Prophet Joel Is Back And He Is Getting Angry That Everyone Ignores Him

Herbert Armstrong never imagined that he would dream up a church with more Old Testament prophets returning to join it in the last 30 years than has happened to the entire history of the Church of God movement. We have had Moses, Elisha, Elijah, Melchizedek, Malachi, Micah, Habakkuk, Jeremiah, Zechariah, Zephaniah, Amos, and many more. 

Interestingly enough,  NO ONE has EVER claimed to be a follower of Christ that is named in the New Testament. No Matthew, Mark, Luke, Peter, Paul, John, James, Agabus, Silas, Manahen, Philip, Barnabas, or Thomas has ever decided to return to give a powerful message to the church. The problem there is that if they did then they would have to talk about the New Covenant and Jesus and that is anathema to most COG self-appointed prophets and church leaders.

Today we have the distinct privilege of having Joel in our midst. Don't get too overly excited though, Joel is actually the Great Bwana to Africa and 100 Caucasians - the most important Church of God leader since the dawn of creation! As the foundations of the world were being laid out and even before the plans for Jesus being incarnate on the earth and dying on the cross, the Great Bwana Mzungu was already being planned to return in the perilous end times and live in Arroyo Grande and have the most astounding Church of God headquarters since the Temple was built in Jerusalem! Such an amazing dude!

As usual, though, the Great Bwana Mzungu Joel is NOT happy that Church of God members ignore him and the amazing things he has to say. Just like in days of old, modern-day Laodiceans look at Bob Joel and just laugh.

The Great Bwana Mzungu Joel goes on to quote Herbert Armstrong ( as if anything he has ever said is now sacred scripture) and then goes on to say this:

The Great Bwana Mzungu Joel is really ticked off at the Laodicean COG members who should be joining up with his group in these perilous end times as a show of unity. All COG groups should immediately dump their leaders and join up with the Great Bwana Mzungu Joel along with their checkbooks.

Here is something from Joel chapter 2:

12 “Now, therefore,” says the Lord, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.” 13 So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm. 14 Who knows if He will turn and relent, And leave a blessing behind Him — A grain offering and a drink offering For the Lord your God? 

 

15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, Call a sacred assembly; 16 Gather the people, Sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and nursing babes; Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber, And the bride from her dressing room. 17 Let the priests, who minister to the Lord, Weep between the porch and the altar; Let them say, “Spare Your people, O Lord, And do not give Your heritage to reproach, That the nations should rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?'” (Joel 2:12-18) 

 

Repentance is something that Joel proclaimed was needed and that is still the case today. Notice that he was saying that all, including the religious who felt that they were God’s people, needed to repent and gather together. That gathering together is something that the Philadelphians need to do in this end time–those who do not, risk being protected from the Day of the Lord, etc. (cf. Zephaniah 2:1-3).

You read that right. Unless you join up with the Great Bwana Mzungu Joel you will NOT get into Petra with him! This, may not be a bad thing because can you imagine 3 1/2 years in the desert with Bwana Bob Mzungu as your preacher! What a hot mess that would be!

The Great Bwana Mzungu aka modern Joel then quoted this about dreams.

Here is some more of what Joel wrote in chapter 2:

28 “And it shall come to pass afterward

That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;

Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

Your old men shall dream dreams,

Your young men shall see visions.

29 And also on My menservants and on My maidservants

I will pour out My Spirit in those days.

30 “And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:

Blood and fire and pillars of smoke.

31 The sun shall be turned into darkness,

And the moon into blood,

Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. (Joel 2:28-31)

According to the Apostle Peter, there was a partial fulfillment of this (Acts 2:16) on the Day of Pentecost c. 31 A.D. (Acts 2:1).

But as verses such as verse 31 will not be fulfilled until after the start of the Great Tribulation, it is logical to conclude that God would still use dreams to sometimes convey parts of His message prior to the start of the Great Tribulation.

The Great Bwana searches high and low throughout the Bible for ANYTHING that he might remotely claim as validation for his apostasy from the Living Church of God and the setting up of his own lacking in a personality cult. The second he saw the words "dreams" his body shook in ecstasy! "That's it, by Jove! Dreams! I'll use dreams as proof of my right to start a new church to restore all the lost truth of the Bible and help usher in the end times, oh, and print hundreds and hundreds of booklets in hundreds of languages that people will only use as bird cage liners. But heck, at least I tried!"

The Great Bwana to Africa and 100 Caucasians then goes on to claim Herbert Armstrong mentioned the idea that The Great Bwana to Africa would arise in the end times. Herbert Armstrong would NEVER, NEVER have had ANYTHING to do with Bwana Bob Mzungu Thiel! No one thing, whatsoever!

The late Pastor General of the old Worldwide Church of God (WCG), Herbert W. Armstrong, basically said so in a 1981 sermon (scripture is from the KJV):

All right, now there’s another prophecy for the people … 

 

Joel 2:28-29 And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: (29) And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. 

 

So there is a time coming when God will start pouring out His spirit on human beings. … Day of Pentecost, 3000 were baptized. Peter preached a sermon. They were pricked in their hearts. God began to draw them. God was now… Remember He said, “I will pour out of my spirit on all flesh.” All right, there’s a duality of that. (Armstrong HW. Building The Temple. Sermon, February 14, 1981) 

 

Herbert W. Armstrong was correct about the time coming when God would pour out His Spirit as well as the duality (see also Does the CCOG have the confirmed signs of Acts 2:17-18?). There was a duality to what Peter preached in Acts 2–and that duality is for our current time! 

 

Perhaps it should also be mentioned that the Personal Correspondence Department in the old WCG sent out a letter on dreams and stated the Bible showed that future dreams from God to His people were expected. It then had a date change added to it and here is a quote from that one:

Thank you for your question concerning visions or dreams. The Bible reveals that in times past servants of God were given visions and dreams for specific reasons and/or to convey special messages. …God has used this means of communication in the past and will do so again (Acts 2:17; Joel 2:28) (L052 Worldwide Church of God, 1989) 

 

As the WCG did not publicly acknowledge any such dreams after that letter was sent, the interpretation must be that God would later use dreams (it should be mentioned that the original date of L052 was prior to 1986–hence it was not a change by the Tkach Administration).

The Great Bwana to Africa and 100 Caucasian uses Herbert Armstrong again as PROOF he had to start a new church.

Consider also something that Herbert W. Armstrong wrote:

This very WORK OF GOD for our day is foretold in the prophecy of Revelation 3:7-13. But there it is revealed that we, today, are a people of but little strength – little power (verse 8)! – within ourselves though we have faithfully KEPT GOD’S WORD! The impact of this WORK OF GOD today is going out only through the power of God! Are you having your part in this very WORK OF GOD? But – let’s face it! – WE DO NOT HAVE WITHIN OURSELVES, AS GOD’S INSTRUMENTS FOR HIS WORK TODAY, ANYWHERE NEAR THE POWER OF GOD THAT ACTIVATED THAT ORIGINAL FIRST-CENTURY CHURCH! For that very reason, the living Christ says (verse 8), He has opened to us the gigantic door of MASS COMMUNICATION! The magnified power of the microphone and the printing press. Yet that is only physical, mechanical power! The REAL POWER that makes God’s Work vital and alive is the Holy Spirit of God! (Armstrong HW. Christians Have Lost Their POWER! Plain Truth, Jun 1958). 

Again, it should be pointed out that Herbert Armstrong would have disfellowshipped and marked Bob Thiel for his gross heresy and grievous sinful rebellion!

The Great Bwana to Africa and 100 Caucasians Joel then ends with this:

As it turns out, dreams had been given to several people who later became part of the Continuing Church of God which were essentially fulfilled. 

 

Yet, most people (including Christians) discount that, despite God inspiring Joel to write about it and the Apostle Peter to preach about it. 

 

Laodicean Christians think they are great judges, but sadly do not believe that God has been using dreams in this century. 

 

They do not seem willing to accept those prophecies God gave to Joel. Most do not know the biblical differences between true and false leaders or the signs that GOD says He uses. 

 

Parts of Joel’s message have been at least partially fulfilled and the fulfillment of other parts will come to pass.

True Christians have always been wisely taught to use thoughtful discernment when lying self-appointed prophets like Bob Thiel claim to be instruments of GOD. This is EXACTLY the reason that 99.98% of the Church of God movement REFUSED TO join up with Bob Thiel. They know him to be a liar and a deceiver of the brethren. 

Bwana Bob Thiel is NOT Joel or a prototype of Joel or any other prophet from Biblical tradition. That is a fact and cannot be refuted. He is no Elisha or Elijah. He is not even a good minister. Stay away! Far Away!

COGWA Defines the Law

 

Well, we can all rest easy now. Church of God a Worldwide Association has finally given us the meaning of the word "law". The mental gymnastics the COG uses to claim the law is still 100% in effect for all members is astounding,

Defining the law

Fulfill can mean to complete, achieve, bring to fruition or bring about—in other words, to fill up.

What did Christ complete and fill up?

Christ brought the law to fruition by first defining what the law means and then by living the law perfectly.

Christ was a teacher. We see that by how He taught in parables. 

To His followers, the law was like an unlearned set of vocabulary words. They talked a lot about it, but didn’t fully understand its true purpose and meaning. Christ was going to teach the law by providing practical definitions of the commandments. 

If you have the vocabulary words, but no definitions, how can you know the exact meaning behind those words?

This is how Christ started fulfilling the law, by defining it.

A little later they say this:

Fulfillment of the law

Christ taught the fullness of the law that we are to follow to this day if we want to be in God’s Kingdom (Matthew 19:17). 

According to Jeremiah 31:33, the New Covenant is all about writing God’s law on our hearts and minds.  

If Christ did away with the law and prophets, Jeremiah’s New Covenant prophecy would be meaningless. There would be no law to write on the heart and mind if it were abolished by Christ.  

Christ said that if anyone teaches against the law of God, he or she will be considered least in the Kingdom. On the other hand, those who follow the law will be considered great in the Kingdom (Matthew 5:19).

Much of the world says that the law is done away with, and many follow only the laws they choose. 

As Christians, we must teach that obedience to the law was validated by Christ. We cannot teach the law the way human beings want to view it, but the way Christ actually taught it. 

He taught the fulfillment of the law through total obedience, in the letter and in the spirit.

Do we follow what Christ taught or what the world teaches now?  

This is the kind of fluff they teach their teens.

How Did Christ Fulfill the Law? 

“Paul never says, as he does of Jews, that believers in Christ rely on the law, boast about the law, know God’s will through the law, are educated in the law, have light, knowledge and truth because of the law, do, observe, keep the law, on occasion transgress the law, or possess the law as letter or a written code, as a book, as decrees, or as commandments.” Brian S. Rosner, Paul and the Law: Keeping the Commandments of God

LCG Members Constantly Being Tested About Their Faith

 

From Doug:

Trials Test our Faith: The Apostle Paul warned, “in the last days perilous times will come” (2 Timothy 3:1). Jesus wondered aloud, “when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8). When the challenges of life begin to mount, we need to remember that faith is one of the fruits of God’s Spirit (Galatians 5:22) and that God gives His Spirit to those who trust Him and obey His instructions (Acts 5:32). While we must do our part to stir up God’s Spirit to overcome our trials and fears (2 Timothy 1:6–7), we can ask God for more faith (Matthew 7:7–8). We need to remember that faith comes from hearing and studying God’s word (Romans 10:17), that God is faithful (Deuteronomy 7:9), and that He protects and preserves His faithful people (Psalm 31:1–4, 23–24). James wrote, “the testing of your faith produces patience” (James 1:2–6). When trials come, let’s remember to do our part by studying the examples of faith recorded in Hebrews 11, as we strive to please God and stay focused on His plan.
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail

What happened to Dave Pack's "We're poised, we're oiled" schtick?

 

Remember when Dave said the following in 2021 at the end of sermon 294? Here we are in 2023 and the sermon series is at 453 as of last week. Day after day, month after month, year after year, Dave still cannot get anything right. Apparently God is still hiding a secret that even Dave cannot discover, so there is not much fear  in the world finding out.

Dave states at the end of 294:

“Finally let's imagine that the kingdom of God did not come this year. Let's imagine it. This church is in a serious dilemma, and I want you to think about it. And I ran it by a half dozen ministers, and here are our options, because all of our literature currently teaches that the kingdom of God is built the way my Baptist father-in-law believes, Christ comes and builds the kingdom. All of our literature is written that way. Now here's option "Number One," Ready? Let our literature say that and it's FALSE! I've written, I don't know probably a million words about the gospel. I've got to alter those. When would I do it? We can't let it go out. It's not true! So that's option number one would just let it stay there out of the question. 

Option "Number Two," withdraw all of our literature on the subject of the gospel. The Awesome Potential of Man, What's the Kingdom. What's the True Gospel, How World Peace Will Come. And all the booklets that I wrote years ago that had been so productive. Hundreds of millions of our pieces of literature have gone out, just withdraw them and never talk about the Gospel again? Well, that's a problem because we have an open door in front of us and nobody can shut it! So we wouldn't be expected to do that. So neither of those options are realistic. Here's the third one. God says he wants to come as a "thief", as a "snare." He does not want the world to know it. He wants a little group to know it. So then what do I do? Rewrite the literature and tell the world what it appears. God does not want them to know? That's option "Number three," that doesn't sound like a very good option, but we'd have to do something, unless God revealed this extraordinary mystery that has been this series right before he intended to solve the problem Himself. Because here they are, again, leave the literature that's up--it's wrong! It was "a present truth." Mr. Armstrong taught things that were wrong and he taught all the other doctrines of God correctly. We believed them. We held to them, but I no longer could. What would our ministers counsel people who were reading booklets that are wrong? "Well, this was actually wrong, but we need to understand it should say this." Well, they'd say, if I were a prospective member, like I was 55 years ago, I'd said, "Well, why hasn't it changed?" Or the alternative? Remember, second alternative? Just cancel all that literature and never talk about the kingdom of God. Well again, no one could consider that a viable option.

And the third one is start rewriting it. Now that would even take a while. And then we would do, because the Work is booming. Make no mistake. We are booming right now! I've never seen anything like it! And we're poised to do big stuff. So what would we do just sit on that we're wonderfully positioned to explode! But then we would be telling people what God doesn't want known. So, there was no box on that list where you could check "none of the above." You got to go one of the three ways. Now I never mentioned that as a metric because I never thought of it as a metric until I came to understand the "mystery of God" is that the kingdom of God arrives in a totally different way than anybody we or anybody else ever thought.

But it's a "fact" and you've heard the proof. So the only solution it seems to me is that the kingdom has to come, or I got to choose one of those three things because I'm not going to sit back. Our "reserves are," I mean, you just can't believe how well we're doing. We never done this well! We're 22 years now and I mean, we're not going to go build more buildings. There's no time for that. What would we do? We have a wonderful staff. We don't have to spend time hiring more staff. We're well positioned. We're poised, we're oiled. We could go out and do a much bigger work, but the problem is we would be disclosing a secret God does not want it out. I don't know how I could do that in good conscience. So, God speed the day! It looks like our weight is very short for one more reason. And the "Mystery of God" has gone away in a greater way. For one more reason. Good night.

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.