Gerald Weston's latest fear-driven letter to the Living Church of God faithful is all about the COG's most powerful deity, Satan. If only Jesus could get as much air time in the church as Satan does!
As usual, this broken record that LCG regularly trots out has been skipping in the same spot since its inception. Damnation and doom are walking up the sidewalk to our front doors as Jesus cowers in the backroom, emasculated and powerless.
Weston claims that the end times are heating up and is plainly obvious to anyone with eyes to see. The problem with this crap is this is the same damn thing he and Rod Meredith have spouted for decades. Meredith said this stuff back in the '60's and '70s and it was a lie then so why should we believe Weston now? Defenders love to state that well, at some point they will be right so we always need to be prepared. Not in our lifetime is the current state of affairs in COG prophetic lunacy.
Dear Brethren,
End-time events are heating up. This is obvious to anyone who has eyes to see. But why? The book of Daniel tells of a remarkable, ongoing spirit war then taking place in Persia (Daniel 10:12–14, 20–21). Our world today and the events happening in it are difficult to explain without understanding that there are unseen spirit forces at work. The prince of the power of the air and his powerful assistants are moving in our world (Ephesians 2:2; Mark 9:28–29).
Satan and his minions are stirred up and ready to fight an epic battle! Their time is short and they know it. At least that is what Weston thinks, but just in case, he states this qualifier: "Please do not read into this more than is intended...". Never has there been a church that is filled with so many men who claim to be the mouthpieces of God and who CAN NOT and WILL NOT make a definitive statement of fact about their beliefs. They love to weasel their way out of the "bold and powerful" statements they think their followers want to hear from them. It is no wonder Bob Thiel is such a prophetic weasel as he was trained at the feet of Meredith and Weston.
These evil spirits must know that their time is short. And, although we do not know how short or when Satan will be cast down as described in Revelation 12, that event and the consequences of that battle are certain. Please do not read into this more than is intended, as it is likely that we will only understand the timing of that event in retrospect. But what we see for now is that prophecies we have known for decades are coming alive before our very eyes. While we have the overview of prophecy, we do not know every detail—but the stage is being set. Speculation is alluring, and fine when kept in perspective, but let us focus more on what we know for certain than on what we can only guess may happen.
The stage for the end times has been set in the Church of God since the 1930s when Herbert Armstrong started spouting his own brand of biblical interpretation that has been an epic failure from the start. What should we have expected from a man who spent 6 months in a public library reading religious books from the late 1800s to 1930's instead of working a job to provide for his family?
Out of that "deep" study came some of the most alluring speculations the church has ever seen and still holds as sacred today in 2022. COG theology has never advanced beyond HWA's turn of the century theological "education". One hundred years later and the church is still theologically resting in 1800s pyramidology, British Israelism, and biblical speculation. The COG has always mocked the Mormons for their adherence to Book of Mormon theology and yet the Church of God holds as sacred all things HWA wrote and intepreted.
Then, right on cue, Weston blasts LCG members for being failures and not doing what is right. As Weston's creature is dividing the world, LCG members are swept up causing division within the church. Never is it the ministry's fault for causing division, but always the members. Even worse, Weston is not happy with LCG members who think the COG's should be united. Weston, like Bob Thiel, despises ecumenism in the church. How dare members and Christians want to dwell together in harmony and basic unity! How dare they!
We see an effort by the evil side of the spirit world to polarize and divide mankind at all levels. Sadly, even some in the Church have allowed themselves to become instruments of those unseen hands causing divisions. This problem is not new (1 Corinthians 1:10–13; 3:4). Again, please do not misunderstand; Paul was describing what was happening within the Church of God in Corinth. He was not promoting some form of emotional ecumenism to unify groups that had chosen to separate. He addressed that problem in Acts 20:29–31 and elsewhere.
Brethren, we must not get caught up in worldly controversies and political strife that evil spirits are stirring up to create division. Rather, we must keep our focus on what God has called us to do, especially as we see the events that we have talked about for decades occurring at warp speed before our eyes. Politicians and media have their agendas and messages, but we, as the body of Christ, must recognize why God has called us—to proclaim the good news of a better world and to warn the current world of what is happening and why.
Politicians and media have agendas and we in the COG do not! Hilarious! Just like corrupt politicians on both sides of the aisle and brain-dead media, the COG sits right there next to them chortling about all the dumb sheeple they are deceiving. No one bats an eye anymore about Pack, Flurry, Thiel, Weinland, and all the other professional liars in the midst of the brethren. Church members have become immune to these losers just like the public has with politicians and the media.
In the Parable of the Ten Virgins, Jesus described ten virgins with lamps. Five are wise, five are foolish (Matthew 25:1–13). The wise take oil for their lamps, while the foolish do not. Five prepare for the wedding supper, while five remain unprepared. We are all familiar with this parable, but does it change our behavior?
The wise in the church trimmed their wicks and filled their lamps with oil as they left the church. Waking up to deception instead of being lackadaisical in their beleifs help change their behavior and mental clarity.
The parable warns us that we must prepare for uncertain events with uncertain timing. Disasters come suddenly, but rarely without warning for those who have eyes to see. Is this not what the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 5:1–8? Did he not warn us to stay awake, to watch, to be sober so we will not be—like the world and lukewarm Christians—caught off guard?
We should also learn lessons from the times of Noah and Lot. In both cases, people were going about their lives, oblivious to the calamities about to fall upon them. They were eating, drinking, marrying—carrying on as though all was okay—until the disasters suddenly descended (Luke 17:26–31). God used those times as examples for us “upon whom the ends of the ages have come” (1 Corinthians 10:11).
The COG has always held the "let them eat cake" attitude for decades. Keep the dumb sheeple satisfied while we the leadership exploit and misuse their money for personal benefit. Keep them at home suffering as we seek constant medical treatment. Use sex as a weapon against the members while they, the ministry, were out committing adultery, participating in wife swapping, sex orgies, and committing homosexual acts with other men (sometimes fellow ministers). And, don't forget the ministers that have been sent to prison for pedophilia!
If there ever was a time to get serious about our relationship with our Creator, it is now. May we personally and collectively redouble our efforts to strengthen our bond with God the Father and Jesus Christ.
If only the ministry did this.
The end is not yet, but events leading toward the end are coming together far more quickly than many realize. Can we not see that we may be closer to the end than we thought? Consider the moral slide that has taken place during the last five to ten years. Consider how our world has changed in just the last two years—a pandemic, economic upheaval, supply shortages, inflation, storms of “biblical proportions,” a war in Europe, the real possibility of major wars erupting in the Middle East and Asia this year, and a dangerous open border between Mexico and the United States. And there is much more. Stunning disasters are in our near future.
Let us never forget the spirit power behind division, chaos, and confusion. Now is no time to fall asleep spiritually. We must keep oil in our lamps and remember to heed Paul’s words:
And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light (Romans 13:11–12).
The Church of God has been asleep for decades because it cannot and will not place its focus on the one they claim to follow. Satan and the law reign supreme. Jesus, grace, mercy, justice, not so much.
20 comments:
What makes the COGs cults? It's their claim that other points of view constitute disinformation. When you hear someone talk like that, you know they are the enemies of Jesus, free speech, science, democracy, America, etc. Run for the hills!
And yet, the most powerful sign of the end times is God's global warming, from right out the pages of Revelation, and nobody in any ACOG even mentions it! Oh well, as often noted here, they never mention or emphasize Jesus either.
The Colorado River basin is drying up right before our very eyes, poised to take out the entire Southwest and northern Mexico, and all they can talk about is some imaginary spiritual battle that we won't know about until surveying the implications after it's over. They ought to be focussing on the obvious which is happening right now, and preparing as one would for a hurricane!
So my problem with LCG is that they have a hybrid gospel. They do not know or understand that because of their half-true gospel their splinter group is cursed.
I groan every time these ACOGs harp on unity - division. It can be a legitimate point, but these groups misuse it as a club against honest questioning and complaints. Members who have rebuked abusers have often found themselves confronted by their minister and accused of offending others and causing division.
Things aren't always what they appear on the surface..
Part 1
I have no issue with this post regarding the lcg or those about the old wcg, or any of the others as these orgs were/are replete with corrupt, false teachers and have always been based on nothing near what scripture says or shows is true religion.
While it is true that these organizations were/are stealing from members with the false "the tithes belong to the new testament church " doctrine which is nowhere found in scripture, the following must be asked:
There have been numerous articles throughout the history of this web site including several over the last few weeks that clearly point to the corrupt churches of the wcg family. Even notables such as Dennis D. have been interviewed regarding the false, corrupt beliefs and actions of the higher ups, others, and these organizations. So where can one find where Dennis, who has accurately discredited the wcg et al, paid back the money he received for his part in this evil done over the years or even admitted that he should? Just because he was not a highly paid headquarters man, he still received benefits for years that were paid from stolen tithes. Even if it was worth $5, it should be repaid. That comes from laws detailed in scripture and even if one does not believe scripture, it is without a doubt the right thing to do.
He has spent much time proving the corruptness of the wcg and others which is entirely obvious and should be done because these organizations never have been and never will be anything like what scripture says the body of the Messiah is and if one does not believe scripture, he can still easily see the evilness of those orgs. Dennis has also provided us with his grand explanations of why there is basically no truth to the scriptures which would point back to a logical merciful creator if true (if so, he would have pointed to that truth) and basically promotes a humanist existence with not really any real god.
Part 2
No2HWA allows Dennis' posts on this site which is his right (that is when Dennis has not desired to quit this blog again for whatever reason at the time even though he will likely be back to repeat the same stuff ad nauseum, but why do people like him get a pass? I have asked in the past why so-called "good" guys like Ron Dart (who were or are if still alive as corrupt as hwa etc.) get a pass and of course, received some angry responses which are about as scary as casper the friendly ghost. There is talk about all of the evil done, but never any amends made of any worth towards paying back for the wrongdoing or admitting that indeed, people like Dart did evil by accepting the corrupt dictates of an evil organization without any acknowledgment or payback that can be found unless say a "heart problem" means dart has to quit gta's org (and wait a while and then start another one which is nicer) and thus, was just as corrupt himself. It is proper to apply the correct or proper rules to all situations or people, not just the ones involving those who are not liked. It also shows that those who will defend some and not others even though all were /are corrupt are not really any different when it comes to being corrupt.
Whether it is the corrupt perverts, such as hwa, gta, and others or maybe just the corrupt theives like spanky, Dart, etc., they owe people or the families of said people money according to scripture and could easily donate the money to proper uses if such people cannot be found after EXTENSIVE search. Even if they are now effectively atheist, would not the personal honor of a humanist sort require repayment?
This site does well to point out the evil wcg (whore) and its daughters (more whores) as do others such as the TV station that was mentioned just recently, but why is it that Dennis gets to be interviewed about David Pack and not really have to do anything but act (maybe) somewhat apologetic on a blog sometimes and now just be a good humanist guy?
Until payback occurs and that begins with acknowledgement that it is necessary which would be a very good and significant step, such talk is vacuous BS.
If NO2HWA posts this comment in its entirety, it will be a good mark for him. Let's see if the people who are against the corrupt orgs really mean it or if they simply have favorites. Let's see if those who have involved themselves in corrupt activities that are nowhere directed in scripture want to repent from activities in corrupt religious orgs (fully) whether as minister, deacon, secretary, etc. or if they just want to ignore what they were involved with, want some attention, or just want to run away when things get tough because they cannot disprove the truth.
Good lord! Still cranky as ever when you come out of hiding. You cant handle the fact that people have easily refuted the lies of Armstrongism, something you have been unable to do. Its fruits are rotten to the core and yet you think is god's gift to the world.
Just because he was not a highly paid headquarters man, he still received benefits for years that were paid from stolen tithes. Even if it was worth $5, it should be repaid.
This sounds good at first hearing, but where does it end? What about the deacon and deaconess who were given a budget from local church funds to hold an event at which they lorded themselves over the unordained members?
And it seems you have forgotten a big part of Dennis's story, a part he has in common with many of his fellow ministers. When he left WCG, he left with NO BENEFITS. When you as a member get fired by a boss who's a jerk, you are legally entitled to some benefits. Even if you quit, you are required to be paid for unused vacation time and any wages not yet paid. Yes, Dennis got paid to be the guy delivering the HQ BS to the members, but he also got BS from HQ, and was left in the lurch when he finally walked away. If Dennis must repay every $5 of benefits he received, can HE ask YOU to pay him for the BS he shielded you from? I didn't think so.
At some point, the only sane answer is to say, as does the Bible, "they have their reward." Joe Jr. and Ron Kelly and other insiders got a big hunk of money. And, in the process, they corroded their souls. To the extent that you become a money-grabber like they were, you may be trading some of your soul's peace for the cash you receive.
4:15:00 PM PDT Anonymous
He shielded me from nothing. I did not belong to his org or give tithes to any hwa org descendant that I ecall, so there is that, but believe what you will.
I bet most of those or their kids maybe who were left out in the cold are quite happy that Dennis was at least somewhat ok after all I'm sure.
From the post, "End-time events are heating up. This is obvious to anyone who has eyes to see."
This world from time to time goes into crisis. The Bubonic Plague, World War 1, World War 2. People always believe that some crisis surely has to mark the end of the world. This time is no different. But Jesus said, "for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect." GTA used to say, to the effect, that this statement pertains to the hour - it doesn't preclude knowing the year or day. That is sophomoric. Jesus said we would not know, period. Why then should the end-time be "obvious" to anyone. This is simply a Millerite ploy. It's been going on since 1844. It is not a signal anthem but a luring and repeated chorus.
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After reading Rev 1:1 I'll wager Jesus knows, right now, when He is coming back.
Dennis Diehl is a worthy opponent. He is honest in his beliefs. He has sent me into research mode many times. I would much rather read Dennis' material than a bunch of billboard assertions made by an Armstrongist who never develops any logical argumentation - clouds without rain. Dennis is here in the useful spirit of Midrash. Like I have said in the past, the atheist brother should unquestioningly have a place at the table.
As for reparations, that ship has sailed. And who should repay whom? Did we not all dance the dance in some way? Did not your example preach to others when you showed up with an incandescent smile at Sabbath services? Like Solomon said, "Shall any one bind fire in his bosom, and not burn his garments?"
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Dear Anonymous part 1 and 2: Are you a butthole? Your answer to that question would be very telling, because most buttholes have no idea whatsoever that they actually are buttholes. Still, your comments are assinine. The money has been gone for decades, and most of the original WCG ministers are either dead or very advanced in age. So get over it. Want to do something about it? It's real simple. Just be careful not to get scammed again.
Anon 1 & 2 sounds like Bob Petry, the know-it-all of the church. Asinine is a perfect description of what he expects.
Thank you part 1 and part 2. A lot of thought went into your post.
I hate it when people just invalidate rather than respond to the points brought up, as has 10.10 and 11.02. NEO is an example of doing it right
To me, invalidation is hitting below the belt
@6:40 AM, it is usually considered poor manners to reply to your own posts, in this case part 1 and part 2. As for responding to the points brought up in those posts, the primary response from many here is: TL;DR. If you can't express your points concisely, you shouldn't fault others for their failure to respond to your poor communication.
However, someone who waded through the rambling posts would be on-point to remind you that true "repaying" has very little to do with transferring money, and very much to do with acting on a repentant attitude rather than justifying one's own failures while attacking others' failures. As for the call for "repayment" I urge you to do a quick Bible study on three verses: Luke 7:42, Luke 14:14, Romans 12:19.
10.22 AM
I am 6.40 AM, and am definitely not part 1 and part 2. I did not say that I agree with all his points.
In future if you don't want others to come to a posters defense, try to not call others names. How old are you?
First of all, if you examine the history of the beginnings of each splinter group, nobody is guiltless. It is a matter of record that there are no white knights to be found. Only vultures! Every vulture descended from the sky to feed on whatever they could lay their talons upon, whether this involved poaching members, absconding with resources, or looting the intellectual properties. Gerald Flurry disgusts me, but at least he misused his members financial resources fair and square to pay for the idolatrous Armstrong artifacts he needed to give his ministry credibility. Hah! Ain't that a hoot?
This whole idea of reparations became totally irrelevant at the beginning of 2022, which is Hebrew year 5782. Counting backwards and forwards (and all Armstrongites just love their numbers!), 2022 equates to the 117th Jubilee year dating from the time that the Israelites were given the Mount Sinai covenant and instructions. This means that any debts incurred by the vultures have been forgiven! It's a dead issue. Get over it. Your church is still splintered, moribund, and powerless, and will remain that way regardless of your theories and demands. I've never seen a more useless or futile argument in all my years on these forums and blogs.
12.16 PM
Is that you attack guy Kevin Mc something? Well you certainly raped the Jubilee year concept. And no, members looted money is not forgotten and forgiven just because your bible twisting says so.
No, this is not Kevin. It's just that the whole idea the other dude was advancing is not only preposterous, but also now impossible, so I responded to a fool in accordance with his folly. Took me two minutes flat to learn when the closest Jubilee was happening, and then I lobbed the bomb.
When you think about it, how many of us would have been totally glad to pay someone to either bring down or transform the whole toxic mess known as Armstrongism? It's not as if it was actually God's church or something.
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