In the September/October issue of Royal Vision, the chief narcissist of the Philadelphia Church of God, Gerald Flurry, makes the claim again that his book, Malachi's Message, is equal to the Bible and is spoken about in the Book of Revelation. Even though Gerald Flurry plagiarized the entire book from Letters to Laodicea, by Jules Devraes, he still claims it as his own.
Because Flurry considers himself to be the greatest human man to ever have lived, right after“This chapter 10 [of Revelation] has been virtually overlooked,” Mr. Armstrong wrote in the February 1977 Plain Truth. “I did not comment on it in the earlier days, or expound it when I wrote this outline of the book of Revelation, or the full booklet on the Revelation.” Then he talked about the little book. He concluded: “The Apostle John in his vision is told to take the little book, which is open in the hand of the angel, and eat it up. How like Ezekiel’s prophecy!” It is very much like Ezekiel’s prophecy because both are talking about the same little book: Malachi’s Message. That book was revealed shortly after Mr. Armstrong died. This is a critical part of the Work in the end time because if you don’t understand the little book, you’re lost. The book of Revelation begins with God and then, in chapters 2 and 3, describes the seven eras of His Church. So the order of things is God first; then God’s Church eras, the firstfruits.
God gives this Church a lot of prominence here and makes us realize how important this responsibility is! We must see the importance of this message. Jesus Christ is the Head of this Church. The God of Ezekiel is the one who became Jesus Christ. The God of Ezekiel 1 introduces the PCG first, after Himself. That is the supreme honor given to us. That honor is given only to those who do this Work in the “last end.”
Every single splinter cult of Armstrongism places themselves directly under the
Church government and books written by various false prophets of Armstrongism are all used as weapons to subjugate their members. Such things always remain constant in the Church of God.
9 comments:
"...if you don’t understand the little book, you’re lost."
If Gerald never made his bed before, he did just then.
He needs to re name HIS church...The Philadelphia Church of Diotrephes.
1st man: "Hey, check out this Mercedes I just got. I'm actually selling it if you want it. I'll make you a good deal on it."
2nd man: "Wow, that's a nice set of wheels. I didn't know you could afford a car like that. How much did it set you back?"
1st man: Um, that's a complicated question. I stole it.
Why anyone would crow about something he stole? Or about having raped someone? These are not things a wise criminal would be telling the whole world. Unless you're the leader of a "church" I guess.
Why would Gerald Flurry say that Malachi's Message is "revelation from god"? It's interesting how he phrases it in the passive voice—"That book was revealed"—as if to avoid having to say to whom it was revealed. He also doesn't pin down the year it was supposedly "revealed," but merely says "shortly after Mr. Armstrong died."
So, when he says this, what he's actually saying is that Malachi's Message is "revelation from god," and the "little book" spoken of in Revelation 10—BUT it was not revealed to him (in 1989)...no...but to JULES DERVAES as Letter To Laodicea in 1987! 1987 is "shortly after Mr. Armstrong died." Is he, in fact, saying that Jules Dervaes is "That Prophet" instead of him? Because we all know that Jules Dervaes wrote the contents, whatever title you want to put on it.
Instead of the "god of Ezekiel 1" introducing PCG, I guess, according to Gerald is claiming he's introducing Jules Dervaes instead. Only problem is, Jules Dervaes would entirely disavow all these absurd and ridiculous "scripturalizing" claims for his work and for himself. I know Jules Dervaes. He might agree that he's an activist, but NOT a prophet or a writer of scripture of any sort.
If I were interested in finding a god who had any chance of being real (as opposed to being strictly imaginary) and worthy of worship, I guess I wouldn't expect to find such a god through a thief and a liar. I also wouldn't buy "hot" merchandise, like the above Mercedes. Why would I buy a "hot" religion, like what Gerald Flurry is selling?
As I recall Gerald Flurry told us that he got some other men together and they discussed Jules Dervaes writing as if he was trying to get support and backing to go ahead and use Dervaes "Letter to Laodicea".
It was not a revelation given directly to Gerald Flurry. I suppose he could say in a round about way it was.
Then what about the church member that put into Gerald Flurry's head that he possibly was "That Prophet?" John 1:21. I guess Gerald Flurry could rationalize that that man was used to reveal this, right?
In the first place, if you are a Prophet sent from God, you will be the first to know. In the second place God will reveal to you directly therefore you will not have to plagiarize another man's work.
And third, you will not need to rally a bunch of people around you to get up the courage to pull off the con job...unless it is a con job.
Sometimes, I read these things, and I say to myself, "It's a wrap. Our work is done here." That is because the splinters have taken the basic Armstrongism product, and they have marginalized it even further, until it becomes an obvious grotesque caricature of itself. It just isn't going to appeal to mainstream, successful, stable individuals with good incomes, but rather to the already damaged, and in many cases, even that is going to be short term. For someone with life's questions, and serious spiritual needs, and even for the zealot looking for a cause, there are so many more high profile reasonable and logical alternatives that are actually visible and growing, and whose myths and theories are not so glowingly bogus.
Not that I believe in church eras, but the surviving Armstrongites are not Philadelphian. They appear to have been spewed, but are not even Laodicean. People who have been defrauded of their life's savings and retirement are not "rich and increased with goods." No, these people are Sardis, part of a dead movement, and their condition and the state of their splinter groups doesn't even allow them to realize it. The size of their "mini-Tabs" should be some kind of wake up call, but I seriously doubt that they'll even bat an eye.
BB
Prophetic Bibolotry is bullshit. Reclaim your life and make your own decisions
When a copy of MALACHI'S MESSAGE appeared, in my mailbox, a couple of decades and a thousand years ago, I shared it with a WCG friend who lived close by, and he said,
"He doesn't seem to quote the Bible unless he's quoting Mr. Armstrong quoting the Bible."
So much for revelation.
As I recall, one Don Tiger -- anyone remember him? -- was responsible for this mailing; last I knew he was devoting (read: wasting) his life keeping up a vaster-than-anyone-else-had library of WCG-published anything and everything. One of those who's refusal to let go of the "I follow Armstrong so I'm most special" belief really did DESTROY him.
Flurry would later claim "A MIGHTY ANGEL OF GOD REVEALED MALACHIS MESSAGE TO ME!", of course.
(Although his own son's account says nothing about any angel and just says Gerald went pecking away on the typewriter off and on for a few days.)
Flurry has been very premature in his proclamation. Let's wait, and let Jesus speak for Himself on this one. But, these guys have a bad habit of invoking the support of people who have gone silent, without so much as a briefly scribbled note from their alleged patrons.
BB
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