You Might Have Grown Up In The Church of God.....

Various memes on Facebook:

Ambassador College Hall of Administration in Pasadena To Be Blown Up!

Decades ago various COG officials said that when WWIII struck that the invading Germans would be so impressed by the college campus that they would use it as their headquarters, thus preserving it till the Kingdom of God was established on earth.  Well, that's NOT going to happen!

The endtimes is coming in a fiery climax to Herbert Armstrong's empire!  The Hall of Administration may be blown up in a fiery explosion sometime between now and September 2015.  Its a fitting end to a building that was home to so much evil and corruption over the decades.

This was the home base of the empire of Herbert Armstrong and his successors.  From adulterous romps in department head's offices to in flagrante delicto in the Pastor General's office, this building has seen it all.  From masturbating ministers listening to coeds tell their secrets to stolen gropes and kisses in the elevators.  From gay romps in the AICF offices to the State of California coming in and changing locks kicking church officials out.  From protests and sit-in's to exhibits of the terracotta soldiers from China to exquisite gold and silver crafts from Thailand.  Kings and Queens walked its marble floors.

Now it is to blown up.  One final act that permanently puts the nail in the coffin of Armstrongism. I would say, 'Rest in Peace" but too much evil was done in these honeycombed walls for that.  May the end times come in a great ball of fire and smoke and be hotter than hell!

California Film Commission

SEP Orr Minnesota Gym For Sale

For all of you collectors of Armstrongism out there here is a prime piece of property with a historical building on it for you to buy and start a Summer Educational Program again!  Dave Pack...are you listening?  Gerald Flurry?????  Rod Meredith?????

Check the ad for more specifics:    4858 Ambassador Lane For Sale

4858 Ambassador Ln Gymnasium and office space located on 7 acres with nice views of Pelican Lake. The building housing the gymnasium is approximately 110 x 130. The adjoining office building is approximately 70 x 80. The property was once part of a youth bible camp that disbanded in the late 1990's. The mostly level grounds offer panoramic views of Ambassador Point and Pelican Lake.   $199,900.00.

COG Leader Says Harper Lee's New Book Is About A False Watchman - I Am The TRUE Watchman

It has been fascinating over the last couple of decades to watch various Church of God men who envision themselves as true leaders go into mental melt downs.  From men uttering hundreds of failed prophecies to men proclaiming themselves Elijah's, Joshua's, one of the two witnesses, prophets, true apostles, and Chief Overseers.

We have watched Gerald Flurry plagiarize Jules Dervaes book, to getting arrested for public drunkenness,  and then suffer through a humiliating court trial when he lost the plagiarism case.  Then after paying out a $3,000,000.00 fee for rights to publish Herbert Armstrong's writings, Flurry had to rewrite many of those works to edit out negative things that HWA said that would cast him in a bad light with all of his failed prophecies and Elijah predictions. His melt down continues as extreme forms of control are forced upon Philadelphia Church of God members isolating them from society  and their families.

Then there is Rod Meredith.  After being publicly humiliated in court proceedings after libeling Leona McNair and having WCG pay for his attorney fees, he jumped ship to take over leadership of Global Church of God which was started started by a child molester.  Then Meredith was forced into sticky position by Raymond McNair and others who felt Meredith was not fit to be running Global leading him and the child molester to start up Living Church of God.  From murders in his church to numerous ministers and members defecting, this rapidly aging leader is no longer a watchman.

There is also Dave Pack, ensconced in his cult compound in Wadsworth Ohio.  This legalistic tyrant has left a trail of destruction in every church area he has ever been in.  After decades of being rejected as a true leader, Dave had to start his own group because he knew MORE than any other COG out there.  Because he is so puffed up with "knowledge" Dave had to go and declare that three COG leaders would be struck down by God (three years ago) and that all of the members of these three churches would come over to Dave's camp and live happily ever after.  After suffering a humiliating defeat in this epic failure; Dave has proven once and of all that he is nothing but hot air.

And then there is Bob Thiel....who through duplicity was doubly blessed and then self-appointed himself  as Chief Overseer of the ONLY true Church of God on the earth today, even though 95% of his members and readers live in various countries of Africa.  Nevertheless Bob feels he is the most highly informed man on the earth today.  That puffed up arrogance, vanity, and narcissism has led Bob to make another incredibly STUPID comment today.

In today's entry on his blog he makes note of Harper Lee's new book, Go Set A Watchman. Then Thiel, like any good Church of God leader has to make the subject turn towards himself.

Thiel feels that the title Harper Lee chose was from Bible (Isaiah 21:6) has nothing to do with the Bible story and has this to say:

I debated for the past week if I should report about that particular book.  The title seems to come from a statement in the Bible (Isaiah 21:6), but the content of the book is not like the Book of Isaiah.  Here is what Amazon says about the novel:

Maycomb, Alabama. Twenty-six-year-old Jean Louise Finch—”Scout”—returns home from New York City to visit her aging father, Atticus. Set against the backdrop of the civil rights tensions and political turmoil that were transforming the South, Jean Louise’s homecoming turns bittersweet when she learns disturbing truths about her close-knit family, the town, and the people dearest to her. Memories from her childhood flood back, and her values and assumptions are thrown into doubt. Featuring many of the iconic characters from To Kill a Mockingbird, Go Set a Watchman perfectly captures a young woman, and a world, in painful yet necessary transition out of the illusions of the past—a journey that can only be guided by one’s own conscience.

Written in the mid-1950s, Go Set a Watchman imparts a fuller, richer understanding and appreciation of Harper Lee. Here is an unforgettable novel of wisdom, humanity, passion, humor, and effortless precision—a profoundly affecting work of art that is both wonderfully evocative of another era and relevant to our own times. It not only confirms the enduring brilliance of To Kill a Mockingbird, but also serves as its essential companion, adding depth, context, and new meaning to an American classic.

Then Thiel makes a bold claim. He is the TRUE Watchman sent by God!

While many are interested in fiction, most fail to realize that God has a set a watchman to warn the world and the end time descendants of Israel what is going to happen.

At this news page, regular readers are aware that I declare what I see on a daily basis.

Because of Jesus’ admonishing to watch, you see news items on this page daily.

But is a watchman witness clearly needed today?

Yes.

Notice something else that Jesus said:

14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.  (Matthew 24:14)

Notice that Jesus said His gospel of the kingdom would be preached to the world as a witness, then the end would come. That end has not yet happened, so that message needs to continue to go out.

Since the rise of the Philadelphia era of the Church of God, through the old Radio then old Worldwide Church of God in the 20th century to those in the Continuing Church of God in the 21st century, this message has been going out.

The Bible itself also tells about a time when restrictions will be in place–so much so that it will be a famine of the word (Amos 8:11-12).  We have already started to have restrictions (watch the short video Famine of the Word?), but more significant ones are coming.

Because we know this, we in the Continuing Church of God are leading the final phase of the work and are actively preparing for the short work that will be cut short.  Thus, we need to do the watchman work now, while we can.  For as Jesus said:

4 As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. (John 9:4, NIV)

Anyway, the newly popular novel Go Set a Watchman does not do that.  Relatively few realize what God’s watchman should be doing today.

We in the Continuing Church of God “have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts” (2 Peter 1:19, KJV).”

Why so many members of the various Churches of God continue to follow these liars and outright frauds is shocking.  Bob Thiel is no more a Watchman that my cat is Elijah.  Thiel is a fraud and religious huckster just like Flurry, Pack, Kubik, and Meredith.  Sick degenerate men that are enslaving sincere people with mindless pablum and legalistic rules.

John Aubrey Pinkston, Former WCG Minister and Current Pastor in the Congregation of God Seventh Day, Found Guilty of Child Molestation

The sad legacy of Armstrongism continues to rip lives apart.  The latest is the conviction today of John Aubrey Pinkston who was found guilty of molesting two girls. Pinkston was a former Worldwide Church of God minister who served for a while in the Monroe, Louisiana WCG.  He was also a minister in GTA's church, Church of God International.  Various people on Facebook COG sites are talking about him now when he was the minister in their area.

KENNESAW, Ga. -- A pastor was sentenced to prison Thursday when a jury determined he molested at least two young girls and took "no responsibility whatsoever" for his actions.

Jurors deliberated half an hour before convicting 78-year-old John Aubrey Pinkston of two counts of child molestation. Pinkston is the founder and former leader of Congregation of God Seventh Day in Kennesaw.

"Mr. Pinkston, you've been convicted of the unforgivable sin of molesting the most vulnerable members of your flock. You've taken no responsibility whatsoever," Cobb County Superior Court Judge Robert D. Leonard II said before sentencing Pinkston to 20 years with 10 to serve in prison.

Read rest of story here.

 Court House News Service had this:

MARIETTA (CN) - It took just 33 minutes for a Georgia jury to convict a 78-year-old pastor of molesting two young girls at his church in Cobb County.
     During the trial, two young girls testified that they were molested by defendant John Aubrey Pinkston, at the Congregation of God Seventh Day in Kennesaw, a church Pinkston founded and led.
     Pinkston, of Dallas, was arrested in 2013 on a total of three counts of child molestation.
     The Cobb District Attorney's Office said later Pinkston confessed to touching one girl when questioned by police, telling them it was a "stupid mistake" that lasted "only 15 seconds."
     After the jury announced its verdict, Judge Robert Leonard II sentenced Pinkston to 10 years behind bars, and another 10 years on probation to be served after his release.
     "Mr. Pinkston, you've been convicted of the unforgiveable sin of molesting the most vulnerable members of your flock," Leonard said during the sentencing, "You've taken no responsibility whatsoever."
     Assistant District Attorney Chuck Boring, who prosecuted the case, was even more blunt during a press conference following Pinkston's sentencing, saying not only did he refuse to take responsibility for his acts, but "he spit in everyone's face with the nonsense that he used to try to manipulate the jury."
     Pinkston did apologize before he was sentenced, but when Judge Leonard question whether his apology was sincere, the disgraced pastor expressed only frustration.
     "What more do you want me to do? You're going to send me to prison anyway," Pinkston said.

Georgia News Day: Kennesaw pastor John Aubrey Pinkston sentenced on child molestation charges

Stephen Elliot: Did LCG Commit Another Misstep When They Put Him In A Position Of Power After He Defected From David Hulme?

Many Living Church of God members where shaking their heads when Stephen Elliot jumped ship from David Hulme's minuscule little group to join up with Rod Meredith.  Meredith accepted him with open arms and it wasn't too long till he was back preaching.  Now it looks like Stephen is bringing his legalistic "sheriff" attitude with him.   It has emerged that Elliot was the one who fellowship the LCG woman who brought up the calendar issue.

A comment made about Elliot says this:

Many of us, though not in LCG, were horrified when we heard Stephen Elliot had been accepted into LCG, knowing they would rue the day. As a former policeman he was, and seemingly still is, firstly a sheriff instead of a shepherd. We remember when his actions in a UCG congregation resulted in the possibility of a lawsuit against the church which could have destroyed UCG financially. He was immediately pulled from the area and banished to the Mexico border while we heard that Jim Franks would frantically call members asking if the lawsuit was still coming. Perhaps it was Elliot’s fortunate move to Hulme a few months later that the lawsuit was dropped. Shining Light

Is God A Racist?

By

Lonnie C. Hendrix/Miller Jones

The Church of God International has posted a new "web chat" entitled "Revisiting the Biblical Origins of USA and Britain" with Pastors Bill Watson and Wayne Hendrix (this blogger's father). For those interested, you may see the video at this address: http://cgi.org/armor-of-god-web-chat/2015/7/8/revisiting-the-biblical-origins-of-usa-and-britain

This production seeks to rebut the argument that the church's teachings with regard to the physical ancestry of the English speaking peoples are inherently racist. In their attempt to make the doctrine of British Israelism more palatable, they seek to distance themselves from the teachings/writings of Herbert W. Armstrong and the various proponents of it over the last almost four hundred years. Mr. Watson and Mr. Hendrix insist that God only segregated the Israelites because "He" is a jealous God and didn't want "His" people to be worshipping other gods. They point out the fact that Ephraim and Manasseh were themselves the product of an interracial marriage (between a Hebrew and an Egyptian) as proof that God didn't really care about the physical ethnicity/ancestry of the folks in question. Of course, the entire discussion is based on the premise that the Bible is an infallible account of God and "His" purposes and plans for mankind.

However, for those of us who do not share this view of Scripture, several objections immediately come to mind regarding their defense of this obnoxious doctrine. There are numerous statements within the Bible that make plain that the Israelites were regarded as God's special people - above all of the other nations on the face of the earth. The Israelites were instructed in numerous places not to intermarry with other folks (pagan, heathen, uncircumcised Gentiles). In fact, they are instructed in several places to annihilate non-Israelites - to completely destroy the people and their culture. In numerous places, God is portrayed as fighting on behalf of "His" people and against other people. Interestingly, the Israelites often enslaved the people they conquered, and there are numerous provisions within the Torah which outline the proper treatment of those slaves.

One could argue that the whole Bible is a book about Israel. Moreover, even in the New Testament, we find much evidence that the Jews looked down on the Samaritans, Greeks and Romans. In fact, the context makes quite clear that the Jews regarded themselves as being superior to those other folks - not even worthy for a Jew to associate with them. The Israelites themselves are often described collectively as being a "stiff-necked" and sinful people.

Google defines racism as "the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races. Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior." Clearly, based on the evidence of the scriptures themselves, we would have to conclude that the human authors of Scripture were mostly racists.

There is, however, another view of race expressed within the pages of the Bible. It is a view that American Abolitionists found to be more compelling and believable than those noted above. This view is presented in numerous places where God's care and concern for all of the peoples of the earth is made clear. This view is found in the places where it is made clear that God chose the Israelites for a special mission - to be an example to the other nations - to tell the other folks about "Him." John the Baptist told the Jews of his day not to rely on their physical descent from Abraham. He went on to tell them that God could raise up offspring to Abraham from the stones at their feet. This view is found in Christ's parable about the Good Samaritan, and in his instructions to his followers to make disciples of all nations. It is made clear in the vision that was given to Peter about what (who) should be regarded as clean or unclean. Finally, it is also made plain in the ministry/writings of the Apostle Paul that God does not regard one people over another - that Christians lose their Jewish or Greek designation when they are baptized into the Church. Paul went on to say that God considers Christians to be Abraham's descendants, and the proper heirs of the promises made to him.

And if all of that is not enough to convince us, we would still have the very plain statements of the Apostle Paul to the Galatians and the author of the epistle to the Hebrews to completely discredit this teaching. Paul wrote: "The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say 'and to seeds,' meaning many people, but 'and to your seed,' meaning one person, who is Christ." (Galatians 3:16, NIV) Likewise, after recounting the stories of many of God's faithful people down through the ages (including Abraham), the author of the letter to the Hebrews tells us: "These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect." (Hebrews 11:39-40, NIV) In other words, there doesn't have to be any fulfillment of the promises made to Abraham in this life! And, when those promises are finally fulfilled, they will be fulfilled through those who belong to Jesus Christ (from all nations)! Likewise, Christ is the fulfillment of the promises made to King David. Christ is the one who will sit on his throne forever and ever. It is ridiculous to suggest that the British royal family has any role to play in fulfilling that promise!

Hence, there is legitimate reason for Christians of good will to say that God is not a racist. Nevertheless, for those who cling to this pernicious doctrine, you are stuck with defending a teaching that is racist at its core. It is unfortunate, but the Church of God International (along with all of the other descendants of the Worldwide Church of God) cannot escape the baggage that this doctrine carries with it, no matter how hard they may try to do just that.