How Bob Thiel, Gerald Flurry, David C. Pack, and the rest of the Armstrongist remnant industry turn one verse of comfort into a divine right to look down on every other Christian alive - including those in other COG groups.
Luke 12:32 contains one of the kindest things Jesus ever said: “Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
He was calming a small, frightened group of disciples. “You’re vulnerable, but the Father delights to give you the Kingdom anyway. Stop worrying.”
That’s it. No prophecy about 21st-century church corporations. No license for spiritual superiority. Just reassurance from the Good Shepherd.
But in the hands of Armstrongist leaders, this verse becomes something very different: proof that their tiny group is the special, chosen remnant while almost everyone else who claims the name of Christ is deceived, compromised, or simply irrelevant to what God is really doing.
And the scam isn’t limited to one man.
Bob Thiel of the Continuing Church of God loves this verse. He repeatedly uses “Fear not, little flock” to comfort his followers while positioning CCOG as the current “Philadelphia remnant” — the most faithful continuation of the true Church. According to Thiel, his group alone traces the unbroken line back to Acts, restores “all things,” and represents the humble little flock that God is truly pleased to give the Kingdom.
Never mind that his group is still tiny on a global scale. Never mind the endless splintering. Never mind that he left the Living Church of God claiming they had lost the “mantle.” The message is clear: recognize CCOG as the faithful remnant or risk being outside the circle of God’s special favor.
The sheer arrogance is breathtaking. While pretending humility, Thiel and his followers look down on billions of sincere Christians — and even other Church of God groups — as less faithful, less Philadelphian, or simply not “the work” God is using today.
And, it's just not Bob, it's the entire Armstrongist splinter industry.
Gerald Flurry and the Philadelphia Church of God do it with even more authoritarian flair. Flurry claims his group is the true continuation of Herbert Armstrong’s Philadelphia era. PCG literature and The Key of David program hammer the idea that only they are faithfully keeping the truth while the rest of Christianity (and most other COGs) have gone astray.
Disfellowshipping and shunning are common tools to keep the “little flock” pure. The message to members: stay inside this tiny, tightly controlled group or you’re risking your eternal future.
David C. Pack and the Restored Church of God take the arrogance to cartoonish levels. Pack has declared himself the final Elijah, “Joshua the High Priest,” and various other end-time titles while setting (and failing) dozens of dates for Christ’s return to Wadsworth, Ohio. His group remains minuscule, yet he speaks as though God’s entire plan hinges on his tiny work. The “little flock” language fits perfectly into his narcissistic framework: only the truly faithful (i.e., those still following Pack after every failed prediction) are part of the real remnant. Everyone else — including former members and other COGs — is dismissed as Laodicean or worse.
United Church of God presents a more polished, “reasonable” face, but the underlying theology is the same. They teach that the true Church of God is the remnant that understands and keeps the Sabbath, Holy Days, and other distinctive doctrines. Other Christians are viewed as part of false or incomplete Christianity. While UCG is larger than some splinters, they still lean on the “faithful remnant in a deceived world” narrative to justify separation and a sense of special calling.
Living Church of God plays the same game. After Roderick Meredith’s death, the group continued the pattern of positioning itself as the faithful continuation of the Philadelphia work. Ironically, Bob Thiel left LCG precisely because he believed they had lost the mantle — proving that the “we are the true little flock” claim is infinitely splinterable. Each new group simply declares the previous one compromised while anointing itself as the real remnant.
The pattern is identical across the board: take a verse about Jesus comforting scared disciples, turn it into proof of organizational exclusivity, and use it to devalue every other believer on the planet.
David C. Pack and the Restored Church of God take the arrogance to cartoonish levels. Pack has declared himself the final Elijah, “Joshua the High Priest,” and various other end-time titles while setting (and failing) dozens of dates for Christ’s return to Wadsworth, Ohio. His group remains minuscule, yet he speaks as though God’s entire plan hinges on his tiny work. The “little flock” language fits perfectly into his narcissistic framework: only the truly faithful (i.e., those still following Pack after every failed prediction) are part of the real remnant. Everyone else — including former members and other COGs — is dismissed as Laodicean or worse.
United Church of God presents a more polished, “reasonable” face, but the underlying theology is the same. They teach that the true Church of God is the remnant that understands and keeps the Sabbath, Holy Days, and other distinctive doctrines. Other Christians are viewed as part of false or incomplete Christianity. While UCG is larger than some splinters, they still lean on the “faithful remnant in a deceived world” narrative to justify separation and a sense of special calling.
Living Church of God plays the same game. After Roderick Meredith’s death, the group continued the pattern of positioning itself as the faithful continuation of the Philadelphia work. Ironically, Bob Thiel left LCG precisely because he believed they had lost the mantle — proving that the “we are the true little flock” claim is infinitely splinterable. Each new group simply declares the previous one compromised while anointing itself as the real remnant.
The pattern is identical across the board: take a verse about Jesus comforting scared disciples, turn it into proof of organizational exclusivity, and use it to devalue every other believer on the planet.
This should be a giant warning flag.
When any religious leader or group repeatedly tells you:
“We are the little flock / faithful remnant”“God is only really working through us”“Everyone else is deceived or second-class”“Leaving us puts your spiritual life in danger”
…that is not biblical humility. That is a control tactic dressed up in sheep’s clothing.
It creates fear. It discourages critical thinking. It justifies authoritarian leadership, financial demands, and the shunning of anyone who questions the narrative. And it directly contradicts the New Testament picture of the Church as the diverse, worldwide body of Christ — not one tiny, self-appointed “remnant” corporation.
Jesus never said the true followers would always be a small, obscure group led by whichever man currently claims the “mantle.” He said His sheep would hear His voice and follow Him.
As New Covenant Christians, you do not need any of this nonsense.
Under the New Covenant, your standing with God does not depend on which Armstrongist splinter you managed to find or whether you recognize Bob Thiel, Gerald Flurry, or David Pack as the current leader of the “true work.”
Salvation and a relationship with God come through faith in Jesus Christ alone. The Good Shepherd knows His sheep personally. He does not require you to read cogwriter.com, watch The Key of David, or stay loyal to whichever group currently claims to be the Philadelphia remnant.
The Father’s good pleasure to give the Kingdom belongs to everyone who belongs to the Son — a much larger and more diverse flock than any of these leaders want to admit.
So let them keep fighting over who gets to be the “little flock” this month. You can follow the actual Good Shepherd without their permission slip, without their fear, and without their arrogance.
The real flock is far bigger — and far more gracious — than their tiny pens.
Under the New Covenant, your standing with God does not depend on which Armstrongist splinter you managed to find or whether you recognize Bob Thiel, Gerald Flurry, or David Pack as the current leader of the “true work.”
Salvation and a relationship with God come through faith in Jesus Christ alone. The Good Shepherd knows His sheep personally. He does not require you to read cogwriter.com, watch The Key of David, or stay loyal to whichever group currently claims to be the Philadelphia remnant.
The Father’s good pleasure to give the Kingdom belongs to everyone who belongs to the Son — a much larger and more diverse flock than any of these leaders want to admit.
So let them keep fighting over who gets to be the “little flock” this month. You can follow the actual Good Shepherd without their permission slip, without their fear, and without their arrogance.
The real flock is far bigger — and far more gracious — than their tiny pens.
But this post is not gracious though is it? Not to scripture. If you want to be in a far bigger flock, then why don't you go and stay there and leave the COG in peace?
ReplyDeleteEllen G White was a big user of this term little flock from Luke too. She even wrote ''A Word to the Little Flock'' (1847).
ReplyDeleteA whole lot of Adventist pioneers used it - so much so it was a defining text for the movement. They applied “little flock” to the small group of believers who remained faithful after the Great Disappointment, using the verse to encourage perseverance.
They were the true remnant and taught that being so special God would ultimately vindicate them. Not surprising at all it has been resurrected by the groups that succeeded Armstrong as they too feel the right to be vindicated.
" If you want to be in a far bigger flock, then why don't you go and stay there and leave the COG in peace?" The COG??? What COG? There's only 100's of splinters... Hi Bob!
ReplyDelete