Good News 1959 (Vol VIII No 08) Aug_w

7/28/2019 Good News 1959 (Vol VIII No 08) Aug_w

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VOL. VIII, NUMBER 8

International MagazIne ofTHE CHURCH OF GODAUGUST, 1959

Wonderful GROWTHChurch of God!

in theGod is continuing to BLESSHis Church and His work in countlessways! Rejoice in this good news of how Christ is WORKING

through His "body" on this earth!by Roderick C. MeredithTH IS Church is the very BODY ofJesus Christ! ( I Cor. 12: 27).Through us, as physical instruments, He is warning this world of sooncomrng punishment-s-and of the JOyous

kingdom of God to follow.Within us, Christ is developing thesupreme CHARACTER required to makeus fit as kings and pries ts in His cominguiorld government. The zeal with whichwe do our part in the work of God NOWis an indicator of how we will performTHEN in the very kingdom of God!This summer, Christ has been workingMIGHTILY in His Church. Many of youcan rejoice because you have had a partin this wonderful growth!

Mr. Armstrong's TripReal growth is now beginning to takeplace in the Bri tish and overseas work!The recent fiying trip of Mr. Armstrongand Mr. Ted Armst rong has made possible a tremendous increase in the British church and office which could nothave been accomplished without thistrip.From the point of view of churchmembers, I would like to stress certainthings to YOll. Up to this time, the zealous radio listeners in the British Isleshave only been able to get our programtwice a week between 11: 30 p.m. andmidnight. Naturally, as you can see, thiswas not conducive to regular listening or

to bui lding a large l is tening audience.

And up to now, we have been utterlyunable to get an earlier time on RadioLuxembourg, or to get on any local British stations which are entirely government owned and operated.So the recent announcement by Mr.Armstrong that we are now going intothe British edition of the Reader's Digestwith a two page ad conta in ing a gospelmessage each month is something weought to really REJOICE over! Now wewill begin to reach thousands of peoplethat we could not have reached before.This will require a larger office and staffin London, and will soon make possible-and even necessary-many churchesthroughout the British Isles.1 know that the people in our Londonchurch will rejoice with me that nowhundreds of their fellow countrymen inBritain will soon be converted and manywill be able to attend local churcheswithin a few years! And I know youbrethren in the Uni ted States will alsorejoice when you realize the full sig-nificance of this sudden jump in ourpower in reaching those God is callingin the Bri tish Isles!It was a double blessing in that Mr.Armstrong and Garner Ted were able tonegotiate the purchase of a beautifulestate which will serve both to give usthe needed larger office space for ourBritish office and headquarters, and alsoto be the main building of the BritishAmbassador College campus! And these

beautiful grounds, as Mr. Armstrongmentioned, will be a wonderful place forGod's people in Bri tain to observe Hisannual festivals!Definite plans are now being madefor several evangelistic campaigns starting in the British Isles next June andlasting through December. All of youbrethren should immediately beginPRAYING for these campaigns-and thatGod will gu ide and bless them in everyway so that we may really reach theBritish people in a way we have not beenable to do before!Our work in Great Bri ta in is now beginning to show forth God's real pow-ER!

Nation-wide Baptizing ToursFive nation-wide baptizing tours, plustwo or three shorter tours, are going outfrom God's headquarters this summer

to reap a tremendous spiritual harvestthat He has granted! You have alreadyheard about these tours, and we hope youhave been praying for them.As this goes to press, these tours havealready baptized over 400 persons intothe body of Jesus Christ! As I am sureyOl l all realize, these people are not JUSt"interested" individuals--or people whowere moved by an emotional "altar call"appeal of some sort. Ra ther, they havebeen counseled about the real PURPOSEof human existence and told they musttotally surrender their lives to God and


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Page 2 The GOOD NEWS August, 1959

ministering to its membersscattered abroad

International magazine ofTHE CHURCH OF GOD

Be sure TO noTify us immediaTely ofchange of address.

speaker on the Spanish broadcast-willbe taking a tour through some of thecities in northern California accompanied by Mr. Ronald Chandler. Mr.Chandler is now an instructor in Ambassador College, having graduated, andis a zealous servant of Christ in theSpanish department of God's Church.We should also note that Mr. JimKunz, accompanying Mr. Billingsley,is one of the leading men in the letteranswering department, and undoubtedly scores of you brethren have receivedhelpful, meaning ful and encouragingletters fr om Mr. Kunz.Let us give God THANKS for thesetours and the wonderful spiritual harvest they are able to reap! There willbe well over a thousand new membersadded to God's Church by the time ofthe Feast of Tabernacles this fall!Evangelistic Campaign in San AntonioIt is good that you brethren realize

that, just as in apostolic times, God'sChurch today still has problems. Certain of our local churches have notgrown as we would wish, and we nearlyalways find that the reason is tha t some"members" have never really been con-verted!For the last few years we have hadsuch a problem in the church in SanAntonio, Texas. Ivfany of t he members,of course, have been thoroughly converted and are growing in Christ's graceand truth in every way. But there werea few who never grew as they shouldand who began to "sympathize" witheach other's wrong attitudes. Naturally,this wrong spirit began to spread andto cause a disheartened and discouragedattitude to come over many of thosewho were otherwise zealous of themselves.For these reasons, the San AntonioChurch has remained one of our smallerones. For many months, the averageweekly Sabbath attendance here hasbeen just over 30 adults, plus a fewchildren. Some SOrt of "spark" wasneeded to pu t new LIFE into God'sChurch in this area!So we are now having an evangelistic

campaign for our members, co-workersand inte res ted listeners in the San Antonio area! Many of you have not heardof this campaign because it has beenrestricted mainly to our own listeningaudience. But as this article is beingwritten, it is now in progress-and theprospects are that the San AntonioChurch may be more thmt doubled! Inaddition to this immediate growth,scores of people in the San Antonioarea and outlying regions will havebeen reached in a personal way andmay well decide to act on what they(Please continue on page 8)

West Coast ToursThree shorter baptizing tours are

being taken on the west coast this summer. Mr. Leroy Neff-already an ordained elder in the Church-and hiswife have already completed a shorttour includ ing cities in northern California and southern Oregon. Elder DonBillingsley, accompanied by Mr. JimKunz, is taking a short tour throughthe c it ies of central Cal ifornia to baptize many there.

And by the time you receive this,Mr. Benjamin Rea-minister and our

of experience last summer in assistrngMr. Ted Armstrong m the evangelisticcampaign held in Springfield, MIssouri.Tne tour cove ring many of the western states and western Canada is headedby Mr. George Meeker-formerly manager of our London office and ministerin the church there and also, for a brieftime, associate minister to Mr. Blackwellin the Chicago area. Teamed with Mr.Meeker is Mr. Cecil Battles-a graduateof Ambassador College and a most dedicated and able servant of Jesus Christ.Mr. Battles has served as associate pastorunder Mr. Blackwell both in the Eugene,Oregon, and in the Chicago area.

The tour cove ring the midwest andsouth central areas of the country isheaded by Mr. David Antion. He graduated from Ambassador College this June,and acted as student body president. Heis a s trong leader and preacher-and aservant of Jesus Chris t. Accompanyinghim is Mr. Ken Mowat-a zealous juniorstudent in Ambassador College, and ourfirst Canadian student to be used directlyin the: work in this manner.

The tour covering the extreme Southand southeastern part of the UnitedStates is headed by Mr. Roger Fosteralso a graduate of Ambassador Collegethis June and senior class president.Mr. Foster and Mr. Antion have bothhad previous bapt izin g rour experience,and Mr. Foster also is an able speakerand is no ted as a mos t sincere and dedicated servant of God. He is accompanied by Mr. Richard Pinelli-s-formerly of the Chicago church, and now avery able and zealous junior studentin Ambassador College who is makingtremendous strides in real spiritualgrowth.

We hope that you will remember allof these men, and that you wil l PRAYfor their protection and the success oftheir tours under the guidance of Almighty God! Perhaps many of you canget bet ter acquainted with t hem at theFeast of Tabernacles this fall, for because of their "frui ts" we know thatsome of these men may later be orda ined as full mini st er s of Jesus Chri stin His Church.

NUMRFR HOL. VIIIHerbert W. ArmstrongPublisher and EditorGarner Ted ArmstrongExecutive Editor

Herman 1. HoehiHanaging EditorRoderick C. MeredithAssociate Editor

Address communications to the Editor,Box I l l , Pasadena, California.Copyright, August, 1959By the Radio Church of God

coun: tho cost before being baptized. Sowe know that these are not to be compared with the "conversions" broughtabout by the highly advertised revivalsrn campaigns of the worldly churches.Ra the r, these numbers represent hundreds of human lives being CHANGEDand t ruly converted to have the livingChrist live His very life inside of them!Since some of these men on the bapt iz ing tours may soon become minis tersservmg you-and, of course, some arealready ministers-we would like to acquaint you with the men taking thesenation-wide tours. The tour covering theextreme North and northeastern cornerof the United States and much of Canadais headed by Mr. Carl ton Smith-one ofour most pffecrive preachers,whommanyof you already know and love. Teamedwith Mr. Smith this year is Mr. BillMcDowell, a senior in Ambassador College, a zealous and able Bib le student,and a dedicated servant of Jesus Christ .This isMr.McDowell's second tour, sincehe assisted Mr. Gerald Waterhouse lastfall in visiting many of our co-workersthroughout the South.

Other Tour LeadersThe tour covering the north centralpart of the United States is headed byMr. Gerald Waterhouse, one of our olderand abler ministers who is highly respected by anyone who is filled withGod's Spirit. Accompanying Mr. Waterhouse is Mr. Ronald Kelly, a senior student in Ambassador College this fall,and a very able Bible s tudent and effective speaker. Mr. Kelly had a great deal


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Is GLADEWATER the PLACEthe Feast of Tabernacles?Who determines WHERE to hold the Festival of Tabernacles? Iseach individual member to decide for himself the place to hold it?

Here is the Bible evidence that Gladewater is the place!by Herman L. Hoeh

for

T HERE is authority for observingthe Feast of Tabernacles at Gladewater, Texas! It is time you understood it!How can we know ABSOLUTELY thatthe Church is properly keeping theFeast of Tabernacles "in the place whichthe Lord shall choose to place HisNAME in" (Deut. 16:15)?

A COLLECTIVE DutyIt is a collective duty of the New

Testament Church of God to observe theFeast of Tabernacles. It is not an individual matter. It is most vital that allmembers understand this!You, as an individual member, arenot responsible for determining whereor when the whole Church shall assemble.I f you were, then God would be usingyou as His direct instrument for determining where all other members shouldassemble-for detcrmining where Godhas chosen to place His NAME! Godwould bc ruling the Church throughyou!God has not left it for the individual

member to decide when the Churchshall assemble. God Himself has set asideHis Holy Sabbath, sanctified and hallowed the seventh day of every week.Is it permissible for you, as an individual member, to decide that thewhole Church shall meet on Tuesdaysor Sundays? Of course not. Pu t that wayit seems ridiculous. To keep any clifferenr day and profane GOD'S day whichHE appointed is a basic SIN!God sets the time for the annual fesuvals. In like manner GOD sets thePLACEIOnly God can sanctify-set apar t a place to which all His people are toassemble. God determines where we areto assemble! But how can the Churchknow which is the place God has chosenfor the Feast of Tabernacles?H ow and to whom does He reveal it?Since observing the Feast is a collective matter, who has the authori ty tobind God's choice of a place on theicbole Church? Is the individual member given the power to bind all othermembers-the power to rule the Church- i n this matter?What is the New Testament way bywhich God rules His Church, by which

God keeps uni ty among the membersso that all may collectively assemble inharmony at the one place He has chosenfor the Feast of Tabernacles?Christ the LIVING RULER

of His ChurchGod RULES His Church-the Churchof God-through Jesus Christ. Jesus isthe Head of the Church, not some man!Jesus rules from Heaven!But how does He reveal His decisionsto the Church on earth?Where , in the Bible, do we find HOWJesus governs His Church? What is theinstrumentality by which Jesus, who isin Heaven, carries out His will onearth? Notice the Bible answer:God "hath set some in the Church,first apostles, secondarily prophets,thirdly teachers . . ,'. (I Cor. 12:28) or, as in Ephesians 4: 11-14, some are"apostles; and some, prophets; and some,evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers, for the perfect ing of the saints, forthe work of the ministry . . . till we all

come in the unity of the faith"-thatis, unity in doctrine or belief-"that wehenceforth be no more children, tossedto and fro, and carried about withevery wind of doctrine . . ." Christ rulesand governs His Church through thosewhom He has chosen as His ministersand His instruments for administeringHIS AUTHORITY, for the very purposeof preventing false doctrine creeping into divide and to destroy the flock-forthe very purpose of keeping UNITY inthe Church.It is to the ministry of God's Churchthat Chris t said: "Whatsoever ye shallb ind on earth shall be bound in heaven. . : ' (Matt. 18:18). It is not throughindividual members, but through Hisministry, that God reveals where Heplaces His NAME. And it is through theministry that He binds His choice ofthe place on the whole Church.Thus God reveals through His ministers the place He sets apar t to whichHIS WHOLE CHURCH IS TO ASSEMBLE!When individual members attempt todetermine and to decide for themselveswhich place God has chosen they makethemselves competitors and enemies ofGod's Church and of God's government

in it. They stir up dissension, causedivision, and thus pu t themselves outof the Church.The individual must first determinefor himself-must satisfy himself-as towhich is the one true Church of God,and then he must be subject to the government of God in His Church. Thishe must voluntarily submit to. He ought,however, to know HOW God's Churchis led to recognize the place God haschosen for the Feast of Tabernacles.GOD Chose Gladewater

God's ministers did not decide forthemselves that Gladewater was theplace for the Feast of Tabernacles. Goddid!Let's notice how God did and how Herevealed it to the whole Church.In Leviticus 23:2-4-in the verychapter where the annual festivals arementioned-God orders His minis tersto convoke assemblies. One of the commanded assemblies is the "Feast ofTabernacles" (Lev. 23: 34) .But the ministry cannot command ameeting unless the ministers know theplace where the meeting is to be held!God has not left His ministers freeto choose for themselves where thewhole Church is to meet. God is the Onewho chooses the place: "Seven daysshalt thou keep a solemn feast untothe Lord thy God IN THE PLACE WHICHTHE LORD SHALL CHOOSE" (Deut.16:15). In verse 6 of this same chapterGod further tells us that it must be"the place which the Lord thy God shallchoose TO PLACE HIS NAME IN." Itmust have God's name-be deeded toHIM!Notice that when God wanted theTemple built by Solomon, He causedOrnan to want to donate his property

to God. David, Solomon's father, boughtthat property, having recognized it asthe place whereon God wanted theHouse of the Lord built (see I Chron.21:14 to 22:3 and II Sam. 24:18-25).Now consider how we obtained theproperty at Gladewater.Shortly before the spring of 1953 abeautifully wooded, private and secludedtract of some 45 acres was partly donated and the balance purchased andcleared. The original owner donated it


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Page 4to God. The property therefore hecamedeeded in the NAME OF "GOD"!In the last part of the summer of 1953the Church was still in search of theplace God would appoiut fur the Feastof Tabernacles. The Church of God upto that year was like the "Church in thewilderness" which journeyed from Sinaito Kadeshbarnea before entering Palestine. In 1953 no place for the Church ofGod was available anywhere, it seemed.Then something happened! I t becameevident to Mr. Armstrong, together withthe ministry and many of the membersat the Headquarters Church, that theonly place available where we couldmeet was the very place GOD HADPLACED HIS NAME-on the propertynear Gladewater, Texas!Since God does command our presence where He places His NAME, THEGROUNDS AT GLADEWATER BECAMEBOUND AS THE PLACE CHOSEN FORTHE FEAST OFTABERNACLES!What You Probably Didn't KnowThe many brethren which God hasadded to His Church this year probablydo nor know how we came to build thetwo tabernacles near Gladewater andmany who have known have probablyforgotten!The first report 011 the redwood tabernacle appeared in the February 1953

GOOD NEWS, page 10. In that article Mr.Armstrong wrote that the purpose of thetabernacle was three-fold: 1) as a localplace for the Church around Gladewaterto meet every Sabbath; 2) as a bui ldingto house the grade and high school; 3)as a center of meeting for the annualspring festivals-Passover, the Days ofUnleavened Bread and Pentecost.But it was not originally bui lt forthe Feast of Tabernacles!God had not yet revealed-in theearly part of 1953-where we shouldhold the Feast of Tabernacles.But why did we call it a "tabernacle"?Because it was that kind of building!We couldn't call it a school, for it wasnot built like a school. Neither could wecall it a church, for it is not built likethe ordinary church. It was bui lt witha large auditorium-and Webster defines a tabernacle as a "church with alarge auditorium."That is why we call it a "tabernacle"!That is what it is.

When originally built, the redwoodtabernacle provided seats for an anticipated number of 1000 who would beattending the spring festivals of God.It was never built specifically to housethose attending the Feast of Tabernaclesbecause God had not then revealedwhere the Feast should be held.It was absolutely essential, however,that the tabernacle be bui lt in 1953 for

The GOOD NEWSthe school and the local church and thespring festivals. It amply served noronly its original purpose but also as theassembly hall for the whole Church during the Feast of Tabernacles, beginningin 1953! Yes, God led His Church tobuild a tabernacle large enough for thewhole Church-and at the place Godchose for the Feast of TabemaclesEVEN BEFORE HE REVEALED HOW WEWERE TO USE IT! Jesus does live in HisChurch today!For five years God's people met there.We multiplied in attendance four times.We outgrew the original buildingwhich in 1958 became a din ing haI land a NEW TABERNACLE was completedby the autumn of 1958.Solarge was the increase in attendancein 1958 that plans were immediatelylaid for construct ing the second tabernacle much BIGGER for this autumn.The new members who have beenadded to the Church this year shouldknow that the expenses for all thisbuilding have been borne bythose whomGod has pu t into His Church in yearspast. Every new member who attendsthe Feast this year reaps, in a sense, theunselfish financial lahor of others whohave been and are helping in the building of the Tabernacle.Now let us understand why God did

no t choose Headquarters in Pasadena, orJerusalem, as the place for the Festivalof Tabernacles.Jesus Leads Our Church Today

Consider! Since God placed His Nameat the grounds near Gladewater, Texas,and has led His Church La assemblethere, no other place in the UnitedStates can be chosen for the Feast ofTabernacleS-NOT EVEN PASADENA!There can be only one place in theUnited States and Canada!Jesus leads His Church-this Church.We are the Church of God. Since Jesusnever changes, we find Him leading theChurch today in exactly the same manner as He did in apostolic times. He isleading His ministers today to knowwhere the festivals of God ought to beheld, just as He led the apostles andministers in olden times to know whereGod's people should meet.God wants the people to appear before Him. Therefore He wants thespring festivals of Passover and Unleavened Bread and Pentecost to beobserved where the greatest number ofpeople can gather together throughoutthe country.But God provided in His law for usto save the SECOND TITHE so tha t we allcould journey to one central place forthe Feast of Tabernacles. Gladewater isthat place here in North America. It iscentrally located from east to west.

August, 1959Economically it is centrally locatedfrom north to south, for the majorityof our bre th ren who have low incomeslive in the region of the Southern states.Certainly God is the all-wise God,and Jesus is the living Head of HisChurch today! Do we see how He hasworked out all these things for us?Why Hold Feast of Tabernacles inOnly ONE Place in U.S.A.?Many of you brethren have so recentlycome in to the true Church of God thatyou may never have heard us explain

WHY we hold the Feast of Tabernaclesin only one place in the Uni ted States.Why do we not also hold the otherfestivals only in one place, the same aswe do the Feast of Tabernacles?What examples in the Old and NewTestaments does the Church have?Although there are seven annualfestivals we are commanded to appearbefore God three times or seasons in theyear. Notice: 'Three times in a yearshall all thy males"-the women arealso included-"appear before the Lordthy God in the place which He shallchoose; in the feast of unleavened bread,and in the feast of weeks, and in thefeast of tabernacles" (Dent. 16:16).The passover is here considered as anintegral part of the Days of UnleavenedBread. The separate festivals of Trumpets and Atonement are not included asthey are usually held wherever the localchurches meet on the weekly Sabbarh.This verse in Deuteronomy clearlyshows that we are not free to meet

wherever we please, but rather, to meetwherever it pleases God. He chooses theplace we meet and He reveals it to Hisministers who convoke the assemblies.Notice the Bible example in the Bookof Zechariah. The one feast which allwill be required to attend in one placein the Millennium is the Feast of Tabernacles! "And it shall come to pass thateveryone that is left of all the nationswhich came against Jerusalem"-and allnations will come against Jerusalem"shall even go up from year to year . . .to keep the Feast of Tabernacles"(Zech.14:16).In the Mill ennium the Gentiles willbe required to assemble in one placeJerusalem-to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.But Jerusalem is not now the placewhich God has chosen. Jesus said: "Thehour cometh, when ye shall neither inthis mountain (where the false Samaritan worship was centered), nor yet atJerusalem, worship the Father" (John4: 21 ). God rejected Jerusalem after 69A.D. He withdrew His Name from it.It is at the second coming of JesusChrist that "the Lord ... shall chooseJerusalem again" (Zech. 2: 12) .


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August, 1959What About Other Festivals?

Nowhere in Scripture do we find thatall the natrons in the Mi llennium willbe required to attend the other twomajor rcstivals at Jerusalem. Only theFeast of Tabernacles is mentioned!i nat means that God would place His

Name in more than one place tor ther'assover season and Pentecost.Nonce the Bibie proot in Exodus20: L4, last part or verse, wnere the bo dot Israel IS personally quoted: "In allplaces wnere I record J\ily Name I WIllcome unto thee and I wrll bless thee."How clear! Tnree times a year wemust meet with rne brethren wnereverdesignated, but only once a year-accoramg to the example of Scnptureare ALL commanded to meet togetner

rn ONE place tor the Feast of 'Laber-nacles!Here's why!In the Mi ll enn ium the earth wi ll become one world, UNITED BY EFFICIENTMEANS OF TRAVEL, governed by oneKmgdom-the Kmgdom of God. Sincethe Feasr of Tabernacles is a memorialof God's Plan for the Millennium, weare all to come together in one place tocelebrate it! That IS a perfect type!God permits the other festivals to beheld in more than one locality at thesame time because rhe spring festivalspicture God's Plan FOR THIS PRESENTAGE-THIS DIVIDED WORLD OF MAN.Our earth is now a very divided earth,and the Passover and Days uf Unleavened Bread and Pentecost are memorialsof God's Plan noto being carried out onthis divided earth!Notice the proof of this is in theBible. When Jeroboam plotted to separate the House of Israel trom the Houseof Judah through religion, the only timehe altered was tha t of the Feast of Tab

ernacles-because that was the onlytime at which ALL ISRAEL and Judahhad been assembling at Jerusalem. Hadthe people been assembling in only oneplace for all the festivals, Jeroboamwould have changed them all. But hedidn't do that, Here is what he did do:"And Jeroboam ordained a feast in theeighth month, on the fifteenth day ofthe month, like unto the feast that is inJudah" ( l Kings 12:32).The history of the Old TestamentChurch proves this very fact. Josephus,who recorded the practice of the Jewishpeople in Palest ine, says of the Feast ofTabernacles that it "was kept by theHebrews as a most holy ,mel MOSTEMINENT feast" (Antiquities, bk. VIII,ch, iv, 1), In another place he states,according to the original Greek in whichhe wrote, that the Feast of Tabernacles"is the most observed festival amongus" i Antiquities, bk. XV, ch. iii, 3).

The GOOD NEWSNotice another testimony to the custom of the Old Testament Church:"According to the prescribed regulation," writes Hayyim Schauss in JewishFestioais, P: 172, "every male had tomake the journey to a great sanctuary atall three festivals. It was difficulr for theJewish peasant to leave his VIllage atPassover and Pentecost . . . He was able

to leave ONLY at the autumn festival"the Feast of Tabernacles-to keep it atJerusalem' Jewish Christians followedthis practice in apostolic days.Why Feast of Tabernacles in London?Since there is only LO be one place forthe Feast of Tabernacles in America,let's understand why we hold the Feaston our rnrracuiousiy acquired estate nearLondon, England, at the same rime wehold one near Gladewater, Texas.The answer is plain!There is an astounding Biblical reason why Jesus has led the Church to

sanction a Feast of Tabernacles nearLondon on an estate deeded in theName of God! Here is the Bible principle:When the ear th becomes one worldin the Mil lennium, then there will beonly one place in the World Tomorrowfor the Feast of Tabernacles-Jerusalem,the geographic and communicative center of th e coming age. BUT TODAY THEEARTH IS DIVIDED INTO SEVERAL GEO-GRAPHIC AND COMMUNICATIVE WORLD-AREAS! These may include North America, Europe, Australia, South Africa andSouth America. It is impossible for thevast majori ty of people to travel freely

from one of these areas-England, forexample-to another area-America,for example.Each one of these areas is a type of theWORLD TOMORROW! Therefore, in eacharea only one Feast of Tabernacles canbe held according to the plain exampleof Scripture.What wonderful types of the Millennium!In whatever geographic world-areayou brethren are located, there can beonly one Feast of Tabernacles. In America that one place is Gladewater. InNorthwest Europe, it is London.No place in Scripture can you findthe Feast of Tabernacles held in morethan one place in anyone geographicworld-area. But you can find numerousexamples of the other festivals beingheld in New Testament times in numerous secondary localities within anarea wherever the circumstances permitred,

New Testament ExamplesL\ ; l us notice the example of the earlyinspired New Testament Church.In New Testament times transporta-

Page 5rion was much slower than it is today.The eastern Mediterranean region, wherethe apostle Paul preached, was actuallydivided into several geographic andcommunicative areas. Paul was guidedby the Spirit of God to take specialjourneys-falsely called "missionaryjourneys"-to each of these separateareas. In a sense Me. Armstrong is doingthe same today by preaching to NorthAmerica, to Europe, to Australia, toSouth Africa, to India. Each une of theselarge regions today is as separate aswere the much smaller areas in whicheach of Paul's journeys took him.In New Testament times, Palestinewas one geographic and communicativeregion. All the people living there keptthe Feast of Tabernacles in [erusalenzuntil 69 A.D.So did Jesus, according to John 7 :2 ,and also John 5: 1, where the originalinspired Greek reads "the feast of theJews"-a phrase used to refer to theFestival of Tabernacles (see Ogg's TheChronology of the Public Minis try ofJesus, pp. 42-49).In addition, many wealthy Jews fromfar-away areas came to Jerusalem (Acts2: 9-11) as representatives from thosedistant geographic areas where thefeasts were also being held. This was acommon practice since the days of Ezraand Nehemiah. Similarly, we have fromtime to t ime members from abroad whowill meet with us in North America atGladewater,History records that uncircumcisedGentiles were not permitted by theJews in Palestine to come to Jerusalemto ohserve the festivals. When Paul wasseen in Jerusalem in 56 A.D. with oneGentile about the time of Pentecost, theJews nearly killed him (Acts 21:27-30).This means that converted Gentiles, uncircumcised in the flesh, and not livingin Palestine, would have been observingthe festivals elsewhere than in Jerusalem,as Jesus prophes ied they would (John4:21).

Paul 's Ministry Proves I tNotice the proof from Paul's life.Paul kep t the festivals of God ( I Cor.

5:8; 16:8; Acts 18:21; 20:16). Eventhe History of the True Church, byDugger and Dodd, admits that the original apostolic Church-the Nazarenes(Acts 24: 5) -kep t these days. Yet fornearly 14 years Paul "was unknown byface unto the churches of Judaea whichwere in Christ: bu t they had heard only,'That he which persecuted US in timespast now preacheth the faith whichonce he destroyed'" (GaL 1: 22-23).Paul was not keeping the feasts at [eru-salem or he certainly would have beenknown by face.Where was Paul observing the Fes-


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Page 6rivals durinB those years?"I came," he said, "into the regions ofSyria and Cilicia" (Gal. 1: 21). That iswhere they were! Paul and Barnabasspent many years preaching there before being sent on their journeys. Thecenter of the region of Cil icia and Syriawas Antioch. At Antioch "i t came topass, that a whole year they assembledthemselves with the Church, and taughtmuch people." Paul, then, would haveobserved the Feast of Tabernacles inAntioch because he was there a wholeyear! Read Acts 11:25-26.

Festivals Held in EuropeOn the second apostolic journey theapostle Paul went into Europe. He came

to Phi lippi in Macedonia-exactly 19years after the Holy Spiri t had come onthe day of Pentecost in 31 A.D. Andwhat do you suppose happened?"And we were in that city abidingcertain days"-there were so few Jewsin Philippi that there was no regularsynagogue, only a place of prayer. "Andon the Day of Weeks we wen t out ofthe city by a river side where we supposed there was a prayer place; andwe sat down, and spoke unto the womenwhich came together-c-so reads theoriginal Greek. How plain! Exactly 19years after th e gospel began to bepreached on Pentecost by the Church inAsia, it began to be preached in Europeon the Day of Pentecost-the Day ofWeeks, the Feast of Weeks.Paul then journeys in late summerto Corinth, in South Greece, in theprovince of Achaia. "He continued therea year and six months, teaching the wordof God among them" (Acts 18: 11 ) .That accounts for two more Feasts ofTabernacles, this time, it is indicated,spent in Corinth.Distances were so great in those daysthat it would have taken two weeks toa month JUSt to travel to Corinth fromAntioch. So, at the same t ime, convertsin the geographic area of Syria and Cilicia were probably observing the Feast ofTabernacles in Antioch in Syria. Jews inPalestine were observing it in Jerusalem,as always. Each of these cities was theone central location in a geographic.communicative area. We follow thesame example today!In the autumn of 52 A.D. Paul specifically mentions journeying to keep theFeast of Tabernacles with the JerusalemChurch (Acts 18:21-a verse which ispart of the inspired Greek New Testament) .The third journey took Paul into theprovince of Asia, which was subdividedinto Mysin, Lydia and Caria. The centrallocation of this region was Ephesus,where Paul preached for at least two

The GOOD NEWSyears and three months (Acts 19:8-10).The Feast of Tabernacles was probablykept here during this time.

Spring Festivals Held LocallyEarly in the year 56 AD., we find theFeast of Unleavened Bread held in thesecondary cities of Troas and Assos.Not ice it in Acts 20:4-/, 11,13-14:Luke and other min isters stayed inPhilippi, until "after the Days of Unleavened Bread." If there were no Daysof Unleavened Bread be ing observedamong those Gentile converts, then Lukecould not have written it was "after"those Jays! Here is proof that Gentiles

KEPT God's Festivals. Paul, at the samet ime, was accompanied by seven othersto Troas in Asia (verse 4) . So Paul wasobserving the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread in the city of Troas whilethe others accompanying Luke were observing it in Philippi in Macedonia. Immediately aft er the last day of Unleavened Bread-which, in 56 A.D., fell ona weekly Sabbath-Paul left for Assos,having left word at Troas for Luke tomeet him there. This would certainlyseem to indicate that the brethren inAssos were not there at Troas whenPaul was at Troas. They probably werekeeping the Feast of Unleavened Breadat Assos, some 30 miles distant by foot.

The keeping of t hc Fensr of Unlc.ivened Bread in so many minor townsclearly substantiates the pract ice of theChurch of God today when we hold thespring festival in numerous localChurches of God on which God hasplaced His Name.But nowhere in the Book of Acts canyou find one instance where the Feastof Tabernacles was ever held in morethan one place in each communicat ivegeographic area in which Paul preached.

Jesus' Own ExampleJesus is our example. We know tha tHe observed the Feast of Tabernacles inJerusalem, the headquarters of theChurch in Palestine. But did He everohserve the spr ing [esr ivals in any cityother than Jerusalem?He did!Notice what the Scripture says. Jesusbegan to preach the gospel at Nazareth.He read from the book of Isaiah whereit is wri tten: "The Spirit of the Lord is

upon Me, because He hath anointed Meto preach the gospel to the poor ..."(Luke 4: 17). Consider the fact that upuntil this time Christ was merely callingdisciples and teaching them in private.When Nicodemus acknowledged thatJesus was "a teacher come from God"'Oohn 3:2), Jesus now had the tacitapproval of a Sanhedr in representativeto publicly preach. Then Jesus goes toNazareth in Gal ilee to begin preaching.

August, 1959And when did He start preaching publicly in the synagogues?"And He came to Nazareth, where

He had been brought up: and, as Hiscustom was, He went into the synagogueon the Day of Weeks, and stood up forto read" (Luke 4:16). Here again theoriginal Greek has been misunderstood!Jesus began preaching, not merely ona sabbath, but on a particular sabbaththe annual Feast of Weeks or Pentecost!It was His custom to observe thatFeast in Nazareth. You will never findJesus in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost. He was setting us an examplethat the spring festivals are not requiredto be held in only one place!

It was often the practice of the Jewsliving in Galilee to attend services onthe spring festivals in Nazareth or otherGalilaean cities. (See The Life andTimes of Jesus the Messiah, by Edersheirn.) Because rhe disciples had oftenbeen accustomed to keep Pentecost inGalilee rather than Jerusalem-for theywere Galilaeans-Jesus had to commandrhern in 31 A.D. to remain in Jerusalemtill Pentecost. God purposed to givethem His Holy Spirit at the Headquar te rs Church in Jerusa lem as a witness to all the Jews and the world.

There is s trong evidence that Jesusalso once observed the Feast of Unlcavcnccl Bread in Galilee. Turn toMatthew 12:1-9. On a weekly sabbath"at that season" the Pharisees wronglyaccused Jesus of breaking the sabbath.This event appears to have occurred inGalilee, according to the account inMark 3:7, where Jesus withdraws nearby to the Sea of Galilee.But notice what the original inspiredGreek, written by Luke, calls tha t sabbath: "And it came to pass on a secondhigh sabbath that He was going throughthe cornfields" (Luke 6: 1) .If you look in some Bibles you willsee that the translators have awkwardlyrendered the Greek words "second sabbath after the first." Actually, the Greekexpression means tha t the weekly sab

bath that year was also the second highday, an annual sabbath-a day of firstrank. And in that very year-29 AD . -the Sacred Calendar proves that the second Holy Day in the days of UnleavenedBread fell on a weekly sabbath!So Jesus was keeping the Days ofUnleavened Bread in all probabi li ty inGalilee that year!-not in Jerusalem,the place where the Feast of Tabernacleswas always held in Palestine.Ycs, there is ample testimony that theChurch of God today hal' jesus livingin her. Jesus is leading His Church to

Jay as He led His Church in apostolicJays. GOD has cbosen Gladewater as theplace in America, just as He has chosenLondon as the place in Europe!


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The Fear of theUnpardonable SinHere is an intriguing article by Mr. GarnerTed Armstrong's Administrative Assistant

by Albert J. Portune

THE MOST destructive and terrifyingthought that can enter a Christian'smind is the thought tha t he hasbeen completely Cut off from God byhaving committed the unpardonable sin.Think of it for a moment ! How wouldit feel, after hav ing known the depthsof God's wisdom, after having seen the

glorious reward of eternal life in God' svery own family-as His Son-to liveforever fulfilling His purpose throughoutthe endless reaches of the universethrough joy and wisdom and servicehaving been glor if ied like Jesus Chris tand made like Him-shining as the sunin its full s trength (Rev. 2: 16), andthen after having known all these thingsto realize yOIl h ~ c l rOST IT ALL throughthe commission of the unpardonablesin!

Cu t Off from God fOREVERThink of what it would be like to becut of! from God forever. Sin SEPA-

RATES US FROM GOD (Isa. 59:1-2).The unpa rdonable sin cuts us off fromGod forever. Cut off from God, Hewould never hear your voice again inprayer. No matter how long or howhard you prayed or cried out with tears,He would NEVER HEAR YOUAGAIN!The fear of having committed theunpardonable sin is very real. It is a fearthat many of God's people have had. Itis one of the most potent weapons ofSatan the Devil , to make us believe weno longer have access to God-that wehave been cut off forever.Fear of this kind can utterly destroyus, can throw us into such a fit of despairwe no longer want to live. To a trueChris tian , there is no life but service toGod, and if one feels he has lost hisconnection with God, then there isnothing else left to live for. In this f rameof mind, Sa tan can easily overpower usand destroy us, which is his goal.In order to be sure we do not fallinto this destructive trap, we need tofully understand wha t the unpardonablesin is. We need to look into the Biblethe word of God-for the answer.

What Is the Unpardonable Sin?There is only one "unpardonable sin"!Let's notice what it is. Jesus Chris t saidin Mark 3:28, "Verily I say unto you,all sins shall be forgiven unto the sonsof men, and blasphemies wherewithsoever they shall blaspheme: bu t he thatshall b laspheme against the Holy Spiri t

hath never forgiveness, bu t is in dangerof eternal damnation."The one sin man can commit t hat isunpardonable is blasphemy against theHoly Spiri t; all other sins, when re-pented of, can be forgiven-but notblasphemy against the Holy Spirit.What does blasphemy against theHoly Spirit mean? How is it done?In Matthew 12: 22, we pick up thestory of the same incident mentioned inMark 3:28. A man was brought to Christ.This man was possessed by a demon thatmade him both blind and dumb. Christ ,by the power of the Holy Spirit, rebuked

the demon, releasing the man f rom hisbondage. Immediately all the peoplethat were there said, "Is not this theson of David?" (verse 23). They meant,was not this the promisecl Messiah whowould be the Son of David? (Isa.11: 10). They were convinced Christ wasthe Messiah and had done this miracleby the power of the Holy Spi ri t in Him.But notice what the Pharisees said

when they heard of it, verse 24, "Thisfellow does not cast out demons, but byBeelzebub, the prince of demons" (inother words-Satan). These Phariseesdid not attribute this wonderful miracleto the Holy Spirit, bu t to Satan-theyaccused Chris t Himself of having ademon. They called the precious HolySpirit of God a dirty, foul spirit ofSatan. They BLASPHEMED against theHoly Spirit. These same Jews latercrucified their very own Savior, placard-ing ancl nailing to a stake-in openshame-the Son of God who had cometo redeem them.Now, here is the primary key. Everyman who has committed the unpardon-able sin, has done exactly uIiat thoseJews did . . . but let's go on.

How We Can Blaspheme Againstthe Holy Spiri t

The apostle Paul, inspired by theHoly Spiri t tells us, "I f we sin wilfullyafter we have received the knowledgeof the truth, there remaineth no moresacrifice for sin" (Heb. 10:26). Wilfulsin is unpardonable! Wilful sin, then, isblasphemy against the Holy Spiri t.The sacrifice that was originally madefor sins was the life of Christ given forus (Rom. 5: 10). And, if we sin wil-fully, deliberately, on purpose, realizingin our minds we are knowingly commit-ting the very sins that pu t Jesus Christon the cross, we are consenting to Hiscrucifixion-in full knowledge He is theSon of David-the Son of God. We aregui lty as were those very Pharisees whoaccused and crucified Him. We agreewith the words by which they con-demned Him: "Away with Him-crucify Him. We have no king bu t Caesar"(John 19: 15). We are putting ou rSavior to open shame-blasphemingin contempt, the Holy Spirit that is inHim. That is why Paul concludes bysaying that for these there is nothingbut a cer tain fearful look ing for judg-ment and fiery indignation which shalldevour them (verse 27).

Is Sin Under TemptationUnpardonable?

Many times, as Christians, we fallshort of the perfect ion for which Chris twas our example. We weaken undertemptation and make wrong choices, dis-covering later-perhaps the next instant- tha t we have sinned against God. Isthis type of sin unpardonable?Notice in Rom. 5: 10 that our past

guilt is pardoned by the dea th of Chri stour Savior, but we SHALL be saved (inthe future) by His life. Christ is nowour High Priest , seated at God's r igh thand making intercession for us. Heknew we would s tumble and make mis-takes. But, when we realize we havecommitted a sin and repent of it, Heever lives to make intercession for usby His ONE sacrifice (Heb. 7: 25). By


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Page 8that sacrifice He gai lleJ access to GoJthe Father. The key to the forgivenessof our sins is our repentance.

Did Paul Sin?The apostle Paul fell short and sinned,as we also do. He realized the weaknessof human flesh. He states in Romans7:15, "For that which I do I allow nor:

for what I would that do I not: butwhat I hate, that do 1."Yes, even though Paul knew the rightway, he at times did the wrong thing.How many times do we-knowing deepwithin us that it is wrong, allow ourminds to deceive us, to persuade us itis right, only to discover later we havesinned against God.Did Paul commit the unpardonablesin? Certainly not! He sometimes yielded to the temptation of sin which iscommon to us all (ve rse 23). Most import an t is the attitttde of Pau!. Noticeverse 24, Paul REPENTS for this miserable weakness of the flesh: "0 wretchedman that I am! Who shall del iver mefrom the body of this death:' He thenthanks God that Jesus Christ will deliver him (verse 24).When Is I t Impossible to Repent?The key to understanding the commission of the unpardonable sin is inPaul's attitude. His att itude was one ofrepentance. In Hebrews 6: 4-6 he tellsus that those who have fallen away fromthe truth of God-who have wilfullys inned and rejec ted the truth of God,

Church GrowthtContinued from page 2)

have heard and s tart attending the localchurch later.During this, the third week of thecampaign, the nightly at tendance hasaveraged about 90 people so far. Ofcourse, the attendance is up each weekend. But we are thankful that this number of people are zealous enough toattend these meetings every night-sixnights a week!Naturally, as we get into the stronger"meat" of God's truth, many peoplewill fall by the wayside. But indicationsare that we will still be able to morethan double the size of this local church-and to put new "spark" and life rnthe enti re membership in this area!

The Evangelistic TeamI am personally heading this evangelistic campaign, and am receivingwonderful assistance from a cornpercnrevangelistic "ream.' Mr. Al Portune hasbeen serving as song-leader, soloist andcounselor. You will remember that he

The GOOD NEWSthrough the Holy Spirit-cannot re-pent. "For it is IMPO;)SlBLE for thosewho were . . . made partakers of the HolySpirit . . . if they shall fall away torenew them again unto repentance."They cannot repent-their whole att it ude has changed. Instead of being repentant and subject to the Holy Spiritof God, they now rejec t truth and abhorthe Spirit of truth. They now crucifyChrist-the Son of God-within themselves. Within their minds they take theSon of God, through whom alone theyhave forgiveness, and nail Him onceagain to a stake, holdi ng His Holy lifeup to open shame. Read it yourselves inverse 6: "See ing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and putHim to open shame."Those who have commi tted the unpardonable sin have no Redeemer! Theyhave crucif ied their Redeemer and Savior, blaspheming againsr the Holy Spiritby.which they had access to God.

The ProofAny Chris tian who has found himselfguilty of sin and who has thought hehas committed the unpardonable sin hassuffered terrible mental anguish. For hehas real ized what a horrible fate it wouldbe to be cut off f rom God forever. Hesees himself in utter misery and sorrow.Por those of yuu who have had thisfear, be reassured that those who havereally committed the unpardonable sincan never feel this way. For they wantnothing to do wit h God or His works.

assisted Mr. Ted Armstrong in theSpringfield campaign last year. Mr. Portune has also been bringing powerfulsermons in the local churches in thisarea, and you brethren will be heari ngmuch more from him in the future!Mr. Hal Bai rd, formerly a memberof the Corpus Chri sti Church and nowan "older" student at Ambassador College, is also here to assist in counsel ingwith peopl e and visiting prospectivechurch members during the day. Hehas also been bringing very inspiringmessages in the local Sabba th services,and shows promise of becoming a powerful servant of Jesus Christ in Hiswork. Mr. Baird is an example of alocal church member who has pu t God'sKingdom and His work FIRST in everyway, and is now prepa ring to servedirectly in rhe Wark of God!Helping provide the inspiring musicfur the campaign meetings are Miss

Ruth Myrick and my sister, MissKathryn Meredith. Miss Myrick wil l beremembered by many of you as theyoung lady on the piano at the Feastof Tabernacles last fall. She is unusuallytalented and has been a wonderful help

August, 1959They have attributed God's works toSatan-have blasphemed and cried outagainst the Holy Spirit-and have crucified the Son of God within themselves.They cannot repent! In their eyes theyhave nothing to repent of.A truly begot ten Chrrst ian, realizinghis sin, will cry out in prayer and tears-repenting of his transgression. In thisattitude of repentance and tear at havingdisobeyed God, we have absolute reassurance we have not committed the unpardonable sin. It is our proof!We should fear to commit the unpardonable sin. We should guard againstbecoming antagonis tic toward the ministers whom God has chosen-lettingourselves fall away l it tl e by l it tle fromprayer, Bible study and service to God lest one day we light ly esteem the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and His truth andblaspheme against the Holy Spir it . Ourlife musr be constantly s tr iv ing for perfection. We must continue to overcomeand grow in the grace and knowledgeof our Lord and Savior [esus Christ.Remember that God "is a God of love( I John 4: 8) . He is longsuffering towa rd us, desiring us to repent daily ofour mistakes (I I Pet. 3:9). Do not fallprey to unreasonable fear of havingcommitted the unpardonable sin. If youare sorry and have repented, look up to[es: Christ )'(}/!r Surior and realize Hisword is truth (John 17: 17). For Hesaid "Fear not, l it tl e flock, for it is yourFather's good pleasure to g ive you thekingdom (Luke 12: 32 ) .

in accompanying the hymn singing andsolo work here in the n ight ly meetings.My sister, Kathryn, is an accomplishedviolinist and has majored in music at theUnivers ity of Kansas, receiving her degree there. She plays beautifully andfeelingly on the violin, and her soloshave been very inspi ring and upliftingto those attending the campaign meetings.Tempora ri ly ac ti ng as part of the"team," our local minister in San Antonio, Mr. Allen Manteufel, has been anable and zealous help in every way incounseling with the people and helpingarrange the halls for these meetings andmany other things. He is the man whowill have to "follow through" after thesemeetings arc over. So I ask all of youbrethren to pray that these meetings willbring forth real "fruit" in this localchurch, and that Mr. Manteufel wi ll beable to build this church up continual lyfrom now on!Because of the campaign, new interest,new members and new LIFE will be feltin this area! Let us rejoice that this hasbeen made possible, and keep praying(Please continee on page 12)


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What Is the"LAODICEAN CHURCH"?

JVhen should we expect the Laodicean condition in the Church ofGod? Who are to be a part of it?by L. Leroy NeffSVERAL church denominations claimthat they are now in the Laodiceanera-that the many churches of

THIS WORLD are a part of that Churchdescribed in Revelation 3:14-22.A few claim that we, the Church ofGod, are the Laodicean Church because,as one person has stated, we do not havethe gift of "unknown tongues!"Others say the Laodicean era of theChurch will occur in the Millennium.But notice! During the Millennium,God will usc the Kingdom of God asHis instrument on this earrh, and notmerely a fleshly Church. Therefore, theLaodicean era of the Church cannot bedur ing the one thousand year period!The seven Church ages of Revelation2 and 3 lead up to the coming of Christ.The Millennium follows the ages ofthese seven Churches.We must expect this period beforethe soon return of Jesus Christ. Thetime is short! The Laodicean era iseither here now, or it must come quickly and last bu t a short time!God's Church Divided?Is It possible for two entirely separate works, or two separate organizations of God's Church to exist at thesame time as Jesus' instrument inpreaching to the world? Was the NewTestament Church in Paul's time tWOseparate organizations? No, the Churchwas not split! The Church was one. Goddoes not have two organizat ions carry-ing out His work of preaching the gos-pel to the world at one time. TheChurch is not a divided work competingwith itself.Christ's own words were, "And now

I am 110 more in the world, but theseare in the world, and I come to thee.Holy Father, keep through thine ownname"-The Church of God-"thosewhom thou hast given me, that they maybe one, as we arc" (John 17-11). Notice,"that they may be one"-not divided,not split in two organizations. I f theChurch of Laodicea and the Church ofPhiladelphia are separate bodiesboth doing the same work of God atthe same time, this prayer of Jesus wasin vain!What happens to members of God's

Church if they commit apostacy, or ifsome sp li t off as another group? Theywould no longer be a part of the Churchof God!There are several examples of groupswho have spli t themselves off from thetrue vine. We have the two recent examples of the "Seventh Day Baptists;'who have taken themselves out of thename of the Church of God, and the"Seventh Day Adventists" who havedone the same. They do not even callthemselves the "Church of God" anymore-because they are not God'sChurch!But what about the "Sardis Era" ofGod's Church? Are they not exist ing atthe same time as the "Philadelphia Era"of the Church? Yes, but notice theircondition in Revelation 3: 1. "And untothe angel of th e Church in Sardis write:These things saith he that hath theseven spirits of God, and the seven stars;I know thy works, that thou hast a namethat thou livest, AND ART UEAD!" Theyhave the name of the Church of God,and yet they are dead. Today the smalldivided remnants of that Church arespiritually dead. They are not nowGod's ins trument for carrying out Hiswork. They are just a few scattered people-not a living organization carryingon God's work! Since 1934, at the beginning of the Philadelphia Era, thiswork has taken the place of the deadSardis Church. Since that time the Sardis Church has not been doing the workof spreading the gospel to the world asa witness!Let us take another example. I f a par tof the Church today would go off intoerror and establish its own Church, thatbody would be rejecting the authoritythat God has set in the Church (Eph.4: 11). An example of such rejection isfound in T Samuel 8 :7 . The Church ofLaodicea would not be such a split fromthe Philade lphia Church! Such a splitwould no longer be a part of the Churchof God! All these scriptures show usthat the Church of God is not a dividedor a split Church!

Laodicea Lacks ZealLet's examine some of the facts aboutthe "Church of Laodicea." Read Revela-

t ion 3:14-22. Not ice verse 15. "I knowthy works, that thou are neither coldnor hot." Here is the first indicationabout this Church-they are lukewarm!Verse 19 tells them to "be zealous." Because they do not have zeal, Chr ist will"spue them out of His mouth."It claims that it is spiritually rich andincreased with goods, and has need ofnothing. We can apply this to physicalthings; however, the Bible makes itplain that the condition is primarilyspiritual! This Church believes it hasknowledge, understand iug, spiritualgoods, righteousness, and many otherattributes to commend it to God. Insteadof that, Christ says, "You are wretchedand miserable and poor, and blind, andnaked!"This Church is then told: "Buy of megold tried in the fire, tha t thou mayestbe rich." Notice that this particularChurch should buy gold tried in the fire.

What does it mean to have "gold triedin the firer" Turn first to Malachi 3:2-3."But who may abide the day of his coming? And who shall stand when heappeareth? For he is like ,1 refiner's fireand like fuller's soap; and he shall sitas a refiner and purifier of silver, thatthey may offer unto the Lord an of feringin righteousness." These people are tobe tried in the fire, pur ified and purged.They are punished, and tried in persecution and tribulation!Next turn to Zechariah 13:7. "Awake,o sword, against my shepherd, andagainst the man that is my fellow, sairhthe Lord of hosts: smite the sbepberd,and the sheep shall be scattered: and Iwill turn mine hand upon the littleones." In Matthew 26:31 , we find tha tthis refers specifically to Jesus Christ.But prophecies are often dual in meaning. This verse can also refer to a leaderin the Church of Laodicea. He-theshepherd-is killed as a result of thepersecution against the Church ofLaodicea. The sheep, or the remnant ofthat Church (Rev. 12: 17), are to bescattered through war.

When does this happen? Jus t beforethe coming of Jesus Christ! At the timethat shepherd is going to be killed andthe sheep scattered, the third part ofthe nat ion Israel (Ezek. 5:12) is going


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Page 10to be brought through the fire--and theChurch of Laodicea will have to gothrough it! A time is coming when whatis left of that Church is going to bescattered, persecuted and hunted, killedby the "fire" of men. After this severetrial, they will zealously call upon Godand He will hear them, and say "It ismy people."The "Laodiceans" are also told to"get white raiment," typical of righteousness and purity. That is obtainedby overcoming the severe trials andtests that they will face (Rev. 3:5).These people cannot see their spiritual wretchedness. They are told toanoint their eyes with eyesalve so thatthey may see. Are some of you in thissame condition, where you cannot seeyourselves as you should? Are youzealous, or are you like people who areneither cold nor hot? We must havethis zeal, or we may find ourselves inthe Church of Laodicea! "Let him that

hath an ear hear what the Spirit saithunto the Churches."The next thing commanded theLaodicean Era is to repent (verse 19).God's people need a repentant a tt itudeat all times. Since these people are toldto repent, they are not in such a repentant atti tude! And yet, they are theChurch of God! They keep God's com

ruaudrueuts (Rev. 12 ; 17), keep theSabbath, obey God's laws, and yet theyhave no zeal and they are not fuHy repentant! They do not change when theyreceive correction. Does this describeany of us? Remember individuals andlocal congregations may at any time belike any of these seven Churches. Theyall existed locally in the apostolic age!

Parable o f Ten VirginsRead the parable of the ten virgins(Mat. 25: 1-13) . No tice the condi tionof those who are begotten into the"Kingdom of heaven" at that time (Mat.

25:1-2). Observe the similar ities between the "Church of Laodicea" and theten virgins who "all slumbered andslept" (verse 5) .All ten, though lacking in zeal andslumbering, are virgins and have notdefiled themselves with the harlot ofRome or her daughters (Rev. 14:4).Five, however, were wise enough torepent in time and be imbued with theSpirit of God. But there are certainthings wrong with the other five ofthem. The five foolish took no extraoil with them. There was no repentance-no change. Their lamps were g o i n ~out. (The King James Version inaccurately reads "gone out." See the Greektext or any modern rranslarion.) Oil istypical of the Holy Spirit of God andthey did not have enough of this Spirit.They did not realize this most im-

The GOOD NEWSportant need until the cry went forthto go out to meet the bridegroom!

The foolish virgins then went to buyoil. But it was too late! The door wasdosed for them. They were not admittedinto the marriage,The lesson here is that the remnantChurch must always watch, for it doesnot know the day nor the hour that

Christ will return!The Church of PhiladelphiaCompared with Laodicea

Let's compare this parable and theChurch of Laodicea with the Church ofPhiladelphia. We have proved throughhistory and through God's Word thatthis work, the Rad io Church of God, isthe "Philadelphia Era" of the Church.Notice now the differences. Revelation 3:7-13: "And to the angel of theChurch in Philadelphia write; thesethings sai th he that is holy, he that istrue, he t hat hath the key of David,

he that openetb, and no man shutteth;and shutteth and no man openeth." Thegreat door that God has opened to thiswork is the facility to go into all theworld and preach the gospel; the doorof radio, the door of the printing press,plus many other such doors. God hasset before us an open door and noman can shut it. God can shut it, andHe will when the work is finished andthe Philadelphia Church goes to a placeof safety."I know thy works: Behold, I haveset before thee an open door, and noman can shut it: for thou hast a littlestrength, and hast kept my word, andhast nor denied my name" (verse 8).Notice that this Church has works. Ithas works of zeal and of repentance.This Church has only a little strength.Bur, by contrast, the Church of Laodicea believes that it is increased withgoods and has a great deal of strength.Philadelphia has little strength to dothis great work that God has given itto do. God has opened the door, andyet look how insignificant , how weak,how lit tle s trength we as a Church haveto do tha t work. How much we lack inevery way, and yet God has opened thedoor and has given us certain vital,supernatural, spiritual gifts. Very oftenwe lack enough money to pay the radiobills and other expenses. Weare fewin number, while many other eras ofthe Church of God numbered in thehundreds of thousands. We indeed havelittle strength. And yet, look at the greatpower that God has placed before us.Let's br ing it down to the individuallevel even though it is referring primarily to the Church as a whole. Mostof us as individuals realize how littlestrength we really have, how we lackin some of the spiritual gifts. God has

August, 1959given the Church a good measure ofwisdom and of knowledge and faith.He has given us many other gifts butwe still lack in many things, but wealso realize it. Our Church has no t denied the name of God.This Church is going to be protectedfrom the hour of temptation, or of trialand tribulation which will come upon allthe world (Rev. 3: 16). But the Churchof Laodicea must go through severetribulation. The Church of Laodicea isto be lukewarm, lacking in zeal andrepentance. They were lacking in God'sSpirit. Because of this, Chris t said thatHe would spue them our-they wouldno longer have His protection. Theythought they were rich, just as thefoolish virgins, in the parable, thoughtthey had plenty of oil. Af ter it was toolate, they learned that their supply ofoil was gone!There is a door in each case, closed!Christ says that He knocks at the doorof the Laodiceans. The foolish virginsamong them left the door closed!The Philadelphians will be taken toa place of safety for three and one halfyears (Rev. 12: 14) . And yet, there isa remnant of the Church which remainsand who will not be in that place ofsafety (Rev. 12: 17) . This remnantwhich remains is a part of the Churchof God, and keeps the commandmentsof God. It is the Church of Laodiceawho had no vital part in the work ofGod today even though they live todayand are a part of that generation whichwill see Christ return.Jesus Christ instructs all of us towatch and pray always that we may beaccounted worthy to escape all thethings that are coming upon this world(Luke 21: 36). Some will not be accounted worthy to escape these things.Those of the Church of Laodicea willfind that they are not worthy to escape.The door of safety will be shut forthem. To those who still will not overcome, it will be closed forever! Others,who become faithful and overcome, notloving their lives unto death, may yetgain eternal life as the five wise virginsdo.

Warnings fo r TodayGod's people have been warned timeafter time from the pulpit and in thepages of the PLAIN TRUTH and The

GOOD NEWS tha t they mus t cont inuein a repentant at ti tude. Yet some stilllack zeal, though exhorted to be zealous.Some arc spiritually asleep, and havebeen exhorted to wake up. Anyone ofyou can now be in the spiritual condition of Laodicea even though that ageof the Church is yet to arise.Not ice I Corinthians 3:11-15. Here(Please continue on page 12)


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God's C h u r ~ ~ o , , ! s WatchingTHE GRAND smash climax of sixthousand years of human experience is upon us! World newsevents are rapidly f it ting together intothe breath- taking and ominous picturethat God foretold thousands of yearsago!

We in God's Church have the opportunity of being right on the scene-o n the inside as it were-as theseworld-shaking events take place,Each week tens of thousands of newsitems appear 111 the newspapers andperiodicals around the world, In thisblazing array of headlines, by-lines andfeature articles, wh ieh comprize thepanorama of world news, can be readthe inexorable fulfillment of the prophecies of the Bible,

Yet to most of the world these reallyBIG news stories, depicting the "mainline" events that herald this world'send, go unnot iced in the rou tine jumbleand scramble of activities that fill ourera. Without the knowledge of God'struth and the understanding of theprophecies of the Bible, there is nopat te rn nor rhyme nor reason in thenews today. Each individual takes orleaves what he likes-according to hisOWN little world-and the rest is somuch paper and printers' ink,

News Gathering Department atAmbassador College

At God's Headquarters Church inPasadena, Cal ifornia, the nerve centerof God's work on earth, trained personnel of the News Gathering Department spend hour after hour every daysif ting, sor ting, comparing, catalogingand filing thousands of news reportsfrom all over the world.

Nowhere on earth is there anothersuch department! There are many, manynews agencies and news gathering facilities around the earth, but there isnot another one that really KNOWSWHAT TO LOOK FOR! Without God'sHoly Spi ri t to guide them to an understanding of what lies ahead, they, too,would be blind to the significance ofthe very news stories they process,

The news gathering department ofthe Vatican at Rome is perhaps thelargest and best equipped on the faceof the earth. Yet with all their superiorequipment, thousands of files andhundreds of employees, they are notable to really discern the signs of thetimes.

What a thri ll to realize we in God 'sChurch have the opportunity of knowing what really is important in thenews. What a bless ing to be able to

see these things happening and to KNOWwha t they mean.An Important Commission

How many of us realize, however,how serious our responsibility is of"watching" and understanding the newsas it develops?

God has opened the prophecies of theclimact ic t imes ahead to OUR understanding. He has shown us-step bystep-with pin-point accuracy, theevents that would lead up to the endof this age and the second coming ofJesus Christ. Not ice what Jesus Christsaid, a fter reviewing to the discipleswhat was ahead:"Now learn a parable of the figtree: When his branch is yet tender,and putteth for th leaves, ye know thatsummer is nigh: So likewise when ye

shall see ALL THESE THINGS, know thatit [the end of the age] is near, evenat the doors," Again: "Watch ye therefore and pray always that you may beaccounted worthy to escape all theset h i n g ~ . " (Man. 24:32-33 and Luke21:36.)For our OWN safety-that we mightbe praying and staying close to God Jesus warned us to be watching anddiscerning the signs of the times,

Our ResponsibilityNow do you begin to see the scopeof our responsibility? With the under

standing of the events set down byEzekiel and amplified by Chris t and theProphets. WE must read in the day-byday unfolding of the news the signsof the times. We must ,rhoutit to Israeland the world. Jesus Christ said wewould do this work! "And this gospelof the Kingdom shall be preached inall the world for a ioiiness [warning] andthen shall the end come (Matt. 24:14).

The News Gathering and ReportingDepartment at Ambassador College isgrowing into one of the major departments in God's work. It has the mostmodern and efficient memory-o-maticsystem of recording and filing information. This filing system is constantlybeing revised and improved to fit thechanging pattern of world events. Dailyinto these files goes the vital informationgleaned from many sources. Many ofthe astounding- eye opening-articlesyou read in Th e PLAIN TRUTH magazine and the startling facts you hearon The W orld Tomorrow program aredrawn from these files.Behind the bizarre headlines thatsplash across the newspapers and newsmagazines are often the obscure articles

and news trends that are the real news,Somet imes the real news stories aboutto SHAKE THIS WORLD--stories that fitanother piece into the plan of God are found in small type on the insidepages. The development of botulinus-asubstance one-half pound of which couldwipe out the entire population of theearth-originally appeared as an obscure second or thi rd page item.How the News Department FunctionsKeeping pace with the growing newsdevelopments is the regular staff of the

News Gathering Department, Their jobis to srur'y and analyze the thousandsof items that arr ive weekly and to makethem available in condensed analysisform, These vital reports present thedeveloping panorama of news as seenthrough the eyes of prophecy,Assisting the regular staff are a groupof volunteer news readers. These "watchers" are selected f rom the alert s tuden tbody at Ambassador College. Each isassigned two to three of the leadingmagazines or periodicals that are received regularly at Ambassador CollegeLibrary, Carefully scanning and perusingthese publications, they extract the im

portant news items and channel themto the News Department.Other confidential news reporti ngservices and news letters from Washington, D.C., and other sources are subscribed to by the department to keepabreast of developments and trends.Suppl ementing this also, come reports from the Ministers of God'sChurches from the ir areas of the nat ionand the world, Ever on the watch, thesetrained and responsible men are cont inual ly sending valuable informationfor the files. Many valuable reports havebeen received f rom overseas from theheadquarters for the work in England,where they are much closer to what isdeveloping in Europe.

Your PartBy far the greatest volume of inforIllation, however, comes from membersand co-workers in God' s Church. Each

day-through the mail-come literallythousands of news clippings on everyconceivable subject and aspect of thenews.This valuable cross-section of thenews represents many hundreds of"watchers" who are having a part inthis vital "end-time" work. These unseenworkers are able to cover the manynewspapers and publications that thenews department has no access to. Thesethousands of c lippings add depth and


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Page 12scope to the department that would notbe possible otherwise.Here is where yOU can have an activepart in God's work.Perhaps many of you have wonderedwhich news clippings are of valuewhat kind of information is importantenough to send in. Our understandingof the prophecies of the Bible gives usthe answer. Your di ligent s tudy of theBible and your careful and alert attention to The World Tomorrow programand the articles in The PLAIN TRUTHmagazine will tell you what is im-portant. These news articles which showthe working our of God's plan herebelow-the fulfilling of prophecy-arethe important ones. You may have tosearch for them; they won't always beon the front page.You, as scattered members, can beparticularly helpful by contributing information that shows trends in yourlocal area-information we don't getfrom our local big-city newspapers andnational news magazines. It may seema small thing, but pu t together withother reports from other areas, it maybe a BIG story.In sending your clippings, in orderto increase their value and authority ,please always include the name anddate of the paper or magazine fromwhich you take your clippings. This isvery important! In using these newsitems, we must quote the source.Send your clippings to the regularaddress: Herbert W. Armstrong, Box111, Pasadena, California. I t would helpif you would pu t "News Department"on the outside of the envelope.The News Gathering Departmentwould like to thank those of you whohave been already faithfully helping usby sending your clippings.Without yourhelp we could not be nearly as effectiveas we have been.

Laodicea(Continued from page 10)we see those whose works are burnt up-ll 'ho themselves must be purified byfire to be saved "at that day." Surelyhere is a picture of the Laodiceancharacter!Let's be among those who realize thatthey have little s trength, and have notdenied the Name of Christ. They havekept His patience. They have kept HisWord. TIley are str iving hard, and areovercoming. Let's hold fast and maintain the identifying marks ... Churchof Philadelphia.Let's nor be among those whom Godwill have to separate from His livingChurch today.The Laodicean Church is not goingto be worthy to escape to a place of

The GOOD NEWSsafety. When it is too late, they willfind that the Church of Philadelphia hasgone to safety. Only two choices remainfor each person left. They will be tr iedby the fire of men, awl llIay lose theirlives in severe tortures; or if they recant ,they will lose their lives in the finalgehenna fire. In eit her case, they willbe tried in the fire. If they are tr ied bythe fire of men and still overcome, theywill be given eternal life. If they failthis, the final gehenna fire with everlasting destruction will be their doom.Judging from the parable of the tenvirgins, if you are found in the Churchof Laodicea, you probably don': know it.

You may think you are in the Churchthat will go to safety. When you findout it will be too late.Now is the time to prepare. Now isthe t ime to be zealous. Now is the timefor good works - the time to obt ain

more of the Holy Spiri t of God. Now isthe time to keep repentant, to changeour lives.Let's not be a part of the LaodiceanChurch!

Church Growth(Cont inued from page 8)for this church and all of God's localchurches that we may all overcome our

human problems and grow "unto themeasure of the stature of the fulnessof Christ."Pentecost Services

God's Feast of Pentecost fell on Monday, June 15th, this year. So it was alittle late for us to get this informat ionto the press in time for the July issueuf this magazine. But a truly bountifuland joyous Feast was observed in all ofthe local churches!As I am writing you from "campaignheadquarters" here in San Antonio , I donot have before me all of the attendancefigures of all of the various churchesbut will give you the information wedo have here.A large and inspiring feast day wasobserved at headquarters church inPasadena. Mr. Norman Smith was incharge of the festival, and brought themain messages during the three dayperiod. Attendance was well over 700,and everyone enjoyed a bount iful feastduring the noon recess on Pentecost onour own beautiful Ambassador Collegecampus. The attendance would probablyhave been many dozens more except forthe fact that scores of our students hadalready lef t for the summer vacation'Mr. Herman Hoeh and Mr. BenjaminRea took charge of the Pentecost services in Fresno and San Diego, respective-

August, 1959Iy. Well over a hundred people were inattendance at each festival, and a Biblestudy was held in Fresno in the Kearneypark after the morning service and noon"potluck" feast.Our minis ters in Oregon repor t t hatthere were 543 people present for thefeast in Portland-which included members from the churches in that area! Mr.

Raymond Cole brought the principalmessage on the need of the Holy Sprricin our lives.The churches in the Denver, Colorado,area observed a wonderful festival directed by Mr. Carlton Smith and Mr.Bryce Oark. They were assisted by Mr.

Robert Hoops and Mr. Bill McDowel l.On Pentecost, the attendance was 212adults plus many children!An inspi ring Pentecost festival wasobserved in the Chicago area under thedirection of Mr. Dean Blackwell. He wasably assisted by Mr. Dale Hampton andMr. Frank McCrady. Both these men areacting as assistant ministers in thatchurch area. Mr. Da le Hampton cameto Ambassador College as an oldermarried man and is now a senior inAmbassador College, graduat ing nextJune and p repa ring to go into God 'sservice full time. Mr. McCrady hasbeen a zealous member of the St. LouisChurch, and has already qualified himself to serve full time in ass isting Mr.Blackwell in the Chicago area.A wonderful feast was observed therewith both of these men bringing sermonettes, Mr. Blackwell bringing themain messages and an attendance ofover 575 individuals!The only other Pentecost report available at this time is one from our minister in the Philippine Islands. Mr.Pedro S. Ortiguero reports that an inspiring Pentecost service was held inSan Nicholas with approximately 35 inattendance. This is a wonderfttl s tar t inthese islands, and Mr. Ted Armstrong'sprojected tr ip there this fall should result in even more progress and the realbui ld ing up of God 's Church and Workin southeast Asia!Let ALL of us-local members andscattered brethren alike-pray for thelocal congregations Chr ist has raised

up everywhere! As you come beforeGod each day, remember His Church inthe Br itish Isles, in the Philippines, inAustralia, in South Africa, the Tlnirer]States and Canada, of course, and overall this earth!Together, as co-workers u'ith Christ,we have a globe-gi'ldling JO B to do!Let us REJOICE and give God thcmkJ

that He has blessed us so much thusfar-and that we have the t remendouspriiilege of be ing used together as Hisinstruments and performing this Divinemission in these last days!

Documents

Good News 1959 (Vol VIII No 08) Aug_w