God's greatest gift to the Church of God wilderness is the end-time prophet—self-appointed by none other than himself—is back lecturing us about Haggai, the second temple, the old Worldwide Church of God (WCG), headquarters, the Holy Ambassador Auditorium, and other assorted asininity. All of it is designed to justify why he has no legitimate headquarters other than a little storefront that masquerades as a snake-oil emporium, where overpriced vitamins and magic potions are dispensed to gullible people who are bleeding their wallets dry.
Crackpot Bob had this to say about the Mother Church and its magnificent headquarters and its pretend “temple,” the House of God:
…the old Worldwide Church of God had over 150,000 people, plus a very fancy building in Pasadena that some considered to be a beautiful temple. The old Worldwide Church of God (WCG) was impressive and wealthy. Its magnificent headquarters was the envy of many outside of the group. It even had the number 1 rated religious telecast in the USA for a short while. Those are impressive accomplishments for a Church that only made up around 2/10ths of 1% of the world’s population.
Now we see a much smaller church, and with people scattered amongst scores of groups.
Has God forsaken us or has this type of thing happened in the past?
Consider that the first temple in the Old Testament was essentially a headquarters’ work. David saw a need and wanted to build a temple to God, but was prevented from doing so (1 Chronicles 28:2-3). He was allowed to use the wealth of Israel to collect building materials for it (1 Chronicles 28: 14-19), though his son Solomon actually had it built (1 Kings 6:2). This temple was magnificent and it was completely covered with gold (1 Kings 6:19-22).
The imaginative belief that this was God’s House and that it represented a modern-day version of the Temple shows just how screwed up Armstrongism is.
Crackpot Bob then continues, showing how Haggai talks about the rebuilding of the second Temple and how they had little finances to do it, yet persevered on. This is a significant interpretation by Crackpot Bob, because it is used to justify that he has a minuscule group that has nothing—because no one in any of the other Church of God groups supports this, other than laughing at the sheer audacity.
The second Old Testament temple was different. First of all there was a call to find out which of the children of Israel would be faithful to help do the work of rebuilding it (Ezra 1:2-3)–basically they were told to begin again, even without as much support or finances.
Secondly, those whose spirit God moved from among His people went to do the work:
5 Then the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, with all whose spirits God had moved, arose to go up and build the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem. (Ezra 1:5).
This suggests that not all of God’s people responded to support God’s work at that time.
They seemed to feel that it was time to take care of themselves (Haggai 1:4)–they did not see a fancy temple and apparently did not feel they needed to support the work of God at the time.
God felt otherwise. Furthermore, God had to tell the people to do the work of rebuilding the temple:
5 Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways! 6 “You have sown much, and bring in little; You eat, but do not have enough; You drink, but you are not filled with drink; You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; And he who earns wages, Earns wages to put into a bag with holes.” 7 Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways! 8 Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified,” says the Lord. (Haggai 1:5-8).
This building of this temple, although directed by headquarters, involved more of the regular people directly than did the first temple (Ezra 2). The old temple was magnificent and glorious (2 Chronicles 22:5), yet many felt that in comparison the new temple was as nothing (Haggai 2:3).
But what did God say about it? God said:
“The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former…” (Haggai 2:9).
Remember God does not think the same way we humans do per Isaiah 55:8-9. This temple was not more glorious because it was as elaborate. It may have been more glorious because it represented the work of God under adversity. By the way, once this work was finished, God promised to provide blessings to His people (Haggai 2:19).”
Crackpot Bob has long believed he is operating under adversity. Everyone, it seems—from Church of God members, LCG ministers, UCG ministers, Google, YouTube, this blog, and more—is constantly making his life difficult.
What this all boils down to is the longtime COG weapon: proper church government is not being followed! For shame! Don’t all of you backsliding Laodiceans know that the improperly named “Continuing” Church of God is the final resting place of proper church government?
Crackpot Bob is also back to calling himself the modern-day Zerubbabel.
“In Haggai we see that someone who saw the old temple and only had a remnant would lead the work of God at the end:
2″Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people, saying: 3 ‘Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? In comparison with it, is this not in your eyes as nothing? 4 Yet now be strong, Zerubbabel,’ says the Lord; ‘and be strong, Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; and be strong, all you people of the land,’ says the Lord, ‘and work; for I am with you,’ says the Lord of hosts. 5 ‘According to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, so My Spirit remains among you; do not fear!’ 6 “For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; 7 and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts. 8 ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts. 9 ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the Lord of hosts.” (Haggai 2:2-9)
How do we know this is a prophecy for the end time? Because verses 6 (shaking the heaven and earth, cf. Revelation 16:18-20) , 7 (all nations did not come to Jerusalem, cf. Zechariah 14:16), and 9 (peace, cf. Zechariah 9:10) were not fulfilled at the time of Haggai. There are also parallels with the Laodiceans not accepting biblical hierarchy as well as not being hot about the work.
Do you have to see large things?
Do you despise the “small things” or do you rejoice in the work of what God is doing?
Although some in the past have claimed that the late Herbert W. Armstrong was Zerubbabel (and some, like David Pack, still make that claim), Herbert Armstrong is dead and did not finish the work (just before he died, on January 10, 1986, he wrote, “The greatest work lies ahead”). Yet, since the Bible says that Zerubbabel will finish the work, this cannot be a reference to Herbert Armstrong. The work will be finished by someone who saw the earlier work and temple, and survived past that to build a work again. Someone once part of the old Worldwide Church of God when Herbert Armstrong was alive.
Zerubbabel essentially restored the work of the second temple–the end time Zerubbabel is restoring the Philadelphian work.
It is obvious to all that the work of God at this time appears smaller than it was before–but the work is to be a spiritually strong one that reaches the world as a faithful witness.
We in the Continuing Church of God are aware that we do not have the personal and financial support of many who once said they would always support the work of God. But are you aware of the massive work, this end time ‘Zerubabbel work,’ that we are actually doing?
We in the Continuing Church of God are part of the ‘Zerubbabel work’ and preparing for the ‘short work’ that the Apostle Paul told of in Romans 9:28. And that the Continuing Church of God has been involved in the restoring of all things that Jesus taught would happen (Matthew 17:11) and Herbert W. Armstrong agreed needed to happen.”
It is an indisputable fact that Herbert Armstrong would never have recognized Bob as a minister or starting a new church splinter. HWA would have kicked his self-righteous ass to the curb so fast he would never have known what would have hit him. HWA despised self-righteous upstarts like Bwana Bob.
Crackpot Bob then goes on to claim he is doing a GREATER WORK than the old Worldwide Church of God ever did. Whoa! I just looked out the window and saw a herd of pigs flying by! It just goes to show what happens when one stops following Jesus and resorts to his own self-importance: he develops a reprobate mind. Not that Crackpot Bob ever really did follow Jesus.
Crackpot Bob then goes on to discuss why there is no unity in the current splinterdom of the church. All of them refuse proper church government. It exists in only one COG dispensation, and that is in the improperly named “Continuing” Church of God that is led by God’s most perfect prophet ever to walk this green earth. No COG group is more perfect than his.
“…according to Herbert W. Armstrong that organization had to have hierarchical governance.
Herbert W. Armstrong stated:
God …, He has always carried out through one man. … God chose ONE MAN, … one man, Zerubbabel, was governor and leader. … The Philadelphia era was to take on new life, vigor and vitality, restoring truths that had been lost. … Again God raised up one man through whom the living Christ would work. … ALWAYS God, in using MAN, has dealt through ONE MAN at a time. (Armstrong HW. The History of the Beginning and Growth of the Worldwide Church of God – Chapter 1. Good News, April 1980)
The government of God has been restored to the Church, and the government of God has been placed in the Church. You read that in Ephesians 4 and I Corinthians 12. Christ is the head of the Church and under Christ in the administration of the government are an apostle or apostles, then evangelists, then pastors, then all are called elders, all ministers all the way up clear down to the lowest. (Armstrong HW. Mission of the Philadelphia Church Era. Sermon given on December 17, 1983 in Pasadena, California)
In a sermon titled Rely on God, Herbert W. Armstrong said:
KEY ISSUE IS GOVERNMENT …
THE WHOLE THING WAS GOVERNMENT! THE THING THAT SATAN TOOK AWAY WAS GOVERNMENT. THE THING THAT CHRIST IS COMING TO RESTORE IS GOVERNMENT. AND WHAT HE RAISED ME UP FOR WAS TO RESTORE GOVERNMENT IN HIS CHURCH. And the whole test, the challenge in the first place …, was a point of government. (Armstrong HW. Rely on God. Sermon, April 6, 1985)
Notice that Herbert Armstrong said God raised him up to restore church government in His church. And he did, though most end time Christians do not accept that–at least not fully–which makes them lukewarm.
In his sermon titled Challenged on April 19, 1981, Herbert W. Armstrong plainly taught:
… the government of God has been established in the Philadelphia era of God’s church.
Do not let naysayers, grumblers, and accusers of the brethren convince you that you can reject and/or push aside proper hierarchical church governance and still be Philadelphian.
It is the rejection of true Philadelphian hierarchical governance that is why the flock is so scattered.
One of the reasons there is not the same physical temple and scope like the old Worldwide Church of God had is because the most faithful are to “walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).
Therefore, no major physical things like we saw last century are the criteria for God’s most faithful.
The issues are spiritual–and the gospel of the coming kingdom of God will reach the world as a witness to God’s satisfaction–as supported by the Philadelphian faithful–and then the end will come.
And that is part of why the glory of “the glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former.””
This is what happens when one bows down to the law and places it as the pinnacle of worship instead of following the ONE and resting in His presence. Christians submit only to Him and not some whack-a-doodle mini-me Armstrongite self-appointed COG leader.
Here is the utter blasphemy laid bare: Crackpot Bob Thiel has the breathtaking gall to crown himself the modern-day Zerubbabel—the very man God used to rebuild the temple after the Babylonian exile—and to declare that his pathetic little storefront operation is the “latter temple” whose glory will exceed the old WCG’s. He hijacks Scripture, twists HWA’s own words about “one man” government, and turns a biblical remnant story into a divine endorsement of his personal ego trip. This is not prophecy; it is idolatry of the highest order—self-worship dressed up in prophetic robes.
The real danger of submitting to any human-made organization that demands absolute obedience to its form of government is that it inevitably separates you from Christ Himself. When a group insists that loyalty to its “hierarchical governance,” its self-appointed “apostle,” or its “proper church government” is the litmus test of faithfulness, it has replaced the Head of the Church with a counterfeit. Jesus warned us about this: “Call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven” (Matthew 23:9). He is the only Mediator. The moment you hand your conscience, your wallet, and your spiritual allegiance over to a man who claims exclusive divine appointment, you have stepped away from the narrow gate and onto the broad road of spiritual tyranny. History is littered with the wreckage of such systems—control, fear, financial exploitation, and the slow erosion of personal relationship with the living Christ. You end up serving an organization instead of the Savior.
In the end, Crackpot Bob’s entire Zerubbabel fantasy is a textbook case of what happens when a man stops looking to Jesus and starts looking in the mirror for his validation. He has built a miniature empire on the backs of the gullible, all while sneering at every other COG group for refusing to bow to his “government.” The sarcasm writes itself: the guy who can’t get anyone outside his tiny circle to take him seriously claims he is finishing a greater work than HWA ever did—while HWA himself would have booted him out the door faster than you can say “self-righteous upstart.”
True faith has never needed a storefront temple, a self-proclaimed prophet, or a demand for blind obedience. It needs only Christ—the real Head, the real High Priest, and the real finisher of the work. Anything else is just another golden calf with a “Church of God” sign slapped on it. Walk away from the idolatry, rest in the finished work of the cross, and let the true Zerubbabel—the Lord Jesus Himself—build what truly matters.
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