Sabbath Message 28/12/35/120

Dear Friends,

As we saw recently the Bible Sabbath Association (BSA) and we were trying to deal with the problems in uniting the Churches of God under a proper and common theological basis. Unless two are agreed they cannot walk together. Calvin made the assertion to us that our common factor is Jesus Christ and that overrides all other factors and differences. Now we had some difficulties with that basic premise. We were faced with the problem of enabling our people to meet and worship together and to pray together and even to eat together.

We will deal with the common issues and what has to be done and then we will deal with some other discussions we have had with the other Churches of God. This problem has to be solved either in the very near future together or when the Witnesses get here and before the First Resurrection under Messiah as it will be too late when Messiah stands on the Mount of Olives and many, through following false doctrine, will not be in the First Resurrection. It is that serious and we do not have a long time left to solve the problem. 

This is the way the problem was presented to the BSA:

“Dear Calvin,

I agree that Jesus Christ is our hope and our lord and master or teacher, but we do not agree that it transcends all other differences. Logically for example if he did not speak according to the law and the testimony (Isa. 8:20) and against the Commandments of God and, say, ordered worship on Sundays he would have been disqualified and could not be the Messiah. [That is, he had to keep and teach the Fourth Commandment and the Calendar of God established under the Law of God.]

The Bible is the sole arbiter of the faith and it must be tested historically to ensure freedom from error of interpretation. On this knowledge of faith once delivered to the saints we can progress.

This whole matter has been painful for me for the last twenty-five years when I realised what was being done to the Churches of God. I can assure you it was also painful for Roy Marrs.  At first he did not believe me that it was being done. Daniel told of this great apostasy of the saints in the Last Days.

There are some things on which we agree with some of the COG (SD). Others we do not agree. Many of your own members do not agree with you. Some have joined us.

These issues are fundamental to the faith.

The first is who we worship. We worship the One True God Eloah the Ha Elohim, and we serve Him through his son who is the Yahovah and Elohim of Israel (Ps. 45:6-7; Heb. 1:8-9).

You by your own declarations worship the Triune God which was brought into the church by the Antinomian worshippers of the god Attis in Rome. They did this through Binitarianism (see http://www.ccg.org/english/s/p127b.html).

We will never permit prayer to other than the Eternal One True God in the name of Jesus Christ. You brought this Trinitarian doctrine into the COG (SD) via Binitarianism in 1995 just as I said you would. It was the same in WCG but they had been corrupted by the Ditheist heresy of Herbert Armstrong (http://www.ccg.org/english/s/p076b.html). When Roy realised what was being done, it was too late.  He did later try to deal with the heresy but he had to rely on younger less educated men in the church.

We will never permit, and the Churches of God have never permitted, grape juice at the Lord’s Supper in almost 2000 years. The Churches of God (SD) in Ukraine who agreed with all we believe except this matter have tried to join us and we have refused them three times on the grounds of grape juice alone. They have even attempted entry by subterfuge and we have discovered them each time.

Also Isaiah 66:23 states that the Sabbaths and New Moons will be kept and enforced on pain of death when Messiah returns. Amos 8:5 says they were kept in the Temple period and we know this to be a fact (cf. also Col 2:16). Also the Churches of God in Transylvania and Europe kept the Sabbaths, New Moons and Feasts according to the Temple calendar right through the Reformation. Zechariah 14:16-19 states clearly that the Feasts will be restored under Messiah and all nations will keep the Feasts and send their representatives to Jerusalem.

If they do not we will enforce it and the nations will receive no rain in due season and suffer the plagues of Egypt. The church has always believed this and kept them (cf. Justin Martyr, Dialogue LXXX).

Address each of these issues of
The One True God, 
Prayer
Wine at The Lord’s Supper, and
the Calendar and the requirement to keep the feasts; and also
the Food Laws.

Each of these matters must be addressed in order for us to agree, even to giving a simple prayer in a combined service on Sabbaths. The last, as we will not worship with unclean food provided at the meal.

Now there must be a fact of these matters and it should be simple to address and resolve. Until we agree on these issues there can be no joint services.  For these are the elect, those who keep the Commandments of God and the Faith or Testimony of Jesus Christ (Rev. 12:17; 14:12).

Wade”

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In dealing with these matters we are finding that the understanding of the Churches of God is also varying and is moving towards Trinitarianism in many areas. For example, our officers have spent time recently discussing the faith with ministers of other churches. One that came from the WCG into the UCG and whose senior minister was a WCG minister did not appear to understand that the WCG taught that the Bible did not disclose the Father in the OT. Now this false doctrine was taught despite it being clear that the One True God, who was the Father of all, created the sons of God and was often discussed in the OT. The doctrine of WCG under Armstrong is examined in the paper Ditheism (No. 076B). It came out in discussion that the being who gave the law to Moses at Sinai was now held to be God and not Jesus Christ. This is direct reversal of the WCG doctrines and indicates that UCG is drifting from Ditheism into Trinitarianism and it is fairly widespread.

Other COGs teach that the original Church of God was Binitarian which is a blatant lie. Binitarianism was brought into the Church of God by the worshippers of the god Attis in Rome and the process is examined in the paper Binitarian and Trinitarian Misrepresentation of the Early Theology of the Godhead (No. 127B).

These matters must be resolved, as without a proper understanding of the Original faith once delivered we cannot withstand the false doctrine that has been through at the Churches of God in and from the Twentieth Century. Contrary to what the offshoots teach it does matter a great deal what you say about God and how you pray and on what days you worship. Most of the Churches of God in fact keep the Babylonian Calendar with the pharisaic or rabbinical postponements. They rarely keep the Holy Days and Feasts on the correct days. Very rarely are the Day of Atonement and the Lord’s Supper kept on the correct days and sometimes not even in the correct months.  A simple look at history will show this to be widely understood.  Look at the papers God’s Calendar (No. 156); The Calendar and the Moon: Postponements or Festivals? (No. 195) and also Distortion of God’s Calendar in Judah (No. 195B).

It is written that these are the saints: Those who keep the Commandments of God and the Testimony or Faith of Jesus Christ (Rev. 12:17; 14:12).

Thus it is a requirement to get it right and not to lead the elect astray with false teachings. It is also a fact that two churches of the Last Days, both the Sardis and the Laodicean churches, are thrown out of the Kingdom of God being dead and lukewarm respectively. It is thus not something to be treated lightly. The Sardis has the name that it is living but it is dead (Rev. 3:1). Laodicea also is wealthy and thinks it has need of nothing but it is poor, pitiable, blind and naked and is lukewarm in its faith (cf. also Rev. ch. 3).
 
These warnings are for the latter days and the last churches.

Thus it is incumbent on the Churches of God to ensure that they have correct doctrines and the members are required to hold their ministers accountable and prove all things as did the Bereans before them. Many refer to them and do nothing of what they did and do not prove the faith and hold fast to that which is true.

The prophecy of Ezekiel 34 is being implemented and the sheep are being torn out of the hands of the shepherds and they are being tested one against another. We are now well into this process and more division and disruption are before the Churches of God this year and the next.

We all need to prove the faith and correct error and reprimand the false teachers. Pray that we can deal with these issues and consolidate the Churches of God.

Wade Cox
Coordinator General