good news 1958 (vol vii no 06) jun-jul_w

7/28/2019 Good News 1958 (Vol VII No 06) Jun-Jul_w

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VOL. VII, NUMBER 6

International MagazIne ofTHE CHURCH OF GOD

JUNE-JULY, 1958Come to the TABERNACLEYou should all see our ne w Tabernacle being built near Gladewater,

Texas. Here's the RIGHT way to do it!by Roderick C. MeredithGODS CHURCH is building a largenew tabernacle on our ownspacious grounds near Gladewater, Texas. It is a BIG project!Most of you have read and heardabout this inspiring undertaking. Youmay be anxious to see it.When should you come? Ho w canyou afford to make the trip? Wh y shouldyou come?The answer to these questions are far

more important than you may realize!Purpose of t he New TabernacleThe purpose of this large new Tabernacle is to enable God's people to assemble at the annual rel igious festivalsHE HAS COMMANDED. Several thousandnew brethren have seen the eye-opening

PROOF of God's annual Holy Daysand are beg inning to obey God's command. Therefore, we have now out-grown Our first Tabernacle-which willnow be utilized as a dining and recreation area. We are building the largenew Tabernacle so that we may have aproper place to assemble and worshipAlmighty God at the special times HEhas commanded.

I f you have not already read thestartling FACTS on this subject, thenwrite us immediately for Mr. Armstrong's helpful, free booklet, "PaganHolidays or God's Holy Days-Which?"You need to know the TRUTH on thisvital subject. And to gain eternal life,you must obey God!This world's churches have their mandevised "camp meetings" at a time andin a way that seems right to man. Butwe have proved in past articles-and

will continue to do so-that the annualsabbaths or feast days God gave Hispeople were commanded and intendedto be kept forever (Lev. 23:21, 31,41).Chris t set us a perfect example in keeping them, and the apostles continuedkeeping them and even commandingGentile converts to keep these days ofGod (l Cor. 5:8).The world is busy observing thepagan holidays of Christmas and Easter.Its camp meetings are organized anddirected as man roasons-not as Godcommands. Then it sneers at the daysGod has made h o l y - a t the festivals theCreator instituted to keep men in remembrance of His true plan. Carnal menscoffingly, sneeringly call these days"Jewish" and they ridicule them as theinvention of a harsh, inconsiderate "Godof the Old Testament." They seem toforget that Chris t and the apostles keptthese days in the Ne w Testament. Theyignore the fact that God calls these days"MY sabbaths"-holy unto the Lord! 'These days are never referred to asbeing "holy to the Jews." But they areholy to the Eternal Creator who givesyou every breath of air you breathe. Youare defying Hi m if you refuse to keepthem! In so doing, you will lose knowledge of the true God and of His planwhich is pictured by these days.In their disobedience, the churchesof this world have lost knowledge ofGod's plan of salvation. They preachmany different gospels. They are inconfusion-"Babylon" (Rev. 17) - andwe are commanded to "come out" of thismixed-up, deceived churchianity (Rev.18:4).

Many of you bre thren have come outof this world, and then have found yourselves unable to have fellowship withany of God 's people. It is often impossible to meet with other true bre thren onthe weekly Sabbath. You mus t simplyworship God alone "in Spirit and intruth ." BUT God 's annual Sabbaths orholy days provide an opportunity totravel even some distance and havethat needed fellowship with other members of the true church of God.This Is God's WayThese festive occasions are commanded to be kept in the place that Godshould choose. Deuteronomy 16: 16shows particu larly that the days of Unleavened Bread (with the Passover,verse 6) , the day of Pentecost, and theFeast of Tabernacles were all to be keptwhere God would choose,When God first revealed the truthabout His Holy Days to Mr. Armstrong,He soon caused Belknap Springs, Oregon, to become available for holding theFeast of Tabernacles. This happened in

a most unusual way, and we were permitted the use of this resort only aslong as it was suitable-exactly sevenyears. Then God directed His servant,Mr. Armstrong, to choose SeiglerSprings, California, as the ideal place forthe Feast. But we all knew that SeiglerSprings was only a srnpover locationuntil God led us to a place betteradapted in every way for use in holdingthese annual festivals.And GOD DID SO! That place is nearGladewater, Texas.(Please continue on next page)


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Page 2 The GOOD NEWS June-July, 1958

Heart to Heart Talkwith the Editor

Address communications to the Editor,Box 111, Pasadena, California.Copyright, July, 1958By the Radio Church of God

International magazine ofTHE CHURCH OF GOD

ministering to its membersscattered abroad

realized the seriousness of this command.May God help you to be zealous inobeying Him!Besides being the command of a loving God, a ttending these festivals is agreat joy and privi lege. God gave thesedays for our good-that we might cometo know Him better, to know and lovethe brethren, and that the true church ofGod might be bound together.Many of you whom we have met onbaptizing tours say that you would giveanything to experience the joy and thrillof meeting with more of God's ownchildren-the type of humble, sincere,God-fearing people with whom you canfreely discuss God's word in love andharmony.Attend ing God's annual festivals isHis solution-the Bible solution-theright way to solve this problem! Youwill have to experience the Feast ofTabernacles before yOll can fully realizethe joy, peace, happiness and the spiritual "life" one feels at this festival.For every true Christian, it is both aduty and a priceless blessing and privilege to attend these spiritual "feasts."

How to Afford I tGod has not only provided, but alsocommanded a way to make it financiallypossible for everyone to keep His HolyDays!It is a way which requires continualEFFORT and de termina tion from trueChristians. But if we are to be OVER-COMERs-and they only will be priestsand kings in the Kingdom of God-th en we will have to exercise enough

strength of character and will to obeythis command of God. Actually it worksno real hardship, but brings a great blessing to ourselves and others. I t is a waythat builds faith, hope, and patient love.What does God command?God commands us in Deuteronomy14:22-27 to save a special or secondtithe, to go to the place God selects foreach of His festivals, and to rejoice inthem. This second t ithe is for expensemoney to enable us to keep God's annual Holy Days. In ancient Israel mostof the money was spen t for food there,as the expense for t raveling was almostnothing, Today, however, our greatestexpense is often transportat ion ratherthan food. As the purpose of this secondtithe is to enable us to attend the festivals, we will often spend a good por tionin transportation.This second or special tithe should besaved out of each pay check or bit ofincome. It should be set aside regularlyand saved as expense money to enableyou and the converted members of yourfamily to attend God's feasts.Remember, however, only the children and converted adult members of the(Please continue on page 5)

(Continued from page 1)As Mr. Armstrong has reported indetail, we are building a new Tabernacle in which to hold services at theseannual convocations. This property isin the very center of our heaviest listening area for the broadcast. It has muchnatural beauty, a warm cl imate similarto that in Palestine, and is ideal in everyway for holding God's annual festivals:To one who knows the facts, this isGod's selection-Gad's way!

A Duty and PrivilegeWe have been blessed with a placeowned by God, deeded in His namethrough the Radio Church of God I tis the location that is closest to thegreatest number of you brethren. Godhas brought this about so that all ofus may worship and rejoice togetherin the annual festivals He has ordained.The three great feasts of the year arethe Passover with the Days of Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, and the Feastof Tabernacles. God commands the converted men to attend these three feasts

(Deur, 16: 16). As the heads and representatives of the households, the men'spresence is absolutely commanded. AndGod's word shows in Deut. 12:5-7 andother places that the entire familyshould attend these festivals--especiallythe Feast of Tabernacles.These occasions are not man-made.They are holy conoocatons-i-cswMANDED ASSEMBLIES! (Lev. 23:7, 21,35.) God does not say "i f" you want tocome. He orders you to attend. Do youthink your Creator has the authori ty toorder you to do something? Apparentlysome of you brethren have not fully

Come to theTABERNACLE

and without charge, to all who requestit. But in The Good News we wish tobe free to say things to you, as ourinner family of God's children, whichwe cannot say to the world. We wishto be free to feed you, thru the columnsof The Good News, the truly "strongmeat" of spiritual food which mightchoke the carnal-minded or prove astumbling block to the unconverted, andthose not wholly yielded to OBEDIENCEto God.

The Good News is the medium inprint thru which God's truly called ministers FEED TIlE FLOCK. The PlainTruth is the medium thru which God'scalled ministers publish the Gospel ofthe Kingdom of God TO ALL THEWORLD.Let us be glad and rejoice in the factthat there are so many who are beingbrought to God's Church this summer!

NUMBER 6OL. VII

Here is GOOD NEWS! With this issue,we wish to welcome over 2000 morereaders of The Good News.Hundreds have already been baptizedthis summer. Over a thousand, whomwe have nor been able to visit personally, have also expressed that they haverepented and surrendered unconditionally to God and His laws, have acceptedJesus Christ as personal Savior, are endeavoring to live by the Bible, and wishto regard this body of baptized coworkers with Christ as their sole Churchmembership. They, too, should be receiving The Good News!The Good News is exclusively theofficialpublication of God's True Churchin these closing days of this world.In other words, you whose lives Godhas changed, will hereafter receive BOTHThe Plain Truth and The Good Newsevery month, instead of only one. Butradio listeners are told only about ThePlain Trutb, and ONLY The Plain Truthwill be mailed to them, unless we haveevidence that God has added them tothat consecrated, obedient, faithful innercircle who have been baptized by theHoly Spiri t into the one body of Christ,the t rue Church of God.We ask you to help us keep The GoodNews exclusively a paper for real members only. Do not give or loan a copyto anybody, whether friends or relatives.If they have been made members ofthe true begotten family of God, theywill be on the list and receive their owncopy each month. I f not, we ask youno': to pass it on to them. The PlainTruth is the magazine we send freely,

Herbert W. ArmstrongPublisher and EditorHerman L. HoehExecutive EditorRoderick C. MeredithGarner Ted ArmstrongAsstlciale Editors


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tnGOVERNMENT

Our Church

WHY Church Government?God's government in His Church ismerely His rule over our lives. It is themeans by which He guides the work ofthe Church and perfects its members.Notice how clearly Paul explainedthe need of God's authority in theChurch.What is the purpose of the ministry? "For the perfecting of the saints"

- t o make us complete in understanding the will of God; "for the work ofthe ministry"-to carry out the gospelto the whole world; "for the edifyingof the body of Christ"-to correct, toinstruct and to improve the wholeChurch "till we all come in the unityof the faith, and of the knowledge of theSon of God, unto a perfect man."God's rule in our Church is to directthe work of the gospel, to keep us frombeing "carried about with every windof doctrine" th rough the craftiness ofcunning men who are already tryingto enter in among us to deceive the unstable (Eph. 4:12-14).Now let's understand exactly whatkind of authori ty Jesus established forour Church today.

New Testament InstructionOur knowledge of church government must come from the New Testament; for, after the historic book ofActs closes, there is a gap of more than

So there are differences in authorityin God's government ; some are greatert han others; some are chief. But theyact as servants of God, not as lords overGod's heritage.Do we grasp the all-important significance of this teaching? Do we reallyunderstand the great meaning of it?Among God's people, in His Churchour Church-there are some who carrygreater responsibility and authority. Butthey exercise their power as the servantsof G.od for the other members of theChurch.Far from prohibit ing all authority,Jesus sanctioned the r ight kind of governmenr-i-God's rule, theocracy-forour Church!

Right Principle of Government"But HE THAT IS GREATEST AMONG

YOU, let him be as the younger; andHE THAT IS CHIEF, as he that dothserve. For," said Jesus, "I am amongyou as he that serveth"-yet he wastheir Lord and Master!

Source of Common ErrorIt has become the accepted teachingthat authority is established to beflaunted and disobeyed. Children are allowed to disobey their parents.We prob

ably grew up seeing our friends andneighbors laugh and joke about anyonebearing authority-from the Presidentor the Prime Minister to the teachersin grade schools.To do as we please and to despiseauthority have become the accepted philosophy. Even after conversion, somehave carried this same philosophy intothe Church. That 's why we sometimesmisunderstand the teachings of Jesuson Church government. It's t ime we expelled this false philosophy from ourthinking!Notice Jesus' own words in Luke22: 25-26. He is contrasting the government in the Churchwith the wrong kindof human administration."And he said unto them, The kingsof the Gentiles exercise lordship overthem; and they that exercise authori tyupon them are called benefactors."Isn't this a perfect description ofGentile dictatorships today? Dictatorsexercising lordship, claiming to be benefactors!"But you shall not be so," said Jesusto the disciples. Here Jesus is givingthe principle of divine governmentGod's governmem for our Church.Notice it! There is to be no exercising of lordship by human will andhuman desire. But does Jesus say thereis to be no government , no difference inauthority? Let's read wha t He cont inues to say-what most people haveoverlooked!

When Jesus founded our Church-God's Church-did He permit us todecide how the church should be run? Who heads the Church and directsits work-the congregation, Mr. Armstrong, or Jesus Christ? Are wefree to establish any kind of church government-or no governmentat all, if it pleases us? Let's learn the TRUTH on this vital question!

by Herman L. Hoebment, To inherit and rule in that kingdom we must come under the authorityof the rule of God now, in this lifetime.

This world's society is organized inhundreds of forms of human government-man ruling man. Even thechurches are organized with differenttypes of human government-the congregational, the presbyterian, or theepiscopal forms. Some are controlledby boards of men, others are run byone-man dictatorships.Naturally, some have assumed thatif they are to come out of the worldand be separated from it, as Jesus commanded, they must reject all authorityor rule. It seems many take for grantedthat there should be no government inthe Church.

What some have failed to grasp is notthat all government is wrong, but thathuman government-of man rulingman-is wrong. When we repented ofbreaking God's laws and surrendered toobey Him, we were putting ourselvesunder God's government, His powerand authority, whether or not we realized it!The whole issue confronting theworld at this very crucial moment inhistory is whether it will obey God'sgovernment or man's government.The very fact that there IS humangovernment in the churches proves thatthere is also DIVINE governmenttheocracy. I f there were no divine authority, there would have been no needfor numerous forms of counte rfe it human administrations.The gospel of the kingdom is thegood news of God's government. TheChurch is composed of the advanceagents, the emissaries. of that govern-

J ESUS gave his disciples the trueform of government for His church-ou r Church.The true gospel is the good news ofthe kingdom-the government of God.God is Supreme Ruler. From Him proceeds ALL authority and power.The true Church-s-our Church-issubject to God. The authority of Godmust be carried out in our Church towhich the gospel of the kingdom orgovernment of God is committed.

What Kind of Government?


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Page 4fifty years after which we find changeddoctrines, changed customs and achanged form of government-humanrule instead of divine-in the churchesof this world.In the New Testament there are twosources through which we learn theform of God's administration: 1) instruction, and 2) example.Let us notice first the instructionfrom Jesus Chris t about church officersand administration as found in I Corinthians 12: 28."And God"-not man, but God"has set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, afte r tha t miracles, then gifts ofhealings, helps, governments, diversitiesof tongues."The most complete list of the giftsof spiritua l admini st ra tion , however,is found in Ephesians 4: 11. "And He[Jesus} gave some, apostles; and some,prophets; and some, evangelists; andsome, pastors and teachers."Again , we observe that Paul, underinspirat ion, mentions bishops [elders]and deacons as church officers in I Timothy 3:1-13 and Titus 1:5-9.Before we examine these offices andgifls in detail, let us also notice theexample of the New Testament notonly in Acts, bu t also in Paul's epistles.

New Testament ExampleIn the historic record of the earlyChurch, we find that God ruled theChurch by Jesus Chris t, its Head (Eph.5:23). JESUS IS THE HEAD OF OUR

CHURCH TODAY!Christ directed the Church throughthe apostles who were chosen direct lyby Him (Luke 6:13). The apostleswere His direct representatives, Hisdelegates, sent into the world as ambassadors bearing authority. The wordapostle means "one sent bearing authority." The apostles were ins truments inJesus' hands, through which He couldspread the gospel, correct , reprove andlead the Church.Among the twelve apostles, Peter waspre-eminent, although they all heldequality of office. Peter had no one-mandictatorial authority over the other eleven. Peter was never a pope. The same

authority vested in Peter was also vestedby Jesus in the other apostles (Mat.16:19; 18:18 and John 20:23). YetPete r was their leader because he wasborn with special leadership qual iti esand ability to make decisions. Jesusgives spir itual talents according to thenatural talents with which a person isborn.Paul, himself, said that Jesus entrusted Pe te r with the direction of the gospel to Israel as Jesus had entrusted Paulwith the direction of the gospel to theGenti les (Galatians 2: 7 and 8). But in

The GOOD NEWSanother place we find tha t the apostlessent Peter and John to Samaria, thoughPeter may have suggested this (Acts8: 14). His gifts carried the greatestweight in the Church and would havebeen especially helpful to the newlyconverted Samaritans. Among the twelvethere must have been such a spirit ofpeace and love that they had perfectharmony without jealousy in equality ofrank and office. They did not quarrelamong themselves by trying to build onone another 's foundat ion (Rom. 15:20); they did not compete with oneanother or take disciples from another .However, it is in the experiences ofPaul that we find the detailed operationof God' s government , since lit tle is recorded with regard to the work of thetwelve apostles in Judea and nothingof the ir mini st ry to the ten t ribes ofIsrael.How God Operated Through PaulAlways Paul spoke of what God had

wrought through his labors (Acts15:12). Paul the apost le was subjectto Christ, so yielded to God that Jesuscould make His will known to Paul andcould use him in directing the work ofthe Church and the preaching of thegospel. More than once Paul wanted togo one place or do one thing, bu t Jesusordered otherwise (Acts 16:6).Thus we find the government of Godoperating through Jesus, who used theapostles as direct representatives bearing His author iry. Paul was not free togo and to act as he pleased.Next, in government authority, we

find the evangelists-Timothy, Titus,Demas, Silas and many others-who directly assisted the apostle Paul as hewas directed by Christ. Paul had theauthority when necessary to c om ma ndSilas and Timothy to go wherever hedesignated (Acts 17: 15 ); although inother instances when duties were notimperative, Paul sometimes left it tothe convenience of the evangelists (ICor. 16: 12). Paul was not a dictator.Even though evangelists were nextin authority under the apostles, next inspiritual order and above the evangelistsare l is ted the prophets ( I Cor. 12: 28).Often in the Bible, "prophet" means"preacher" or "poet," But in the NewTestament history there are several instances mentioned in which prophetsboth men and women-were used toforetell by special and personal revelat ion from God (Acts 11:27-30; 21:910) . They spoke and exhorted thebrethren and, if men, sometimespreached, although not usually evangelistic for the purpose of raising upchurches.Those who evangelized had authorityover local churches, whereas the prophets had no gover nment office or author-

June-July, 1958ity, Even in the Old Tesraureur, whereboth men and women were used asprophets, none of the prophets hadgovernment authority unless they werealso Judges. In the New Testament,the only prophets with government authority were also apostles, evangelists,or elders (Acts 15:32; T Tim. 4:14).The evangelists, under the direction

of Paul the apostle, preached-evangelist means an announcer of good news-made converts, established localchurches and appointed elders anddeacons (Titus 1:5), and visited established churches (Phi l. 2: 19-20) withauthority over local officers ( I Tim.5: 19-20). The evangelists ministeredto the brethren, corrected them andencouraged them whenever and wherever it was impossible for the apostlePaul to do so personally.Government in Local CongregationsJesus commissioned the apostles topreach the gospel to the world and gavethem the assistance of evangelists. ButHe also told Pet er to "feed my sheep"

(John 21:15-17).Peter called himself a fellow-elder(I Peter 5: 1) even though he was alsoan apostle. Paul designa ted himself asa teacher of the Gent ile s (I Tim. 2 :7 )though he was also an apostle.The term elder or teacher is used todesignate the general office of authorityin the local congregations, in whichthe apostles and evangelists spent partof the ir time. ACts 20:7 and 28 plainlyprove thar there were often severalelders (cal led also "bishops" or "overseers") in a local church. It was theirduty to preach, teach and rule by example, as shepherds and not lords, not for"filthy lucre" but out of love.In I Corinthians 12:28 and Ephesians4: 11 we find only the mention of pastors and teachers ra the r than bishops,elders, presbyters or overseers, but t he yrepresent the same general office of author ity in the local churches.

Duties of EldersThe word pastor means a "shepherd."He is one who tends the flock. Jesus

not only is the Chief Apostl e and HighPriest (Hebrews 3: 1 ), He is also theChief Shepherd and Bishop of theChurch of God ( l Pe te r 5 :4 ; 2:25).Peter is not the bishop of bishops. Thereis today-as always--only One SupremePastor or Shepherd over the entireChurch-Jesus Christ (John 10: 16).But over the local church congregations there is also a local pas tor directly

under t he apostles and evangelists. Heis the presiding elder or bishop overother elders in a local congregation.Not ic e tha t in the ga theri ng at Jerusalem, recorded in Acts 15, there weremany elders in Jerusalem, together with


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June-July, 1958the apostles. Yet it was James-not oneof the original twelve apostles, bu t thebrother of Jesus-who, in the capacityof apostle and pastor of the Head-quarters Church in authority over theother elders, voiced his decision (Acts15:14).All elders must be apt to teach (ITim. 3: 2), hence they ate called teachers in I Cor. 12: 28 and Eph. 4: 11.Elders who rule well are to be highlyrespected for their works' sake, especially those who labor in preaching andteaching (I Tim. 5: 17). Hence todaywe, roo, distinguish between teachingand preaching elders.

The congregations are admonishedto submit to the elders (I Peter 5:5).

The members do not elect and dismiss elders, nor do they vote on doctrines which the elders' are to preach.Rather, elders are chosen by the apostle,or, as he directs and authorizes, by anevangelist, according to the qualifications given in the letters to Timothyand Titus. Elders must first be provenbefore they are to be ordained by thelaying on of hands with prayer andfasting (I Tim. 5:22). Thus there maybe in local congregations those who areable to teach, but who must first beproven sound in the faith, even thoughthey might "desire the office of a bishop."Here, then, is the spiritual government of God in the early Church plainlystated: The Father manifested His willto Jesus, the living Head of ourChurch, Who in turn manifested Hiswill to the apostles. They in turn instructed the evangelists in carrying outthe gospel. The evangelists, togetherwith the apostles, taught the elders whopresided over the local congregations.In each congregation was a presidingpastor, usually with other elders, whotaught the members. There was nomembership politics, no voting onchurch offices or doctrines. The eldersruled the local church, bu t were notruled by the congregation or lay boards.

Office of DeaconPaul wrote to the Corinthians thatbeside the spiritual administration, therewas also a physical administration madeup uf helps or helpers, usually referred

to in Scripture as deacons. They werephysical or material helpers, who waitedon tables, did janitor work and manyother physical duties related directly tothe work of the Church.Philip, originally ordained as one ofseter: deacons to serve at tables (Acts6:6), was so filled with the Holy Spiritthat he later became an evangelist (Acts21: 8) . Those deacons who helped inmater ial duties were sometimes called"ministers" in old English usage. Theapostles Barnabas and Paul had Luke and

The GOOD NEWSJohn Mark to minister to them (Acts13: 5) . Today, however, the term "minister" is used to designate a pastor.Elderly women also helped in physical needs. Paul wrote to the saints atRome: "I commend unto you Phebe oursister, which is a servant [the originalword means helper or deaconess} . . .that ye receive her in the Lord, as becometh saints, and tha t ye assist her inwhatsoever business she hath need ofyou: for she has been a succorerof many,and of myself also" (Rom. 16: 1 ) .Offices Are Gifts of Holy SpiritAll offices in God's Church are giftsof the Holy Spirit. It is God Who created us with our natural talents andWho adds to those talents, por tions ofHis talents through the Holy Spirit.Many of the gifts are officeswith author-ity, but others are purely Spiritual giftswhich belong not only to the ministrybut to others also. There are the giftsof healing and speaking and interpretingforeign languages. There are the giftsof knowledge by which TRUTH hiddenfor centuries is revealed, and the giftsof wisdom and of faith.All these gifts are distributed throughOut the Church as God sees fit so thatHe may work through the Church andgovern it. God, not man, decides whoshall be given the responsibilities incarrying out His work.

Government in Our Church TodayDown through the ages Jesus haschosen directly those who serve in thecapacity of apostles-His direct representatives bearing His authority. Theworld does not use the title apostle forthe highest office in the Church underChrist. Instead, it has invented otherlofty titles-primate, archbishop, pope,all offices of men's devising.But in our Church, the Church ofGod, in which the government of Godexists today, Jesus has chosen 11r. Anns trong as His direct representative, asan ambassador of the Kingdom of Godto the nations of this world, as a manthrough whom He can work in preaching and publi sh ing the true gospel tothe whole world. Mr. Armstrong's office

carries with it divine authority, backedup by the power of God. Jesus has senthim to speak in His name and by Hisauthority , and has given test imony to itby the [ruirs which only God can pro-duce.When Jesus was asked by John theBaptist if He were the One who shoulddeliver the wurld frum its headlongplunge to destruction, Jesus told John'sdisciples to LOOK TO THE FRUITSthe sick were being healed, the gospelof the kingdom was being preached(Luke 7: 22). I t is by the fruits thatwe recognize the office with which God

Page Shas invested His direct representative.In the work of carrying the gospelto the nations, Mr. Armstrong has hadto choose young men, as did the apostlePaul; and as God has given proof bytheir fruits, they have been ordained asministers, with authority, ministering tolocal churches and serving in variousother fields in our complex minist ry oftoday when we must also use the radioand the printing press.In our local congregations today,there are elders pastoring the localflocks, and deacons and deaconesses, whoserve the congregations. In every wayit is the government uf God. Those whoare the greatest in authority serve themost. It is not a rule by the will of man,but by the will of God.The critics who think God's government is man's government DO NOTKNOW THE POWER OF GOD. God'sministers know only roo well that Godwill DESTROY those who seek to devourthe Church by leading away disciplesafter them.How plain it is that God rules ourChurch. The congregations are ruled bythe elders, who are ruled by the evangelists, and they are ruled by the apostlewho is ruled by' Christ who is ruled byGod! All offices are appointive, by asuperior office. It is government fromGOD down to each individual memberin the Church.

Come to theTABERNACLE(Continued from page 2)family should come. Do not bring unconverted, non-member adults, whetherof your own family, or relatives, orfriends. This is NOT the place to tryto "get them interested" or converted.Ask all such to listen to the broadcastor write for The PLAIN TRUTH. ThisFesti val is set aside by God for thefellowship and worship together ofHIS begotten, converted people ONLY.

That is God's way-God's command!Do you think it will be impossible todo what God says? Certainly not! Allthrough your Bible, God has promisedblessings on those who obey Him. AndGod keeps His promises! We will actually be better off financially and everyother way if we obey these commands.Be sure to start saving this litheimmediately so you can attend the Feastof Tabernacles and God's other feaststhis year! I t may require determinationand sacrifice, but that IS the very way todevelop character. And you'll be blessedin every way if you do.

Not the First TithePlease do not confuse this secondtithe, especial1y for these occasions, with


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Page 6the first tithe which God has commandedus to render to His true ministers forproclaiming to the whole world theGospel. Unlike the second tithe, thefirst tenth or tithe of our income belongsto God. He created all things and isonly permitting man to use this materialworld anyway. "The earth is the Lord's,and the fullness thereof; the world, andthey that dwell therein" (Ps. 24: 1) .In Numbers 18:21 we read that Godgave a tenth or "tithe" of Israel's incometo the Levites for an inheritance. Thi stithe does not belong to us, it is theinheritance of God' s ministry. Todaythe pries thood has been changed (Hebrews 7: 12) - t he ministry of CHRISTsuperseding the levitical priesthoodso we now pay our t ithes to God's representatives, Christ's true ministers, forthe gospel work (I Cor. 9: 14).In Malachi 4:8-12, it says that we arerobbing God if we fail to render toHim (through His true servants) tithesAND offerings. Most people in this confused world don't even realize this, Butonce we have the knowledge of thetruth, we had bet ter repent and begin toobey God in this mat ter. I t is all for ourown personal good. As we just read inMalachi, if we do obey' God by payingour tithes and giving offerings-He willbless us abundantly. But God does wantus to be willing to obey Him, and topu t that ahead of our own selfish desires.In Deuteronomy 14:22-27, we findthat our Creator commands us to lay bya second t ithe of our increase or incomeand go to the place which God haschosen. From this tith e we ourselvesare to eat, drink, and rejoice in this place- t he place God has chosen for Hisannual Holy Days are to be held. We setaside this special tithe (or tenth) of ourincome every year in order that wemight have the expense money to attendand to rejoice with the brethren.Notice it says in verse 23, "and THOUshalt eat before the Lord thy God ..."This tithe is to be spent on yourself- no t for the ministry. Since there is acommanded t ithe for the minis try, thismust he another, difJerent tithe.In the twelf th chapter of Deuteronomy, this special tithe is mentioned inverses 6, 11 and 17 along with the offerings Israel used to bring. Here again,this second or special tithe is for youto use at the place which God haschosen for you to appear before Himon these annual Holy Days.Yes, God has provided a method bywhich we can keep His festivals IF weaft" willing to do our part! It i sn 't difficult once we try. God has promised tocare for our every need (I Peter 5: 1 ) .And if we love the brethren we won 'tfail to do it.Are we going to follow Christ or not?Let everyone examine his own heart!

The GOOD NEWSUse Wisdomto Solve Problems

Sad as it sometimes is, with somefamilies, the second tithe just hasn't beenenough to get them to the Feast ofTabernacles. In this case, those havingmore than enough second tithe shouldhe lp those who lack. Remember, Goddoesn't expect the poor to save morethan their small tenth, but they must dotheir part! God often blesses others,however, with a larger tenth so they canhelp those who have less.We find in Acts 4:32-35 that theearly church helped its needy members,and we try to follow this principle. I fthere is not enough second t ithe to takethe entire family to the three greatfeasts, then just the man, as head of thefamily, should go (Deut . 16: 16). Theother members of the family are expected to go, if circumstances permit,and God will help us work it out intime if we do our part. Of course, ifthe husband is an unbeliever, the wifeshould certainly come anyway.

Tithe for Widows and OrphansIn reading the reference given inDeur, 14:22-27, some of you may havewondered about the meaning of verses28-29. In these verses, God is commanding another, altogether difJer:ent tithe.In both Deut. 14:2R-29 ann Dt"ut.26: 12-15 we find this tithe commanded.It used to be set aside in every walledcity, "within thy gates" (Deut. 26:12).This third tithe is to be saved onlyevery third year:.Since the laws of letting the land

rest, releasing the poor debtors, etC. werebased on a cycle of seven years, we areto save this special tithe in the thirdand sixth years out of every seven yearperiod. None of you were really God'schildren-spiritually Israelites (Gal. 3:29) -unt i l you were converted andbaptized. So you won 't save this thirdtithe until the third year after you wereconverted.This ti the is for the widows and orphans. If you are a widow or orphanGod does not expect you to saue thistithe!

And remember that this special titheis only to be saved every third and s ixthyear out of seven.Some of you may think that payingGod's (not yours!) first tithe to Hiswork, saving a second tithe with whichto attend His feasts, and, every thirdyear only, saving an additional thirdtithe for widows and orphans is goingto be impossible. That's what the 'Worldbelieves! But we are not of the worldbut of the household of faith.Do you think God has commandedyou to do something which He knowsyou will be unable to perform? NO!Those of us who have saved these three

June-July, 1958tithes know hy FXPFRIRNCE t ha t Godis able to bless us sufficiently tha t weabound to every good work (I I Corinthians 9:6-8). He is doing it this moment for many of the brethren, and Hewill do it for you. You JUSt do YOURpart, and God will be faithful to do HIS!

Historical ExampleA most convincing example from areliable historical source of how theJews paid these tithes is given in thebook of Tobit. This book is found inthe Apocrypha-a collection of Jewishhistory and writings covering and extending beyond the per iod between the

Old and New Testaments.These writings were not inspired, butthey give us much reliable information.Tobit was a man of the tribe of Naphtali, which was among the ten tribes ofIsrael taken captive by Assyria. He continued to keep the commandments ofGod even after the rest of his tribe beganoffering sacrifices to Baal and leavingtheir land of captivity for NorthwesternEurope where Israel is today.In the th ird paragraph of the book ofTobit, he tells us, "But I alone wentmany a time to Jerusalem for the festivals, as the Scripture commands all Israel with an everlasting decree, takingwith me the first fruits and the tenthpart of my crops and my first shearings,and I would give them to the priests,the sons of Aaron, at the altar. A tenthpart of all my produce I would giveto the sons of Levi, who officiated atJerusalem, and another tenth I wouldsell, and go and spend the proceeds inJerusalem each year, and a thirdtenth I would give to those to whom itwas fitting to give it, as Deborah mygrandmother had instructed me-for Iwas lef t an orphan of my father."Thus we see that the Israelites hadalways understood that they were tosave all three tithes, and that each onewas to be used for a difJerent purpoJe.God's commandments are not hiddenfrom anyone who sincerely desires toknow the tru th.Are you living by every word of God?Let us obey our own spiri tual Father bykeeping His annual Holy Days and saving the tithes tha t He has commanded!

The Great BlessingsObeying these commands of God willbring greater blessings than you haveever experienced! Hundreds of you havewritten us asking, "How can we havefellowship with other true believers"?God in His infinite wisdom knew thar

His children should congregate for instruction and fellowship. That is whyGod blessed us by giv ing us His annualfestivals.Saving your second t ithe will make(Please continue on page 12)


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Amazing 2000-Year Historyof the Church of God

Ho w much do you really know about GOD'S CHURCH? Wherehas it been? Have you supposed it was re-established after 1900years through the efforts of Herbert W. Armstrong? IT W AS NOT!You will be ASTONISHED to see the true historyof GOD'S Church.This true history, authentically documented W I T H N E W FACTSwhich our older members should re-read, is breathtaking. Hereare the astounding [acts! This surprising truth is bound up in thereal meaning of the SEVEN CHURCHES IN REVELATIONI

HERE- for two thousand new readers-is the TRUTH about ourChurch! Almost two thousandyears ago a Messenger came to this earthbringing startling news of a comingworld government IThat messenger was Jesus Christ!Jesus came to deliver this messagefrom God to man. He did not come topreach it personally to th e whule world.Instead, Jesus spent His ministry preparing the foundation for TH E CHURCHwhich would carry his gospel of theKingdom to all nations.

Why Jesus Promised to Build ChurchJesus devoted His ministry to callingour disciples, teaching them the gospel,setting them an example by His own

ministry. He authorized them with thegreates t commission ever g iven to human beings-to preach the "gospel ofthe Kingdom of God in the wholeworld" (Matthew 24: 14; Mark 16: 15).Before Jesus ascended to the throneof God, He commanded the apostlesand disciples to rema in in Jerusalemuntil they were imbued with the HolySpirit, which made them the begott ensons of God, put them into His Church( l Cor. 12: 13), and endued them withthe POWER OF GOD to carry out Hiswork!Jesus founded His Church by sendingthe promised Holy Spirit on the day ofPentecost, Monday, June 18, 31 AD . -a date absolutely established by the exactand inspired mathematical and astronomical computations of God's SacredCalendar.

I t was an inspired Church, a Churchin which Jesus, through the Holy Spiri t,was living His life and THROUGH WHICHJESUS BEGAN TO PREACH AND PUB-LISH HIS GOSPEL TO THE WHOLEWORLD.

What Is the True Church?The true Church is the collective body

by Herman L. Hoehof individuals, called out from the waysof this present world, who have totallysurrendered themselves to the rule ofGod, and who, through the Holy Spirit,become the begotten sons of God (Rom.8:9).The true Church is not some politically organized denomination which onejoins Or becomes a member of in orderto be "saved." Jesus did not die for someone organization called a Church (Acts20:28).Yo u can't join the true Church; onlyGod can pu t you into it!The Church is called the body ofChrist because it is a spiritual organismwhose LIVING, ACTIVE HEAD is JesusChrist, in the same sense tha t the husband is head of the wife (Eph. 5:23,31).Not ice that from the very beginningthe Church was subjec t to the rule ofGod. It was not a government by thewill of man or boards of men. Jesus isthe Head of the Church. He rules theChurch. Read the accompanying articlein this issue.

Church Grows in TruthBefore He ascended to the Father,Jesus prayed that His Church would bekep t ONE in the Father's name. "HolyFather, keep through thine own namethose whom thou hast given me, thatthey may be ONE, as we are" (John

17: 11).The true church-"the Church ofGod" ( I Cor. 1:2)- is not many divided quarrel ing denominations, bu tONE Church, composed of many scattered members , ONE Church uni ted inSpiri t, mind, att itude and heart becauseits members have totally surrenderedtheir wills to God and have yielded tocorrection and reproof from the Wordof God.No denominat ion could be the trueChurch, because none has been willingto admit where it has been wrong, none

has received God's correction, none hasallowed the Holy Spirit to guide it intotruth. The Church which Jesus is building is composed of those scattered individuals who have God's Holy Spir it,who admit it when they are wrong, asthe apostle Peter did when he made aserious mistake (Gal. 2: 11) .Now notice Jesus' promise in John16: 13. He would send the Spir it oftruth who "will GUIDE you INTO alltruth."Here is the KEY which proves whoare in God's Church. I t is composedonly of those who are growing intotrttth as God reveals it. The moment anyone ceases to GROW, but wants to retainonly what he had five or ten years ago,from that moment on the Holy Spiritceases to live in him.False Teachers ProphesiedNow let's notice what was prophesied

to happen to the Church.Jesus warned tha t there would be agreat falling away-MANY false ministers deceiving the MANY (Mat. 24:4,5). Paul earnestly warned the eldersthat from their own number some woulddepar t from the faith (Acts 2:29 , 30).False apostles and false brethren arosewithin local church assemblies (I I Cor.11:13-15,26). Soon they outnumberedthe faithful who alone made up theTRUE Church of GOD.Not only did Jesus prophesy that falseministers would deceive the many, butHe also said His Church would be scattered and persecuted. The Church firstbecame scattered in the days of theapostles (Acts 8: 1) .But that did not mean the scatteredindividuals were not part of the Church.They were the Church because theywere jo ined to Chris t through the HolySpirit. Those who drove them out became the false church-the church ofthe god of this world-"the synagogueof Satan."


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Page 8Notice what Daniel says about theChurch: "And they tha t understandamong the people shall ins truct many:yet they shall fall by the sword, and byflame, by captivity, and by spoil , manydays. Now when they shall fall, theyshall be holpen wi th a li ttle help: butmany shall cleave to them with flatteries.And some of them of understanding

shall fall, to try them, and to purge them,and to make them white, even to thetime of the end" (Dan. 11:33-35).How plain! The true Church wasforced Out of the local o rgan ized congregations and scattered. False churcheswould arise professing to be the churchesof Christ . False brethren would betrayGod's people.But Jesus promised to be with thefai thful remnant to the end of the age

- to guide His people into truth .Where has His Church been these1900 years?

An Amazing Prophecy!In the book of Revelat ion is an amazing prophecy. Almost no one understands it, yet it is so very plain. It is theSeven Churches of Revelation.Notice Revelation 1:12-13. John seesa vision of seven candlesticks and Jesusin their midst. The Bible interprets theseven candlesticks to mean seven particular church congregations (verse 20) .Jesus Christ is pictured as dwel ling

among the Seven Churches AS THOUGHTH EY WERE A TYPE OF THE ENTIRECHURCH.There is the answer. Jesus dwells inthe ent ire Church. Since this vis ion pic

tures Him dwelling only in sevenchurches, those seven churches representthe entire Church!Jesus chose the seven because theyformed a perfect two-fold pattern.First, they were typical of generalconditions among God's people anywhere. That is why we today areaclrnnnished to hear what the Holy Spiritsays to all the Seven Churches.'Second, those seven churches, eachwith i ts own particular characteristics ,were chosen because the ir loca tion insuccessive order on a long mail routeWAS TYPICAL OF SEVEN SUCCESSIVESTASES OF GOSPEL LABOR OF THECHURCH OF GOD THROUGH ALL AGES.

Who ARE the Seven Churches?WHY have all Bible students, until

NOW, been unable to ident ify thesechurches? It is due to the fact that everyone has ASSUMED, erroneously, that thesepicture the seven stages of the visible,organized churches which have calledthemselves "Christian." In other words.it has been assumed that the churchesof this world are pictured in Revelation2 and 3 as continuations of the trueChurch in apostolic days.

The GOOD NEWSEveryone, it seems, has supposed that,following the apostolic Church, theseseven churches picture the course ofhistory in the Greek and Roman Catholic and the Protestant churches-thechurches of the god of this world!This is not true!These two chapters of Revelation picture, and convey God's message to THE

TRUE CHURCH OF GOD-the Church inwhich CHRIST lives and works-theChurch which is HIS BODY-His instrumentality-the Church HE USES! It isthe Church that was scattered, persecuted, unorgan ized-many of whosemembers have been martyred. ThisChurch is composed of members who,even though begotten by and led by theHoly Spiri t, yet are human and therefore no t perfect. In the message to eachof these seven churches Jesus has aword of correction. In every case Hepoints ou t things they need to overcome.But they are the people who have andare led by His Spirit, who put themselves under GOD'S government insteadof human t radi tions or self desire or theway that seems right to a man, and whohave in the main THE TRUE GOSPEL,even though they often lost vital portions of it.Notice, chapter 2, verse 1: "Thesethings saith He that holderh the sevenstars (the angels of the J:RUE church)in His right hand, who walketh ti t themidst of the seven golden candlesticks"(these seven churches). Jesus Chris t isIN these churches. They are HISchurches, not Satan' s churches whichfalsely masquerade as "Christian."And remember the TRUE Church hasnot been politically organized, powerfuland recognized by the world-but scattered, persecuted, seldom noticed by theworld, and even then regarded asheretics.Now let's UNDERSTAND who they are,

one by one.The Apostolic Age

The church at Ephesus p ic tu red theApostolic Church, a Church which pat ient ly labored in the gospel, which metmany false apostles but remained steadfast to the t ru th (Rev . 2: 1-7) .THERE WERE TWO 19-YEAR CYCLESIN THE HISTORY OF THE APOsTOLICCHURCH DURING WHICH THE GOSPELWAS CARRIED TOTHE OLD WORLD. It wasexactly 19 years from A.D. 31, whenthe Church was founded, to the timetha t Paul received the vision to go intoEurope! In Acts 16:9 Paul had a visionof a man in Macedonia (i n Greece)who shouted "Help us!" Paul describedthis even in II Cor. 2: 12-13 where hewro te that "a door was opened untome of the Lord" by which he meant thata way was opened to preach the gospelin Europe.

June-July, 1958Paul went into Europe about the timeof Pentecost in the late spring of 50A.D. Af te r a few months of p reaching,he arrived in Corinth in the fall of thatyear (Acts 18: 1) where he remainedfor a year and six months (verse 11).

It was now the beginning of 52 A.D. Aninsurrection broke out against Paul whenGallio was deputy or pro-counsel ofAchaia (verse 12). A recently discovered inscription in Greece states thatGallio held this position during 52 AD.,which proves that the gospel went toEurope in 50 A.D., just 19 years afterthe Church was founded!From 50 A.D. it was another 19 yearsuntil the fleeing of the Headquarter sChurch at Jerusalem in 69 AD. Hereis what happened in 69 AD. on theFeast of Pentecost-c-exactly two 19-yearcycles after the Holy Spirit came onthe day of Pentecost: "Moreover," records Josephus, the Jewish historian, "atthat feast which we call Pentecost, asthe priests were going by night intothe inner court of the temple ... theysaid that in the first place they felt aquaking, and heard a great noise, andafter that they heard a sound as of amultitude, saying, 'LET US REMOVErIUNCE. ' ' ' (From lf7rs of the Jews, bk.VI, eh. v, 3.)God's people did remove hence! Theyfled to Pella, beyond the River Jordan.From that time forward the united power of the Church of God to spread thegospel of th e K ingdom ceased. Nolonger was there a Headquarters Churchat Jerusalem to whom all churches couldlook as the standard of TRUTH. It nowbecame a struggle to strive for the faithonce deliuered ( Jude 3) .The many local churches soon lefttheir first love. Shortly after John finished the book of Revelation, the remnant of the t rue Church was scatteredover the length and breadth of the whole

Roman Empire. This fulfilled Jesus'warning: "1will come unto thee quickly,and will remove thy candlest ick out ofhis place" (Rev. 2 :5 ) .Thus ended the Apostoli c Age typified by th e "Church at Ephesus."The prophesied "Church at Smyrna"arises next. It appeared to be dead-nonexistent-yet it was alive, suffering per

secution. This pictures God's Churchduring more than four centuries underthe persecuting Old Roman Empire.Besides the true Church there wasalso a "Synagogue of Satan" (Rev. 2: 9)developing during this period.The Synagogue of Satan-What Is It ?Now read Reve la tion 2:9. "I knowthe blasphemy of them which say theyare Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Sa lan."Notice , this is a synagogue of Satan.A synagogue is merely the Hebrew word


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june-julv, 1958for church. Then jesus is not speakingof a race, bu t of a church that belongsto the devil!This church claims they are Jews,Why' Because Jesus said, "Salvation isof the Jews" (John 4:22). "To the Jewfirst, then also to the Greek" (Rom.1:16).In Romans 11: 16-27 Paul explains

that Israel and the jews, to whom salvation belonged, were broken off becauseof unbelief. Gentiles were grafted intheir place. But once grafted in, theywere no longerGentiles-"being in timepast Gentiles in the flesh" (Eph. 2: 11 ) .Now they were all one in Christ jesus,"no more s trangers and foreigners, butfellow citizens with the saints" (Eph.2: 19)."He is a Jew," says Paul, "which isone inwardly; and ci rcumcision is thatof the heart, in the spirit, and not inthe letter; whose praise is not of men,bu t of God" (Rom. 2:29).So here was a church made up ofGentiles, claiming salvation, claiming tobe Jews inwardly, masquerad ing itselfas a "Chr ist ian" church.This synagogue of Satan is the apostatechurch which developed after 80 A.D,"nel \11 r imarely became recognized as theState Religion of the Roman Empire.

That Church has had many Protestantdaughters which are also Satan'schurches.The True Church Persecuted

The wor ld at thi s time did not recognize which was the true Church. "Theworld knoweth us nor" (I John 3:1).It is from the enemies of God's Churchthat we have scanty records of God'speople, who were now maligned as heretICS.For centuries, Catholic writers menrion small remnants of the t rue Churchwithin the bounds of the Roman Empire.Sometimes rhey were individuals, sometimes scattered families, and especiallyin the Near East there were still a fewlocal congregations preaching the gospeland keeping the commandments. As lateas the beginning of the fifth century inAsia Minor, the bishop Chrysosrom bewailed members of the Catholic Church,who, upon learning the truth from thescattered remnants of the true Church,r epen ted of their ways and began toobserve "the feast of t rumpets, the feastof tabernacles, and the feast of the greatday of expiation" (Bingham's Antiqui-ties of the Christian Church, bk. XVI,ch. VI).As a result of the Council of Nicaea(325 A.D.), Emperor Constantine commenced the Tribulation (Revelation12: 6) with full force. The true Churchfled into the valleys and mountains inEurope and Asia Minor .

Now notice wha t John wri tes to the

The GOOD NEWS

"Church at Pergamos": "I know thyworks, and where thou dwellest, evenwhere Satan's seat is: and thou holdesrfast my name, and has not denied myfaith" (Rev. 2: 13).

A Miracle OccursThe local church to which John wrotewas situated in Pergamos, the capitalof the Roman province of Asia in AsiaMinor-Pergamos was Satan's seat ofworldly human government for thatprovince. Just as the local Church atPergamos was situated in a city whereSatan swayed human politics, so the

next work of God's Church occurredwithin the bounds of Satan's government-the Eastern Roman Empirewhere a small body of God's peoplewas found,

I t was about 650 A.D. that God, asif by miracle, ra ised up among the scattered remnants of his Church in Cappadocia and Armenia a man who revi ta lized his people and spread thegospel. This well-educated man, by thename of Const ant ine of Manales, wasgiven a gift of por tions of the Bible.He was u tterly amazed by the truth hefound revealed in it after study. Soonhe began preaching and with the helpof trained evangelists found such a fruitful harvest that there were tens ofthousands converted to the truth.After twenty-seven years of ministry,he was s toned to death in 684 A.D., bu tan officer, Simeon, sent to destroy him,was so st irred by his dea th that he became converted and carried forth thegospel until he was burned at the stakesix years later! Within another hundredyears God raised up a third minister,Sergius, to guide his people who wereallowing many false teachings to growin their midst.The name given to these people of

God by their enemies was the Paulicians.

Page 9

The reports circulated about these people were slanderous and false. I t was nottill almost the beginning of therweru ierh century that a book calledThe Key of Truth, containing many oftheir teachings, was translated intoEnglish by Fred C. Conybeare.This partially preserved record ofGod's people proves that they preachedthe gospel of the Kingdom; that theybelieved the Church was [ound.ed. notonly upon Jesus Christ, but also uponthe apostles and prophets (Eph. 2:20);that they baptized by immersion; thatthey laid on hands for the "receptionof the Spirit" (p. CXXIV). They notonly "continued to keep the Passover onthe fourteenth of Nisan," but they alsoobserved the sabbath and the festival ofunleavened bread (pages CLXII andCLII of The Key of Truth).

The devil was angry with these peoplewho understood the gospel and kept thecommandments. Knowing tha t he couldnot overthrow their faith by force, hecorrupted them by introducing falseteachers who taught the "doctrine ofBalaarn'' (Rev. 2: 14). In turning toNumbers 31:16, you will see thatBalaarn induced the Israelites to practicei?ola try and commit sp iri tual fornication.Once again Satan, in his wiles to overthrow the Church, introduced falseteachers among God's people. Theseteachers induced many in the Churchto celebrate certain idolazrous paganholidays, particularly Epiphany, theoriginal birthday of Nimrod, supposedlyin honor of Christ's birth and baptism.Satan also caused many in the Churchto take part in worldly politics in thehope of safeguarding themselves. Mixing with the politics of this world iscalled "fornication" in Revelation 17: 2.God' s Church is to be a virgin and remain pure and separate from the world,


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PHILADELPHIA as it is today. The ancient city in apostolic times became atype of this work today! Here is a modern view of Philadelphia, in Turkey, fromthe plain overlooking the city. Mt. Tmolus rises in the background.

Page 10wainng for the marr iage to Christ (I ICor. 11:2).As a result of these sins, Jesus warnedhis Church: "Repent ; or else I wil l fightagainst thee with the sword of mymouth" (Rev. 2:16). Most took thewarning lightly until it was too late.Trusting in their worldly polit ical alliances with neighboring Arabs, insteadof relying on Jesus' protection, they werebetrayed and slaughtered--one hundredthousand of them! The faithful few whoescaped were driven to SoutheasternEurope and called Bogomils. "Therethey throve for centuries, and . . . spread. . . their tenets into Bohemia, Poland,Germany, Italy, France, and even into. England" (p. elV).

The Church in th e WildernessJohn was inspired to commend the"Church at Thyat ira" because the lastworks of the Church were more than thefirst. But in the local Church there was

a false teacher (symbol of the CatholicChurch) who taught some to practiceidolatry. Jesus warned He would castthem into gr eat tribulation and "killher children [Protestants} with death"unless they repented (Rev. 2: 18-29).Now let us notice how this description fits exactly the next great expansionof God's people.As a result of the evangelization ofthe Alpine regions by the Paulicians andBogomils of Bulgar ia, as God' s peoplewere called, there arose numerous ministers and faithful congregations. Oneof these men was Peter de Bruys whopreached the gospel of the Kingdom inthe south of France (Jones' Church History, ch. 4, sect. 3). Two other preachersof the time were Arnold and Henri.They were charged by the CatholicChurch with remaining fai thful to thewhole law of God and of observing thesabbath (Ecclesiastical History, by PeterAllix, pp. 168-169).The Lutheran historian Mosheim saysof other congregations of the Churchin the twelf th century that they held "anotion that the observance of the law ofMoses, in everything except the offeringsof sacrifices, was obligatory upon Christians . . . they abstained from thosemeats the use of which was prohibitedunder the Mosaic economy, and celebrated the Jewish Sabbath. The secondtenet which dis tinguished this sect wasadvanced in opposition to the doctrineof three persons in the divine nature."Yes, they knew that God was not atrinity, but a family!A crusade was instituted against manyof these people in Southern France.Thousands perished. But when it seemedthat the first work would soon be ended,there arose an even greater leader amongGod's people.It was the close of the twelfth century.

The GOOD NEWSIn Lyons, France, lived an astonishinglysuccessful and wealthy merchant, PeterWaldo. "One day, while in the companyof some of the leading cit izens, one ofhis friends fell li feless at his side. Terrified by the event, he said to himself:If death had str icken me, wha t wouldhave become of my soul?"Being a Cathol ic, Waldo asked oneof these theologians what is the perfectway. "Ah! answered the theologian ...here is Christ's precept: 'I f thou wilt beperfect, go, sell tha t thou hast and giveto the poor, and thou shalt have treasurein heaven; and come take up thy crossand follow me.''' (Comba, History ofthe Waldenses, p. 21).

Waldo disposed of his property bydistributing to the poor. But f rom hiswealth he also had a translation of theScriptures made. In thi s trans lation henoticed the command to the apostles topreach the gospel of the Kingdom ofGod. His mind began to understand theScriptures.God was using Peter Waldo.Comba says t ha t "he b rought to thestudy of the Scriptures that practical

common sense which had guided himin his business transactions . . . Theword of Christ was clear enough; forWaldo it was simply a question offurnishing a literal translation" (p. 243of Cornba's History).The humble remnant of the Churchof God l is tened to him. Soon many newdisciples were coming to repentance."His disciples became almost as manyco-workers for him" (p. 26). The worldcalled them Waldenses.God's Church was once again spread-

June-July, 1958ing the gospel! A school for ministerswas established to provide the trainedhelp to carry the gospel.

Called the "Church of God"Their enemies admitted that thesepeople proclaimed the gospel of the

Kingdom of God, that they baptizedrepentant believers and obeyed thewhole law of God.But just as the re was a false teacher,Jezebel, in the local church at Thyat ira,so now there were many false teachersand false brethren among these people.Some rose up among the Waldensesteaching that it was right to have Catholics and Protestants baptize their children and to attend idolatrous mass oncein a while. O thers commi tt ed spi rit ualfornication by meddling in politics inthe hope of avoiding persecution.

To correct his people God caused afrightful crusade to pass over them 300years after the death of Waldo. Only afaithful remnant escaped.Once again we see the repeated factthat a ft er a few generations, the localcongregations are no longer composedof truly converted brethren, but of unconverted children and halfhearted believers who either go aside into totalerror in the face of persecution or elseare forced to give up their lives for thefaith, as Daniel prophesied.But in 131) A.D., long before thecrusade against the Waldenses occurred,the truth of God was carried to Englandby a German Waldensian preacher, Walter Lollard.Now let's notice what John wrote to

the "Church at Sardis."


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June-July, 1958The Church in England and AmericaThe "Church at Sardis" had a namethat it was alive but it was dead (Rev.3: I ). Only a minute fraction of itspeople were really surrendered to Godand holding to the faith once delivered.This is just the picture of the Churchof God for over 600 years after thepreaching of Walter Lollard.Through the preaching of Lollard andother helpers, hundreds were repenting.Thousands were learning for the firsttime that Catholic religious holidayscame from paganism and that Sundaywas not the Sabbath.But within sixty years after the coming of Walter Lollard, a reform movement under John Wyclif arose inEngland and nearly engulfed the teachings of the original Waldensian preachers. After a period of persecution, thereremained only a few who kept the faithand observed the Sabbath and the annual festivals. When confronted with

impri sonment for their faith, severalministers gave up the faith even thoughsome of their followers remained steadfast (Cox's Sabbath Literature, Vol. 1,p. 162).It was not unt il about 1650 that therewere enough Sabbath keepers to establish local congregations. They calledthemselves the Churches of God, butthe world termed them Sabbatarians andSabbararian Baptists.From England the Church of Godspread to America. In 1664, StephenMumford, s en t to Newport , Rhode Island, raised up a small church mainlyfrom Baptist converts. One by one newchurches were established through cont inued help of the churches in England.But as always happens, after severalgenerations the children take truth forgranted and never really surrender theirwills and their lives to God. In less thanone hundred and fifty years, the Englishchurches almost disappeared, having curthemselves off from God by turningfrom his truth, and by adopting thename "Seventh-day Baptists."In America the number of churchesgradually increased as the gospel wasspread from state to state. But so nearlydead were these congregations that in1802 many began to ORGANIZE THEM-SELVES together into a General Conference instead of submitting to thegovernment of God for the carrying outof the gospel. At this serious juncture,most of the local churches joined themselves together to form the Seven-dayBaptist General Conference. Some began teaching the Trini ty doctrine andthe immortal ity of human souls.Several congregations did not becomemembers of the Conference. For anotherhalf century they maintained the truththey possessed, although most of themdid not go all the way in obedience to

The GOOD NEWSGod. John aptly descrihed rhis periocl:"Be watchful, and establish the thingsremaining, which are about to die: forI have not found thy works perfectedbefore my God" (Rev. 3: 2) .

The Adventist MovementDuring this time the advent movement among Sunday-observing churches

was begun by the uninspired WilliamMiller. In 1843 several followers ofMiller in Washington, New Hampshire,became acquainted with the truth of theSabbath. It was not until after the miserable disappointment of 1844, however,that the general body of adventists hadthe Sabbath called to their attent ion. Asmall number accepted the Sabbath andsoon united with the few remaininRChurch of God brethren who refused tobe affiliated with the Seventh-day Baprisr Conference.They called themselves the "Churchof God" and began publishing "TheAdvent Review and Sabbath Herald."Their first songbook was dedicated to"The Church of God scattered abroad."With each passing year, new anddifferent doctrines were being introduced to explain away the adventisrfailure of October 22, 1844. Finally, ameeting was held in Battle Creek, Michigan, September 28 through October 1,1R(;O."This conference also took into consideration the subject of a name bywhich our people should be called,"wrote Loughborough 01 1 page 351 of theGreat Second Advent Movement. "Thisagain called forth a diversity of opinions,some pleading for one name and somefor another. The "Church of God" beingproposed, it was objected to on theground that it gave none of the distinctive features of our fairh, while the name"Seventh-day Adventist" would no t onlyset forth our faith in the near comingof Christ, but would also show that wewere observers of the Seventh-day Sabbath. So unanimous was the assembly infavor of the lat ter name that when putto vote only one man voted against, andhe soon afterward withdrew his objection."In the spring of 1861 another conference was held in an unscriptural efforr to reorganize local congregations.The following covenant was recommended for this new church organization: "We, the undersigned, herebyASSOCIATE OURSELVES TOGETHER AS ACHURCH, taking the name of SeventhDay Adventist ..."Once again men forgot that they cannot organize themselves into the Churchof God. They can only organize themselves out of the Church of God!

A Remnant Remains!When this new name was being

Page 11forcf'cl on rhe churches, there appearedan article in the Apri l 9, 1861 issue ofthe "Review and Herald" in which afew brethren from Ohio wrote that theywould not give their offerings fur anyother purpose "than the advancementand extension of the truth and the'Church of God.' "Within the space of sixty years, twomajor departures from the church ofGod occurred. The ministers would notst rengthen tha t which W3S ready toperish!For another seventy years conditionsremained almost unchanged. The remaining brethren retained the name

" C ~ u r c h of God." Among local congreganons only a few individuals repentedand strengthened the truth that wasready to per ish in their midst. But mostof the ministers resorted to organizingevangelistic work on the pattern of stateconferences rather than yielding themselves to God's government and direction in the carrying of the gospel. Inf a ~ t , . instead of the true gospel, mostrnrrusters taught a " third angel's message," which they had accepted from theadventisr people.

Today's Church Prophesied!Notice the amazing description ofthe next event in the history of God'speople. John writes to the "Church atPhiladelphia": "I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open. door, and no man can shut it: for thouhaJt a l it tle strength, and hast kept myword and hast not denied my name"(Rev. 3:8).He!e is a Church with lit tle strength,few 10 numbers, but which has keptthe word of God; one which has notdenied the truth. Here is a Church whichis preach ing the gospel because Jesuspromises to set before it an open dooruntil the work of the Church is completed.Here is a Church which Jesus lovesdespite its weakness! Here is a Church

to which He says: "Because thou hastkept the word of my patience [whichJesus interprets in Revelation 14: 12 askeeping the commandments and thefa ith ], I also will keep thee FROM THEHOUR OF TEMPTATION, WHICH SHALLCOME UPON ALL THE WORLD, TO TRYTHEM THAT DWELL UPON THE EARTH"(Rev. 3:10).This verse pictures a Church whichis carrying the gospel just prior tothe last great t ime of trouble that willengulf all the world. This is the Churchof God TODAY!The Gospel Goes to All the WorldJesus chose Paul, who was highlyeducated, for spreading the gospel tothe Gentiles. He later raised up Pete rWaldo, a successful businessman, to keep


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Page 12his truth alive during the Middle Ages.In these last days WHEN THE GOSPELMUST GO AROUND THE WORLD, Jesuschose a man amply trained in the advertising and business fields to shou lderthis mission-Herbert W. Armstrong.Paul was struck down. Waldo wasshocked by the sudden death of hisfr iend. In like manner God three timesswept away Mr. Armstrong's business inorder that he might come to understandthe truth.Shortly befo re this event , God hadopened the mind of Mrs. Armstrong tounderstand the Sabbath truth from anelderly Church of God woman. Aftersix months of study, in a persistent effor t to prove Sabbath-keeping unscr iprural, Mr. Armstrong also surrenderedhis will to God and accepted the Sabbath.From this moment forward, Godopened the minds of Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong to understand one truth afteranother. The Church of God brethrenwith whom they associated became sointensely interested that Mr. Armstrongsoon found himself speaking at theirinsistence-then preaching to smallgroups in Oregon!Not long a fter his ordi na ti on, a momentous juncture occurred. A movementwas under foot to organize the localcongregations of the Church of Godunder human government-a financialboard of seven men. By 1933 certainleading minis ters demanded tha t nomore new truth be pre ached to thebrethren. They were refusing to repentand allow the Holy Spirit to workthrough them to establish the t ru th thatwas ready to perish!Most of the congregations succumbedto error. The age of the Church of Sardiswas over. The Church period of Philadelphia was to begin!

A DOOR OpensThe time had come for the gospelTO GO AROUND THE WORLD! Havingt ested and proven that Herbert and

Lama Armstrong would remain faithfuland subjec t to His government, Godopened before them and a few faithfulbrethren the marvelous DOOR of radioand the printing press to carry for th thegospel. From a minute beginning inOregon, in 1934, the work of Godspread to cover much of North Americain 19 years. In 1953 it l eaped to Eu ropeand the world!This is very significant.God gave the Apostolic Church just

two nineteen-year cycles to carry thegospel to the Old World . He opened aDOOR to the apostle Paul at the beginning of the second nineteen-year cycleby which the gospe l went to Europe(Acts 16:9; II Cor. 2:12-13).So now, just bef ore the second com-

The GOOD NEWSing of Jesus Chr ist , God has given HisChurch-THIS CHURCH-just two 19year cycles in which to carry the gospelto the world!The first cycle has already passed. Godopened the door for the second cycle inJanuary 1953, and the gospel is nowgoing to all the world!Do you catch the significance of this?

I t means that this work, this MISSIONto which God has called us all, is a DIVINE work, a DIVINE mission!-not thework of some one man. WE ARE THECHURCH OF GOD to whom Jesus committed the greatest task ever to fall uponmorral man-the carrying of His gospel,the good news of the Kingdom of God ,to all nations.Weare a people with "little strength,"but God has set before us all OPEN DOORWHICH NO MAN CAN SHUT.We mustuse that door. We must become zealous,working, praying, studying, giving tithesand offerings as we have never givenbefore, so that this gospel can go inpower around the world.

Future Is DangerousThis is the time of the end whenprophecies hidden for ages are beingrevealed. TRUTH is being restored,knowledge is rapidly increasing. Burknowledge brings responsibility; it becomes dangerous if not rightly handled.Now notice Jesus' LAST WARNINGto His Church. At the very close of thi sage, when the work of spreading thegospel is almost finished, Jesus addressedyet another Church work-the Churchat Laodicea: "I know thy works, that

thou art neither cold nor hot: . . . I WILLSPUE THEE OUT Ot' MY MOUTH" (Rev.3:15, 16).This frightful condition lies just aheadof us. Just as the Sardis era of theChurch' existed side by side with thePhiladelphia era, so we will continueour work at the very same time thatanother work will develop. Anotherseparate work is yet to arise-madeup of begotten indi vi dual s who arespiritually lukewarm! WOE BE TO ANYOF US IF WE TAKE PART IN SUCHA WORK! Here is a work, yet to arisebecause of our preaching, which will say:"I am rich, and increased with goods.

and have need of nothi ng." And Jesuswill reply: "As many as I love, I rebukeand chasten: be ZEALOUS therefore, andrepent."It is time to WAKE UP! I f you becomecomplacent, lacking in zeal, looking upona local church as a social club, insteadof having your heart in the gospel, you,too, may end up in the "Church atLaodicea." Jesus, then, will no t deliveryou from the impending, horrifyingtribulation.Notice Jesus' admonition in Luke

21:36. "WATCH ye therefore and PRAY

June-July, 19;8always, that ye may be accounted worthyto escape all these things that shall cometo pass, and to stand before the Sonof Man."Let's pray and work together to carrythis gospel to all nations so Jesus willsay to each of us, "Well done, thougood and faithful servant."

Come to theTABERNACLE(Continued f rom page 6)

the joyous privilege of attending thesefestivals possible. Because God has commanded this special tithe, He is boundto help you fulfill this command. I f youdo YOUR par t, you can know t ha t Godwill enable you to attend His HolyFestivals!Do you realize what this means?It means that God is commanding us,instructing us-and will BLESS us thatwe may take a vacation in joyous fellowship with His people! This is the

time to take your vacation. It is a timewhen God will make it poss ible for allHis chi ldren to rest from their regularduties and to worship and rejoice together in His festivals.So by all means come to the Tabernacle!

When? At the time God has se t -at the Feast of Tabernacles, which hegins this year on Sunday evening, September 28 and ends on Monday evening October 6.H ow? By se tti ng aside your secondtithe regularly which God has commanded that you use in attending His HolyDays.Why? Because your Creator knowsthat you need the spiritual fellowshipmade possible by these festivals. He hascommanded you to attend.Honestly, you can't afford NOT to attend God's festivals! Write us if youwish further help and information onGod's festivals. Also be sure to writeus i f you plan to attend so that all arrangements can be made in advance.Some few of you may not be able tosave enough second tithe between nowand the Feast of Tabernacles to a tt endthis fall. In that case, continue to saveit and be sure to attend next year -and from then on. The wonderfulsermons and joyous fellowship will muchmore than repay any efforts on yourpart. And God blesses only those whoOBEY His commands!By commanding the second tithe, Godhas made your presence poss ible at Hisfestivals IF you do your part! Thousandsof brethren in every conceivable typeof occupat ion and s itua tion have foundthat they CAN save a second tithe withGod's promised help.You are no dif ferent! Just be sureyour heart is surrendered to obey Him!

good news 1958 (vol vii no 06) jun-jul_w

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