Living Church of God Update

The world has certainly entered a very dynamic period with the election of a new President in the United States, financial shockwaves surging around the world and now the major automakers in the USA facing bankruptcy, which could affect more than a million jobs. The “time of Jacob’s trouble” appears to be on the horizon. However, in the midst of this widespread turmoil, God has opened a “major door” for the Tomorrow’s World program to go on CNBC, a cable network in Europe that will carry the Gospel and a warning message to 113 million subscribers from the UK to Russia, including one million subscribers in the nation of Israel and 3.5 million subscribers in the Gulf States. This is a very important opportunity. Please pray that God will guide us in going through this door.

Here in Charlotte, we have had a busy and eventful week. In addition to going on the new station in Europe, Mr. Wayne Pyle reports that Mr. Meredith’s program last weekend, “When Will Christ Return?” broke the 6,000-mark for the first time—with 6,256 responses! Mr. Ames’ program two weeks ago has now received 6,129 responses. Also this week, Mr. Rod King and Mr. Wallace Smith taped several programs for the new television season. Mr. Ames and I have taped lectures for our Living University classes, and Mr. Meredith hopes to speak briefly during services this Sabbath. Mr. and Mrs. Rod McNair are visiting congregations and regional offices in the Caribbean. Progress on the new television studio is proceeding well.

Southern California Area Pastor, Mr. Darrell Lovelady, reports: Last weekend’s fires in the Southern California area forced the evacuation of thousands of people from parts of Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara and Los Angeles counties. The fires burned 42,000 acres and destroyed almost 1,000 residences. I am happy to report that none of our members suffered any loss as a result of the fires. The Sylmar fire came within a few miles of one family; however, it did not pose a direct threat to their property. The fires are now contained or completely extinguished. A residual effect of the fires has been the poor air quality. The smoke is lingering in the area and causing breathing difficulties for some. We appreciate the prayers of the brethren and are thankful for God’s protection.

Mr. and Mrs. Rod McNair arrived in Jamaica last Thursday. They spent last Sabbath with our brethren in Kingston, where there were 81 in attendance for services. On Sunday, Mr. McNair and Mr. Lascelles Fraser, Jamaica Area Pastor, conducted a leadership meeting with some of the local men. Mr. McNair led a discussion about “Emotional Leadership.” The television program in Jamaica is producing a high percentage of first-time callers each week (usually 67-70%); we believe this is the result of providing a local phone number during the program.

On Monday, the McNairs arrived in Barbados, their next stop, where they were met at the airport by Mr. Fitzroy Greeman, Barbados Area Pastor. Mr. McNair reports, “It was encouraging to hear that 20 brethren have been baptized within the past year in Barbados…. Tuesday evening we joined 41 brethren at the Barbados Beach Club for Bible Study.” Yesterday, the McNairs visited the Barbados regional office and were given a tour of it by Mrs. Williana Mallet. Mr. McNair writes, “It was really nice to get to know her, see the operation, and to see how well the office is tied in with Data Entry at Headquarters. The Information Technology Department has done a lot of work to develop the system to where it is today.” Tomorrow, the McNairs will be heading to Trinidad and will spend the Sabbath with our congregation there.

The activities will include Bunko and Pizza on Thursday evening. On Friday there will be Bible Studies for different groups: Singles, Youth and Married Couples. On the Sabbath, we will have services at the Charlotte Hilton-University with a dinner and dance that evening. Mr. Apartian plans to give an “Etiquette Dinner” talk through the meal.The hotel is offering $69 per night room rates. On Sunday, there will be other fun activities and opportunities for fellowship. More details will be provided soon.

We are very happy to announce the completion of the first phase of our major upgrade for Internet video on www.lcg.org. The sermons on the Church website are now being streamed at 300kbps. This is an improvement of 750%. Those viewing the sermon videos from a high speed Internet connection will notice the improvement immediately. The sermons are also available as mp3 audio files for those on a dial-up connection to the Internet. The vast online sermon library is also being upgraded, although that will take a while longer. Stay tuned for further developments as there are other upgrades to be announced shortly.—J. Charles Ogwyn

Personal Opinions and Doctrine: Periodically, individuals come up with their own ideas about what a scripture means. They often share their ideas with others and sometimes insist that the Church accept these ideas and teach them as doctrine. However, this is not according to the instructions that we find in the Bible. The Apostle Peter stated that the Scriptures were not to be interpreted privately (2 Peter 1:20). The Apostle Paul taught that the Church was to be the “pillar and ground of the truth.” Controversy results when everyone interprets the Scriptures for themselves (1 Timothy 3:15). The Apostle Paul also warned Christians to avoid “arguments about words” that only generate strife (2 Timothy 2:14-24) and to “hold fast” to what they had been taught (Titus 1:9). When doctrinal issues do arise, they are to be discussed and decided by a council of elders of the Church (Acts 15:2, 6). This was the principle established by Jesus Christ (Matthew 16:19), and this is the approach we are given to avoid confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33) and promote unity (1 Corinthians 1:10). The Church is open to consider ideas, but those ideas should be presented first to the local Pastor or Regional Pastor, who will then present them to the Church to consider. We need to avoid promoting ourselves as the ones who determine Church doctrine.

Vatican and Muslim Unity? “Senior Vatican and Islamic scholars [recently] launched their first Catholic-Muslim Forum… [aimed at improving] relations between the world’s two largest faiths… In their manifesto, ‘A Common Word,’ the Muslims argued that both faiths shared the core principles of love of God and neighbor. The three-day talks focus on what this means for the religions and how it can foster harmony between them.” The talks included an audience with the Pope and were described as “cordial.” However, one Catholic delegate observed, “We can only have a real dialogue if all believers have equal rights everywhere, which is not the case in some Muslim countries” (Reuters, November 4, 2008). Bible prophecy indicates that a future leader will sign an agreement that will attempt to promote religious harmony during a 3.5 year period, prior to the onset of the great tribulation (Daniel 9:26-27). This agreement will likely include Jerusalem—a city that the Catholic Church has had in its sights for millennia. High-level talks like those occurring between the Vatican and the Muslim world may serve to set the stage for such an agreement.

Potential Consequences from a Coming Pestilence.Seismologists talk about the “big one”—an earthquake—that will hit California one day. But when public health professionals talk about the “big one,” they mean a worldwide flu pandemic that is “overdue” to hit the globe. In the 1918-1920 influenza pandemic, over 50 million peopled died worldwide. Based on projections from 1918-1920, Harvard scientists project that the next influenza pandemic will kill 51-81 million people. These scientists suggest that when medical professionals and supplies are limited, someone will have to determine “who will live” and “who will die.” These death statistics are not “alarmist,” but are based on the known global influenza cycles. Today, for example, 36,000 Americans die from influenza annually and another 200,000 are hospitalized. These numbers will rise drastically with an extremely virulent and unexpected strain of the virus (ABC News, November 12, 2008). Jesus said that one of the signs of His return and the end of the age would be “famines and pestilences” and “fearful sights” (Luke 21:11). God also prophesied that as a result of disobedience, He would bring “wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, destroy your livestock, and make you few in number” (Leviticus 26:22). Microbiologists have for years referred to microbes (bacteria and viruses) as “wee beasties,” which usually attack the children and elderly first. As time goes on, we get a clearer picture of just how God will bring to pass His prophesied events, IF the Israelite-descended nations fail to repent and “turn” to Him.

Children Are their Oppressors. A major English newspaper reports, “There were more than 4,000 suspensions of children aged 5 and under in England last year… Of the 400 suspensions of children aged 2 and 3 from nursery last year, 310 involved accusations of physical assault or threatening behavior against a child or an adult, government figures show.” These children throw chairs, “bite, hit, and shout abuse at teachers.” The British Shadow Education Secretary commented, “[Government] Ministers have eroded teachers’ ability to keep order by restricting their powers to deal with disruptive and violent children.” The General Secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers observed, “Some of these children seem never to have heard the word no. It’s down to poor parenting” (The Times, November 7, 2008). In today’s society, too many children grow up not knowing their “boundaries” or how to follow the rules and submit to authority. They do not learn right from wrong and are not taught to share and treat others properly. Because parents themselves are not taught how to parent, because children are not taught properly by parents and grandparents (Deuteronomy 4:9, 40), and because the “whole head” of our governmental structures is “sick” (Isaiah 1:5) and fails to reinforce sound principles, we are experiencing the fulfillment of God’s end-time prophecy, “As for my people, children are their oppressors…” (Isaiah 3:12). We need to pray for the fulfillment of another Bible prophecy that tells of a time when the hearts of the fathers and children will turn to each other (Malachi 4:6). Imagine what THAT time will be like!—Daniel Bennett and Scott Winnail