I received your very good letter; thank you very much. I see that you and Br. Gerrard are pure regarding that meeting at Th. R.’s in the spring of last year. Would that the whole church, whose debtors you have become, were also pure in this matter, that their purity may be your purity, just as their impurity—unless you denounce it—ends up as your impurity. However, unless things have been done in complete purity in every aspect, God will return to the matter and demand judgment—not for the sake of the matter itself, but to cleanse out something that has no place in the church of God. The line has been drawn—it is the line of the Spirit that goes right through the veil, which is His flesh.

Individuals are cleansed by judgment, and the entire church is also cleansed by judgment. Judgment must first do its work in the overseer before the overseer can apply it to the church and place the entire church under judgment so that it can be cleansed. The overseer has no right to tolerate evil in any shape or form. Otherwise, he will bring the assembly down to a more carnal level. But he does have a right to denounce the error and bring judgment over it. The issue is not actually about Barratt, whether people were allowed to greet him or not. Rather, it is about being freed from the spirit that shows partiality. And if everyone is pure regarding this point, then all things are pure, and it is pure nonsense for Jensen and the others to accuse anyone of things which are absolutely not true. It is not at all my view that you should have accepted Holmkvist and Jensen’s foolish actions. However, it is my opinion that since they have ended up on the outside, you should have done everything you could for them while they were among you. Because if they were aggravated due to someone in the church offending them in some carnal way, that error must be judged, without agreeing with all their foolish actions in any way. If everything is pure in this matter, peace will follow as a result of purity; but if everything is not pure, then make sure that you find peace regarding this matter—even though at that time you were working at your practice and Gerrard was working at the bank. Even if you had been in the heart of Germany during that time, I don’t think either of you would have been free regarding the matter if you supported the wrong side when you came back.

But seeing that you two are now finished with this matter (I could wish that God were also finished and well-pleased with it), let’s leave it at that. God Himself will bring this matter up again if it is necessary.

A church requires all of its overseer’s focus and energy if it is to be presented to God as a pure virgin. But if a person has many interests outside the church, I am afraid such a person is totally ill-suited for the tasks within the church. A person doesn’t become an overseer in their sleep; it takes labor and self-sacrifice to gather brothers and sisters to Christ Jesus. It’s not enough just to reach out to your old friends according to the flesh, because the church of God includes others who need care—yes, mostly care. This doesn’t just require a man with an honorable title, it requires someone who demonstrates it in practice.

Moreover, in the church God has appointed shepherds, evangelists, prophets, teachers, as well as apostles. Whatever task we have received from God, we should carry it out with diligence. But it’s not so important to designate each individual. You should be able to recognize each one’s works and esteem them highly for their work’s sake without nurturing their flesh in a way that awakens a desire to be somebody. Each one should be esteemed highly in relation to the task they have and the work that they accomplish. No one should be honored beyond the measure of their work, for the flesh profits nothing.

So, finally, hearty greetings to you and all those at home. Greet Br. Gerrard and his wife, as well Helga and the Wintersborgs.

Your brother,