Month: March 2020

Q4. True or False: Apostles are known for their heavenward gaze and contrite looks

-by Brod Andy and Brod Belo

We are of course kidding.  Apostles are known for their WORKS, not for their LOOKS.

We raised this issue because not a few ex-WCG members, even ministers, are known to have questioned the apostleship of Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong.  Until now there are websites dedicated mainly to repudiate his teachings.

WHO IS AN APOSTLE?

To start with, the word apostle, Greek apostolos, item 652 in Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance means, as defined in the same concordance, a Delegate, an Ambassador, he that is SENT. 

This definition is deficient because PROPHETS are also sent.  Moses was sent, yet he was referred to in the Bible as a prophet, not an apostle:

Exod 3:14 (KJV) And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shall you say unto the children of Israel, I AM had SENT me (Moses) unto you.

Deut 18:15 (KJV, Moses addressing the Israelites) The LORD your God will raise up unto you a Prophet from the midst of you, of your brethren, like unto ME (clearly, Moses was a prophet, not an apostle); unto him you shall hearken.

Spirit beings could also be SENT by God, as in the case of Gabriel, but they are neither prophets nor apostles.

Luke 1:26 (KJV) And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was SENT from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,

Thayer’s Concordance has a better definition of apostle:  it says an apostle is one who is sent forth WITH ORDERS.  In short, one cannot be an apostle WITHOUT orders.  It means the person who is sent has a Mission Order from God. 

Prophets, by comparison, simply means one who had spoken with God either in vision or in a dream.  God could send them on short errands.

Numb 12:6 (KJV, the LORD chastising Miriam and Aaron) And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, [I] the LORD will make myself known unto him in a VISION, [and] will speak unto him in a DREAM.

Another important thing is, there must be a receiving party, usually a nation, group of nations, or people residing in a particular territory, to receive him that is sent.  God cannot send someone to nowhere.

Here is an example of someone SENT by God to a certain people, and he was not an apostle, neither a prophet:

Isai 10:5 (KJV) O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their (in whose – ASV) hand is mine indignation. 6 I will SEND him against an hypocritical nation, and against the PEOPLE of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.

We will discuss later on the particular group of people to whom God would send apostles or ambassadors.

First, we would like to point out that, unlike prophets and other category of messengers, most apostles of God were taught and thoroughly prepared for a full-time job. 

CHRIST WAS HIMSELF AN APOSTLE

And he TRAINED for it.  Let’s see his training:

Luke 2:42 (KJV) And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not [of it].

Until now, male Jews are immersed in the study of the Scriptures starting at age thirteen but Christ started at 12.  This Jewish tradition starts with a ritual called “Bar Mitzvah”.

…46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors (of law), both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.

48 And when they saw him…his mother said unto him, Son, why have you thus dealt with us? behold, your father and I have sought you sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that you sought me? wist you not that I must be about my Father’s business?

There he was – “exercising his senses” IN PREPARATION FOR his apostleship.

Hebr 5:14 (KJV) But strong meat belongs to them that are of full age, [even] those who by reason of use have their senses EXERCISED to discern both good and evil. 

As a young man, Christ was also known to be a Hazzan whose task was to read scriptures at a Jewish synagogue during Sabbath days.  Reading and interpreting scriptures before an audience was, and still is, a good practice in public speaking:

Luke 4:16 (KJV) And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was (apparently he was doing this for quite some time), he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read (the Scriptures).

CHRIST’S MISSION ORDER

When his training was over at age 30, Christ revealed to the people his assignment from God the Father:

John 6:38 (KJV, Christ speaking) For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but (to do) the will of him (God the Father) that SENT me.

Christ was not sent to the whole world; he was sent only to a specific group of people:

Matt 15:24 (KJV) But he answered (the woman of Canaan) and said, I am not SENT (by God the Father) but unto the lost sheep of the House of Israel.

Clearly, Christ was sent by God the Father with a Mission Order.  He was therefore an APOSTLE of God to the House of Israel.  In so doing, God was abiding by his covenant with Abraham:

Gene 17:7 (KJV, (the LORD speaking to Abraham) And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your seed after you in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto you, and to your seed after you.

God the Father was not yet known to the descendants of Abraham, so he sent an Apostle in the person of Christ to introduce Him as their God.  Before Christ died, he gave a report of his accomplishments.  Here was what he said in part:

John 17:25 (KJV) O righteous Father, the world has not known you: but I have known you, and these (apostles) have known that you have sent me.

26 And I have DECLARED (or introduced)unto them your name, and will declare [it (to the world – presumably through the apostles]: that the love wherewith you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.

Christ fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy:

Isai 52:6 (KJV) Therefore my people shall know my name (through Christ and the apostles): therefore [they shall know] in that day that I [am] he that does speak: behold, [it is] I.

Paul confirmed Christ’s apostleship to the Hebrews:

Hebr 3:1 (KJV) Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus;

WORKS ARE PROOFS OR “WITNESS” OF CHRIST

When the Jews asked Christ for proof that God sent him, here was his reply:

John 10:23 (KJV) And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch. 24 Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long do you make us to DOUBT? If you be the Christ (sent by God), tell us plainly.

25 Jesus answered them, I told you, and you believed not: the WORKS that I do in my Father’s name, THEY BEAR WITNESS OF ME. …37 If I do not the WORKS of my Father, believe me not. 38 But if I do, though you believe not me, BELIEVE THE WORKS: that you may know, and believe, that the Father [is] in me, and I in him.

CHRIST’S WORK WAS GOD’S WORK

John 6:29 (KJV) Jesus answered (the Jews) and said unto them, This is the WORK OF GOD, that you believe on him whom he had SENT.

John 14:8 (KJV) Philip said unto him, Lord, show us the Father (which Christ could not do if he were not the Christ), and it suffices us. 9 Jesus said unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet have you not known me, Philip? he that had seen me had seen the Father; and how say you [then], Show us the Father? 10 Believe you not that I am inthe Father, and the Father inme? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but THE FATHER that dwells in me, HE DOES THE WORKS.

This is the most important part of his reply to Philip:

11 Believe me that I [am] inthe Father, and the Father in me: or else BELIEVE ME FOR THE VERY WORKS’ SAKE.

COULD ANY MAN HAVE DONE CHRIST’S WORKS?

Let’s hear what Nicodemus said about Christ’s works:

John 3:1 (KJV) There was a man of the Pharisees, named NICODEMUS, a ruler (in the synagogue) of the Jews: 2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that you are a TEACHER COME FROM GOD: for NO MAN CAN DO THESE MIRACLES THAT YOU DO, EXCEPT GOD BE WITH HIM.

The proof therefore that Christ was sent by God the Father was his WORKS which no man could do without God the Father’s involvement behind the scenes!

John the Baptist also asked for proofs that Christ was sent by God the Father.  Jesus gave him the same answer – his WORKS:

Matt 11:2 (KJV) Now when John (the Baptist) had heard in the prison the WORKS of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, 3 And said unto him, Are you he that should come, or do we look for another?

4 Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and show John AGAIN those things which you do hear and see: (namely:) 5 the blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them (which neither he nor any man could have done without God the Father supporting him behind the scenes.)

Clearly, based on Christ’s own line of reasoning, the proof that he was sent by God the Father was his WORKS.

CHRIST WAS REJECTED AS AN APOSTLE

John 1:11 (KJV) He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles, also claimed his WORKS were the signs or proofs of his apostleship.  Let’s see his Mission Order:

Acts 9:15 (KJV) But the Lord said unto (Ananias, a prophet), Go your way: for (Paul) is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:

Here was how Paul proved that he was an apostle:

2Cor 12:11 (KJV) …[I]n nothing am I behind the very chiefest apostles, though I be nothing. 12 Truly the SIGNS OF AN APOSTLE WERE WROUGHT among you in all patience, in signs, and wonders, and MIGHTY DEEDS (or WORKS!).

We will skip the exploits of the twelve apostles because there is a dearth of references on their works, not to mention the fact that most of them did not live long enough to have accomplished much. 

We will focus on the Apostle Paul whose works were well recorded in the Bible.

Like Christ and the other apostles, Paul was trained for the job.  His first teacher was Gamaliel, a doctor of the law:

Acts 22:3 (KJV, Paul speaking) I am verily a man [which am] a Jew, born in Tarsus, [a city] in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city (Jerusalem) at the feet of Gamaliel, [and] taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as you all are this day.

Acts 5:34 (KJV) Then stood there up one in the council, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, had in reputation among all the people, and commanded to put the apostles forth a little space;

Clearly, Christ had no need to teach Paul the basics because he was already learned in the law.  He could therefore be ordained at once.  However, Paul started as a Prophet because God spoke to him, see Acts 22:7-8.

Acts 13:1 (KJV) Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul (who became Paul).

Acts 13:9 (KJV) Then Saul, (who also [is called] Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him…,

PAUL WAS ORDAINED AND SENT

2 As they (prophets) ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy [Spirit] said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. 3 And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid [their] hands on them (i.e., ordained them), they sent [them] away.

Gala 1:15 (KJV, Paul describing his ordination) But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called [me] by his grace, 16 To reveal his Son in me, that I might PREACH him AMONG THE HEATHEN; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: 17 Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia (there was where presumably Christ trained him), and returned again unto Damascus.   

Among the things Christ taught him was the correct observance of the Passover, proof that he had contact with the resurrected Christ who was already a spirit being at that time:

1Cor 11:23 (KJV) For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the [same] night in which he was betrayed took bread…(he could not have learned this away from Christ because he had no contact with the apostles in Jerusalem!)

The children of Israel rejected Paul:

Acts 13:45 (KJV) But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spoke against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming. 46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing you put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.

Paul had to defend himself to his critics who doubted his apostleship:

1Cor 15:4 (KJV, Paul expounding the resurrection of Christ which occurred before Paul was ordained) And that (Christ) was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: 5 And that he was seen of Cephas (Peter), then of the twelve: 6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. 7 After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. 8 And last of all HE WAS SEEN OF ME ALSO, as of one born out of due time. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

2Cor 12:2 (KJV, Paul describing his experience) I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knows;) such an one CAUGHT UP TO THE THIRD HEAVEN. 3 And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knows;) 4 How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter. 5 Of such an one WILL I GLORY: yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities.

Paul therefore was the last of the apostles who were trained personally by Christ. 

Now, let’s see who would CONTINUE Christ’s end-time works – was it ALL the Apostles?

John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, HE (only one man) that believes on me, the WORKS that I do (which no man on his own could do) shall he do also; and GREATER [WORKS] than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

Our job, in this article, is to find that ONE MAN.

COULD ANY MAN HAVE DONE MR. ARMSTRONG’S WORKS?

We took the liberty of quoting here the pertinent texts on page 132 of the booklet Transformed by Truth, electronic edition, authored by Dr. Joseph Tkach, Jr

“When you hear the history of radio evangelism, you often hear of men such as Charles Fuller but almost never of Herbert W. Armstrong. Yet, an outsider who was not a committed evangelical Christian would ask, “Why are you leaving out one of the top radio and television ministries not only in the United States but the world?” In numbers and impact on his audience, Herbert Armstrong (and his son, Ted) had far greater influence than many other ministries.

In the same book, Dr. Tkach mentioned that WCG’s annual income was about US$ 200 million which is larger than the combined incomes of the two top evangelical ministries in the United States at that time, clearly indicating that God was blessing the efforts of Mr. Armstrong!

These were the WORKS which Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong did and which no other man could do or had ever done:

  • Editor-in-Chief of the Plain Truth Magazine of worldwide circulation in seven (7) languages (English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, and Norwegian), his instrument in preaching the gospel to “ALLTHE WORLD”.  His World Tomorrow broadcast was also one of the biggest buyers of radio and television airtime in the United States and in major western cities;
  • Chancellor of Ambassador College in three campuses where he trained scores of ministers;
  • World renowned educator;
  • Recipient of the degree of Doctor of Humanities Honoris Causa (conferred by the Angeles University Foundation, a prestigious private Roman Catholic university in Angeles City, Pampanga, the Philippines). 
  • Internationally recognized Ambassador for World Peace without Portfolio and awarded as such by no less than the King of Belgium;
  • Pastor General of the Worldwide Church of God with international membership around 150 THOUSAND and INNUMERABLE subscribers;

MR. ARMSTRONG WAS TRAINED

Before his ordination, Mr. Armstrong became successful in the advertizing business which trained him in good journalism and magazine lay-outing, experiences which proved invaluable later in his work as preacher. Here is what he said in his Autobiography, Vol. 1, pp. 477-478:

     “If there was anything I had never expected to become, it was a preacher or an evangelist. I have explained early in this autobiography how at age 18 I had put myself through a self-analysis with the book titled “Choosing a Vocation”. This self-conducted test indicated that I had an analytical mind, an intellectual curiosity, a desire to UNDERSTAND, and some natural aptitude for writing. The test pointed to the advertising profession. Those years of experience in advertising and news-gathering, editorial writing, and the writing of magazine articles, had PREPARED ME for the calling to God’s ministry.” (End of Quote)

MR. ARMSTRONG WAS ORDAINED AND SENT

Quoted below are the pertinent portions from Mr. Armstrong’s 1973 autobiography, Vol 1, pp. 365-366:

     “It was decided by the officers of the (Oregon) Conference that on the next all-day meeting I was to be ordained.

     “I shall never forget that moment of my ordination….All the brethren — as many as could get their hands through to my head — laid their hands on me — on my head, my shoulders, my chest and my back…

     “And let it be made plain here: I was ordained by, and under the authority of, the Oregon Conference of The Church of God (which became the pioneer of the Worldwide Church of God), separately incorporated; not by the Stanberry, Missouri, headquarters (which became the Seventh Day Adventists).” (End of quotes)

MR. ARMSTRONG REALIZED GOD WAS WITH HIM

Here were Mr. Armstrong’s own words, excerpted from his co-worker letter on May 28, 1971 describing the “new phase” of the Work, which lasted for 15 years, as printed in his autobiography:

“Dear Inner Family of Co-Workers:

“I am able, now, to disclose to you privately and confidentially the almost unbelievable manner in which giant doors have been opening before me. As you know, one after another, the doors have opened for personal meetings with presidents, kings, prime ministers — and many other high government officials, in many countries around the world.

“As I wrote you a month ago, all of a sudden this great Work has been catapulted onto a new and high plateau! It has been moved into a totally new phase.

“So many high-level personal conferences COULD NOT HAVE OPENED to one in private life, in so short a time, by mere happenstance. I could not have planned them and brought them about if I had tried! As I now disclose these astonishing circumstances, I think you will see the PROVIDENTIAL GUIDING HAND (of God) MANEUVERING THEM!

Incidentally, Mr. Armstrong had a claim that what he did was the Elijah work.  Let’s read more from his book Mystery of the Ages, starting from p. 290:

     “…It is revealed in Malachi 3:1-5 and 4:5-6 that God would raise up one in the power and spirit of Elijah, shortly prior to the Second Coming of Christ. In Matthew 17:11 Jesus said, even after John the Baptist had completed his mission, that this prophesied Elijah “truly shall first come, and restore all things.” Although it is plainly revealed that John the Baptist had come in the power and spirit of Elijah, he did not restore anything. The human leader to be raised up somewhat shortly prior to Christ’s Second Coming was to prepare the way — prepare the Church — for Christ’s coming, and RESTORE the truth that had been lost through the preceding eras of the Church…

     “These prophecies have now definitely been fulfilled. The true GOSPEL has been RESTORED and has now gone in power into every nation on the face of the earth.” (End of quotes)

The word “RESTORE” defined:

The word ‘RESTORE,’ Gr. apokathistemi, item 600 in Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, means to RECONSTITUTE in health, home and organization. 

Some brethren and ministers refuse to recognize, even deride, Mr. Armstrong’s restoration work saying ‘all things’ refer to the ENTIRETY of God’s creation, which Mr. Armstrong had no power to restore.  But by definition, his restoration is limited to only THREE (3) things: HEALTH (individual), HOME (family, both human and divine) and ORGANIZATION (church and society), NOT to the entire creation.

Who can be restored in health, home and organization?  The members of the Church of God, of course! How? By teaching them.  Mr. Armstrong had taught the Church God’s laws of health, both physical and mental – which focused on the individual; he also taught us laws on proper behavior at home and how to relate with our immediate family among others.

But his most important contribution to our spiritual upbringing was – he brought us into the family of God and made us grow together in the Church.  There, hetaught us how to relate witheach other in the congregation.  That was invaluable.

Mr. Armstrong also taught us how to live in the community where we belong.  Among his writings, the Seven Laws of Success was a hit!  Clearly, Mr. Armstrong was the Elijah prophesied to come. 

Question: Was John the Baptist REALLY the Elijah who was prophesied to restore all things? 

Matt 17:10 (KJV) And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elijah must first come? 11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elijah truly shall first come, and restore all things. 12 But I say unto you, That Elijah is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. (King Herod had already killed John the Baptist at this time, Matt 14:10) Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them.

Matt 14:10 (KJV) And he (King Herod) sent, and beheaded John (the Baptist) in the prison.

13 Then the disciples understood that (Christ) spoke unto them of John the Baptist (but Christ did not specifically say that!).

Comments:  John came to prepare the way of Christ, but he was not able to ‘RECONSTITUTE’ anything, because Christ had not ‘CONSTITUTED’ what needs to be ‘reconstituted’ at that time.  Under the Principle of Duality of Biblical prophecies, there must be a second John the Baptist to do the restoration.  Mr. Armstrong realized that fact.  Here’s a quote from page 9 of his book Mystery of the Ages:

     “…God’s time has come! He now sends a voice to cry out with amplified world-covering power to reveal the way out of this senseless madness, into the world of PEACE and righteousness that soon shall grip the earth!

     “In the book of Isaiah is a “NOW” prophecy: “The voice of him that cries in the wilderness, Prepare you the way of the Lord …. lift up your voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say … Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him” (Isa. 40:3, 9-10).

     “That voice now cries out (that was Mr. Armstrong’s voice)!

     “The prophet Malachi confirmed this: “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom you seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the MESSENGER OF THE COVENANT, whom you delight in: behold, he shall come, said the Lord of hosts” (Mal. 3:1).

     “The Elijah to Come.  Both of these prophecies have a dual application. First, they refer to John the Baptist, who prepared the way before Jesus’ human ministry more than 1,900 years ago. BUT, as a prototype, or forerunner, these prophecies foretell one to prepare the way before Christ’s Second Coming as the King of kings and Lord of lords to RULE over ALL NATIONS!

     “Malachi’s prophecy, like Isaiah’s, if you will read on past the first verse, refers to a human messenger preparing the way before Christ’s now imminent Second Coming, this time in supreme POWER AND GLORY as Ruler over all nations!

     “Understand the duality principle here. These prophecies refer to a type and its fulfillment.

     “John the Baptist was a voice crying out in the physical wilderness of the Jordan River area, preparing for the human physical Jesus’ First Coming to a material temple at Jerusalem, to a physical Judah. But that was a prototype, or forerunner of a voice “lifted up” (greatly amplified by modern printing, radio and TV), crying out in the midst of today’s spiritual wilderness of religious confusion, announcing the imminence of Christ’s Second Coming as the spiritually GLORIFIED Christ, to his spiritual temple (the Church resurrected to spirit immortality) (Eph. 2:21-22)…

     “It’s going before kings, emperors, presidents, prime ministers of nations — and to their peoples, on all continents and all nations of the earth!” (End of quotes)

Mr. Armstrong’s “personal conferences” with world leaders were consistent with the commission of the angel typified by John who was commissioned to prophesy again, the one who would continue the work of God started by Christ:

Reve 10:11 (KJV) …You must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and KINGS.

In conclusion, we have shown in this article the Works of Christ which he claimed were proofs that he was an apostle.  We have also shown in this article the Works of Mr. Armstrong which no man could do even if one wanted.  The conclusion is incontrovertible:  Mr. Armstrong was an apostle, THE man who would continue the WORKS of Christ. 

One last question:  Can we disregard the teachings of Mr. Armstrong and still claim to be members of the Church of God that he had led?  We will leave the answer to your good (or bad) judgment.

As a parting request, we would be interested in receiving, for publication on this website, proofs that the WORKS of those self-styled apostles leading various CoG splinter groups could not be done by any man without God’s behind-the-scene involvement. Spiritual correctness dictates that those who have no WORKS indicative of an apostle should divest themselves of the title.

We look forward to hearing from them or their supporters.

Coronavirus is prophesied in the Bible!

Fulfilled Prophecies, Part 1

-by Belo Alvaran

What is happening today, especially the Covid-19 outbreak, should not come as a surprise to the members of the Worldwide Church of God.  Followers of Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong would always remember his expositions especially on the ethnicity of the Americans and the British Commonwealth peoples which he identified as the modern-day Israelites. 

To refresh our memory, quoted below are pertinent portions of Mr. Armstrong’s book The United States and Britain in Prophecy, 1980 edition, beginning from Chapter 10:

Chapter 10

BIRTHRIGHT WITHHELD 2520 YEARS!

     “THE MOST REMARKABLE FULFILLMENT of biblical prophecy in modern times was the sudden sprouting forth of the two mightiest world powers — one, a commonwealth of nations forming the greatest world empire of all times; the other, the wealthiest, most powerful nation on earth today. These birthright peoples came, with incredible suddenness, into possession of more than two-thirds — nearly three- fourths — of the cultivated wealth and resources of the whole world! This sensational spurt from virtual obscurity in so short a time gives incontrovertible PROOF of divine inspiration…

              “A “Nation” and a “Commonwealth of Nations”

“…[T]he birthright promise was given to the two tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh — not to the other tribes or their descendants…

“…In passing on the birthright promise the dying Jacob (Israel) said of Ephraim and Manasseh, sons of Joseph, “… let my name be named on them” (Gen. 48:16). Hence it is THEY — the descendants of Ephraim (the British) and Manasseh (the Americans) — … who are referred to in prophecy under the names of Jacob or Israel. Continuing, Jacob added, “… and let them grow into a multitude.”  Then, speaking of Manasseh and his descendants alone (mostly the white people of the United States), Jacob said prophetically: “… he also shall become a people [nation], and he also shall be GREAT: but truly his younger brother [Ephraim (the British)] shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a MULTITUDE [a company, or COMMONWEALTH] of NATIONS” (Gen. 48:19).

Update:  The Worldwide Church of God’s new set of ministry repudiated the contents of Mr. Armstrong’s book, reducing them to “so-what” and saying in effect that no one could determine with certainty who were descendants of Ephraim and who were of Manasseh.  But the LORD himself assured us that he would attend to that:

Amos 9:9 (KJV. The LORD speaking) For, lo, I will command, and I WILL SIFT THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AMONG ALL NATIONS, like as [corn] is sifted in a sieve, yet shall NOT the least grain fall upon the earth.

Let Mr. Armstrong continue with his United States and Britain in Prophecy:

     “In A.D. 1800 the United Kingdom and the United States were small and insignificant among the earth’s nations. The United Kingdom consisted only of the British Isles, a very small part of India and of Canada and a few little islands. The United States consisted only of the original 13 colonies and three added states. Neither possessed any great wealth or power.

     “But beginning in 1800 these two little nations began to sprout and to grow into vast national riches and power such as no people ever possessed. Soon Britain’s empire spread around the world, until the sun never set upon her possessions. Canada, Australia, South Africa were given dominion status — made free and independent nations, ruling themselves independent of England — a company, or commonwealth, of nations joined together, not by legal government, but solely by the throne of David!

Prophecies being fulfilled now:

     “…[The] prophecy of Leviticus 26, though written by Moses before the Israelites had entered the Promised Land, is one of dual fulfillment. It was a warning to those of Moses’ day, but its final fulfillment, as we shall see,…is now taking place — in our time. And, through the dual fulfillment, typical of so many prophecies, it is also a WARNING to the AMERICAN AND BRITISH PEOPLES of impending events!

BIRTHRIGHT PROMISE HAS A CONDITION

     “There was a condition — a great big “if” — to their receiving actual fulfillment of this stupendous birthright promise in their time! God said: “If you walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; then I will…” (verses 3-4)…

We will now go direct to the Scriptures which Mr. Armstrong quoted and paraphrased:

Levi 26:3 (KJV) If you walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, (and judgments, see verse 15) and do them; 4 Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. 5 And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and you shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely. 6 And I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none shall make [you] afraid: and I will rid evil beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land.

7 And you shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. 8 And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.

9 For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you. 10 And you shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new. 11 And I will set my tabernacle among you: and my soul shall not abhor you.

This is the main feature of God’s covenant, his all-encompassing purpose:

12 And I WILL WALK AMONG YOU, AND WILL BE YOUR GOD, AND YOU SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.

Let Mr. Armstrong continue with his exposition in his booklet The United States and Britain in Prophecy::

     “But here comes the alternative — IF the conditions are not met: “… if you will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments … I (the LORD) also will do this unto you…

We will go again direct to the Scriptures which Mr. Armstrong quoted and paraphrased:

Levi 26:14 (KJV) But if you will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these COMMANDMENTS (esp. the Ten Commandments); 15 And if you shall despise my STATUTES (Sabbath observances, taxation, other ordinances), or if your soul abhor my JUDGMENTS (mostly what-to-dos and situational ethics), so that you will not do all my commandments, [but] that YOU BREAK MY COVENANT (to be their God and them his people, as mentioned in verse 12 cited above):

GOD’S PUNISHMENTS FOR THE ISRAELITES’ MISBEHAVIOR

16 I ALSO WILL DO THIS UNTO YOU; I will even appoint over you TERROR (the United States and her British and other NATO allies have been fighting terror), consumption, (Thayer’s Concordance: a wasting DISEASE OF THE LUNGS – typical of corona virus!) and the burning ague (SARS, MERS, FLU and other fever-inducing deadly illnesses), that shall consume the eyes (meaning cause death), and cause sorrow of heart (to the living): and you shall sow your seed in vain (agriculture, businesses, investments will fail) , for your enemies (competitors, scammers, inside-traders, big-time speculators) shall eat it.  17 And I will set my face against you, and you shall be slain before your enemies: they that hate you (immigrants from former colonies who felt oppressed) shall reign over you (through election); and you shall flee when none pursues you (as in the case of the sub-prime housing loans which led to whole villages being abandoned).

SEVEN-TIMES SEVERITY

18 And if you will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I WILL PUNISH YOU SEVEN TIMES MORE FOR YOUR SINS.

CLIMATE CHANGE

19 And I will break the pride of your power (have they won any war since World War 2?  No!); and I WILL MAKE YOUR HEAVEN AS IRON, AND YOUR EARTH AS BRASS:

Iron and brass are very cold when cooled and very hot when heated, hence the extreme temperatures during winter and summer. 

Ms. Greta Thunberg will be disappointed that her activism is all in vain:

20 And your strength shall be spent in vain: for your land shall not yield her increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruits (because of the extreme temperatures).

SECOND SEVEN-TIMES-SEVERITY

21 And if you walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I WILL BRING SEVEN TIMES MORE PLAGUES upon you according to your sins.

22 I will also send wild beasts (violent organizations?) among you, which shall rob you of your children (abortionists?), and destroy your cattle (vegans?), and make you few in number; and your [high] ways shall be desolate (lock-downs?).

THIRD SEVEN-TIMES-SEVERITY

23 And if you will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me; 24 Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will PUNISH YOU YET SEVEN TIMES FOR YOUR SINS.

25 And I will bring a sword (they are now fighting a war against an “unseen enemy”) upon you that shall avenge the quarrel of [my] covenant (the LORD wants to be their God but they refuse to recognize him): and when you are gathered together within your cities, I will send the PESTILENCE among you (this is now on-going!  We are therefore in this third stage of God’s seven-times-severity of punishments!); and you shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy.

26 [And] when I have broken the staff of your bread (food supply, and raw materials for life-saving industries will be cut off), ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver [you] your bread again by weight (this is food rationing!): and you shall eat, and not be satisfied.

FOURTH AND LAST OF SEVEN-TIMES-SEVERITY

27 And if you will not for all this hearken unto me, but walk contrary unto me; 28 Then I will walk contrary unto you also in fury; and I, even I, WILL CHASTISE YOU SEVEN TIMES FOR YOUR SINS.

The following have not happened yet, but in the pipeline:

29 And you shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall you eat.

30 And I will destroy your high places (stock markets are now falling; soon the buildings where trading is done will be abandoned), and cut down your images (the golden calf grown big, the stock market bull), and cast your carcasses (virus victims) upon the carcasses of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you.

31 And I will make your cities waste, and bring your sanctuaries unto desolation, and I will not smell the savour of your sweet odours (prayers).

32 And I will bring the land into desolation: and your enemies which dwell therein shall be astonished at it.

33 And I will scatter you among the heathen, and will draw out a sword after you: and your land shall be desolate, and your cities waste.

34 Then shall the land enjoy her Sabbaths, as long as it lies desolate, and you [be] in your enemies’ land; [even] then shall the land rest, and enjoy her Sabbaths.

35 As long as it lies desolate it shall rest; because it did not rest in your Sabbaths, when you dwelt upon it.

36 And upon them that are left [alive] of you I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies; and the sound of a shaken leaf shall chase them; and they shall flee, as fleeing from a sword; and they shall fall when none pursues.

37 And they shall fall one upon another, as it were before a sword, when none pursues: and you shall have no power to stand before your enemies.

38 And you shall perish among the heathen, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up.

39 And they that are left of you shall pine away in their iniquity in your enemies’ lands; and also in the iniquities of their fathers shall they pine away with them.

What will assuage God’s anger?

40 If they shall confess their iniquity (i.e., lawlessness, meaning they should turn to God and start obeying his laws)…41…if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled, and they then accept of the punishment of their iniquity: 42 Then will I remember my covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with Isaac, and also my covenant with Abraham will I remember; and I will remember the land. …45…I will for their sakes remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the heathen, that I MIGHT BE THEIR GOD: I [am] the LORD.

The LORD had spoken.  The ball is in the American and British courts.

Watch for our coming articles on God’s Covenants with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to be serialized on this website!

Will you have Christ’s new name?

-by Brod Andy Yparraguirre-

In Revelation 1:9-11 the apostle John wrote, “I John … was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, Saying, I am Alpha and Omega…”.

About 1920 years ago the Lord Jesus Christ through God’s Spirit brought the apostle John forward into the day of the Lord or the Lord’s day to reveal the things which must come to pass shortly (Rev. 1:1) from the viewpoint of that day! That day, the day of the Lord, began in October 1997 (“The Day of the Lord – 6000 Years Have Ended” 3rd ed. pp.23-29) and since then much understanding have been revealed to God’s faithful servants pertaining to fulfilled prophecies of recent past, those which are happening (in the church and in the world) and what shall be hereafter (verse 19). Among the things revealed is the fact that time is running out (Rev. 10:6) for this world to continue with its wrong and sinful and deceived ways. The 6000 years given to man to prove his incapacity to govern and manage the affairs of men without God have already ended. The period of time wherein there is no more delay or “there should be time no longer” has already come and NOW more than ever WE KNOW THAT THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS NEAR, EVEN AT THE DOORS (Matt. 24:32-33)! Christ is coming very soon in the clouds of heaven (I Thes. 4:16-17) on a future Pentecost day (“The Feast of Trumpets or Pentecost?” booklet) to gather and receive God’s elect (Matt. 24:31-32).

This will be followed by the marriage ceremony in heaven (Rev. 19:7) between the Lamb (Jesus Christ) as the Bridegroom and the Firstfruits of God (Rev. 14:1-4) as the Bride. And then together with His Wife, the Lord Jesus Christ will return to earth as KING OF KINGS, and LORD OF LORDS to establish the Kingdom of God (Rev. 19:11-16; Dan. 7:13-14, 18) preparing it for the coming of the Almighty God our Heavenly Father (I Cor. 15:24). To be part of the Bride one must have been invited by the Father (John 6:43-44), made his wedding garment ready (Matt. 22:2-11) and endured unto the end (Matt.24:12-13). That end could either be one’s first death or the visible and glorious coming of the Lord Jesus Christ whichever comes first. The time for this most especial, wonderful and exhilarating event is looming in the horizon. Meanwhile time is ticking by swiftly and the time to measure the temple of God, the altar and its worshippers has come as foretold in the scripture (Rev. 11:1).

Those who are not watching their spiritual condition (Matt. 25:3) and failed to prepare their wedding dress (Matt.25:10; Rev. 3:18) will be overtaken (1 Thess. 5:1-4) by the opportunity and may not make it to THE MARRIAGE OF THE LAMB (Rev. 19:7). On that most awaited and very special day Christ will give the Bride His NEW NAME (Rev. 3:12). Were you invited to this very exclusive and most exquisite marriage ceremony that will ever happen before the very throne of the Almighty Father (Rev. 14:1-4)? Are you coming to the marriage of the Lamb? Will you have Christ’s new name?

Who Will Christ Marry?

Make no mistake. Jesus Christ will not marry every association that claims to be God’s church but in shameful disagreement, unable to reconcile and to  come together as one body of one accord of one mind (Phil. 2:2). These churches seem to have forgotten scriptures which were often used in the past to keep harmony and unity in the church. Paul’s admonition to the church in Corinth is so clear that anyone called out of this world could understand  unless he has succumbed to deception or become reprobate (Rom. 1:28-29).

1Co 1:10-15  Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.  (11)  For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.  (12)  Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.  (13)  Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?  (14)  I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius;  (15)  Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name.

These churches are deceived into believing they are churches of God but in reality have become the synagogue of Satan that was prophesied to be a reality in our time now – in the day of the Lord. It is true that they were once of God’s church. But after the falling away (2 Thes. 2:3) Christ calls them the synagogue of Satan for denying him and not keeping his words (Rev. 3:8-10) faithfully to demonstrate their love for the truth (2 Thes. 2:10). Instead of upholding the incontrovertible truth that Herbert W. Armstrong (HWA) has fulfilled Matthew 24:14 – they are competing to preach again the true gospel to the whole world, denying in effect that Jesus Christ did it already through the end-time apostle. Their leaders are primarily at fault. They are in delusion believing that they can do a better work than the 50+years of HWA preaching and publishing the true gospel under Christ’s direction. Many of these leaders don’t even recognize HWA anymore as an apostle and end time Elijah. Make no mistake. They who are of God’s church today are only those who remain faithful unto God and Christ (Rev. 17:14). It is not enough that one has been called and chosen out of this world. Anyone called and chosen must also remain faithful and able to follow the Lamb Jesus Christ wherever he goes (John 14:4; Rev. 14:4) and endure unto the end (Matt. 24:13). Christ has departed the Worldwide Church of God (WCG) 30 years ago and those who profess faithfulness to him must be able to know where Christ goes and follow him there. But none can follow Christ where he goes or where he is and marries him unless one really loves the truth. Those who reject truth are not following Christ. The reason is simple. Jesus Christ is truth (John 14:6) and will marry only those who are faithful to the truth.

How Many Are the Bride of Christ?

Any Bible student knows the scripture which says that “… Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God”. Every man should not only take physical food but also believe every word of God, which is spiritual food, in order to gain eternal life. God’s word is truth (John 17:17) and every follower of Christ is expected to believe God’s every word. Sadly most of the professing Christians and many of the churches that descended from God’s true church can’t seem to agree on clear scriptures that indicate exactly the number of persons that will qualify and constitute as the Bride of Christ. God is ever consistent. Even from the time of God’s chosen people Israel, God has already hinted the number of people who will be Bride to Christ. Their number does not go by the millions.

Exo 20:4-6  Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:  (5)  Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;  (6)  And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

Only the “thousands of them” love the Lord God and keep his commandments. This means that those who will marry Christ are only in the thousands. The Lord God of the Old Testament who gave the Ten Commandments to the Israelites is no other than our Lord Jesus Christ, the Bridegroom whose visible coming is in the horizon. When Jesus Christ was preaching the coming Kingdom, he told his disciples “If ye love me, keep my commandments (John 14:15). Most of the Israelites did not love Christ and had rejected him (John 1:10-11). The Jews who were also of the house of Israel were responsible for his terrible death (John 19:1-16). Chapter 3 of the book of Jeremiah reveals the heart of the Israelites and Jewish people that they do not love the Lord God even after he pleaded with them. Some churches of this world claim that the Bride of Christ will be the nation of Israel. But the fact that they do not love God nor obey him but only the thousands negates this claim. So how many truly love the Lord God, who is our Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament? Exodus 20:6 indicates the number but Revelation 14:1-4 gives us the exact figure of 144,000.

Rev 14:1-4  And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.  (2)  And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps:  (3)  And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.  (4)  These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.

The scriptures say that there are only 144,000 who “follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth” that were “redeemed from among men” as the firstfruits.  The phrase “redeemed from among men” suggests that these 144,000 include a few Israelites and their patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the other faithful personalities in the Old Testament including women Heb. 11:1-40). Following the Lamb wherever he goes expresses their faithfulness to him. These 144,000 who are called firstfruits that were redeemed from among men represent the first harvest in God’s plan of salvation for all of mankind from the time of Adam until the visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ.

You Were Invited

If you had been a baptized member of the Worldwide Church of God (WCG) before the falling away in 1990 or are presently of the Philadelphia Church of God (PCG), you cannot deny nor conceal the fact that you were invited to the MARRIAGE OF THE LAMB. Therefore this article is for you. It is time to make a self-evaluation of your standing before God and consider the state of God’s spiritual house today (Hag. 1:1-9). God has called you out of this world for a lifetime preparation to become part of the BRIDE of Christ. And what you are reading this very moment could very well be a final call to confirm your attendance to this very exclusive invitation of all time. No amount of excuses (Luke 14:16-24) will clear your name and responsibility if you ignore this final call. Either you will respond positively or suffer the consequences (Rev. 12:17; 1 Thess. 5:1-3). Since Jesus Christ ascended to heaven (Acts 1:9-11) almost 2000 years ago his disciples from generation to generation have been waiting and anticipating Christ’s glorious return (Matt.24:3; 1 Thes. 4:15-17) as a Bridegroom (Matt. 25:1, 5). Now the long wait might be over as his coming is imminent with all the signs we are seeing fulfilled in the church and in the world. The time has come for the called-out-ones of our generation to face a crucial test as a way of measuring. It is time to figure out the following:

  1. Whether or not the day of the Lord has already come as “a thief in the night” (1 Thes. 5:2;  2 Pet. 3:10);
  2. Whether or not the Bridegroom, Jesus Christ has already come (Matt.25:6); and 
  3. Whether or not they are measuring up to the desired qualities and character that the Bridegroom is looking for in his Bride (Rev. 19:7-8).

Hopefully a positive determination of these issues will lead them to where Jesus Christ is doing God’s work and be gathered together unto him (2Thess. 2:1).

God’s people today whether affiliated or not with established groups must already come to understand what sort of work Jesus Christ is doing today just before the appearance of the two witnesses (Rev. 11:1). Jesus Christ is doing now a measuring work to determine who the elect are that are ready to become his Wife.

Are You Coming?

If you still have a good measure of God’s spirit in you or even if it is just flickering, you will most likely say “Yes I am coming as part of the Bride to the marriage of the Lamb”. I really hope you will. But how do you intend to come? Make no mistake. You cannot come to the marriage ceremony unless you have the correct wedding dress: made of fine linen, clean and white.

“Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.” (Rev 19:7-8)

According to the scripture above fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. Therefore if you want to come to the marriage of the Lamb you must have the righteous character of the saints. At this point in the church’s history there are two ways by which one could obtain this, namely: 1) By returning to the faithful remnant of the 6th candlestick church that continue to uphold the standard established by HWA (Rev. 3:9) or 2) By overcoming the great tribulation (Matt. 24:21-24; 1 Thess. 5:3; Rev. 3:18). Which way do you prefer? Choosing the first would mean accepting humbly that you have fallen asleep spiritually while waiting for the Bridegroom to come (Matt. 25:5) but like the wise virgins have enough spiritual oil for your lamp. Allowing the second implies that you have become lukewarm (Rev. 3:15-16) in loving the truth. If indeed you are coming to the marriage of the Lamb as part of the Bride now is the best time to make your wedding apparel ready not later. Dillydallying might not only cost you the first death (Rev. 6:9-11) but the second death likewise (Rev. 20:6, 14).  

Christ Will Give You His New Name

Jesus Christ loved the church and will marry it definitely as it becomes ready to be his Bride. And if you are part of that church now, nothing in this world can stop you from marrying our Lord Jesus Christ but you alone.

Jesus Christ so “loved the church” and for this reason he “gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish” (Eph 5:25-27).

Our Lord and Savior has been yearning for this most glorious marriage ceremony to take place so that he can already receive us to himself (John 14:3) and we can behold his glory (John 17:24) in the presence of our God and heavenly Father. Moreover, he has waited for the day when he can to his wife his new name.

Revelation 3:12 reads,

 “Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name”.

Jesus Christ loved the church. He gave his life for it to sanctify and cleanse of its sins (spot, wrinkle, etc) that it might become a glorious church before him on wedding day. On that glorious day Jesus Christ will gladly and proudly present the church, 144,000 strong firstfruits, bearing God’s family name, dressed elegantly in fine linen, clean and white before our Almighty Father as he conducts the marriage ceremony before His throne. And then at the end of the ceremony as the Father declares them Husband and Wife, Jesus Christ will give them his new name. Will you be one of those select few to receive Christ’s new name on that very special day? As one who has been called out and chosen and personally answerable to the Lord Jesus Christ, this is a matter between Him and you. Hopefully with the approval of the Bridegroom you can answer this question cheerfully with a resounding … YES! ●

Are you a stinking sacrifice?

-by Ariek Ben-Geere

(This is a reprint from The Eagles Series No. 19/2001 authored by Brod Belo Alvaran under a pen-name Ariek Ben-Geere, one of his several aliases ten years ago!)

Do you know that God wants us to smell sweet?  When our Husband, Jesus Christ, sniffs around us, what odor do we emit?  As His Wife, would He wrap us in His arms and give us a passionate kiss, or would He cover His nose and walk away in disgust?

God has a standing instruction to us to “present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God…” (Rom. 12:1).  How can we present ourselves a living sacrifice?  Do we know that God only accepts a sacrifice that emits sweet savour?

Sacrifice should smell sweet.  Anciently, a sacrifice was an offering to God in the form of a clean animal which must be burned for one purpose:  Moses says it was “for a sweet savour unto the Lord” (Lev. 8:21). God would inhale the “sweet savour” emanating from a burning sacrifice.  After the flood, ” Noah builded an altar unto the Lord, and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar (Gen. 8:20).  And the Lord smelled a sweet savour…” (v.21). Clearly, God was after the sweet savour of the sacrifice.  Among God’s punishments to the Israelites was “I will not smell the savour of your sweet odours” (Lev. 26:31). As we shall see in this article, this punishment has far ranging ramifications.  God’s rejection of a sacrifice’s savour extends to the person behind the sacrifice.

Cain’s malodorous sacrifice.  There was a man whose burnt offerings were refused by God, and that was Cain.  His story can be found in Genesis 4.  “And Adam knew his wife, and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said I have gotten a man from the Lord. And she again bare his brother Abel.  And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground (v.2).  And in the process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord (v.3).  And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof.  And the Lord had respect unto Abel and his offering (v.4).  But unto Cain AND to his offering He had no respect.  And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell” (v.5). Cain offered the “fruits of the ground”, probably edible herbs and vegetables.  Have you smelled the smoke of burning herbs and vegetables?  Does it emit “sweet savour”?  Far from it.  Burning vegetables emit acrid odor, irritating to the nostrils, even suffocating.  Some herbs are useful as insect repellent when burned.  As a result, God was repelled by Cain’s offering.  God had “no respect” BOTH unto Cain and his offering. 

Brethren, the account of Cain’s life conveys two important lessons for us, especially during the Passover season. One is, when God rejects an offering (or gift), He is also rejecting the person giving that offering.

Sacrifice stands in for us.  Every ancient Israelite, whenever one had committed a transgression, was required to offer a sacrifice.  The sacrifice represents the person offering it.  It takes the place of the person so that instead of the person dying, it is the sacrifice that dies, while the person lives a new, reformed, life – a life cleansed of sin.  That is why a sacrifice points to the Savior. Christ is our Saviour because He stood in for humanity and made Himself our sacrifice.  When He died, He represented our sinful bodies and our unclean minds.  He died so that we may live, and so that we may “be renewed in the spirit of our minds”(Eph.4:23).  He died so that we may lead a new life acceptable to God. But you may ask, acceptable as what? As part of His divine family!  As HWA has taught us, we are going to become part of God’s Family, His body.  In fact, we already are, only in the embryonic stage.  However, God cannot absorb into His body a sinner, i.e., a person with an unclean mind, a disease-carrier, one who would sow discord and incite rebellion against God. 

Christ’s sacrifice smells sweet.  Christ, who lived a sinless life, was very much acceptable to God as a sacrifice.  Christ “had given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour” (Eph. 5:2). He was our sacrifice. He died for us, so that we may live as a living sacrifice. The question, therefore, is: Are we, individually, acceptable to God as a living sacrifice?  Do we emit sweetsmelling savour?

Prayers are sweet odours.  When we pray, we convey our thoughts to God. As a living sacrifice, our prayers serve as our sweet odours. John writes in Revelation 5:8 how that “the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints”.  Our prayers, our odours, emanate from our mind.  How sweet are our prayers? “He that turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination (i.e., not acceptable to God)” (Prov. 28:9).  “The sacrifice of the wicked is abomination: how much more, when he brings it with a wicked mind?” (Prov. 21:27). Clearly, God is after our mental health, our thoughts.

Cain had murderous thoughts.  Let’s read more details of Cain’s story to see what lesson it conveys today.  “And the Lord said unto Cain, Why are you wroth? and why is your countenance fallen?  If you do well, shall you (Cain himself, not the sacrifice) not be accepted? and if you does not well, sin lies at the door…” (v.7). Apparently, Cain was not doing well – there was something wrong in his attitude towards God and towards his brother Abel.  In short, there was something wrong with his entire thinking processes.  His thoughts were revealed in verse 8. “And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.”  The verse didn’t say the two quarreled. They simply talked.  Cain killed Abel in a surprise attack! It was a premeditated murder! 

From this short account, we can deduce several things about Cain: 1) he had a murderer’s mind.  Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong often said in his writings that “action follows thought”.  In killing his brother, Cain simply followed his thoughts. 2) he had no respect for or fear of God who made him.  As HWA often quoted in his writings, “the fear of the Eternal is the beginning of wisdom” (Ps. 111:10).  Cain’s lack of Godly fear diminished his wisdom; 3) without any fear of God, he was just going through the motion of making an offering to God.  Cain was insincere, his life was a show.  His mental health was therefore afflicted with a disorder called hypocrisy which Christ warned us about.  “Beware you of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy” (Luke 12:1).

What God rejected therefore was Cain’s thoughts. God is privy to every man’s thoughts.  In Genesis 6:5, “God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually”.  The next verse says God repented that He had made man!  Obviously, that was because of man’s evil thoughts.

Part of God’s instructions in Romans 12:1 is to make our bodies “acceptable to God”.  Bodies, item 4983 in Strong’s – means the sound whole. A sound body is physically and mentally healthy. Our thinking process is part of our body.  King Solomon, the wisest of Kings, said that “as [one] thinks in his heart, so is he” (Prov. 23:7).  God is after what we think, so this is the area that we should examine.  Are our thoughts acceptable to God?  Paul admonishes us in Rom. 12:2 to “…be not conformed to this world, but be you transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”  There is that word acceptable once again.  God is obviously after the “renewing of our minds”.  Why? Because the development of one’s character is in the mind.

Clean thoughts are like clean animals.  As mentioned earlier,only clean animals were acceptable to God as sacrifice. Clean animals were also prescribed by God as good for human food.  When we eat the flesh of a clean animal, it becomes part of our body and helps build our tissues.  By contrast, the meat of unclean animals can do damage when absorbed by our body.  For example, it is common knowledge that pork contains large amount of hard fat that could damage our arteries and precipitate a heart attack.  Pork is also a known carrier of various disease-causing cysts that could afflict humans with tumors and other cancerous growths.  In forbidding the consumption of pork, God does not want our bodies to be infected, or much worse, become a disease carrier that can infect other people.

Similarly, a person with an unclean mind can transmit heresies, sow division to the body of Christ which could lead to rebellion against God en masse.  That is why the prayers, the thoughts of an unclean mind is an abomination to God.  As a living sacrifice therefore, it is necessary that our thoughts be clean, just as a dead sacrifice ought to be a clean animal. How then can we cleanse or renew our mind?  Our minds are often infected with thoughts of sin usually from people with whom we come into contact with, from our own imaginations, or from the broadcasts of the “prince of the power of the air” (Eph. 2:2). (To aid our memory, these are called the three “S” –  Society, Self and Satan.)  We have to purge our minds of thoughts of sin coming from these sources. 

Men more susceptible.  The proliferation of pornographic materials make men susceptible to deadly thoughts.  Christ said, “Whosoever looks on a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart [or thought]” (Mat. 5:28).  The word woman means a wife in Strong’s.  HWA said a betrothed woman is already a wife, so this woman could be either married or single but engaged. Men therefore should be extra vigilant because they are more prone to sinning in their thoughts.

A wife is God’s favour or gift to a husband.  Proverbs 18:22 states: “Whoso finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favour of the Lord”.  Did you catch the last part?  A wife is a favor from God, a gift! For a married man to lust after another woman is, therefore, more than adultery – it is an insult to the God who gave his wife.  Adultery therefore on the part of the husband is rejecting a gift of God.  As we have seen in the case of Cain, when God rejects an offering, He also rejects the person behind the offering.  This principle works the other way around, too.  And this is the other main lesson in this article: When we reject a gift of God, such as a wife, we are also rejecting God. 

But why look at another woman if you have a wife?  Why not look and look at your own wife, appreciate every curve in her body, cherish her, give her all your love? God’s admonition is: “Husbands, love your wives” Eph. 5:25).

The Bride of Christ.   It might come as a surprise to many, but Christ is pictured in the book of Revelation as a lion – the Lion of the Tribe of Judah (Rev. 5:5, 22:16).  Think about that.  Why would Christ reveal Himself as a Lion in the book of Revelation?  We know that He is getting married. A lion cannot take another animal for a wife. If Christ is a lion, then His wife has to be a lioness!  For those who have not studied zoology, a lioness is a most interesting and peculiar animal.  Among her peculiarities is that when she is ready for mating, she emits a certain odor that is so irresistible to the head lion.  To bring her sweet odours close to the lion’s nostrils, she presents herself before him in a most attractive manner, and that is by crawling (crawling position is her mating position), thus deliberately making it known to the head lion that she is ready.  With the irresistible odour that she emits, the head lion could never say no, and indeed he never does, whenever the lioness comes around.  They mate as much as 300 times, according to National Geographic, before the lioness hides in a den to deliver her cubs.  In one documentary, a commentator said that “they almost never part”.  Does that remind us of the verse that says “His wife has made herself ready” in Rev. 19:7? 

Brethren, we are the [betrothed] wife of Christ, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.  We are the tribe of [spiritual] Judah, His [new] pride, and we have to make ourselves ready – i.e., ready to be wedded with our husband!  The question is, do we emit the odour that makes us irresistible to our head Lion?  How does our living sacrifice smell?  Are our prayers sweet odours or abomination? Are we attractive enough to make our Husband say “there should be no further delay” in His coming?  Do we present ourselves to Christ like a lioness does to the head lion?  Your answers to these questions could hasten or delay our wedding day.■

Queen Esther, a type of Christ’s Wife (pt.2)

-by Felix R. Esdrilon

Queen Esther was an ordinary Jewish girl, a “commoner” in British terminology, who probably never dreamed of becoming a member of a royal family.  One could only imagine her surprise when she was chosen as a candidate queen.  Not leaving her fate to chance, Esther attended to every detail of the twelve-month preparation course required of competing virgins prior to marriage with the Emperor Xerxes.  Her diligence proved helpful – she was the one crowned Queen of the Persian Empire. 

Across the long sweep of history, not many a woman had had a chance to marry a King of kings, or even made it as a candidate queen.  Due to the rarity of their kind, there is a dearth of models for would-be queens.  God, however, in His wisdom, has allowed the book of Esther to be written obviously to fill this need and to serve as guiding light for the latter-day candidates.  The book of Esther is especially important because there is one King of kings who is looking for a wife at the moment and the selection process for His would-be Queen is now in progress, probably in the final stages.  What makes this marriage unique is that the candidates have all been predestinated by the Bridegroom’s Father even before the foundation of the world was laid!  Due to the enormity of the stakes involved, no words will suffice to describe the glory, grandeur, power, honor and prestige that await the successful candidate.  As this prophesied event will occur only once in eternity, losers shall have lost their chance forever.  For the losers, “there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth”.  To enhance the candidates’ chances of success, The Eagles (now defunct, this is a reprint) would like to invite them to look at Queen Esther and emulate her queenly traits.

Orphan bride.  The girl Esther started in life with a handicap: she was an orphan.  However, the God of heaven who had predestinated her to be a queen raised up her cousin Mordechai, a Jew, to be her foster father. Esther called the Jews “my people” (Est.7:4), indicating that Mordechai reared her up in the Jewish traditions and precepts of the Torah.  Since God rules in the kingdom of men (Dan.5:21), God was obviously confident that Esther would make it as the Queen of Persia. Otherwise, she would not have been nominated.

Like Esther, we are practically orphans.  God our Father is up in heaven but He raised up Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong to be our foster father.  HWA did rear us up in the Jewish traditions and Biblical precepts.  Like Queen Esther, we have been predestinated to be called among the firstfruits, and, therefore, a candidate wife of Christ.  Like Queen Esther, we have God’s confidence that we would make it.

Esther’s queenly traits.  Esther was an obedient daughter.  Avoiding possible racial discrimination, Mordechai did not want Esther to reveal her Jewish background while the selection was in progress.  “Esther had not revealed her nationality and family background because Mordechai had forbidden her to do so” (Est.2:10).  This is an indication that she was properly reared up as a child.  A disobedient daughter will very likely make a disobedient wife.  By following his advice, Esther honored her father.  Esther therefore was a God-fearing woman.  God our Father is looking for such daughter.  “If I be a father, where is my honor?” God asks the would-be queens.  Those who disregard the teachings of our foster father Mr. Armstrong whose Office was ordained of God, have in effect dishonored God. 

Esther was humble.  “When the turn came for Esther…to go to the King, she asked for nothing other than what Hegai, the king’s eunuch who was in charge of the harem, suggested.  And Esther won the favor of everyone who saw her” (Est.2:15).  Esther did not show any air of superiority in her dealings with the servants.  These servants were the eyes and ears of the King.  By winning the servants’ hearts, she won half of the competition.  We are all God’s servants, and in our prayers for other brethren, we certainly mention those who are close to our hearts.  Does God take note of the names that are often mentioned? Christ prayed for those whom the Father had given Him (John 17:9).  Christ had brotherly love for them.  In return, those who have brotherly love will certainly be in the prayers of his brethren. “Pray one for another…” (James 5:16).   More than anything else, it is brotherly love that will bring us close to God because those who have such love pray for one another.  One way therefore to becoming a queen is to win the hearts of the King’s servants.

Esther risked her life for her brethren.  Inside the King’s palace, there existed an “inner court” where no one was allowed entry except when summoned by the King.  The punishment for unauthorized entry was death!  Esther risked her life by entering this inner court to see the King without an appointment in order to save her fellow Jews. After telling Mordechai of her plan to enter the inner court, she said, “…if I perish, I perish” (Est.4:5). With these words, Esther in effect offered her life as a sacrifice. She lived because the King showed her mercy.  But she did not act alone: She asked her people to fast for her.  She asked God’s intervention on the matter. Fasting and prayer go together, so that, while it was not mentioned in the Bible, she certainly prayed.

In God’s Temple, there is also an inner court, the Holy of holies where unauthorized entry was punishable with death.   To enter into this inner court, we have to be a living sacrifice.  A sacrifice emits sweet odor.  In Revelation 5:8, prayers are the odours of the saints.  The margin says odor is incense, which emits sweet smell.  To enter the inner court, therefore, we have to pray, and, like the Jews, fast often to get close to God.

Esther’s Action Brought Jewish Converts.   “…and many people of the land became Jews” (Est.8:17).  The wife of Christ, the Church, is to bring many children to God through conversion.  Members of the Church are spiritual Jews.  “This is what the Lord Almighty says:  In those days ten men of all languages and nations will take firm hold of one Jew by the hem of his robe and say, ‘Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is with you” (Zech.8:23, NIV).  Christ, himself a God, can only be with His wife. His wife shall cause many people to become spiritual Jews.

Esther wore a crown. “[The King] set a royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti” (Est.2:18).  The wife of Christ shall also wear a crown.  The description of a mother Church reads: “…a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head…” (Rev.12:1).  This is how the wife of Christ will look like because she will become the mother Church.  She shall be “clothed with the sun”.  The sun is outside the earth giving light to other planets.  She will be queen of the universe!

Esther was a virgin.  At the recommendation of the King’s advisers, a search was made “for beautiful young virgins for the [Emperor, a King of kings]” (Est.2:1).  Christ, our High Priest and coming King of kings, will also marry a virgin.  “…He that is a high priest…shall take a virgin of his own people to wife” (Lev.21:10,14).  Paul tried to present the Corinthian Church “like a chaste virgin to Christ” (2Cor.11;2).  Sadly, Paul failed.  From Paul’s letter to them, the Corinthians apparently committed fornication.  “For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we have preached…or a different gospel other than the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough” (2Cor.11:4, NIV).  The Corinthians did not exert effort to “contend for the faith which was once delivered to [them]” (Jude 3). 

Virgin screams.  The wife of Christ is therefore required to “contend for the faith” just as a virgin is required to “scream” when sexually assaulted by another man.  “If a man happens to meet in a town a virgin pledged to be married and he sleeps with her, you shall take both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death – the girl because she was in a town and did not scream for help…” (Deut.22:22, NIV).  If we do not speak aloud against the so-called “new truths” being peddled by any man posing as teacher of righteousness, then we shall suffer the same fate as the virgin who did not scream.

We hope the above exposé will encourage us all to exert more efforts to make ourselves not only ready for our wedding with the King of kings, but also qualified to be crowned Queen of the universe. ■

Read Part 1 here.

Queen Esther, A type of Christ’s Wife (pt.1)

-by Felix R. Esdrilon

(This article is a reprint from the newsletter The Eagles, Series No. 21/2001, authored by Brod Belo Alvaran under name Felix R. Esdrilon, one of his several pen-names.  After more than ten years of operation, the Eagles folded up and its website closed down following the incapacity due to natural causes and eventual demise of its publisher and editor Mr. Nick Danus)

Editor’s Note:

Dear Brethren,

With this issue, we shall discuss ancient Jewish weddings both as tradition and as part of God’s oracles given to the Jews.  The Ancient Jewish Wedding Tradition has tremendous importance for the Bride of Christ because it portrays Christ’s own wedding.  The Book of Esther forms part of those oracles.

The Editor encourages the reproduction and distribution of The Eagles to members of the Church of God.

The Book of Esther is a story about two queens:  the non-Jewish Queen Vashti who was divorced by King Xerxes, and Esther, a young Jewish lady who was chosen from among several virgins as next Queen . Once crowned, Queen Esther became the savior of the Jews residing in the Persian Empire.   To save her people from state extermination, Queen Esther placed her own life at risk by entering a restricted area in the King’s palace.   

Paul told the Corinthians that “all these things [including the story of Queen Esther and King Xerxes] happened unto them for ensamples (types, according to the margin): and they are written for our admonition…” (1Cor.10:11). According to the end-time Elijah, the gospel is marriage.  We are going to show in this article that King Ahasuerus, better known in his Greek name King Xerxes, was a type of Christ and that the story of his marriage with Esther depicts Christ’s forthcoming wedding.  Queen Esther therefore was a type of the Wife of Christ, and her exploits should serve as inspiration for the Church of the Firstborn. We will also show that King Xerxes’ decision to divorce Queen Vashti and that of the Lord’s in the Old Testament to divorce Israel were similar in many ways.  From there we will take a close look at the inherent qualities of Queen Esther to see what lessons may be drawn for the betrothed wife of Christ to help speed up her wedding preparations.

Before reading this article, we request our readers to read the Book of Esther in its entirety in the Bible.

Background:  As indicated in some Bibles, the time setting of the story was in 486-465 BC when King Xerxes was the ruler of the Persian Empire covering the territories of Persia (present-day Iran) where the seat of government was located, extending to India in the north, and to Ethiopia in the West, an area comprising according to the unknown author 127 provinces.  As an Emperor, King Xerxes had vassal kings, known as princes, working under him.  He was therefore a King of kings during his day, similar to but lesser in dominion than Jesus Christ on His return.

Queen Vashti was a not an ordinary queen.  That’s not to say being a queen is ordinary, but because she was the wife of an Emperor, a type of King of kings and, as such, she was practically a Queen of queens. “Vashti the queen made a feast for the women in the royal house which belonged to King Xerxes” (Est.1:9) Her beauty and position must have made her stand out among the women of royal rank.  She made, however, one big mistake so serious that her husband, after seeking counsel, decided to divorce her.  We shall focus on her mistake to see what pitfalls the betrothed wife of Christ should avoid during her marriage with the King of kings. 

As the story goes, King Xerxes was hosting a state banquet and a bit tipsy when at the spur of the moment he commanded his chamberlains to “bring Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal, to show the people and the princes her beauty: for she was fair to look on (Esther1:11), but the queen refused to come at the king’s commandment…” (v.12).  Jewish oral tradition indicates the King’s order was for the Queen to appear naked with only the crown on her head, which, according to some scholars, was considered an indecent act and illegal under existing Persian law at that time.  The Biblical account, however, does not substantiate this allegation.  The God-inspired text would indicate the King issued a legitimate order which the Queen disregarded. 

Since Queen Vashti’s reasons for refusal were unknown, we will look at her from her husband’s perspective to get a glimpse on what prompted her decision.  Although burning with anger, the King maintained his composure and sought legal counsel.  “What shall we do unto the queen Vashti according to law…?”, the King asked his advisers (Est. 1:14).  This action indicates the King was upright and legal-minded.  We can therefore surmise that his order to the queen was lawful.  The fault therefore lies with Queen Vashti.

Vashti’s fault.  The recommendation presented by the King’s counselor Memucan would confirm that Queen Vashti was at fault.  He said: “If it pleases the King, let there go a royal commandment from him, and let it be written among the laws of the Persians and the Medes that it be not altered, That Vashti come no more before King Xerxes; and let the King give her royal estate unto another that is better than she (v.19).  And when the King’s decree which he shall make shall be published throughout all his empire, for it is great, all the wives shall give to their husbands honor (respect in the NIV), both to great and small” (v.20) (underscoring supplied).

Now, why would Memucan recommend the issuance of a decree requiring wives to honor their husbands when their topic of discussion was Queen Vashti?   The basis of his recommendation was discussed in verse 17: “…this deed of the queen shall come abroad unto all women, so that they shall despise their husbands in their eyes, when it shall be reported, The King Ahasuerus commanded Vashti the Queen to be brought in before him, but she came not.  Like wise (v.18) shall the ladies of Persia and Media say this day unto all the King’s princes, which have heard of the deed of the queen.  Thus shall there arise too much contempt and wrath.”  NIV says “There will be no end of disrespect…”  “And the saying pleased the King… and did according to the word of Memucan” (v.21).

Vashti demoted. All the Persian nobles unanimously endorsed Memucan’s advise to the King that Vashti should be divested of her royal title and a new queen be sought from among the “fair young virgins” in the kingdom (chapter 2:2), another indication that the Queen was at fault.  A decree was subsequently issued and announcements made (v.8). By all accounts, Queen Vashti’s mistake was that she failed to honor her husband!  Honor is synonymous to respect.  And respect demands submission. This brings to mind Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong’s accurate prediction that the marriage of Princess Diana with the British Prince Charles was doomed to fail after the Princess deleted the word “obey” in her matrimonial oath.   Paul’s admonition therefore is very much fitting to serve as lesson 1 for the wife of Christ: “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit unto the Lord”, (Col.3:18).

God concerned with honor.  If King Xerxes was a type of Christ, then his concern at that time is Christ’s concern now! As God’s Spokesman in the Old Testament, Christ expressed a sentiment in Malachi 1:14 similar to that of King Xerxes’.  He said, “I am a great King…and my name is dreadful among the heathen”.  But in verse 6, He asked: “…where is my honor? and …where is my fear [or respect]?”  Clearly, God is concerned with honor and respect.  The bride of Christ therefore will do well to remember this very important pointer: Kings and God are concerned with honor and respect more than other things.

Have we been dishonoring God?   God has a strange pronouncement in Haggai 2:23: “In that day, said the Lord of hosts, will I make you, O Zerubbabel…a signet, for I have chosen you…” A  signet was the precursor of the modern dry seal or wet seal in some cases which, when impressed on a document by a head of government, makes that document official.  The seal of the US government has an inscription that reads:  “United States of America”.  This seal is commonly impressed to court summons, judicial decisions; diplomatic correspondences, and in all official communications emanating from any branch of the US government.  These official documents may contain errors in certain cases, but they are official nevertheless.  The issuing office usually rectifies any error in the form of revocation, amendments, addendum, cancellation, etc.  For a US citizen to ignore a court summon with the seal of the US government would be tantamount to contempt of court, which is a criminal offense!

What God is saying in Haggai 2:23 is that His Government has a seal.  Have we realized that?  Where would God attach this seal?  To His Government’s OFFICIAL documents, of course! We are all agreed that the Zerubbabel “in that day” is Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong in our day.  Like that of the US government’s seal, God’s government’s seal has an inscription, and that is: “Herbert W. Armstrong”.  Therefore all documents carrying the name of Herbert W. Armstrong are God’s official documents.  Yet many of us question, even refute the validity of those documents issued by God through HWA, particularly the 18+1 restored truths. WHO ARE WE to question the contents of God’s official documents?  Questioning them in our mind is lack of respect and a form of contempt for our God, which if not checked, could lead to the next offense, and that is, insubordination.

Vashti was careless. HWA taught us that “action follows thought”.  Queen Vashti, however, seemed to have been thoughtless, i.e., she was not mindful of her husband’s sensitivities.  She was therefore careless. HWA had many times associated being careless with being lukewarm, the identifying Laodicean trait.  Here is a quote from HWA Personal in the Good News of Tomorrow’s World, 1971, CD version: 

“It is a DANGEROUS thing for a truly converted Christian to grow lukewarm and careless (underscoring supplied), and become a “passive” Christian. Perhaps most have temporary lapses in spiritual progress. But as soon as you “wake up” to such a lapse, REPENT IMMEDIATELY and seek God with your whole heart, for a CLOSER, more active spiritual walk with Him.”

Comments:  We cannot “walk” with Christ and be His wife if we are not mindful of His sensitivities.  Queen Vashti’s careless action resulted in her husband’s loss of face before the entire nobility in his kingdom. Lesson 2 for the wife of Christ: “Whatsoever your hand finds to do, do it with your might” (Eccl.9:10).  To be a queen is serious business.  A queen therefore cannot afford to be careless. Christ obviously cannot marry the likes of Queen Vashti. The betrothed wife of Christ must realize that she is treading in the Holy of holies of the Temple where no other humans were privileged to have access.  There she cannot afford to be careless. God killed the priests who thoughtlessly brought strange fire into the Temple furnace.   We are pre-destined to become priests.

Vashti could have been “not in the mood”.   Another factor that could disqualify us from becoming the wife of Christ is emotional immaturity.  An emotionally immature person is very vulnerable and susceptible to committing mistakes.  “He that has no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls” (Prov.25:28).  Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn, was disinherited of the birthright because he was “unstable as water” (Gen.49:3).  Reuben could not contain his sexual urge and “defiled his father’s bed” by engaging in illicit sex with Bilhah, his father’s concubine.  He was emotionally immature. A weak nation, the tribe of Reuben eventually lost its identity after getting absorbed into a foreign tribe, the Chaldeans in Europe, mostly in France. There, true to God’s pronouncements for disobedience, the Reubenites became the “tail”.

Moodiness is emotional immaturity.    The wife of Christ cannot afford to be emotionally immature. Lesson 3 therefore should be: “Learn to rein in your emotions”.   Here is what Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong wrote on the subject in his Personal in the Good News of March 1971:

“Just WHAT IS emotional maturity? One author defines it this way: development from a state of TAKING to a state of GIVING AND SHARING. There’s also a spiritual principle involved — development from natural impulses and responses of human nature to the principle of loving one’s neighbor as himself. Few realize it’s a recipe for happiness. It is something that must be learned — by the MIND — and developed by self-discipline. As I said, it’s something you were not born with…[F]rom babyhood, all humans are actuated more or less by their emotions. Emotions are FEELINGS — disturbances — departures from a calm state of rational right thinking and acting. Emotion is an IMPULSE toward action or expression of feeling, unapproved — unless taught and controlled otherwise — by the mind. Among the emotions are such feelings or expressions as fear, anger, resentment, jealousy, hatred, grief, sorrow, surprise, desire, elation, joy.     

Emotions have a first-cousin — our moods. The emotionally immature usually are moody, and have not learned to control their moods.  (underscoring supplied)

      …Man was put on earth to develop …spiritual CHARACTER — to become like the Supreme GOD. This all comes through the marvelous human MIND…Not only spiritual development, but also emotional maturity is developed through the MIND. It comes by right knowledge, creative thinking, right decisions, the use of will, self-discipline.  To rightly direct his actions is man’s purpose in life”.  

   “…One is not really mature until emotionally and spiritually grown up, as well as physically and mentally…[E]motional maturity does NOT mean emotion-LESS maturity. The truly emotionally mature CONTROL the emotions. THEY DO NOT ANESTHETIZE THEM! They DO express, at the right time, and in proper degree, enthusiasm, happiness, joy. They DO feel deep gratitude for blessings, and also they deeply FEEL reverence, adoration, in the worship of God. They sincerely feel compassion toward others — a feeling of true outgoing concern. They express sympathy and have mercy.

 Emotional maturity does not crucify emotions — it controls and guides them with right knowledge and true wisdom.

 Emotional maturity develops hand-in-hand with physical, mental and spiritual growth — the four blending, finally, into the perfect spiritual character which is the true human destiny and the very purpose of life. It can bring very great and rewarding and lasting happiness.

 …[L]et me describe the three categories into which people generally, and thoughtlessly, fall….     First, many, especially those of lesser education, let themselves go to an emotional extreme. They are mere babes, emotionally…They are upset over trifles. Their tempers fly, uncontrolled. They flatter, they gush, they exaggerate their compliments and their praise of others. They gossip, they slander, they speak evil of others behind their backs. They continually FEEL jealousy, resentment, or excessive jubilation…

 Then there are those who go to the opposite extreme. Often these are the intellectuals, and the highly educated — though usually MIS-educated. They have controlled emotions with their minds to the extent that their emotions have been stifled and put to death. They no longer feel deeply about anything. They are utterly devoid of real sincerity, any depth of gratitude, any feeling of compassion or real sympathy. Their emotions never grew up to maturity — their emotions DIED in infancy.

 Then there is the middle ground, equally unprofitable and tragic. These are those who neither choke off their emotions with mental control, nor exert energy generating them. They are just listless — indifferent. They feel no purpose in life. They have no ambition. They have no spark. They do not radiate — they are like dead fish. In an introduction to another, they extend a cold, clammy, sweaty hand with no grip whatever. They merely let YOU grip THEIR hand — and it’s like taking hold of a damp, dead fish. They have no personality. They are nonentities. There isn’t enough life in them to generate any noticeable emotional response.

WHICH of these three are YOU? If you are any one of them, you are wrong.”  End of quote

Wife should “read” her husband’s mind. If we are Christ’s wife-to-be, then we should be able to “read between the lines” of His pronouncements. Can we do that?  If we can, then we are at-one with our Husband.  If we cannot, then we have to exert more efforts to know him, NOW because time is short, by studying more of his written words.  Consider God’s statement in Isa.55:8: “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are my ways your ways”.  What can we “read” in this statement?  God simply wants His thoughts to be our thoughts and His ways our ways!  And that leads to lesson 4 for the wife of Christ:  “Study to show yourself approved unto God…rightly dividing the word of truth” (2Tim.2:15).

Brethren, we should rejoice because our salvation is so near and the reward soooo dazzling! “No eyes have seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him” (1Cor.2:9, NIV). The position of Queen Vashti provides only a slight glimpse of that. Yet, for losing a temporary royal title, Queen Vashti must have wept and gnashed her teeth after her demotion. 

Next issue:  Esther becomes Queen. Queen Vashti’s story is clearly an example of how NOT to be a wife to a King of kings.  Let’s learn from Esther how to be one. Read Part 2 here.

(We will continue to print articles from the now defunct The Eagles for the benefit of the brethren.)

Elect’s Gathering Unto Christ

-by Brod Andy and Brod Belo-

Will God’s people, the called out ones of this world, ever come together again? Today there are more than three hundred (300) churches of God that sprang out of the former Worldwide Church of God (WCG). There could be more if those without official recognition by government authorities shall be included. Is there a possibility they can be together again as one people? How and who will gather or cause them to come together? If a church leader or a group comes out proclaiming that Christ is using them to gather God’s people together shall we believe them?  In our time of highly-advanced information and communication technology that allows speedy and massive free flow of information it is crucial that we know when and how God’s people will be gathered together.

Be Not Deceived

Deception was the very first thing that our Lord Jesus Christ warned of his disciples when he was in the flesh preaching the gospel of the coming kingdom of God (Matt. 24:4). He was seriously concerned the disciples might be deceived into following another Christ apart from him. True enough, it didn’t take long and deception immediately came in after he was resurrected and returned to the Father in heaven. The apostle Paul lamented of this deception when he wrote the following in his letter to the Galatians:

Gal 1:6-9  I marvel that you are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:  (7)  Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.  (8)  But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.  (9)  As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that you have received, let him be accursed.

Today deception is still the number one thing God’s people must be wary about to make it to the kingdom of God. Deception could come in various forms from different sources. But the worst and most dangerous could come from church leaders out to gather a following for themselves. The apostle Paul warned of this happening once he would pass away.

Act 20:28-31 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost has made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he has purchased with his own blood.  (29)  For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.  (30)  Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.  (31)  Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.

These leaders would twist plain scriptures or well established doctrines in the church and peddle them as new revelation from Christ.  As an example, there is a now a newly formed group, which splits from its mother church recently, claiming that it is “the stone that was cut out of the mountain without hands” mentioned by the prophet Daniel (Dan. 2:34, 45). Styling their group not as a church but a mere foundation, they claim that God is using “them“ as “the stone that will break up the Great Image in the dream of king Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. 2:1, 31) and cause it to be pulverized into fine powder until it disappears like dust in the air.” Interestingly or rather amusingly, it claims that its mother church is “the Great Whore” of the book of Revelation that is symbolized by the great image of Daniel 2. Of course this is not true. Old time former members of the WCG who remain faithful to the truth know that the great image of Daniel 2 represents the governments or kingdoms of this world that Christ (the stone cut without hands) will soon overthrow and destroy (Rev. 19:11-21). They know that the great whore is that great religious organization (Rev. 17:1, 18) that is very much into the politics of this world to influence how sovereign states and their governments should behave in dealing with their people and with each other. How the leader or leaders of this new group came to the idea that their group is the stone cut without hands and its mother church, the great image of Daniel 2 and the great whore of the book of Revelation only makes one wonder in disbelief. They have totally forgotten what they have learned from the end time apostle Herbert W. Armstrong (HWA) about the image in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. This group just came out from one deception to another. Its mother church also deludes itself into believing that its leader is “That prophet” (John 1:21, 25; 6:140), a title that belongs exclusively to our Lord Jesus Christ. What is lamentable is the fact that they were once established in the truth and then not anymore. They have become lukewarm to the truth.

God’s Church in Prophecy

What happened to the WCG – split, splintered and divided many times over after the death of its pastor general HWA only shows that the church that he led was God’s church indeed. All that happened to it was in accordance with prophecy that must be fulfilled in the church in the end-time. The founder of the church no less, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, prophesied of this when he went out and departed from the temple that was in Jerusalem during that time.

Mat 24:1-2  And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to show him the buildings of the temple.  (2)  And Jesus said unto them, See you not all these things? Verily I say unto you, there shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.

Jesus Christ prophesied of the destruction of the physical Temple in Jerusalem which historically took place in 70 AD during the Jewish-Roman war. But spiritually, this prophecy is for our time now in the day of the Lord, just before Christ’s visible and glorious coming to gather the elect out of the current spiritual confusion among the churches of God. At the precise time, four (4) years after the death of HWA in 1986, when his successor abandoned the truth in favor of this world’s deceived Christianity, Jesus Christ went out and departed from the church (spiritual temple) and watched the scattering of every lively stone (church membership) away from the mother church to various daughter churches that have subsequently formed. One such daughter church is the Philadelphia Church of God (PCG) which showed all the accouterments of a worldwide organization after the disintegration of the WCG thus making it the most likely holder of the 7th candlestick symbolizing the Church of the Laodiceans (Reve3:14).

From this church came out the group which claims to be the stone cut without hands. Jesus Christ initially ignited this church to warn the 6th candlestick church (WCG) membership under a new leadership to “hold that fast which you have” (Rev. 3:11) as it was “falling away” from the truth under a new set of ministry directed by and under, as the PCG puts it, “the man of sin” referring to 2 Thess. 2:3-4 (Chapter 6, “Malachi’s Message to God’s Church Today” published in 1990).  As a result, not a few members went out of the WCG and joined the PCG.  From among them are those who now constitute another group, the Church of God’s Faithful (CGF), a group which has claimed to have new truths and that the day of the Lord has already come. However, just like the PCG, this group has also become lukewarm to the truth. It has refused to correct errors in some doctrines that it teaches and instead, unfairly accuses of sowing division and benefiting from the funds collected from the brethren someone who brought errors to its attention.

Meanwhile the WCG continued to unravel itself until it became just one of those evangelical churches of this world devoid of all the truths it once held dear. It has adopted Grace Communion International (GCI) as its new name, thus erasing the name of God which owns it, abandoned Sabbath day observance and returned to Christmas celebration and other religious practices of dubious origins and not prescribed in the Bible. Meanwhile, WCG’s other spinoffs continue to split and splinter further to various smaller groups due to their deceived leaders who are deluded into believing that they can do a greater and better work than what Jesus Christ already did through HWA in preaching the gospel throughout the world for a witness to all nations (Matt. 24:14).

Fallen Away and Scattered Before the Gathering

Gathering of people presupposes a scattered state or condition or the people. We don’t gather people who are already formed into a group, united with a set of beliefs and bonded with the same hopes and aspirations. As stated above, there are more than 300 churches of God that came out of the now defunct WCG. Most of them have the name of God attached to their corporate names and have structured ministries but are being led by self-proclaimed leaders.  As may be gleaned from their websites, some of them have created their own sacred calendars and set their own feast days completely rejecting what Jesus Christ had already established in the church through the end-time Elijah HWA. A few are vigorously competing against the others in preaching the gospel (which was already done by HWA) and calling for more supporters and followers to their cause. But God laments at what they are doing.

Isa 1:12-14  (KJV, God dressing down his people) When you come to appear before me, who has required this at your hand, to tread my courts?  (13)  Bring no more vain (useless)oblations (offerings); incense (symbolic of prayer) is an abomination unto me; the new moons and Sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot bear with; it is iniquity (lawlessness – not God-prescribed), even the solemn meeting.  (14)  Your (not God’s) new moons and your (not God’s) appointed feasts my soul hates: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.

These mini-churches may have overlapping beliefs and common objectives but they just can’t seem to have the desire or willingness to come together and unite. This is the condition of God’s people today: Spiritually scattered, not having true leadership, competing against each other in promoting their brand of religion and unable to perceive which group Christ works with after the falling away. This does not reflect well on the ministers whose primary responsibility is to keep the flock of Christ united in the faith and strongly grounded in the truth. However, this is all in accordance with prophecy to be fulfilled just before Christ visible coming.

The apostle Paul strongly warned us not to be “shaken in mind, or be troubled” for the sake of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and for the sake of our gathering unto him because deception and falling away would occur first and the man of sin revealed before Christ comes. And it did.

2Th 2:1-3  Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,  (2)  That you be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.  (3)  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

This happened after HWA died and his successor changed the many long established doctrines in the Church of God in favor of Biblically unfounded doctrines of men. Due to this falling away, God’s people today are scattered as never before into various splits and splinter groups. 

This splintering is symptomatic of something – it means the members are looking for something which their present group could not supply.  The members then would try to cut short this quest by forming a new group, but in so doing, they also could fall into the same trap – i.e., they themselves could become instruments of deception.  This trend has obviously become a vicious cycle, something that keeps repeating.

2Tim 3:13 (KJV) But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

It is obvious by now that none of the “self-styled” leaders in every splinter group can fill the shoes of our first teacher Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong.  All of them would start with feigned adherence to HWA’s teachings only to prove unfaithful later on.  Our dilemma therefore is, what do we do when we begin to notice our respective leaders deviating from the original teachings of the Church of God?  It may not happen all at once, but any little deviation is a step to the wrong direction. 

To break this vicious cycle, Paul had one admonition conveyed through Timothy:

2Tim 3:14 But continue you in the things which you have learned and have been assured of, knowing of whom (of HWA in our case) you have learned [them];

It is not yet late to review, and to hold fast the things that we have been taught by God’s true ministers during the days of Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong.  Paul himself was not remiss in giving admonitions which sounded more relevant to us than to his converts:

2The 2:15 (KJV) Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which you have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.

Darby’s translation is clearer:

2The 2:15 (DBY) So then, brethren, stand firm, and hold fast the INSTRUCTIONS which you have been taught, whether by word or by our letter.

Christ, Paul’s supervisor, issued exactly the same admonition given by his apostle:

Reve 3:11 (KJV, Christ speaking) Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which you have (been taught), that no man take your crown.

While on the subject, we noticed one splinter group had compacted Christ’s and Paul’s admonitions into one phrase saying “hold fast to all things”.  We find this “new” admonition as nonsensical if not ludicrous.  We should hold fast only the instructions, not things, that God’s true servants had taught, contained basically in Mr. Armstrong’s restored truths.

We thought it is time for us to take stock of our situation and get ourselves ready.  Reviewing the parable of the ten virgins should be a good starting point:

Matt 25:1 (KJV) Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. 2 And five of them were wise, and five [were] foolish. 3 They that [were] foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: 4 But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5 While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. 6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom comes; go you out to meet him. 7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. 9 But the wise answered, saying, [Not so]; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go you rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. 10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and THEY THAT WERE READY went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. 11 Afterwards came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. 12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.

In a 40-year period of spiritual night that started in1989 we are now past the midnight. There was a cry made beginning 2007 until 2014 (The Midnight Cry! booklet and The Midnight Cry e-magazine of urgent understanding) declaring that the Bridegroom has already come (invisibly) but sadly these have been largely ignored. Today the glorious and visible coming of Christ the Bridegroom is imminent and now is the last time to get ready to meet him. Those who are not able to make ready in time will only have the great tribulation as their last chance. It would be a painful suffering and martyrdom (rev.6:9-11)!  

Oil is symbolic of the Holy Spirit.  Below is a quote from the article “What is the Laodicean Church” by Mr. Leroy Neff printed in The Good News August 1959 issue:

“The five foolish took no extra oil with them.  There was no repentance — no change.  Their lamps were GOING out. (The King James Version inaccurately reads “GONE out.”  See the Greek text or any modern translation.)  Oil is typical of the Holy Spirit of God and they did not have enough of this Spirit.” (End of quote)

Christ’s words are THAT spirit which the foolish virgins needed: 

John 6:63 (KJV, Christ speaking) It is the spirit that quickens; the flesh profits nothing: the words that I speak unto you, [they] are spirit, and [they] are life.

Christ’s words are in the Bible.  The five foolish virgins therefore have failed to study the Bible more intensively.

So, to answer our question at the outset on when and how God’s people will be gathered, clearly, we will indeed be gathered when Christ returns but, sadly, some of us may not be qualified to be there.  This is probably not the conclusion that you wanted to hear.  You would probably have wanted to hear scriptures like 1Thes 4:17 showing how we would rise up in the clouds to meet the returning Christ and be with him for eternity. 

We don’t want to give you false hopes.   

Perhaps we should annotate 1Thes 4:17 to awaken all daydreaming foolish virgins among us:

1The 4:17 (KJV, Paul speaking) Then we which are alive [and] remain (IF WE ARE WISE) shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

From all indications, only the wise virgins would rise up to meet the returning Christ.

However, we need not be counted among the foolish virgins if we will take heed of Isaiah’s admonition starting NOW:

Isai 55:6 (KJV) Seek you the LORD while he may be found, call you upon him while he is near: 7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man (forsake) his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Like a wise virgin, now is the time to fill up our vessels with oil.  As candidate Bride of Christ, now is the time to “get ready” in earnest.  Now is the time to seek the LORD by learning his ways and forsaking our own evils ways.

We will continue to provide our readers with articles describing God’s ways in detail.

In conclusion, our True or False Questions in this website is designed as a review course for those seeking to fill up their vessels with oil.■

Links to articles (True or False Questions):

  1. Here’s Why Jesus Christ Was and is God Before and After His Earthly Life
  2. Question no. 2. True or False: Jesus Christ is the Focus of Our Worship and Faith
  3. Question no. 3. True or False: Christ did humanitarian work on Sabbath days