Each booklet in this series focuses on one theme that is also covered more briefly in the 350-page book "Israel and the Covenants in New Testament Times" (see details below). Each provides extra material on the topic to explain it in greater detail and reinforce its conclusions, and it ends by considering the implications for Christians. Each study's conclusions come from what the Bible reveals consistently, answering all the objections the writer has heard, to leave nothing even apparently contradicted by any other Bible text. By this means they confirm that the booklet provides rock-solid Bible truth and that the Bible is truly the word of God. Despite this, as the booklets' series title suggests, these conclusions are typically unexpected - a primary aim in writing and sharing them. If you find anything unpalatable, please recognise that God is the real author of what these booklets show and the author little more than a researcher and collator of the subject matter. Therefore, if you the reader cannot refute what a booklet in this series asserts directly from the Bible (surely nobody can), please give God your thanks and praise for allowing you to come to the truth from Him. "Israel and the Covenants in New Testament Times" A New Testament prophecy of a falling away from truth into apostasy and lawlessness, in the final generation before Jesus Christ returns in glory, is being fulfilled now and will shortly come to an end. Yet Christianity has overwhelmingly moved so far from its first century roots that it cannot see this - or that Christ's return is therefore now almost upon us. How and why this is the case is explained in this book thoroughly and logically with many examples directly from the word of God. In God's saving plan for man, everyone must in time make a free will choice to become part of the "Israel of God" in order to access eternal life in the kingdom of God. The route to take is the "strait and narrow" way (Mat 7:13-14) that not many have searched for and very few even of these have so far found; this involves the biblical old and new covenants which both apply to this Israel. Embark on this voyage only if you are: a) willing to be challenged over some basic Christian concepts, b) a serious and open-minded Bible student, and c) willing to trust the Bible as truly God's written word. Remember too that time is short to Christ's return. ["Israel and the Covenants in New Testament Times" may be ordered on-line in the UK from Amazon.co.uk or at good bookshops, and internationally from Amazon.com, in paperback or Amazon Kindle format: A4, 352 pages (Paragon Publishing: ISBN-10: 1-908341-68-8, ISBN-13: 978-1-908341-68-6.)] The author of this book and the 12 booklets a long-time member of the Worldwide Church of God (WCG) in the UK who fully supports the WCG's foundational assertion that: "The Bible is the inspired and infallible Word of God..." (recognising that Bible translations are not perfect), so needs to be ..".fully authoritative [the final arbiter] for all matters of faith and salvation." Everything written in his Bible-based books and booklets applies this understanding. (His deductions, opinions and conclusions concerning specific teachings are, of course, his own so do not necessarily coincide with any official WCG doctrinal position.) (c) 2014 Peter Maxwell Williams March 2014. This book is subject to copyright. No part of it may be reproduced let alone amended by any method whatsoever without the prior consent of the author. E&OE