good news 1953 (vol iii no 09) oct_w

7/28/2019 Good News 1953 (Vol III No 09) Oct_w

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o fGOD

National MagazIneCHURCH OF

TheTHE

VOL. Ill, NUMBER 9 OCTOBER, 1953

Does GOD Have aHeadquarters Church Today?

H7here is th e central church of divine authority to which scatteredmembers an d local churches should look for TRUEDOCTRINE or to settle disputed points?by Herman L. Hoeh

I NCREASING numbers cue now beingadded by God to His Church. Theestablishment of local congregationsis steadily increasing, C;()(l's church isgrowing.BUT it is inevitable that with suchwonderful growth, there should also benc i: problcnrs, Decisions must be made

to set tle quest ions and confirm the fai thof new converts,God's church is a boly church. Nope rson can "join" it. \'Ve are inductedinto it by God through receiving andbeing led by the Holy Spirir. In God'schurch there is nor to be confusion,antagonism, or quarrel ling . "For Godis NOT the author of confusion, but ofpeace, as in all cbnrcbcs of the saints"( l Cor. 14: 33).Although we who have been trulyadded by God have the Holy Spiri t ofGod dwelling in us and guiding us,yet we are human . We still have to master and overcome our fleshly minds andpassions. We have not yet attained perfection in character, which is our goal.Wirh human natur e str iving againstGod's Spirit in us, it is inevitable thatquestions and controversies will arisethat disputes would flare into bittercontentions unless God should providea l/ 'a)' to preserve the church in unity.

P robl ems A re I ne vi ta bl ePaul wrote that "there must be aisoheresies among you, that they which areapproved may be made manifes t amongyou" (I Cor. 11: 19). There will alwaysarise contenti ons between those whohave nor totally yielded themse lves toGod and those brethren who are fullyobedient to the faith. Almost the ent ir e

New Testament is devoted to the wayto handle these disputes, to bring aboutharmony in the spirit of love, that thework of carrying the gospel to all theworld may be completed through thearduous zeal of ALL the members ofthe church of God.In o rder tha t no disharmony shoulddevelop today, let us notice how Jesusgove rned the church of God at its inception in 31 A.D. Remember thatJesus Christ RULES our chufCh today inthe same manner as He rul ed it fromthe beginning. He does not change inconduct . "Jesus Chris t the same yesterday, and today, and forever" (Heb.13:8) .Church at Jerusalem a "HeadquartersChurch"The church of God at Jerusalem wasa "headquar ters church" to whom alllooked for TRUTH! Other local churches

often became confused. Controversiesand disputes on cer ta in points entered.I t was to the Jerusalem church, whichbad God's aeaboritv, that they all turned.Let's notice it.In Acts 15:1 and 2, we read of adispute that arose in the local churchesin Antioch, Syria and Cilicia. In t hei rmidst were Paul and Barnabas, both ofgreat authority in the church. Yet towhom did the brethren turn in order tosettle [he dispute? TO THE HEADQUARTERS CHURCH - JERUSALEM - WHERETH E OTHER APOSTLES AND ELDERSWERE GATHERED!At Jerusalem the question would beconsidered and decided-why? Becausethe brethren knew that Jesus had givenspecial authority to His ministers whowere at the headquarters or motherchurch-Jerusalem.Jesus conferred upon His representatives the keys of the kingdom of Godand authority to guide the church throughthe inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Theycould "bind," or forbid certain things;and they could "loose," or permit certainthings. In Matthew 18: 18, Jesus giveshis ministers the authority to make bind-in g decisions, based on the revelat ion ofGod and under the inspi ra tion of theHoly Spirit, in order to preserve the


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unity of the church in love and truth!This explains the reason that the

brethren mentioned in the book ofActs turned to the mother church atJerusalem co set tle their quest ions anddisputes. They knew Jesus had promised to guide his apost les into all truth(John 16: 13). The apostles had beenthoroughly trained and f it ted for theirresponsibilities through the personal correction, reproof and inst ruct ion of Jesus.The apostles in turn had thoroughlyinstructed the elders and the congregation at Jerusalem in the way of truth.

The church at Jerusalem was kept pureby the constant admonition and correction of the elders and apostles so thatit might be t he examp le to all otherchurches. Christians, like all human beings, need to learn by example. In NewTestament times the churches in Gentile nations "became followers of thechurches of God which in Judaea are inChrist Jesus" ( I Thess. 2:14); and thechurches in J udaea were to patternthemselves after the headquarters church,the church at Jerusalem.The congregation at Jerusalem, recognizing this responsibi li ty , acted in hercapacity. The apostles and elders, withthe whole church, made the decisionsand they were binding on all otherchl1fchf'S (Acts 15 :22). They sent letters to the various local congregationsexplaining what "seemed good to theHoly Spir it , and to us" (Aces 15:28).Again, in a previous s ituation, when itwas known that certain individuals hadpreached in Antioch and news of " these

things came unto the ears of the churchwhich was in Jerusa lem ... they sentforth Barnabas, that he should go asfar as Antioch" (Acts 1 [ :22).Notice how the Jerusalem church. acting in her capacity, watched over, correcred. and even intcrrcncd in the affairs of her daughter churches.Jo-Jo other church could claim thisright which God had confe rr ed on theJerusalem church alone.

Th e Example at EphesusLet us call to mind the example of thechurch at Ephesus, where Paul had

spent three whole years instructing andtraining the elders and the brethren. HeI:?/I.eu: even at his depar ture that falseteachers and disloyal elders would soon"arise, speaking perverse things, CO drawaway disciples after them" (Acts 20:

.This is exactly what happened. EpheSUS, and all the local churches in thesurrounding Roman prov ince of Asia,were soon turned against Paul personal-lv by false teachers and ilisloval elderswho sought personal power and prestigethemselves (I I Timothy 1: 15). The

The GOOD NEWSchurch was torn by divisions and controversies. It was no t the example afterwhich all the other churches were topat te rn the ir conduct. I t was nor thecentral or mother church from which thegospel of the kingdom or governmentof God was sent forth into the world.Jerusalem Church Was Headquart er sThe Jerusalem church was the motherchurch especially because it was theheadquarters from which the apostlescarried on t hei r work of evangelizingthe world. It was to the Jerusalem

church t ha t the apostles and Paul oft enreturned after completing their journeys.Jerusalem remained the motherchurch during the entire apostolic period, when the gospel was first carried tot he known world. The apostolic churchwas given 1W0 19-year cycles in whichto spread the gospel of the Kingdom tothe nations. During the first cycle, itsspread was confined to Asia; bur at thebeginning of the second cycle, Godopened a great OOOR for the spread ofthe gospel into Macedonia in Europe!The meaning of thi s DOOR is definedin I I Corinthians 2: 12-13. "I cameto Troas to preach Christ 's gospel , anda DOOR was opened to me of the Lord"

-a means to preach the gospel abroad.The gospel then spread until 69 A.D. -during the second 19-year cycle. In thatyear the organized power of the churchto preach the gospel abroad was stopped.The central church at Jerusalem wasforced to flee immedia te ly before thefinal. s iege of the city by the Romanarmies.

Today's Church ProphesiedNow, just before the second comingof Chris t to restore peace to this warweary world, God has again given Hischurch two 19-year cycles in which tocarry the gospel of the kingdom to thewhole world in fulfillment of Jesus'commission. Just as the early churchwas granted two 19-year cycles FOL

LOWING THE ASCENSION OF JESUSTO HEAVEN, so now He has granted Hischurch two 19-year cycles PRIOR TOHIS RETURN TO THIS EARTH in whichthi s gospel must finally enci rcle theglobe.Jesus gave a message for His churchtoday (Rev. 3: 7-13) , a prophetic lettertelling precisely what we would be accomplishing at this very moment. Weare doing the same work as the earlytrue church-carrying the gospel of thekingdom to the world. We have lesshuman power and strength, we aresmaller in number than that earlychurch; but we have the same power ofGOD, and God has opened before us aDOOR-the door of radio and the print-

October, 1955ing press-which multiplies our powerto reach today's increased world population.The first 19-year cycle has alreadypassed, and we are now spreading thegospel abroad to Europe and finally the

entire world in this last 19-year cycle.What wonderful and momentoustimes!BUT, as the work of the church progresses, and as new converts are bei ngadded constantly and new local congregations established, where is the centralchurch to which the scattered members

and chu rch congregations should lookfor TRUE DOCTRINE, or to settle disputed points?

The Answer Made PlainThe church at Jerusalem was the

mother church because it was the headquarters for carrying our the gospel. Atthat church were those who were especially called and t ra ined by Jesus, whowere filled and led by the Holy Spirit.That church was not torn by factionsand false doctrines, by disputes and controversies. In its midst was the mainbody of ministers to whom Jesus hadcommitted the au thor ity to make bind-in g decisions!In our day, when the same gospel isbeing preached, there is again a head-qnarters church, PROVl'N BY ITS FRUITS-a church to whom you scattered brethren can turn in t imes of doubt and controversy, a church to whom God hascommitted tb e authority to make bind-in g decisions in order to maintain theunity of the Spirit in the bond of love(Eph.4:3).This central church is at P A S A D E N A ~From the church at Pasadena erninaresthe broadcasts and the magazines thatgo to the world. It is at this church thatthe main body of minis ters either constantly remain or continually return. AtPasadena is a church no t torn by s tr ifeand division, but one thoroughly ins tructed in the fai th , composed of faithful ministers and members. At Pasadenathere is the Spirit of God-there is

LOVE and PEACE-there is completeagreement, harmony, unity. under theleadership of Christ.The church at Pasadena, in exercisingits God-given AUTHORITY as the headquarters church, has already made bind-ing decisions whi ch had dissolved thedoubts and prob lems of many brethrenand even of local congregations.It is marvel lous how God guided anddirected His church through the pastyears. Having begun the work of spreading the gospel in 1934, in Oregon, JesusChrist caused the headquarters to bemoved to Pasadena in 1947. Many of themost faithful brethren came to Pasa-

(Plc.ts coutinne (Jil li;/g,' fJ)


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Who Should Young People Date?Is it best for your children to date unbelievers? Here is the BIBLE

ansuer to a crucial problem our young people have to face.by Roderick C JHeredith

DATING is a custom which hasbeen practiced, in differing ways,since the beginning of history. I frightly directed, it can be a na tural andhelpful means of enabling young peopleto become better acquainted with themembers of the opposite sex.It is God who has made us male andfemale. It is God who created sex andordained marriage. God intended thatyoung people come to know each other,fall in love, and marry. Therefore , a trueChristian should have no "prudish" feelings about the varied aspects of courtshipand marriage. But he should determinehow to glorify God in all these things.It is God, after all, who made us maleand female.

Dating NecessaryThe Bible does not enjoin any parruul a r method of acquainting youngpeople with one another , or of bringingabout a marriage. Even in the Bible history, customs have var ied in this matter.In many instances, in ancient rimes, theparents of a young couple arranged fortheir marriage. The laws in Exodus andDeuteronomy indicate that men of tens::kcted their own wives. and courted

them as they do today. Consequently,our present custom of courtship andmarriage is certainly not wrong, and itseems to be the best practice amongmodern peoples who are nor living inlarge family groups as in patriarchalr rrnes.Dating, then, is a very necessary custom nor only socially, but to enableyoung people to make a wise choice ofa life partner. I t is a pract ice which tends

to broaden social interests , to developpersonality, and to give that needed experience and companionship with manymembers of the opposi te sex.No one should date as though hewere " look ing for a wife." It should be

a na tura l means of fel lowship with therealization that some day a life partnerwill be discovered, and that the practiceof dating will give that experience withthe oppos ite sex which should serve asa valuable guide in avoiding hasty decisions based upon "infatuation," andnot real love.God's Warning

Since dating is a form of intimatefellowship which may lead to marriage,Chr is tians should exercise great care inwhom they date.

Christians are COMMANDED by God:"Be ye no t unequal ly yoked togetherwith unbelievers: for what fellowshiphath righteousness with unrighteousness?and wha t communion hath light withdarkness?" (I I Cor. 6:14). We are toAVOID anythi ng which would cause usto fellowship or to be "yoked toge ther"with unbelievers.Marriage is certainly the closest formof being "yoked together." And datingis a kind of close [ellou-sbipwhich usually precedes and may lead to marr iage.Is God trying to impose His harshwill on you when He [orbi.ls this kindof fellowship?

NO! This instruction is a urear BLESS10iG designed to help you li\'e the happy and abundant life tha t God intends( john 10: 10). True Christianity is away of life. It is the way that will bringgreatest happiness at this time, andeternal l if e in God' s k ingdom. It is theway of surrender and obedience to Godand His commands, and of spiri tual lygrowing each day more like God thatwe may finally be born into His familyand kingdom.

Bu t an unconverted husband or wifeis going to oppose and fight the way oflife God reveals. Why? "Because thecarnal mind is enmity against God : forit is nor subjec t to the law of God, nei ther indeed can be:' (Rom. 8: 7) ,I f you marry an unconverted person,

you are tying yourself to ball and chainfor the rest of your natural life! Godwants to spare you from such a mistake!The Bible Principle

From Genesis to Revelation, the Bibleshows that God's peopl e are to remainseparate from this world. In Deut. 7: 1-4,God commanded the Israelites no t tomarry the heathen, "For they will turnaway thy son from following me, thatthey may serve other gods" (v. 4). Joshu a warned that if they married theheathen, it would be as scourges in theirsides, and thorns in their eyes (Joshua23:10-16).I Kings 11: 1 shows that King Solomon's foreign wives turned away hisheart from worshipping God. The Bibleshows time and again that marrying acarnal , unconverted person will lead toretribution, misery , and may well proveto be an obstacle to prevent you fromserving God as you should.Many of you whom we have met onthe baptizing tours can testi fy to this

fact. How iJ1Ciny t imes you have wishedthat your ma te we re converted so thatyou could share your lives more fully.What a wonderful BLESSING it is whenboth the husband and wife are converted. All of you who are blessed in thisway should get down on your knees

e ~ ' e r y day and thank God for it.A converted couple can encourageone another in prayer, in Bible study,in keeping the Sabbath, in rejoicingtogether during God's festivals. Theycan share all the little things in life ina way that is impossible when one p.irtvis unconverted.

True Christianity involves the thingsyou eat. the places you go, your interestsand hobbies-your ent ire l if e God intended that a husband and wife be ahelp to each o ther in all things. That iswhy He commands: "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers."What About Dating UnbelieversKnowing the definite command ofGod not to marry unbelievers, whatabout dating them)As we have mentioned, dating is avery int imate sort of fe llowsh ip whichmay possibly lead to marriage. Shouldyou tempt yourself by dating those

whom you know that God [orbids you tomarry?You should NOT!And regardless of possible marriage,a Christian is not to have fellowshipwith unrighteousness (I I Cor. 6: 14).Unrighteousness is simply sin-brei/king

God's C017ZJ7ZandmeiltJ.In Ephes ians 5:1-17, the apost le Pall Ishows that Chri st ians are nor to be partakers with the ch ildren of thi s world intheir wrong ways. He exhorts: "Have nofel lowship with the unfruit fu l works ofdarkness, but r athe r r ep rove them" (v.11).Paul wrote to the saints at Rome to

present their bodies a "living sacrifice"to God and to "be not conformed to thisworld: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Rom. 12: 1-2) .I f you are seeking God's will and

His guidance in your every thought andaction, you will find it a GREAT HINDRANcE to be closely associated witha carnal-minded person-whether ondates, or in any other form of fellowship.There will always be the tendencyto let them pul l you away from obeyingand serving your Creator. They will con-


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Page The GOOD NEWS October, 1953

Address commun ications to the Editor,Box III , Pasadena, California.Copyright,OclOher. 1955By the Radio Church of God

Herbert W. ArmstrongPublisher and Edit orHerman L. Hocht.xecntir c Edito,

Roder ick C. MeredithAssoci.u c Editor

The national magazine ofTHE CHURCH OF GODmillisterillg to its membersscattered abroad, and

reportillg Oil campus bappel/ingsat Ambassador College

If you are convened am! your childrenare not, should you force them to associate only with converted children?In the first place,l' er .1' few peopleare really converted until the ages ofeighteen to twenty years, You should

no t deprive your child of the opportuniry of developing a balanced personality and interes ts through associationwith others.The ideal thing would be to hawyour children in association 'with thechildren of other converted brethren.Although still unconverted, the childrenwould at least have an easier time learnIng the truth about pagan holidays andother worldly practices. It would certainly be a better means of fellowship.

All of you who arc able to move nearthe tabernacle and school at Gladewater, Texas, will ccrruinly be blessedwith this environment for your children.But the parent's responsibility is to"train up a child in the way that heshould go: and when he is old, he willnot depart from it" (Prov. 22:6) . Whilehe is young, teach him God's truth ina reasonable and tactful manner.But after your child re.iches highschool age, if he or she is bound to havea "fling" and date worldly fellows or

i Plc.: .ontnrr: Oi l !J;lr:e S)

Your Children

accept in order not to offend others.This would not be a regular associationor fellowship with unconverted persons.But even then, the Chr is tian involvedshould carejnlty a/Mel a recurrence atthis practice, and ask God's guidancein the whole matter.To cite another example, it would bepermiss ible to date occasionally someone whom you felt quite sure by the"fruits" was being called to repentanceand obedience to God. You might havegood reason to believe that you werehelping such a person learn more aboutGod. But here too, be ext remely carefulthat the association is not regular fellow-ship, and that the o ther par ty is notjust "putting on" in order to date you.I f you are deceived into marrying sucha person it may wreck your life!Also, some of you who have beenmarr ied and divorced may wish to dateeven though you know that it would beADULTERY to marry again. Commonsense should tell you that you areplaying with dynamite! You are puttinga very serious temptation in your ownpath, and in the path of whoever youdate. I f you value eternal life, you willnot date except under very rare circumstances or unt il you become free tomarry again through the death of yourhusband or wife. You may need God'sSpirit to master yourself, but His poweris without limit!

TO THE NATION & CANADA:XERF- l s70 on dial (extreme to p ofdial) Sundays, 7 :15 P .M. Central Standard time,XEG-1050 on dial, every night, R:30P.M. Central St and.ird time.XELO-ROO on dial, every night, 9:00P.M. Central Standard time.(R :00 Mountain St andurdtime.)HEARD ON PACIFIC COAST:

XERB-50,000 watts-lO'}O on dial-7 :00 P.l\1. every night.

XEDM-1580 on dial-6:50 P.M.Sundays.KBLA-Burbank-14 ')O k.c . -9 :50

A.M., Sundays.KXL-Portiand-lO,OOO watts. 750on dial-2 :30 P.M., Sundays.KPDQ - Portland - ROO on d i a l R:,"O A.M., Sundavs.KYI-Seattle-Tacoma-570, first ondial-IO:50 P.M. Sundays.KVSM-San Francisco--I050 on dial

-4 :00 P.M. Sundays.OTHER STATIONS

WAIT-Chicago--R20 on dial - I :00P.M. Sundays.KMAC-San Antonio-c-osu on dial-7 :00 P.M. Sundays.

Herbert W. Armstrong analyzes today 's news, with the prophecies ofTh e WORLD TOMORROW!TO ALL OF HTROPE:RADIO LUXEMBOURG-4: 15 P.M.Thursdays Luxembourg time.

RADIO LOG'The WORLD TOMORROW"

people are often more slick and cleverin misleading others than one who is intotal ignorance of God's precious truths."And hereby we do know that weknow him, if we keep his commandments" ( I John 2:3). One who really

knows God will believe that His way isright and will obey Him. People whorefuse to do this are 110t believers.Therefore, you should have no regulardates or fellowship with them.

Use WisdomOnce you understand the principle ofhaving no fel lowship with the worldwhich might weaken your fai th, you canapply this to any case which arises.For instance, there might be a rareoccasion when a conver ted young per son would be visiting in another cityand a date might be arranged for himby friends who didn't understand hisviews. In such a case, he should carefully survey the circumstances. If he

knew that the date wouldn't involve part icipating in any wrong form of amusement, and would no t involve him inany future dates of this nature, he might

NUMBER '}OL. III

tinually be urging you to break God'sSabbath, to eat unclean meats, to attendthe wrong kind of movies or spend yourtime in night clubs and other wrongkinds of amusement.A carnal-minded companion will exert JUSt the opposiie kind of influencefrom what you should have, IF youlove God more than this world, its carnalpeople, and their wrong ways.Draw the Line

[.uncs tells us. "\Vhosoever thereforewiil be a friend of the world is theenent y of God" (james 4 J i ) . As 'lChristian, pu t God fir!t in your life.Have the courage to dr.ru: tbe lin: onwhom you will, and will not, date,You arc to have 110 [ell o usbi]. withunbelievers.Who is an unbeliever?Christ said, "He that is not with meis against me; and he that gathereth notwith me scatrereth abroad" (Mat. 12:~ O ) . A "bel icvcr is not merely onewho believes in Christ as Saviour, Jesushimself prophesied that many wouldcome in I1 is 11"lIIe, preaching abon!1I in t , and would nFCFrvE l i.' IIIZY (Mar,24: 5) .A "believer" is one who believes inChrist and His message. Faith that isnot acted lIjJOl1 is DEAD (James 2:26).Notice Acts 2:'14, "And all that believedwere together, and had all things incommon." They had acted upon theirbelief, and were sharing the materialthings with one another during theirstay in Jerusalem.One who hllOZl' ,r much of the truth,and yet refuses to obey it is not to beregarded as ;1 true believer at all. Such


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Should You Attend Churchon Sundays?

Once we have been converted and put into God's church, shouldwe continue to meet with our acquaintances on Sunday,or send our children to Sunday School?by Herman L. Hoeh

O N THE recent baptizing tours, ithas come to our attention thatone of the most important problems that new converts face is how toseparate from the world-its foolishpractices and religious customs.Many recent converts have been assembling in churches of this world onSunday morning. They have sen t the irchildren to Sunday school because offriends or relatives. It seems to themthat they ought to continue to assemble."We might be able to convert ourfriends," it is usually reasoned. "Besides,our children DO need personal instruction."But is this the right way to winfriends or instruct our children?

Christians to be SeparateTruly converted Christians belong toGod's church, not a church of this world,organized by men, teaching false doctrines that seem right to the carnalmind. let us notice the instructions ofJesus and Paul.Christ said: "Let your light so shinebefore men, that they may see yourgood works, and glorify your Fatherwhich is in heaven" (Mat. 5:16). Hedid not say "hear your arguments," butsee your GOOD WORKS,-living God'sway of life.Weare to let the world see that wehave the love of God in our heartswhich means our keeping ALL the commandments (I John 5:3)- t ha t we haveno part with this present lawless society.We are to be in the world, bu t not OF

the world (John 17:14). The only waywe can let the world understand thatGod's way is right and that this civilization, its politics, its society-yes, evenits religious organizations, are wrong, isto be SEPARATE from this world. If wetake part in worldly politics and socialfunctions, if we assemble for religiouspurposes on Sunday-which God forbidsas SIN-we are not letting our lightshine in this dark world.WE MUST APPEAR AS LIGHTS FROMaboue. separate and pure f rom the errors of this age, observing ALL the com-

mandments in humble obedience toGod's authority.W orld Has I ts Churches

There are hundreds of organized denominations throughout the land. Thesechurches are not the t rue Church ofGod, even though some of them appropriate that name to themselves. Theyare the churches of this world, this orderor society, under the sway of the god ofthis world!This explains why Paul admonishedus: "Be not unequally yoked togetherwith unbelievers: for what fellowshiphas righteousness with unrighteousness?and what communion has light withdarkness . . .Wherefore W7ft1 i vut fromamong them, and be SEPARATE, says theLord, and touch not the unclean thing;and I will receive you" (I I Cor. 6:1418) .Notice that it is impossible to havetrue fellowship with unbelievers. Howcan two walk together, except they beagreed? But the members of this world'schurches do not agree with God; theyteach unrighteousness, which is thebreaking of God's law. They condonedivorce and remarriage, they reject thegospel of the k ingdom of God, they refuse God's sabbath and instead assemble on Sunday-a day on which Godcommands us to work!The sermons preached from the pulpits of this land on Sunday morningsare no t of God, but of human origin, Weare not to go to them for instruction inthe word of God,Send your children to Sunday School?Hear what God's Word commands you:"Cease, my son, to hear the instructionthat causeth to err from the words ofknowledge" (Pro. 19: 27). Observe thatSolomon, in this verse, wisely advisesus not to listen to preachers on Sundaymorning who teach against the faithdelivered once for all time to the truechurch of God.It is inevi table that if you continue toassemble and to listen to false teaching,that you will soon become confused,then doubts will enter your mind, and

soon you will be overthrown. God willthen REJECT you because you have rejected Him. Thi s is more serious thanyou may have first believed.Assemble with Other Converts OnlyInstead of assembling with the unconverted, with whom we can have no

real spiritual fellowship, we are admonished not to forsake "the assembling ofOURSELVES together, as the manner ofsome is" (Heb. 10:25).It does not say we are to assemblewith the world, but with OURSELVES-those who are truly converted. God hasnot convoked weekly religious meetings on Sunday morning; neither are weto assemble on Saturday with a carnallyminded sect which sees the argumentabout the Sabbath but which follows thevisions of a woman "prophetess" andrejects the gospel of the kingdom ofGod. God is not in these churches.They merely assemble themselves to gether , by their own authority and no tby the commandof God's ministers.Our Heavenly Father knows that mostof His people are scattered, as salt ofthe earth. Many do not have places toassemble each week. When there isno trained minister with whom youbrethren can assemble, then God doesnot expect you to assemble on the weekly Sabbath.But there are special times in whichGod does want you to meet wi th o therbrethren, and those are at the annual festivals when hundreds gather to hear the

TRUTH and enjoy their only fellowshipwith other converts.But beside the annual festivals, youcan hear the truth each day of the weekthrough the power of radio, as Mr. Armstrong comes into your home to speakdirectly to you. Then throughout eachmonth of the year you are receivingtwo magazines ro assist you in yourstudies and Bible reading. What a marvellous opportunity to acquire an understanding of God's way.No, there just wouldn't be time toassemble with the unconverted, if you(Please coutinne all page 7)


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A Headquarters ClJurchToday?

(Col1tintted from page 2)dena, together with Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong. Here at Pasadena, AmbassadorCollege W3S founded to provide adequateministerial help in spreading the goodnews of the kingdom-the governmentand rttle of God. Already seven ministershave been ordained, most of whom constantly remain here because of theirduties. They have all been thoroughlytrained in the TRUTH.Instead of having confusion, as wefind in so many denominations, God'sway is a way of love and order, a wayof obedience to His will as He revealsit in the Scriptures-His revelation toman. is the government of God, notthe will of men or of a dictator professing to bear God 's authority. Peter exp.lains God's rule in the church verysimply: "Feed the flock of God which isamong you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; notfa : filthy l u ~ r e , but of a ready mind;nei ther as being lords over God's heri tage, BUT BEING ENSAMPLES TO THEFLOCK" ( I Peter 5:2-3).

Who Shall Determine Datesand Places?EDITOR'S COMMENTARY: Consider, now, one concrete example.Does God intend each individualmember to decide where, when, and howgrottp activities of the whole church

~ h a l l be held? Or does Christ, the livmg HEAD of His Church, determinethese things, and inspire the apostlesand elders whom HE has chosen and installed in office, at His headquartersChurch, to know His truth and set suchdates, places, and ways of observance?Jesus truly said we may KNOW peaby the ir fruits-and we may knowthis answer by the frui ts of experience.As an illustration, just one of God'sannual holy days falls on a day whichmust be calculated by COUNTING. Allother holy days are set calendar days.But when we come to the very daywhich pictttres our Church in this ageas God's first fruits of salvation, and thes Y ~ J : > o l ?f .the reception of His HolySpirit within us-the day called "Pentecost," we are instructed to COUNTfrom a definite calendar day.Are all people competent to makethis calculation? Certainly God wouldnot have each individual calculate it forhimself unless every individual is com-petent to come to the r ight date!The carna l-minded pagans from anearly year afte r the dispersion of theheadquarters Church from Jerusalemcalculated this day always to fall on a

The GOOD NEWSSTJNnAv. The Roman Catholic Churchadopted this calculation, and also theProtestant churches.The Jews, whom God used in spiteof their aposcacies and errors to prtserve

His sacred calendar, have counted thisday from the morrow after the first annual holy day, instead of from the morrow after the weekly Sabbath, as Israeldid originally. Consequently the Jewscount to a day which always falls on aset calendar day, just like all the others- t he 6th Sivan. I f they were correct,God would never have told us to"COUNT" to the day of Pentecost.Some, today, beg in the first day ofthe first month with the wrong newmoon on certain years, and have ALLthe holy days calculated one monthastray.Some, not knowing that the word"from" means "away out of," and intheir ignorance of the English languageabsurdly supposing it to mean "beginning with," count only 49 days insteadof 50. Others, not understanding theHebrew language in which Lev. 23 waswritten and ignorant of the fact thatthe Hebrew "Sabbathon" means "weeks,"and is so translated in the Jewish translation, count only 49 days to the "morrowafter a Saturday," instead of counting 50days to the morrow after the seventhWEEK. And these observe the same dayobserved by the devil's churches!

"Private Interpretation" Leadsto Division

What are the FRUITS of this "privateinterpretation," by individuals whomGod has no t called as His instrumentsin ruling HIS CHURCH? The fruitsare DIVISION, dissention, confusion,bad feeling, resentment, LOSS OF THEH OLY S PIR IT ! Those who have followed these practises have PROVED bythe FRUITS of experience tha t this isnot God's way.JESUS CHRIST RULES H IS C HU RC H!His Church mus t meet on the right day,and all on the SAME day, and the "placewhich the Eternal thy God shall choose."God does not rule thru individual laymembers, but they are ruled BY Himthrough God's own chosen servantswhom He has educated and tra ined asHis leaders.Such matters as deciding whether theTen Commandments are binding today,whether the b lood of Christ will, uponrepentance and faith, remit our sins,must be seen, and understood by eachindividual personally-otherwise howcould one repent of his transgressionsif he did not know what tha t transgression consisted of; and how could he believe, unless convinced in his own mind,personally, of the efficacy of the bloodof Christ?

October, 1953Each individual is commanded to

STUDY the Scriptures, so that he maylive by them as a WAY OF LIFE. Thetruth is tha t most of God's children donor study the Bible enough.But on all matters affecting the COL-LECTIVE GROUP ACTION of the entireChurch, there can be no division, orelse the whole Church will be dividedand a house divided against itself cannot stand! Therefore, God has placedGOVERNMENT in His Church to RULE insuch matters, and to PUT OUT all suchcontentions and causes for divisionsfrom His Church! In all such matters,and even many decisions affecting private conduct, God RULES in His Church,thru Jesus Christ the Head of HisChurch, and in turn thru the apostles andelders whom HE has called and trainedthru experience and education for theoffice.Weare in the last days-the "TIMEOF THE END"-when knowledge is being increased, and God is revealinghi therto h idden tru ths in His Word. Ithas taken time, and experience, for thosewhom God has called as His instruments in the rule of His Church toGROW to the fullness of such knowledge(I I Pet. 3: 18); and human reluctanceto assume such authority, prior to thetime God made us see it, has resulted insome sad experiences ill the past.God commands us (Eph . 4:27) notto give place to the devil, who deceivespeople into practises that produce confusion, and division which would KILLGod's Church! The time has come when,seeing clearly what God has revealed,we must be obedient to Him. HisChurch must be rid entirely of conrention, str ife, or division! The time hascome to FEAR GOD, and to TREMBLE before His Holy Word! The POWbR ofGod was- manifest in backing up theauthority of His chosen apostles andelders by striking dead Ananias andSapphira!God's servants must act in humilityand all love and patience, and in WIS-DOM, first knowing the will of God-butthey must act, by God's power and authority!The church at Pasadena is your head-

quarters cburcb, and as her children, allthe brethren scattered abroad should feelfree to ask for the advice and counselof her ministers and elder brethren.This is God's way to preserve love andharmony, to preserve the faith in purity, to preserve the TRUTH, among God'speople. Through Christ as living HEADof the Church, and from Pasadena headquarters, the government of God is administered with divine authority in rendering decisions, in binding or loosing,in ruling the churches of God in ourtime.


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~ e s t i o n 'BoxY OUT questions answered in these columns! Your opportunity to havediscussed those problems pertaining directly to members of God's church.

October, 1953

Should You Spend Your SecondTithe at Home?

I f for some unforeseen circumstanceyou are unable to attend the Feast ofTabernacles, what should you do withyour second tithe? Many that we havemet on the bapt iz ing tours, and o the rsby letters, have asked about this p roblem.First, let us unders tand the purposeof the second tithe. God, in His Word,commands us to assemble at His setfeasts. In order to make our attendancepossible, God ordained that we setaside a second t ithe to cover expense toand from the festival (Deut. 14:23-26;16: 1315).In ancient times, when travel expenses were of l it tle consequence, thetithe was used to cover food expensesprimarily. But today, since the purposeof the second tithe is to enable us toattend the festivals, much more of it hasto be spent for t ransportat ion than forfood.Now let us notice where the secondtit he was to be spent. "Thou shalt trulytithe all the increase of thy seed, thatthe field bringeth forth year by year.And tbot: shalt eat before the Lord thyGod. ill the place which he shall chooseto place his name the re ... t ha t thoumO-yest learn to fear the Lord thy Godalways. And if the way be too long forthee, so that thou art not able to carryit; ?r if the place be too far from thee,which the Lord thy God shall chooseto set his name there, when 'the Lordthy God hath blessed thee: then shaltthou turn it i nto money . . . and shaltGO unto the place which the Lord thyGod shall choose. . . and thou shalt eatthere before the Lord thy God, and thoushalt rejoice." (Deut, 14:22-27).The second t i the-the tenth that Godwants us to use, which is another andseparate tenth f rom the first tithe that

~ e reserves for Himself for the carrymg out of the gospel-the second tithewe are to use to attend the festivals.But let us read further: "Thou mayestNOT eat within thy gates the tithe ofthy corn, of thy wine . . . but thouMUST eat them before the Lord thy Godin the place which the Lord thy Godshall choose, thou, and thy son, and thydaughter" (Deut. 12:17-18).Here is a pos itive command not touse the second tith e at home if you areunable to attend. You must use it toenable you to attend the festivals at the

The GOOD NEWS

place which God chooses. I f the moneyis spent for any other purpose, then youare bre aking a command of God-youare not learning to fear His authorityand you are cheating yourself of thewonderful blessing of fellowship withothers of like faith.

I f for unforeseen circumstances youare unable to attend the festivals, andif you are prosperous, it would be theright and brotherly duty to enable othersto use your tithe. It can be sent to Pasadena, with an explanation that it is toenable others to attend the festival. Butif you are like most of the brethren,not hav ing many wordly goods, and asmall income or none at all, and if youare unable to come to the festival, youshould save it unt il the nex t year or fortwo years, if necessary, when you willthen have enough to assemble whereGod has chosen to place His name.Meantime, you will be observing thefestivals at home just as you would atthe feast.In many cases we try to aid the poorerbrethren through the ext ra second t itheof those few who have more thanenough. But only those who have faithfully saved their insufficient second tithedeserve the extra help. I f you haven'ttried to save your little, God can notdeem you worthy of His extra assistance.\Vhat Books Are Needed fo rBible Study?In the September issue of "The GOOD

NEWS," we mentioned t ha t God has ledus to see that His ministry must providethe sturdy tools for a basic understanding of the Bible. However, we realizethat there are a few books which youwill find valuable to begin your Biblestudy. Even these few which we arerecommending comain human errors.Here is the list in the order of theirusefulness:Webster's Dictionary: The most essential book, second only to the Bible.Crsden's Concordance: Necessary forlocating every important passage ofScripture. Price $3.00.Rand McNally's Current Events

World Atlas: This small atlas will helpyou locate places where prophecy is being fulfilled today! Price 50.Smith's Bible Dictionary: One of themost helpful single-volume Bible dictionaries. Price $3.00. It has a few errors.A Harmony of the Gospels, by A. T.

Page 7Robertson: Mr. Armstrong has oftenused this book in preparing his radiosermons. It is highly useful in comparingthe events recorded in the four gospels.Price $3.00.Halley's Pocket Bible Handbook: Thissmall book of nearly 800 pages is jampacked with helpful facts on obscureOld Testament texts and church history.It contains a miniature commentary,much of which is filled with commondoctrinal errors. Price $2.00.Ancient History in Bible Light, byDorothy Ruth Miller: An exceptionalpubl icat ion for more advanced study,containing very few basic errors. Price$3.50.Hurlbut's Historical Atlas of theBible: A most practical atlas for thorough study of Old Testament and NewTestaments. I t has dozens of maps andpictures that make Bible reading simple,even for children. Price $5.00.

Attend Churchon Sundays?( Continued from page 5)really spent your time in listening tothe truth on the "World Tomorrow,"

and in s tudying your Bible with thehelp of the magazines and the booklets,and in teaching your children regularly.Of course, it would not be wrong ifthere is special reason to attend, occasionally, a worldly religious gatheringas an oatsider. To learn what others believe is sometimes necessary, but to listen to them as though they were God'srepresentatives, to fellowship with theunconverted, or to worship God throughthe ir rituals is sin. You should nevermake a practice of going to religiousservices of this world."Come out from among them and beSEPARATE." You can't reform thechurches, or convert those who are blinded to the truth; it can't be done.Let us, instead, use our every opportunity to let the world see that we belong to His church, and that we areseparate from the lawlessness of thisworld, and from its churches who defame the holy law of God, which bringsus inward peace and happiness. Let usshow the world that we know how tofind the time and that we have the understanding to train our children properly at home. This is God's way!

Bad Example for ChildrenIn connection with this is the practice of a number of newly convertedbrethren who have allowed the ir chil

dren to attend Sunday school. This isnot the right kind of example for ourchildren. How will they understandwhat is r ight when the parents explainthe truth at home and then deny the


8/8

Page 8faith by sending their chi ldren to Sunday school to hear exactly the opposite.It is the duty of you parents to teachyour children at home. A good exampleof this I can cite from our recent baptizing tour. We met a wonderful ladywho had solved the problem of childinstruction very well. She studied withher children each day of the week. Then,since there was no local church whichGod had established, she spent an extra port ion of the sabbath, not only instudy, but also in reading the Bible tothem. This impressed upon the mindsof her children that the Sabbath was aspecial day, to be devoted to rest, prayer,worship, study and reading.Many of you older brethren, and mostof the newer converts, can profitablyfollow this shining example-and thislady and her children are shining examples in their community, respected byall for their good works. I f any of youhave difficulty in finding the time oracquiring the ability to teach your children, then you ought to kneel beforeGod and ask him for wisdom, and begin to study how to attain this ability. Itmay take time and effort, bu t God ex-pects it of you-whether fathers ormothers-if He has committed childrento your care.This is yourmost importantparental duty!

Special Helps for Children(Editor's Note)

The Church is now actively at workplanning special helps for you to use inteaching your children in your ownhome. One of our gir l s tudents has beenmaking special preparation to speak onthe radio program once a week, bringing approximately a seven-minute Bibleinstruction talk just for children.

The GOOD NEWSPrinted in the U.S.A.

Box I l l -Pasadena , CaliforniaRETURN POSTAGE GUARANTEED

FORM 3547 REQUESTED

Tbe GOOD NEWSThese talks are being written by oneof our ordained ministers, with Mr.Armstrong 's help and collaboration.They will be presented in a mannerwhich radio experience has shown mosteffective in ge tt ing messages over tochildren, and in arousing and holdingtheir interest, bu t they will be carefullyprepared by God's called ministers, and

the speaking done by a specially-trained,fully converted and consecrated youngwoman who has a very special love forand interest in your children in herheart. These talks will appear on a definite night or day of each week, so thatat the regular t ime you can assembleyour children before your radio eachweek. The time will be announcedlater.Beside this, one of the elders of oneof the churches, a nationally knownartist whose work has appeared twicein several-page sections in "Life" magazine, is now devoting full time to preparing the first "Bible Story" book forchildren. The first book, to be published very soon, will illustrate in vividpic ture form the story of Noah and theArk, and the great Flood.This first book is designed for smallerchildren, under nine. But it is plannedto publish, later, continuous books showing powerfully in cartoon-strip style(like the newspaper comic-strips, onlythese are not worldly "comics," but dynamic and fast-moving action picturesof the Message of the entire BIBLE)the TRUTH of God's Word, and of theTRUE GOSPEL of Jesus Christ, madepractical by tying it constantly to TODAY'S life, average family problems, andworld conditions. There has never beenanything like it.We are planning to give you continuous and increasing HELP in teaching

October, 1953your own children AT HOME, which isthe Bible way for instructing children.

lVho Should YoungPeople Date?

(Continued from page 4)girls, you may prejudice his mind againstGod if you are too overbearing aboutthis. Use discretion as any intel ligentparent should do, bu t don't expect yourchild to act converted when he is nat.Just be sure he is in decent company,and then ask God to convert him in Histime and way.God has provided excellent means forconverted young people to become acquainted with one another. This isthrough attending the annual festivalsof God. We are to "rejoice" in thesefeasts, and they provide a wonderfulopportunity and armosphere for mixedfellowship. Also, giving your child theadvantage of a college education atAmbassador College-Gad's collegemay also prove a priceless blessing inthe matter of finding a truly convertedlife partner . This is far more importantthan most parents realize.The entire matter of dating, then, isto be approached by understanding andobeying God's purpose in making usmale and female, and in ordaining marriage. A converted mate is commandedto love and remain faithful even to anunconverted husband or wife (I Cor.7: 10-14). But to those yet unmarried,God has blessed us with the knowledgethat we MUST NOT marry unbelievers,but that we should choose II mute whowill truly help us grow "unto the measure of the stature of the fulness ofChrist" (Eph. 4:13).

(Sec. 34.65 (e), P.L.&.R.)U. S. POSTAGEP A I D

Permit No. 703Pasadena, California

good news 1953 (vol iii no 09) oct_w

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