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June 1999
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This is our June cover
Do we see "the
signs of the times"? Is the handwriting on the wall? Mr. Tkach asks in this month's
Personal.
"Mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days" (2 Tim. 3:1). And what do we see now? America at war. Shootings in our schools. Disasters in the weather.
We are living in the last days!--and we have been for almost 2,000 years. The last days, said Peter, were already here (Acts 2:16-17).
Our responsibility before God does not change with the times: Our job is to preach the gospel, to preach repentance and forgiveness, to teach those who believe, and to worship God. Pages 6 and 7.
The Bible teaches
that the Ten Commandments have been superseded by something far more glorious--something
that God had planned from the very beginning would one day outshine completely the Law he
gave to Israel, writes Mike Feazell, director of denominational publications.
"Whoa! Just a minute! So what are you saying, then? We can just go out and commit adultery, or kill, or steal?" No, of course not.
What the Bible teaches is that the Law (the Torah), the whole Law, including the Ten Commandments, was given to Israel for a specific period of time--the time from their encounter with God on Sinai until the coming of Jesus the Messiah.
Once Jesus came, a new law came in--the law of Christ. It was a new covenant relationship, or arrangement, between God and humans, and it was not restricted to the Israelites. It was a covenant with all people.
When this "new deal" came in, the "old deal" expired. Pages 8 to 11.
More than half the
world's population lives in Asia and the South Pacific, a region where WCG activities are
largely administered from the Australian Office.
Scattered across this vast area are about two dozen congregations. They are pastored by six full- time pastors, as well as being served by lay and ordained local leaders--often in difficult circumstances, according to regional director Rod Matthews.
"Christianity is a persecuted faith in a number of Asian nations and a minority one in nearly all," Mr. Matthews said.
"And yet there is a growing interest in Christianity. We feel a great responsibility to find ways to share Christian teaching with the peoples of Asia. We have been blessed to have built up a number of congregations made up of deeply committed men and women God has called to live and share the gospel in this part of the world."
Mr. Matthews said that the regional office has agreed to focus more resources in Asia. "We want to to enable our churches in Asia to reach out into their communities with the hope of the gospel," he explained. Pages 14 and 15.
Regular daily
mail donations are down almost 11 percent below our budgeted expenses for the first four
months of the year--that is $1.2 million less than planned-for income, writes controller
Ronald Kelly.
That's a major concern for the present, but also an even greater concern for the remainder of the year. At this rate of declining income, we could receive $3 million less in donations than our departments need to meet budget.
As I have explained in previous Worldwide News articles, the only way we now have to match our donation income with budgeted expenses is to terminate employees, including salaried church pastors. Page 18.
By Thomas C. Hanson
AZUSA, California--The Ambassador Center at Azusa Pacific University has its first graduates as Amy Carlson, Aileen Holder, Anne Gerrard and John Putterman received their bachelor's degrees at commencement exercises May 1.
Amy and John are entering the graduate school to pursue master's degrees.
Amy said that "Christ has been so evident on this campus," and she encouraged young people to consider attending there. Anne Gerrard said that APU is "definitely a place for a young Christian to grow."
The Ambassador Center was formed at APU in 1997 to offer a Christ-centered educational opportunity at an accredited institution for WCG youths after Ambassador University closed.
Russell Duke, Ambassador Center director, reported that 19 WCG students attended APU last school year, and that 23 students will attend this fall. Two more students will join the undergraduate program in the spring.
Pastor General Joseph Tkach told WCG pastors: "I pray that you will encourage all talented youths in your areas to consider the Ambassador Center at APU."
The Ambassador Center conducted a graduation banquet on the APU campus April 24.
Dr. Duke introduced the students and was master of ceremonies. Gayle Beebe, dean of the Haggard School of Theology, welcome the group and challenged them to use the WCG transformation experience to enhance the kingdom work of the church.
Jon Wallace, APU executive vice president, called for the students to be prepared to face the world and serve the Lord.
Finally, J. Michael Feazell, director of denominational publications, spoke about the WCG journey, which led to its partnership with APU.
For more information about the Ambassador Center, call 1-626-815-3874, send e-mail to acenter@apu.edu or write to the Ambassador Center, Azusa Pacific University, 901 E. Alosta Ave., P.O. Box 7000, Azusa, California, 91702-7000. The APU Internet website is www.apu.edu, and the Ambassador Center has a website at www.wcg.org/acenter
1999 GRADUATES--The first Ambassador Center graduates are
from left: Aileen Holder, Anne Gerrard, Amy Carlson and
John Putterman. [Photos by Thomas C. Hanson]
VIDEO--John Putterman (right) is interviewed by
Tony Murphy for Festival video.
BANQUET--J. Michael Feazell speaks to graduates and guests April 24.
[Photo by Russell Duke]
COMMENCEMENT--Ceremony takes place on APU football field.
Inset photo: Commencement speaker Greg Laurie, senior pastor of
Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California.
My mother's parents became members of the WCG in about the mid-'80s and I myself became a Christian in 1993. In my understanding at the time, the WCG was heretical.
Then, in about 1995, when I was responding to an e-mail on a message board about your church, I advised the person not to attend on the basis of your old doctrinal system. I then received an e-mail from a member of the WCG stating that I was emphatically wrong, that the church did not hold to those teachings anymore.
I checked out the website and sent off for a doctrinal statement from the WCG and even received some copies of the magazine. I rejoiced!
I just read your book, Transformed by Truth. I found it insightful and deeply encouraging and have been praying for you, the leadership and your members in your new path in Christ.
I praise God for what has happened in your church, and I know that he who began a good work will and is faithful to finish it.
May he be praised! Be encouraged and never lose heart, for every angry or threatening letter you get, just know (I'm sure) that there are even more whom the Lord has moved to pray for you and who rejoice in what has happened.
Name withheld
In the April WN I read the article, "Short-term Mission--Project or Process," by Randal Dick and Tonia Weik. I am encouraged and inspired with how God is using his army to proclaim the gospel to the world.
We can all participate in the mission field. My mission field for many years has been a prison environment and extends to society.
I am also learning a second language in preparing for release soon, so that God may continue to use me overseas to proclaim the gospel. What is your mission field?
By the grace of God, thanks to all those who have included me in their mission field over the years. I love each and every one of you.
Karl M. Klett
Marion, Ohio
April was child abuse prevention month. As a parent, early on I was too controlling and rigid. I paid dearly for years. Now, however, the breach is being repaired through grace--that wonderful unconditional love that God has shown my husband and me. I feel we have just now begun our personal walk with Jesus.
My advice to all parents: listen to your children, even if they question your beliefs and disagree. Questions and disagreements can lead to growth and change and a happier family life.
M.D.
Colorado
Randy
and Debbie Bloom serve the Memphis, Tennessee, district.
They have two children: Lisa, 19, a sophomore at Rhodes College in Memphis, and Ryan, 16.
Randy and Debbie graduated from Ambassador College in 1975. After serving for a year as a ministerial trainee in Atlanta, Georgia, Randy worked as a sales representative for Huttig Sash and Door Co. for eight years.
Since 1984 Randy has worked for the church in Atlanta; Somerset, Kentucky; and Syracuse and Utica, New York. In 1998 the Blooms were transferred to Memphis and Jackson, Tennessee.
The Memphis district encompasses parts of Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas. Randy has a master of religion degree from Liberty University. Debbie works for S/G Industries as an account executive.
The following pastors, wives and congregations are in the Memphis district:
Pine Bluff, Arkansas: Oliver and Yvonne Baker
Jonesboro, Arkansas: Ray and Amy Gardner
Sherwood, Arkansas: Gene and Nancy Griffin
Greenwood, Mississippi: Errol and Sue Castens and John and Josie Mae Ross
Columbus, Mississippi: Jerry and Phyllis King and C.A. and Lawana Schultz
Tupelo, Mississippi: Michael Lampley and Danny and Marthe Thomas
Batesville, Arkansas: Jeff and Tammy Noordhoek and Jim and Cindy Noordhoek
Hot Springs, Arkansas: Jimmie and Gracie Reed
Mountain Home, Arkansas: Paul and Pamela Sloan
Little Rock and Beebe, Arkansas: Leon and Janie Steele
Jackson, Tennessee: Wayne and Bonita Wendt
Steve
Botha is the district superintendent for the New York, New York, district. He was given
this duty by the late Joseph W. Tkach in 1993.
The district encompasses part of New York state, central and northern New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island and southern Massachusetts.
In addition, Steve pastors the Brooklyn and Valhalla, New York, congregations. He also directs a regional youth camp each summer.
Steve and his wife, Harlean, celebrate their 30th anniversary June 15. They have one daughter, Debbie, who is married to Tom Ryan, and one grandchild, Conor Botha Ryan.
The Bothas have served the following congregations: Leeds, England; Edmonton, Alberta; Halifax, Digby and Sydney, Nova Scotia; Saint John, Fredericton and Moncton, New Brunswick; St. John's, Newfoundland; and Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada; Charleston, Parkersburg, Huntington and Logan, West Virginia; and Manhattan and Westchester, New York.
Steve, originally from South Africa, met Harlean, who is an American, at the former Bricket Wood campus of Ambassador College. Steve graduated in 1968 and Harlean in 1969.
Steve is enrolled in the clinical pastoral education program at Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla. He also conducts a monthly worship service at the medical center.
Harlean has a bachelor's degree in American history and a master's degree in public administration from Pace University. She is the office manager for the radiology department at a community hospital.
The following pastors, assistant pastors, wives and congregations are in the New York district:
Brick, New Jersey: John Adams
Bridgeport, Connecticut: Dale and Sybil Martin
Brooklyn, New York: Steve and Harlean Botha
Long Island, New York: Stanley and Jean Marie DeVeaux
Manhattan, New York: Jeffrey and Karen Broadnax, and Ernest and Erskileena Owens
Meriden, Connecticut: Joel and Karen Rissinger
Middletown, New York: Daniel and Alice Bierer
Montvale, New Jersey: Daniel and Alice Bierer
Norwich, Connecticut: Dennis and Lorraine Pelley
Providence, Rhode Island: Dennis and Lorraine Pelley
Union, New Jersey: John Adams and Anthony and Carol Caputo
Valhalla, New York: Steve and Harlean Botha
Westchester, New York: Jeffrey and Karen Broadnax
Personal from
Joseph TkachDo we see "the signs of the times"? Is the handwriting on the wall?
"Mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days" (2 Tim. 3:1). And what do we see now? America at war. Shootings in our schools. Disasters in the weather.
Is it all coming to a climax? Will World War III soon be upon us, or will Y2K crumble our civilization into chaos?
We are living in the last days!--and we have been for almost 2,000 years. The last days, said Peter, were already here (Acts 2:16-17).
"In these last days," we are told in Hebrews 1:2, "God has spoken to us by his Son." The last days began with Jesus Christ! When Paul told Timothy about the last days, he was not so much predicting the future as describing his own day. He was telling Timothy what kind of world he lived in.
Wars have always been with us. Natural disasters have plagued humanity for millennia. Societies have been breaking down, and violence has been erupting, for centuries.
"You will hear of wars and rumors of wars," Jesus said, "but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come" (Matt. 24:6).
There will be famines and disasters, but those are only the beginning of problems. There will be persecutions, and there will be predictions. People will say, It is just around the corner, but do not believe it. Do not be alarmed. Just persevere. Just do the job set before you.
Someday, the end will indeed come. But rumors about the end have been greatly exaggerated. If the Y2K computer problem is a disaster, which is far from certain, I do not believe it will be the last one.
The world has had many disasters since the last days began nearly 2,000 years ago, and I am sure that there will be many more. God can end the world whenever he wants to, and I will be happy for the great day to come, but I do not see any biblical proof that it will be very soon.
Frankly, we need faith and hope whether or not there is a war, whether or not the end is near. We need faith and zeal no matter how evil the days are, no matter how many disasters strike near us.
Our responsibility before God does not change with the times: Our job is to preach the gospel, to preach repentance and forgiveness, to teach those who believe, and to worship God.
When we survey the world scene, we may see disasters in Africa, Asia, Europe and America. Or, if we look with slightly different eyes, we may see fields white and ready for harvest.
There is work to be done, as long as it is day. There is work to be done. That is why I am disappointed that our income is under our budget, yet I am also determined that the work must go on no matter what. We will do the best we can with what we have, even if it means major cutbacks, and we urge people to join us in "the work."
Jesus calls us to perseverance, to running with patience the race set before us. Paul likewise speaks of the end, when the children of God will be revealed, when all creation will be liberated from bondage (Rom. 8:19-21).
How then do we live? "We groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for ... the redemption of our bodies" (v. 23). We are eager for the travails of this world to be over, but we are also patient (v. 25).
Peter gives the same outlook. He also waited for the day of the Lord, when the elements will be destroyed (2 Pet. 3:10).
What advice does he give us? "You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God" (vs. 11-12). That is our responsibility day in and day out. We are called to live holy lives, not to make predictions the Bible does not authorize us to make. We are to be faithful in our daily lives.
Nevertheless, in the last days there will be people with a veneer of godliness but denying the power of Jesus Christ. There will be people who deceive and are deceived, people who proclaim the end is near. Do not be alarmed; do not be deceived. Simply do what God has been telling his church to do for nearly 2,000 years: worship, teach and preach.
God will take care of the timetable--our job is to be found faithfully working, whenever the end happens to come. Correct predictions don't count for anything on the day of judgment--only faithfulness will be rewarded.
Nevertheless, some people seem anxious for the end to come. They would do well to heed the words of Isaiah: "Woe to those ... who say, `Let God hurry, let him hasten his work so we may see it. Let it approach, let the plan of the Holy One of Israel come, so we may know it.' ... Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight" (Isa. 5:18-21).
It is interesting that the prophecy speculators often mix nationalism in with their prophecies. They are interested in the welfare of America specifically, as if Americans are in greater need of repentance than the Chinese are.
They want national repentance so that God will "heal this land" and they can therefore live in peace and safety. Many of them assume that if America obeys God, then we will reap the blessings God promised to ancient Israel.
Repentance is a good thing, of course. It is good to have peace and safety, and I would enjoy such blessings just as much as anybody else. But I wonder about the propriety of wanting other people to repent so that we can enjoy the blessings.
Does not repentance begin at home, beginning with our personal self-centeredness? Shouldn't spiritual blessings for others be a greater incentive for us to want them to turn to God? Didn't Jesus tell us to be concerned about all nations, not just our own?
In this fallen world, God allows natural disasters, sins and evils. He also causes the sun to shine and the rain to fall on the good as well as the bad. As both Job and Jesus show, he also allows evil to fall upon the righteous. This is the way God allows the world to function.
For the ancient nation of Israel, under a special covenant, God promised that if the nation was obedient, he would prevent the natural disasters that normally fall upon both the wicked and the righteous.
He did not give that guarantee to other nations, nor did he say that other nations could elect themselves to a position of most-favored nation in his sight. Modern nations cannot claim as promises the blessings God offered specifically to Israel in a special covenant that is now obsolete.
The Bible makes no guarantees that even if all of America repents, that we will no longer have any troubles. The new covenant, the better covenant, offers spiritual life rather than guaranteeing physical blessings. By faith, we are to focus on the spiritual, not the physical.
Physical things are not wrong, of course, and God often does intervene in physical affairs to help us. But the new covenant does not make guarantees as to when and where he will do it. The new covenant calls us to faith despite the circumstances, to faithfulness despite persecution, to patience despite an eager longing for the better world that Jesus will bring.
Here is one more thought that may put prophecy into better perspective: Prophecy's greatest purpose is not to get us to focus on dates--it is so that we will "know the Lord."
Prophecy is to point us to Jesus, the best of all possible blessings. Once we have arrived at our destination, we no longer need to focus on the path that brought us to him.
Question: Some members are using the policy of providing for the worship needs of all the members as a shield for their practice of trying to declare that the Hebrew festivals are required for Christians. Is this what was intended?
Answer: Certainly not. Church doctrine is that neither Saturday keeping nor keeping the seven annual festivals are required for salvation.
It is one thing to prefer a day and to meet on that day and to respect one another's preferences (the principle in Romans 14); it is quite another thing to insist that a particular day is required for salvation. To meet on Saturday or Sunday, or to prefer Saturday or Sunday, is fine. But to teach others that Saturday or Sunday are required for salvation is contrary to church doctrine.
We need to understand and bear with one another's differences in these choices of days, but we are not to bear with false doctrine that is contrary to the gospel.
The church has changed its former error regarding a day being the sign of who is a true Christian, and it cannot permit that error to be perpetuated. Church policy in this matter is based on Jesus' command that we love one another. We can meet on either Sunday or Saturday or both, but we cannot hold up any teaching that a day defines the true Christian or is required for salvation.
Question: Shouldn't we uphold the seven annual festivals to other Christians as a special blessing that allows us to better understand Christ?
Answer: The Bible does not uphold the festivals as having any sort of extra or special value to Christians.
By J. Michael
Feazell
In our first two installments, we have seen that Jesus commands his people to love one another, that the day on which people worship is not what determines the validity of their conversion, and that Christians should not condemn one another over times chosen for worship.
We have also seen that Sabbath keeping cannot be added to the gospel as a requirement for salvation, that it is wise to follow the Bereans' example in how to approach new ideas, and that members who cause division in the church are to be removed from fellowship.
In part three, we will look at the apostle Paul's teaching about the Sinai Law that led to the Worldwide Church of God doctrinal changes on the Sabbath and holy days.
In December 1994, the Worldwide Church of God changed its doctrine on the seventh day Sabbath and the seven annual festivals of Leviticus 23.1
The church had believed and taught vigorously since its formation in 1933 that observance of the seventh day Sabbath and the seven annual holy days was required for Christians, and that true Christians were Sabbath keepers and holy day keepers.
The no-longer-published church booklet Which Day Is the Christian Sabbath? put it this way: "Assembling for worship on Sunday is nothing but the tradition of men--and a pagan tradition at that! Those who do so reject the Commandment of God, disobey God's Commandment to keep His Sabbath day holy, are guilty of committing sin, and such worship is utterly in vain! Jesus Christ said so!"2
The doctrine of the Sabbath and seven annual festivals had been at the core of the church's sense of identity, and for many members, its abandonment was devastating.
"How can we be the true church anymore?" many asked, because the church's sense of being the one and only body of true Christians on earth was based largely on the Sabbath and festivals doctrine.
Besides the call to proclaim the gospel, the church had felt an equal sense of mission to proclaim the Sabbath and holy day doctrine to the "falsely so-called Christians" of other Christian churches.
For the historical Worldwide Church of God, the gospel and the Sabbath could not be separated.
The basis for our belief that we should keep the seventh-day Sabbath was our belief that the Ten Commandments are binding on Christians.
Simply put, if the Ten Commandments are in force, then the Sabbath commandment is in force, and the Sabbath commandment is clear about the seventh day being the Sabbath.
Ironically, even many American Protestants have never given a second thought to whether the Ten Commandments are in force for Christians. They simply assume it to be true. It is not uncommon for Protestants to display the Ten Commandments on plaques on their walls or for their children to memorize them.
The idea that the Ten Commandments, written on tables of stone with the finger of God, are not binding on Christians would be considered scandalous.
Yet, when it comes to the fourth commandment, these same Christians must find a way around the commandment, a way to change the seventh day to something else.
There have been a couple of fairly popular ways of "explaining" the supposed Sabbath change. One is to interpret the commandment as referring to one day in seven, not necessarily any particular day.
Another is to say that the New Testament changed the Sabbath from the seventh day to the first day.
Neither of these two popular "explanations" holds any water, of course. The commandment is quite specific about the seventh day; the idea of merely "one in seven" simply is not there. And the Bible never even hints at changing the Sabbath from the seventh day to the first day.
We know that the Law is "holy, righteous and good" (Rom. 7:12), and we know that the Ten Commandments reflect the holy love of God. Yet, surprisingly for many Christians, the Bible teaches that the Ten Commandments have been superseded by something far more glorious--something that God planned from the very beginning would one day outshine completely the Law he gave to Israel.
"Whoa! Just a minute! So what are you saying, then? We can just go out and commit adultery, or kill, or steal?" No, of course not.
What the Bible teaches is that the Law (the Torah), the whole Law, including the Ten Commandments, was given to Israel, for a specific period of time--the time from their encounter with God on Sinai until the coming of Jesus the Messiah.
Once Jesus came, a new law came in--the law of Christ (1 Jn. 3:21-24). It was a new covenant relationship, or arrangement, between God and humans, and it was not restricted to the Israelites. It was a covenant with all people.
When this "new deal" came in, the "old deal" expired. From then on, God's kingdom was open to everybody, not just to one people. The first deal, or covenant, was a preparation, a setting of the stage you might say, for the real deal--the new covenant in the blood of Christ.
The first covenant was designed to be for Israel (Gal. 3:23-25), and it was temporary, until just the right moment came. Then God's plan for drawing humans into his kingdom went into high gear, and his own Son came to be one of us.
The Sinai covenant, standing as it does between the promise to Abraham and the coming of Christ, was never intended to last forever.
It was, rather, a vital phase in God's plan of fulfilling his promise to Abraham and to all who, like Abraham, live by faith (Gal. 3:7-9). In it, as in every covenant he has made with humans,3 is the bright reflection of God's character and love for his people--but the climax was yet to come.
When Jesus Christ arrived, according to God's promise and in God's due time (Gal. 4:4-5), humans were confronted with infinitely more than the reflection.
They were confronted with the actual character and heart of God in the person of his own Son (Heb. 1:1-3) and invited to enter his kingdom by putting their faith in him!
The Ten Commandments were given to Israel; Jesus Christ was given to the whole world.
The Sinai covenant was intended to shape the faith of the people of God until Messiah (Christ) would come.
Then, with his arrival, the Sinai covenant faded, just as God had planned from the beginning, and the "new covenant" (Matt. 26:28) in the blood of Christ began.
The time had come for those who would accept and believe the gospel to come under a new administration of the will of God, the administration of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:1-17).
From then on, by putting their confidence in Jesus Christ, God's people would be made righteous by God himself. God would change their hearts and forgive them (Heb. 8:7-13).
Many people are surprised to find that the Ten Commandments were given to Israel, and not to the rest of the world.
It is just commonly assumed among many Christians that the "Big Ten" were designed for all humans and especially for Christians. But the Bible is very plain about who are the recipients of the Sinai Law.
The last verse of the book of Leviticus sums it up this way: "These are the commandments the Lord gave Moses on Mount Sinai for the Israelites (Lev. 27:34).
Verse 46 of the previous chapter gives the same basic information: "These are the decrees, the laws and the regulations that the Lord established on Mount Sinai between himself and the Israelites through Moses."
These are definitely the commandments of God. But who are they for? They are for the ancient Israelites, given to them by God through Moses on Mount Sinai. They are Israel's part of the covenant God made with them.
In passages such as Deuteronomy 29:22-28 and 32:45-46 we find that the primary promise associated with God's covenant with ancient Israel was a promise of land. If Israel would keep the covenant, they would remain long in the land; if they abandoned the covenant, then they would lose the land.
Someone might ask, "But aren't the Ten Commandments separate from the covenant? Why are you including them in the covenant?"
To find the answer, let's go to Deuteronomy 4:13. As he was reminding the Israelites of the events of Sinai, Moses said, "He declared to you his covenant, the Ten Commandments, which he commanded you to follow and then wrote them on two stone tablets."
The passage in Deuteronomy 5:1-6 also makes plain that the Ten Commandments and the covenant are not separate. Far from being separate from the covenant, the Ten Commandments form the centerpiece of the covenant.
In 2 Corinthians 3:6-11, Paul draws an analogy between the covenant with Israel, written on tables of stone, and the covenant with believers, written on human hearts.
He wrote, "He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant--not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
"Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone [in reference to the Ten Commandments], came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?
"If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory.
"And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!" [For a more detailed look at this passage, see the Bible study on pages 25 and 26.]
What God did with the ancient Israelites was glorious. But God was not finished. From day one, he had even greater glory in mind.
When the time was right, God brought in something even more glorious, so much more glorious that it causes what he did with Israel to look faded by comparison.
That is because this new arrangement, which is really just the blossoming, or goal, or climax, or fulfillment of the first arrangement, takes into it all that the first arrangement was and goes exponentially further.
It becomes everything the first arrangement pointed toward but was purposely designed only to hint at.
Think of a tiny, hard gray seed that one day, when the time is right, produces a beautiful flower of radiant color, velvet texture and sweet fragrance, and you begin to get something of the idea.
What I called the "real deal" earlier, this "new covenant," started out as what we call the "old covenant."
You could, in a way, say there is only one covenant, really, but that it grew into something that anyone looking at it when it started could never have imagined it would become.
Only God knew exactly where it was headed, and he kept talking about it all through what we call the Old Testament.
The book of Hebrews gives us even more insight into this new arrangement.
Here we are told, "But the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, and it is founded on better promises" (Hebrews 8:6).
So we find that this new covenant, or this blossoming of the old, if you prefer, is superior and comes with better promises. The promises that came with the first covenant were promises of land. But the superior promises that come with this superior covenant are no less than eternal life.
The basis of this new arrangement is nothing less than the blood of the Son of God--something the old arrangement could not even imagine. "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Matthew 26:28).
God knew from the start that the people would fail. He knew they did not have what it takes to be a holy people. But they didn't know that. And in order for people to enter the kingdom of God, they must know their pitiful state and rely totally on the grace and mercy of God.
To come to Christ is to come to know that you need Christ. You may look good on the outside, even to inquiring human minds, but on the inside you, like all other people, are a sinner.
The Law of Moses, given at Sinai, served to openly condemn everybody as just what they really were in their hearts--rebels and sinners. But then Christ came, and the Sinai Law, having served its purpose, faded, and Christ began to shine with eternal light.
So if the Law faded, does that mean the Law is bad? Definitely not, Paul says. The Law is holy, righteous and good (Rom. 7:12).
But the Law was temporary (2 Cor. 3:11). It had a role to play, a role given it by God. It was in effect for a specific period of time for a specific people.
When Christ came, it was God's appointed time for the Sinai Law to step aside. "Christ is the end of the law," Paul wrote, "so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes" (Rom. 10:4).
When we say that Christ is the end of the Law, we don't mean that the Sinai Law was a bad thing that Christ came to destroy. That is not the point Paul is making.
Paul is making the point that God gave the Sinai Law for a specific time period for a specific purpose, and that purpose has now been fulfilled. He is saying that the Law was part of God's way of setting the stage for Christ to come. Now that Christ has come, the purpose of the Law has been fully served.
But what was the purpose of the Sinai Law? Paul says the Law came in so that sin could be made all the more evident (Rom. 5:20).
In other words, God gave the Law so that it could be made fully clear to everyone that his people were sinners. But that is not all. The gentiles, who did not have the Law, were also shown to be sinners by their own hearts and consciences on which God writes the requirements of the Law (Rom. 3:14-15).
There were two things going on at the same time with the Law. First, it was through the Law that God made his will known to the people he chose.
Second, and greater, along with the Law as well as in it, God made his promise known.
God knew that Israel, despite the unique advantage of being his special people, would show themselves hostile and rebellious to his will. (The same would have been true of any nation God might have chosen to be his people.)
God also knew his own promise of a grace to come, a promise that was greater than the Law in that it overcame the verdict of the Law.
The Law condemned, but the promise, being greater, brought about forgiveness and reconciliation through Christ, who died in the place of sinners (Rom. 5:15-17).
God himself, in Christ, bears the shame and death of humans resulting from their rebellion and unfaithfulness, as well as provides the obedience and faithfulness they need to be forgiven and saved.
In Christ, God is shown to be not the God of Israel only, but the God of all humans. The barriers of separation between Israel and gentiles are removed in Christ: both are clearly sinners and both are clearly redeemed. There is no more separation (Eph. 2:11-18).
And since there is no more separation, there is also no more need for the aspects of the Law that were designed to create separation: circumcision, the Sabbaths and the purity laws.
Paul frequently deals with circumcision, and especially so in his letter to the Galatians. There, in chapter 5:3, he points out that when gentiles are circumcised in accord with the Law, they are obligated to obey all of the Law. That is because circumcision was a sign of the covenant between God and Israel.
Likewise, the Sabbath was a sign between God and Israel (Ex. 31:13). The very fact that the Sabbath was a sign designating that Israel was God's special people shows that the Sabbath was not a command pertaining to gentiles.
Gentiles were not sinners for working on the Sabbath; the Sabbath never pertained to them. They were sinners because of malice, deceit, bitterness, murder, destruction and the like (Rom. 3:9-20).
The same is true of the purity laws. They were given to demonstrate the separation between Israel and the gentiles (Lev. 20:25-26), a separation that existed only until Jesus came.
That is why there was so much controversy in the early church over rules governing the Jews and gentiles eating together. Not only were the Jews under the strict dietary and washings rules of the Law, they would not even eat with gentiles in order to avoid ritual contamination.
It was over this issue of separation regarding purity laws that Paul rebuked Peter in the meal incident in Antioch (Gal. 2:11-16).
So where does that leave us? We are not under the Sinai Law (Rom. 6:14). Does that mean that we can sin freely? No, of course not, Paul says (v. 15). We have now been made one with Christ. We are now under his law (I Cor. 9:20-21), and we serve God in a new way--the way of the Spirit (Rom. 7:4-6).
Next month we will look at the relationship between the Law and the Spirit.
1. For study papers on the Sabbath and holy day doctrinal change, see the WCG website http://www.wcg.org/lit/law or phone 1-626-304-6140.
2. Herbert W. Armstrong, Which Day Is the Christian Sabbath? (Pasadena, California: Ambassador College Press), 1964, pp. 87-88.
3. God's covenants with humans in the Old Testament include that of Noah (Gen. 9:9-17), of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Gen. 15:18; 17:2-21; etc.), of Israel at Sinai (Ex. 19:5; 24:7), of Joshua and Israel (Josh. 24:25), of David (2 Sam. 7:1-17), and the prophesied covenant to come (Jer. 31:31).
Window on the World
From Randal Dick
Superintendent of Missions
It does no good to say you love the Papa if you disrespect the Mama!
These words still ring in my ears. I was attending a conference on the future of the church in the 21st century. One of the keynote speakers was talking about the alarming number of professing Christians today who think that they have a good relationship with Jesus, but have no respect, active involvement or support of the church.
He pierced many hearts in that room when he said: "You know, you can't love the Papa and reject the Mama. It doesn't work that way. Not in my house, probably not in your house and certainly not in God's house!"
He went on to convict us all that Christ knew from the outset that the church would have spots and wrinkles from time to time, but she is still his bride.
The church, as the bride of Christ, is an intimate part of his plans and actions.
Through her, God is carrying out an incredible rescue operation, which forms the story of the Bible, and is the focus of all history.
The sovereign King of kings proclaimed, "I will build my church." That's the clarion that the Holy Spirit is sounding louder and clearer each day. The local congregation was designed to be the instrument of planting, nurturing and harvesting wherever it may be. No local congregation, no disciples. No disciples, no local congregation.
That is the primary mission of the church--to proclaim the gospel of Christ and gather believers into local congregations where they can be built up in the faith and grow to be effective in service. They in turn are the nuclei of new congregations throughout the world.
Of course, many other important tasks are to be carried out by Christian believers both individually and corporately.
But few of these objectives will be realized unless new believers are being added to local congregations, unless new local congregations are being added to the worldwide church, and unless existing congregations are growing up into the fullness of him who is their Head.
Anywhere in the world--in any community of people without an accessible spiritual community, or local congregation, whether they live in North America or South Africa--people are victims in need of rescue. This is the vital importance of mission.
A saying goes: "Neither a missionless church nor a churchless mission are in accordance with the plan of God."
In order for a congregation to be effective, happy and fulfilled, it must be involved in doing what Christ said we should all be doing until he returns.
That means that every person in every congregation should in some way be involved in the great rescue operation of God. Many forms of involvement exist, but everyone should know that they are involved, and how their actions are contributing to the operation.
When this synergy exists, the local church is effective in its own community, yet will automatically have a worldwide view, not a terminal case of "localitis."
Conversely, a missionary operation has no mandate separate from the local church. The role of mission is to establish congregations accessible to people of a particular place or culture, who would not otherwise have access to the body of Christ.
Mission that is not focused on planting new congregations can, in the long run, do more harm than good. Hence local churches and mission are bound together and need each other.
Mission is still thought of as over there, and evangelism is thought of as over here. Guess what? Over there has just moved in next door, providing us additional opportunity and accountability.
Christ said in the parable of the Great Feast (Luke 14:15-24) that when the invited guests made excuses and did not respond to his invitation, the master sent his servants out to get the poor, the blind, the crippled and the lame.
It is interesting that less than 20 percent of Christian America attends church regularly. They feel no sense of need to respond to the invitation of the Master.
Let something terrible happen, however, and they flock to church. But they (maybe we?) too often make excuses why, in normal times, they cannot accept the invitation to be a part of the greatest initiative of all time.
Jesus faced similar circumstances during his earthly ministry. But he didn't waste time trying to get complacent people to join him. Instead, he went where people knew they had need, and he supplied those needs by the power of God.
Jesus did give the people physical help, but primarily he led them into a relationship of allegiance to God so that they could continue to be nurtured long after he left their city and moved on.
If we want to be effective, we must go where Christ went--to the people who know they are in need. And these people fill our cities. Some of these people speak little English.
Many of these people are cast adrift socially and are lonely. Many of these people are seeking but don't really know why or for what they are searching. Most of them are struggling and feel that they are alone in their struggle. Who are these people?
Many of them are the strangers among us--the result of massive immigration. Last year roughly one million legal immigrants entered the United States, and an estimated 1.2 million illegal. By the year 2001, more Muslims will live in America than Presbyterians, and more Muslims will live in America than Jews.
We tend to think of Muslims as resistant to Christianity. This is a stereotype that is not necessarily true.
When you are in the large cities of the Western world, pay attention to the cab drivers. Ever notice that it seems nowadays that a majority of them are of Southern Asian origin (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh), probably either Muslim or Hindu?
When we look at them, we notice how different they are. What we don't perceive is that they may be trying their best to relate to us by using their best English idioms (they may even be wearing a U.S. flag, or Union Jack T-shirt).
We may not see a lonely someone reaching out asking to be accepted by the majority culture. But people in these situations are at the peak of receptivity to new ideas, new relationships and new ways of looking at things, including God's things.
Sadly, a study indicated that the average Hindu or Muslim immigrant is not invited into a Caucasian Christian home within the first 10 years of being in the United States. I imagine that the situation is similar in the United Kingdom and Western Europe.
The cities of the world are becoming increasingly internationalized and ethnically and racially mixed. U.S. cities, for instance, contain the largest African population next to Nigeria.
They contain the largest Polish population next to Poland. New York is the second largest Puerto Rican city.
Los Angeles County has 1.2 million Asians; 4.5 million Hispanics. Greater Los Angeles is the second largest Mexican city in the world and, sadly, the most unevangelized Hispanic city in the Latin world.
Evangelical churches in the United States (including the Worldwide Church of God) are predominantly English-speaking or middle class. Most urban poor are not.
This is much like the Jerusalem church, where the majority were of one culture. They kept the church homogenous by raising barriers against diversification or innovation.
The Antioch church on the other hand was determined to bring down or cross over any barrier that hindered anyone from receiving the gospel.
This is the crucible in which the apostle Paul's ministry values were formed (1 Cor. 9:19-22).
Instead of thanking God for opportunities to help rescue the lost, rolling up our sleeves and getting our spiritual hands dirty, we pack up and move.
Each year 2,000 urban churches disband, merge or move out of the inner city. Are we any different? Are we walking, in some cases, away from those whom Jesus came and walked toward?
To not lose sight of who we are called to be, we must always remember that we were called to follow Jesus--and that involves:
* Reaching the lost
* Bringing down cultural barriers (not moving away from those who are less desirable and are too different from us)
* Establishing groups of new believers into spiritual communities (planting of new congregations).
When the Master heard the excuses of his friends, he "was furious and said to his servant, `Hurry out to the streets and alleys of the town, and bring back the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.' Soon the servant said, `Your order has been carried out, sir, but there is room for more.'
"So the master said to the servant, `Go out to the country roads and lanes and make people come in, so that my house will be full. I tell you all that none of those who were invited will taste my dinner!" (Luke 14:22-24, Today's English Version).
We were all spiritually poor, crippled, blind and lame. Christ has shown mercy to us and has given us his grace.
He now asks his bride, made up of the likes of you and me, to participate in the great rescue, and to take hold of someone who is like we were and be the agent of grace whereby they may come to know salvation.
From Rod and Ruth Matthews
South and Southeast Asia
By Aub Warren
BURLEIGH HEADS, Australia--More than half the world's population lives in Asia and the South Pacific, a region where WCG activities are largely administered from the Australian Office.
Scattered across this vast area are about two dozen congregations. They are pastored by six full-time pastors, as well as being served by lay and ordained local leaders--often in difficult circumstances, according to regional director Rod Matthews.
"Christianity is a persecuted faith in a number of Asian nations and a minority one in nearly all," Mr. Matthews said.
"And yet there is a growing interest in Christianity. We feel a great responsibility to find ways to share Christian teaching with the peoples of Asia. We have been blessed to have built up a number of congregations made up of deeply committed men and women God has called to live and share the gospel in this part of the world."
Mr. Matthews said that the regional office has agreed to focus more resources in Asia. "We want to to enable our churches in Asia to reach out into their communities with the hope of the gospel," he explained.
About 150 church and family members in Papua New Guinea meet in small scattered groups around the country.
Contact among the groups is difficult because of transportation and communication difficulties.
The PNG brethren are pastored jointly by Hans Pedersen, an elder in the Morwell, Victoria, congregation, and Ken Slade, an elder in Bendigo, Victoria.
Pastoring is accomplished through annual visiting trips and regular correspondence. To develop indigenous leadership, six local leaders will begin training by correspondence, which we pray will lead several to attend a Bible college in Papua New Guinea.
Sri Lanka is home to more than 100 church members and their families.
The churches meet in their own hall in Wattala, a suburb of Colombo, and in Nuwara Eliya in the hill country.
They are pastored by Mohan Jayasekera and his wife, Nihara. Mr. Jayasekera has established a mutually supportive relationship with another fellowship in the country.
Their church felt a need for stronger Bible teaching from the WCG and in return has modeled more expressive worship services for our church.
The church's vocational college, the Worldwide Educational Institute, is this year providing post-secondary English language, business, computing, accounting, leadership and communication classes to about 140 Sri Lankan youths, making a contribution to Sri Lankan society.
The end of the millennium has been tragic for Christians in India. This largely Hindu nation has itself been shocked by the persecution of Christians by a rogue minority.
Our two pastors in India, Daniel Zachariah and his wife, Mary, in the north, and Joseph D'Costa and his wife, Joanna, in the south, serve more than 170 members and their families scattered over a wide and populous area.
The church in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, where the national office is located, is in the first stage of building offices and a hall on church-owned land.
The church in the Muslim nation of Malaysia has served as a financial and pastoral support base for other Asian nations.
Serving the 230 members and families, the two Malaysian pastors--Yong Chin Gee, and his wife, Yuet Siam, and Wong Mein Kong, and his wife, Mak Chew Yeng--also serve members in Singapore, Brunei, China, Hong Kong, Myanmar (Burma), Indonesia and Thailand.
Malaysian members have provided financial support for church activities in many other nations. Members in East Malaysia last year celebrated the Festival together for the first time in their area, and plans are in place for the site to again play host to the small group.
Christianity is booming in Singapore, particularly among young Singaporeans. The WCG is a member of the Singapore Council of Churches and is working to identify its niche in working alongside Christian brethren in the work of the gospel.
Living Today magazine (published by the Australian Office) and public seminars are two tools for making a contribution in the nation. Ninety members live there.
Although about half of the church's membership left our fellowship a couple of years ago with the former pastor, membership today is higher than it was at that time, with about 90 church members and their families fellowshipping in two groups in the country.
Travel within the nation--which is run by a military government--is difficult and restricted, but Malaysian pastor Wong Mein Kong meets with the group leaders as often as he can and is developing local leadership. Several groups of Christians have joined our church, and others have expressed the desire to do so.
Pastor Yong Chin Gee from Malaysia has been forced to temporarily suspend his visits to Indonesia because of violence that has been increasing throughout this year.
Our 25 members in the Muslim nation of 170 million people are in need of our prayers for their protection. While we have no churches in Indonesia, several large groups (in the hundreds) of Christians have shown interest in joining our fellowship. We are enjoying the "getting to know you" period in our relationship with them.
The 140 members of our church family in the Pacific Island nation of Fiji are known around the world for their warm hospitality to visitors and for their beautiful singing.
Pastor Ratu (Chief) Epeli Kanaimawi is regularly called upon by his government to serve in civic roles and as an international representative.
His role as chairman of the Grants Commission for the University of the South Pacific based in Fiji has required him to visit other Pacific Island nations, thereby also enabling him to visit church members scattered around the Pacific. It's been a blessing to them and our church.
The 50 members of the church family in the bilingual (French and English) Pacific Island nation of Vanuatu have enjoyed several significant happenings in the past year.
William Davies was ordained an elder at the Festival in Port Vila last year, and in March this year he attended the regional ministerial conference in Australia.
Shortly before this, the members on the island of Malakula opened their own church meeting hall on land donated to the church. This group of mainly French-speaking brethren is growing well.
In the Pacific nation of the Solomon Islands, about 90 brethren are scattered over five islands, with the largest group living on the remote western island of Ranongga.
About 10 member families live in or near the capital of Honiara on the island of Guadalcanal, including Moses Pitikaka, our deacon, who is serving as governor-general of the nation (the resident personal representative of Queen Elizabeth, who is head of state).
Seventy-five members live in the Buddhist nation of Thailand. What they lack in numbers they make up for in impact. Through an English-language school run by Chogait Garmolgomot and his wife, Fong, the gospel is being shared many times a week with Buddhist youths interested in learning about Christianity.
Chogait uses their interest in learning English as a vehicle for introducing Christian faith, and Living Today magazine as a tool in teaching students who voluntarily participate in study and discussion sessions.
A Thai and former Buddhist himself, Chogait is dedicated to the principle of presenting the gospel in ways that relate to Thai society and Buddhist culture.
Last year our church baptized its first member in the world's most populous nation. Two members are working in China who are nationals of other countries.
In Hong Kong, which was returned to China by Britain last year, we have another 25 members and relatives. Visits to the brethren are conducted by Yong Chin Gee from Malaysia.
While Christianity has enjoyed a high profile and some acceptance in Hong Kong, mainland China has many underground churches in addition to state-recognized fellowships. Openly espousing Christianity still brings certain risks and potential problems.
Members within our region also live in Brunei, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Nepal, Tonga, Tuvalu and Western Samoa.
 Mohan & Nihara Jayasekera |
 Joseph & Joanna D'Costa |
 Yong Chin Gee & Yuet Siam |
 Wong Mein Kong & Mak Chew Yeng |
LACEY, Washington--Fifty women gathered April 16 to 18 for the third annual Puget Sound Women's Retreat at Gwinwood Christian Conference Grounds on Hick's Lake. The theme was Rejoice in Hope.
The Federal Way and Olympia women's ministries organized the event. Elizabeth Ellsworth was coordinator.
Friday evening, April 16, Joyce Duncan and her daughters led praise and worship. Toni Zorn spoke on Being a Blessing to Others.
Saturday morning, Irma Green spoke on grace. Next, Shellie Todd shared the Healing Gifts That God's Love Brought during her life-threatening illnesses.
In the afternoon session, Brenda Peterson gave a message titled We Are All Ragged Dolls, But We Are God's Ragged Dolls.
After a break, the women broke into 12 groups for table topics.
Throughout the weekend the women were assigned to prayer circles with a theme for each session to focus on in prayer. All were free to pray, or just listen.
Saturday evening the women shared miracles, blessings and encouraging experiences with one another. They also watched a presentation of praise dancing.
On Sunday, Joyce Duncan gave the final message, on Joy.
Karen Campbell wrote a Country song, "Sisters in Christ," for the retreat. She sang it with Kathy Guth. Brenda Peterson.
Breakfast at Puget Sound Women's Retreat
BIG SANDY, Texas--The Big Sandy women's ministry organized two fund-raisers this past year.
They are blessed with a large congregation, so they decided to put together a cookbook. They knew they would have plenty of contributors.
They included recipes for potluck favorites, traditional family dishes, and a few recipes designed for large groups.
They sold cookbooks in their congregation, in area churches and at various events the women attended.
They paid the required fee to the publisher and were left with a profit. They sent percentages of this profit to their congregation and church headquarters.
They also sent a donation to the Red Cross because of last year's weather disasters.
Their next fund-raiser focused on helping teens attend the Summer Educational Program in Orr, Minnesota.
They started with some money from the cookbook fund-raiser, and they also asked for donations from the congregation.
With the money raised, they paid one teen's full tuition, and partially covered another teen's costs. The youth group also contributed to this effort, so three teens from the congregation will be sponsored by the Big Sandy church this year. Sarah Strub.
A retreat sponsored by the Frederick and Cumberland, Maryland, and Strasburg, Virginia, Women's Ministry will be at the Eisenhower Inn and Conference Center in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, July 9-11. The theme is "Women in God's Service" (WinGS).
Access the WinGS Retreat '99 website at: www.wcg.org/Churches/US/Mid-Atlantic/women/retreat199907.htm for the preliminary agenda, workshop information, travel information and a link to the Eisenhower Inn and Conference Center website.
For more information call Henrietta Kissel 1-301-607-6198 (e-mail: hkissel@hotmail.com) or Charlotte Whitting at 1-301-695-9487 (e-mail c_whitting@hotmail.com).
DOUGLASVILLE, Georgia--The second Times of Refreshing women's conference will take place at the Carroll Tech Conference Center in Douglasville Aug. 14.
The registration fee is $40 by July 1, $50 by Aug. 1 and $60 after Aug. 1. Lunch is included. Make checks payable to Local Church Activity Fund--Douglasville, and mail to Faye Bates, 6135 Queens Rd., Douglasville, Georgia, 30135-4609.
If you were at the first conference last August and would like to attend the 1999 conference and bring a first-time guest, you can register at a two-for-one rate if you register together. Also, any two people attending together for the first time can register for the two-for-one rate.
For more information call Faye Bates at 1-770-726-8029 (e-mail womensministry@webtv.net) or Joanna Madlena at 1-770-949-9876 (e-mail women@integrityonline.com)
CHICAGO, Illinois--Excitement is growing as we draw closer to the Women's International Conference 1999. There is still time to register, so here are more details to entice you to join us!
Jill Briscoe--author, speaker and radio presenter. Jill Briscoe is a longtime pastor's wife who cares about the needs of women. As a mother and grandmother she has a wealth of experience on how to walk close to God in all seasons of life.
Joseph and Tammy Tkach and Sheila Graham will also be with us sharing presentations and workshops.
Knowing God Is in Control
Contentment
Seasons of Marriage
Mentoring
Following the "Role" Call of Jesus
Single & Loving It?!
Millennial Mothering
Mother-daughter Relationships (two on this topic)
The Golden Years
Dealing With Terminal Illness
The Christian Divorcee
Meeting Menopause
Being a Woman of God
We are looking forward to seeing you here. Registration begins at 3 p.m., Friday, Aug. 6, and we will close by noon Sunday, Aug. 8. Thank you for your prayers and support during the planning of what will prove to be a life-changing experience.
Your sisters in Christ,
Angie Latimer & Karen Newby
Name
Address
Home Phone Work Phone
Emergency Name Emergency Phone
Payment
Registration fee: $ ________
$70 on or before June 1, $85 after June 1
(Includes all general sessions and workshops; breakfast, lunch and dinner Saturday, breakfast Sunday)
NOTE: Registration fee is transferable but not refundable.
Donation: $ ________ to assist women who require financial assistance to attend.
Total enclosed (U.S. funds*): $ ________
* Canadians and other international guests, please use international money order.
Special needs and comments:
Please make check or money order payable to: WIC Chicago Fund
and mail this form and payment to Margaret Davis
900 N. Taylor Ave.
Oak Park, Illinois, 60302
Hotel reservations must be made directly through the Wyndham Hotel by each individual conference applicant.
Wyndham Hotel
Northwest Chicago
400 Park Blvd.
Itasca, Illinois, 60143
Reservations 1-630-773-4000
Mention you are with the Worldwide Church of God group. Cost is $95 per night (tax not included).
We request that this be done as soon as you send this registration form to us.
If you have any questions please contact us:
Karen Newby 1-847-741-6658 (e-mail james_newby@wcg.org)
Angie Latimer 1-847-587-5038 (e-mail LATIMO@aol.com)
By Ronald
Kelly
Regular daily mail donations are down almost 11 percent below our budgeted expenses for the first four months of the year--that is $1.2 million less than planned-for income.
That's a major concern for the present, but also an even greater concern for the remainder of the year. At this rate of declining income, we could receive $3 million less in donations than our departments need to meet budget.
As I have explained in previous WN articles, the only way we now have to match our donation income with budgeted expenses is to terminate employees, including salaried church pastors.
The church board of directors and the management staff in Church Administration are conducting regular meetings to determine every way possible to reduce the budget with as few employee terminations as possible.
While the sale of the Big Sandy campus has not yet been completed, officials at La Roche College have said they hope to open a new school this autumn.
They hope to complete their financial package in the near future and finalize the transaction. Please continue to pray for the successful completion of this sale.
In April, the church and Legacy Partners signed a purchase and sale agreement that officially began the escrow process for the sale of the Pasadena headquarters property.
Legacy has conducted three well-attended monthly public meetings at headquarters. They have kept city officials and neighboring communities aware of their plans for development.
Also in April, Bernie Schnippert, director of Finance & Planning, gave a campus tour to Bill Bogaard, Pasadena's newly elected mayor, to inform him about what the sale will mean for the city.
Our mail processing staff has completed tabulating and banking the spring offerings. Because many of our congregations collect offerings in different ways, it has taken us longer than usual to complete the process.
However, we are thankful that the combined giving pattern this spring has matched our budget projections. We hoped to receive $1.4 million in spring offerings, and have now received almost that exact amount.
Please refer to the accompanying charts to see a more complete financial picture for April and the first four months of 1999.
Once again I want to thank you for your love and care as you give special offerings for the work of the church--offerings above and beyond your regular tithes and donations. Your labor of sacrifice is so encouraging.
By the time you read this issue of the WN, we will have celebrated the Pentecost season. During the summer our income tends to sag a little, so we pray that each of us will be able to maintain a generous and steady pattern of giving to the work of the gospel Jesus has allowed us to proclaim.
May God richly bless you and your families through the warm days of summer.
The Washington Ministerium conducted a prayer service at 7 p.m., May 6, on the courthouse square.
"We have met with the county commissioners, Sheriff's Department and other government agencies over the past year and asked for their forgiveness for our lack of interest and our condemnations over the years," said pastor Tom Smith.
"We then asked for items of concern for which we could pray. They all responded favorably. We are in monthly and even weekly contact with several agencies."
One commissioner read a National Day of Prayer proclamation signed by all three commissioners. The group then shared songs of praise, and several people prayed for governments, communities, businesses, youths and seniors.
The Gainesville congregation participated in a National Day of Prayer rally at noon at the city center plaza.
The event was sponsored by the Gainesville Christian Ministers Association to call the community to an hour of prayer for the nation, leaders, community and family.
Pastor Ken Smylie was one of seven ministers who publically prayed at the occasion. About 200 attended, including several WCG members. Ken Smylie.
The Wichita, Kansas, congregation joined with Crestway Free Methodist Church and Faith Community Church in a prayer walk through one of the most troubled areas of Wichita.
They prayed for the children, parents, families and residents of the neighborhood.
After the prayer walk the three congregations met for food, fellowship and sharing.
The Pasadena A.M. Prayer Ministry conducted a National Day of Prayer service in the Fine Arts Recital Hall for Pasadena WCG congregations.
Curtis May, district superintendent, opened the service with prayer and a message on this year's theme, Lighthouses of Prayer.
He quoted 2 Chronicles 7:14 and Matthew 5:14, and encouraged those in attendance to be lights in the world and to pray for sick brethren. Rayminda Reyes, worship leader, led the congregation in song.
Several devotionals were presented, and after each devotional, groups of two to three people formed to pray about the preceding topic.
Pastor Bermie Dizon read 2 Timothy 2:1-4 and spoke on God's command for Christians to pray for our leaders. Steve Golden, director of Christian Business Leaders, expounded on the need to pray for our land and our cities, then led in prayer for the cities.
Leigh Sniffen, who assists Mr. May in the Office of Racial Reconciliation, spoke on praying for families and then prayed for the nation's families.
Mervin Walton, Prayer Ministry director, presented a message on Creating Lighthouses of Prayer, committing our homes to praying for our neighbors and for the lost that they may be brought to Christ. Mervin Walton, Prayer Ministry director.
 Curtis May |
 Rayminda Reyes |
 Bermie Dizon |
 Steve Golden |
 Leigh Sniffen |
 Merv Walton |
Paul begins this chapter by pointing out that he, the apostle Christ used to begin the Corinthian church, did not need a "letter of recommendation" from anybody: "Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody" (verses 1-2).
The people themselves served as authenticating proof that Paul was an apostle of Christ: "You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God" (verses 3-4).
Paul then explains that God is the real source of his authority: "Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant--not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life" (verses 5-6).
Paul has already mentioned "tablets of stone," and then the "new covenant." He then builds the contrast between the new and the old. His authenticity as an apostle of Christ is not built upon the old covenant, but upon the new--not on the letters engraved in stone, but in the Spirit of God.
Let's see how he develops the contrast: "Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?" (verses 7-8).
Let's pause to be sure we know what Paul is talking about. He is talking about something written on stone, at a time when Moses' face shone with glory. It is clear that he is talking about the Ten Commandments. This is what was written on stone. Paul is calling the Ten Commandments a "ministry that brought death." Paul was not a minister of the letter (the Ten Commandments), but of the Spirit.
Notice that he does not say, like some people want him to, that he was a minister of "the spirit of the law." Instead of combining law and spirit, Paul equated the law with the letter, and he made a contrast between the Law and the Spirit of God.
Of course, it was God who gave the Law. Nevertheless, Paul saw a fundamental contrast between the Law and the Spirit, between the old and the new. There is continuity, of course, for both old and new are covenants of the same God. But even though God does not change, and his underlying principles do not change, his covenants do.
Paul explains some differences in the next verses: "If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness!" (verse 9). The Ten Commandments were a ministry that condemned people. They had some glory, but not nearly as much as the new covenant. The Ten Commandments cannot bring righteousness, but the new covenant does.
"For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory" (verse 10). The Ten Commandments have no glory now, Paul is saying, in comparison to the new covenant, which brings life and righteousness.
"And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!" What was fading away? Moses' face was fading, but Paul is not talking about Moses' face any more--he is talking about "the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone." That is what "came with glory" (verse 7). That is what was fading away.
The Ten Commandments, Paul is saying, came with glory, but they are fading away, just as surely as the glory of Moses' face also faded. The new covenant not only has much greater glory, but it also "lasts." The Ten Commandments, Paul implies, do not last forever. They were designed as a temporary "ministry of condemnation," designed to lead people to Christ.
Notice the contrasts Paul has made:
The Ten Commandments
written on tablets of stone (v. 4)
the letter that kills (v. 6)
a ministry that brought death (v. 7)
engraved in letters on stone (v. 7)
came with glory (v. 7)
the ministry that condemns (v. 9)
no glory now in comparison (v. 10)
it came with glory (v. 11)
it is now fading away (v. 11)
The New Covenant
written on the heart
the Spirit that gives life
a ministry that brings life
ministry of the Spirit
even more glorious
the ministry that brings righteousness
the surpassing glory
much greater glory
the ministry that lasts
Paul clearly says that the Ten Commandments, although good, are temporary and fading. What has faded away concerning the Ten Commandments? Some people try to say that the Ten Commandments, instead of fading, are actually more binding on people today than ever before. They want to expand the Ten instead of letting them fade.
But Paul is saying that there is a fundamental change in the way people relate to God. The old way is a written law that condemns people to death.
The new way is the Holy Spirit, which brings forgiveness and life. The Spirit leads us to obey God, but it is a fundamentally different relationship, a different basis of relating to God.
There is some basic continuity between the old covenant and the new. Most of the Ten Commandments are quoted with approval in the New Testament. Those commands reflect aspects of God's law that were in effect long before Sinai--from the beginning. One is not--the Sabbath command. It was a ceremonial law, instituted for a temporary time period.
Once Paul understood the change, he was strengthened and encouraged: "Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away" (verses 12-13).
Paul did not hide. He was bold in preaching the new way--salvation through the crucified Christ. But despite his boldness, and the clarity of the message, many people did not accept the gospel:
"But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts" (verses 14-15).
Many people today, Jewish or not, do not seem to understand. They keep reading the Bible with old covenant eyes. The only solution is Christ. Only in him can the "veil" be removed. "Whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away" (verse 16).
What does it mean to "turn to the Lord"? It means to see Jesus as the basis of our relationship with God. It means seeing our identity in him, not in the Law of Moses.
Christ becomes central. We obey his law, the law of Christ (1 Cor. 9:21). When we put him first in our identity, he will help us see the covenantal change more clearly.
"The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom" (verse 17). We have freedom in Christ--but what kind of freedom? Certainly, we still obey--Paul makes that clear in Romans 6.
But in this context of 2 Corinthians, what kind of freedom is he talking about? It is freedom from the ministry that brought death--freedom from the old covenant. There is a lot of continuity, but there is some important change as well.
Not only do the covenants change from old and temporary to new and permanent, Christians themselves are changing: "We, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit" (verse 18).
Moses had only a fading glory, and his covenant had only a fading glory. It could give only temporary blessings. But we, with the eternal Spirit living within us, are being changed into a permanent glory--a glory that does not need to hide, a glory that looks to the heart instead of the stone tablets.
By Michael
Morrison
Each week is a week of tragedy. There are wars in Africa. There is ethnic violence in Israel, Turkey and India. There is state-sponsored persecution in China and Pakistan. There are hatred and jealousy, murders and war--every week.
But sometimes it strikes closer to home. The war in Kosovo is more real to us when we see pictures of people killed or homeless. Problems in our society get more publicity when schools become scenes of mass murder.
It all seems so senseless. Even people with no moral foundation can see this is evil. How do we as Christians respond to the problem of evil?
With sorrow. With sadness. With revulsion. With perplexity. With questions that have no answers.
Why does God allow such things? Why does he allow bad people to cause such suffering? Couldn't things have worked out in a less tragic way?
Philosophers and theologians can talk about why God might allow evil, but their answers do not make the pain go away. They cannot make the world seem tidy and sensible--because the world is not tidy and sensible. And Christian faith is not designed to make everything tidy and sensible. Well then, what does faith have to say about the evils we see?
First, that this world has evil in it.
Right and wrong is not simply a matter of opinion--there is an objective and unchanging standard of right and wrong, defined not by humans but by God. There has to be a God if there is going to be any definition of evil. And for reasons known best to God alone, God allows evil in this world.
Jesus commented on the problem of evil. A tower at Siloam collapsed and killed 18 people. Was this divine punishment for their secret sins? No, said Jesus. These people were not any more sinful than anybody else.
Jesus did not say why the tower fell, but he made the situation personal for his audience: Unless you repent, you will also perish. The tragedy on other people became an object lesson for us to repent.
If we have attitudes of jealousy, anger or resentment, we have committed murder in our hearts. And when we see the tragic results of anger in Littleton, Colorado, we do well to examine ourselves and our own attitudes. We need to be repulsed by the wrong attitudes within ourselves. When the results of sin are made so clear, what we need to do is repent.
We can grieve for the people of Littleton. But Jesus is saying that we need to look at ourselves, too. Unless you repent, you will likewise perish.
We can ask why God allowed people to die--but we also need to ask why God allows us to live. Each of us has had evil thoughts. Each of us has done evil. Why does God allow evil within us? None of us deserves to escape punishment, and yet God allows escape, too.
If we ask about why there is evil, we should also ask about why there is mercy. Why should God forgive us when we do not deserve it?
Let us abhor evil. Let us also rejoice in God's grace, and seek his grace. Let us repent. Let us fight against evil, starting with ourselves.
Jesus fought against evil, but he did not fight the way humans fight. He fed the hungry, he healed the sick. He cast out demons and he taught against religious oppression. But Jesus did not try to stop all evils through force.
He did not suggest that we need better police or better family values. He did not suggest weapons-control laws. Those things might help, but Jesus addressed a more fundamental need: repentance. We cannot conquer evil in others unless we are doing something about it within ourselves.
And ultimately, Jesus conquered evil--but he did it through suffering and death, not through force. And he also calls on his followers to be willing to suffer and die. He assures us that we are conquerors if we follow him even through suffering and death.
Our experiences with evil help us grow in compassion and faith--precisely because they test our faith. We are forced to trust in God because in such times, we can see the truth more clearly--there is really nothing else to trust in.
Someday, Jesus will use force to put down evil. Right now, he does not. Now, we as Christians live as aliens in a tainted and sinful world. We know by faith that a better world is coming. We know by faith that a better way of life is possible--but we also see in Jesus the perplexing message that this better way is achieved only through a time of evil and pain.
We cannot understand it, but we trust God to work it out because we see that he was willing to bear the pain himself. He was willing to suffer from evil, too.
But there was joy set before Jesus, and there is joy set before us, too. If we suffer with him, we will also reign with him. If we are with him in his humiliation, we will also be with him in his glory.
We do not yet see all things put under the reign of Christ. Now, we see suffering and death. But through the resurrection of Christ, we can see that death itself has been conquered.
All things will be brought into subjection to Jesus Christ, the Lord of compassion and mercy. Even as we grieve for the evils of today's world, we can rejoice in our hope in Jesus Christ. We still grieve--we should grieve at evil--but we grieve with hope and faith in Jesus Christ.
By Don Mears
Some of you remember those World War II posters of a stern Uncle Sam pointing out at you and saying, "Your country needs you!"
Many of you responded to that challenge, going to work or to fight for your country even though you knew it would mean personal sacrifice and change of priorities. You responded because you believed in the cause you were fighting for.
Chances are somewhere along the way many of you realized that not every decision being made by your own side was perfect. But you knew that it was better to keep on fighting for the right side, for all its faults, than to quit and sit it out on the sidelines.
The idealism and self-sacrificing commitment of that wartime generation are harder to find in our society today. But as Christians we are challenged to rediscover that commitment.
I believe Jesus Christ is saying to his people today the same sort of thing Uncle Sam said in those posters. Jesus is saying to us, "Your church--my church--needs you!"
Do you remember the promises we made to Jesus when we were baptized? We promised to love, honor, obey and serve him.
He called us, and we promised to offer our lives in his service. We heard him say it would not be easy.
He has been faithful to his word, hasn't he? We have gone through difficult times. We have experienced growth in our understanding that has challenged us. It has not been easy. Sometimes it has hurt so much that we have felt discouraged and depressed and abandoned.
But Jesus has not abandoned us. The fact that these things have come upon us is not a sign of his displeasure; rather it is a sign of his relentless love, working always to build his likeness in us.
Now is not the time to lose courage. He who began to do this work in and through us does not intend to abandon it, nor does he want us to abandon it.
The WCG has experience and special qualities and gifts that Jesus has given to us.
As I have come to know pastors in neighboring churches, I have realized that we have something special in our fellowship, a blessing they don't have. We have ties of fellowship that make us a worldwide family.
Many of you know members around the world. How many of our friends in other fellowships have that kind of worldwide family? Yes, they have congregations in many nations--but many do not have the personal ties with such congregations that we are blessed to have.
Look through past issues of the WN, and see again what your church is doing worldwide.
I combed through back issues in search of what the church is doing around the world. I was inspired--and a little surprised.
Surprised because, like many of you, I had become so focused on challenges facing the church in the United States that I lost sight of what we are doing in the rest of the world.
Take a few minutes today to read this issue in that light. Let yourself be encouraged by what Jesus Christ is doing in your church. And let yourself believe that he wants to and will do such things in this country.
No doubt we are a smaller church than we were. But we are a living miracle. Cheer up, little flock; it is your Father's plan and delight to give you the kingdom!
Thirty-eight years ago, President John F. Kennedy spoke some challenging words: "Ask not what your country can do for you," he said, "ask what you can do for your country."
The motto of our culture is almost a parody of John Kennedy's words: "Ask not what you can do for your country or neighbor or family or friend; ask what they can do for you!"
Sadly, those ethics have infected Christians and their churches. Too many Christians approach church with the question: "What's in it for me?"
These are not God's ethics. And they are not the ethics on which a church is built. We are not called so that the church can do things for us. We are called to be the church in order that we may do things for others.
The life of Christianity, the life of the church, is the quest to become a better and better servant.
I am deeply grateful and appreciative of so many of you who do commit your time, talents and treasure to the work of the church--the local work and the worldwide work.
If you have been sitting on the sidelines, I urge you to rejoin us, help us and support us--and let us support you--as we continue to do the work of Jesus Christ together.
By Ronald Kelly
PASADENA--In April, U.S. members received a letter from Pastor General Joseph Tkach announcing the Fall Festival--Celebrate Christ '99.
U.S. Festival sites are Davenport, Iowa; Hot Springs, Arkansas; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Palm Springs, California; Saratoga Springs, New York; and Seaside, Oregon.
The letter requests your registration form by June 25. Of course we will accept registrations up to the time of the Feast, but for us to meet our planning goals, it helps if you register as early as possible if you plan to attend.
Your registration donation allows us to meet pre-Festival expenses as well as complete our administrative plans to be prepared for the beginning of the Festival, Sept. 24.
When we receive your registration form, we will mail you information about the site you plan to attend, including information on hotels and other housing facilities. When you receive this information you may call the housing establishments.
If you can attend only part of the Festival, the beginning weekend would be the best. Because the Feast starts on Friday evening, we expect the largest attendance to be on Saturday and Sunday. Guest speakers, worship music, seminars and workshops will be featured at every site.
If you misplaced the April letter with the registration form, we have duplicated it here for you. Just clip out and mail the form on this page. Better yet, call our toll-free number, 1-800-507-2299 and you will be able to register instantly. You can even register on our church web page at http://www.wcg.org/festival.
China tour bookings are going well. Many members from Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia and England are going on the tour.
Since the original announcement the trip has been expanded to an 11-night, 13-day package, and includes the terra-cotta warrior statues in Xian. Also added is a post-Feast cruise on the Yangtze River to the Three-Gorges area.
John Halford, European regional director, and his wife, Pat, will lead the group.
The package is $2,295 per person from Los Angeles. The Three Gorges extension is a six-night package and includes airfare and all meals. The cost is $899 per person.
For details and itinerary, call Travel Gallery at 1-800-858-6999.
Holland America has announced drastic cuts in airfares for the Mediterranean and Black Sea cruise (Sept. 22 to Oct. 4).
Air prices have been reduced to $199 from the East Coast, $299 from the Midwest and $399 from the West Coast for bookings made before July 15. This is a reduction of more than $900 from round-trip airfare to Europe.
Also, Holland America announced a ship change for the cruise. Instead of the MS Maasdam, which has been pressed into service elsewhere, the cruise will be on the two-year-old MS Rotterdam VI.
Its predecessor, Rotterdam V, was the ship used for the 1994 Alaska cruise.
Bernie and Arlene Schnippert, Russell and Phyllis Duke, and Roger and Anthea Lippross will be on board for the 12-day cruise.
Space is available on the cruise, which begins in Venice and ends in Istanbul.
Prices start at $2,418 per person plus port charges and airfare. Please call Travel Gallery for complete itinerary and information at 1-800-858-6999.
Here is additional information on the Winnipeg, Manitoba, site to what was published in the May WN.
Activities at the Winnipeg site will include a sunset dinner cruise on the Red River and an all-church dance at the convention site.
The Winnipeg congregation will be host for its annual Festival pancake breakfast free to all Feastgoers. A Southern Gospel concert is also planned, with a Manitoba group New Covenant Quartet performing.
Contact Alan Redmond at 1-204-654-3217.
Each head-of-household or single adult should complete this form.
Name of U.S. Festival site site you will be attending.
List only one: U.S. Festival Sites: (Davenport, Iowa; Hot Springs, Arkansas; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Palm Springs, California; Saratoga Springs, New York; Seaside, Oregon)
Name:
PT number:
Number in your household attending with you:
Adults Single Adults Seniors (Age 60 and over) Children (School age only) Children's ages ____, ____, ____, ____, ____, ____, ____, ____, ____, ____,
Special needs: (Check all that apply) q Disabled (Cannot move about freely) q Wheelchair q Deaf (Sign language) q Blind
Registration Donation: (Tax deductible in United States)
Family Rate: (two or more people) $140
Single Rate: $90
Method of Payment:
Check or money order (Payable to Worldwide Church of God)
Credit Card MC VISA Discover AMEX
Card Number
Card Expiration Date
Cardholder name (please print clearly)
Signature (Required)
Please send me additional Festival information:
I am interested in attending one of the following sites:
Alaska China Hawaii Mediterranean Cruise
Please complete and return by Friday, June 25.
OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma--The home of Johnny and Sharon Asher, WCG members, was severely damaged when multiple tornados struck Oklahoma City and surrounding suburbs May 3.
More than 7,000 homes were damaged, and 5,250 of those were destroyed. Less than 50 people died. The winds from one tornado measured 318 plus miles an hour.
"People began to show up immediately with food and water, blankets and toys for the children," said pastor Mike Rasmussen. "Many churches were filled to the brim with generous donations. Blood banks were packed with a waiting time of several hours."
Mr. Asher was out of town on a business trip when the tornado hit. Mrs. Asher and her mother, Colette Reed, were at home together.
They dragged a mattress to an inside hallway. They got down on the floor and covered themselves with the mattress. After the noise and panic was over, large parts of their roof were missing. Doors had been ripped off the hinges. Most of the homes in her neighborhood were destroyed.
"As we
helped them recover whatever possessions they could, people would drive by with water and
food," Mr. Rasmussen said. "Others would come by with brand new rakes, shovels,
boxes and tape. All of it was given away to the victims and volunteers free of charge.
Restaurants opened their doors and gave away free meals.
"Thanks to all of you who have called or written," Mr. Rasmussen said. "The many offers to help financially as well as with supplies are much appreciated. It is so wonderful to belong to a church family who truly cares and prays continuously for one other."
MEMBERS' HOME DAMAGED--Johnny and Sharon Asher and
pastor Mike Rasmussen (right) stand in front of the Ashers' home
damaged by a tornado May 3. [Photo by Anneliese Bosma]
Michael Feazell
earns doctorate of ministry at APUAZUSA, California--J. Michael Feazell, director of Denominational Publications, received his doctor of ministry degree from Azusa Pacific University May 1.
Dr. Feazell is the first doctor of ministry graduate from Azusa Pacific.
PHILADELPHIA,
Pennsylvania--David S. Gilbert, 47, pastor of the Philadelphia congregation, graduated
with high honors from Biblical Theological Seminary April 24, earning a master of arts in
ministry degree.
Mr. Gilbert was also given the President's Ministry Award for maintaining academic excellence while serving in full-time ministry and was asked to give one of three senior testimonies during the commencement ceremony.
Mr. Gilbert explained in his testimony some of the history of the Worldwide Church of God, what it has been like to pastor a congregation during its historic transformation and how the helpfulness, humbleness and happiness modeled by the faculty of Biblical Theological Seminary are vital keys to success in Christian ministry.
Mr. Gilbert hopes to be accepted into Biblical Theological Seminary's doctor of ministry program in the near future.
Biblical Theological Seminary is in Hatfield, Pennsylvania, and is an accredited nondenominational Christian seminary.
PALM SPRINGS, California--The Palm Springs congregation conducted its first Sunday service May 2. Pastor Glenn Sinkule preached on spiritual formation.
After the service, when the Sinkules and deacon DeWayne White were leaving, they were met by Michael Coppersmith, senior pastor of Our Savior's Community Church, a Lutheran church next to the hall the Palm Springs congregation rents.
Mr. Coppersmith said: "I have been wanting to meet you, but I never get down on Saturdays. The Holy Spirit has been leading me here all week. Are you with the WCG? I meet with a group of pastors every Tuesday, and we pray for you."
Claudia Sinkule, wife of Glenn Sinkule, said: "I had been praying that same week for some positive encouragement on our move to Sunday, and this seems to be it! It was evident that the Holy Spirit had brought us together.
"We were all excited to meet, and it ended on the pastor's wanting to build a relationship. When Pastor Mike left, the three of us prayed a tearful prayer of thanksgiving."
PASADENA--Church Administration announced the following ministerial ordinations.
Benno Benter, Hannover and Muenster, Germany; Robert Caldwell, Hamilton, Bermuda; Paul Wagoner, Kennesaw, Georgia; George Webb, Ross-On-Wye, England.
Church Administration also announced that retiring pastor George Affeldt will continue to serve the congregations in Sioux Falls and Watertown, South Dakota, as a bivocational pastor. His name was left out of an article in the May WN.
NORTHAMPTON, England--The Northampton church will celebrate its 25th anniversary April 15, 2000.
The event will include a combined celebration service and evening entertainment. More details will be announced later in the year.
The congregation would like to hear from former Northampton members in other areas, including overseas. They hope this will be a major reunion with friends from past times.
Call Peter Williams at 011 44 1933 357 298, or write to him at Tudorose, 15 Oakpits Way, Rushden, Northants, NN10 0PP, England.
MANSFIELD, Ohio--The Mansfield congregation will celebrate its 20th anniversary Sunday, July 11, with a 1 p.m. potluck at Mount Gilead State Park, one mile east of Mount Gilead on Route 95.
For more information call Ivan Busenburg at 1-614-694-6535 or Jerry Knott at 1-419-524-2552.
PASADENA--After eight weeks of training, Barbara Edwards and Leigh Sniffen, along with 13 other selected Pasadena area residents, graduated from the Leadership Corps.
The Corps, sponsored by the California Community Foundation, is a program of the Center for Successful Retirement at the Pasadena Senior Center.
The mission of The Leadership Corps is to build a corps of seniors trained with skills in civic advocacy who are dedicated to improving their community through effective action.
The keynote speaker at the graduation was Congressman James E. Rogan. He presented them with a proclamation from the U.S. House of Representatives. They also received recognition and certificates from the mayor of Pasadena, Los Angeles County, the California Senate and the California Assembly.
Mrs. Edwards is executive assistant to Randal Dick, superintendent of missions, and is a deaconess in the Glendora, California, congregation. Mrs. Sniffen is a deaconess in the Pasadena A.M. congregation.
Leigh Sniffen
Barbara Edwards
PASADENA--Ross Jutsum, president of State of the Heart Music Ministry and a WCG elder, helped produce "An Army of Stars" April 30 at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium.
This event was part of the National Advisory Organizations Conference of the Salvation Army. Awards were presented for excellence in entertainment, commitment to youths through community service, the arts, philanthropy and spiritual leadership to Martha Williamson (producer of "Touched By An Angel"); Jerry Jones (owner of the Dallas Cowboys professional football team); Reba McIntyre; Joan Kroc; and Billy Graham and his evangelical organization.
Other key participants involved in the three-day conference included Marilyn Quayle, wife of former Vice President Dan Quayle; Oklahoma Governor Frank Keating; and masters of ceremonies Steve Allen and Jayne Meadows.
Dr. Jutsum helped coordinate the performances for seven different events during the conference. A personal highlight came when Dr. Jutsum accompanied a rendition of "How Great Thou Art," sung by George Beverly Shea, who accepted the award on behalf of Dr. Graham, and whose voice he had admired since first hearing him sing at a crusade in Australia 40 years ago.
SANTA CLARITA,
California--Ralph Orr, director of in-service education, spoke to the Southern California
Section of The Conference on Faith and History March 26 at The Master's College in Santa
Clarita.
His subject was "How Anglo-Israelism Entered the Churches of God." About 100 attended, including students and faculty from various Southern California colleges.
Mr. Orr based his presentation on an updated version of the denomination's study paper by that same title printed in the WN Feb. 27, 1996.
The paper traces Anglo-Israelism from its roots and then through the Sabbatarian churches of God. It especially focuses on how Herbert Armstrong came to that doctrine and how it affected the origin and history of the Worldwide Church of God.
Members may read the latest version of the article in the literature section of the church's website at www.wcg.org/lit
Mr. Orr is a member of The Conference of Faith and History, a professional organization of Christian historians.
BOCA RATON, Florida--Twenty-eight teens raised $3,269, enough to feed for one day 6,538 children facing starvation.
Their efforts were part of World Vision's 30-hour famine March 13 and 14.
Monique Etienne of the Hollywood congregation raised $360, the third year in a row that she raised the most funds.
Lindsey Prociw of West Palm Beach raised $318, including the largest single contribution of $200.
Michael A. Moore of Port St. Lucie raised $271; Aviel Hitchens, $267; Jordan Hitchens, $250; and Kimberly Massengill, $205, all from Boca Raton.
Three teens from South Miami joined the group and raised a total of $393. They are Jesse and Chris Marquez and Marcus Redmon.
The teens also collected more than 400 canned goods to ship to an orphanage in Haiti that cares for 110 boys. Lou Ann Hitchens.
SOUTH FLORIDA TEENS--Pictured are South Florida teens
who raised $3,269 during World Vision's 30-Hour Famine March 13 and 14.
LONG ISLAND, New York--The Long Island congregation invites singles to its annual Fun in The Sun Weekend, July 31 and Aug. 1.
Times will be announced for a worship service and workshop.
A dinner dance will take place Saturday evening from 7:30 to 11:30. A disc jockey will play a variety of popular dance tunes. A buffet will consist of tropical fruit, homemade lasagna, fresh salmon, chicken zingara, steak pizzaiola and an ice cream sundae.
Sunday's activities are an all-day beach party and an all-you-can-eat barbecue.
Housing is available at the Hampton Inn Islandia for a special rate of $99 and 9 percent tax (up to four in a room). A room can be reserved for Friday or Saturday. The special rate is available through July 23 only. The rate code is WOR. Call 1-516-234-0400.
The cost for the weekend is $42; dance only $35; beach party and barbecue only, $10. Payment is due by July 17. Please make checks payable to LCAF Long Island and send to Joe Radosti, 118 Granada Pkwy. Lindenhurst, New York, 11757.
For additional information please call Joe Radosti at 1-516-957-3248 or send e-mail to him at raddo@erols.com; or call Tony Anzalone at 1-516-624-8424.
Make reservations early as seating is limited to 100 guests.
ORLANDO, Florida--The Orlando congregation invites everyone to an evening musical showcase Saturday, June 12, at 6.
The theme is Building Bridges of Love. Area singers, instrumentalists and actors will entertain the audience. The ministries of the Orlando congregation will also be featured.
Admission is free. A worship service will take place at 3 p.m. For more information, please contact pastor Steve Schantz at 1-407-253-4538. Riccinni Banham.
DULUTH, Minnesota--Duluth members have served others in the community in several ways.
The Women's Ministry, led by Ilona Deraas, conduc