THE TRUE CHURCH by Connie Johnston James

Satan has caused divisions and discouragement in the believers from the beginning of time.  There have been many movements that have effected the church.  With each division the flock grows smaller.  When Jesus rose again from the dead and was preparing to return to his father in heaven, he prepared his disciples for the the future leadership of the true Church after he was gone.  He gave them instructions on everything they needed to know to be great leaders of the Christian Church as recorded in the scriptures of the New Testa- ment.  He did not leave them unprepared by leaving out something in his instructions.  He even said a prayer of intercession over them.

John 17:1  These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, "Father the hour has come to glorify thy son, that thy son also glorify thee, as thy have given him power over all the flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou has given him, and this is the life eternal, that they may know thee, the one true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou has sent."  verse 4  "I have glorified thee on the earth.  I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do."  (This scripture is in regards to the Mosaic Laws coming to an end.) Christ is finished, because he became the ultimate sacrifice that was made under the Mosaic Laws. There was no more need to sacrifice animals.   There isn't any other sacrifice that can be made. There is nothing else that could be done.

Christ was an accumulation of all the sacrifices.  That is why Christ was able to say here He is Finished.  He has completed his course.  He has ran the race his father sent him to run.  Jesus also said at Calvary It is Finished.  I have done my work that my father gave me to do.  

Verse 6  "I have manifested thy name unto men which thou gavest me out of the world."  Jesus told his disciples about God.  God had sent him to the earth in HIS name.  He represented his father.  He told his disciples "If you have seen me you have seen the Father which sent me."  Jesus was sort of like an ambassador.  Christ tells His Father there is someone else on the earth besides him.  "Mine they were and thou gavest them and they have kept thy Word.  Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee."  Christ says "Before, I have given to them the words which thou gavest me and they have received them and have surely known that I came out from thee and they have believed that thou did send me."

When we mention instructions and commands that Jesus gave to his disciples, we are talking about the instructions Jesus gave to his disciples on how to live and bring others in and make disciples of them.  This was for after he went back to his father in heaven.  He gave them instructions on everything they needed to know to continue his work after he was gone.  He prepared them for the future.

Let's go to John 6:67  Then said Jesus unto the twelve, "Will ye also leave me and go away?"  Then Simon Peter answered him, "Lord whom shall we go? Thou has the words of eternal life."  Peter is telling Jesus he has the words to guide them forward.  We, ourselves need to keep the command-ments. You might ask which commandments?   The Ten Commandments.  All ten of them leaving none out and choosing only the ones we want to keep.  Peter is saying Christ has the true words and all the instructions about everything we need to know to go forward until his return.

In Matthew the 16th chapter Jesus is speaking about the establishing of the True Church.  Some people are mixed up and confused about how to establish the true church.  Read verse 18  Jesus is speaking to Peter about himself, "I say unto thee, Thou art Peter, and upon this rock which is the cornerstone and price I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."  Peter is considered the big rock of innocence.  Christ established him as the cornerstone of his church. 

Peter was saying the true church will never die.  It will always exist.  No matter what we think or think we can prove through history, the true church has always existed and will continue to exist till the second coming of Christ.  There will always be believers some where.  Death cannot and will not prevail and will not  ever destroy the true church.

Hebrews 13:5  "Let your conversation be without covetousness and be content of such things as you have."  For He has said, 'I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.' "  Christ told his disciples that it was important for him to leave them, but not un-prepared, for the future.  He says, "If I don't go away you will not receive the Holy Spirit.  You need the Holy Spirit to lead and guide you, direct you to all truth."

Christ tells his disciples that some of the things he was telling them they would not understand now but they would later.  Jesus said now is the time for them to receive the Holy Spirit.  When they receive the Holy Spirit, they will understand what he is telling them now.  It is very important for us today, to believe what Christ told his disciples before his ascension back up to his father. 

A man by the name of Herbert W. Armstrong makes the statement that the church from 33 AD until 1933 is the time frame of when the true gospel wasn't being preached.  He took on the persona that God called him to preach the true gospel once more.  He began to preach that the believers needed to start keeping the Holy Days and Feast Days of the Old Testament given by God to the Children of Israel whom he brought out of Egypt.  

A point needs to be made that in fact the instructions Jesus gave his disciples came from the top down.  It began with God the Father, whom gave his son Jesus instructions.  He instructed his son to go and call disciples.  Jesus then turns around and passes God's instructions on to those he called.  The disciples then passes the instruction down to others.  There is no way we would live on this earth 1,000 or even 2,000 years without having all the instructions to pass on to others after we are gone, for them to carry on preaching the true gospel.  We need to understand there will not come a time when we will not know how to carry on the preaching of the true gospel.

The Apostles were also called by Jesus. Some of the 12 disciples were also called to be Apostles.  They are the chosen ones to preach the gospel to everyone.  The Apostles were given instructions on how to appoint or cast lots on names of men to be the seven chosen to be the financial stewarts of the church.  This is was also the time instructions were left for choosing men for the leadership of the true church.  Today instructions were left in the bible to be passed down to pick a seven man board to be the financial stewarts of the local churches.  Some churches in this day and time do not have enough qualified men to serve in this position.  In smaller congregations when they don't have enough qualified men, have to adapt to a smaller local board. In the early church there was also twelve men chosen to serve in the leadership of the church. Another seventy men were chosen to go out and preach the gospel.  That would be our ministers of today.  

A big transition came about in the early church.  At that time in history, Jesus sent the disciples out to preach to the lost sheep of the House of Israel.  Later was a period of time when the message had gone out to all people.  Many members were added to the church, but many believers rejected the calling.  Many got discouraged and left the church.  This is the place in history of the early church, when Jesus told the parable of the fig tree.  The lost sheep of Israel rejected God's calling his people from out of the world.  They rejected his calling so he sent the calling to the Gentiles, the unbelievers, the heathen.  They answered his call and many were added to the church daily.  The House of Israel was cut off and scattered to countries all over the world.  They were no longer recognised as a nation.  This lasted until 1946, when they fought and won their land back and became a nation once more.

In the Book of Acts chapter 10 Peter goes to Cornelius of the Italian Band. These people were not Jews or Gentiles (unbelievers).  After Peter visited with Cornelius and his household, he realizes there is a change taking place.  Peter testifies to this change and writes about it.  Let's go to the Book of Acts 10:34.  Then Peter opens his mouth and says, "Of a truth, I perceive that God is no respecter of persons but in every nation he that fears to him and works righteousness is accepted with him."  It doesn't matter who you are or where you come from.  It's not up to us ourselves.  Peter is telling us we don't have to be different, we have to believe and accept Christ.  (I don't agree.  Unless the being different comes after we believe and accept Christ.)

In the Book of Acts chapter 10 Peter goes to Cornelius of the Italian Band. These people were not Jews or Gentiles (unbelievers).  After Peter visited with Cornelius and his household, he realizes there is a change taking place.  Peter testifies to this change and writes about it.  Let's go to the Book of Acts 10:34.  Then Peter opens his mouth and says, "Of a truth, I perceive that God is no respecter of persons but in every nation he that fears to him and works righteousness is accepted with him."  It doesn't matter who you are or where you come from.  It's not up to us ourselves.  Peter is telling us we don't have to be different, we have to believe and accept Christ.  (I don't agree.  Unless the being different comes after we believe and accept Christ.)

At the end of Acts in chapter 28:11 Paul realizes the Israelites are be-coming blind and deaf.  They weren't responding to the gospel.  They weren't responding to the coming Kingdom as they should.  They weren't accepting Jesus Christ as the Messiah and turned him over to the Romans to be crucified.  This deafness and blindness wasn't going to be removed until Jesus himself returns. At that time they would be allowed to see and to hear.

Acts 28:28  Paul says,  "Be it known therefore unto you that the Salvation of God is sent out unto the Gentiles and that they will hear."  Peter and Paul are two of the main leaders of the true church at that time.  

Galatians 3:26  Paul speaking "I told you ye are all the Children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.  For as many of you that has been baptized unto Christ has put on Christ.  There is neither Jew nor Greek.  There is neither male nor female.  For you are all one in Christ Jesus."  All national dis-tinctions goes away, all gender and all class goes away.  We go through a door and all those distinctions are left outside.   

Galatians 3:29  If you be Christ's then ye are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise.  You are heirs to the promise by faith.  It has nothing to do with someone being bigger or better or older than someone else.  Or if you are from this or that place.  Those distinctions are gone.  We do not have to lean toward Judaism to be accepted. 

In the beginning God made a garden east of Eden.  He created Adam and Eve and put them in the garden.  Then what Happens?  Along comes Satan and tempts Eve to sin.  She then entices her husband Adam.  They are thrown out of the garden for disobeying God.  This is where sin enters the world.  The world becomes so evil that God decides to destroy the earth by a flood.  Putting a family of eight and pairs of the animals into an ark to save from the flood he brings to destroy the sinners.  He saves those eight people and animals to replenish the earth made new after its cleansing by the flood.  The world goes along for awhile good a few years and then bad a few years.  It becomes full of evil once more. The sacrifices of bulls and goats does not get rid of sin.  They only roll the sins forward.    God has to send a flesh and blood Savior, his son the Lord Jesus to die on the cross for the sins of the world.  He didn't come to save the believers he came to save the lost who were from the House of Israel.  Satan even tries to tempt Jesus to turn from his Father and serve him.  Satan then orchestrates the killing of Jesus hoping that by killing him he would defeat him.  As we all know that didn't happen.   

In Deuteronomy Chapter 5  Moses recaps the Ten Commandments.  He tells the Israelites that God gave them the Ten.  In verse 22 Moses says, "Theses words the LORD spake to all your assembly in the mount in the midst of the fire and the cloud and the thick darkness with a great voice and he added no more.  He wrote them on two tablets of stone and delivered them unto me."  The Holy Days were added later and given to the Israelites because of their transgressions.  The Holy Days are no longer  given to us in our time.

I mentioned Herbert W. Armstrong earlier in this article.  He became a member of the Church of God (7th Day) in about 1930.  He was issued a ministerial license and began to preach the church doctrine.  This only lasted about three years.  By 1933 he left the organization because his license had been revoked.  He was teaching his own doctrine contrary to the organization's.  The leadership of the church cautioned him once if he didn't stop preaching the keeping of the Feast Days they would pull his license.  He continue to preach that doctrine.  His license were revoked so in 1933 he left the church and started his own radio broadcast called the Radio Church of God.  Later he moved the church to California and established a college.  The Radio Church of God had a big split years later.  His son Ted Garner Armstrong became the leader of the Worldwide Church of God.  Even though this group flourished and became a huge  organization, today it no longer exists.  

Over the years many movements have come and gone.  The church began to see divisions every time a new movement came along.  As these movements came time and time again the church became decimate after each new movement.  As each movement came along and took more members away, the members left behind turned and said, "Why has the church become so small?"             

Let's go back to the scriptures.  In the book of John the 4th chapter, Jesus is speaking to the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well.  John 4:19  The woman says, "Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet.  Our fathers' worshiped in this mountain and ye say that in Jerusalem is where men ought to go to worship."  Jesus said unto her, "Woman, believe me the hour has come when you shall neither in this mountain nor yet at Jerusalem worship the Father."  He is telling her that they will no longer worship him in that mount nor at Jerusalem. The temple at Jerusalem will be destroyed and our bodies will become the the temple of God.

John 4:22  "Ye know not that ye worship unto Salvation which is of the Jews.  But the hour has come and now is when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in the spirit and in truth, for the Father seeks such to worship him.  God is spirit and they that worship him worship in spirit and in truth.  It doesn't matter whether ye be in Samaria or Romania or in Jerusalem."   The time is coming when you as an individual are going to be housing the Holy Spirit.  The true worshiper will worship where ever they are.  Just go to your prayer closet or where ever you choose to meet and talk to God.   

One of the movements that came along was The Sacred Names Movement.  This movement came out of the Church of God back in the 1930s.  People say it has been around for a long time.  C.O. Dodd got involved with this movement and left the Church of God (7th Day).  This group broke off because they felt it very important to use the sacred names instead of God and Jesus.  If you go online to the Sacred Names Movement you will find C.O. Dodd listed as one of the top men in that movement.  

In Matthew the 8th chapter the bible talks about the sacred names.  It is not important for us to use those names.  Exodus 6:3 tells us we do not need to use the sacred names.  The sacred names were shown to Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob by the name of God Almighty.  Scriptures tells us God was not known by Jehovah at that time.  Before the Tower of Babel the people did not know the name Jehovah, and did not call him that.  Jesus says that although the people did not know him by Jehovah, they would still be in the Kingdom.  If it had been important to God for his people to call him that, then he would told them to do so.

Jesus teaches us how to pray in Matthew the 6th chapter.  (my note: For many years and in our published Bibles this prayer has been called the Lord's Prayer.  The prayer Jesus prayed to his father to let the cup pass from him is in another chapter of Matthew.) Jesus teaches us how to pray beginning in verse 9.  Jesus says, "Say Our Father Which Art in Heaven. " If it was important for God's people to call him, Jehovah, Jesus would have said, "Jehovah who art in heaven."  Keep in mind in Genesis 11:7 is the story of the Tower of Babel where at that time everyone spoke the same language.  God confounded the language because the men were trying to build a tower up to God in heaven and God wanted to stop them by confounding their language so none of them understood the other.

Romans 8:26 & 27 the people didn't understand what to pray for because they were weak.  But the Spirit is strong and will make intercession for us with groanings which we cannot utter.  He that searches the hearts knows what is in the mind of the spirit.  We might use the wrong word, but God knows our hearts.  We need help from the Holy Spirit to speak to the Father.  Many call this speaking in tongues.  If you think you should speak in tongues to the Father, you should do it in private.  If you choose to speak in public then there should be an interpreter in the group. Otherwise your words will mean nothing to those around you and profits nothing.  The definition for tongues is language.  

Zephaniah 3:9  Is talking about the future.  It reads, "For then I will turn to the people a pure language, that they may call upon the name of the Lord, to serve Him with one consent."  Right now the Holy Spirit does that for us.  In the future we will once again have a pure language.

The Church of God (Seventh Day) of today with headquarters in Denver, Colorado began in the states of Michigan and Iowa.  The groups sprung up about the same time.  The group in Michigan was raised up by a man by the name of Gilbert Cranmer.  That group went by the name of Church of Christ.  In the state of Iowa another group was called by the name The Church of Jesus Christ.  Both groups shared the same doctrines but didn't know of each other.  I believe it was through God's power the two groups found out about each other and came together as one organization.  The Church of God was incorporated in 1899 in Stanberry, Missouri.  The Seventh Day wasn't added until about 1949.  In 1950 the headquarters and publishing house was moved to Denver, Colorado where it remains today.  

In the history of the Church of God (7th Day) 1941 a man by the name of A.N. Dugger a prominent leader in the church felt God was leading him to preach from a biblical standpoint the church headquarters should be at Jerusalem.  If you go back in scriptures to where Jesus was speaking to the Samaritan woman it was no more necessary to go up to Jerusalem once a year to worship the Father.  The reason this was no longer necessary was because the temple had been destroyed and would never be rebuilt.  Our body's are the temple now.  We no longer have to meet in a physical place because we worship him in spirit and in truth.  We can do that in our church building as well as in hearts and minds,.

In the book "The History of The True Church" two editions were published.
In the first edition it was stated that the Church of God (7th Day) head-quarters would eventually move to Jerusalem.  In the second edition A.N. Dugger was sent over to Jerusalem by the General Conference to see if it would be feasible for the headquarters to be moved there, but it was never stated that the headquarters would be definitely moved to Jerusalem. Dugger and his family remained in Israel until July of 1943.  After his return nothing more is mentioned about his trip and what he found out.  Later he leaves the church.        

*Starlight* aka Connie Lynn, January 26, 2021

Bibliography:

1.  The Book The History of the True Church
2.  Listened to a video on YouTube by a minister of the Church of God (7th Day) from New York which gave references from the Book mentioned above.