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PASTOR GENERAL'S REPORT, FEBRUARY 19, 1982
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His Church through me with 19 members. But, like the grain of mustard seed
it GREW at the rate of 30% per year for thirty-five years. Yet this growth
was seemingly so SLOW that God never allowed me to become exalted. Like
Paul, I had my "thorn in the flesh," which, like Paul I won't describ�, to
keep me from ever becoming exalted. I thank God for the "thorn in the
flesh."
But some have apparently not been blessed with such a handicap or
"thorn" to keep them humble, and so sought the chief seat as rapidly as
possible. One who had a good degree of natural ability became a minister
after graduation from Ambassador College. He immediately set a goal--not
for humble service, but for SELF glory. He was going to become "Evangelist"
rank, next to highest, by a certain year. When ordained Evangelist, he
exclaimed proudly, "I MADE IT--right on schedule!"
But, 1ike some in
Jesus• parable of the sower and the seed, he fell by the wayside. He no
longer is in God's Church.
Others have wanted to be served, and not to serve. To serve was "be
neath them." By sheer natural ability, after graduation from Ambassador,
they rose to a fairly high rank, either in the ministry or at headquarters.
One would never arrive at his headquarters office until around 9:30. He
would be gone to lunch by 11:30. He would return around 2:00 or 2:30, and
be gone for the day by 4:00 or 4:30. But he was good at delegating his
responsibilities to others. Another, a minister of Pastor rank as area
coordinator, preached a sermon no more frequently than once in six weeks,
leaving all that to ministers under him. He was "too busy" loafing to
bother to visit or pray for the sick. But he was very strict with the
ministers under him.
I was thinking of the former archangel Lucifer, the exalted Cherub.
For a long time he was on the inside of God's Kingdom, just as some have
been for some time on the inside in God's Church. Lucifer came to a very
high rank. He was one of the two Cherubs whose wings overspread the very
throne of God at God's heavenly universe headquarters. Then he was given a
tremendous responsibility and opportunity, being placed on the throne over
the earth and a third of all the angels. But he was ambitious. He wanted
the chief seat of power. He made himself not only heir to the throne of the
universe and number two man under God, but he organized his "staff" of
angels and conspired to dethrone God. He said, "I will ascend into heaven.
I will exalt my throne above" Almighty God. "I will be" GOD. He tried to
"take over" from the inside. But he was cast back downto earth, now on the
OUTside. He became Satan the Devil. Now on the OUTside of God's Kingdom,
he tried to DESTROY! He got to the first man Adam through his wife. He
deceived the entire world. He tried to destroy the Christ child as an
infant. He tried to destroy Jesus at age thirty by the great temptation.
He deceived leaders in the Church, introduced a counterfeit Christianity,
tried to stamp out the true Church. He used his -false church to martyr
millions of saints. Even the tiny fragment remaining of the true Church in
the day when I first came among them had lost most of God's Biblical TRUTH.
And now Satan is trying to DESTROY God's Philadelphia era of the
Church. His "MO"--if you can't "take over" from the inside, destroy from
the outside!
But what a tragedy that some have come as Ambassador College students,
graduated, become ministers, and then, after a few years, going out or