LCG on the widow's mite and clergy abuse. WUT?

Living Church of God's Ken Frank has an entry up on LCG's "Living Education", that sad stepchild of the now-defunct Living Univerity. 

You remember Living University, don't you? It was that super amazing, mind-boggling institution of higher learning that was the best thing God had ever imagined on earth. They even brought back Michael Germano, the Chancellor of two previously failed universities to run it. Three's the charm, Bro!

Anyway, Frank's article is about "clergy abuse."  Seriously! 

LCG talking about clergy abuse, who would have ever imagined!  

Don't hold you breathe boys and girls, it's not about abusive LCG clergy, but those bad boy Pharisees. 

We all know that LCG clergy has NEVER been like those bad Pharisees! Have they?

David Guzik in his Enduring Word Commentary explained the widows’ poverty: “In that day, a Jewish teacher could not be paid for teaching – but he could receive gifts. Apparently, many scribes used flattery and manipulation to get big gifts from those who could least afford to give them – such as widows.” The scribes were highly respected in their society whether they deserved it or not. Jesus explained that at least some were less than honorable in their teachings that encouraged people to financially support them generously. Guzik continues: “The Jews of Jesus’ day taught that teachers were to be respected almost as God; they said that they deserved more honor and respect than any other people in life did. They taught that the greatest act someone could do is give money to a teacher. Of course, it was the teachers themselves who taught this!” 

Jesus commended this widow for giving more in proportion to the treasury than all the wealthier donors who gave of their abundance (literally, “superabundance”). According to the Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, “These rich men do not seem to have been observing the injunctions both sacred and Talmudic to give secretly, Mat. 6:4; Mat. 6:18.” By contrast, Jesus warned in His Sermon on the Mount against a loud, public display of one’s generosity: “Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward (Matthew 6:2).” Jesus’ words “do not sound a trumpet before thee” are explained by The Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary: “The expression is to be taken figuratively for blazoning it, Hence, our expression to ‘trumpet.'” These religious hypocrites did all they could to create an ostentatious display when they contributed to the treasury. 

No wonder Jesus denounced such hypocrites. Albert Barnes in his Notes on the Bible declared, “If there is any sin of special enormity, it is that of taking advantage of the circumstances of the poor, the needy, and the helpless, to wrong them out of the pittance on which they depend for the support of their families; and as God is the friend of the widow and the fatherless, it may be expected that such will be visited with heavy condemnation.” These sobering words warn every religious leader against uncaring fund-raising from impoverished donors, especially if the leader’s income depends on it.  We all will be wise to remember these words of the Psalms, “Sing unto God, sing praises to his name: extol him that rideth upon the heavens by his name JAH, and rejoice before him. A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in his holy habitation (Psalm 68:4-5).” 

No sirree! LCG would NEVER try and milk members down till they had nothing to give and still expect them to give. That would NEVER happen, would it? Three tithes, tithe of the tithe, building fund, special offerings, co-worker/member appeal letters, fast offerings, and "the final push". They would never abuse their own members into continually giving money, would they?

Which Church of God Would Jesus Choose?

When Jesus Christ returns to this earth many leaders in the Church of God seem to think he will be returning to their specific church.

Gerald Flurry has the new throne Jesus Christ will return to and sit upon in Oklahoma.  Dave Pack has the most superfantabulous church headquarters ever built in the entire history of civilization, THE place where Jesus Christ is coming to walk with Dave as they plan His 3rd coming.

What is a church member to do?  How will they know which church Jesus Christ approves of? Or, rather it should be asked, does he approve of any of them?

With the death of James Malm recently, the winnowing down on which is the true church keeps getting smaller and smaller.

Never fear though, we have a new animated video up to tell us WHICH Church of God Jesus Christ is most favorably impressed with.

I hate to post this so that he gains viewer clicks, but this is so incredibly STUPID and historically bad that it is beyond belief.  Bob Thiel plays himself in the animation.  Woah nellie, just take a listen!

Remember this is a man who claims to have a real Ph.D. from a real university where he had to defend his dissertation before a board of highly qualified men and women in the subject he supposedly has his doctorate in.  I have a feeling that when he thought he heard he would have to defend his dissertation he actually heard, "go to the dessert station." 

After listening to the above animation this man makes it quite clear he is NOT a speaker. This is the worst thing he has done.

It is no wonder Jesus has not returned if this is what he has to come back to!

BLM on the steps of the House of God

Herbert Armstrong is rolling in his grave right now.  Who would have ever imagined there would be Black Lives Matter events happening on the steps of his House to God?  One has to wonder what Armstrong's reaction would be to the current situation going on in the United States.  Of course, we know he would immediately blame Satan and then nonCOG members for not following the commands of his god. Because people are such degenerate sinners, God has to punish them.  We have let the gentiles take over. That's the well-worn mantra of the church leadership over the decades.

Anyway, the current owners of the auditorium, Harvest Rock Church, are calling for daily prayer meetings on the steps of the auditorium to address racism in our culture.

For eight days beginning on June 4, one for each minute of George Floyd ’s tragic death, Harvest Rock Church invited their diverse community and that of the city of Los Angeles to hold a one hour prayer at the steps of the Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena, California at 12 PM PST each day. “As a faith community commissioned with the call of reconciliation, let us lead in doing this with one another in order that we can pray and love our city better,” described Pastor Gwen Gibbons.

The prayer meetings called for peaceful universal unity through the body of Jesus Christ in response to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota who has become a symbol for racial injustice and police brutality. Members of the church’s community from diverse backgrounds have gathered daily on the steps of the church. Partakers opened up as they shared emotional stories of pain and suffering caused by racism and racial injustice. “Unity has been the foundation to every revival,” says Pastor Ché Ahn , senior pastor and founder of Harvest Rock Church. “We want to renounce racism, discrimination, and any form of prejudice,” the pastor added.

See the story here:

HARVEST ROCK CHURCH CALLS FOR DAILY PRAYER MEETINGS IN RESPONSE TO GLOBAL ANTI-RACISM MOVEMENT

LCG: Cannibal rats are here! Oh Noes!!!!!!!!

It must be tiresome to be living in such a state of fear as so many in the Churches of God are expected to be in all the time.  Anything church leaders can find to scare their members and keep them in line is useful to them.

Forget COVID-19 and the soon coming German armies that will put people in concentration camps.  That's just baby pablum! Cannibal rats are the new way to go.

Instead of the Germans killing babies in camps, rats will be eating the sinful children of the British Israelite nations alive. 

Cannibal Rats Emerging in Cities: It appears that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected more than just people and the economy. New research by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning of “‘unusual or aggressive’ behavior in American rats as a consequence of more than two months of human lockdown” (The Guardian, May 25, 2020). Urban rats that normally feed on food waste from restaurants and trash in the streets no longer have these food sources available to rely on.

Many rats have recently been observed feeding on each other or their own young. The Washington Post reports that unusually aggressive behaviors have been noticed in New York, New Orleans, and Chicago. The hungry rats are beginning to plague cars, as they consume engine components, tires, and wire casings, causing fires and costing car owners large sums of money in repairs or replacement (May 23, 2020). The Post also notes, “Rats can transmit food-borne illnesses such as salmonella, and their urine can also worsen allergies and asthma.” Rats can also directly transmit more deadly diseases like hantavirus, hemorrhagic fever, plague, and tularemia, as well as transmit many other diseases indirectly, through fleas and ticks.

God warned the Israelite-descended nations that, because of their sins and disobedience, He would use not only other nations to punish them, but also disease and beasts of the earth (Leviticus 26:14–16, 21–25; Jeremiah 15:3–4). So far, we are not witnessing a rat infestation of “biblical proportions.” However, we can see from what is happening how such a plague could easily arise in major cities around the globe, as a result of the removal of regular food sources of these rodents. To learn more about this important subject, see “Understanding the Coming Plagues of Prophecy.”—Scott Winnail and Francine Prater

UCG: 25+ years later and most members still uncomfortable sharing their beliefs with others

UCG's Mark Welch writes:

The recent 2020 congregational survey certainly indicated that many of you have had the very same emphasis in God’s Church for many years.

In response to the following statement, “I understand the fundamental truths of the Bible,” 99% of respondents “Agreed” or “Strongly Agreed.” As you may have already concluded, this was the highest percentage of agreement on the survey and could not have been much higher!

I am a bit surprised that the response was that high, but I suppose it is because the vast percentage of those who responded to the survey have been longtime members. We do put a great deal of emphasis on knowing and understanding our fundamental beliefs.

I was even a bit more surprised that 94% of respondents “Agreed” or “Strongly Agreed” with the statement, “I can explain the fundamental truths of the Bible.” I think it is wonderful that we have confidence that we are able to explain these fundamental beliefs, as the scripture says: “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed” (1 Peter 3:15-16).

Of course, how well one is able to explain our fundamental beliefs is important.

Sadly, one of the conclusions drawn from the survey is that most are confident in their ability to explain their beliefs, but few take the opportunity to do so.

It seems that many of us are reticent to engage in explaining our beliefs to others. It is not difficult to understand why that may be the case. I’m confident that many of us have attempted to do so, but we quickly realized that the person engaging us was not really interested in hearing why we believe what we believe. Instead, we found that they wanted to show us where we were wrong and not genuinely interested in considering the truth of the Bible. They already believed they knew the truth of the Bible. Moreover, before long the nice, casual conversation had become a heated, argumentative debate.

Because of one or two experiences like the one above, we may have concluded that it is best not to engage in a biblical conversation with anyone who isn’t already in God’s Church. But where is the balance? Granted, many people are more interested in debating their own beliefs and are not really open-minded to the real truth of the Bible.

One of the comments on the survey from one of our members indicated that they had a similar experience.

“We recently went through a series of Bible studies on the fundamental beliefs, which was very helpful. I do sometimes have trouble explaining to people outside the church what the Bible really teaches. This is especially true when the person I’m talking to is so dedicated to her own beliefs that she won’t believe me no matter how much scripture I can cite.”

Undoubtedly, many people fall into this category. Nevertheless, there are people out there genuinely interested in learning more about what the Bible says. And it is a very big world with billions of people!

It is not only the UCG members who feel uncomfortable sharing their faith but is common across the board in the Churches of God.  For being the one and only true church, most are not eager to share that with others.