About the Authors
I have declared the former things from the beginning; and they went forth out of my mouth, and I shewed them; I did them suddenly, and they came to pass.
Isaiah 48:3
In the spring of 2007, Mr. Arthur Braidic, who serves as the Director of Pastoral Services for the Eternal Church of God, completed a draft of a comprehensive study addressing the issue of church eras. His motivation behind this work was twofold. First, a growing number of COG leaders had begun to question this longstanding doctrine. Many of them began to reject the idea that the seven congregations identified in the second and third chapters of Revelation could actually represent real historical periods in the life of God's New Testament church. Mr. Braidic's desire was to present incontrovertible evidence that church eras are real and that their existence can be documented from the scriptures as well as from secular history. He titled his study Evidence for Eras.
Secondly, Mr. Braidic had become concerned over the increasing state of arrogance and self sufficiency emerging within various COG splinter groups. He saw, not only a plethora of new teachings advanced by a host of self-proclaimed "experts," but also numerous abuses perpetrated on God's people, by men who were called to be SERVANTS, not OVERLORDS. Furthermore, he saw many groups parading themselves before the saints as superior to other COG fellowships, and openly bragging that they were God's TRUE church—the one doing the "real" work. Mr. Braidic saw this condition as symptomatic of a serious problem addressed in a letter written to the church at Laodicea (Rev. 3:14-20). He also saw it as a legitimate threat to God's people. It was his desire that those whom God has called in this end time, would repent of this attitude and return to the humility and zeal that once defined the church just a few decades ago. He concluded that one way to inspire this repentance was to remind them of their true history (past, present, and future). Included in this reminder are the very warnings concerning our present age—warnings that fill the pages of God's word.
Upon completion of this extensive work, Mr. Braidic sought the input of a longstanding member of God's church named Larry Blake. Mr. Blake had done considerable research on this issue and was more than happy to offer his assistance. By early summer of 2007 Evidence for Eras appeared ready for publication. However, prior to sending it to press Mr. Braidic thought he would take one last step, and by doing so everything changed.
Enter Dennis Fischer
At this point Mr. Braidic approached Dennis Fischer, a long time friend who had collaborated with him on several other projects including: A Sabbath Test and The Historical Jesus. Mr. Fischer consented to assisting in this project and true to form, undertook an exhaustive study of his own regarding church eras and how each one tells a remarkable story about God's people. Fischer then made extensive changes to both the format and the content of Evidence for Eras. In essence, he rewrotea significant part of it, giving it a new name—The Seven Letters. He also presented it in the form of seven distinct arguments (exhibits).
Additionally, Mr. Fischer cited works produced by other COG leaders when creating his rendering on this issue—most notably, the work of the late John Ogwyn of the Living Church of God. Mr. Fischer had great respect for Ogwyn and wanted to share his wisdom on this issue. He also thought it was a way to honor both Mr. Ogwyn and the fellowship he served.
Some Disagreements
However, this particular project became different from previous ones Fischer and Braidic had collaborated on in that there were disagreements concerning some of its content as well as how it would be presented. Although both men agreed on the core issue that church eras can be proven by overwhelming evidence from both the Biblical and the secular record, there emerged certain issues of substance that couldn't be resolved.
Although Mr. Braidic adopted numerous changes from Fischer's rendering, he struggled with others. As a result he suggested that they each publish their respective versions. Mr. Braidic's Evidence for Eras would be published by the Eternal Church of God and The Seven Letters would be published by Blow the Trumpet. Mr. Fischer agreed but out of respect for his dear friend, indicated that he would not put his own name on the version that would appear on Blow the Trumpet and requested that his name not be placed on Mr. Braidic's work.
At this time it is important to understand that there are no hard feelings between Messrs. Braidic and Fischer concerning this or other projects they have collaborated on—just a difference of opinion concerning how this issue should be presented to the church. With that said, we hope you find both The Seven Letters and Evidence for Eras informative.