Why Are Church of God Members Treated Like Adolescents?

There was an interesting comment on a Facebook page the other day about Church of God members and how they are dull to be around and how sabbath keepers are the biggest bores.

In another discussion, someone brought up the fact that most COG members have an adolescent theology.  They need to be told what to believe, how to act, and who they are to associate with.  Free thinking is NOT a hallmark of the Church of God.

Just look at the latest hysteria over Easter, April Fools Day, Halloween, Christmas, Purim and other days that send some COG leaders into fits of hysteria.  They trot out the same old silliness that Herbert Armstrong and others taught 60-70 years ago. Viewpoints dug up out of obscure books, poorly researched, and never "fact-checked" by church leaders.  Prank someone on April 1st and you are part of the synagogue of Satan.  Bob Amos Thiel can't stand April Fools Day, so he must really have been pushed over the edge to know that the younger staff at LCG HQ were pulling jokes on each other on April 1. How dare people have fun!

That adolescent mentality carries over into the latest issue of Bob Amos Thiel's rag that claims to restore the "truth once delivered."  It the latest issue he has to tell his very few members how they are to dress.  These are adults, mostly in the 50-70 years of age range and mostly black African's.  All people who know how to dress, yet apparently too stupid to know how to in Amos's sight.

Amos Thiel writes:

As far as dress for church services goes, basically, the historical Philadelphia era view has been that since we are to be God’s ambassadors and a royal priesthood, that the way one would dress as such is appropriate. This has had side benefits as well. Historically, this helped the church to be able to rent places for meetings as well as for the Feast of Tabernacles as communities feel better about those who dress in a more professional-appearing manner. 

While the Continuing Church of God (CCOG) does not mandate suits and ties, that is the normal attire for those males who attend the Feast of Tabernacles or other services in Western societies. Women normally wear skirts or dresses, and of course should not be wearing ones that are excessively short, or otherwise be dressed immodestly (1 Timothy 2:9). Immodest clothing is clothing that tends to be sexually provocative (such as being too sheer, too tight, or not covering enough skin) or intended as an excessive display of wealth (like certain outrageously-priced custom-designer items or excessive jewellery). The Bible, in Deuteronomy 22:5, also forbids what is known as ‘cross- dressing.’ 

Again, we do not mandate a suit and tie for males in CCOG, but we do believe that such dress in certain Western cultures is consistent with the scriptures that I have quoted here.

Let it also be stated that some people WANT to look poor and unkempt. Notice also the following: 

18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God. (Colossians 2:18-19)

While no one in the CCOG could be a true member if they worship angels/demons, people also need to guard against false humility.

As far as dress goes, basically we expect people wear clean clothes (not improperly sheer or tight) and dress nicely, though not more nicely than they can reasonably afford. If you are doing that, you meet what the Bible teaches (though I would add that most can afford to buy used ties, which is part of Western culture). 

Church of God members have never been given credit that they know how to think, act, and dress.  Someone mightier than they has always felt the need to tell them what to do and they do it, like adolescents.

Even the basic theology of most church members extends no further than adolescent theology.  They rely solely upon booklets, articles and sermons to get their theology from.  If the booklet or correspondence course said it, it HAS to be true. The church leaders and ministry are inspired directly by God and it is the only "truth."  Just look at the hysteria that Rod Meredith and Richard Ames gets into when LCG Members what to have Bible studies in their homes with friends.

The problem is that almost all Church of God leaders have a theology that is adolescent in belief.  They got their theological base from someone who had it passed down to them and which ultimately came from a guy who sat in a public library for six months while not supporting his family.  An entire belief system is built around books from a public library that was filled with tomes from the late 1880s.  It's a well established fact now that Herbert Armstrong was theologically bankrupt in his understanding.  While many have been able to disprove his theology with a minimum of research, most COG members still do not do that.  It's not right to question the leader because in doing so you are questioning God. Just as an adolescent isn't supposed to question their parents, COG members are not to question their leaders.

Why Does The Church of God Ignore Amos, Who Is In Our Midst?

The one thing that Armstrongism was able to do rather efficiently was give space for a myriad of men (and a couple of women) room to take on Old Testament personalities.  Over the decades we have seen men declare themselves Abraham, David, Joshua, Elijah, Habakkuk, and the Two Witnesses. Not once did they ever try to emulate Jesus Christ.

Prophets and sages galore have run off at the mouth over the decades with one failed prophecy after another. From Herbert Armstrong to Gerald Waterhouse; Rod Meredith to Dave Pack; Gerald Flurry to Richard Ames, very single thing these men have predicted has failed to come to pass.  One lie after another.

Now we are blessed with Amos in our midst.  Though this false prophet doesn't come out and directly say he is Amos, he implies it.  This lying false prophet has a unique way of manipulating his readers into believing he is talk about himself even though he never directly claims he is.  This lying false prophet is Bob Thiel, or Amos if you want to call him that.

The doubly cursed agent of deception writes:

Amos was a prophet of God, but will you pay attention to the message?

Here is some information about him from Wikipedia: 

Amos, an older contemporary of Hosea and Isaiah,[1] was active c. 750 BC during the reign of Jeroboam II,[1] (786–746 BC) making the Book of Amos the first biblical prophetic book written. Amos lived in the kingdom of Judah but preached in the northern kingdom of Israel. (Book of Amos. viewed 02/22/2014)

Before becoming a prophet, Amos was a sheep herder and a sycamore fig farmer. Amos’ prior professions and his claim “I am not a prophet nor a son of a prophet” (7:14) indicate that Amos was not from the school of prophets, which Amos claims makes him a true prophet (7:14). His prophetic career began in 750 BCE out of the town of Tekoa, in Judah, south of Jerusalem. (Amos the Prophet, viewed 02/22/2014)

It is interesting that he had to tell people that one becomes a true prophet in a manner that most did not expect. The Apostle Paul attempted to defend his apostleship that type of way (2 Corinthians 11:5, 22-29)–and that was to people who were supposedly in the Church of God.

So just who is the wanna-be Amos being talked about here?  Who is the only true prophet today that the people do not expect to be?  What group of people ignore this modern day Amos?  Who ridicule and revile him? Its the brethren's fault, as usual. Church of God members and ex-members.

No one expected Bob Thiel to be "double blessed."  No one expected him to stab Rod Meredith in the back, but he did.  Bob Thiel is the man of the unexpected.

Bob Amos Thiel continues:

One of the messages that Amos proclaimed is that the time would come when people would not be able to find the words of God: 

11 “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord God,
“That I will send a famine on the land,
Not a famine of bread,
Nor a thirst for water,
But of hearing the words of the Lord.
12 They shall wander from sea to sea,
And from north to east;
They shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the Lord,
But shall not find it. (Amos 8:11-12)

I believe that the above warning is a reference to a coming internet censorship. And in the Continuing Church of God, we have already experienced some of this (see Letter to the Brethren: January 14, 2016).

What so-called "persecution" has the lying prophet received?  YouTube took down one of his malignant videos.  Because of that extreme persecution has hit the Church of God.  The end is truly here!  Brethren wake up!!!!!

Bob Amos Thiel then finishes with this:

Amos is giving a warning to those called by Jacob’s name (which was also Israel), whom according to Jacob himself, would seem to be a reference to the descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh (Genesis 48:16). In modern times, this would be the Anglo-Saxon nations such as Canada, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand, and also the United States of America. The reference to trusting Mt. Samaria in Amos 6:1 could be a reference to trusting the USA to defend in the end. That will not end well for the USA or its allies of the Anglo-Saxon nations. 

Of course, few in those nations believe that they will be taken over and have such calamity. But that will come to pass. Most would not listen to Amos then, and most, sadly, will not listen to Amos now.

Amos Thiel is the ONLY true doubly blessed prophet on the earth today.  His is the ONLY Church of God doing anything of significance, even though an infinitesimal percentage of the world's population has ever heard of the deceiver.   A few hundred in the poor regions of Africa and a few hundred white Americans.

Oh but I keep forgetting,  a prophet is always without honor in his own country.

Living Church of God Shuts Down Hawaiian Feast Site: Jim Meredith Left Devastated

For a quite some time now we have been receiving information about Jimmy Meredith's intense fascination with Hawaii.  He had been spending many vacations in Hawaii at his own expense, but once he talked his daddy into making him a festival coordinator, he quickly assigned himself to handle the Feast site in Hawaii. Of course thus was all done at tithe payers expense. First class hotels beckoned to Jimmy as he spent countless days checking out their amenities in order to give LCG members a full report.

LCG members have been complaining for a long time now about Jimmy's lavish spending and escapades in Hawaii while on LCG's payroll.  As members struggled to pay their hotel room rates in lesser quality accommodations, Jimmy was staying in $300.00 plus resort rooms.

Those days are now gone.  As LCG's income continues to decline, what's Lil'Jimmy gonna do??????

A surprising omission from LCG’s list is Hawaii, organized by Roderick Meredith’s son, James. Neither has James been allocated another site, and in August his job as his father’s assistant will come to an end, when Gerald Weston takes over the rulership of LCG. He will then be left with only the winter festival to organize.

Not only did Living Church of God pulling out of Hawaii; COGWA and UCG are too.

COGWA has also pulled out of Hawaii, and its venue, the $300+ per night Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel, has been taken over by UCG - who will require on registration a non-refundable deposit of $325 plus $8 online processing fee per room. UCG will not be hosting a festival site in Hawaii next year. Church of God News

These three groups must preparing to join Davey Pack in Wadsworth for the next Feast.  Davey has prophesied that, so it HAS to be happening.