Philadelphia Church of God and its Ineffectual witness

 

As rumors continue to swirl about the declining health of Gerald Flurry, the showpiece of the Philadelphia Church of God, its website, is a sad mess these days.

It is much like Bwana Bob Thiel's sites where everything imaginable is discussed instead of Jesus and the New Covenant.

The PCG website now has such mind-altering articles to edify the brethren as:

Why Men Should Read Jane Austen
PCG Foods: Mayonnaise
PCG Foods: Romano Artichoke
Looking for Leavening
Amazon and the Chocolate Fountain
Will China Attack America?
How Lightning Works
Your Best Bet: Sports betting

PCG Foods: Unleavened Whole Wheat Honey Rolls
Just How ‘New’ Is New Year’s?
What Is the Unpardonable Sin?
PCG Foods: Chocolate Fruit Slice
How God Educates ( a slobberfest on HWA College)
Mother’s Day Flower Sale Unifies Florida Members
Central Arkansas Members Raise Thousands

PCG Foods: Ahi Tuna Poké Bowl

Australasian Fundraiser Brings in Tens of Thousands
Member Experiences Healing Years After Anointing
Members Avoid Deadly Collision
PCG Foods: Orange-Honey Ginger Carrots

The last "real" article by Gerald was in April at Passover time and that was a repeat of previous years. The other articles are filled with Wayne Turgeon's silliness and articles by younger HQ employees on general topics on food, church activities, and such. Nowhere is Jesus discussed and particularly any aspect of the New Covenant. 

Also, glaringly missing is all of the information on the Irish dance show they tour the country with. That is mainly kept to the Twitter account now since so many members question why hundreds of thousands of dollars are being dumped into it every year. They pretend it is a gospel message they are delivering, but it is nothing more than a showcase for Flurry's grandchildren to show their expertise in dancing.

It is interesting watching the waning days of Armstrongism as these groups who proclaim they are the best COG ever slowly dissolve into irrelevancy.

Real African Pastor Shows Bob Thiel How To Really Do Ministry

 

We have all watched as The Great Bwana Mzungu to Africa, Bob Thiel, has relentlessly regaled us with myths and stories about how superfantaulous his African churches and leadership are. This blog and other Sabbatarian groups have let the Great Bwana Mzungu know that he has been participating in a con game with his leadership, but he doesn't care. Numbers matter more than integrity. While the regular members are most likely very sincere and devoted to God, it is the leadership of the improperly named "continuing" Church of "god" that is being called into question, particularly its so-called "evangelist" and its Chief Overseer, the Bob himself.

There was a news article today about a man from Florida who ministers in Africa. It is a fascinating story about how to do real ministry in Africa and how NOT to do the so-called ministry style of The Great Bwana to Africa, Bob Thiel.

Nigeria Tribune: Nigerians are religious but not living full life of Christ —Reverend Oni

How will you describe your missionary journey?

I see it as a divine mandate from God and He has been guiding my steps since I embarked on the mission.  I reside in Florida; the United States of America and I have been living there for 21 years. Before that, I lived for 10 years in the United Kingdom. I left Nigeria in May 1992. By God’s grace, I am a trained pharmacist, but God needed me most as an itinerary missionary, so, I could not reject His ordinance. We have planted about 42 churches in Malawi and Mozambique. We also have some installation centres here in Ibadan, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, South Africa. I travel around visiting Europe, especially the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland where we preach. I visit our churches in Malawi and Mozambique twice in a year to do training for pastors as well as organise programmes for the churches. It is the turn of Nigeria. We are visiting our missionary installation centres in Oyo, Kwara and Ekiti, Ogun and Plateau states.

Notice how Rev. Oni regularly travels to train his ministers, something the Great Bwana does NOT do. 

He goes on to describe that he does NOT allow his ministers to mismanage money nor ASK for money. Bwana Bob has been an epic failure in this as his so-called evangelists regularly beg for money from Bwana Bob and OTHER Sabbatrain ministries after they have grossly mismanaged their congregations and finances. 

How has the experience been in the vineyard?

I have been a pastor since 1993. I started pastoring in the United States in 2021. The experience has been good. It gives me the opportunity to actually live a Christ-like life and we try not to emulate the patterns of the world in what we do, rather we support and develop ministers to become self-sufficient and rely on the word of God. We don’t allow our pastors to mismanage the congregation as well as solicit for money, but we support them out of what God has blessed us with. We establish and support them.

Soliciting money also means forcing members into believing they are required to tithe.

How were you able to combine pharmacy with pastoring and how were you convinced that it is your calling?

God has been helping us in creating a balance. I have been able to work on my schedule. The work of God hardly clashes with my business, and I have also made sure that both must not affect each other.  Also, I was convinced that it was a calling because it gives me pleasure and doing it without soliciting for help, though people give when they see the need to support.  Presently, a woman is building a school for us on our church property in Malawi. This is because she saw a lot of the young generation suffering and lacking access to quality education, especially the women. They are made to embrace early marriage because the secondary school is far and when they complete their primary school, they give them out in marriage. Also, a man who owns an event centre in Ibadan and his wife have been with us in Malawi and they have supported the missionary work in many ways. We are very happy with the result so far and we bless God for all the support coupled with the great work He has placed in our hands.

I want to use this medium to tell pastors in Nigeria that being a cleric does not mean you should be collecting money from people through manipulation or lies. They will genuinely support if they see what God is doing in the ministry. 

This is exactly why tithing is NOT required in the New Covenant. Believers will genuinely support a ministry that they see doing a real work and that is touching people's lives. Forced tithing does not do this. It only leads to bankrupting followers. 

People do not voluntarily give to the Great Bwana Mzungu Thiel because they do not see Godly actively working through him. Plus, printing hundreds of booklets in hundreds of languages is NOT preaching a gospel. It is nothing more than putting ink on paper, an ineffective way of spreading the gospel. Again, it is all about numbers instead of truth. The gospel is spread through the personal lives of people and how they put their faith into action in the world around them. When people see that they are intrigued and ask questions. A real follower of Jesus will then share their beliefs without using idiotic booklets and animations as their fall guy. No one can be converted by a preacher bouncing and flailing his arms while seated in a chair in front of faded curtains, creased canvas banners, and crooked bookcases.

Imagine Bwana Bob Mzungu's evangelists doing the following:

How will you describe the gospel in the African countries you have been to compared to Nigeria?

It is the same. We have disciples that we train. They go to school and they come back to be evangelists and some are studying nursing. We encourage them to have their businesses, unlike what is rampant in Nigeria today where many pastors only depend on money from the church.

Bwana Bob's evangelists beg for money so they can eat in front of other church members in fancy restaurants while not talking to them about the gospel. Such a sterling example of spreading the gospel message! Bwana Bob is never going to live that one down!

Rev. Oni continues on revealing how well he knows Africa and its people, unlike Bob Thiel who sits in his fancy home on the central coast trying to act important and how fabulous he is as an African church leader. Bwana Mzungu could learn a few lessons at this Rev. Oni's feet.

Do you agree with the view that Nigeria is the leading country in the propagation of the gospel?

Where is the fruit for it? The way I will feel safe somewhere like Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, South Africa is not the same way in Nigeria. People are so greedy and self- centred. No fear of God. This is why the lives of people are not transformed. There is no decorum in Nigeria. People are ready to kill for money, even as low as it may be. Many Nigerians are not law-abiding, no regard for human life and this is actually happening in the church of God. Yes, Nigerians are religious, but not living the full life of Christ. The name Christians were given by unbelievers when they saw their way of life. We are to be the light, but we don’t have the same opportunity in Nigeria. We Christians are not good examples to our environments. When I was a student at the University of Ife in the early 80s, there was a love of humanity.

I will have to blame some of the ways we Christians have commercialised gospel and how we have turned it to business. It is supposed to be a business for God in order to draw them closer to Him  as well as to populate the kingdom. This is why you see all manners of ungodly things pastors do to draw crowd to their ministries.  We are supposed to be the shining light.

Sady we have witnessed over the last several years the darkness that fills Bwana Bob Mzungu's African church and its leadership. They along with the Great Bwana Mzungu are NOT shining lights for the gospel. They aren't even shining lights for their so-called kingdom to come.

Rev. Oni continues on:

What do you think can be done to address this?

We need to go back to the grassroots. We must shun competition in the vineyard. Let people see us as genuine Christians and put their trust in God.

Competion in Church of Godland has been appalling. That is all any of them are good at. It is a constant battle of one-upmanship on who is doing the greater "work". The incessant bragging is revolting and a slap in the face of the One they claim to follow. COG leaders, even pit congregations against each other when they try and make them see who can raise the most money or submit the most offerings. Such disgusting behavior.

This pastor knows exactly what he needs to accomplish to make these people followers of the Word.

What are the major challenges in the missionary work?

It took us time to change the orientation of people, especially in the poorest countries. We always train then to depend on the work of the heart and to stop begging. We also, gave the hope that God can turn their lives around if the depend on Him. To the glory of God many of them are now successful businessmen and women. We have successful change the orientation of people to depend totally on God and not man. Though it is very difficult to change the orientation of people, through the help of God we have been able to achieve that.

The Great Bwana to Africa and 100 Caucasians does NONE of this. It is all about promoting himself and talking about how great of a work he is doing instead of changing people's lives. This is why Bob has been such an epic failure in Africa and Malawi.

 

 

 

CGI’s Jeff Reed Makes the Case for Christian Sabbath Observance?

Illustration from the first engraved Christian Bible in Russian (1696), 

depicting God reposing on Sabbath.

 

CGI’s Jeff Reed Makes the Case for Christian Sabbath Observance?

Lonnie Hendrix

In response to my posting “Do the ACOGs really obey God’s Law?” on “Fellowship – Social Media for the Church of God,” Jeff Reed posted some remarks which will be excerpted below. 

“Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” 

Notice that Christ said “anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands” or as the ESV renders it: “whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments.” Hence, Mr. Reed makes my argument about the validity of the changes/modifications which Armstrong introduced, and his followers have imitated! Moreover, he conveniently ignores that Matthew records in this same passage that Christ said that he came here to FULFILL the Law and the prophets (5:17). And, he went on to say that “not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” (Verse 18) Did you get that “NOT AN IOTA, NOT A DOT.” Of course, we all know that Christ did accomplish all – that he did FULFILL the Law and the prophets!

In an article in the CGI Atlanta newsletter, I wrote:

As a Sabbath keeper, I am usually perceived by non-Sabbath-keeping Christians as a legalist, outdated, or not fully understanding grace. They believe that the Fourth Commandment has either been done away, changed, or is kept by Jesus living in us. In this article, I don’t want to look at why those arguments are flawed. Instead, I believe it would be more constructive to focus on seven New Testament reasons Christians should keep the Sabbath.

1. Jesus kept the Sabbath. We read many accounts that Jesus was always teaching on the Sabbath. Sometimes He would explain a spiritual truth through healing. On one occasion, He explains a misunderstanding that arose concerning His disciples picking grain. He was teaching through example and focusing on a proper understanding of the Fourth Commandment. Luke 4:16 clearly states that “as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.” A custom is an established observance that brings meaning into our life. Jesus’ custom started at creation and continued in His human life. “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked” (1 John 2:6). I’m pretty sure that includes His customs. 

Yes, Jesus observed the Sabbath. He and his first disciples were Jewish! Also, this statement ignores the elephant in the room – Jesus had to fulfill the Torah, and the Sabbath is an INTEGRAL component of Torah! And, yes, Christ expected his followers to follow HIS instructions, example, and commandments. Notice again, however, that Christ fulfilled the requirements of Torah for us and summarized it into two great universal principles for his disciples to follow as an expression of the new life which his work had given to them, and he gave them the Holy Spirit to help them accomplish that. Hence, although the foreskin of Christ’s penis was circumcised in accordance with Torah, his male followers would NOT be expected to follow his example in this regard. Paul told the Romans that Christian circumcision was of the heart – an internal, spiritual manifestation of the physical type.

2. Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath. The observances we keep reflect the God we serve. Many different religions have different practices and ceremonies honoring their gods. What Christians observe should honor our God. One of Jesus’ Sabbath lessons ended with him concluding, “Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:28). By keeping this day, we are declaring that Jesus is our Lord. It is a way we honor and worship Him. 

Yes, Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath – meaning it is his to do with as he sees fit. Christ said: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”  (Matthew 11:28-20) Likewise, in the epistle to the Hebrews, we read: “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.” (4:10) For Christians, Christ is our Sabbath! We accept what he has done for us, and we rest from our own works.

3. The Sabbath was made for us. Also, as part of this same lesson to the Pharisees, He explains that “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). We are physical creatures, and we often find ourselves tired or weary from the challenges of life. The Sabbath was created to give us rest. It gives us the opportunity to recharge so that we can function correctly the other six days of the week. It is how the Creator made us. It is a wonderful gift from God that we should rejoice at the wisdom He had in its creation. Importantly, you can only understand how great this gift is by keeping it. 

Yes, the Sabbath was made for us. God sent Christ into the world to give us rest – to be our Sabbath. HE is the one who will ultimately give us all rest from the weariness and challenges of this human life. This is infinitely superior to a physical rest every seven days.

4. The Apostle Paul kept the Sabbath. “Then Paul, as his custom was, went into them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures” (Acts 17:2). On several occasions, we see Paul keeping the Sabbath. This is the same man who wrote 28 percent of the New Testament. In his letters, he continually emphasized the importance of keeping the law for Christians, not for the purpose of salvation but in response to our salvation through Christ. “Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good” (Romans 7:12). He was a Sabbath keeper and understood its importance in our relationship with Jesus. 

Yes, the Apostle Paul (along with the other apostles) observed the Sabbath. Like Jesus, they were observant Jews! In other words, we would expect to find them observing the Sabbath, and we do! Frankly, the suggestion that this fact proves that their Gentile followers were expected to do the same is quite a leap in logic. Indeed, the fifteenth chapter of Acts makes it very plain that Gentile Christians would NOT be required to adopt the Jewish covenant to be accepted as disciples of Jesus Christ. And, since I just invoked the Jerusalem Council, and I am very familiar with my former culture’s arguments in this regard, a preemptive word is in order. In short, it is fiction, pure and simple, to suggest that that council was just dealing with the question of Gentile circumcision. Indeed, we read in that account that: “But some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, ‘It is necessary to circumcise them AND TO ORDER THEM TO KEEP THE LAW OF MOSES.” (15:5)

5. Luke directly refers to the Sabbath commandment. In the book of Luke, we learn that the women who were at the crucifixion of Jesus afterward prepared spices and fragrant oils to anoint His body. Then “they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment” (Luke 23:56). Luke wrote this account at least thirty years later. Notice that he does not refer to it as “the former Sabbath” or “the Jewish Sabbath” but as a commandment in the present tense. And this was after Jesus’ crucifixion, a point in time when some believed the commandment was changed. 

Once again, of course, the women “rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment” – they were Jews, and Christ hadn’t yet been resurrected! By the way, the New Testament makes plain that Jewish Christians continued to observe the Sabbath and Holy Days – culturally, they were still Jews! Even so, there is no indication in the New Testament that Gentiles EVER adopted this custom/tradition.

6. Jesus’ instruction shows that the Sabbath will be important in the future. In referring to the future event that will precede great tribulation, Jesus advises to “pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath” (Matthew 24:20). If there was no longer going to be a Sabbath command after His resurrection, why would He make this statement? The answer is simple. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). 

Christ’s remarks in the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew constitute his response to a number of questions from his followers. Having just told them that the Temple complex would be destroyed, they asked: “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” (Verses 1-3) Hence, whether Christ was referring to the destruction of the Temple or the events preceding his return, he makes clear that those widely separated events would happen in the context of the Promised Land. In other words, the immediate impact would fall on Jewish folks who observed the Sabbath. Even so, the Sabbath is mentioned in connection with Winter – Hence, in this respect, we can see that Christ intended these references as being indicative of times that would produce hardships for folks who would find themselves in the middle of those events. In other words, it is a stretch to suggest that this reference indicates that Gentile Christians in other parts of the world would still be observing the Sabbath. And, yes, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. The Sabbath pointed to him – a symbol of what was to follow. Thus, Jesus Christ was the reality when God gave this command to the Israelites, and he remained the reality after he had fulfilled it and paid the penalty for our sins. In fact, it would be highly inappropriate and irresponsible to characterize Hebrews 13:8 as a limitation on Christ’s role as Lord of the Sabbath.

7. Sabbath keeping remains for the people of God. “There remains therefore a rest for the people of God” (Hebrews 4:9). This verse can be easily overlooked as supporting the Sabbath because the Greek word sabbatismos is translated as rest. Some Bible translations translate it more correctly as “sabbath rest.” When this word is used in other ancient Greek literature, it usually means a “keeping of the Sabbath.” So Hebrews 4:9 essentially says that “there remains a keeping of the Sabbath for the people of God.” This emphasizes the theme found in Hebrews 4, connecting the seventh-day rest with the rest that comes as we are diligently obedient to Christ. 

Once again, the rest which remains for the people of God is found in Jesus Christ. We keep that Sabbath by accepting what Christ has done on our behalf and resting from our own works – period!

According to Jeff, 

These are seven New Testament reasons for Christians to keep the Sabbath.

Now, although I have just demonstrated that none of these seven reasons justify requiring Christ’s disciples to keep/observe the literal weekly Sabbath, we should note that there is absolutely nothing wrong with a Christian continuing to observe that day. That is, as long as they: acknowledge that: 1) it is not a requirement for Christians, and 2) doing so will not earn them salvation or a place in God’s Kingdom. Christians are NOT under the Law – they are not obligated to obey the dos and don’ts of Torah (the commandments and rituals outlined as part of God’s covenant with Israel – what we refer to as the OLD Covenant). Instead, as disciples of Jesus Christ, we are expected to obey Christ’s condensation of the Law into two great principles. In conclusion, it is extremely misleading to characterize Christ’s work as having abolished the Law. Nevertheless, he did transform/change it, and we must never forget that he is the embodiment of it.