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PASTOR GENERAL'S REPORT, MAY 15, 1981
Page 3
On the Sabbath, Mr. Armstrong was to speak to the combined Sydney churches.
In the morning the flu and sore throat that had been troubling him for
several weeks began to sap his strength again. The services were scheduled
in the afternoon so he took extra time to rest in the morning.
We arrived at the Sydney Town Hall right on time. The Town Hall in Sydney
is an "oldie," but a beautifully maintained "goodie." The place was just
about packed with God's people. Another 440 people in Perth in the extreme
West Coast of Australia listened in by phone line.
Mr. Armstrong spoke for about an hour and three quarters giving an overview
of God's purpose for putting man on earth. When Adam was made a living
soul, he did not have real LIFE. He had only a physic-chemical existence
that was winding down and would eventually come to an end. God offered him
the tree of LIFE, which led to the indwelling of God's Holy Spirit. That
spirit
would have given Adam access to God's MIND and God's POWER which
leads to eternal LIFE!
Adam chose the way that leads to death. God told him if he chose that way
he would surely die. And he did.
After he chose the wrong way, God cut him and his descendants off from
access to the tree of LIFE. Man was not cut off from God. Man was cut off
from LIFE! God would not give him LIFE in the selfish attitude he was in.
The
fruit
of that attitude would be sorrow for Adam and all those he came in
contact with.
God dealt with ancient Israel--but he never offered them LIFE! No one had
God's offer of LIFE until Christ, the second Adam, established His Church
and offered us eternal LIFE. We are the first to be offered LIFE since Adam
was driven out of the garden!�We ar�now being judged to see if we will
follow the � ay of LIFE, the way of God's LOVE which is shed abroad in our
hearts by His Spirit. Like Adam, we are being offered LIFE! We have to
choose. We also have Satan's evil influence to contend with: it is not easy
to qualify now. But God helps us with His Spirit, and those who demonstrate
that they want to follow God's way of LIFE will be His "firstfruits," the
first
to
have LIFE and
a
leadership role
in
God's
Family
forever!
It was the clearest presentation of the Gospel I have ever heard. So in
spiring!
But at dinner that night, Mr. Armstrong said he wasn't completely happy
with his presentation. He felt he should include that after God calls us
and gives us His Spirit, we must GROW. The next day, Sunday the 10th, we
were to fly to Brisbane to speak to several churches there. Before we left
Sydney at 1 p.m., Mr. Armstrong reworked the entire sermon so that he
concluded with the focus of the fact that each member must grow in God's way
of LIFE. We must drink in God's Word (John 6:63) so we think and act more
and more like God and less and less like this Satan-inspired world.
The sermon was two hours in length. Mr. Armstrong joked that it wasn't as
long as Mr. Waterhouse spoke!
The revision from the day before had certainly been successful. A clear
overview of God's Plan and then showing how each of us individually must
grow spiritually to fulfill our calling, was both inspiring and sobering.