Gerald Weston: Lentil Soup, Satan's Tool For Keeping You Out Of The Kingdom

Gerald Weston has an article up on the Living Church of God member site (Choose life over lentils) trying to encourage LCG members to "fight the good fight" and stay loyal to the LCG, otherwise, you most likely will be eating Satan's lentil soup.

How many have we known along the way who dropped out of the race? What form of lentil soup were they pursuing? What difficulty was so great that they would toss in the towel and give up eternal life? Clearly, they lost the vision or never had it. Sadly, most never realized the gravity of the choice they were making. What about you? Do you recognize how the little decisions each day—whether to pray, whether to study, whether to fast, whether to give of yourself for others—all add up to whether you are choosing eternal life or lentil soup?

What Weston fails to realize is that those who leave the LCG are NOT turning their backs on eternal life, or freedom in Christ, or any other thing you want to call it.  The fact is their very life may depend upon leaving LCG!  Sanity and human dignity are required by many to make that choice compared to remaining shackled to the legalistic mumbo-jumbo that the church passes off as "truth."

Weston starts his article off in typical COG fashion, continually ingraining in members that their salvation is forfeited if they leave the church.

 Make Your Decisions with Care

The Bible reveals that the decisions we make today should be made with care, as they may carry with them long-term consequences. Esau realized too late that his birthright was of far greater value than a bowl of soup. He was tired and hungry. How could he know? Then again, how could he not know? God tells us he despised his birthright and, “afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears” (Hebrews 12:17). As we are told in Genesis 27:38, “And Esau lifted up his voice and wept.” The die was cast! Imagine what it will be like in the resurrection when he realizes, to a degree he could never understand in his lifetime, the value of that bowl of lentils: the incredible real estate later given to the sons of Joseph! 

Weston goes on to state that those who leave the church have no vision in their life, who gave up on the church and therefore have turned their back on Weston's god.

Yet there are those who have little vision and who trade away the Kingdom of God for today’s lentil soup. Luke 9:57–62 gives three examples of men called to follow Christ, but who apparently chose to act on other priorities. While the rewards of discipleship are wonderful beyond our imagination, the immediate cost can be significant to mere humans such as you and me. This is why we are told we must “count the cost,” and why we normally review Luke 14:26 and the verses that follow prior to baptizing someone. For Jesus declared, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.” We understand that “hate” here means to “love less by comparison,” yet some have been forced to choose between a spouse and obedience to God. Others have had to make a choice that disappoints and angers their parents. And how many have lost jobs or been passed over for promotions for following God’s Truth? 

The church has always held up as "spiritual martyr's" those that leave spouses or their jobs in order to belong to the church. If the church was actually a new covenant church then this would NEVER be an issue.  These so-called "martyr's" ruined some part of their lives because they followed men who placed more importance upon the rules and their own man-made interpretations than following a life of grace, mercy and freedom.  Freedom is anathema in the Church of God.  How dare people want to be free from the shackles of the law! How dare they might possibly screw things up in life and move onward without fear, instead of wallowing in guilt and shame. Damn Jesus for ever giving a hint of the concept where grace, mercy and love trump the law.

Then Weston makes the following absurd statement:

None of this should come as a surprise to those who read the scriptures, but did we ever hear a sermon on this subject in the churches that some of us once attended? I never did! And what about this passage? “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:34–37). We should never take these words lightly or think that Jesus did not mean them!

I don't know what planet he was on, but this has been the ongoing message the church has pawned off on members for decades.  The god that the church has always preferred is the god who was coming with a sword, the god that is eternally pissed off, and the god who is filled with extreme wrath.

Be damned the good Samaritan who helps the person by the side of the road. Be damned the person who reaches out a hand to the prostitute and makes them a person of worth.  Be damned the person who cooks a meal for a homeless person on the street. Jesus screwed up the picture and COG leaders are not happy about it.

Because Weston and his cronies have turned their backs on new covenant understanding, they have to continually be in a battle fighting for their salvation. It is exhausting work for these guys, as they have been doing it for 40/50/60 some years. For a person who understands the new covenant they know that the battle has been fought, victory has been accomplished and peace is found in being at rest, knowing they no longer have to fight.  The good fight has been fought and won.

Weston ends using one more dose of fear. Anyone that dares to leave the church will be wailing and gnashing their teeth over that decision at some point in the future.

There are several references in the New Testament describing a future day when some will weep and gnash their teeth over the poor decisions they made. They will only understand after gaining a glimpse into what they traded away. Right now, we do not know all that God has in mind for His faithful children. How can we know? We are physical, mortal beings. God is Spirit and eternal. But we can trust our Heavenly Father. And we can do as Moses, who chose “rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward” (Hebrews 11:25–26, KJV).

Weston and his ilk in the COG want church members to continue to trust like Moses instead of trusting like Jesus did. They never seem to say much about anything the dude did, but sure love to talk about Jewish heroes. Because that misplaced devotion is on rules, Weston and the LCG cannot for upon spiritual and eternal things that make new covenant Christians perfectly at peace and perfectly comfortable LEAVING the LCG.

No one's salvation is at stake for leaving the Living Church of God. God is not going to damn you to the lake of fire. In fact, your very life may depend upon leaving the church, given the bloody track record of LCG history.

LCG Members Now Being Encouraged To Go To Satan's Colleges/Universities In Order To Earn Higher Incomes So They Can Give More To The Church

The Chruch of God has a rich history in disdaining and mocking higher education.  It was always labelled higher education as Satan's education in Satan's colleges and schools.  Part of that disdain came from Herbert Armstrong being ridiculed by his peers for not having a college education.  In his proud, arrogant and boastful mindset, he set about to prove them all wrong by spending countless hours parked in public libraries when he should have been out working at a job and providing for his family.  Armstrong also felt that by associating and being seen with highly successful business men, interviewing them and emulating them, would make him look more educated than he actually was.

Church members were conditioned to look upon the Ambassador Colleges as God's colleges and therefore anything outside of Ambassador was Satan's colleges.  The teachers at Ambassador went out of their way to reinforce to the students that they were at GOD'S COLLEGE and that their education was something more special and elite than anything they could ever receive in the outside world.  That was why they called the Pasadena college the Church of God's version of West Point.

Today in 2017, with several of the splinter groups running one room school house "colleges/universities" in their office buildings, that mindset still prevails.

Doug Winnail is determined to stop that way of thinking, at least in the Living Church of God.  Like everything in Armstrongism, there is an ulterior motive to his thinking.  With church members being educated in worldly colleges/universities or attending good trade colleges, members would have higher incomes and therefore have more money to send into HQ.  Church members should never forget that Meredith and McNair boys need to have expensive yearly paid vacations Feast trips to exotic locales.

The Value of Education: Over the years, some have concluded that getting an education is of little value to Christians. Since Satan is the god of this world, and Christians are commanded to come out of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4; 6:14-18), some have assumed that getting an education in this world is ungodly and/or a waste of time. Such ideas overlook how God has used individuals who were schooled in this world. Moses was raised as a prince in Egypt and was “learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians” (Acts 7:22). Solomon was knowledgeable in many areas (1 Kings 4:32-34), and he collected wise sayings in the book of Proverbs. Daniel was one of several intelligent young Jewish captives who were educated in Babylon “in the language and literature of the Chaldeans” before they were used by God (Daniel 1:3-4). Paul studied at the feet of Gamaliel, the leading rabbi of his day (Acts 5:34-39; 22:3), before being used by God to write 14 books in the New Testament. Numerous studies show that more education and training in a trade result in larger incomes, and this enables Christians to provide better for their families and support for the Work of the Church. Christians who understand the Truth of God and the Plan of God should take advantage of the opportunities to gain an education and marketable skills that will help them prepare to serve others now and in the Kingdom of God. This is one of the reasons why we developed Living University—to help God’s people prepare to lead and teach in Tomorrow’s World.

Have a profitable Sabbath,

Douglas S. Winnail

It's always about the money.

LCG Dream Team turns into MASSIVE dud in Manhatten

From an LCG source:

It looks like our new dynamic leader is not the big draw he thought he would be in Manhatteen.  Could part of the reason be is that he paired up with Jonathan McNair?  Two uber-legalistic gestapo agents in the same room is not appealing to anyone, including LCG members who did not turn out to support this appearance.

Typical of a lacklustre ministry, they blamed the low turnout on something else other than their boring personalities and topic. It was those damn bikes in the city again!!!

You will notice that Weston does not list how many attended either session.  This is partly because this blog made fun of their last few failures. You continue to be a thorn in their privileged backsides.

With Mr Meredith days from dying, Weston is trying to make a name for himself and ends up failing every single time.  Members are waiting for Mr Meredith to die and when that happens you can expect people to start jumping ship into other COG's.

Last weekend Jonathan McNair and I gave a Tomorrow’s World Presentation in Manhattan, New York. The attendance was short of what we expected as there was a bike tour going on that cut off easy access to the hotel for many, including some members. Nevertheless, the afternoon session, which we billed to be for those who wanted to get further involved in this Work, went very well and we believe some will do exactly that. Mr. Rod McNair recorded a Tomorrow’s World telecast titled, “Hope for the Next Generation.” We are preparing for Living University graduation and Council of Elders meetings this coming week. Mr. Lambert Greer, Mideast United States Regional Director, is scheduled to give the sermon in Charlotte this week. Dr. Meredith continues to grow weaker and your prayers for him and for his family are appreciated at this trying time. Please remember to pray for God’s guidance upon the Council meetings coming up and for His protection for all those traveling for them.—Gerald Weston