May 20, 2016 Brethren Letter
Dear Brethren,
Greetings from Texas! My wife and I arrived earlier today, to finalize plans for the Feast of Tabernacles. It has been cooler here in Texas than it was when we left Florida. We’ve been told that it’s unusually cool for this time of year, but we’re enjoying it!
When we return home, I’ll be giving you all of the details for this year’s Feast site. On Sunday, we’ll be looking at different parks for the Family Picnic and making plans for our Family Day activity. Currently there are two possibilities. Once we visit them, we’ll make a final decision.
We’re really getting excited about this year’s Feast of Tabernacles. We look forward to seeing all of you for services tomorrow.
For now, I’ll also send a few paragraphs from Mr. Armstrong’s Brethren Letter of March 23, 1984 on the subject of the Feast.
Have a wonderful Sabbath!
Your Brother in Christ,
Gary Liebold
March 23, 1984
Dear Brethren of GOD’s Church:
Begin now to focus your mind on the most joyous eight days of this year…
Brethren, WHY should we look forward so eagerly to this coming Feast of Tabernacles? And, even more eagerly to the coming of Jesus Christ and Kingdom of God? WHY has he called us OUT of this world, to be separate in the way we live?
The answer lies in the answer to another question: DO WE REALLY UNDERSTAND THAT THIS IS NOT GOD’S WORLD? It is SATAN’s world. But have we not, most of us, let so much Protestantism rub off on us that we just sort of take for granted that this is GOD’s world — GOD’s civilization? But it is SATAN’s civilization, and always has been. I think we are the only church that knows that TRUTH. God is NOT trying to save the world — NOT trying to make it a better world.
Rather, Jesus came to start a NEW, a DIFFERENT world — an entirely NEW civilization that will be GOD’s world.
Stop and THINK of the real PURPOSE and MEANING of the Church in which you are a member! We live in a world of discontent, gloom, sorrow, frustration, despair. In boundless LOVE and mercy the Supreme GOD has chosen and called you and me and all our brethren in Christ OUT of this unhappy and futile world. WHY? Not only to give into our lives HIS
happiness and joy and blessed hope, but to PREPARE us through HIS Spirit and HIS spiritual knowledge to rule over and TEACH all humanity during the coming thousand years and the following Great Judgment to have their lives transformed into vigorous happiness, joy and accomplishment with the GIFT of eternal life — when we ALL shall live happily, gloriously, vigorously, productively FOR EVER AND EVER!
We NOW look forward to the coming FEAST OF TABERNACLES. At the Feast we shall rejoice eight days looking forward to the time when we may be used in bringing other millions and billions of precious human lives into immortal glorious GOD-LIVES! Yes, then born into the GOD FAMILY — being VERY God ourselves!
All whose hearts and minds are right with God will be spiritually refreshed, uplifted, inspired, filled with joyous anticipation, enjoying a real FEAST on the SPIRITUAL WORD OF GOD!
Think how important this Festival is! After the return of King of kings Jesus Christ, “It shall come to pass, that every one … shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles” (Zech. 14:16).