It Only Grows Worse
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It is most critical to recognize that the spirit of error will only grow stronger and more pervasive wherever it has been permitted to enter. Mr. Armstrong strongly warned against letting the devil into the Church even “a little bit” (as he put it on one occasion), because Satan would “push open the door since he is stronger than we” (again, his words). This has been more visibly apparent in the big splinters, but all other groups are included!
I repeat yet again: The reader is strongly urged to read my book The True Church – One Organization, or Many?to get the fuller picture that no one else has explained, could any longer explain, or would be even willing to address. The proof given in this book is astonishing, and includes many detailed, crystal-clear statements from the Bible, Mr. Armstrong, the Catholics, the Protestants, the apostates—and others straight from the lips of the leaders of the splinters who happily parrot the apostates and the Protestants. You will be forced to decide whether or not you will act on what you learn! It will simply not be possible to halt between two opinions on this matter.
A typical day at Headquarters is filled with numerous projects—editing articles, magazines and websites; in-house publishing; preparing for regular mailings; writing letters and articles; returning phone calls to brethren, prospective members, news media inquiries; organizing; planning future projects.
It is crucial to understand I am not saying that all the attendees in the splinters now no longer have God’s Spirit. Many or perhaps most do! As stated, the problem is that two different spirits—God’s and Satan’s—are now at work in these groups. (“ANOINT YOUR EYES” spends several pages covering how this process inevitably destroys unsuspecting individuals.) Where Satan’s spirit is present (as spiritual leaven or cancer)—again, beginning with the “door being thrown open”—God’s Spirit will tend to diminish and eventually disappear, with the spirit of Satan ultimately taking over completely, either in individuals or entire organizations. Another Jesus, another gospel and another spirit are taking all of the splinters and slivers directly BACK TO THE WORLD and its empty, counterfeit doctrines and pursuit of materialism! (Only the Great Tribulation will mercifully cut short the process.)
This has been the oft-repeated message—truly the broken record—of 2,000 years of New Testament Church history—of Church eras! And, as has been stated, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
Remember, Christ’s true sheep know—can recognize—the true Christ’s voice, and can distinguish it from a strange voice spoken by a different “Christ.” Get this straight! I repeat: The Spirit of the true Christ, who taught only one gospel, would never direct the “work” of those bringinganother gospel (and with many other false teachings), always derived from another spirit, which invariably introduces another Jesus, leadinganother counterfeit “body of Christ.” This necessarily always includes slipping into involvement within the “social gospel” of the world, tightly connected to its phony “Jesus.”
(Our Splinter Explanation Packet could have easily included a sermon titled “Another Jesus,” but it is available on our website. The listener will be absolutely stunned to find out that this other “Jesus” has been known by many names throughout history, and is over 4,000 years old—long preceding the true Jesus of the New Testament!)
Read and reread all that you have seen in this chapter and the previous two until their points become crystal clear—until it is impossible to misunderstand what is at stake regarding what the Work is and where you join yourself to continue it. Remember, the TRUE Christ is not divided—meaning there is only one TRUE Work of God!
Discern if you have found it!
More Mass Amnesia
We have described the hypnotic and pervasive “mass amnesia” now afflicting God’s people in regard to giving to the world’s relief organizations and aiding disaster victims. But this is not the only aspect—or large aspect—of how the Great Commission is to be carried out that many brethren have forgotten. Another case of directly related mass amnesia has overtaken God’s people on a colossal point of understanding having to do with the commission to the Church. But this second “amnesia” is best introduced by yet a third fundamental teaching connected to doing the Work that so many today seem to have also forgotten.
As you read take note. Recognize how both of these additional memory losses become more proof of how the spirit of error always spreads until it engulfs previous understanding with new thinking that eventually supplants even the remembrance of the old belief.
For decades, all members of the Worldwide Church of God understood and practiced Christ’s instruction in Matthew 10:8 to His disciples to “Freely you have received, freely give.” As a mail reader during my later student employment in Pasadena, I was instructed (and this was routine with all mail readers) that any person who tried to pay for the literature—and we were to look for certain key words or phrases in letters—was to automatically have his check returned to him. Everyone knew there were to be no exceptions—and there never were to my knowledge. Of course, again, the entire Church at least generally knew this policy and it was one of the great differences that made us unique from all the churches of the world! In fact, virtually every World Tomorrow radio and television program, and every magazine or piece of literature the Church published, made clear that no one could pay for what was offered. This policy was simply impossible to misunderstand.
Now consider. Thousands in the splinters who were once members of the WCG read and love our literature—and tell us so. Incredibly, many of these brethren write to us and ask if they can “buy” or “pay for” or “make a donation to cover the costs of” whatever items they want us to send. While they should know better, and once did, many haveforgotten that we cannot do this.
Of course, it should be stated that we recognize some of these—and this is perhaps worse than forgetting—are inquiring about purchasing the material because they feel guilty asking for such wonderful free material from a smaller organization that produces much more than the bigger, wealthier organizations they attend. In other words, they know what they are doing, but do it anyway. These seem to hope that we will compromise so that they can obtain the material through purchase, thus allowing them to remain where they are, but to enjoy our literature at the same time. This is made even more astonishing because they are willing to freely pay God’s tithes and give offerings to an organization—their own—doing very little with what is, in some cases, many millions of dollars available annually to pay for printing and with scores of potential writers present to produce the material. It is possible, however, that—and we can only wonder whether—some with this thinking believe they are also paying their own church for “services rendered” (to be discussed in Chapter Nineteen in a fascinating way), so why not do the same with RCG? But either way, such is the forgetfulness, indifference—and BLINDNESS!—of the final age of God’s people.
Why Mr. Armstrong Sold Some Books in Bookstores
Related to this is another bigger problem—in this case, an OUTRAGE!—occurring in the splinters.
Many will remember that Mr. Armstrong sold his larger books in hardcover form in bookstores. Few remember the reason he did this—and what he would never do. Before discussing the problem, here is some history to refresh the reader, all but one statement taken from Co-Worker Letters by Mr. Armstrong and working backwards in time. The first quote is introducing his final book MYSTERY OF THE AGES:
“It is named MYSTERY OF THE AGES. Actually it might be called a synopsis of the Bible in the most plain and understandable language.
“But first, before I tell you more about it, let me say I am overjoyed to be able to send you one of the very first copies off the press, hardbound—the same beautiful copy that will be sold in bookstores all over the United States—in gratitude for your cooperation and financial support of this wonderful work of the great God.
“All baptized members will be given the book, one copy to a family, at the coming annual Feast of Tabernacles. All nonmember co-workers are being mailed your copies, but allow a few weeks for delivery, for this kind of mail goes much slower than this letter.
“We want to reach the largest audience possible with this book. I know you will feel the same way when you read it. There is a very large audience which would never request this book if offered free—who would never send their name and address to us—but would gladly buy a copy in a bookstore. By putting it in the bookstores we will reach a very great audience that we can reach in no other way. We will not sell the book ourselves, but it cannot be made available to this large audience of book buyers unless the bookstores do put a price on it.”
September 12, 1985
“Now comes getting the Gospel out in print. That includes ‘The Plain Truth’, the Correspondence Course, booklets and books. And again, I am the editor-in-chief, I do the chief writing, especially in the area of the booklets and the books that are now going on sale in the bookstores all over the United States.”
Worldwide News, Special Edition, March 6, 1981
“We cannot solicit the public for contributions—we cannot have anything to sell (with the one exception of my hardcover books in bookstores to reach a reading audience hitherto unreachable). Even so, we have given, gratis, these books to those who request them of us direct. This is a WORK OF GIVING, NOT ‘GETTING.’ This is the Work of the living GOD!”
August 27, 1980
“This year I have planned to publish five new full books, to be available in bookstores and shops all over the English-speaking world.
“The first book, which many consider the most important book since the Bible, THE INCREDIBLE HUMAN POTENTIAL, will be available in bookstores in February”
“I am close now to finishing another book, A VOICE CRIES OUT AGAINST RELIGIOUS CONFUSION. I believe it will be equally important but it will not reach the bookstores until next fall.”
“But, in the meantime, three other important books will appear in the bookstores. Coming later this spring will be the revised and enlarged book, TOMORROW—WHAT IT WILL BE LIKE. Another, a revised edition of THE UNITED STATES AND BRITAIN IN PROPHECY, and another, a greatly enlarged edition of THE SEVEN LAWS OF SUCCESS.”
December 27, 1978
“My first full length book—good quality, hard-cover—to appear in bookstores all over the English-speaking world—is in the hands of the publishers, our own Everest House, and is scheduled to be delivered to all U.S. and Canada Feast sites for the Feast. This is the book titled THE INCREDIBLE HUMAN POTENTIAL. I feel God has inspired it to be the most important book since the Holy BIBLE.
“The second full length hard-cover book is also completely written and in the hands of Everest House. It is an updated and enlarged edition of The Wonderful World TOMORROW—What It Will Be Like.
“Another new hard-cover edition of The United States and Britain in PROPHECY to go into bookstores around the world is completely written and in the hands of the publishers.
“A new, enlarged updated booklet on This IS the WORLDWIDE CHURCH OF GOD is already turned over to the publishers. Now, I plan to combine that with the new book, which is still being written, SEVEN PROOFS of the TRUE CHURCH, making a full size book in hard-cover and put it into bookstores the world over.
“I am working on an enlarged edition of The Seven LAWS OF SUCCESS, also to go, in hard-cover book form, into bookstores around the world. The new edition will contain brief yet interest-absorbing comments on the biographies of such men as Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Sir Fredrick Henry Royce who produced the Rolls-Royce, and others considered as examples of SUCCESS in the world.
“Then, also a new edition of The Missing Dimension in SEX, and possibly later a completed edition of the Autobiography.
“Millions of people constantly buy books in bookstores—and these are people we may not be able to reach in any other way. THIS OPENS TO GOD'S CHURCH AN ENTIRE NEW MEDIUM FOR PROCLAIMING CHRIST'S GOSPEL TO THE WORLD.”
September 25, 1978
“This book—full book length—will be available in virtually all bookstores in the United States and the English speaking world. It will reach an entirely new audience with God’s Message, heretofore unreachable!”
July 25, 1978
Mr. Armstrong came to see that it was not wrong to sell books for the reasons explained and under the circumstances given, and if this were done in bookstores. He made clear, however, that these books, with the same content, could also be obtained for free upon request.
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