Analyses Today's News, with the Prophesies of THE WORLD TOMORROW
Box 111, Pasadena, California
Publishing: The PLAIN TRUTH a Magazine of UNDERSTANDING
May 22nd, 1953
My Dear Co-Worker Family:
Again, GREETINGS! in Jesus' name.
Time races on! Every day brings new developments. Every day, now, is vitally important! The very next prophesied world- shaking event is speeding toward reality. That is the resurrected ROMAN EMPIRE — a UNITED EUROPE that shall plunge the world into the frightful HYDROGEN-bomb World War III!
But do you know what is prophesied for RIGHT NOW?
This is startling — but it's true! The one and ONLY world event in Bible prophecy for NOW, just prior to World War III, is this great work God is doing thru you and me! THIS is what's prophesied for RIGHT NOW! THIS is the world event carrying out God's Plan during this present apparent lull in chaos!
World War 3 brings with it THE GREAT TRIBULATION. That is now next in order. But Jesus, in foretelling this chain of world events, said the GREAT TRIBULATION would be preceded by the world-wide proclaiming of HIS Gospel. "The GOSPEL must first be published among all nations," said Jesus (Mark 13:10), or, as recorded by Matthew (24:14): "This Gospel OF THE KINGDOM shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto ALL NATIONS; and THEN shall the END (of the world) come."
This Gospel has not been proclaimed to the world for more than 1800 years! It was gradually submerged beneath an avalanche of pagan doctrines and customs within the first hundred years after Christ. It is a COUNTERFEIT Gospel — a gospel of MEN about Christ — which has been substituted and proclaimed to the world! Today THE WHOLE WORLD IS DECEIVED (Rev. 17:2 and 18:3).
Just as prophesied, the world has been turned unto FABLES (II Tim. 4:4). It has much of the FORM of godliness, but denies the real POWER of God (II Tim. 3:5). It is filled with churches, which send hundreds of "missionaries" into foreign lands, telling people ABOUT Christ. Yet His Message, the Good News of THE KINGDOM OF GOD, they deny. The TRUE gospel they oppose. The world has been deceived by a COUNTERFEIT!
This is all as prophesied. The one TRUE Church of God has been scattered. It is not a great and powerful organization having political power and prestige in the world. It is the despised "Little Flock," persecuted, disunited, scattered. It is the Church possessing only a "little strength" of itself. Yet it has a great work to do in this very time, and God says, " I know thy works: behold I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it."
Do you know what that "DOOR" is? It is the door that makes possible, thru divine power, the doing of God's work which we of ourselves have not the strength to do. And GOD HAS OPENED THAT DOOR to us!
Yes, even tho, as prophesied, the whole world has been RECEIVED, spiritually blinded by a false GOSPEL, yet Jesus said that HIS Gospel OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD shall go out to all the world for a witness to all nations, JUST BEFORE The Great Tribulation. That time is NOW! That prophecy is being FULFILLED! You, as a Co-Worker, have had a very important PART. YOU have actually been used of God in this prophesied work of His. God has opened a door of undreamed POWER so that EVERY DOLLAR you have put into His work has carried HIS Message to more than two thousand precious souls!
Listen now to an ASTOUNDING fact! God has set TIME running in cycles of 19 years. Just once every 19 years the days, divided by the sun; the months, divided by the new moons; and the years, divided by the revolution of the earth around the sun, all come into exact conjunction. Thus God's NATURE runs in 19-year cycles. That is important. Now see what has happened.
It took just ONE COMPLETE CYCLE of 19 years for this work to grow from nothing until it carried the very Gospel of Jesus all over the North American continent in mighty POWER! That 19-year cycle ended, and the second 19-year cycle began, during the first quarter of this present year, 1953!
The very start of the second 19-year cycle marked the beginning of proclaiming this Gospel to ALL EUROPE and THE BRITISH ISLES! It must still go to Asia, Africa, South America, and Australia. WHEN it has spanned the world, THEN the END OF THE WORLD shall come! The disciples asked Jesus WHEN this world would end, and His second coming occur. He said THIS Gospel shall go around the world, and THEN shall the end come!
Now HERE IS SOMETHING STARTLING! Herman Hoeh, in his eye-opening article you will read in the June number of The PLAIN TRUTH on the Times of the Gentiles shows that the Times of the Gentiles — if chronologies are correct — will come to their final end in the year 1982. Very few have ever rightly understood the Times of the Gentiles — what they are, or when they end. They are to last until all the Gentile nations come to ACKNOWLEDGE that God is the real RULER over all nations and men. They will not acknowledge that when Christ first comes. Instead, they shall fight against Him — at Armageddon — and resist His rule. Christ shall rebuke strong nations afar off UNTIL (Moffatt translation) they recognize these truths. Christ will have to send famine, and then plagues, in successive YEARS, upon the Egyptians, before they will acknowledge Him as rightful RULER (Zech. 14).
Now if this chronology is correct, that means Christ shall return some very few years PRIOR to 1982! NO MAN KNOWS THE DAY, HOUR, OR YEAR OF CHRIST'S RETURN. But we CAN know exact dates of one or two other events. Jesus also still has to complete the confirming of the COVENANT — the NEW Covenant — with Israel for 3« years after He comes, according to the prophecy of Daniel's "70 weeks." (Dan. 9:24-27). The last half of that 70th "week" (actual 7 years) remains to be fulfilled after Christ's return. He was "cut off" by being crucified after 3« years of confirming the covenant (Rom. 15:8 and Dan. 9:27). We do not know, however, whether this last 3« years to take place after Christ's coming will coincide with the period required for the Gentile nations to come to acknowledge Christ as WORLD RULER.
Then, besides, there are two other 3«-year periods prophesied to occur prior to Christ's coming. The first of these begins with the invasion of America and Britain in World War 3. THEREFORE we have a TOTAL OF THREE 3«-year periods, or 10« years, which MUST occur between the invasion of America and the ending of the Times of the Gentiles. The invasion of the United States with HYDROGEN-bombs that shall destroy our cities, therefore, must BEGIN at least 10« years PRIOR to the ending of the Times of the Gentiles! IF THE TIMES OF THE GENTILES END IN 1982, in October, as Mr. Hoeh has it figured, THE INVASION OF AMERICA AND THE GREAT TRIBULATION MUST BEGIN NOT LATER THAT MARCH-APRIL, 1972!
It could begin sooner. This date is hypothetical, not definite. But apparently it cannot begin LATER than that date. One chronology sets this disaster TEN YEARS from now! But March- April, 1972 is the LATEST POSSIBLE DATE.
NOW SEE WHAT THAT MEANS! That date is exactly 19 years from March-April this year, 1953! It is exactly 19 years — ONE COMPLETE CYCLE — from the time the FIRST cycle of this great work of God ended!
WHAT A TREMENDOUS SIGNIFICANCE THAT HAS! Think of it! God allowed us one exact complete cycle of 19 years for proclaiming CHRIST'S GOSPEL to all North America — all the United States, Canada, and Mexico! At the START of the second 19-year cycle, GOD OPENED THE DOOR to ALL EUROPE! And the MILITARY INVASION that shall END all true Gospel preaching is apparently to strike at the precise END of this second 19-year period — the spring of 1972 — EXACTLY 19 YEARS FROM NOW!
It took one cycle of 19 years to spread this work to all North America. There remains exactly one more 19-year cycle to spread it to ALL THE WORLD!
Surely I have NEVER before had anything so startling — so SIGNIFICANT — to write to you Co-Workers! Can you grasp the MEANING of it? Do you realize just HOW SHORT a time 19 years really is? To me it seems this past 19 years, since the work on the radio and by printing press began, has whizzed by like a jet plane. Yes, IT IS TIME FOR US TO WAKE UP! Time is short. We have a herculean task ahead!
In the summer of 1933 I was preaching to an average audience of 40 people in a country school-house. At that time I actually believed that I had no ability to speak over the air. Then that fall I was asked to speak on the radio for 15 minutes each morning for one week. Before the week was out, the radio station manager called me to his office. Many letters had been received. He informed me I possessed a good radio voice. I was astonished. GOD HAD OPENED THE DOOR! The very LITTLE strength I had was now MULTIPLIED.
At first it was just a little tiny 100-watt station. But two or three thousand people were listening. The RADIO CHURCH OF GOD went on the air with a regular half-hour broadcast the first Sunday in 1934. I has not lost a single week on the air since. Today, "The WORLD TOMORROW" as the program has been called for many years now, is one of the most listened-to programs in all North America. HERE ARE SOME FACTS: An article in Colliers for May 2, 1953, reveals that the heaviest mail response received by ANY program on radio and television is brought in by the Arthur Godfrey program. It is on BOTH television and radio — ON THE BIG CBS CHAINS — apparently the biggest thing in radio and television. Godfrey, says this article, receives more mail than any other program on radio and television — -upward of 60,000 letters and postcards per month. THAT'S BOTH RADIO AND TV! Garry Moore is CBS's second highest, with 18,000 pieces of mail per month. On the ABC net-work, BOTH television and radio Coast to Coast, Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, with the powerful following of the Roman Catholic Church, receives 32,000 pieces of mail per month. ABC's second best is Don McNeill, with 10,000 per month.
That is radio and television combined — and television is supposed to bring MANY TIMES the response of radio — and those programs are THE TOP programs on the big net-work chains, with HUNDREDS of stations. Now how do you think The WORLD TOMORROW compares? On only 12 radio stations alone (four of them very powerful) and with NO TELEVISION, the very latest reports turned in to my office shows 11,486 letters received in the month of April 16th to May 15th inclusive. But at this time of year our mail drops off. We have had no week-day broadcasts since May 1st. The month February 24th to March 23rd inclusive brought us 13,020 pieces of mail. IT RUNS MUCH HEAVIER from November until late February — sometimes 20,000 to 30,000. So you see, as compared with the most popular worldly programs on the biggest net-works, using BOTH television and radio, The WORLD TOMORROW ranks third or fourth among all programs in the United States in ACTUAL LISTENER RESPONSE!
THIS IS TREMENDOUS! And, on a program such as ours, HOW MANY MILLIONS of people do you suppose actually LISTEN, but never write in? Radio experts estimate that each letter represents 1,000 listeners.
And now, as we start this second 19-year cycle, GOD HAS AGAIN OPENED THE DOOR! When Mrs. Armstrong and I were in Europe and England in February and March, 1947, one of my main purposes was to find ways of carrying the true Gospel to Britain and all Europe. But at that time EVERY DOOR WAS CLOSED! All radio stations were government owned and operated. No programs were allowed on the air except the various governments' own programs — and almost wholly political PROPAGANDA. The Radio door was CLOSED TOTALLY. The advertising columns of the newspapers and magazines were CLOSED, — except for little want ads! I then decided we would have to use want-ads when we were ready to carry the Gospel to Europe!
But WE WERE NOT YET READY! The work had not grown large enough to undertake spreading the Message to Europe until the beginning of 1953 — the BEGINNING OF THE NEW CYCLE! And when WE were at last ready, what did we find? Why, WE FOUND GOD HAD OPENED THE DOOR!
Since we were in Europe, the great super-power radio stations of Radio Luxembourg had been established! Luxembourg is a little tiny nation adjoining France, Germany, and Belgium. And in that little independent nation was erected THE MOST POWERFUL RADIO STATION IN ALL EUROPE! Actually, it is several stations on different bands, but each one of 150,000 watts of power. To us, the SMALLEST group of God's true people that has ever existed — having almost NO power or strength of our own to carry on THE GREATEST WORK ON EARTH, God has laid upon us HIS WORK. He says to us: "I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an OPEN DOOR, and no man can shut it; for thou hast a little strength (ONLY), and has KEPT MY WORD, and hast NOT DENIED MY NAME....I AM COMING VERY SOON." (Rev. 3:8-11).
Co-Workers, may GOD OPEN YOUR EYES to the solemn significance of all this!
TIME IS SHORT! We need to WAKE UP! God has opened the door — given us the use of the most powerful instrumentalities ever invented for COMMUNICATING His Message to the world! We are small, few in number, having but little strength of our own. Yet GOD is doing a mighty, and a great, and a POWERFUL work thru us!
And yet, many of us seem to LET DOWN, and grow slack in supporting this great and glorious work. ONCE AGAIN THE RECEIPT OF MONEY IS FALLING OFF! Once again, the situation seems ALARMING! I need your immediate and MOST GENEROUS RESPONSE! Do you know WHY it is such a difficult financial struggle to conduct God's work? It is because THOUSANDS of you Co-Workers who may be poor financially, and have but a little, get to thinking that your little — perhaps only a dollar or two — would not be big enough to help. It is BECAUSE so many of you who can't send more are failing to send in your widow's mites that this glorious work of God often faces a crisis. Of course that makes it all the more necessary for those of you who CAN to send in large offerings — $50, or $100, or $1,000 or more. It is the FAITHFUL TITHE-payers among you, and those who send in generous amounts when you are able, that keeps tiding this work over.
THE TABERNACLE: God commanded us to FEED HIS SHEEP, as well as to proclaim His Gospel to the world. It is NECESSARY that we have a place to assemble and OBEY GOD by keeping His appointed festivals. And there are SO MANY who do attend these festivals we are having to build a tabernacle that will seat 1300 people. If this tabernacle near Gladewater, Texas, were being built of the same kind of construction as nearly all high schools, many grade schools, and worldly churches of this same size, IT WOULD COST NOT LESS THAN $500,000.00. Yet we are building this Tabernacle at a total cost of around $70,000! We are building it at a cost of about one-half the square foot cost of modern cheap housing. Yet it is a most sturdy and substantial building, of most solid construction, and of rare architectural beauty! GOD has shown us how to do this — to build solidly and well, yet CHEAPLY! Yet this morning the total amount of money received for building it was $2, and this afternoon $1 — $3 for the whole day. I think there was about $7 yesterday! CO-WORKERS, WE CAN'T FINISH THE TABERNACLE UNLESS YOU GET BEHIND THIS, AND KEEP BEHIND IT!
Not one thing has been done to it since the Spring Festival there the last of March and early April. CO-WORKERS, FROM HERE ON I WILL NOT APPLY ANY REGULAR MONEY FOR THE GOSPEL WORK TOWARD FINISHING THAT TABERNACLE!
I have to tell you that I am terribly disappointed and discouraged with the way most of you Co-Workers have almost totally dropped the special offerings for the Tabernacle. IT BEGINS TO LOOK LIKE WE CAN'T HOLD THE FESTIVAL OF TABERNACLES THERE, AFTER ALL! Co-Workers DO YOU WANT TO JUST STOP WHERE WE ARE, AND MAKE OURSELVES THE LAUGHING-STOCK OF ALL TEXAS? I feel ashamed, and terribly discouraged. This Tabernacle is necessary for GOD'S PROGRAM — in order that we may OBEY GOD and attend His festivals. I wrote you before how they built a Tabernacle in Moses' day, and the children of Israel sent in so much Moses had to send out a proclamation to restrain them from sending more. Are we going to let the people of that day put us to shame? I know that some of you CAN send in special offerings of $1,000 or perhaps $3,000 or more. I know that MANY of you can, if your hearts are willing, send in special offerings of $30, or $100 for the Tabernacle. NOW LET'S STIR OURSELVES AND GET BEHIND IT!
Our ministers and advance students are now planning the summer BAPTIZING tours. We hope to send THREE baptizing teams this summer. WE HAVE MORE REQUESTS FOR BAPTISM THAN EVER BEFORE — the biggest harvest of precious souls of any year is ready — but the LABORERS who will supply the money to make it possible are FEW! It takes money to keep these teams going. WILL YOU SUPPORT IT? Unless money picks up, we shall have to cut it down to two teams, or perhaps even one.
THIS IS GOD'S WORK — WE CANNOT LET IF FAIL! Let's AROUSE OURSELVES!
The entire work is in dire need. SEND IN YOUR WIDOWS' MITES, all you who are unable to send more. DON'T think it won't help — when there are enough of them, these small amounts COUNT UP.
The only thing wrong with those three single dollars that came in today for the Tabernacle fund is that THERE WERE NOT ENOUGH OF THEM. GOD'S WORK IS WAITING ON YOU! It is the ONE world event prophesied for NOW! Every dollar in the Gospel work takes the MESSAGE OF JESUS TO MORE THAN 2,000 people! Yes, thru the door GOD HAS OPENED TO US! This is GOD'S work. Let each of you do his own part to his utmost. God does not expect anyone to do what he is unable to do — but He DOES expect each of us to do what we CAN. God bless you all, I know you'll leap to the rescue, and send in immediately the largest sum you can.
With love, and with grateful THANKS, Herbert W. Armstrong
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