Letters to the Editor Thanksgiving Day Before I started reading your publica- I am writing to tell you how much I tions I hardly ever thought of the Bible enjoyed your article about Thanksgiving seriously, let alone keeping the laws it Day. How true! People are forgetting God described. An example is the law of tith- and forgetting to thank Him for many ing. Even after 1 had read about it, I still great blessings. In fact, I think people are made excuses for not being able to afford trying to kick God out completely! More to tithe. However, I now know what I and more, people don’t say: “Have a happy must do. Kindly accept my small contri- Thanksgiving.” Now it’s: “Have a happy bution to further this great and wonderful turkey day.” Work. Ralph M., C. M., Bakersfield, Calif. Birmingham, England “Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery” Enclosed is my check for my most recent tithe - and I’m happy to add my voice I certainly appreciate your article “Thou to the thousands of others who have writ- Shalt Not Commit Adultery!” in the ten you of their experiences which prove December issue of Tomorrow’s World. I that tithing .pays in so many ways! I never am a marriage counselor, yet I would before dreamed that I could get so much never advise, “A little adultery is good out of what seemed to be such a small for your marriage.” On the contrary. I amount of income! How blessed we are have frequently said that marriage partners if we will but heed our Creator’s laws. do not ordinarily have affairs with other Beverly F., people in a healthy marriage. When each La Mesa, Calif. one is doing his part in building a good relationship in marriage, ordinarily there is no thought of straying away on the Dart Christmas of either. I really enjoyed your “Ten Reasons Why Jim H., I Don’t Keep Christmas!” I am 35; my Santa Ana, Calif. husband, 41; and we have been brought up on the Santa Claus-Christmas tradition. Glad you agree, Jim. We hope this article This year, we are having no Christmas for has strengthened your stand. the first time. Our 2- and 3-year-old girls are bombarded with Santa Claus and Tithing Christmas. Admittedly, we have occasional I have finished the article about “The twinges that we are denying the little ones Man Who Couldn’t Afford to Tithe.” It all the thrill and excitement we had as fits me perfectly because my name is the children. But, we realize that Christmas is same as his and with all my debts it seems nothing with its materialistic, paganistic almost impossible. hypocrisy. Our girls may have the chance Ed S., to be in the real, not pseudo, “now genera- Gray Summit, Mo. tion” and be taught by the “King of kings and Lord of lords.” Bettie S., I have just finished reading your articles Stockton, Calif. in the November issue concerning tithing. Since I am very sure that God exists and He says He will bless me for paying tithes, I have a message now, loud and clear, I realize that I am not only doing an about Christmas. I certainly take my hat injustice to God, but also to myself. What off to your writers who are able to exercise the family discipline needed to resist the 1. Portune Buriness Manaeer a beautiful law! Here’s my first tithe. temptations of this national holiday. Michael Y., Boise, Idaho (Continued on back cover) the following pages Ambassador Collcge , 1970; p. 9 Q 1967; About our cover 1 Contents The late Sir Winston Churchill. 7 Personal from the E,ditor Britain’s wartime Prime Minister 5 The “Tongues“ Ouestion was a moving example of the 9 Build the Personality of a King! force of a sincere, dynamic, and powerful PERSONALITY. I3 The Origin of St. Valentine’s Day Read how you can ”Build the Personality of a King!” begin- 15 What Is the Place that Jesus Is Preparing? . Box 1111, Makati, ning on page 9 of this issue. mail at Pasadena, 77 The Story of Man Blau, Camera Press 22 Answers to your Questions College, say with conviction, as if with authority, “Mr. Armstrong IS NOT A PROPHET - but a man called to the same kind of commission as the original evangelists Personal from and apostles of the first century Church of God - to proclaim the Message - the Announcement - the Good News of the Kingdom of God - the Message that Christ brought from God and taught His disciples.” I shook my head in astonishment that he would make that statement. I knew well I was not a prophet. I simply knew I had been called to proclaim Christ’s Gospel of the Kingdom of God - to get a job done - but I had no illusions about being an evangelist, or an apostle, or anything more than my own part in proclaiming and publishing this Great NEWS, as a witness, to as many as I could reach. I had no vision The 19-Year Time Cycles - then of a worldwide ministry. What HAPPENED January 7 - Let’s take a look at the Church of God of the What My Commission IS! first century, as we find it revealed in the Book of Acts, beginning from the day of Pentecost, 31 A.D. The Bible was not fully written - only the Old IGNIFICANT THINGS DID happen on January 7th! Testament-in 31 A.D. God then was still commu- In this Personal I want to tell you what hap- nicating new truth, instruction and knowledge directly S and personally to prophets. As the Church progressed, pened - but also to make PLAIN and CLEAR: 1) What our Commission IS, and what it is it was the function of a prophet to communicate to NOT! the apostles special messages which God had person- 2) What are the criteria for determining through ally revealed to them. Others were inspired in the whom God is carrying out that Commission which is writing of the books of the New Testament. HIS WORKon earth today. So we read, in Acts 11:28 and 21:10-11, of the Thousands know that I, personally, have been prophet Agabus. But today we have the COMPLETE called and chosen for a very definite commission in Word of God, for our time, in the Bible. There are no God‘s service. But I have definitely NOT been called such prophets - except false ones. to be a PROPHET - except as that word, Biblically Now a word about what my Commission is NOT. used, does sometimes refer to a minister or speaker It is not to become an infallible expert on, or to preach, - one who proclaims the Gospel of Jesus Christ. chronology. Emphatically I am NOT a prophet, in the sense I feel at present that the whole question of of one to whom God speaks specially and directly, chronology is in confusion, and no one can be posi- revealing personally a future event to happen or new tively SURE of dates. truth, or new and special instruction direct from God As of the present I, and a majority of our histor- - separate from, and apart from what is contained ians in Ambassador College, and researchers in the in the Bible. And I never have claimed to be. School of Theology, feel that it is utterly unsafe to There is no such human prophet living today! try to SET DATES in regard to future prophesied events, The Bible is the written Word of God - and, especially the return of the living Christ in supreme for our time now, it is COMPLETE! Never have I Power and Glory to rule all nations of the earth. believed or claimed that God reveals to me new truths But we are only human, and it is natural that we not contained in the Bible - in addition to, or apart should have been curious to know, as far as possible, from the Bible. how much time we had to GET THE JOB DONE. (More In a special group festival held at Belknap about that later.) Springs, in Oregon, in the autumn of 1951, I was That, however, in fact, is not our main putpose, shocked - and so were those there - to hear Herman or Commission - which is to proclaim Christ’s An- L. Hoeh, then recently graduated from Ambassador nouncement of the advance good NEWS of the coming 2 TOMORROW’S WORLD February 1972 Kingdom of God to rule all nations - and the mes- were accused of benefitting and healing a man crippled sage commonly called salvation - the fact we may from birth. It is recorded (Moffatt), “They were be born again through Jesus Christ - born into that astonished to notice how outspoken Peter and John Kingdom. were, and to discover that they were uncultured persons Our Commission is to GET THAT JOB DONE! and mere outsiders’’ (Acts 4: 13). These apostles were We have been GETTING IT DONE ! from Galilee - outsiders in Jerusalem. The AV The question which Christ, the Head of God’s renders it, “. and perceived that they were unlearned Work, has not revealed in the Bible is, HOW and ignorant men,” but that is misleading; as the THOROUGHLY He intends it to be done! Greek implies, not ignorant, and illiterate, in the ordi- The prophecy of the proclaiming of this Message nary sense but, as Moffatt renders it, uncultured in in OW time, is in Matthew 24:14. Jesus said: “And technical learning of Jewish scribes and rulers, and in this Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached (and their acquired mannerisms.