Vol. 108-2 Earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. — Jude 3

Reverence for theHouse of GodPage 11

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REVERENCE HAS BEEN A HALLMARK of Apostolic Faith churches since the founding of our organization. That attitude of honor toward God and His house was apparent to me in 1974 when I first visited our Roseburg, Oregon, church as an unsaved, unchurched twenty-one-year old. I observed that the ministers and musicians went to their knees in prayer upon entering the sanctuary before the service began. Others in the audience also knelt or bowed their heads reverently in prayer. Though unfamiliar with church ways, it was obvious to me that these people took their “religion” quite seriously.

I didn’t know they had already knelt in a prayer room before entering the sanctuary, bringing special requests to the Lord. It is not unlikely that one of those requests was for me to get saved! Then, at the conclusion of the service, they invited all present to come and join them in prayer. Though I did not do

so, I left church that morning con-vinced that these people believed God answered prayer. And God did answer! That very night I experienced the saving

grace they had prayed I would receive by praying my own prayer of repentance. God responded in a dramatic manner, forgiving my sins and changing the desires of my heart before I ever heard that salvation would do such things.

Less than four months later, at the opening service of camp meeting, I entered the tabernacle on our Portland, Oregon, campground for the first time. Unlike the few dozen worshippers in the Roseburg church, there were a couple of thou-sand people attending services at the camp meeting. Yet, an earnest desire to revere the House of God clearly existed in that sanctuary as well.

Over time, I have come to understand that reverence for God’s House is much more than honoring a building. It is a deep sense of worship for God, the One we pray will inhabit the building. We are not approaching a structure as much as we are approaching our Creator! Our church services are often called “meetings” because the order of worship is structured to allow individuals to meet with God. He promised of the Tabernacle worship, “And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee…” (Exodus 25:22).

In his sermon on “Reverence for the House of God” (Page 11), Andy Chasteen quoted a similar promise made at the dedication of Solomon’s Temple. We pray that his sermon, along with the entire contents of this magazine, will inspire you to attend church and approach God in a manner He will find pleasing.

Approaching God

Higher Way (ISSN #1084-9807) is published quarterly by the Apostolic Faith Church, 6615 SE 52nd Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97206, U.S.A. and is mailed out subscription free. Periodicals postage is paid at Portland, Oregon. Postmaster: Please send address changes to Higher Way, Apostolic Faith Church, 6615 SE 52nd Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97206, U.S.A.

April—June 2015

Table of Contents

Darrel D. LeeSuperintendent

General

VIEWPOINT

Day to Day ............ 9 Evidence .............. 14 Today’s Youth ...... 17Highlighting our Heritage .............. 21

Contend for the Faith ............................... 3Live with Heaven in View ...........................6 Reverence for the House of God ...............11A Place of Surrender .............................. 16 Lessons from the Day of Atonement ........ 19

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The Book of Jude is a short epistle packed with a good deal of instruction, pri-marily warning Christians to be on guard against false teachers and those who would corrupt the faith. Jude noted that some people of his day had already

been led away into error, and he was not delicate when describing those who had deceived them.

Jude began his epistle with these words: “Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and pre-served in Jesus Christ, and called: Mercy unto you, and peace, and love, be multiplied. Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once deliv-ered unto the saints.”

Jude was not writing to sinners but to saints. These were individu-als who, in his words, were “sanctified,” “preserved,” and “called.” One meaning of the word sanctify is “to separate from ungodliness and ded-icate to God,” so these were people who by the prompting of the Spirit had previously separated themselves from the world with a purpose to serve the Lord. They had done what we did when we determined to follow the Lord. The world of sin lost its allure, so we changed direc-tion. From then on, we wanted nothing more to do with that old life.

In the Old Testament, an offering brought to God was ceremoni-ally sanctified; it was separated from the flock and devoted unto God. The offering was to be the best the person bringing it had. That is a picture of how we come before God—we initially give God our best and continue to do so afterward. We set ourselves

Timeless admonition from Jude’s epistle.

From a sermon by Darrel Lee

Contend for the Faith

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apart for Him and are “sanctified” for His purposes.

Those who are “preserved” are those who are kept by the power of God. If we separate ourselves and dedicate ourselves to serve God, we will be kept! It cannot be otherwise. The Gospel will not only keep us saved, but it will keep us steady. The world and those around us in the world are often in upheaval. Circumstances in our lives can be in upheaval, but when we are preserved by the Lord, we will be kept by Him no matter what comes our way.

Not only were these saints addressed by Jude sanctified and preserved, but they were also “called.” God has a call-ing for each one of us as well: to love and serve Him with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. It may not be necessary to spend too much time trying to figure out our specific call-ing in life. Our call is simply to serve God—to be devoted to Him. The Lord has a wonderful way of unfolding His plan for our individual lives one step at a time as we continue through life serving Him.

Jude knew that those who would read his epistle were sanctified, pre-served, and called. They had gotten off to a good start! However, as he began this letter, he seemed to feel a com-pelling urgency to remind them that, going forward, they would need to “earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.”

The faith Jude alluded to here was not the believing faith by which we reach out to God and receive salva-tion. Jude was speaking of the living faith which springs out of what has transpired in the heart—the manner of living we felt called to when we left the old world of sin behind. It is what we have felt called to as we have progressed in our Christian walk. We have seen God’s ways unfold before us; there has been no confusion in our minds regarding the fact that God has called us to live separate from the world. It has become a way of life. This manner of living is “the faith” Jude was referring to.

According to verse 1, Jude was the brother of James. It is believed this is the James who was “the Lord’s brother” (Galatians 1:19), so both of

them were the brothers of the Lord. Possibly they both had been born by the time Jesus was twelve years old and the family went up to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. If so, they no doubt were part of the flurry of activity which occurred when Jesus’ parents went about asking, “Where is Jesus? Have you seen Jesus?” Perhaps they were with Mary and Joseph when they returned to Jerusalem and found Jesus in the Temple talking with the religious leaders of the day, who were astonished at His understanding and

answers. Whatever the case, James’ and Jude’s entire lives had revolved around what they were taught from Deuteron-omy—unchanging principles which centered on the importance of serving God, reverencing God, and keeping God ever before them.

Notice that Jude said this faith or godly manner of living had been “once delivered unto the saints.” The word translated “once” implies something of perpetual validity, and could be translated “once for all.” The faith does not need to be modified or improved upon. It had been delivered and it was delivered intact, in its entirety.

The faith which many in our con-gregation grew up knowing is still available. Some had grandparents and great-grandparents whose lives

revolved around the house of God, so their parents grew up not knowing anything different. Subsequently, they grew up not knowing anything dif-ferent. That manner of life is living in “the faith,” and it is a good way!

I am glad for those who have stayed in the faith, among them the little group of believers who were worship-ping together in Roseburg, Oregon, back in 1974 when I attended my first Apostolic Faith Church service. I was stepping out of what I was accustomed to—our family did not “do” church. However, I went, and I observed a group of beautiful people who were doing what they always did: they were simply serving God. That is living in “the faith.”

Once we are saved, remaining a part of the faith will not happen automati-cally. It will take effort. Jude was con-cerned about that. He felt an urgent need to warn believers of his day that they must earnestly contend for the faith. They would need to fight to pro-tect and retain it because there were insidious forces that would contest that manner of living and try to influ-ence them in a different direction.

When you embraced the faith, no one told you that it would be an easy way with no opposition. Everyone will not commend the choice you have made. My boss did not commend me when we had tax returns to file by a certain deadline, and I was asked a day after the deadline to change the post-age meter to reflect the earlier date. My response was spontaneous: “I cannot do that.” My boss did not say, “Oh, I am so happy you are in the faith! Con-gratulations on having godly princi-ples and sticking to them!” No, there will be those who condemn us; they will try to justify their own errors by devaluing our choice to serve God. That is why Jesus said His followers would need to take up the cross. We will not always be commended or appreciated!

Jude was very descriptive in identify-ing those who opposed the faith in his day, though now perhaps he would be considered a bit short on diplomacy. In Jude 1:4 we read, “For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this

If we separate ourselves and

dedicate ourselves to serve God,

we will be kept! It cannot be otherwise.

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condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lascivious-ness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.” The Greek word translated “crept in unawares” indicates a stealthy, subtle incursion. The true nature of these imposters was not apparent until time revealed it. These men turned the grace of God into lasciviousness—a sensual attitude marked by wrong desires and excesses. It is the lifestyle of individuals who are self-centered, self-serving, and self-promoting, who are willing to sacrifice anything on the altar of their own ego.

In our day too, there will be those who come in a stealth-like manner. We may not immediately recognize that they are trying to distract us from the faith. That is why we must “earnestly contend.” We must guard our spiritual walk and make sure we are in tune with the Lord.

Jude warned the believers of his day by pointing out the judgment that befell the ungodly in times past. He mentioned the disobedient Children of Israel who bleached their bones in the wilderness. He cited the defection of fallen angels, who refused subordi-nation and are to this day bound in Hell. He referenced the deviant people of Sodom and Gomorrah who gave themselves over to evil desires and ultimately were burned with fire.

In verse 11, Jude spoke of Cain who offered too little, Balaam who talked too often, and Core (Korah in the Old Testament) who presumed too much. Cain offered too little in that he did not bring a blood sacrifice. He resisted making the type of offering that pointed to the atonement and the power in the Blood of Jesus to change the human heart. Balaam loved the wages of unrighteousness, and incited the Children of Israel to stumble. Presumptuous Korah defied God’s order by claiming equal holiness and authority with Moses and Aaron. He did not appreciate the fact that God honors those who honor Him and follow His order. Jude went on to describe those who were “murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts” (verse 16) and those who “sepa-rate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit” (verse 19).

Jude also cited some good examples. He spoke of Michael the archangel, who rebuked Satan. He mentioned Enoch, who foresaw Christ’s return with His saints to execute judgment. We can look around and see good examples as well. We observe those who have steadfastly and contentedly served God in the faith for many years. Ask them, “Does it pay to stick with it? Does it pay to continue in this life of serving God, even when there are challenges?” Every one of them would answer, “Yes, it does!”

In verse 12, Jude says of those who had crept in unawares, “These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you.” These ungodly individuals showed up at the meals eaten together by members of the Early Church as an expression of brotherly love. They ate at their tables and fed on their blessings, but they did not appreciate the goodness they were beneficiaries of. Jude comments, “Clouds they are without water, car-ried about of winds.” They offered lots of advice, but they produced noth-ing but vain words. Continuing on in verses 12-13, Jude compared them to “trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars,

to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.” They take up space and create a commotion but only stir up debris. They circle about in their own orbit until they fade away.

This faith for which we are to con-tend is not for the lazy or the careless but for the determined—for those who have a focus beyond this world. From the time of Cain to the days of Jude and to our time, there have been those who have rebelled against God and attempted to dissuade the godly. Jude admonished the saints of his day: “But ye, beloved, building up your-selves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life” (verses 21-22). Notice the instruc-tion to build, pray, and keep them-selves in the love of God. Those in the Early Church had a responsibility, and we do too. As we build our spiri-tual lives, pray often, and make every effort to stay in the will of God, He will honor us.

When we do our part, God will do His part. In verses 24 and 25 we read, “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you fault-less before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever.” There is One who will preserve us and keep us if we determine to be kept. There is One who will guide us through life if we are willing to be led. Let us do our part. As we do, we will look back over any period of time and have a grateful assurance that God has done His part; He has blessed us. We will never regret having determined to launch out and then stay in this way.

Are you ready to “earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints”? It is a good way! God will put you in the faith if you are not yet in it. He will keep you in the faith if you are already in it. Look God’s way and He will hear your prayer and answer!

Darrel Lee is Superintendent General of the Apostolic Faith work, and pastor of the headquarters church in Portland, Oregon.

This faith for which we are to contend is not for the lazy or the careless but for the determined— for those who have a focus beyond this world.

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My parents raised their children carefully and taught us to love and respect God and His house. The Word of God was planted in our hearts from an early age. My siblings and I were faithfully taken to Sunday school and church. Our parents also made sure

we read the Bible and prayed—not by asking us if we had, but by reading and praying with us.Mom and Dad went to God for everything. Their trust in Him was constant and never

wavered. Many times when I was sick, they knelt beside my bed and prayed for me. On one occasion, my throat was quite swollen from tonsillitis. They prayed, and God undertook. Through situations like this, it was instilled in my heart to trust the Lord.

When I was about ten years old, I knelt and prayed asking the Lord to come in and make a change in my heart, and He saved me. Even though I was a young girl, He made a change that was real; He put peace and joy in my heart. Later, I also received the experiences of sanctifica-tion and the baptism of the Holy Ghost.

Soon after receiving salvation, I began playing the violin in the church orchestra. Previously on several occasions I had sat among the congregation listening to the music and playing two pencils like a violin. There had never been any doubt in my mind that someday I would serve the Lord in the orchestra. I later joined the choir as well.

A turning point in my life came shortly before my twenty-first birthday when the Lord sud-denly called my father home to Heaven. It became very real to me that the most important thing in life is to make sure we are spiritually prepared to make Heaven our home. I had been enjoy-ing life, earning my own money working as a stenographer and making plans for my future. I had also gathered a few earthly treasures: a nice automobile, some new clothes, and a few

At a Ladies’ Retreat, this woman told how losing her father and son has taught her to . . .

Live with Heaven in View

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household items that I had set aside to be used in my future home one day. With my dad’s passing, I was reminded of Matthew 6:19-20, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth cor-rupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.” The Lord helped me to really see, as I had been taught, that when we leave this world, we take nothing with us.

When it came time to marry, the Lord provided a won-derful Christian husband for me. Chet and I were married on Valentine’s Day in 1970. Before long, the Lord blessed us with three children. I can remember thinking before I was married that one day I would like to have five boys but no girls. However, when the nurse placed our first baby, a girl, into my arms, I was in love. We named her Kristina Marie. I was thrilled when the second baby was a boy. We named him Robert Charles after our fathers. Kristi was three-and-a-half when he was born, and immediately took on a motherly role, always looking out for him. While expect-ing our third child, I was hoping for another girl and got my wish—Andria Lyn (Ondi) was born. She was only two years behind Robbie and they became great friends. He loved to tease and torment her, but they enjoyed many hours together. They played sports including basketball, paint-ball, and rollerblade hockey. They also went swimming and four-wheeling, and were in several bands together.

As our children grew, there were two things I wanted most for them: that they would give their hearts to the Lord while young, and that they would eventually make Heaven their home. Our three children did choose the Gospel. Chet and I were able to pray with each of them and observe the change that was made in their hearts as they prayed through to salvation and dedicated their lives to serving the Lord.

Robbie gave his heart to the Lord sometime before turn-ing ten. As with the girls, we watched him grow spiritu-ally, using his talents in the service of the Lord. Then one morning in 1994, two days before his nineteenth birthday, my phone rang at work and I was told that Robbie had been in a skiing accident. I called Chet and then received a second phone call that Robbie was hurt very badly. We rushed to get to the hospital in Yakima, Washington, where the helicopter was taking him, but before we were even out of town, Kristi learned from the emergency room doctor that Robbie was gone. The Lord had thought it good to take him Home.

Robbie was the kind of son any parent would be proud of. He was a fun-loving, happy-go-lucky kid who loved life. I am thankful that he was not ashamed to show affection to his family. He gave us hugs and kisses often, and told us that he loved us. In fact, only three days before the accident,

Chet and I took Ondi and Robbie to meet Kristi and her husband, Gary, for dinner to celebrate Robbie’s upcoming birthday. When it was time to part, Robbie ran to Kristi and Gary and gave them both hugs and said he loved them. Gary commented on how unexpected and great this was.

Though Robbie lived a relatively short time on this earth, his life had an impact on others concerning the Gospel. When he was about fourteen, we moved next door to a boy named Jason. Jason was rough around the edges, and we were a little hesitant about the boys spending much time together, but because they were in the same grade and went to the same school, it was not long before they became close

friends.Jason has said Robbie was

a real friend who was loyal, steady, and consistent, even when they disagreed. He grew to respect him and to listen to what he had to say. Toward the end of high school, Jason moved with his family to Kelso, Washington, but continued to keep in touch by phone. The boys also got together periodi-cally to play paintball or go fish-ing. During this time, Robbie

became instrumental in Jason giving his heart to the Lord. Today the Lord is using Jason to lead others to Christ. He is the supervisory chaplain at a federal prison which houses 3,500 inmates.

The two boys were together the day Robbie died. They and another friend had decided to go skiing, and left early that morning for the White Pass ski area in Washington. Jason tells me that on the way, the conversation turned to church and doctrine, which led to a discussion about being ready to go to be with the Lord. Jason was in the passenger seat looking out over the cliffs. Realizing that with one false move on the ice, they could all be gone, he said, “Be careful; you guys don’t need to go today.” Robbie’s response was, “If today is my day to go, I am ready!”

Those words were such an assurance to us in the days and weeks that followed Robbie’s accident. During that time, the Lord was with us and we were able to lean on Him. He overshadowed me with a peace beyond all understand-ing that only He could give. I could not comfort Chet, nor could he comfort me, but I could kneel beside my bed and pour out my heart to the Lord. What came out was not, “Why?” or even, “This can't be happening,” but, “Lord, I love You.” Every time I got down to pray, I just wanted to tell Him I loved Him in spite of my hurt, because He was still that Friend that I needed. He provided great comfort then and now. One example took place a few years ago. While I was praying one evening it was as if the Lord just said to me, “Let me hug you.” I was so encouraged.

My early Christian training helped as well. My parents lived their lives believing that whatever they had belonged to God, and if He chose to, it was His to take. They had also lost a child. Before I was born, their seven-year-old son had

Realizing that with one false move on the ice, they could

all be gone, he said, “Be careful; you guys don’t

need to go today.” Robbie’s response was, “If today is my day to go, I am ready!”

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been hit and killed by a car on my dad’s birthday. I once asked my mom, “What did you do?” She told me that it hap-pened during the beginning of our church’s camp meeting, so they did the best thing they could have done—following the funeral, they packed their suitcases and went to camp meeting. That was how I was raised. Of course, I did not want to be tested on it, but because of this upbringing, I never doubted that God had everything under His control.

I miss Robbie every day, but I know I will see him again, and there is great comfort in knowing the Lord has used his passing to further the Gospel. At his memorial service, we were able to witness to over eight hundred people. This put new zeal in my heart to tell others about Jesus. Every day I pray, “Lord, give me an opportunity to share my experiences in the Gospel with someone.”

The Lord has answered that prayer in many ways. In 1980, I applied for and received a secretarial posi-tion with the City of Chehalis. My boss, who claimed to be an atheist, became interested in my religious beliefs and asked many questions. At times when I felt my answers were incomplete, I brought our church literature to him as a better explanation. For several weeks, he watched my life, noticing such things as that I prayed before eating lunch. He also listened as I talked about my church: the music, the Sunday school classes, and the joy I had in attending our services. The Lord led the sit-uation in a wonderful way, and one day my boss asked me to tell someone on the phone that he was not in the office. When I refused, he was puzzled. I told him, “I can't say that. It would be a lie.” It disturbed him to realize he had asked me to lie for him, and the Lord began talking to his heart.

When our church announced a weekend of special meet-ings, I invited my boss to attend. At his first meeting, he received a genuine welcome from the saints. Having never attended a service such as ours, he sat intently listening to the music and to what was being said. The hymns, which were all new to him, the testimonies, and the message all spoke to his heart. After a few services, he experienced the joy of the Lord for himself at an altar of prayer. For over sixteen years afterward, I continued in that job and was blessed to work with a Christian boss.

Since that time I have had the privilege to witness for the Lord through several temporary job assignments. I am always thankful to be given the opportunity to connect with people and try to reach some of the lost souls of the world for the Lord. In 1996, Chet was called to pastor the Apostolic Faith Church in Yakima. When we arrived, we were received by a wonderful church family, and right away felt the love of the saints and the unity that was in that place. For four years, we had the privilege of ministering to God’s people there.

There were tests of faith during that time. We had left behind a house in Chehalis, Washington, that needed to be sold. We prayed about the situation and placed the matter

in the Lord’s hands, but I continued to worry. Then, during camp meeting the Lord helped me to give my concerns fully to Him, and He answered in a way that was better than we could have imagined. He sent saints from the Port-land church to buy our house and join the congregation in Chehalis. They had already put money down on another house, but the Lord worked everything out. That seller received another offer contingent on the sale of a home that also had a contingency offer on it. In all, three houses sold so ours could be bought.

In 2000, Chet was called to pastor the church in Langley, British Columbia, Canada. We had the privilege

to live in Canada for over eleven years and witnessed many wonder-ful answers to prayer during that time. Once, a lady in our church and I prayed in the hospital for her newborn one-pound baby boy. I remember telling the Lord: “All we have is You. We come to You, need-ing Your help.” He did not fail us; the child lived, and although the doctors predicted he would have many serious health concerns,

today he is a strong, healthy boy attending grade school.The Lord has never failed. He is with us every day in

the big trials and in the small. Recently, Chet and I were reminded of this when we saw the Lord work in our home in a special way. We had made the very difficult decision to give up our two little dogs after six years. That same week, our pickup was broken into, I ended up in the emergency room of the hospital, and my wallet was stolen from my hand bag while I was at the store.

It was a hard week, but in thinking back over it, I realized the Lord was good to us in spite of these trials. He helped us find a kind and loving environment for our dogs, He prevented our pickup from being stolen, I was able to come home from the hospital with encouraging test results, and last but not least, my wallet was returned with my driver’s license still in it. That was a real miracle. The week’s events proved to me, once again, that the Lord cares about the big things and the small. I believe it is His desire to bring us comfort and peace when we go through hard places.

Now Chet and I have reached retirement age. As I look back over my life and see how the Lord has worked, I am amazed. That little girl who gave her heart to the Lord so many years ago has truly been blessed. I have two precious daughters, a son in Heaven, seven terrific grandchildren, and a loving church family. All of this is in addition to the Lord giving me victory over sin, peace in my heart, and the wonderful hope of Heaven.

I look forward to being together with family and loved ones in Heaven one day, but most of all to seeing Jesus and telling Him face to face how much I love Him!

Verna King and her husband Chet live in Portland, Oregon, where he serves on the ministerial staff at the headquarters church.

Every day I pray, “Lord, give me an opportunity to share my experiences

in the Gospel with someone.”

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DAY TO DAY

Created to Glorify the

CreatorTrees give insight into

what God desires from His people.

By Catey Hinkle

Outside my office window stand two tall leafy green trees. On many occasions I’ve caught

a glimpse of the branches blowing in the wind and have been captivated by their beauty. Something about their lush leaves and vivid colors captures my attention. It’s the same feeling I get when the clouds break and I see Mt. Hood towering over the valley, or when I watch the sun set in brilliant shades of orange and red. In one sense, these things are so common—Mt. Hood has looked the same my whole life; the sun sets every single night; and trees like the ones by my window exist all over my city. Yet somehow, the everyday sights of Creation are extraordinary.

Walking around my neighborhood one day, the thought occurred to me that all of nature is like God’s canvas. However, God’s “paintings” are not in two dimensions or even three; His artwork is alive. It breathes and grows, changes over time, and reveals not only layers of beauty but also of wisdom and truth. I began to realize that the reason the trees by my office are so captivat-ing is not their size, color, or any other physical aspect, but the fact that every-thing about them points to God, the

One who designed them. Though the trees have no audible voice, their beauty speaks of Him who is altogether lovely. Their peaceful presence reminds us of the Prince of Peace. They offer shade and shelter because God cares about giving a resting place, and their fruit is nutritious because He knows and pro-vides for our needs. By simply being what God created them to be, the trees by my window offer unceasing testi-mony to who God is, glorifying Him in a powerful way. They, and all of Cre-ation, are captivating because they are a reflection of God.

It is amazing to think that the God who created these trees also created Catey Hinkle. The Artist who spoke the earth into existence is the same One who made me and you and every-one else on earth. Observing the rest of Creation gives insight into what God desires for us. We can see that noth-ing in Creation was made poorly; God made everything to flourish, to be a blessing, and to glorify Him. That is His intention for us, too. However, one way we differ from the rest of Creation is that we are given a free will. So what the trees do by compulsion, we are meant to do by choice.

Recently I came across a verse that took on new meaning as I thought about how trees glorify God. Isaiah 61:3 is a prophesy foretelling that when Jesus came to earth He would “appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righ-teousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.” Jesus came to redeem repentant sinners and to restore their fallen nature. After He has done that for us, God says we are like trees of righteousness, planted by Him to glorify Him. If we want our lives to glorify God, we can learn a lot from trees. Here are a few lessons that espe-cially stand out to me.

Rooted in love. A tree’s roots anchor it and also store and conduct water and nourishment. Without this foun-dation, a tree is more susceptible to becoming diseased or toppling over in a storm. Thus, a strong root system is essential for a tree to fulfill its purpose.

As trees of righteousness, roots are critical for us too. Our faith will not withstand the trials of life with-out having spiritual roots to hold us

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steady. Ephesians 3:17 says we are to be “rooted and grounded in love.” We become rooted in love as we develop a deep love for God and for others, as well as a good understanding of God’s love for all of mankind and ourselves specifically. These foundational prin-ciples must be firmly in place for us to fulfill God’s will for our lives.

How can we develop stronger roots in love? I’ve found that the more I know God, the more I love Him. This is because every new thing we learn about Him is a reason to love Him more. We learn about God by seek-ing Him in prayer and studying his Word. And as we get to know Him, we see is how much He loves us—much more than we expect! Understanding that profound love enables us to trust Him fully, removes any fear of follow-ing Him, and allows us to experience true liberty in living for Him. As we learn more about God we also see that He deeply loves all of humanity, and drawing close to Him will cause us to love others as well. Being rooted and grounded in love in these ways allows our lives to grow in a manner that glo-rifies Him.

Fruit that is sweet. When I think about why trees are good, the first thing that comes to my mind is their fruit. Peaches, apricots, cherries...there are far too many to mention. Fruit is necessary because of its nutrition; the calories give us energy, vitamins and minerals keep us healthy, and anti-oxidants fight disease. But even if fruit were not necessary, we would all still love it because it is delicious! Fruit is just one way that a tree can glorify God, showing His goodness in providing for our physical needs and His kindness in making it so tasty.

We, too, can show God’s goodness and kindness by meeting the needs of others. Just as there are many types of fruit, God gives a variety of talents and abilities, and all of them can be used to benefit others. One person might be musically gifted, another one has a knack for making people laugh, and someone else has technical skills. All of us can pray. God desires that every

talent and ability He gives would be a blessing. No matter how small or common they may seem, they can be offered to others.

In my own life, God has given me the opportunity to learn Spanish and I consider translating to be a type of “fruit” I can offer others. Physical fruit is best when it is sweet; not bitter, bland, or rotten. Likewise, when I translate for others, the encounter should never

be unpleasant. I want God’s love and goodness to pour out of my actions and attitude so that the experience is sweet. This is glorifying to God.

Every leaf and twig matters. Leaves are amazing in their own right. Every day, while trillions of leaves around the world photosynthesize carbon dioxide into oxygen, they silently testify over and over to God’s creative genius. He designed photosynthesis, and all the other brilliant systems of the universe, in an instant. Twigs are young shoots that are initially bare but in the future will be productive. They are not usu-ally what catch our eye about trees, but the new growth is critical to its continuance. Thus, not a single aspect of the tree fails to glorify God—even the twigs have something good to say about Him.

I used to think that only obvious acts of ministry were glorifying to God, but I’ve realized that is not the case. Like the twigs of a tree, even small acts that usually go unnoticed are significant to the overall picture, and in their own way testify to who God is. For example, I like to bake. That doesn’t seem par-ticularly “holy,” yet the joy I get from baking reveals something important about our Creator: He delights in

seeing us joyful. I have three nieces whom I love immensely; when I spend time with them, it is a reflection of His love. When I clean my house, it shows that I appreciate and take care of the things God has given me. Every part of my life and everything I do, whether in ministry or just the normal things of life, can reflect my awesome Creator and bring pleasure to Him.

The whole picture. There are many individual aspects of trees that we can identify as glorifying to God, yet my mind keeps going back to what first caught my attention—the overall pic-ture that is breathtaking. The tree is simply doing what God created it to do, which is so beautiful and so per-fect that it compels people to consider Who created it.

Along with the rest of Creation, I want my life to glorify God in a way that is stunning. Trees must obey God because they have no free will. But my desire is to choose His will in every-thing I do, so the end result will be a life that only God could have designed. I want to be the tree described in Jeremiah 17:7-8, “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.” No matter what season of life, I want every part of my life to be a ceaseless testimony to who God is.

As beautiful as the Creation is, God desires something even better for our lives. The more we choose His ways, the more His beauty will shine through us. Imagine the possibilities if we give Him full control! Our lives would con-tinually reflect God’s goodness and love, pointing the world to Him as the Author of it all. This is God’s desire for us—that we “might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.”

Catey Hinkle is on the editorial staff at the Apostolic Faith Headquarters Office in Portland, Oregon.

No matter what season of life, I want every part of my life to be a

ceaseless testimony to who God is.

Higher Way 11

God has chosen and set apart a holy place where He meets with His people. In 2 Chronicles 7:15-16, we read, “Mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent

unto the prayer that is made in this place. For now have I chosen and sanctified this house, that my name may be there for ever: and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.” When God declared that He would be attentive to prayers made in “this place,” He was not referring to just one specific location. That promise applies wherever the people of God gather to worship Him. It includes the build-ing we are in today, but it also includes your sanctuary—the place where you worship.

In a secular sense, a sanctuary is a place of protection. In Southern Oregon where I live, we have several places desig-nated as animal sanctuaries. There is the Wildlife Safari and another place called Wildlife Images where animals are fed, cared for, and kept safe from predators.

In some ways, that is what the sanctuary is to us. As fol-lowers of Christ, we gather in a safe place where we are fed spiritually, nurtured in the faith, and kept from evil. Webster’s dictionary also offers a religious definition: “a house consecrated to the worship of God; a place where divine service is performed.” The definition goes on to refer to the Old Testament, where the word sanctuary indicates “the most sacred part of the Tabernacle, called the Holy

of Holies, in which the Ark of the Covenant was kept, and into which no person was allowed to enter except the High Priest, and that only once a year to intercede for the people.”

When Jesus offered His life on Calvary as the perfect sac-rifice for the sins of mankind, He gave us access into that holy place which previously had been forbidden to the common man. We read in Hebrews 9:12 that Christ “by his own blood . . . entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.” No more middle man. No more need for a high priest to go into the holy place on behalf of the people. Now you and I—just ordinary men and women—can enter into the sanctuary and speak one on one with God himself.

Having been granted access into the sacred place where God dwells, we must be careful to honor it appropriately. We can hinder or facilitate God’s blessing by the way we regard the place where He meets with His people.

Looking at the first verses of 2 Chronicles 7, we find an example of actions in the house of the Lord that hon-ored Him and brought His blessing. We read, “Now when Solomon had made an end of praying, the fire came down from heaven, and consumed the burnt offering and the sac-rifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the house. And the priests could not enter into the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord’s house. And when

Do you treat the place where God meets with

His people with the honor it deserves?

From a sermonby Andy Chasteen

12 Higher Way

all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the Lord upon the house, they bowed themselves with their faces to the ground upon the pave-ment, and worshipped, and praised the Lord, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.” The people had everything in order. They had honored God’s house and had approached God in the right way. For that, God sent His blessing.

In our opening text, God said, “I have chosen and sanctified [or set apart] this house . . .” The area where we are gathered to worship is dif-ferent from any other room in this building. Most churches include a foyer, Sunday school rooms, an office, and perhaps a kitchen. But the place where we gather for church services is special. It is different. It is our sanctuary, the place set aside for worship. It is where we meet with God.

When we enter a place where the Lord is, we should be careful to show respect. When Moses approached the burning bush, God called to him, saying, “Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground” (Exodus 3:5). The ground was not holy because of its location or because of the bush that burned but was not consumed. It was holy because God was there! The word translated “place” in “the place whereon thou standest” is the same root word used in 2 Chronicles 7:15-16, “Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place. For now have I chosen and sanctified this house, that my name may be there for ever.” The com-monality between the burning bush, and the house of the Lord in Solomon’s day was that God was there! So when we gather in this place in our day, we must be conscious of the fact that God is here.

What actions will indicate our honor and respect for the house of God? In Psalm 27:6, the Psalmist says, “I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy.” In another psalm he speaks of offering a “sacrifice of praise.” Joy and praise are not offered out of a sense of obligation. There is a thanksgiving to God that just wells up within, and it is a sacrifice in the sense that we offer it to God in hope and faith that He will accept it.

In Psalm 95, verse 6, it speaks of reverencing God in a different way. We read, “O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker.” We kneel in

reverence! We come to the house of God to honor Him, and we indicate that by kneeling before Him in prayer.

Another way we reverence God’s house is to come fre-quently to enjoy the presence of the Lord. We are instructed to do so. In Hebrews 10:25 we are admonished not to for-sake the assembling of ourselves together, as some do, but to gather “so much the more, as ye see the day approach-ing.” Without question, the Lord’s return is approaching. As we see that day draw near, we need to come to God’s house more and more. The Psalmist felt this desire so strongly that he said, “One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple” (Psalm 27:4). People can pray out in the woods, by the river, or in their homes, but this place is dedicated specifically for that purpose.

God responds when we come to His house with a pur-pose to worship. In the account we read in 2 Chronicles 7, it says that the glory of the Lord filled the place. The priests could not minister and the musicians could not play. Those who had come to worship had created an atmosphere where

God could dwell in His fullness, and those in attendance were the beneficiaries. Isn’t that what we want—for God to come down and dwell among us in His fullness?

We have a part in making that happen. Malachi 3:1 tells us, “The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the cov-

enant, whom ye delight in.” The Lord shows up when we do the right thing by delighting in Him. The Prophet Isaiah relates God’s promise to those who take hold of His cov-enant, “Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offer-ings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people“ (Isaiah 56:6-7). Do you want to be joyful in the house of prayer? Do you want your prayers to be answered? Approach God’s sanctuary with reverence. It is a place where we come to commune with Him, so avail yourself of that opportunity. Delight in Him, and take hold of His promises.

God is quick to respond when we honor Him. However, our actions can have the other effect as well—they can keep the Lord away. We can hinder His blessing by how we act and what we do in His sanctuary.

The sanctuary is not a dining room or a meeting hall. When we come here, our primary purpose is not to see old friends. This is a house of prayer. Of course, some commu-nication goes on; we are brothers and sisters in the Lord and we enjoy having fellowship with one another. However, we come to this sanctuary to seek God. The Prophet Habbakuk said, “The Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him” (Habbakuk 2:20).

Psalm 84:4 says, “Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee.” You could say, “Blessed are

People can pray out in the woods, by the river, or in

their homes, but this place is dedicated specifically

for that purpose.

Higher Way 13

they that spend their time praising thee.” Those that “dwell” in God’s house have one overriding purpose when they come, and that is to praise the Lord. This is where God’s glory dwells. The sound that comes from this building should be the sound of praise or worship. God said that His ears would be “attent to the prayer that is made in this place,” not the conversation that is made in this place.

In our circles, we want to avoid the casual approach that seems commonplace today. If we were expecting to meet with the President or Prime Minister, we would dress for the occasion and approach the meeting with the respect due to the dignitary. We are coming in here to meet with Almighty God! He is far more worthy of honor and reverence than any individual on this earth.

We want to come into God’s house reverently, consid-erately, circumspectly—we want to consider where we are and show proper respect. The Word of God tells us that the Queen of Sheba, who came to meet with Solo-mon, recognized his love for the Lord just by the way he went up into the house of God. We want people to know that we appreciate the Lord by the way we come into His house and by the way we act when we are in His house. Leviticus 19:30 says, “Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and rever-ence my sanctuary; I am the Lord.” It doesn’t get any more plain than that.

Because this is a special place, there are certain activities that we are very cautious about because they have potential for distract-ing our focus or that of others. God’s house is not a place for casual use of cellphones, tex-ting, or surfing the internet. God wants to meet with us here. Let’s give God a chance! If we have a need for conversation, God has plenty to say to us. Talk to the Lord! Remember, this is His house and He has come here to dwell among us.

We avoid bringing food into the sanctuary. I cannot see entering this holy place to come before the Lord with a hamburger in hand. There are other places for that. We do not come in and sit casually sipping a cup of coffee or tea. Of course, an infant may need a bottle, or a toddler may get thirsty and need a sip of water, but we want to be careful. We are coming before the Lord God Almighty. It is not uncommon to see signs saying “No Food or Drink” in secular venues, and people have no problem honoring that request. How much more should we honor this house, and indicate by the way we treat it that it is a sacred place!

We should do our best to set our minds on God when we enter the sanctuary. God told the people of Judah that they had done evil in His sight because they had “set their abominations in the house which is called by my name, to pollute it” (Jeremiah 7:30). In other words, something else had become more important than worshiping God when they entered the sanctuary. We want to be careful to leave the cares of work and business outside. Do not let them consume the time that has been set aside for worship. That can happen. We probably have all knelt down and found

that our minds were filled with the day’s assignments, or some other matter. However, as we tarry in prayer, we can tell God, “Lord, I can deal with those things later. Help me to focus on You!” When that is our true desire, it does not take long before we find that He is right there, and our prayer begins to be an offering of praise. We can ask the Lord’s help in putting aside those things which distract us. We want to set our minds on Him when we come in God’s house to worship.

We do not conduct business in the sanctuary. We do not buy and sell. As recently as a few years ago, places of busi-ness were not even open on Sunday. Do you see how a lack of honor and respect has crept into our society? We want to keep that trend toward materialism outside of the church. We come here to worship Him.

In Scripture, the only times we see the Lord angry was when His house was desecrated by commercial activities. He dealt with this situation in John chapter 2, and then again in Matthew 21. Jesus went into the Temple and cast out those who bought and sold there, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers. He said to them, “It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have

made it a den of thieves” (Mat-thew 21:12-13). If the Lord was angry about it, we must be care-ful not to do business in God’s house.

We do not play games in God’s house. In fact, we teach our children at a young age that they should not run in church. Though my children are grown,

I know it is a challenge to keep little ones quiet for an hour or more. However, as parents we want to pass on to our chil-dren a reverence for God’s house. We want them to under-stand that this is a special place. If we neglect this teaching for just one generation, it will be lost.

It cost the Lord something to grant us access to His sanc-tuary. One of the beauties of Calvary was that He opened up this privilege to us. The house of God is sanctified, just as the Old Testament Holy of Holies was sanctified. Blood was offered there; Christ’s Blood has been offered for our sanctuary. We must never take that for granted.

We are the ones who benefit when we honor His house. When we offer God reverence, we are blessed. We want to feel His Spirit when we come into His house. We want to see God at work. He is waiting for hungry hearts so that He can fill them, and we must do what we can to facilitate that.

If you do not know the Lord today, the best way to begin to honor Him is to ask Him into your heart. When that happens, honor and reverence and praise will be the natural response. A desire to pray and worship Him will naturally spring up within your heart.

We are thankful for this house of prayer. We are thankful for a God who bends low to meet with us. We want God’s blessing, and one way we can receive it is to honor His house.

Andy Chasteen is pastor of the Apostolic Faith Church in Grants Pass, Oregon.

We want to be careful to leave the cares of work and business

outside. Do not let them consume the time that has been set aside for worship.

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EVIDENCEI WAS RAISED in a good Christian home; my parents loved the Lord. As a child, I wanted to do the right thing, but in high school I found the wrong kids and for a time I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go God’s way. How-ever, after my junior year I remember going to camp meeting and sitting in the second row and thinking, Lord, I don’t want this kind of life anymore. I want You to come into my heart. I don’t remember who was preaching that night, but sitting in that chair, I thought, Can this sermon just be over, please, so I can go to the altar? A Voice said in my heart, “You don’t have to wait.” And right there I just said, “Lord, please come into my heart.” He did so immediately!

When the service was over, I went down to the altar and prayed for sanc-tification. Hungry and thirsty for God, I wanted everything that He could give me! Immediately the Lord brought up something I needed to make right with a teacher at school. I went home and made that call, even though it was 8:30 at night. When I said, “I’m really sorry for what I did. That wasn’t right,” he replied, “Oh that’s fine, Julie. It’s okay, thanks for calling.” When I hung up that phone, it was like elec-tricity went from my hand through my body to the bottom of my toes. I knew that God had sanctified me! It was such a real experience that I did not have a shadow of a doubt about what had happened.

Four days later while praying for my baptism, I told the Lord, “What-ever You want . . . if You want me to stand on my head, I will; I want You so badly.” I did not know what else to give Him. As I walked out of a young people’s service on a Friday afternoon, I picked up some tracts and went to my cabin. As I was praying, “Lord, what more can I give You?” I looked down and there in my hand was a water baptism tract. I realized I hadn’t

done that, so I went to the office and signed up. That night I went down to pray after the service, and it wasn’t very long before God came and filled me with His Holy Spirit.

I was just seventeen years old at the time, and a lot has happened in the years since. God has been with me through every situation. His sweet Voice will say, “Julie, I’m with you.” Or “Julie, this is the path I have for you right now, but I’m with you.” I am just so thankful for His presence, and what He means to me.—Julie Friesen (Portland, Oregon)

FOR SEVERAL YEARS when I was just a little girl, I came to the Apostolic Faith Sunday school. I even have a little book that was given me for coming ten Sundays in a row. I enjoyed it, but we moved further away from the church so it wasn’t as easy for me to come, and eventually I stopped attending. My mom had told me, “It’s between you and God. You have to make your peace with God.” That is really all I ever knew about Christianity.

In high school, one of my class-mates was a born-again Christian and I noticed that her life was consistent: she did not party with the same people that I partied with on the weekends, and then claim to be a Christian the next week. One person who par-tied with us for a time would not be around for a while and we would hear that he “got religion.” After a month or so, though, he would be back. I did not want to be that kind of a Christian.

When Harlan and I started dating, his parents attended the Apostolic Faith, and they invited us to church. One night I came by myself and it seemed like every testimony was about me. I was convinced that they had dis-cussed me before church because they

described all the things I was doing and said they had been delivered from those sorts of things. I ended up walk-ing out before the sermon.

Everything changed on June 5, 1977. Harlan and I were at a graduation party, but around 6:00 he said we were going to leave and go to church. I was a bit upset because I thought, This is my graduation day and you’re telling me that I have to go to church? However, I didn’t resist too much. We went to church and during that service the Lord made it clear I needed a change in my life. That night God saved both of us.

While I appreciated God’s forgive-ness, I wondered, How am I going to keep this? Previously, I had tried to be a good girl in my own strength, and the longest I remember it lasting was about six months. After I was saved, though, God kept me every single day, and soon I stopped wondering if He would keep me. I knew I wanted to be kept, and I heard in other people’s tes-timonies that if I wanted to be saved, I just had to keep my hand in the Lord’s and He would keep me. That was true.When I received my sanctification at camp meeting the next year, the Lord totally took the desire for the world out of my heart. I received the bap-tism of the Holy Ghost later that year at an ordinance service.

The Lord has been very faithful to us over these years. He helped us raise three children in the Gospel. We have three grandchildren and Harlan and I are trying to be the best examples we can be so that someday they will want to serve the Lord. I’m so thankful for everything the Lord has done for me and I love Him with all my heart. —Debbie Lee (Roseburg, Oregon)

I AM VERY THANKFUL to God for my heritage—for grandparents who were Christians, and for parents who

Higher Way 15

PERSONAL TESTIMONIES OF THE POWER OF GOD

WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED?

Acknowledge “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). “God be merciful to me a sinner” (Luke 18:13).

Confess “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

Repent “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all like-wise perish” (Luke 13:3). “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out” (Acts 3:19).

Forsake “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him . . . for he will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah 55:7).

Believe “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begot-ten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

If you are a new Christian, write us and request the tract entitled, “Start-ing Out.”

www.apostolicfaith.org

gave their entire lives to the Lord and trusted Him through all of life’s trials. My grandparents and parents taught us that no matter what you go through in life, you can get closer to God. If you have faith in Him, just like the song says, “He will make a way.”

He has definitely done that in my life and in my family. Just to give you an example, my father worked most of his life in a factory. Because he worked there for such a long time, he mas-tered his line of work. One day, during the Communist years in Romania, the president of the company asked my father to come to his office. He said to my father, “I want to have a straight talk with you. We know you do excel-lent work and are a good worker, and we want to promote you. We want to give you a raise. We know you have six children, so you can definitely use it.” However, there was a catch to the proposal.

Under communism, Christians were persecuted; they were not given raises or promotions. So the catch was that the president of the company told my father, “You have to give up Christianity and church, and join the Communist party. Then we will pro-mote you and you will be much better off.” I’m thankful that my father did not have to go home to discuss the matter with my mother. He did not have to think about it overnight. He just looked straight in the president’s eyes and said, “If the only way I can get a raise and a promotion and take care of my family is to renounce God and join the Communist party, I must respectfully decline.”

I am thankful for that kind of heri-tage—for having parents who had straightforward principles and a pur-pose to follow God. No matter what they went through in life, they were ready to follow God. And I stand here before you as a testimony tonight that it pays to trust God. We never missed

food, we never lacked having clothes on our backs, and the bills were never unpaid after my father did not get that raise. I want to praise God for His care for us, and for the heritage I have had. —Cornel Radutiu (Portland, Oregon)

SOMETIMES WE SING the song, “Count Your Blessings,” but there is no way I could ever “name them one by one” because there have been so many in my life down through the years.

In April of 1974, the Lord called after my heart. I went forward to an old-fashioned altar of prayer at our church in Ft. Smith, Arkansas, and gave my heart to Him. Before that, I had been a miserable young mother; I was even thinking of leaving my hus-band because our marriage was so unhappy. I am thankful that God not only saved me that morning, but He also saved my husband. God restored the love in our marriage, and we have had more than forty years together since then. I am so thankful for the

many, many blessings He has put in our lives along the way.

Recently I was talking with a group of young mothers, and I told them about a time when God touched our daughter, Jennifer. As a little girl, Jen-nifer had a lot of problems with her tonsils. At one point the doctor told us that when she reached the age of five, he would need to perform a tonsillectomy on her because she’d had so many problems with them. We took our daughter to the minis-ters and asked them to pray for her according to the instructions given in James 5:14-15. Of course, we were praying for her a lot ourselves as well. The next time I took Jennifer to the doctor, he said, “Who did her tonsil-lectomy?” I said, “She hasn’t had one.” He said, “That’s the best tonsillectomy I’ve ever seen.” I told him, “Then God did it!”

I am so thankful for God’s many blessings and answers to prayer, down through the years, and I love Him with all my heart. My deep desire is to be faithful, and to be ready when He comes.—Kaye Montgomery (Port Angeles, Washington)

Born into a Muslim family, I was trained from my youth to practice the Muslim way of prayer, praying five times a day, and

fasting for thirty days during the month of Ramadan. As much as possible, I followed all the principles of Islam. I went to a Christian school, but my business there was to argue with the Christians. I had been taught that anyone who did not believe in the prophet Mohammad was a rebel, and to hate Christianity as a whole. Anytime some-one tried to preach to me, I did not listen, especially if he told me that Jesus was the Son of God.

I thought I was doing the right thing. Yet as I would leave the mosque after praying, the Holy Spirit would ask me, “If you die, will you make Heaven?” In my heart I would answer, “I just finished praying so I will make Heaven,” but I had no peace. In my mind, I purposed to die as a Muslim, but thank God He did not allow that to happen.

During my secondary school years a sickness developed in my body which slowed my academic progress. However, I was still able to pass all the exams and was granted admis-sion to a university. Once there, however, I did not do well and was one of the bottom four in my class.

One day the Spirit of God told me that I should pray in the Name of Jesus, but I answered that I had never prayed that way. Then I felt two hands upon my shoulders as if somebody was begging me to pray. I knelt down, and it was God Him-self who gave me the words to say, “Jesus, I’ve been rebelling against You. Forgive me.” Immediately God’s peace flooded my soul, and the condemnation in my heart was gone.

Then I looked for a Bible. Previously I had read the Bible only for argument, but after I prayed, God helped me understand the real meaning of His Word. Also, God

miraculously healed my body, even though I

had not prayed for that. I threw away the charms I had brought to the university and began to trust God. Satan said

I was finished because I had thrown away the

source of my p r o t e c t i o n ,

but the Spirit of God let me

know that He was with me.

Not wanting to keep the joy of the Lord to myself, I wrote to my parents and relatives. To my sur-prise, they rejected me and said I should not

come home again. They stopped financing me, and I had no other source of financial help. The Bible promises when our parents forsake us, God will take care of us, and He did. There was never a day that I did not have three complete meals. At the end of three years, God supplied a scholar-ship, and I was able to successfully complete my education.

After my experience with God, I began looking for a church to attend; each Sunday I went to a different one. After some time, I decided not to go to any church because of the disappointments I encountered. Then a friend wrote inviting me to a meeting in Lagos, Nigeria, and I decided to attend. On the way to Lagos, we stopped for a prayer meet-ing at a small shop where an Apostolic Faith Church was in its beginnings. At the end of the prayer service, I asked my friend, “Do you have this type of church?” He told me that this was just a foretaste of what we would see once we arrived at Lagos.

When I stepped into the tabernacle on the Lagos camp-ground, the Spirit of God witnessed to my heart that this was my church. As I listened to the service, I felt led to pray for what they called “salvation.” Without arguing, I did so, and God’s Spirit came down and witnessed to my soul. Then I knew that I had been saved. God also sanctified me and baptized me with His Holy Ghost and fire.

Since then, God has been all to me. He led me to a Chris-tian woman who became my wife, and the Lord gave us chil-dren. God has provided and cared for us. One time our son was sick to the point of death. We prayed for God to heal him, but promised that even if He did not, we would still serve Him. Miraculously, God undertook and healed him.

In time, it was my privilege to be a Sunday school teacher and then a minister in this Gospel. Now we have the oppor-tunity to pastor a growing Apostolic Faith work in Iseyin, Oyo State, Nigeria. We started with less than five people, but today an average of 130 attend the services. Others have been saved, sanctified, and baptized with the Holy Spirit and have become teachers and ministers in other locations.

In 2014, God made a way for us to attend the camp meet-ing in Portland, Oregon. Some of our children who live in Canada made the arrangements, and God provided money for our flight. Then, shortly before the camp meeting, my wife and I became ill. In a miraculous way, God raised us up, and we were able to make the journey to Portland. God gave us strength so we could enjoy the services and fellowship. We thank God for His many blessings.

Silas Ajibade is pastor of the Apostolic Faith Church in Iseyin, Oyo State, Nigeria.

A Place of SurrenderThis devout Muslim man found peace in an

unexpected place—the Name of Jesus.

By Silas Ajibade

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Today’s Youth

Lamentations 3:25 says, “The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh

him.” That’s a pretty simple verse. When we hear this promise we might think, “Great, I’ll wait for God and He will be good to me. This is going to be awesome!” But have we considered what it really means to wait on God? We have to know that before we can do it, and it is not always easy. How-ever, we have a promise that God will be good to those who wait for Him, so it is definitely worth learning to do.

To help explain how to wait for the Lord, let us consider a Bible account and a list of ten items. The Bible account is from Genesis 15, where God promised Abraham that his descen-dants would be as many as the stars in the sky. That was a huge and seem-ingly impossible promise to someone who was still childless at past seventy-five years of age. Abraham asked God for an assurance of the promise, so God entered into a blood covenant with him.

In those days, a blood covenant was an unbreakable agreement between two people. It involved cutting in half several sacrificial animals, laying them on the ground, and both parties of the contract walking between the animals, through their blood. While this sounds

foreign in our society, the message was clear: if either one backed out of the agreement, he would end up like the dead animals. That was how binding a blood covenant was.

The Genesis 15 blood covenant begins with God telling Abraham to lay out the animals. We read, “And he [God] said unto him [Abraham], take me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove and a young pigeon. And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another . . . And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces” (verses 9-10, 17). The smoking furnace and the burning lamp represented the presence of God. Because God could not swear by anyone greater than Himself, He swore by Himself. God alone passed between the animals, guaranteeing that He would do what He had promised.

In this account, there was a period of time when Abraham had to wait. First, Abraham obeyed God’s instructions to prepare the sacrifice—he obeyed immediately and precisely. Then he had to wait. This is significant to us because Abraham was called a friend

of God. If Abraham had to wait on the Lord, we can expect that we will also have to spend time waiting on the Lord at some point. It doesn’t mean we have done something wrong; everyone has to wait on the Lord sometimes. The good news is that “the Lord is good unto them that wait for Him.”

Genesis 15:11 is the only verse that says anything about what Abraham did while he waited. It says, “And when the fowls came down upon the car-cases, Abram drove them away.” He spent his time making sure the birds did not destroy his sacrifice to God. From his actions, we can see that Abraham’s attitude was basically this: “I don’t know when God will come, but I am determined with everything in me that there will be a sacrifice in pristine condition waiting for Him when He shows up.” Abraham was not too worried about what God would do, but simply focused on preserv-ing what God had asked of him. If we adopt that sentiment, we are going to get somewhere with God too.

God told Abraham to offer an animal sacrifice, but His instructions to us are a little different. Romans 12:1 says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your

While You Wait ...By Peter Sletmoe

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reasonable service.” The sacrifice we must bring before God is nothing less than all of ourselves, laid out on the altar for God to do with as He pleases. Just as Abraham had to drive away the fowls that tried to eat his sacrifice, we must make sure the vultures of doubt, of self-indulgence, and of doing things our own way do not destroy our per-fect sacrifice. Resist thoughts that question, “Where is God right now? Why isn’t He doing what I want Him to do?” If we dwell on thoughts like those, waiting on God will become painful and frustrating. Instead, we should remember that God’s ways are higher than our ways and His timing is perfect. We cannot know when God will answer our prayers, but we can determine that we will do everything in our power to make sure our sacri-fices are always in pristine condition, ready for God when He comes.

So what does it mean to wait on the Lord? It is difficult to define, but people who successfully wait on Him usually follow a similar pattern of actions. To help us learn from them, I made a list of ten things people do when they are waiting on God. If we want to wait on Him, we should con-sider doing these things also.

#1: Be in church. Passages in the Psalms and in Hebrews tell us that being in the house of God is of abso-lute and vital importance to our walk with Him and our spiritual health. Being in church helps the Gospel move forward in our lives and in the lives of others, and it is something we need to be a part of.

#2: Be in the prayer room before church. This is a place where people can pray before every church service, preparing their hearts to meet with God and asking for His blessing. With God, great things begin in prayer. Therefore, great things begin in the prayer room. If we want to be a part of great things with God, we should be in the prayer room.

#3: Be at the altars of prayer after church. Our churches have altar benches where we can go after every service to commune with the God of

the universe. God wants to spend time with us and this is a good place to do it! We can drop our burdens of sin at the altar and have our lives changed. We can lay out our sacrifices before God at the altars. We can find friends for life and our spouses there. We can find purpose for our lives there. The altars are precious, and that is a place we want to be.

#4: Pay tithes. Once we start earn-ing money, we need to make sure that we pay tithes—ten percent of our income goes directly to God. In the Book of Malachi, God said there is a great blessing for those who obey the instruction to tithe.

#5: Say yes to helping in the Lord’s work. Along the way in life, we are going to be asked to do some things. Our Sunday school teacher, youth leader, or even our pastor might ask us to help out with different tasks. On rare occasions, we might be asked not to do some things. Whatever the case, we should be agreeable and be avail-able. Of course there is a limit to how much one person can do, but as much as possible, we should say yes to help-ing in the Lord’s work.

#6: Share a testimony. Revelation 12:11 says we overcome by the Blood of the Lamb and our testimony, so we must share our testimonies. Our church family loves us and will be glad to hear from us. Our classmates and co-workers may not want to hear it, but they need to know that Jesus saves. We must let people know what God has done for us.

#7: Read the Bible. God’s Word is the most important piece of literature in the world because it reveals to us the nature of God and His plan for man-kind’s redemption. We don’t necessar-ily have to read many chapters, but we should read something from the Bible every day. It will feed our souls and give God an opportunity to speak to us and teach us.

#8: Talk about the Lord. Have you noticed that people tend to steer conversations toward the things that interest them most? Some people are into sports; some people are into

cooking; others are into electronics. That is great; life is awesome and there are many things to enjoy. But does God come up in our discussions? We need to be passionate about the things of the Lord, and when we are, it will show in our conversations.

#9: Love not the world—love Jesus instead. This one is not rocket sci-ence; simply do not love the things of the world. The world’s favorite book, the world’s favorite song, the world’s favorite movie, or the world’s favorite social media topic should not be our favorite. The things of the world will not help us receive the gifts of God. Instead, we want to love Jesus with everything in us and get as close to Him as we possibly can. Then we will be so full of Jesus that we won’t even have to think about not loving the world.

#10: Memorize the promises of God. Without peeking in the Bible, how many of God’s promises can we quote that address our current needs? If we are seeking to be sanctified, how many Bible verses can we recite about sanctification? Do we need guidance? A job? Physical healing? We should search God’s Word, find the prom-ises that address our situation, and take them to heart. As we apply them to our lives and apply them in our prayers, God will hear, and give us what we need.

We all have prayers that we are wait-ing for God to answer. Embrace this attitude in your heart, and it will see you through: “I don’t know when God will come, but I am determined with everything in me that there will be a sacrifice in pristine condition waiting for Him when He shows up.” The sac-rifice is all of yourself, laid out on the altar for God to do with as He pleases. Doing the ten items listed will help you keep that sacrifice in place while you wait, and God will not leave a beau-tiful offering like that unattended for long. Wait for God with the attitude of sacrifice and He will be good to you.

Peter Sletmoe is a minister of the Apostolic Faith Church in Grants Pass, Oregon.

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curtain was the other room, the Holy of Holies, where the Ark of the Covenant was kept. That room was reserved as God’s dwelling place, and was entered by only the high priest on only one day of the year: on the Day of Atone-ment. If he entered at any other time, or if he did not follow God’s precise instructions for entrance, he would die.

The high priest at the time of the first Yom Kippur was Moses’ brother Aaron, and he clearly understood the seri-ousness of approaching God. Two of his own sons, Nadab and Abihu, had disobeyed God’s instructions and as a con-sequence, the fire of God had consumed them. The lesson was clear: coming before God was a serious matter that must be done with great respect for who God is and what He has said.

We read in Leviticus 16 that it was shortly after the deaths of Nadab and Abihu when God gave the instructions for Yom Kippur. The high priest was first to wash himself and put on holy garments. Then he would sacrifice a bullock as an offering for his own sins. He would take coals from the altar of incense and burn incense as he entered the Holy of Holies, and once inside he would sprinkle the bullock’s blood eight times in front of the Ark of God. Then the priest would leave and repeat the same process using a goat as a sacrifice for the sins of the people. Next he would cleanse the altar of incense by sprinkling it with blood as well.

There was another goat involved in the Yom Kippur cer-emony, and that was the scapegoat. We often use the word “scapegoat” when referring to a person who takes someone else’s punishment. That meaning comes directly from the Bible. On Yom Kippur, two goats were brought before God and lots were cast to determine which would be sacrificed and which would be sent away. After sacrificing the first goat, the priest would lay hands on the other goat, symboli-cally placing the sins of the people on the animal. Then the goat would be released to wander in the wilderness. After all of this was done, the priest was to take off his soiled garments, wash himself, and put on clean clothes. That was how Yom Kippur ended.

When Jesus was crucified at Calvary, His sacrificial death fulfilled all of these steps of atonement. Hebrews 9:11-12

Lessons From the Day of AtonementAn ancient Jewish holiday foreshadowed the sacrifice Jesus made to take away our sins.

Here in the city of Portland, Oregon, Yom

Kippur 2014 began at 6:47 p.m. on Friday,

October 3. Yom Kippur means “Day of Atonement” and the Bible says it falls on the tenth day of the Jewish month Tirish—October 4 on our calendar. According to Jewish custom, a day does not start at midnight but at sundown of the previous night, which was at 6:47 p.m. in Portland.

Yom Kippur was the most solemn holy day for the Chil-dren of Israel because it was the day when God dealt with the sins of the people. Sin separates mankind from God, so this day of atoning for sin was a very serious time. God commanded that it was to be a day of rest: no work of any kind was to be done on Yom Kippur. The Jews were to afflict their souls, recognizing the gravity of their sins. They would fast for twenty-five hours while abstaining from doing their own pleasure on that day. The punishment for not afflicting their souls was death, so we can see that this holy day had a very heavy weight to it.

Today there is good news—we do not have to keep Yom Kippur anymore! When Jesus died on the Cross, He made the full atonement for sin so atonement through the sacri-ficial system no longer needs to occur. A sinner can come in repentance to God at any time, and the offering of Jesus’ Blood will atone. Yet, we can still learn a great deal from what the Bible says about Yom Kippur because it foreshad-owed the sacrifice that Jesus made on Calvary. The Old Testament instructions show us how the New Testament atonement is meant to be applied.

To understand what happened each year on Yom Kippur, we first need to know a little about the Tabernacle, which is where the sacrifice for atonement was made. God designed the Tabernacle to be the place where He would meet with His people. It was located in the center of the Jewish settle-ment and was surrounded by a large open courtyard. The Tabernacle itself was divided into two rooms: the holy place and the Holy of Holies. In the holy place was an altar for burning incense and a table with bread on it. Behind a

From a sermon by Tony Boyce

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and 24 says, “But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; nei-ther by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us . . . For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the pres-ence of God for us.” Jesus is both our High Priest and our Sacrifice. He lived a sinless life, so He did not need to first bring an offering for His own sins. Instead, He offered His own Blood to make a complete atonement for the sins of all mankind. That is why we no longer have to celebrate Yom Kippur: our High Priest paid the ultimate price—a price that only He could pay. After His atoning Blood has been applied to our lives and we receive for-giveness for our sins, we can enjoy a relationship with God and the hope of a home await-ing us in Heaven.

The instructions for the Old Testament atonement also give insight into the way we receive salvation through Christ today. For instance, there is a lesson in God’s command for the people to afflict their souls while the priest made the atone-ment. Today, we too must come to God in repentance, mourning for our sins as we ask God to forgive us.

God also told the Children of Israel that no work was to be done on the Day of Atonement. This teaches us that we cannot earn, or do anything in ourselves, to atone for our sins. We could never work hard enough or do sufficient good deeds to earn forgiveness. Jesus did all the work for us. Our salvation was purchased entirely by Him, and He offers it as a free gift to those who come to Him in repentance.

We can also learn from the negative examples of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu. God rejected them because they disobeyed His instructions for approaching Him. This teaches us that we cannot make up our own ideas of how to come to God. We must reverence God enough to obey what He has said.

In the Tabernacle, the high priest entered the Holy of Holies with incense. We know from other Bible passages that incense represents prayers (see Psalm 141:2 and Revelation 8:3-4). This helps us understand that we must come before the Lord through prayer. Then the priest sprinkled the blood of the sacrifice before the Ark. It is fascinating that the blood was applied at the heart of the Israelite camp; the Tabernacle was located at the center of where the Children of Israel lived, and the Holy of Holies was at the interior of the Tabernacle. Our cleansing needs to take place in our hearts, at the very center of who we are. Atonement is not about hiding our sins. Atonement is a work God does in our hearts which takes sin away.

When we read that the priest would proceed to apply the blood to the altar of incense, we get the idea that once our

hearts are cleansed, what flows from our hearts will also be cleansed. Our conversation, thoughts, and desires are dif-ferent after Jesus’ Blood has been applied.

The scapegoat illustrates that Jesus bore our sins and car-ried them away from us. We do not have to carry the weight of guilt and shame for the sins we have committed because Jesus carried them away, as far away as the east is from the west (see Psalm 103:12).

We can glean from the priest putting on a new garment at the close of Yom Kippur that after we have been forgiven, we must turn our backs on the former life of sin. As we begin this fresh start with God, we put away any wrong things that we used to do and begin a good, right way of

living instead.The Jewish New Year’s Day

is called Rosh Hashanah, and it falls on the first day of the month called Tishri. Yom Kippur occurs on the tenth day of Tishri. Although God pronounced His judgment upon the people on Rosh Hashanah, it wasn’t until the end of Yom Kippur that His judgment was sealed. The intervening days were called

the “Days of Awe.” The people had those ten days to repent of their sins so the atonement could be applied to them. Once the judgment was sealed on Yom Kippur, there was no way to change it.

In a very real sense, we are living in the “Days of Awe” before God’s judgment is sealed. Soon repentance will no longer be possible and God’s judgment will be sealed—eter-nal life for those who have received atonement for their sins and eternal death for those who have not. No one knows exactly when God will seal our judgment—it could be in the next few minutes or the next few years. However, for now we still have the opportunity to repent and have Jesus’ atoning Blood cover our sins. You can come before God the way He has prescribed and repent of your sins. If you do, He has promised to forgive your transgressions. God will wipe the slate clean and will not remember a single one of those sins again. They will be expunged from your record.

Today, if the Voice of God is calling your name, this is a special moment for you. We cannot come to God in our own timing; the Bible says we can only come to Him when His Spirit draws us. If you ignore the Spirit now, there may not be another opportunity. He might not call again before you die, and if He does not call, you cannot come to Him.

Where do you stand in these Days of Awe? Have you repented and given your life to Jesus Christ? In these last days, take the opportunity God offers. Recognize His call, and reach out to God. Sin separates from God, but the gift of God is eternal life. He offers full atonement for your sins! Come to Him and be saved today.

Tony Boyce is a minister of the Apostolic Faith Church in Dallas, Oregon.

In a very real sense, we are living in the “Days of Awe” before God’s judgment is

sealed. Soon repentance will no longer be possible and

God’s judgment will be sealed.

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Highlighting Our Heritage

He and his wife sold their home, packed their belongings into a panel truck and trailer, and set out to find a people who preached the whole Word of God.

By Elmer Luka

A Cross-Country QuestWhat a privilege it is to be a

Bible Christian, washed in the Blood of Jesus, and be

counted among the redeemed of the Lord! This wonderful Gospel lifted me out of sin when I was a defeated young man on a downward way.

Our family, which included eight children, lived in Decatur, Illinois, where my father was a minister. My mother died when I was seven years old, and it seemed that the bottom fell out of my life.

At the age of seventeen, I thought I should have been having a good time, but the things of the world did not sat-isfy because God was dealing with me. He put such a burden on my heart. I was lost and knew it.

I wanted to be a carpenter, so I learned the building trade. One of my jobs was to screen in a porch for a family with the last name of Phil-lips. When I told them my plan to join the Army, Mrs. Phillips said that she would send letters to me.

We corresponded and Mrs. Phil-lips encouraged me to seek the

Lord with all my heart. Then one February evening, while in the service of my country at Fort Lawton, Wash-ington, I found myself willing to pay any price if God would only put the assurance in my heart that I was born again and ready for Heaven. I got down on my knees in that tar-paper barracks and prayed a simple prayer next to my Army bunk and a pot-bellied stove. I said, “God be merciful to me a sinner.” It did not matter what my buddies thought. I was bound for a devil’s Hell and wanted a way out.

There was a lot wrapped up in my prayer that night. On other occa-sions, I had made up fancy prayers and thought they might avail, but that night, I prayed from my heart. Oh the change that took place! In a moment of time, Jesus came in and gave me such wonderful peace and joy. He rolled the burden away and gave me a “know-so” salvation.

God was with me in the months that followed. I went overseas and found that God did not leave me; He went one step ahead of me all the time. I

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It was as though a Voice spoke from

Heaven saying, “This is it! This is what you have been looking for!”

wrote of my salvation to Mrs. Phillips and she read my letter to her daughter, Helen. Over the next several months, I continued to write of my progress with the Lord and she continued read-ing the letters to her daughter. Helen became convicted by my enthusiasm and prayed through to salvation in September of that same year. I was in the service for two more years and God kept me living a Christian life.

After being discharged from the ser-vice, I returned to Decatur and began dating Helen. We married on Decem-ber 31, 1947, and God blessed us. The church that we attended taught only salvation, and we began to feel the need for something more. We did not know what to call it, so we prayed that the Lord would lead us into the fullness of the Gospel. One day, the Lord laid it on our hearts to find a people who preached the whole Word of God. We sold our home and furniture and piled everything else in a paneled truck and a trailer that we pulled along behind. We strung two little hammocks in the back of the truck for our boys to sleep in. A friend had sent us literature from an Apostolic Faith Church in Los Angeles, California, so we headed west across the country looking for the people of God.

Along the way, we encountered some ice on the road in the night. We came over the brow of a hill and my headlights suddenly reflected a glare. Instinctively, my foot hit the brakes and seconds later, the weight of the trailer we were pulling spun our small panel truck sideways. The truck rolled over and came to rest on its side, but miraculously, none of us were hurt. We were all able to climb out through the window. We had the truck towed and then stayed in a motel that night. As I looked up into the night sky, I wondered why God had let this happen. We had felt the Lord’s leading so clearly to leave our home, and we had trusted Him to bring us across the country. The next day, as we traveled over that same stretch of the road in the daylight, we saw the answer. Just beyond the place where we had slid off the road onto the shoulder were deep canyons on either side. Who knows where we would have ended up if God

hadn’t stopped us before those cliffs! His protective hand had been over us. That incident strengthened my faith and my desire to draw closer to God.

I will never forget the Sunday morn-ing we opened the doors of the Apos-tolic Faith Church in Los Angeles, California. It was as though a Voice spoke from Heaven saying, “This is it! This is what you have been look-ing for!” God gave us that witness. Brother Loyce Carver was preaching that morning on the subject of sanc-tification—the very thing we were looking for. Some of the people said the sermon was so strong that they thought we would never come back. Well, we came back!

During the sermon, Brother Carver also said that a person must be saved to sing in the choir or play in the orchestra. He was very firm about it. He came to speak to us after the ser-vice and I told him that I wanted to get started working for the Lord right away. I said, “Sign me up.” He replied, “Well, you just stick around here for a little while. We will see what you have and then we will talk about it.”

Before long, the Lord gave us the opportunity to help in His work. My first job was participating in the street meetings. It was wonderful to be involved in the work of the Lord!

When they began to send people to help build a church in Tehachapi, California, I offered to go and help, too. For one year, we got up at five o’clock every Saturday morning and made that trip of 100 miles in the morning, worked all day, and drove back at night. The conversation while going and coming did not center on secular things, such as how much money we were making or what was in the daily news. Instead, we talked about the blessings of God, and who was receiving their deeper experiences. A revival broke out during that time and it became a period of spiritual growth for me. I enjoyed every minute traveling to and from that church; I was thrilled to do it.

Some months after our arrival in Los Angeles, we began to hear about the annual camp meeting in Portland, Oregon. Something in our hearts just purposed that we would go. I told

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You may obtain additional information about these doctrines, and learn about our publications in foreign languages by writing to the Apostolic Faith Church at 6615 SE 52nd Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97206, U.S.A. or visiting our website at www.apostolicfaith.org.

Before these magazines are sent out, they are always prayed over for the healing of the sick and the salvation of souls.

A Statement of Bible Doctrine

The Divine Trinity consists of three Persons: God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Holy Ghost, perfectly united as one. Matthew 3:16-17; 1 John 5:7.

Repentance is a godly sorrow for and a renouncing of all sin. Isaiah 55:7; Matthew 4:17.

Justification (salvation) is the act of God’s grace through which we receive forgiveness for sins and stand before God as though we had never sinned. Romans 5:1; 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Entire Sanctification, the act of God’s grace whereby we are made holy, is the second definite work and is subsequent to justi-fication. John 17:15-21; Hebrews 13:12.

The Baptism of the Holy Ghost is the enduement of power upon the sanctified life, and is evidenced by speaking in tongues as the Spirit gives utterance. John 14:16-17,26; Acts 1:5-8; 2:1-4.

Divine Healing of sickness is provided through the atonement. James 5:14-16; 1 Peter 2:24.

The Second Coming of Jesus will consist of two appearances. First, He will come to catch away His waiting Bride. Matthew 24:40-44; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17. Second, He will come to execute judgment upon the ungodly. 2 Thes salonians 1:7-10; Jude 14-15.

The Tribulation will occur between Christ’s coming for His Bride and His return in judg-ment. Isaiah 26:20-21; Revelation 9 and 16.

Christ’s Millennial Reign will be the 1000 years of peaceful reign by Jesus on earth. Isaiah 11 and 35; Revelation 20:1-6.

The Great White Throne Judgment will be the final judg-ment when all the wicked dead will stand before God. Revelation 20:11-15.

The New Heaven and The New Earth will replace the pres-ent heaven and earth, which will be destroyed after the Great White Throne Judgment. 2 Peter 3:12-13; Revelation 21:1-3.

Eternal Heaven and Eternal Hell are literal places of final and eternal destiny. Matthew 25:41-46; Luke 16:22-28.

Marriage is a covenant between one man and one woman that is binding before God for life. Neither person has a right to marry again while the first companion lives. Mark 10:6-12; Romans 7:1-3.

Restitution is necessary, where- in wrongs against others are righted. Ezekiel 33:15; Matthew 5:23-24.

Water Baptism is by one immersion “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” Matthew 3:16; 28:19.

The Lord’s Supper is an insti-tution ordained by Jesus so that we might remember His death until He returns. Matthew 26:26-29; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26.

Foot Washing is practiced according to the example and commandment Jesus gave. John 13:14-15.

We believe in the divine inspiration of the Bible, and endorse all the teachings contained in it. Following is a summary of our basic doctrines.

my boss that I liked my job, but I had something more important to do. He then laid me off, so we started for Portland, and arrived the Wednesday before camp. The folks there extended a hand of fellowship to us, and we felt their love right from the beginning. Both my wife and I received the expe-rience of sanctification while there that year.

We also heard about the baptism of the Holy Ghost, but were wary of it. When we returned home to Los Angeles, the revival was still going strong. One night in a prayer service a young lady received the baptism of the Holy Ghost and spoke in German, a language unknown to her. My wife and I were able to understand what she was saying, and we realized then that the baptism was real and of God.

We also knew that the Lord had caused us to see this. He was letting us know that we were in the right place, with the right people. We both prayed and received the baptism.

There have been so many inci-dents down through the years which have increased my faith that I cannot name them all. My wife and I raised four children in the Gospel, with the Lord as our Friend and Healer and Guide. We have had the privilege to pastor three different Apostolic Faith churches. Since our retirement, we have also lived and served in Dallas and Portland, Oregon.

Thank God for victory! I thank Him for the joy and the peace He put in my heart. The Gospel is alive. It is real! As I grow older and see the end coming, I want to be my best for Jesus. He has done so much for me, and my life is all His.

Elmer Luka was called to the minis-try in 1960. He became a pastor in 1984 and served in three locations: Eureka and Los Angeles, California, and St. Louis, Missouri. Beginning in 1950, he supervised many of our construction projects including building the churches in Eureka and St. Louis, the parsonage in Los Angeles, and our headquarters church and office buildings in Portland, Oregon. He also constructed violins, and wrote on the inside of each, “By Elmer, for the glory of the Lord!”

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