UCG had this up on their June 1, message from Rick Shabi:
The New Testament Church, headed by Jesus Christ, had its “beginning” on Pentecost in A.D. 31, when God poured out His Holy Spirit on the 120 who were gathered together in “one place and one accord” in obedience to Him.
The corporate entity of the United Church of God, an International Association, had its beginning on the day of Pentecost more than a quarter century ago, as heresy infected the Worldwide Church of God and that organization departed from God and His truth.
The United Church of God continued in the truth and the “faith once for all delivered to the saints.” We are not a new Church that began in 1995, we are the continuation of the Church that was founded by Christ, still led by Him as its Head, and striving to fulfill the commission He gave in Matthew 28:19-20. Together, we are all part of His Church and His work.
How can it be that every single one of the splinter groups claims that THEY and THEY ALONE are the “faith once for all delivered to the saints” and yet none of them get along with each other or even hold the same teachings and doctrines? UCG is about as far from 1st-century Christianity as Bob Thiel and Gerald Flurry are.
If they are the "continuation of the church that was founded by Christ", where does that leave RCG, COGWA, PCG, COG7, and the rest of the splinters? Christ would be appalled at what the present state of UCG and what the rest of the COG's currently look like and act.
The corporate entity of the United Church of God, an International Association, had its beginning on the day of Pentecost more than a quarter century ago
ReplyDeleteWere they keeping a Monday Pentecost, or do they expect us to believe that California state business regulators worked on Sunday to establish UCG on a weekend? Either way, they are saying that people did business on a holyday to bring UCG into existence.
Maybe they should have simply claimed that the spiritual organism organized itself as UCG on that Pentecost? As it stands, their statement sounds at best like an admission of pride and at worst like an admission of sin.
UCg actually began well before that date when the conniving corrupt men started planning their church, stealing member lists and tithe money to fund their new enterprise so that went they jumped ship they would still have an income. This church has been corrupt from day one. Ask these scumbags how many remained employed by the Worldwide Church of God as they planned this?
ReplyDeleteThe Worldwide Church of God splinter groups seem to all end up disagreeing with what Herbert W. Armstrong had taught. Here is the “Church of the Great Ritenbaugh” now disagreeing with HWA's Church Eras teaching.
ReplyDelete“John W. Ritenbaugh, Founder and Pastor Emeritus of Church of the Great God (CGG), died on Sunday, May 28, 2023 (Pentecost), after a nine-month decline due to a severe stroke and worsening dementia. He was 90 years old.”
In its recent Forerunner online magazine:
“A Truth About Revelation 2 and 3 (May 24, 2023)
The church of God has long taught that the letters to the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3 refer to seven church eras from the apostles' day to Christ's return. While such an interpretation may be possible, the Bible itself does not indicate anything of the sort. John Ritenbaugh provides evidence from Revelation that the primary interpretation concerns all the churches extant during the end time.”
Can you point out where Rick Shabi writes "UCG and they alone are the faith once delivered" ?
ReplyDelete“United Church of God Claims To Be The 'faith once for all delivered to the saints.'”
ReplyDeleteWhat a sick joke. That is not even funny.
Oh, the irony. Heresy ENTERED the WCG? Too funny.
ReplyDeleteIf all these groups, who claim to be a continuation of the 1st century church, please explain why your doctrines represent Old Testament theology and are as far away as far gets from 1st - 21st century Christianity!
Jesus is outside knocking on the door? Wanting the splinters to repent, teach tithing not commanded now, teach 3 feasts.
ReplyDeleteTechnically, and legally, the laity of the UCG are NOT members of that church. Only the ministry have legal standing, and the right to vote etc. If not an elder of UCG , then you are just merely a spectator , and not a "member". There is no way that the ministry will ever allow for the laity to have any input authority.
ReplyDeleteHow do you come to that conclusion ?
DeleteI'm sure UCG members know that already. But what you declare "Tonto" is out of date. It's 'old hat'. It's what middle management would say about those they perceive as beneath them.
As the are many layers of power within even the ministry. Only the bottom to middle ministry layers would fight against the laity having any input authority.
When people learn from an Armstrong group how orthodoxy deviates from the bible, they suppose that Armstrong had the answers and is the faith once delivered. So the root cause of Armstrongism is orthodoxy.
ReplyDeleteSearch the web for "lost Christianities" by Bart Ehrman, and other such works.
Didn’t HWA say there’s only one Church, and that God is not a polygamist Who is not going to marry a bunch of churches. Well I guess their god is going to do so with UCG, LCG, PCG, RCG………….
ReplyDeleteWhat a conundrum.
Anonymous at 3:57 PM said...“Didn’t HWA say there’s only one Church, and that God is not a polygamist Who is not going to marry a bunch of churches. Well I guess their god is going to do so with UCG, LCG, PCG, RCG………….”
ReplyDeleteThe UCG, LCG, PCG, RCG, etc. are not exactly chaste virgins. And these screwed up old hags would not be able to get along with each other either.
It's funny. I always admired minority people and wanted to learn about them. There were ethnic jokes and slurs once in a while, but I never hated people for their race, or wanted to exterminate them. And, that's me at my core, whether "in the church" or "out of the church" I did come close to crossing the line once that I recall, and that was immediately following 9-11. But then, I remembered some of my Arab friends, and how they laughed, joked, enjoyed good food, worked hard, loved their families, and participated in intelligent discussion, and I fell back into my basic creed, which is that I usually like and get along with just about anybody, unless they are an asshole.
ReplyDeleteIf agendas continue along certain current trends, and if it ever develops into so-called ethnic "cleansing", there are lots of white folk who will recognize that as being horribly wrong, and will fight it. We've got a history of doing that. We still don't believe that states have the right to make it legal to own people, or exterminate them.
I’ve been a member of United since it’s beginning. We’ve never stated the United is the only group trying to follow Christ’s teachings. True followers can’t be defined by just an organization’s name
ReplyDelete"The United Church of God continued in the truth and the “faith once for all delivered to the saints.”
ReplyDeleteOh, I see now.
I guess all of us in the Old Global Church of God 1992, 1993, 1994 didn't exist, Huh!!??
While all of you UCG ministers just played along with tapes from Bernie and Junior
They all tell the same lie, 5:13. The fact is none of them is exclusively God's true church. I am no longer surprised when even a little pipsqueak like Bob Thiel makes this claim. Somehow, though, the larger groups seem to have more credibility when they tell the lie.
ReplyDeleteonly Jon Brisby teachers the Faith that was once for all delivered . He speaks for Jesus.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.jonwbrisby.com/a-peculiar-treasure-chapters/
John Brisby should go play with his Frisbee! He's no different from the rest of them. There have been numerous reports about him and his group right here over the years.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteAll the world is deceived, and so is Rick Shabi and the United Ass. members who follow his thoughts. How so?
For example, Rick Shabi wrote this: "...The New Testament Church, headed by Jesus Christ, had its “beginning” on Pentecost in A.D. 31, when God poured out His Holy Spirit on the 120 who were gathered together in “one place and one accord” in obedience to Him. ..."
I suspect that Jim Franks, and the cogwAss. might/would say the exact same thing as Rick, but all the world is deceived.
God's Church did not begin on Pentecost in A.D. 31. If it did begin then, then who was it's first member?
Wasn't Jesus Christ the Wavesheaf Offering? Isn't He the Head? God's Church began with its first member, who was Jesus Christ, who was God's Church's first member from the day He was baptized approximately 3 1/2 years earlier. It appears that Rick Shabi, and those hirelings who fled the former WCG, driven by "another spirit," leaving their ministerial credentials behind in Pasadena, may have locked on to "another Jesus." They all do preach "another gospel."
So, what happened on Pentecost day?
Rick Shabi wrote: "...God poured out His Holy Spirit on the 120 who were gathered together..."
Is that true? Where did Rick Shabi get that number of 120? Where is the proof of that? Did God pour out His Spirit on 120? Or, as a minimum, was it poured out on at least the 12 disciples, who were told to be there?
Rick Shabi, can you not see any principalities involved at all with the United Ass., the cogwAss., living, philadelphia/Flurry, Pack, etc.?? Satan does have his ministry:
2 Cor 11:13 "For such [are] false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
15 Therefore [it is] no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works."
Oh, and Rick, if 120 were in one accord, then could the Jim Franks' Ass. be associated with that one accord? Why have a magazine title contain the word "Accord?"
Rick wrote: "...The United Church of God continued in the truth and the “faith once for all delivered to the saints.”..."
Who really believes that statement? How can you have the "faith once delivered," when you still await "another Jesus" to very soon return to reign on earth 1,000 years? Why is your timing so far off? And you still preach some made-up 3rd resurrection! And you still think Jesus is some "God of the Old Testament," which isn't true. The Father is that God, The God, Jesus' God, Jesus' Father.
The United Ass. exists to continue sending out paychecks and insure some type of $retirement$ when hirelings retire.
Perhaps Rick Shabi may ask: what are those who attend with the United Ass. a part of now? Scattered Philadelphian era (nothing to do with Flurry and his Inc.), or scattered Laodiceans era?
In fact, one may say that God's Church began with Jesus Christ (Groom & First of the Firstfruits) after His baptism and being sealed by God's Spirit, and that the Bride began weeks later after that Wavesheaf Offering was accepted by God the Father. Then, on Pentecost day 31 AD (some say 30 AD) the rest of the Firstfruits to be sealed, the Bride was the beginning of the Ephesus era.
Neither HWA, nor JWT Sn., had/knew all of: "...the faith which was once delivered unto the saints..." I suspect they both accomplished God's will, despite their faults (like all of the rest of us), and then died. If there were no laodiceans to exist, as God inspired, then God Himself would be a liar. Will people someday thank Joe Tkach Sn. for doing "his part" within God's Church? Is Rick Shabi just heading up some man-made-up group, which is just composed of a bunch of the scattered laodiceans. God is love. God loves laodiceans...
Thankfully, time will tell...
John