Chapter Six – An Explosion of Growth!

Next Part Ranks, Offices, Functions and Duties

Ambassador College had survived its first two years, and was set to expand. Added to the original two and one-quarter-acre campus was Mayfair, a stately, 28-room, Tudor-style mansion. This addition expanded the campus to four acres. Used for on-campus housing, most of its re-landscaping was done by students.

In fall of 1949, the student enrollment grew to 12, with Richard Armstrong as the first student body president.

That same year, The World Tomorrow program was still being heard on only nine radio stations. Yet ratings agencies revealed that the program was the second highest rated in Chicago during its half-hour time-slot. Also, during this period, the Work continued to grow at its steady—yet extraordinary—rate of 30 percent each year, which was to continue for 35 years, beginning from 1935 and continuing through 1969, inclusively.

The College’s Fourth Year

The year 1950 saw a tight financial crunch for the Work, resulting in only four issues of The Plain Truth being published—and these had to be reduced to eight pages each.

That fall, ten new students had enrolled, and the school acquired its third piece of property—a camellia nursery, which became a small athletic field.
Also, for the first time, Ambassador College had freshman, sophomore, junior and senior classes. This meant that the school’s first commencement ceremony was held in May 1951.

Snapshot of the Church

Even though the gospel was being spread across the nation and into Canada, the Church was still small, with only about 150 people and four congregations, helped by many co-workers. The Work was basically being done by a one-man ministry.

In the years Mr. Armstrong had been away from Oregon and Washington—acquiring airtime on radio stations, making quality recordings for the program, writing all of The Plain Truth articles, moving headquarters offices to southern California, founding and running a college, as well as teaching classes—the Eugene congregation had dwindled from approximately 100 people to about 30. Most brethren and field leaders lacked the vision Mr. Armstrong possessed. Without his constant, reassuring presence before them, many simply could not endure. Consequently, they were led astray by three would-be leaders. Even the 30 members who remained had split into two opposing factions.

Meanwhile, the Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington congregations combined into one congregation, with only about 12 members.

The Church needed trained ministers and leaders in the field to stabilize congregations—fast!

The elders who rebelled, whom Mr. Armstrong had entrusted the care of the brethren, did not remain humble. With Mr. Armstrong far away, they began to view themselves with delusions of grandeur. They forgot they were not—on their own, without guidance from headquarters—equipped to feed Christ’s sheep the proper spiritual diet necessary to overcome the pulls of the flesh, the wiles of the devil, and the influences of the world Satan influences. They did not, on their own, know how to properly structure local Church functions in a way that would yield success and thus grow the local congregations, or how to set the right example before the brethren in speech, dress and conduct. These men were not extensively trained to protect Christ’s sheepfold from false doctrines and other snares.

The brethren in Washington and Oregon were in the midst of doctrinal confusion and opposing factions, led by false leaders. Mr. Armstrong soon came to recognize the root cause for the chaos: the right form of government—God’s government—had to be restored into the Church.

Meantime, Mr. Armstrong was forced to scrap The Plain Truth mailing list and start from scratch. (The magazine had grown to 50,000 copies.) This solved part of the financial problem of not having enough money to publish so many issues.

Then he decided to publish a magazine for brethren and co-workers, offering practical, spiritual food:The Good News. He would train certain students to write articles for the magazine, giving them the necessary training and experience that would prepare them to eventually write for its sister publication, The Plain Truth.

Restoring God’s Government to His Church

Since first being called into the understanding of God’s truth in 1927, Mr. Armstrong had been perplexed over the years as to how the Church should be governed. God was not ready to reveal the towering truth of this most important biblical teaching until Ambassador College was established, providing a team of teachable, dedicated and trained leaders for Church headquarters and the field.

In his May 2, 1974 letter to brethren and co-workers, Mr. Armstrong explained why the Church abandoned the inefficient, chaotic, manmade government of democracy, and restored God’s government—administration from the top down. This extensive quote tells the pivotal story in his own words:

“Many times I have told you, dear Brethren, that when God first called me, beginning in the autumn of 1926, that the living Christ brought me into His truth a step at a time. YOU have not had to learn the truth so slowly—Christ used me to do it for you. And one of the very last truths He opened to me was that of CHURCH ORGANIZATION AND GOVERNMENT! There was a reason for this.”

“I want to give you a brief synopsis of my association with the ‘Sardis’ church...”

“Brethren, I have felt it necessary that you should know and understand these things, so you may realize WHY I did not yet fully understand the truth regarding church government and organization, in February, 1939—MORE THAN 35 YEARS AGO—when I wrote an article on church organization.

“There had been much confusion and argument among the ‘Sardis’ brethren about church organization. When the new so-called ‘Bible Form of Church Organization’ was introduced at Salem, naturally the Stanberry people argued against it. I think we all became confused on the question. It’s like being too close to one tree to see the forest. I KNEW that the so-called ‘12, the 70, and the 7’ was entirely misapplied, and definitely NOT God’s form of organization. But also I knew that the ‘General Conference’ form was not Biblical. In both of those—Stanberry and Salem—the people voted—government from the bottom like these dissenters today.

“For this reason I did write an article more than 35 years ago, in the February, 1939, GOOD NEWS—WHICH WENT TO OUR OWN ‘Philadelphia Era’ MEMBERS—NOT to the Salem or Stanberry membership—intended to PROTECT OUR OWN MEMBERS WHO WERE MY OWN CONVERTS, AND NOT TO CONFUSE OR TAKE MEMBERS FROM EITHER OF THEM—proving that this so-called ‘Bible Form of Organization’ was NOT Biblical.

“By that time our own churches, and the RADIO CHURCH OF GOD were operating separately from either of them. But I had not, as yet, come to understand WHAT IS the true Bible form of church organization. When the true knowledge was revealed, LATER, to those of us in the ‘Philadelphia Era’ we put it into practice and PUBLISHED THIS TRUTH.

“Brethren, do you realize THIS IS THE ONLY CHURCH on earth, so far as I know, which has consistently GROWN in grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (II Peter 3:18) as God commands. We GREW into the TRUE knowledge regarding church organization and government.

“We published an article revealing new truth about church organization in The GOOD NEWS, November, 1952, and again in August, 1953, ‘GOVERNMENT in Our Church,’ and in November, 1953, ‘JUDGING and DISCIPLINE in God’s Church.’ As God revealed truth, His Church accepted it. And long since, we came into the FULL TRUTH on church organization and government.”

“Now let’s look into New Testament teaching to see how this is POSITIVELY REVEALED.

“Take the Apostle Paul, called and chosen by Christ direct, as leader, under Christ, in getting THE WORK to the Gentiles, as well as the conducting of services in the churches, after the Work has resulted in conversions and local churches—that is, the function of ‘feeding the flock,’ after THE WORK has not only proclaimed the Gospel as a witness, but also resulted in conversions and adding members to the Church.

“I quoted from Galatians 2:7-8 about how Paul was assigned by Christ to head THE WORK to the Gentiles.
“Now notice Titus 1:4-5 and 2:15—Paul wrote to Titus (UNDER PAUL), ‘To Titus, mine own son after the common faith (even as those under me in THE WORK today, are MY own sons, directly or indirectly, in the Lord)...from God the Father (first in rank) and the Lord Jesus Christ (second in rank) our Savior. For this cause left I (next in rank—to Gentiles—under Christ) thee (under Paul’s authority in the Work) in Crete, that thou shouldst set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders (under Titus who is under Paul, who is under Christ) in every city as I had appointed thee.’

“Paul gave reason, in the following verses, for GOVERNMENT and AUTHORITY in the Church—’For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers...whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses (even as those fighting against order and government in God’s Church are doing today), teaching things they ought not (as right now), for filthy lucre’s sake. One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, The Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, (lazy gluttons – RSV)...This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith.’ And Paul adds, chapter 2:15, ‘...and REBUKE, with ALL AUTHORITY.’

“Yes, God’s Government is NECESSARY in His Church, and He PUT IT THERE!

“No authority in the Church? What did God MEAN when He says in His Word, ‘OBEY them that have the RULE over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account (as I know I shall) that they may do it with JOY, and not with grief for that (causing those over you grief) is unprofitable for YOU. Pray for us (THOSE OF US GOD HAS SET IN AUTHORITY TODAY) for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things, willing to live honestly’ (Heb. 13:17-18).

“No government in God’s Church? Then WHY did God inspire this to the Thessalonians? ‘And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labor among you, and are OVER YOU in the Lord, and admonish you; and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves’ (I Thes. 5:12-13).

“One of the things SATAN works overtime in injecting into any mind that will let it enter, is RESENTMENT OF AUTHORITY. GOD’S authority is administered in LOVE—and actually as one SERVING those under His authority for THEIR GOOD and out of loving CONCERN for them. That is the way I try to use what authority God has delegated to me, and I try to teach those under me to use it in the same manner—as a servant, not one lording it over those under him—as JESUS gave us an example. Satan DESPISES government, except as HE himself harshly and in hate employs it.”

“Notice what Jesus taught: ‘And there was also a strife among them, which of them (Jesus’ disciples) should be accounted the greatest. And he said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them...but ye shall not be so; but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve’ (Luke 22:24-26). This same conversation is also recorded in Mark 10:42: ‘...ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them...but so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: and whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister...’ But no one can say Jesus had no authority.

“Years ago, seeing this, and not considering the many, MANY Scriptures charging some in the Church with authority, rulership, saying to ‘rebuke’ the unruly, etc., I took the above scriptures to mean there is no authority in the Church. I did not want to exercise authority. I was still NEW in God’s truth (this was over 40 years ago). So, in the early days of the parent Church of the Philadelphia era, at Eugene, Oregon, I allowed ‘wolves in sheep’s clothing’ to come in and sow the seeds of discord among brethren. It resulted in splitting the church in two—possibly turning half my flock onto the way that leads into a lake of fire! God had His own way of REBUKING ME SOUNDLY, making me see this in its true light. Jesus here is talking about THE MANNER in which the authority Christ delegates is used. He is NOT saying there is NO AUTHORITY.”

Mr. Armstrong learned that God’s government protects the Church. It also enabled the Work to leap forward, because without the bureaucratic “red tape” that is a natural by-product of democracy, Mr. Armstrong and leaders under him were able to smoothly administer and execute vital—and often time-sensitive—decisions.

Next Part Ranks, Offices, Functions and Duties

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