I want to give you a brief synopsis of my association with the "Sardis" church for two reasons: 1) So you may understand why I was not led to the full understanding about church organization and government until after the founding of Ambassador College, and because defecting ministers have been giving out the FALSE idea that they are now doing only what I did then. That claim is 100% FALSE.

At some time between December, 1931, and the summer of 1933, a big split had occurred in the whole Church. The President and leader of the Church at Stanberry had been outvoted from the Presidency by one vote. He had then combined with a leading member at Salem, West Virginia, to form what they called "The Reorganization of the Church" with "The Bible Form of Organization." This consisted of a totally misapplied form of what they termed "the Twelve, the Seventy, and the Seven."

The "Oregon Conference" went in with this Salem, West Virginia Church. In August, 1933, I completely gave up the $3 per week salary from the "Oregon Conference." One week later, the PARENT "PHILADELPHIA ERA" Church was raised up, with 19 members, resulting from six weeks of six nights a week meetings I had held at the one-room country schoolhouse eight miles west of Eugene, Oregon. This Church consisted of four or five former California members, and the rest were all my own new converts. I then continued holding services six-nights-a-week at a larger school- house at Alvadore, some 15 miles northwest of Eugene, adding fifteen new members. By April of 1934 -- after the broadcast (January 6, 1934) and The PLAIN TRUTH (February, 1934) had started -- the Church at Eugene, following the "Oregon Conference," decided to cooperate with (but not as members of) the Salem, West Virginia Church. They claimed world headquarters at Jerusalem, where there were no members, so far as I knew. But their active headquarters was Salem, West Virginia. By now, April, 1934, the WORK OF GOD, which was started in January, 1934, by the EUGENE Church raised up by me was well under way. That is, before we even began this cooperative fellowship with the Salem organization, we became incorporated as The Church of God at Eugene, Oregon. The Salem organization counted me as one of "the Seventy" leading elders.

I worked with them, in cooperation. I even went so far in cooperation as to send in regular ministerial reports to Salem, even as their ministers did.

But I was not a member of this Salem organization, nor did they pay me any salary. The only organization I was a member of was The Church of God at Eugene, Oregon. Later we incorporated as The Radio Church of God. We had started VERY small -- 19 members. The members paid their tithes direct to me, and I paid radio bills, and "publishing" costs (mimeograph). We in the WORK and Church of the "Philadelphia era" were not yet large enough to be organized ourselves. That is one reason I did not learn till later God's teaching on church organization.

Meanwhile, I continued to act as pastor of the "Sardis" church at Jefferson. Let me make clear the way finances were then handled. As I said, our own members handed their tithes to me. Most members at Jefferson did the same, as individuals, though some sent their tithes to Salem. I received NO salary or remuneration of any kind from either the Salem or Stanberry organization. Nor, so far as I remember, from any "Sardis" members other than those I served as their minister, preaching every Sabbath.