Herbert Armstrong's Tangled Web of Corrupt Leaders

Wednesday, March 9, 2022

Church of God International: NO, That’s NOT the Gospel!





NO, That’s NOT the Gospel!

By

Lonnie Hendrix/Miller Jones

The Church of God International recently posted a message for their Armor of God program by Canadian Pastor Adrian Davis titled What is the Gospel? In their advertisement for the program, CGI asks a couple of questions: “What was the Good News that Jesus proclaimed nearly 2,000 years ago?” and “How is it relevant to us today?” Unfortunately, Mr. Davis does not provide scriptural answers to either of those questions.

Unexpectedly, Pastor Davis begins by directing his listeners to turn to the Old Testament for his answers to those questions. More particularly, he begins by focusing on the story of Ahimaaz and Cushi carrying the “good news” of the victory of the king’s forces over the armies of Absalom to King David (II Samuel 18:19-32). Using the Septuagint (a Greek version of the Hebrew Bible), Mr. Davis insists that this passage constitutes the first substantive use of the Greek word translated into English as “gospel.” Hence, for the pastor, this passage of the Hebrew Scriptures translated into the Greek language should inform our understanding of what the English term “gospel” means! And, within the context of this narrative, Mr. Davis informs us that the term indicates: 1) the favorable outcome of an event, and 2) that the message is taken to/delivered to someone.

What about that? Is Mr. Davis’ characterization of the “euangelion” of the Kingdom correct? Is it a message about the favorable outcome of a single event? OR Is it primarily a message about how humanity is to be saved from the penalty which its sins have incurred (death) and finally reconciled to Almighty God?

Pastor Davis invites his listeners to Google the definition of the word “gospel.” And, when we do, the first two definitions presented are as follows: 1) “the teaching or revelation of Christ” and 2) “the record of Jesus' life and teaching in the first four books of the New Testament.” Pastor Davis then informs us that both of these definitions are incorrect! Is he right? Is the gospel message really NOT about Jesus Christ and his teachings? How does Pastor Davis get around Christ’s clear instructions to his disciples to teach the nations about the things that he had presented to them and to baptize them into the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? (See Matthew 28:18-20)

Of course, like most Armstrongites and Jehovah’s Witnesses, Pastor Davis is able and ready to tell everyone that it is called the Gospel of the Kingdom of God in Scripture (Matthew 24:14). Moreover, according to Mr. Davis, that message must exhibit three qualities to be regarded as the genuine article. He insists that it must be: 1) the same gospel Christ preached, 2) consistent with the gospel of our forefathers, and 3) controversial. Of course, for him, the passage which he quoted from Matthew underscores the fact that Christ was preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. But what about points two and three?

For the answer to that question, Pastor Davis directs his listeners to the Gospel of Luke. He begins by noting that Christ observed the Jewish Sabbath (Luke 4:16), and then asks how anyone who is not keeping the Sabbath could call themselves a Christian. Mr. Davis continued reading: “And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.” (See Luke 4:17-21) Mr. Davis then proceeds to point out that Christ was reading from the sixty-first chapter of the book of Isaiah, and that this demonstrates that Christ was preaching the same message that had been given to his Israelite forefathers (please take the time to reread that passage and notice the expansive nature of Christ’s work).

From there, he attempts to associate that message with the Armstrongist teaching about Anglo-Israelism (that the English-speaking peoples of the earth are part of the “lost ten tribes” of Israel)! In other words, for Mr. Davis, the “gospel” or “good news” was all about (and for) the people of Israel. After all, didn’t Scripture declare that God was the “Holy One of Israel” (see Isaiah 47:4). Hence, for the pastor, what he sees as the ethnocentric nature of the gospel satisfies the requirements that the message be the same one preached by/to our “forefathers,” and that it be controversial. Of course, absent from this interpretation of the gospel is Paul’s message to the saints of Galatia, where he wrote: “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:26-29)

In fairness to Mr. Davis, he did mention a more extensive treatment of the subject of the gospel message by Pastor Bill Watson. Moreover, seeing how deficient Pastor Davis’ presentation actually turned out to be, I thought it might be worthwhile to check out the recommended literature on the subject by Mr. Watson. In doing so, I was immediately encouraged by the date of publication (2008) listed for Pastor Watson’s What is the Real Gospel Truth? “That was back in the day when Pastor Watson wasn’t consumed with headline theology and right-wing politics,” I thought.

And, sure enough, I actually found there a more accurate reflection of the nature of the gospel message. In fact, some of the statements in that booklet were much better than what Pastor Davis offered! For example, in the section titled “Good News About What?” we read: “The gospel Jesus commissioned His disciples to announce is a large subject. There are many aspects to this announcement of good news, or glad tidings. And furthermore, it contains multiple teachings, analogies, similes, parables, examples, instructions, and commandments for our edification.” Continuing, we read: “This mission, in a very broad sense, was clarified at the conclusion of Christ’s earthly ministry: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen” (Matthew 28:18–20).” Yes, now we’re getting somewhere!

A little further, in the same booklet, we read: “The Person of Christ, how He lived, and what He taught were central to the early New Testament Church. The apostles emphasized Jesus Christ and His example and teachings as the foundation for pleasing God. They taught that He, Jesus Christ, was the door to eternal life (John 10:7–18). Using the Old Testament, Paul publicly taught the Jews that Jesus was, in fact, the Christ (Acts 18:28, 31). This point was central to the gospel message because of what Jesus claimed about Himself and, in the course of His ministry, proved to be true.” Moreover, in the pages that followed, Mr. Watson went on to discourse upon the importance of “Christ crucified” to the forgiveness of our sins and ultimate salvation, and just how focused the early Church was on Christ’s resurrection.

Now that is starting to sound like the REAL GOSPEL! Please don’t misunderstand - I’m NOT endorsing everything in Mr. Watson’s booklet on the subject, but his understanding of the scope and nature of the gospel message is much closer to what is revealed in Scripture than what is outlined in this latest offering from Pastor Davis! To be clear, the Gospel of the Kingdom of God is about Jesus Christ, and the salvation that is available to us through him! In fact, Mr. Davis’ version of the gospel is not even as expansive as Herbert Armstrong’s very limited and narrow understanding allowed! Indeed, the offering by Mr. Davis is so narrow and twisted in nature as to render it a FALSE gospel, and we all know what Paul had to say about anyone who would dare to preach a different gospel (see Galatians 1:6-9)!

I wish that Mr. Davis had focused on the many parables which Christ gave to his disciples on the subject of the Kingdom of God. Take a moment just to consider a few of them: The Sower and the Soils, The Tares Among the Wheat, The Mustard Seed, The Leaven, The Hidden Treasure, The Net, The Unforgiving Servant, The Laborers in the Vineyard, The Marriage Feast, The Ten Virgins, and The Talents. What do these parables of Christ teach us about the nature of the Kingdom of God, and how to be a part of it? They certainly don’t reinforce Pastor Davis’ notion of a physical kingdom of and for the Israelites!

The ”PLAIN TRUTH” about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God is that the king of that kingdom (Jesus Christ) came here to save us from the consequences of our sins. His kingdom is a spiritual entity, and it is all about salvation and reconciliation with God and Christ. To be sure, it does point to the time when all of the systems and governments devised by humans will be replaced by God’s system and government. Likewise, it certainly does point to the time when the earth will be filled with the knowledge of God and his will, and to the time when God will dwell with his saints! Even so, the heart of the gospel message is the narrative about HOW all of that is/will be accomplished! Let’s all hope that Pastor Davis will abandon his false gospel and return to the real message of and about the Messenger/Savior/King, Jesus Christ!

17 comments:

  1. Nothing seems to irritate COG preachers more than Jesus and grace. They can commit adultery, steal tithe money and not blink an eye but talk about grace and Jesus, hell no!

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    1. Actually, it's hell yes! If grace and Jesus aren't preached, the wide path will take them there!

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  2. Sadly, it had to take me leaving the church to discover Jesus. He was an unknown in the church and still is.

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    1. 12:44, I couldn't agree more.

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    2. I don’t understand when people say this. WWCG taught that Jesus was the God of the OT and plenty of NT scriptures were read. Were people asleep in their chairs during sermons or taking restroom breaks? The Father is thee God of the OT and too much was actually taken from the Father, like He was an absent Being. Yet people say they didn’t know about Jesus. Weren’t scriptures read from the book of Revelation during services? Yes. Christ is mentioned in there. I don’t get it.

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  3. Oh give it a break, Lonnie. You're going to drive yourself insane.

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  4. Miller: "To be clear, the Gospel of the Kingdom of God is about Jesus Christ, and the salvation that is available to us through him!"

    Just so. After I read your essay, I pondered how a putatively Christian organization could get so far removed from the central message of Jesus. HWA stated the following from a transcript of a telecast titled "What is the Gospel?" in 1978:

    "It was a gospel of world government, it was a gospel of world peace! It was a gospel of right ways of living: the way of love, the way of outgoing concern, the way of giving."

    This is a geopolitical/sociological rendition. In the transcript there was one incidental mention of the word "salvation." But Paul makes a quite different statement. He places Jesus, not government, at the center of the gospel message:

    "...the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace..." (NRSV)

    What Paul states here is exactly what got under HWA's skin. He always became stentorian when he claimed the gospel was not "about Jesus," as you have stated above, but "of Jesus."
    In simpler terms, HWA seemed to believe that gospel was not about the necessary cause but only about the contingent effects. In this claim, HWA runs at great acceleration, face-first into a solid and immovable object called the Apostle Paul in the scripture cited above.

    Paul also refers to the gospel as the means of salvation:

    "Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you — unless you believed in vain." (ESV)

    I believe that the Gospel is a broad message that has many facets. It is a complex topic that is best served by careful midrash. But at its undeniable core is Jesus as Savior. And this has always been the Kerygma of those who walk in The Way. Some things will always be a mystery such as the question of why HWA decided that the Gospel was about government contrary to the dogma of the historical Christian church. And the theme of hierarchical government is dominant in Armstrongism. I have stated my opinion before that, after some years of observation, I concluded that an Ambassador College education was really about a Caste System with Armstrongist booklet-based theology as a sideshow.

    The kind of essay you have written opens these issues to much needed discussion and inevitable revision.

    ********* Click on my icon for Disclaimer



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  5. It is astounding to me how difficult it continues to be for the cogs to define the "gospel" they claim to be proclaiming! It seems they cannot see the spiritual because they focus on only the physical type. Reminds me of the scripture that says a veil remains over their eyes at the reading of Moses.

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  6. The phrases "gospel of: the kingdom; Jesus Christ; grace of God; God; peace; uncircumcision; circumcision; your salvation" appears in the KJV.

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  7. A little Bible trivia:
    In the King James Version, it is referred to as the gospel of the Kingdom of God 5 times. The phrase "kingdom of God" appears 68 times. In that same version, it is referred to as the gospel of Christ 12 times. "Christ" appears 559 times! It is referred to as the gospel of God 7 times. It is referred to as the gospel of peace in two of Paul's epistles. The word "salvation" occurs 164 times! The phrase "grace of God" occurs 23 times.

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  8. From Peter's sermon on Pentecost:

    “People of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know. But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip." (Acts 2:22-24, NLT)

    “God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this. Now he is exalted to the place of highest honor in heaven, at God’s right hand. And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today." (Acts 2:32-33)

    “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!” (Verse 36)

    When Paul preached to the Athenians, we read:

    "A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked, 'What is this babbler trying to say?' Others remarked, 'He seems to be advocating foreign gods.' They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection." (Acts 17:18, NIV)

    In Paul's first epistle to the saints of Corinth, we read:

    "Christ didn’t send me to baptize, but to preach the Good News—and not with clever speech, for fear that the cross of Christ would lose its power. The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God." (I Corinthians 1:17-18, NLT)

    In Paul's second epistle to the saints of Corinth, he wrote:

    "For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, the one who was proclaimed among you by us—by me and Silvanus and Timothy — was not 'Yes' and 'No,' but it has always been 'Yes' in him. For every one of God’s promises are 'Yes' in him; therefore also through him the 'Amen' is spoken, to the glory we give to God." (II Corinthians 1:19-20, NET)

    And:

    "I am afraid that just as the serpent deceived Eve by his treachery, your minds may be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus different from the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit than the one you received, or a different gospel than the one you accepted, you put up with it well enough!" (II Corinthians 11:3-4)

    To the saints of Galatia, Paul wrote:

    "But even before I was born, God chose me and called me by his marvelous grace. Then it pleased him to reveal his Son to me so that I would proclaim the Good News about Jesus to the Gentiles." (Galatians 1:15-16, NLT)

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  9. Looks like it's been made very obvious why I always refer to "The Armstrong half a gospel"!

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  10. COGlodytes are not alone in misunderstanding the work of Jesus to fulfill the law while he lived under the Old Covenant.
    Davis said that because Jesus kept the Sabbath, real Christians must keep the Sabbath too.
    I've heard pastors of other denominations use the same reasoning in stating that since Jesus tithed, we must also tithe.
    These pastors take it upon themselves to select their law favorites, while rejecting the laws that they don't like.
    Teachers of the law who neglect preaching how Jesus fulfilled the law and how the righteousness of Jesus justifies us in the sight of God, are teaching a false gospel.

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  11. It is amazing to me how Armstrongism is so enraptured by the term government, while it is completely uninterested in the concept of grace.
    If you wanted to humor the poor COGlodytes and concede that the Kingdom of God is about government, and then ask them how to enter that government/KOG, they would reply you must keep the law.
    This is evidenced by Davis' statement insisting on Christians keeping the Sabbath.
    Of course, my standard reply includes that being justified by Jesus, instead of the law, is the only way to have peace with God, with his government, so that we may enter the Kingdom.
    Romans 5:1
    Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
    The perfect verse to describe Armstrongism's lack of interest in the Jesus and his grace is:
    Galatians 5:4
    You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.
    Tragically, the people of the powerless and perishing COGs are being deceived.
    1 Corinthians 1:18
    For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
    I am glad forums such as this blog, with those who have ties to those stuck in Armstrongism, provide information to encourage the COGlodytes to come out from under Armstrongism and embrace the Light.

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  12. When he was in the PCG, the weasely mega-mouth Adrian Davis lusted after a position in the ministry. That seems to be why he went to a different splinter where he could move up the ladder faster. Why does anyone listen to these self-centered losers?


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  13. to March 12 @ 2:19

    John 1:1-18 IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD. THE WORD MADE EVERYTHING. THE WORD BECAME FLESH. THE WORD IS JESUS, GOD OF THE OT.

    In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of mankind. 5 And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not grasp it.
    The Witness John the Baptist

    6 A man came, one sent from God, and his name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.

    9 This was the true Light that, coming into the world, enlightens every person. 10 He was in the world, and the world came into being through Him, and yet the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own people did not accept Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who [n]believe in His name, 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of a man, but of God.


    14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us; and we saw His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 John *testified about Him and called out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who is coming after me has proved to be [q]my superior, because He existed before me.’” 16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. 17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth [t]were realized through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has seen God at any time; God the only Son, who is in the arms of the Father, He has explained Him.

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