As hard as it might be, who could have ever imagined a Church of God lecturing its members about pride and humility? Shocking, I know!
Pride vs. Humility: Bible prophecies reveal that in the last days many will be proud, boastful, haughty, and headstrong (2 Timothy 3:1–5). Our modern secular world promotes pride in race, gender, sports teams, national identity, and personal accomplishments. Humble people are viewed as weak. Yet, few today understand what God reveals in the Scriptures about these two important qualities. The Bible clearly states that pride is a source of contention (Proverbs 13:10) and that “pride goes before… a fall” (Proverbs 16:18). However, God says that He looks on the humble (Isaiah 66:2), that He raises up the humble (Psalm 147:6), and that humility leads to honor in God’s sight (Proverbs 15:33). As we approach the Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread, we need to examine ourselves and ask some searching questions: Am I really a humble person, or have I absorbed the mode of thinking and acting of this misguided world? We need to remember that humility brings blessings, but pride brings big problems. Let’s strive to develop the qualities that God wants to see in each of us, “to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God”(Micah 6:8).
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail
13 comments:
Doug recycled this from June 2010. I guess LCG's pride/humility situation hasn't changed in 14 years.
Pride is what happened in Worldwide. Before the fall, pride was the dominating spirit. You can rise again, but you must have humility.
It's OK if you practice pride in your organization in the ways which the US Marine Corps does!
Seemed like this quite present in Worldwide in some members/ ministry as I remember them talking trash about Christians of other denominations. This is not exclusive to just Worldwide. I once dated a girl who attended a prominent protestant sect and the preacher's sermon topic was about other denominations having the sin of playing the piano & other instruments during their church hymns.
How many times have you heard HWA speak about "vanity, jealously, lust and greed?" Yet how often did you see these traits in some of the highest-ranking members of the leadership in the WCG? Lust and greed seeking more power, higher rankings, proximity to HWA's office and to succeed him. I wonder how much time was spent jockeying for position, setting themselves up to move into HWA's office versus actually doing real ministry. Imagine how crushed many of them were when Tkach was announced as his successor. The doors to their liquor cabinets on Waverly Drive were flung open that night. They must have been as crestfallen as Haman was when he had to lead Mordecai in the parade shouting, "This is what is done for the man the king delights to honor" (Esther 6:11)
I typically do not have issues with Doug's notes of encouragement for they usually appear to be biblically sound. The question is, do they fall under the condemnation of Matthew 23:3?
"All that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds, for they say things, and do not do them", NASB.
I think we all know the answer!
Anon, Monday, March 25, 2024 at 6:13:00 PM PDT, said:
"...Doug recycled this from June 2010. I guess LCG's pride/humility situation hasn't changed in 14 years..."
******
Doug's thinking has been stagnated for those 14 years, and actually longer, and Doug is totally unaware, so it seems.
What does Doug consider to be the source of pride?
Doug wrote: "...Our modern secular world promotes pride in race, gender, sports teams, national identity, and personal accomplishments..."
Why does Doug have to continue to warn his followers about that over and over again via his virtually identical repeat messages? Why don't they "get it" by now?
Doug, with his stagnant thinking, deceived into believing his followers can somehow qualify to be saved and enter God's kingdom, desires his followers follow "a man:" Doug himself.
What's wrong with pride? Doug continues on to write: "...pride is a source of contention (Proverbs 13:10) and that “pride goes before… a fall” (Proverbs 16:18)...As we approach the Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread, we need to examine ourselves and ask some searching questions: Am I really a humble person, or have I absorbed the mode of thinking and acting of this misguided world?..."
Well, what does one expected to do after Passover/DUB? Wasn't it at Passover that Doug and his followers bring a sack full of sins, attend a service, and leave with an empty sack? What happened to the sins?
And then Doug and his followers enter back into the world, that misguided world, and with their pride continue to sin, b/c none of them had the character to choose to stop sinning, and choose to never sin again in their lives! Was that the way to qualify to enter God's Kingdom?
Doug may want to consider the following scripture and perhaps before sending out another repeat message think how this scripture has a bearing on pride.
"He beholdeth all high [things]: he [is] a king over all the children of pride." Job 41:34
What king is that? The same one working in the children mentioned in Eph 2:2.
"Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:" Eph 2:2
Can Sata, one of the principalities (Eph 6:12) be that powerful?
"And [that] they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will." 2 Tim 2:26
Oh, kind of like a world held captive! Are Doug and his followers so easily snared that they need to hear the virtually same "rah rah" messages over and over again regarding pride?
What spirit could possibly drag Doug and his followers off into so much pride? Answer: another spirit!
"...The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?" James 4:5; 2 Cor 11:13-15
Yes, Doug, there is a problem with pride: "For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world." 1 John 2:16; I John 3:8, 12 e.g. Cain
I suggest that Doug is not as humble as he'd like us to think he is, and that Doug still has not mastered the qualities of possessing the ability: "...to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God" ...enough to somehow impress The God (and that isn't another Jesus "God of the OT").
Will Doug and his "little followers" successfully strive to eliminate pride in their lives while they simultaneously develop some impressive humility?
Time will tell...
John
In mainstream Christian churches, mothers sometimes name their newborn baby girls "Trinity".
Maybe there are some pregnant members of LCG, who after reading Doug's latest missive, will name their daughters "Humility". The only drawback is, there really isn't any possible nickname.
The spirit of contempt is strong in you 'John'.
ACOG humility = humiliation from what I got served.
Stephen Schley
(sorry cannot figure out mb settings)
Anon, Wednesday, March 27, 2024 at 12:07:00 AM PDT, said:
"...The spirit of contempt is strong in you 'John'..."
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Yes Anon, you are correct; I admit that contempt is strong, but for whom?
Certainly not for Doug Winnail or his followers, or any of the hirelings of the former WCG, so for whom?
"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places]." Ephesians 6:12; 2 Cor 11:13-15; 2 Timothy 2:26.
Should we be having respect for any of those principalities who impact the lives of human beings?
Anon, would you consider that the spirit of contempt was strong within Jesus Christ when He dealt with the principalities of His day and age? E.g. John 8:43-35; Matthew 23:33-35, etc.
Time will tell...
John
LCG excels in organizational pride. So many of their sermons are how you must obey the church “leadership.”
John, that is a good one you posted to 12:07
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