Home

WCOG Article Index

E-Mail

x

Unlocking The Scriptures 7th Seal of Revelations The Secrets of God The Rapture/Spring Harvest of Souls The Abomination Of desolation War China, Russia, Iran, North Korea war against the USA Just as the Days of Noah America Israel, And Great Britain In Prophecy The Mark Of The Beast The True Church Homosexuals There Is Nothing New Under The Sun
Answer To An Atheist Evolution Radiocarbon Dating A Fraud Can a Christian Believe in Evolution? Pre-Existence Before The Material Universe Does God Exist? 7 Proofs God Exists The Bible Superstition Or Authority Seven Keys To Understanding The Bible How To Study The Bible How To Understand The Bible How Do We Know We Have The Complete Bible Answers To Questions About Genesis Why There Seems To Be A Gap In The Bible How The Bible Counts A Generation The Bible Verses The Dead Sea Scrolls Should We Use The Old Testament The Hidden Knowledge How Religion Deceives You A World Held Captive The Ark And Noah Weeks Of Daniel The Exile In Stone

Volume I Volume II Volume III Volume IV Volume V Volume VI Genealogy And The Bible Family Tree God As King Who Really Discovered America Oldest Known 10 Commandments Were Found In America USA And Britain's Common Wealth In Prophecy Tea Tephi Britain's Coronation Chair And Jacob's Pillow Stone Jacob's Pillar Stone The Two Witnesses Russia In Prophecy The Middle East In Prophecy Who Are The Arabs Seeing The world Throgh Islamic Eyes The Race Question The Origin Of The Races Military Service And War Why Does God Allow Wars The Sure Way To End The Fear Of Nuclear War What Is Armageddon? There Is A Way To Escape Understanding The Way To Peace World Peace How It Will Come The key To Human Survival Petra The Safe Place Is There Life After Death World Peace And How It Will Come The Mark Of The Beast Mark Of God's People The Key to Revelations The Book Of Revelations Unveiled At Last Christian Symbols, The Fish, Cross, And Crucifix The Pagan Cross The Cross The Council Of Laodicea
Does God Exist 7 Proofs God Exist What About God Revealed Knowledge Why God Is Not Real To Most People Is God Fair How To Put God First God Was King God's Divorce Is Jesus God Should We Pray To God Or Only To Christ 70 Weeks Of Daniel Was Jesus Really Dead Why Christ Died If You Lived At Time Of Christ Would You Have Believed Him The Mystery Of MELCHIZEDEK Solved What Is Man How God Planned To Reproduce Himself What Led To The Creation Of Man What Is The Soul Why You Are Alive The Incredible Human Potential At Last Revealed Why Humans Were Put On Earth The only real value of a human life Bridging The Gap Between Human Mind And The Ultimate Spirit Composed Sons Of God What Science Can't Discover About The Human Mind Human nature - Did God create it? Human Nature And How A Whole World Is Deceived About It's Origin Why Were You Born You Were Born To Be King The Great Purpose Of Your Life Man To Rule The Universe Your Children - FUTURE GODS If You Were God How Would You Look At The World Today God's Invisible Agents Where Is Enoch And Elijah Lazarus And The Rich Man Can Men Actually Communicate With Departed Spirits? Life After Death Is There life After Death Did God Create A Devil Is There A Hell
God's Holy Days Or Pagan Holy Days List Of Holy Days How Often Should You Partake Of The Lord's Supper Should The Lord's Supper Be On The 14th Or 15th How To Observe The Passover In Your Own Home The Resurrection Was Not On Sunday Does Easter Really Commemorate The Resurrection Easter What Is The Purpose Of The Resurrection? The Plain Truth About Easter The Pentecost How To Figure The Pentecost The Sabbath A Perpetual Covenant Which Day Is The Sabbath Of The New Testament? Why Do You Observe Sunday Neglecting The Sabbath Christmas Should You Celebrate Birthdays Halloween New Years Eve Valentines Day
Is Tithing In Force Under The New Testament Should Christians Tithe Should You Pay Tithes The Man Who Couldn't Afford To Tithe Did You Ever Know Why Money Is The Root Of All Evil Does God Hate The Rich Has Time Been Lost God's 19 Year Cycle Calendar With Holy Days God's Calendar What is a Prophetic Year God's Calendar Year Time, Times, and a Half
The World's Oldest Surviving Inscription Of The Ten Commandments Found In America
Job, Joseph And His Brothers (Israel's Sons) Built The Great Pyramid
The Truth About The Free Masons
Sex God's Great Sex Law Abortion Makeup Are Homosexuals Born That Way Interracial Marriages Why Marriage Polygamy Divorce And Remarriage The Family Breakdown Child Rearing The family - God's Plan For Mankind Conspiracy Against The Family The Surprising Origin Of Modern Education
Pre-Existence Before The Material Universe Does God Heal The Plain Truth About Healing What is Faith What kind Of Faith Is Required Of Salvation Are We Back On Track When We Lost Faith How To Receive Answers To Your Prayers Have Christians Lost Their Power? The Plain Truth About Fasting The Importance Of Fasting Is all Animal Flesh Good Food What Fish And Fowl Are Good For Food The Key To Radiant Health 10 Simple Rules That Lead To Health Why Man Must Suffer
Christ's Gospel Was Suppressed - Not Heard From First Century Until Now! The Startling Revelation Of What Was Christ's Gospel What Is The True Gospel? The Gospel Jesus Taught The Gospel Is Education Choose All About Baptism Baptism By Fire What Do You Mean Born Again Are The Ten Commandments Necessary Were The Ten Commandments Nailed To The Cross Were The Ten Commandments In Force Before Moses The Ten Commandments What Is Salvation What Is The Reward Of The Saved What Do You Mean Reward For Your Works Just What Do You Mean Conversion What Is True Spirituality Conversion Sudden Experience Or Life Long Process False Conversion A Letter From Armstrong To The Newly Converted What Is A Liberal Is It Wrong To Be A Cultured Individual The Old And New Covenant Let God Fight Your Battles The Law, The Catholics, And You Do Christians Sin Education For Life Keep Your Eyes On The Goal How FAR May I Safely Go, In Doing What I Want But Know I Ought NOT? Christianity Is A Growth Process Are You Being Tested How You Can Overcome How To Prevent Sin What Is The Worst Sin How You Could Commit The Unpardonable Sin What Do You Mean The Unpardonable Sin Ending Your Financial Worries The Blessings Of Abundant Living How To Live Life Abundantly The Way Of Life That Causes Success The Seven Laws Of Success Should You Try To Change Others Should You Listen To Others We Must All Speak The Same The True Meaning Of Predestination Is Your Ultimate Fate Decided For You In Advance What Is Friendship What Is Emotional Maturity
Christ's Gospel Was Suppressed - Not Heard From First Century Until Now! The Startling Revelation Of What Was Christ's Gospel The Incredible Human Potential At Last Revealed Pre-Existence Before The Material Universe What Led To The Creation Of Man How God Planned To Reproduce Himself Bridging The Gap Between Human Mind And The Ultimate Spirit Composed Sons Of God Why Today's World Evils Why The Church Just What Do You Mean Conversion Human Nature And How A Whole World Is Deceived About It's Origin Is There Life After Death World Peace And How It Will Come
Jesus Is Coming Soon...Too Good To Be True What Is The Kingdom Of God What Will You Be Doing In The Next Life Looking Into The World Tomorrow Where Will The Millennium Be Spent

How The 7 Mysteries Were Revealed Who And What Is God Mystery Of Angels And Evil Spirits The Mystery Of Man Mystery Of Civilization Mystery Of Israel The Church The Kingdom Of God
Why The Church Fundamental Doctrines How And Why We Know We Have The Truth The Abomination That Maketh Desolate God's Temple Excepts The Mark Of The Beast Joseph Tkach Sales God's Church WCOG Changes Name WCOG vs. Philadelphia COG Court Records God's Church Is The Temple The True Church The History Of The Church Where Is The Original True Church Beginning History Of The Worldwide Church Of God The Real History Of The True Church Foundation, History, Authority, And Doctrine Of The Worldwide Church Of God Philadelphia Era Of The Church Just What Is The Church God's Church Does Not Compromise Worldly Churches Are Social Clubs The Tongues Question Tongues- Is The Pentecost Experience Being Repeated Today
Armstrong's Calling Armstrong's Conversion How Christ Educated His Apostle This Is The Life How I've Been Providentially Protected From Harm And Death No! I Was Never A Jehovah's Witness Or Seventh Day Adventist The Little Book The 19 Year Time Cycle The Need To Make The Truth Plain Must God's Ministers Be Ordained By The Hands Of Man? You Won't Believe It Armstrong's Final Sermon End Time Elijah Armstrong's Autobiography
Ambassador College Bible Correspondence Course
Ambassador News
Church Of God News
1981-1986 Teens Magazines
The Worldwide News
Youth Bible Lessons Level K-9
Combined Article Index Of The Plain Truths, Good News, And Tomorrow's World Magazines
The Plain Truths
The Good News
Tomorrow's World
Church Hymnal
HWA Video
HWA Audio




John 1:5
And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

Revelations means to reveal... Here you will find the Mysteries and the Secrets of God that have been sealed for over 6,000 years....


1 Corinthians 2:7
But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory




The Worldwide Church Of God


The Worldwide Church of God of Pasadena California, founded by Herbert W. Armstrong... After Armstrong's death the church was sold to Joel Osteen when the Abomination That Maketh Desolate was set up... Some guys just this year went and trademarked the churche's name... Don't be confused by these guys...


I have No ads on this website and I have nothing for sale... I ask for NO money or donations
As it is recorded...
"...freely ye have received, freely give."
Matthew 10:8



Who Am I?


God's Holy Days


"And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world"
Revelation 12:9


Because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.



And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie
2Thessalonians 2:10-11

For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.
Romans 11:32









Theologians now say God lacks the power to prevent suffering!

MAJOR airline crash. Devastating hurricanes. Potential nuclear mass destruction of whole cities. Does God lack the power to prevent their occurrence?

What about all of these evils- the violence, the human suffering that humanity has been going through for nearly 6,000 years?



Process Theology



Now comes a new school of religious thought called process theology. A shaky takeoff, an aborted flight and crash-all in a matter of seconds. These modern theologians say that the question of why God allows these tragedies, or why God is not apparently powerful enough to stop them, has vexed religious counselors for centuries. And well it may. Because people simply do not understand that question!

If God is all good, if God is love, he wouldn't want humanity to suffer, would he? And if God is all powerful, as the Bible says he is, why doesn't he stop suffering? Why doesn't he prevent it? The credibility of God is now at stake, say the theologians. The world, they contend, has grown weary of religious spokesmen trying to defend God and explain why God allows these things-and at the same time saying that God is all love, God is all good, God is all powerful and he could stop it, yet he doesn't. So modern theologians now have come up with this new theology called process theology in an attempt to explain this apparent paradox.

Recall for a moment that at the turn of the century theologians were coming up with a then-new theology. They were turning to what is called modernism. In other words, they were denying any deity to Jesus Christ. He was not divine. He had not existed before his human birth. He was only human. And they denied his miracles.

And now a new generation of religious thinkers is coming to the new idea called process theology. God, they say, is entirely loving, but is lacking in power.

They say nothing of the real purpose of life. They say nothing about the restoration of the kingdom of God, the only gospel that Jesus Christ preached.



The Origin and Purpose of Life



But what is the real trouble with this question? What is the reason that God has not stopped all this violence, all this human suffering? In all the religions of this world-the many different religions we call non-Christian, and even the religion of Christianity- not one religion knows who and what God is. What is God? Is he a trinity? Is God one person? They just don't understand.

And none, either, understands God's purpose. Does God have a purpose he is working out? Winston Churchill said before the United States Congress during World War II that there is a purpose being worked out here below. He implied God, a higher power above, is working out that purpose.

Not one religion on earth fully knows what and why man is. Why are we here? What is the purpose, if any?

What does God say about all of this? Notice what God says in Isaiah chapter 40, beginning with verse 17:

All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity. To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him? ... It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers [that is to God]; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:

.... To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might [there it speaks of God's might, his power], for that he is strong in power; not one faileth (verses 17, 22, 25-26).

The earth turns on its axis. The different seasons regularly come. It is the power of God that is causing all of that. And that is mighty power. Yes, God has all power.



How It All Began



What is the real origin of God? What is the origin of all this visible universe? It is not evolution. That can be absolutely disproved. But in the Bible we read, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (John 1:1).

In the beginning was one great personage called the Word, the Spokesman. And the Word was with another personage, God. And the Word was God. How could that be? You might say in a certain residence was John, and John was with Smith, and John was a Smith. But John isn't the same man as Smith. He's a different person. John could have been Smith's son. They could have been of the same family. That's precisely what this verse means.

There was the Word with God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him. (John 1:2-3).

In Ephesians 3:9 we read about God, who created all things by Jesus Christ. The Word, in other words, became Jesus Christ. And God created all things by Jesus Christ. Another scripture says, For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast (Ps. 33:9). The power that emanated from him and from God the Father-the power of the Holy Spirit-leaped forth and did the work. All things were created in that manner.

Now, further, about God. What is God? In John 4:24 (RSV) we read that God is spirit. Man is not spirit. Man is flesh. Man is composed of matter. But God is not composed of matter; God is spirit. Now spirit is something you cannot see; spirit is something that has no weight. Matter is something that occupies space and has weight. Spirit is different.

Turn now to the book of Genesis: In the beginning God ... (Gen. 1:1). The word for God there is Elohim, a plural form indicating more than one person-but with a singular verb indicating one God. God, then, is composed of more than one person.

The Word was God, and the Word was with God, and so God was composed of these two beings. When Jesus was born he was begotten of God as his Father. God then became his Father and Jesus then became the Son. And so there is the Father and the Son. They compose God. God is the family name.

The fact that God is a family is very significant. That begins to explain the whole question.

Turn now to Genesis 1:26: ... Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. . . . In verses 21 through 25 we s read God had made sea creatures and land animals each after its own kind. Each kind reproduces after its own kind and never generates a totally new kind.



After the God Kind



God formed man after the God kind, not after an animal kind. God is reproducing himself! Now when you understand that, you begin to understand why God is allowing all the suffering on the earth today.

Notice, now, Genesis 2:7: And the Lord God [Lord there is the name of the one that became Christ] formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man [made of the dust of the ground] became a living soul.

The dust of the ground, then, became a soul. The dust of the ground is not spirit-the dust became a man. And that man is a soul. A soul came out of the ground.

Man, then, is physical, mortal.

In other places in the Bible you find that there is a spirit in man that is altogether different. Man is flesh. Man is mortal. Man does not inherently have eternal life; he only has a temporary existence. He came out of the dust of the ground. Man's existence-what we call human life-is supplied by the breath of air. It is called the breath of life here in Genesis 2:7. Also, the life of the flesh is in the blood, says Leviticus 17:11. The heart pumps blood through the body, and the blood has to be refueled by oxygen and by food and water out of the ground.



Man Must Choose



The man that God created now had to make a choice.

Character is the ability of some separately created entity to come to a knowledge of right as from wrong, of truth as from error, of good as from evil. To choose the right, or the good, and to reject the evil- even though he might want to do the evil-to have the will to do the good, that is character.

God is the supreme, holy, righteous, perfect, spiritual character. And if he is reproducing himself, he must reproduce that character in man. Man must acquire that character.

How is that divine character going to get into something made out of the ground? God placed a human spirit in the first man. That human spirit could have a relationship with God, who is spirit.

But God placed before that man two choices, symbolized by two trees in the garden of Eden. The one tree was the tree of life. How does God give that life? It comes through the Holy Spirit. The person that has the Spirit of God has life, and he that has not the Spirit of God does not have life. If the Spirit of Christ is in you, you are his (I John 5:11-12).

If the Spirit of God is not in you, you are none of his (Rom. 8:9, last part). And, verse 11, But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken [make immortal] your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

God made us mortal, but he made us to become immortal. And God required that the man had to make a choice, because character had to be built in the man! Character is built through choice.

The other tree, the other choice before man, symbolized the way of man's taking to himself-deciding altogether by himself-the knowledge of good and evil. How do we come to know the truth of God? In I Corinthians 2:9 we read, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart [mind] of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him- in other words, spiritual knowledge.

God reveals these things to us only by his Spirit. The Spirit of God reveals God's knowledge- spiritual knowledge and spiritual character. But man decided to take the basis of that kind of character to himself, to decide right from wrong, truth from error, by himself.

So, in punishment, God at that time closed up the tree of life. In other words, he shut up the Holy Spirit from man.

God had set out a 7,000-year plan and purpose in which to develop the godlike character in man, made from the dust of the ground. God's purpose is to make us immortal like God, until we become God as he is God. That has got to come through human experience, but it has to come from God, with our consent, our desire, our decision and our wills.



What God Is Like



I John 3:1-2 says, Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us [here is the fact that God loves us], that we should be called the sons of God [ultimately to be born of God, though now begotten of God; for God is reproducing himself, and we're called the sons of God]:... now [even right now] are we the sons of God [but only begotten, not yet born], and it doth not yet appear what we shall be [in other words, what we shall be one can't see yet]: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

How is he? In the first chapter of Revelation, and other places in the Bible, you'll find that his face is as the very sun in full power and strength. It's so bright it would put your eyes out even if you look with smoked glass. His eyes are like flames of fire.

God is spirit. And if you could see spirit that is what you would see. And that is what we will be when God comes. When he appears we'll be like him. This is referring to the Second Coming of Christ, which is now imminent for our very generation.

The purpose of God is character building. That is why he made man of matter. We could be molded spiritually, in a body of earthly clay, into divine character. We read in Isaiah 64:8, But now, O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.

Even Job asked, If a man die, shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait [meaning in the grave], till my change come. Thou [God] shalt call, and I will answer thee, thou wilt have a desire to the work of thine hands (Job 14:14-15).

Job knew he was the work of God's hands. We all are the clay. God is the potter. A potter molds and fashions clay into the form and shape he wants. Now God will-if we put ourselves in his hands, if we surrender to him, and to his will- take us and mold and shape us into the godlike character of love. God is love. God will put his divine love in us, a love with which we were not born. It is a gift of God through his Holy Spirit.

Notice Isaiah 45:9, Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker!... Shall the clay say to him ., that fashioneth it, What makest thou? ... What about the theologians reasoning that today's divided Christianity is God's religion, that this is God's world, and God isn't powerful enough to stop all of evil?

God is allowing man to make his own decisions. And if man makes the wrong decision, God has said whatever we sow we shall reap. God has told his people that ever since the beginning. He told Adam that. He told ancient Israel that. And Jesus Christ told us that. If we sin we will have to reap the consequences. God allows it. He allows suffering and the pain of sin for a good purpose.

God has given man a mind to think with. He gives man revealed knowledge in the Bible. Man can take that knowledge and learn to go God's way. That is necessary for the development of character so we can become like God, so we can become the very children of God, so we can be born the children of God. But man has, throughout history, refused to go that way-except for a very few whom God has called and to whom he has revealed his truth by his Holy Spirit.

In Matthew 24:4-5 Jesus said, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name [Jesus said], saying, [that] I am [the] Christ; and shall deceive many.

How can they do that? Jesus said in Matthew 15:9, But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. They make the commandments of God of no effect by their tradition (verse 3).

The commandments of God are the right way to live; they reveal God's way of life. Human beings have not kept the commandments of God. They have said, and many preachers are saying today, that the commandments of God are done away.

Suffering

The commandments of God are the way of love - of love to God and love to neighbor. The first four of the Ten Commandments tell you how to love God, the last six how to love your neighbor. That is the way God lives and the way Christ lived while on earth.

But in Jeremiah 50:6 God says that the shepherds, the ministers of this world, lead his people astray and deceive them. That is exactly what has happened. The world has been deceived, and the deceived theologians can't seem to understand why God allows all this suffering from disobedience till we learn our ways are wrong.

God allows it to teach us lessons. God allows it because we ourselves have brought it on ourselves, and because we have failed to develop the kind of character needed to become his children, to be glorified, to be given the gift of eternal life so as to live in happiness and peace and joy. There's no other way for peace. Man has brought all this on himself, in defiance of God! Man has been shaking his fist at God, telling God he won't obey God and going his own way, the way that has seemed right to a man. It's all a matter of cause and effect. It's the way we have lived that has brought all these troubles on us, not God.

But God will show man whether he has power. God will finally deliver man from the evils of today's civilization by his divine powers and establish his kingdom of peace over all the earth.



By Herbert W. Armstrong






Copyright Information


Matthew 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.