Announcement 12/13/06:

Official Release of The Church of God New Website

December 4, 2006
Submitted by: General Overseer's Office

It is with great pleasure that we announce the public release of the new website of The Church of God. Whether you are a member of The Church of God, a new believer, someone seeking answers to life’s challenges, or someone simply browsing the Internet, it is our desire that this website will enlighten your Biblical understanding and will minister to any needs you may have.

Prior to Christ’s ascension into Heaven, He commissioned the Church to “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations,…” (Matthew 28:19). While missionaries and ministers of The Church of God have yet to extend a presence into every nation on earth, the website of The Church of God is able to reach into every nation on a daily basis. It is our prayer that this website is able to minister to people around the world to lead them to Christ and His Church.

We appreciate your patience as we continue to develop our site. As we expand our web presence, we will be implementing many new features that will help in spreading the gospel via the Internet medium. We would like to extend a special thanks to you for visiting our site. We hope that your visiting our site will be a blessing to you. Your feedback is welcome to help us better develop the online ministry into a more effective outreach tool.

Announcement 09/10/06:

Bishop Stephen Smith, the General Overseer, has appointed Bishop Melvin Kramer as our Regional Overseer again this year.
Please check out the Official Website for all of the appointments for 2006-07.

Special Announcement 06/16/06:

Bishop Robert J. Pruitt announced his retirement on 05/11/06, due to health concerns. Bishop Stephen Smith has been selected by the Presbytery (effective 06/14/06) to fill the position of interim General Overseer until the General Assembly 08/29/06.  At that time the office will again be declared vacant and the General Assembly will select the General Overseer.  Please be in Prayer and Fasting during these next !  We all want God's will for The Church of God.

Farewell Address as posted at The Church of God Website:

Robert J. Pruitt General Overseer

To the Administrative Staff, Ministry and Members of The Church of God, I send my kind and sincere greetings to each and every one of you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the Author and Finisher of our faith, the Head of the Body of Christ, the Church.

The author of Hebrews wrote his epistle to encourage Jewish Christians who were beginning to wonder if they had made the wrong decision in leaving Judaism to embrace Christianity.  After all, many of them were being persecuted and ostracized from society; and some of them had suffered the plundering of their homes, and the confiscation of their possessions.  Their lives had been much less problematic and much more peaceful in the religion they had left to follow Christ.  However, the writer to the Hebrews assures them that they had not made a mistake.

“But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. See that ye refuse not him that speaketh.  For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:  Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.  Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:  For our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:22-29).

The Apostle Peter furthermore affirms our spiritual calling and vocation, when he writes that we, the Church, have come to Christ, “…as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ… But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light” (1 Peter 2:4, 5, 9).

The Apostle Paul, along with the Apostle Peter and the writer of Hebrews, speaks of the Church in the building metaphor when he said that we, the Church, “…are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:20-22).

How long will this work of building the Church continue?  Paul answers this question by changing his metaphor of building to one of the human body: “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ…But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:13, 15-16).

Neither Paul nor Peter, nor the writer of Hebrews, saw the completion of the spiritual house of which they wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost.  There indeed came a time in their ministries that they commissioned others to carry on the work to which they had dedicated their lives. Among others, Paul commissioned Timothy and Titus; and Peter commissioned Mark. But these also did not see the completion of this spiritual building. Centuries and millennia have passed and the building is still under construction. Generation after generation of builders have come and gone, one generation commissioning the next.

The time has now come for another commissioning in The Church of God.  Many of you are now aware of my health problems.  I have come to the conclusion, of my own volition, that it is not feasible for me to continue in my position in my present state of health.  Doing so would not serve the Church well.  Therefore, I have declared vacant the position of General Overseer of The Church of God.  I have met with the Administrative Committee to inform them of my decision, and consequently a presbyters meeting has been set for June 10, 2006 to deliberate the selection of the next General Overseer of the Church.

I am profoundly grateful, first of all, to God for allowing me to serve in such an honored position, though it is one I did not seek.  I am also grateful for companionship and support of my loving wife, Norma, as well as the understanding and support of my family.  I am deeply indebted to all those who have served with me in General Headquarters, State and National Overseers, ministers and members of The Church of God for your love, dedication and hard work in building up the Church, and extending the Kingdom of God.  May God richly reward each of you.

“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58).

For Christ and The Church of God,

Robert J. Pruitt