of Jesus (Luke 1:28-38). Along with explaining her supernatural virgin birth, the angel referred her to Isaiah’s prophecy concerning the Messiah’s birth as a “child” (Isaiah 9:6-7). His message to the mother of Jesus included the promised millennial reign of her Son: “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end” (Luke 1:31-33).
- The Isaiah 9 Prophecy
- Why did Gabriel incorporate Isaiah’s prophecy into the announcement of Jesus’ birth? First, it reminded Mary that the Messiah would enter the world as a baby. Mary’s response reveals her previous knowledge of the prophet’s words as she expressed her understanding of the great favor bestowed upon her to be the mother of the promised Messiah (Luke 1:38, 46-55). She was likely one of many young women in Israel hoping that they would give birth to the Christ.
- Additionally, the angel’s message confirmed the hope of her day, namely that the Promised One of Israel, her Son, would someday sit on “the throne of his father David” and rule over His people. His words brought to mind all the words of this cherished prophetic text: “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this” (Isaiah 9:6-7, KJV).
- Though many in Israel at this time looked for the Messiah to immediately deliver them from the Roman oppression, that doesn’t negate the Lord’s promise. Just as Jesus fulfilled Isaiah’s words by entering the world as a baby, in the same way, He will literally fulfill the prophet’s words concerning His future rule over a restored kingdom of Israel.
- Did the Jewish Rejection of Jesus Invalidate Isaiah’s Prophecy?
- Many pastors and Christian leaders today teach that Israel’s rejection of their Messiah invalidated God’s promise of a glorious kingdom for Israel. They say the church has inherited these promises, albeit spiritually. Proponents of this unbiblical teaching believe that Jesus began ruling over the nations at His ascension back to Heaven.
- Gabriel’s announcement to Mary refutes today’s Replacement Theology, which asserts that God rejected Israel after it spurned His Son and replaced the nation with the church. More than that, the angel’s words fully substantiate the Premillennial beliefs that Jesus will sit on the “throne of David” after the Second Coming. Why do I make such a claim?
- First, consider how Mary would have understood Gabriel’s words. They would’ve conveyed the idea of a physical kingdom with her Son ruling over the nation of Israel. The idea of a spiritual realm would never have entered her mind.
- The angel’s quote of the promise that the Messiah would sit upon “the throne of his father David” would also have conveyed the image of a literal fulfillment of the Isaiah 9:6-7 prophecy. Why would God fill Mary with such hope unless it truly depicted Jesus’ future rule? He already knew about Israel’s rejection of their Messiah and crucifixion, yet the repeating of the promises from the Isaiah text points to their fulfillment regardless of the actions of the first-century AD Jews.
- Second, Gabriel specified that Jesus would rule over the “house of Jacob.” This points to the realization of Ezekiel 37:15-28, which foretells the joining of Judah with the northern tribes of Israel under the kingship of David. These words signaled the joyous joining of the nation into one kingdom, which Mary also would’ve understood as a future fulfillment of the Lord’s promises to her people.
- Third, the New Testament never places Jesus on the “throne of David” at the current time or in its description of His headship over His Church. It instead places Him at “the right hand of God,” as we see in Colossians 3:1: “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.”
- Jesus is the “head of the church,” as the Apostle Paul stated in Ephesians (1:22, 4:15; 5:23) and Colossians (1:18; 2:19). His promised rule over all the nations is far different than his current place as the “head of His body, the church.” Of course, He’s sovereign over the affairs of humanity, but that’s far different than saying He is now ruling over the “house of Jacob” seated on the “throne of his father David.”
- Just as Gabriel spoke on behalf of the Lord concerning the Savior’s birth, so he also predicted His future reign over a united Israel. How can one say that the first happened exactly as Isaiah prophesied while the other denotes a spiritual reality? To make such a claim implies that He misled Mary, who surely would’ve viewed both the Messiah’s birth and future rule over Israel as tangible outcomes of the Lord’s original promise to Isaiah (9:6-7).
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