One of the most effective tricks of Armstrognism was to instill fear in its members. That fear kept the membership obedient and submissive. Fear of losing ones salvation or being persecuted for ones beliefs was the favorite control mechanism of the Church of God. Rod Meredith's god has always been eternally pissed and angry at everyone. From regular church members to the pagan heathens in lost corners of the world. His god has been ready to SPANK everyone into submission.
In his January/February editorial, Rod's god is ready to wreck havoc upon an unsuspecting world, BUT before it does so the Living Church of God will face INTENSE persecution of its FORCEFUL message.
Brethren, with the entire panorama of prophetic events surging ahead more than ever, I deeply feel that I should once again give you “proper warning” about what to expect in the years ahead. We often emphasize the blessings and the opportunitieswe will surely have in God’s Work—and, later on, in Tomorrow’s World. Our reward will be awesome. However, it is very clear in the New Testament that many true Christians will be persecuted—even before the formal Tribulation begins. So it is imperative that you understand this, pray about this, and are not “shocked” or disillusioned if the world begins to savagely turn on us at some point before the end of our ministry!While LCG members are not being persecuted for their faith, fake Christians are dying around the world. Meredith and other COG ministers (Thiel) love to smear Christians as "professed" or "so-called." These people apparently are too stupid to know that they are not real Christians like LCG members are. Rod somehow thanks that the LCG will soon be restricted and banned around the world for their message. Its laughable to think that such a thing will happen to them considering the cesspool the LCG leadership is currently swimming in. They have not set any example to the world other than what NOT to do in a church. Instead of being persecuted they are being laughed at and set forth as an example as to how not to treat ones members.
Even apart from the true Church, professing Christians around the world are suffering increased persecution. News reports tell us of more and more horrifying instances of their being tortured, killed, raped or even sold into slavery in many non-Christian lands.
And now there is a movement in many European countries to crack down on virtually all religious groups that are not in the “mainstream.” These groups include Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Seventh Day Adventists and others. Clearly, as the Living Church of God gains worldwide recognition and prominence for doing the Work of God, we too will be restricted—maybe banned!—and eventually persecuted in many nations around the world.
The Living Church of God has been facing lots of criticism over the last few years as abusive ministers are placed in positions of authority where they treat members like dirt, with the full blessing of LCG HQ. (Just look at Rod McNair's track record and what he has done.) Yet, Meredith places that criticism into the category of "persecution." Members have never had the right in the Church of God to have the ability to ask for justice. Mistreatment by the minister was always turned around to be a "test" to see if the members were worthy. That's why the ministry has always gotten away with its grievous abuse of members. It was Satan the accuser at work, never sick and degenerate men who who should never have been ordained.
Truly, we all will need to “stand tall” against the storms of criticism, hatred and persecution that Satan will hurl at us, both from within and from without. For Satan will attempt to “break” us. He and his untold legions of demon spirits (Ephesians 6:11–12) will try to divide us, pitting brother against brother, even in God’s Church! He will attempt to discourage us profoundly, through repeated attacks, accusations and persecution. Eventually, after his “frontal assault” on God fails, Satan will “come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time” (Revelation 12:12).
Will you be ready? The time for us to be bickering, competing and accusing one another must quickly come to a close, brethren! For we have a far greater enemy in the “prince of darkness” than many of us may fully realize. And we will need all the love, encouragement and support of our brethren that we can possibly have during the trials ahead.
Sadly the persecution of the brethren has come from within, not from Satan or the world who is upset with their message. The persecution is coming from men who do not follow Jesus or even know anything about him. When ones own leaders cannot talk about Jesus, his message, what he accomplished, grace, justification or any other new covenant teachings, what more can one expect? When the message is about the law, death and doom, how can grace ever shine forth? Reading through any missive by Rod Meredith, particularly his editorial, you can see how graceless the man truly is and what what he preaches.
And that he seems to confuse prosecution with persecution.
ReplyDeleteUh, this may be a good area for him to practice leadership by example?
ReplyDeleteBB
Accusations of bucking, false accusation plus Satan is about to strongly persecute the church (hence ignore church mistreatment), amounts to a demand for a moral blank check from church members. So, church members are not to pass moral judgement on a abusive ministry, since passing moral judgment is the greatest sin. Of course a vindictive, punitive ministry does the exact opposite.
ReplyDeleteWhen Rod Meredith writes a letter or preaches a sermon he goes back to the good old days and harps about how wonderful HWA was and how dedicated everyone was back then. LCG is now getting ready to shake the world. How? They have a small group of elderly people living in the past talking about world events speeding up. Small groups of people meet every week in rented halls with their minister preaching to them about how to conform to the government as dictated by headquarters. Then they go home close their doors til the next week when they will meet again and hear the same thing. For over 20 years now Rod has been preaching powerful sermon. I doubt that he even knows his neighbors. I doubt he has been inside the home of one single neighbor. Unless maybe one of his top ministers lives near him like his brother-in-law R Ames. Poor Rod if he didn't have the good old days what would he have to preach or write to the brethren about
ReplyDeleteSince I left lcg, I feel better. No persecution, no minister lording it over me, no guilt trips put on me and no more being treated like an child idiot.
ReplyDeleteI can do what I think is right, with not having to run it by a minister.
Doesn't lcg know we answer to GOD, not Meredith, Weston or others.
Rod Meredith IS competitive and accusatory. I guess he's the only one allowed to be that way.
ReplyDeleteBeing close to LCG, I know what Mr. Meredith is talking about when he warns that LCG is going to suffer attacks, accusations and persecutions. There is an event presently occurring in LCG that has not come to light yet publicly. I don't see the benefit of revealing that information at this time on this site. I will leave that to the people involved. Time will tell. However, I will say that LCG is going to be held accountable for things they have done that weren't exactly 'on the level'. Unfortunately, my LCG brethren will suffer because of the stiff-necked, stubborn men in Charlotte who have made some really bad decisions. When I read this LCN, I was sad to see that LCG was going to blame what's happening on 'an attack by Satan'. Could it be that it is as a result of the consequences of their own actions instead of Satan? The disconnect is shocking and depressing.
ReplyDeleteCharles, the holy spirit told me to be a stay at home Christian about 30 years ago. You can never, ever fully grow up whilst treated as a 'child idiot.' A Christian is one who follow Christ, rather than someone who goes to church once a week. It took me years to purge my mind of all the church mis progrsmming. Welcome 'home.'
ReplyDeleteDoesn't that woman look like Lucille Ball. I heard she tithed to Armstrongs church.
ReplyDeleteDidn't Lucy show up to AICF Auditorium events half stoned and blabbering on several occasions?
ReplyDeleteConnie, I think you're right. I remember hearing of how she lit a cigarette while in the auditorium and cussed a fellow out when he informed her that smoking was not permitted in there.
ReplyDelete2016 promises to be a rough year for LCG unity and finances. Spanky is just putting this disclaimer out as a preliminary excuse for the impending failures.
ReplyDeleteBTW aren't they supposed to have an "extra measure of Holy Spirit" that should, in theory, counter the imaginary attack they feel Satan is going to throw at them?
The version I heard of the Lucy story (from a minister's wife) was that Lucy fired up a smoke, was informed of the no smoking rule, gave the usher, or whomever, a dirty look, and then dropped the lighted cigarette on to the prized carpeting, and crushed it out with her high heel.
ReplyDeleteAs much as some of us may admire someone who had the moxie to blow off bogus Armstrongian authority, crushing a lit cigarette on expensive carpet is a pretty cretinous thing to do, no matter who owns the carpet. No comedy to that at all.
BB
Meredith has been fear mongering that there will be terrible betrayals before Christ's return.
ReplyDeleteI remember many years ago Roderick Meredith made a commentary discussing Matthew. I think it was made back around 2000 or 2001. While talking about Matthew 26 he said this:
>>If you do not have the Holy Spirit, you will do very peculiar things. God tells us that at the end of the age, people are going to turn on one another in a way that we would never imagine. They really are. Without God's spirit, men are very helpless.<<
We can now see that this is one way LCG's 1% indoctrinate LCG members to disregard and refuse to act upon legitimate criticism.