For quite a number of years before his death, Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong would look out over the Headquarters congregation and say, "Brethren, I think that many of us just don't get it!"
Mr. Armstrong sensed that many of God's people just "went along for the ride." They believed in keeping "Saturday instead of Sunday." They realized that the Ten Commandments were not done away. They realized that God was using Mr. Armstrong in a special way.
But most of these folks failed to understand that genuine Christianity—genuine conversion—really does involve a total surrender of one's mind, heart and will to God. It involves really surrendering your life to Christ to let Him live His life in you through the Holy Spirit. As Paul said, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20, KJV).
I still remember how moved I was to receive the following letter from a former member of the Worldwide Church, who returned to the Truth and began attending the Living Church of God. Notice his renewed zeal for the Truth:
"Last July [my Living Church of God minister] directed me to the 32-lesson Ambassador College Bible Correspondence Course, and I'm just completing Lesson 25. That's been a blessing as well. But, then, so is the Tomorrow's World magazine, the TW telecast with you and Mr. Ames, the Living Church News, the Bible Study Course (my second test was just returned — I missed '1'!) and all the booklets I'm studying as well—along with the sermons posted to the Web and the 40+ sermons I borrowed from the 'host' up this way that were recorded during the 'Global' days, as well as, of course, the many booklets published by Living, the 58-lesson Correspondence Course (which I'll be starting soon) and older sermons given by Mr. Armstrong.
"When Mr. Armstrong used to look out over the congregation and say, 'Many of you folks just don't get it!' I was definitely one of those folks! God is so merciful and loving—and His Way of life is the only way that produces good results. I can readily see why Mr. Armstrong called the Bible 'the foundation of knowledge!'
"But I particularly wanted to say 'Thank You!' for the series of Bible Study Commentaries which has just run on the Web site with you going through the book of Matthew! I hope and pray everyone, and I sincerely mean everyone, will read and study the Bible using that as a help. It is absolutely fantastic!
"Now I was in your freshman Bible class in 1965– 1966, going through the Harmony of the Gospels, and I've gotten so much more out of this series there is no comparison! Of course now I'm trying with all my heart to surrender to God and Christ and His instructions to us, and live by His every Word. I just want you to know how deeply [I] appreciate your efforts, your commitment, your zeal and love in giving us— and the world—God's truth. I also appreciated your message regarding 'Our Mission as a Church' in the current Living Church News."
Brethren, many of us have lost that zeal for the Truth. And some even in the Living Church of God are "dabblers." They do not try to saturate their minds and hearts with the pure Truth coming directly from the Bible and from those God is using to really preach His message to the world. Rather, they "dabble" in this idea and that—creating their own spiritual "smorgasbord" of often-conflicting religious ideas and concepts.
Again and again in His Word, God warns us about being "wishy-washy" and uncertain about Him and His ways. The writer of Hebrews tells us, "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him" (Hebrews 11:6). So you cannot please God without real faith. Somewhere along the line, you and I must commit. We cannot just "dabble" with various ideas and with various teachers who often "water down" much of the Truth and usually contradict each other in the process. You must prove where Christ is primarily doing His Work today and "put your heart" into that Church.
As the man quoted above related what he was now doing, you also should zealously study the Bible and the literature from God's true Church. You should make your religion a genuine way of life. You should not foolishly "get sidetracked" by following the ideas of false prophets and worldly ministers and teachers who often do not even claim to teach the Ten Commandments as a way of life.
Yet some will extol what they feel are "good ideas" in the teachings of these Commandment-rejecting ministers and teachers, and allow themselves to get "sidetracked" into studying their material or hearing their messages on tape—often spending several hours a week listening to those who reject God's Commandments! Subtly, slowly but surely, these weak and misguided individuals in God's Church have their thinking skewed into the direction of Protestantism, sentimentalism, New Age thinking or whatever.
As Mr. Armstrong would say, "They just don't get it!"
From one end of the Bible to the other, God tells us not to follow those who refuse to obey God's Law. Isaiah was inspired to write, "And when they say to you, 'Seek those who are mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter,' should not a people seek their God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living? To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them" (Isaiah 8:19–20).
Notice that God says there is "no light" in these lawless teachers! Do you disagree with God and want to follow these Commandment-rejecting teachers anyway? Remember how the Apostle Jesus "loved" clearly warned us, "He who says, 'I know Him,' and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him" (1 John 2:4).
What is God telling us in the above scriptures? Do Commandment- rejecting ministers and teachers know anything? Yes, of course they do. But note carefully: these people do not have the true spiritual "light" because—as John says—they do not "know" Jesus Christ. They may know about Christ. But to truly "know" Christ—to be truly acquainted with Him—one must actually surrender one's life to keep all ten of the Ten Commandments as 1 John 2:4 indicates. Then, and only then, does one have the "mind of Christ" to understand and explain the full truth about any spiritual matter.
Experiencing what it is like to fully keep God's Commandments, to have Christ live within oneself and to "walk with Christ" over a period of years, is the only way to prepare to fully and properly explain God's word and its principles. Lacking this, lawless ministers and teachers will tend to "skew" people's minds away from a full understanding of the biblical principles about marriage, child rearing, personal relationships, being fully honest on the job—about everything. They may be totally sincere. But without Christ living in them through His Spirit, they can only give part of the answer to these problems. They will therefore give wrong advice, or very incomplete advice at most. As Mr. Armstrong said, "Putting just a 'little' cyanide in an otherwise good glass of water or juice is enough to kill." Think about it!
God's Word tells us, "This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all" (1 John 1:5). In God is complete "light"—no darkness, no compromise and no "watering down" of the Truth whatsoever. But Adam and Eve ate of the tree of "mixed" fruit—partial good and much bad—which caused the entire human race to be cut off from God!
Think! Any "good ideas" on marriage relations, child rearing, personal success—or whatever you might learn from Commandment-rejecting ministers—is information you could also learn from articles in the Reader's Digest and other non-religious publications. But from those non-religious sources, you would not be getting the information mixed with a false Christ and a "watered down" approach to God—an entire approach to religion that is distorted and is certainly displeasing to God.
To learn real spiritual Truth—the full Truth—you must go to those faithful teachers who are preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God based on God's law. The Apostle Paul told the Ephesian elders, "For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God" (Acts 20:27).
Brethren, with all my heart I am also trying to declare to you the "whole counsel of God!" Please do not allow Satan to cleverly "sidetrack" you into following any "watered-down" version of religion—whether from a weak, misguided minister in some Church of God fellowship, or from some lawless, yet well-meaning, religious teachers of this world.
The living Christ tells us in Scripture, "Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus" (Revelation 14:12). Also, "For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome" (1 John 5:3).
That is why Christ tells us not to merely "believe" in Him, but to believe and practice His teaching, His doctrine (Luke 6:46). Again, His beloved apostle warns us, "Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds" (2 John 9–11).
And again, brethren, "Do we really get it?"