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PASTOR GENERAL'S
REPORT
TO THE MINISTRY OF THE
WORLDWIDE CHURCH OF GOD
VOL. 8, NO. 15
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA
APRIL 11, 1986
Dear Ministers of Jesus Christ,
Have you ever considered just what comprises unity? We know that God
is the ultimate source of unity and we can have that unity in us through
His Holy Spirit. But bow is unity expressed in .Y,!?
Jesus Christ prayed on the evening before His death that His Father's
Church would be�' even as Be and His Father were one. He prayed to the
Father that the Church would be one •in us• (John 17:21-22). That is, the
Church is to be in complete oneness, or unity, with Jesus and the Father
who are themselves in perfect unity. But bow are they unified?
Jesus told Bis apostles in John 15:1-7 that if we abide or live in Him
we can bear fruit. Be compared us to branches on a vine. Unless we are
part of the vine, abiding in Christ and Be in us, we are worthless, unable
to bear fruit, drying up, ready for the fire. Be tells us that without
Him we can do nothing (verse 5). Now notice verses 9 and 10: •As the
Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye
keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love1 even as I have kept my
Father's commandments, and abide in his lov�.·
Jesus makes it clear that we must keep His commandments if we are to
abide in Him. Be makes it clear in Matthew 5:17-48 and elsewhere that the
keeping of Bis commandments must be !!2!! than just the physical actions of
keeping them. It must be in the heart. It must be a way of life--not
only a way of doing, but also a way of thinking.
The apostle Paul told us to bring every thought into captivity to the
obedience of Christ (II Corinthians 10:4-5). That has to do with obeying
God, keeping Bis commandments in our hearts, not only in our actions,
though it certainly includes our actions.
Proverbs 3:1 says, •My son, forget not my law, but let thine heart
keep my commandments.•
Notice it says •1et thine heart keep my
commandments.•
The unity that we are to have with God and with one
another through Bis Spirit, which is based upon keeping His law in our
hearts, must be� than just actions! This unity, like God's law, must
become a part
2£
Y!--part of our very nature.
IN THIS ISSUE
From the Pastor General • • • • 1
From Church Administration • • 3
On the world Scene • • • • • • 7
God
the Father
and Jesus
Christ are in agreement.
Jesus
says He kept His Father's com-
mandments.
He says He spoke not
His own words but His Father's.
He didn't just •go along with" Bis
Father,
He wholeheartedly sub
mitted Himself to His Father.
In like manner, we must each
follow His example, submitting