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WORLDWIDE CHURCH OF GOD
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA 91123
HERBERT W. ARMSTRONG
PASTOR GENERAL
January 10, 1986
Dear Brethren and Co-Workers,
This is my first letter to you in 1986, and could very well
be my last. Now in my 94th year I am in a very physically weakened
state enduring severe pain and with virtually no strength whatso-
ever. I briefly described my condition in last month's co-worker
letter to you, and now it has worsened. It may be that the Work
God has given me to do is complete, but not the Work of God's
Church, which will be faithfully doing God's Work till Christ, the
True Head of this Church, returns.
After much counsel and prayer over the past months God has
led me in announcing a decision last week to appoint Mr. Joseph W.
Tkach, director of Church Administration, to the office of Deputy
Pastor General, to assist me while I am in a weakened state, and
should God choose to take my life, to place himself totally in
Christ's hands to lead God's Church under Christ, succeeding me as
Pastor General, in the difficult times ahead. Christ will lead in
the decision about which men will continue the telecast.
Remember, brethren, this is not the work of Herbert W.
Armstrong, nor will it be the work of Mr. Tkach, or any man. It is
the Work of the Living Creator, God. You are supporting this Work
of God, and it is the Great God who will pour out His blessings on
you for your generosity. Continue to sacrifice through 1986 to
finish the commission God has given his Church. The greatest work
lies yet ahead. Christ confirmed that in John 4:35, "Say not ye,
There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say
unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are
white already to harvest." Never before in the history of the
Church has it been possible to reap so great a harvest. It has
only been made possible through modern technology, beginning with
the printing press, radio, television, and rapid mass transit and
mass communication. I personally have seen nearly all of these
technological advances in my lifetime, starting in the last century
through the horse and buggy age to the current space age.
It was prophesied in Daniel 12 that in the last days
knowledge would be increased. This has been fulfilled, yet with
this awesome progress we are experiencing even more appalling and
continuous evils, which will culminate in the Great Tribulation
ahead of us now. Then, just before humanity blasts human life off
this planet, God will once again send his Son Jesus Christ. This
time in power and glory as King of kings and Lord of lords to rule
with all the power of the Great God and usher in utopian peace,
happiness and prosperity. Thank God Satan will then be gone.
Are you ready for the return of Jesus Christ? Will you
escape the Great Tribulation soon to occur? Christ said to watch
and pray always, that you will be accounted worthy to escape (Luke