THE PLANET IN WAITING FOR THE LAST MESSAGE

FRIENDSHIP AND BROTHERLY COLLABORATION

Continuing to go on mission trips throughout the country and in the recently formed communities around Medias, he sought to keep in touch with his friends from all denominations, maintaining a favorable atmosphere in his preaching ministry. In the newly created situations, keeping in mind the fact that newly converted people had non converted members in their family who continued to go to the dominant churches, the necessity arose for an even greater collaboration. In these circumstances, in order to maintain an atmosphere of understanding, especially when there was a death where family members could be divided over their preferences for the manner in which the funeral procession would take place, there was also the need for collaboration with the priests of these aforementioned churches, who were requested by some members of the family to take part in the service. In the case of the death of a neo-protestant believer who had relatives in the Orthodox church or other denominations, if the family of the deceased asked him to conduct the funeral service together with the priest from the respective denomination, in order to put aside any eventual tensions, this was resolved in an favorable atmosphere of collaboration. This created a favourable situation in the relationships between the Churches, with useful implications for all.

It was a novelty for people to see priests officiating at the service without denigrating those who had converted. The same motive for joy was the privilege to hear those converted preaching the Gospel without feeling the need to defend the cross, icons and charity for the deceased, feeling that it was more important to testify the truth in the Scriptures, the only one capable of freeing men from the prejudices in which they‟d lived and abused one another verbally. The central subject became the person of the Lord Jesus Christ who loves us and didn‟t come into the world to judge the world, but that it be saved through Him. God is the one who will judge the acts and thoughts of man. We have been given a command, however, and that is to live in peace with all men, proclaiming the Gospel to them that they might to be saved. This salvation isn‟t a new religion, regardless of what men think about it. Repentance is the great confession before God followed by the beginning of a new life. If a man repents every year and doesn‟t change his attitude to God, the value of his confession is annulled. Repentance founded on the truth of the Scriptures is an absolute necessity for all Christian denominations. No denomination has the power to save people, if these people don‟t confess their sins with true penitence in order to be able to receive forgiveness, then beginning a new life lived according to God‟s Word through the power of Jesus Christ and proclaiming Him as the Lord and Saviour of their lives.

During this period of collaboration, Ionel got to know brother Florian who had come from Bucharest and who had been well educated. He was very diligent, had an active prayer life, held long fasts and did many charitable acts. Ionel was impressed about the way he rigorously exercised his convictions. Brother Florian not only respected the Sabbath day, but also Sunday. He ate no kind of meat and preached a Gospel which was based on sentiments in the relationship between spouses in a Christian marriage. Every seven years, in his well kept garden, the weeds would grow because he said that “by God‟s law even the earth must rest once every seven years”. On Saturday and Sunday he didn‟t tear off even a leaf and he didn‟t pick fruit, considering that this could be a sin. He was very respectful to his fellow man. Having inherited a great part of the reformist teachings, he was very rigorous in setting the standards of behavior, even if these were not covered Biblically. His human weaknesses showed up through his boasting about his fasts, prayers and good deeds, being reserved about the Christians who didn‟t share his personal convictions. On the other hand, he sympathised totally with those who were willing to accept his principles without objections. After Ionel heard in greater detail about his convictions and daily practices, they didn‟t seem to him to be flagrant or damaging, considering them to be strictly personal, that didn‟t affect his relationship with the church. In the period that followed, the state authorities forced the smaller Pentecostal groups to unite, joining the “Apostolic Church of God”. Under these conditions the “Christians baptised In the Holy Spirit” of German origin, the “Jesus‟ Disciples”, together with the Seventh Day reformists led by Simonis and from which brother Florian came, were integrated into a single community (denomination) which became very diversified ideologically and doctrinally. The authorities continued their task of combating religion and the destruction of viable communities. Through the forced union of the smaller groups, with their doctrinal differences, they were aiming at auto destruction caused by the internal frustrations and quarreling of immature Christians. These continued to do all they could to win converts, thus emphasizing the disputes and contradictions within the churches and thus causing havoc. In this difficult situation of trying to maintain a peaceful atmosphere, the contradictions had to be resolved with maximum prudence and Christian tolerance. The main argument in maintaining discipline was based on the apostle Paul‟s words: “Don‟t be a stumbling block for the Jew, or for the Greek, or for the God‟s Church.”

In such a situation, which was extremely difficult, Ionel rejoiced in the fact that the church could function, being supported by several capable, active men who had converted to the faith, keeping in a general line the fundamental Christian doctrines which made up the cohesive material. Through his mission work in the years that followed, other men were converted, some of whom had a superior education and became useful in the Lord‟s work. Thus, despite the fact that the Church was made up of so many different groups, the number of members increased considerably and the atmosphere finally became agreeable. God continued the work of the salvation of souls. In this missionary period, Ionel experienced several happy hours of fellowship with God, in the form of a dream. This was written down in a book called “Gethsemane”. It comprises the song sung by the Savior in the Upper Room at the Lord‟s Supper. Also in the second part of this work, the Savior‟s arrest, trial and condemnation to death, as well as His Resurrection, are recorded.

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THE PLANET IN WAITING FOR THE LAST MESSAGE

Experiences with God - Experiences with man (destined for all denominations)

Copyright: Ionel Plesa

Translation: Dianne Bailey

Biblical texts are from the New International Version Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society