Pastor's Comments

While praying this morning my thoughts turned to the Great White Throne Judgment period of time -- the second resurrection. I suppose this was due to my sermon I have planned to give tomorrow that fits into the context of this resurrection in which God will bring back to life all who have never had an opportunity for salvation during this 6,000 year period of time.

My wife and I have had the blessing of having lived for many years. Then the most wonderful blessing was given to both of us when God began working with us in 1951 and then baptized in 1952. An additional blessing was granted to us by God when I was given employment at Ambassador College in 1953, and remained in Pasadena until 1960.

As the result I came to know quite well the student body and all who came to be students over the next few years --until we were transferred to San Diego, California in 1960.

Some few were already ordained evangelists and others came to be over those years while others were ordained to a lower office.

Some of those top-ranked evangelists and a few of their wives are now dead and some of the lowers offices are also dead.

I grew to love those men and their wives who are now deceased. Some of them were very helpful to my wife and me during the years when we were altogether; and sometimes, we were under their supervision.

It was with great sadness that I felt when some of them left the true teachings and accepted the Protestant teachings that they themselves had taught against until 1986.

I thought of them this morning while praying in connection with God's awesome and wonderful plan that will include all with an opportunity to really come to know Him, and not just about Him. And I thought of them with a feeling of compassion and love knowing that some of them were never converted -- men and women who never really had come to know God in a loving and knowing relationship.

It is with this in mind I feel God will raise them up in that resurrection. (I think my sermon will give added understanding in this area of thinking.) Though I have particular ones in mind I do NOT want to mention any of their names.

Having known them over the many years, and in view of all that has transpired during recent years, I am as confident as I can be with the Scriptural understanding with which God has graced me that they will be in that resurrection. I well realize at the same time that I cannot say for sure for only God really knows the hearts and minds of all.

This is also my thought regarding the many thousands who were once with us and walked away. Certainly we can also include our relatives and friends who were never a part of the Church and have also died or will.

We have to remember God used all of these ministers to perform a service by pastoring the many in the Church who were not really true members as well. All of these members and ministers were very necessary to provide the tithes and offerings to make possible Mr. Armstrong to reach the world with the Gospel and the Ezekiel warning message.

I think of the wonderful and awesome LOVE of God that is made known in the many Scriptures that connect with this 2nd resurrection; and the people who will be in it, and know it is NOT God's will that any should perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16). At the same time many Scriptures reveal that that entrance into God's Kingdom will not be carte blanche. There are conditions that have to be met by everyone.

To adequately cover this subject would entail far more writing than what I am now doing. However I wanted to sort of give an overview of it with the many people we have known and loved and hope and pray that none of them have lost out altogether, but in reality be given their first real opportunity to come to know our wonderful God of all love.

This should be the heart-felt desire of all of us -- even if we have been mistreated by some of them in past times, and some members were mistreated!

If God loved them, and He does, and if He is living His life within us, then that same love should be extended even to our enemies - so said Jesus Christ. Jesus said of those who brought about His own death on the stake, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." And this is the key -- they know not what they do -- that is, not in real depth with true understanding!

I loved those men and women and feel they really did the best they knew how to do under given circumstances. The Feast of Firstfruits, Pentecost, will soon be here. It pictures the time of the 1st resurrection when God's true people will be changed and will aid Christ in offering salvation to all from there on -- including all those in the 2nd Resurrection. I look forward to that time when it is my hope of seeing and possibly even having a part of helping these men and women who once were a part of us.

We have to remember one needs more than just knowledge -- one also has to have received God's Holy Spirit -- or reject it when offered. Knowing these people as I have known them they did not receive or reject God's Spirit. It is my belief that it was God's intention to use them without actually giving it to them.

Please hear my sermon tomorrow and maybe it will give further insight in what I am writing about them.

Please think about this with all of the people you know and let our hearts and minds be filled with love and longing to once again see and be with our unconverted friends and loved ones. At the same time to ask God to remove any resentment or hardness of heart we may yet have because of the mistreatment of any and all.

I think of king David at the time of king Saul's death who only spoke of the good things about him when he could have had real hatred in his heart for trying to kill him time after time for no justifiable reason.