Dear Associates, Students and Friends:

This world will soon be slipping into a prophetic stage of religious anarchy. This approaching period can conveniently be titled: "The Coming Revolt Against Denominational Churches." People will be challenging the control of hierarchical churches, and even the names of denominations will be changed to more generic terms, such as "The Community Church." People will be giving up their former names "Baptist, Methodist, or Catholic" to adopt simple Christian titles such as the "Fellowship of Christ" (or something similar). We are already beginning to see this drift into independent and non-denominational church groups. Church leaders who want to maintain the old type of "Churchianity" will be defrocked and given walking papers.

The main biblical teaching that prophesies this social upheaval is recorded from Zechariah 12:10 through 13:6. It will be noticed in the context of Zechariah's prophecy that this major event in world history will begin in Jerusalem and that it will occur just before another holocaust (Zechariah 13:7-9), and that time of trouble will be followed shortly by the Second Advent of Christ (when the Mount of Olives splits into four sections — see Zechariah 14:1-11). Get ready for some exciting times. Such religious anarchy will develop (according to the prophecies) that people in the world will finally dislike the confusion that will emerge and they will then demand someone to come and lead a united world for Christ. Then will come the Antichrist.

You need to be prepared for these events that are prophesied for the near future. Within the next twenty years, we will see this independent type of Christian development. It will actually be a good thing because many people (for the first time) will be forced to look at the Holy Scriptures to witness what "that good old book" really does teach. Most Christians today would be shocked almost beyond belief if they knew the teachings that the Scriptures contain. Some of the social customs found in the Bible are so foreign to our modern ways of looking at things, that to even mention them causes some people to get mad. Preachers avoid mentioning them. It will finally be discovered that the social customs of the various periods of the Bible DO NOT have to be brought back into vogue in our modern period, but all people ought to be aware of what the Bible actually condones and in some cases demands from people who claim to be the People of God. I have shown some of these customs in the last six months, and they have indeed SHOCKED people.

We will soon understand that the world does NOT NEED to return to all the biblical customs as a way to govern ourselves today, but the teachings of the Scriptures should be given their full weight in providing a standard of conduct and an environment for sound principles of belief to guide those who claim to be Christians. That is what this world desperately needs. And this world will soon be exposed to what the Bible truly teaches on these important social and religious customs. I hope that all of you readers (Associates, Students and Friends) will keep getting our material from ASK because I plan to be at the forefront in bringing these matters to the attention of the world, and particularly to the Christian, Jewish and Muslim communities who rely on sacred texts to govern them. I need you behind me in this task.

As a prelude to this new religious phase that will soon emerge on earth, I have just finished a new book of 556 pages titled: "The Essentials of New Testament Doctrine." I took out time (working day and night) to update and completely revise my former work titled: "The Biblical Manual" (which we no longer offer). I have actually delayed the completion of my book on the Temple (though I am now working on the concluding chapters) in order to finalize this new book on the "Essentials." I believe you will be very pleased with this new publication that I hope to offer in May. The Temple book will be ready in two or three months after the "Essentials." This is one book that you all need. This new book is one that I have wanted to write for several years. Indeed, about five years ago I wrote a small booklet titled: "The ABC's of the Gospel" (and we still offer this excellent introductory work). But this new book of 556 pages called the "Essentials" will give the grand scope of the Gospel of Christ from the ABC's to the XYZ's. I think you will be satisfied with the way I have written the material. It makes the Gospel easy to understand, and the main teachings of what Christianity is all about are compressed in a simplified manner into a single volume that is easy to read.

You will also want to order (by returning the enclosed coupon) the March issue of the Communicator and the brand new Doctrinal Report titled: "How Did Jesus Become God?" There are some expositors who believe that Jesus only came into existence about 2000 years ago when he became a baby in Bethlehem. I will show, however, in the clearest of language, that the apostles of Christ taught that Jesus (before he came to earth) was the very person under the authority of God the Father who created the heavens and the earth. There can be no doubt concerning this matter. Christ was the Firstborn Son of God who did the creating.

Christ Jesus was "God," and He has been "God" (representing God's Family) from what the apostle John called "The Beginning" (John 1:1). Indeed, as a member of the Family of God, He created the totality of the universe, both that which is seen and that unseen. Last of all, it was Christ Jesus who created (under the aegis of the Father) our first parents Adam and Eve and all the flora and fauna that we now find on earth. This new Doctrinal Report will silence the nonsensical teaching that proposes that Jesus only came into existence when he became a baby in Bethlehem (this teaching is sometimes cleverly presented by adopting a "Jewish type" of premise that there can only be "one God"). If one believes such absurdity (and that is what it must be called, because the teaching flaunts the plain and simple language of Paul, John and of Christ Himself), the whole message of just who we are as human beings (and what our destiny is) becomes jaundiced and destroyed. If you are interested in believing sound doctrine, you should order this next month's Doctrinal Report. It will be an eye-opener. It will be easy to comprehend.

There may be some of you who still need receipts for the contributions you sent to ASK during the year 1998 for taxation purposes, etc. We are happy to send them to all who request them. I want to thank those of you who made up for the glitch in November (1998) when we went over to our new procedure in publishing and mailing by combining the Communicator and the Doctrinal or Prophetic Reports. Our normal funds to operate diminished for that month of November because of confusion in the alteration. I want to thank all of you who still sent in your regular contributions in spite of the glitch. As you know, we offer a free service to certain groups who are in need of help, but we cannot do so if we do not have the required funds from each of you in teaching the Gospel to as many as God may lead to the work. All we ask is that you brothers and sisters be fair with us and send us what you can to keep the work going. As you are all aware, the U.S. Post Office requires us to pay postage and our paper suppliers also demand payment in supplying us with their products. In a word, thanks from the bottom of my heart to all of you who are financially supporting the work. I believe God the Father is pleased with our efforts.

On page 3 of this publication starts the Doctrinal Report that gives the "Footnotes to the Manifesto for Human Rights and Privileges." To get the context, you will have to look at last month's Doctrinal Report and find the small superscript numbers that agree with the numbered notes you will see below. Even without the original Report, you can follow the drift of the teaching, but of course, having the reference before you aids tremendously in comprehension.

The Manifesto is truly God's Declaration of Freedom to each of you (because each of you is a member of His divine Family of God). You are as important (as stated in the teachings of the Holy Scriptures) as Christ Jesus is to the Father. What a privilege we each have. Remember, you are a Prince or a Princess of God the Father,, and your Elder Brother is no less than Christ Jesus. There is only one person between you and the Father in rank, and that individual is Christ Jesus (I Timothy 2:5). The Father right now looks on you as sitting on His right side "in Christ" (Ephesians 2:6). What a joy to know. You have the personal privilege and right to petition God anytime you please about anything. Pray in faith and within His will. May God's greatest blessings be with each of you. Until next month,

Ernest L. Martin