A. J. Tomlinson was a unique church leader inasmuch as he was divinely selected, anointed, and installed by none other than God Himself for a work that had not been done before nor could ever be duplicated again. This work was the detection and espousing of a hidden jewel that had been buried for nearly sixteen centuries. As God caused him to know then, we also know today that this jewel is none other than The Church of God. Jesus alluded to the finding of such a treasure in a parable in Matthew 13. Verse 44 says, “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.” We are told elsewhere in Scripture that the field is the world. The Church was hidden in the darkness of this world for 1,578 years before it was uncovered by A. J. Tomlinson as God revealed the Church to him on the morning of June 13, 1903. His hunger for the truth caused him to “Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding” (Prov. 23:23) as we all must do. Truly, Brother Tomlinson plunged fully into the work of the Church after he was given divine revelation that “this IS the Church of God,” which he had received during his prayer on the mountaintop that memorable day. He was immediately selected as pastor of the little church group that declared themselves to be the Church of God on that historical day.
As pastor of the host church in the vicinity of where the first Assembly took place, he served as moderator of the first Assembly and each one that followed until the tenth Assembly in 1914, when he was selected as General Overseer for life. At the time of this selection, the Holy Ghost gave forth a message which stated: “I have made this man what he is. Give God all the honor and not man.”
Brother Tomlinson led the Church through the formative years following the Arise, Shine as God anointed him with the necessary wisdom for the work at hand. He directed the Church through the stormy disruption of the early 1920s, leading the Church to greater heights than had previously been achieved. The Big Business Program of 1928, the adoption of a flag for the Church in 1933, and the beginning of Fields of the Wood in 1941 were some of the highlights of his extraordinary career. He was also blessed with a personality that connected with the business community of his day, which gained favor for the Church. The city of Cleveland, as well as several prominent businessmen, helped the Church financially because of the influence of this man of God. He was free to conduct parades through the city to advertise the Church and the General Assemblies each year and win the support of the citizenry. At the time of his death, the businesses of the city of Cleveland closed as his funeral procession was making its way through town.
His writings sparkle with Holy Ghost wisdom and anointing and are just as fresh and inspiring today as they were when they first flowed from his pen. He used every available moment of time in his power to promote and build The Church of God. He traveled extensively during the convention season, visiting as many state conventions as possible, to be a blessing to the churches on the field. He carried a portable make-shift folding table with him on the trains as he traveled to help him keep up with his writings and correspondence work. If funds were not available, he would start out and go as far as his meager funds would take him, trusting God for the finishing of the trip. Each time, God came through for him and he always got where he needed to go. He never owned an automobile but that did not stop him from being available to perform his part of the work. He passed on at the age of 78, after serving the Church for forty years as General Overseer. Many, like myself, who never met him, seem to know him personally through his writings and the historical record left behind by this dedicated